NFL Player News

Mooney (groin) was limited at Wednesday's practice.

Mooney has been a regular on Bears injury reports this season, first with a back issue and now a groin injury. The latter concern has lingered into a third consecutive week of prep, but he's coming off his most productive performance of the season this past Sunday, when he hauled in five of seven passes for 125 yards in a win over the Lions. Assuming he gets through this week unscathed as well, Mooney will look to continue to his recent success with Justin Fields under center moving forward.

Westbrook-Ikhine didn't practice Wednesday due to a hamstring injury, Jim Wyatt of the Titans' official site reports.

Westbrook-Ikhine is one of three Tennessee wideouts dealing with hamstring injuries, and while Julio Jones was also sidelined, A.J. Brown returned to practice in a limited capacity. If Westbrook-Ikhine moves past his hamstring issue in advance of Sunday's game against the Jaguars, his fantasy prospects will be tied to the availability of Jones and Brown, the Titans' top two wideouts, when healthy.

Brown (hamstring) logged a limited practice Wednesday, Jim Wyatt of the Titans' official site reports.

Brown, who didn't play in Week 4 against the Jets, seems to be headed in the right direction as Sunday's game against the Jaguars approaches. Meanwhile fellow wideouts Julio Jones (hamstring) and Nick Westbook-Ikhine (hamstring) were unable to practice Wednesday. In order for Brown to avoid taking an injury designation into Sunday, he'll presumably need to log at least one full practice by the end of the week.

Higgins (shoulder) was a limited participant Wednesday in his return to practice, Jay Morrison of The Athletic reports.

Higgins looks tentatively on track for a return this Sunday against the Packers, which aligns with a recent report from Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com. Injury reports Thursday and Friday still need to be watched closely, as Higgins' return from a two-game absence is no foregone conclusion at this early stage of the week.

Broncos head coach Vic Fangio confirmed Wednesday that Jeudy (ankle) is hoping to return at the front end of a 6-to-8-week recovery timeline, Jeff Legwold of ESPN.com reports.

Jeudy reportedly is making good progress, but the initial 4-to-6-week recovery timeline he received when he initially suffered the high-ankle sprain in mid-September may have been too aggressive all along. James Palmer of NFL Network mentions Week 7 against the Browns as Jeudy's possible return date, though it might make sense for the Broncos to wait until Week 8, as that would give the wideout another 10 days to prepare, given that Denver and Cleveland play on Thursday night Week 7. Either way, Jeudy is expected to remain on injured reserve for Weeks 5 and 6, leaving Courtland Sutton and Tim Patrick as Denver's top wide receivers.

Gage (ankle) didn't practice Wednesday, Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com reports.

He's in danger of missing a third straight game when the Falcons take on the Jets on Sunday. Olamide Zaccheaus has been filling in as the No. 2 receiver for Atlanta.

Smith-Schuster (ribs) was a limited practice participant Wednesday, Brooke Pryor of ESPN.com reports.

He played through the same injury last week and played 95 percent of the Steelers' offensive snaps in a 27-17 loss to Green Bay, catching two passes for 11 yards on eight targets. Smith-Schuster should be fine to play again this Sunday against Denver, but he's averaging just 8.6 yards per catch for the second year in a row, and this time it isn't coming with steady volume. He's seen eight, seven, four and eight targets in four games.

Moore (concussion) was limited at practice Wednesday, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com reports.

Per Cimini, Moore -- who has cleared the NFL's concussion protocol -- looks good in terms of his availability for Sunday's game against the Falcons, but the rookie wideout will presumably need to practice fully in order to head into the weekend minus an injury designation. If he's cleared to play versus Atlanta, Moore and Keelan Cole will contend for snaps behind the team's top two receiver options, Corey Davis and Jamison Crowder.

Metcalf (foot) doesn't have a designation for Thursday's game versus the Rams, John Boyle of the Seahawks' official site reports.

Wednesday's practice report marked the fifth in a row in which Metcalf was listed as a limited participant due to a foot issue. Still, he was able to suit up Week 4 and will do so again Thursday. The Seahawks may be without Chris Carson in Week 5 with the running back dealing with a sore neck, so the game plan could be a bit more aerial-based than normal. On the season, Metcalf has been his typical productive self, churning out 20 catches (on 33 targets) for 285 yards and three touchdowns in four contests.

Claypool (hamstring) returned to a limited practice Wednesday, Brooke Pryor of ESPN.com reports.

Claypool was unable to practice this past Friday before being ruled out ahead of Sunday's loss to the Packers, but his return to the field Wednesday has him trending in the right direction as the Steelers' Week 5 game against the Broncos approaches. Per Pryor, the wideout sounds hopeful to play this weekend, though he'll probably need to practice fully Thursday or Friday in order to avoid taking an injury designation into Sunday.