NFL Player News

Thomas (foot) was a non-participant at Thursday's practice, Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football reports.

With back-to-back absences on his ledger this week, Thomas seems to be trending toward another DNP on Sunday versus the Seahawks. He does have one more chance to practice this week, but if he sits out again Friday, the Saints may rule him out for Week 5 action. Elsewhere in the receiving corps, Jarvis Landry logged another limited session Thursday, putting him in a better spot to join Chris Olave and Marquez Callaway as the team's primary wide receivers this weekend.

Higgins (ankle) was a limited participant at Thursday's practice, Geoff Hobson of the Bengals' official site reports.

The Bengals haven't yet sounded the alarm about the possibility of Higgins sitting out Sunday's game against the Ravens, but the wideout has had his reps capped for two straight days while he manages the ankle injury. He may need to take part in Friday's practice as a full participant to avoid taking an injury designation into the weekend.

Jones (ankle) was a limited participant in Thursday's practice.

After sitting out the Jaguars' Week 4 loss to Philadelphia, Jones has now had his reps capped in both of Jacksonville's first two practice sessions of Week 5. According to Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com, head coach Doug Pederson expressed optimism that Jones will be ready to play Sunday against the Texans, but the wideout will likely need to upgrade to full practice participation Friday to head into the weekend without an injury designation.

Chark (ankle) practiced in a limited fashion Thursday.

After missing one practice and participating in a limited fashion twice last week, Chark was expected to play this past Sunday against the Seahawks before the Lions ruled him out a day in advance of the game. This time around, he mixed into drills Thursday after sitting out Wednesday, which also happened for fellow wide receiver Josh Reynolds (ankle) and tight end T.J. Hockenson (hip). Meanwhile, Amon-Ra St. Brown (ankle) and D'Andre Swift (shoulder/ankle) have yet to practice this week, so Chark could be on pace for a significant snap count Sunday in New England if he's able to get rid of his designation ahead of a 1 p.m. ET kickoff. For his part, Chark said Wednesday that his ankle feels "times 10" better than it did a week earlier, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press reports.

Hill (quad) was listed as limited at practice Thursday, Travis Wingfield of the Dolphins' official site reports.

Hill's addition to Miami's injury report after practicing fully Wednesday makes his status worth tracking in advance of Sunday's game against the Jets. Also limited Thursday was Jaylen Waddle (groin), which sets the stage for Friday's final injury report to provide added clarity with regard the health of the team's Week 5 wideout corps, which will be catching passes from Teddy Bridgewater with Tua Tagovailoa (concussion/back/ankle) out this weekend.

Waddle (groin) was a limited practice participant Thursday, Travis Wingfield of the Dolphins' official site reports.

Though he's not out of the woods just yet, Waddle's return to practice in some capacity after sitting out Wednesday's session is a good sign for his chances of suiting up Sunday against the Jets. If he's able to upgrade to full activity Friday, Waddle will likely enter the weekend without an injury designation and shouldn't face any restrictions with his snap count. He will, however, be catching passes from a new starting quarterback in Week 5, as Teddy Bridgewater is filling in for Tua Tagovailoa while the latter signal-caller is in the NFL's concussion protocol.

Johnson (hip) was limited at Thursday's practice, Teresa Varley of the Steelers' official site reports.

Johnson practiced fully Wednesday, so his addition to the injury report Thursday is notable. That said, Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette relays that the wideout, who is dealing with some soreness coming out of Week 4 action, indicates that he'll be available for Sunday's game against the Bills. Friday's final injury report will reveal whether Johnson heads into the weekend with an injury designation or fully cleared to play.

Shenault (hamstring), who has been a non-participant in the Panthers' first two Week 5 practices, said Thursday that he anticipates missing a couple of weeks, Joe Person of The Athletic reports.

Head coach Matt Rhule hasn't provided a gauge for Shenault's chances of playing Sunday against the 49ers, but given that players are notoriously more optimistic about their return timelines from injuries than coaches, the 24-year-old's negative assessment of his health is noteworthy. Assuming Shenault ends up sitting out for at least the Panthers' Week 5 game, Shi Smith would likely be relatively unchallenged for the No. 3 role at receiver behind DJ Moore and Robbie Anderson. The other two healthy wideouts on the Carolina roster -- Rashard Higgins and Terrace Marshall -- have combined to play 14 snaps through the Panthers' first four games.

Lamb didn't practice Thursday due to a groin injury, Jon Machota of The Athletic reports.

After avoiding the injury report Wednesday, Lamb made an appearance one day later. While he didn't take part in any drills Thursday, he was spotted during the open portion of practice in the Cowboys' rehab group stretching and working with resistance cords with the training staff, according to Michael Gehlken of The Dallas Morning News. Afterward, Lamb told Todd Archer of ESPN.com that he's "fine," and "we're good...I don't want to scare nobody." In the end, Lamb could be proven correct if he avoids a game-day designation heading into the weekend, but for the time being his status should be monitored closely in advance of Sunday's game at the Rams.

Robinson (knee) was a limited participant in Thursday's practice, Ralph Vacchiano of Fox Sports reports.

Even though Robinson's "limited" listing matched his level of participation at Wednesday's practice, Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post described the rookie wideout as having an "active day" Thursday during the portion of the session that was open to the media. At the very least, Robinson looks poised to join the Giants on their flight to London later Thursday before practicing in some capacity Friday. If Robinson can upgrade to full participation, he'll be in good position to play Sunday against the Packers, but even another limited showing might be enough for the Giants to sign off on him returning from a three-game absence.