NFL Player News

Samuel (groin) was a non-participant at Thursday's practice, Ben Standig of The Athletic reports.

Samuel hasn't practiced since aggravating his nagging groin injury Week 5 against the Saints. The issue has limited the wide receiver to just two of a possible seven games so far this season. On a semi-positive note, he was working on a side field during the portion of Wednesday's session open to the media, per John Keim of ESPN.com, but it remains to be seen if Samuel is able to avoid another stint on injured reserve.

McLaurin (hamstring) practiced in full Thursday, Ben Standig of The Athletic reports.

McLaurin was a late addition to Washington's Week 6 practice report due to a hamstring issue, which has followed him into Week 8 prep. Still, he's played the last two games en route to a combined 11-150-1 line on 20 targets against the Chiefs and Packers. With his hamstring injury seemingly not a concern, McLaurin will continue to act as the Football Team's No. 1 wide receiver Sunday in Denver.

Valdes-Scantling (hamstring) is trending toward an absence for Thursday's game at Arizona, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com reports.

If the preceding comes to pass, the Packers will be without their top three wide receivers, as both Davante Adams and Allen Lazard are on the reserve/COVID-19 list and slated to be unavailable as well. Valdes-Scantling is in the later stages of his recovery from a hamstring injury and has missed the requisite three games while on IR, but it appears Green Bay will wait another week before bringing him back to the active roster. With the aforementioned trio out, the Packers' wide receiving corps will be comprised of Randall Cobb, Equanimeous St. Brown, Malik Taylor and Amari Rodgers on Thursday.

Smith (headache) returned to practice Thursday,Dave Zangaro of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.

A headache caused Smith to sit out Wednesday's session, but his return to practice Thursday suggests that the wideout is on track to play Sunday against the Lions. The Eagles' upcoming practice report will clarify whether Smith was limited or practiced fully Thursday.

Shepard (hamstring) was present for Thursday's practice, Tom Rock of Newsday reports.

Thursday's injury report will reveal Shepard's participation level, but that fact that he's practicing is a positive indicator with regard to the wideout's chances of returning to action Monday night against Kansas City. Shepard was a game-time decision for this past Sunday's win over the Panthers and ultimately was made inactive for the contest, but at this stage he appears to be trending in the right direction ahead of Week 8 action.

Adams (illness) didn't clear the NFL's COVID-19 health and safety protocols Thursday morning and won't be activated ahead of the Packers' Week 8 game in Arizona, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

After Adams was revealed Monday to have tested positive for the virus, his status as a vaccinated player still gave him a slim chance to clear the protocol prior to Thursday's 8:20 p.m. ET kickoff. Adams' odds of playing took another hit when he didn't fly with the team to Arizona on Wednesday, but he could have arranged private travel Thursday if he submitted a second negative COVID-19 test result 24 hours after the first negative test. Evidently, Adams wasn't able to do that, leaving the Packers without their top receiver in Week 8, as well as No. 2 wideout Allen Lazard, who is also on the reserve/COVID-19 list. Meanwhile, fellow wideout Marquez Valdes-Scantling (hamstring) hasn't been ruled out from making his return from injured reserve Thursday, though he would likely be available for only a limited role after not practicing this week. With that in mind, the Packers look poised to head into Thursday with receivers Randall Cobb and Equanimeous St. Brown, tight end Robert Tonyan and running back Aaron Jones as QB Aaron Rodgers' top pass-catching options.

Hopkins (hamstring) is expected to play Thursday night against the Packers, barring any pre-game setbacks, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

The wideout is officially listed as questionable for the contest after being listed as a non-participant on the Cardinals' posted Week 8 practice/injury reports, but he nonetheless appears on track to suit up. Official confirmation of his availability will arrive upon the release of inactives prior to Thursday night's 8:20 p.m. ET kickoff.

The Saints placed Humphrey on the reserve/COVID-19 list Wednesday, Field Yates of ESPN reports.

The 23-year-old tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday and will have to submit two negative tests at least 24 hours apart before he's eligible to be activated. After being a healthy scratch for three games in a row, Humphrey dressed in Monday's win over the Seahawks, but he failed to record a reception across his 11 offensive snaps.

Snead signed a deal to join the Panthers' practice squad Wednesday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Snead will join Carolina after asking for a release from the Raiders. The wide receiver requested the release after receiving much less playing time than he anticipated. Now in Carolina, Snead will hope to be promoted to the Panthers' 53-man roster as soon as possible. The receiver will fill a depth role barring any injuries to the Panthers' wide receivers.

Eskridge (concussion) is expected to return to Seattle on Wednesday and potentially practice Thursday, John Boyle of the Seahawks' official site reports.

Eskridge has been away from the team recently to take part in a visual training program in Florida, after experiencing some side effects of the concussion he sustained Week 1. The rookie second-round pick apparently is in "great shape and ready to go," per head coach Pete Carroll, but it's unclear where Eskridge currently stands in the NFL's concussion protocol. If he's back on the practice field Thursday or Friday -- to do so, the Seahawks must first designate him to return from injured reserve -- Eskridge may not have enough time to complete the final phases and get cleared for Sunday's game versus the Jaguars. Still, he seems to be rounding into shape after missing six consecutive contests.