NFL Player News

Cobb will count $8.47 million against the 2021 salary cap if the Packers or another team trades for him under the terms of his current contract, Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

PFN's Trey Wingo sparked rumors of a Cobb/Packers reunion with his suggestion Monday that QB Aaron Rodgers' return to the team might hinge on such an acquisition. (Rodgers has since reported to training camp.) While it's unlikely a Cobb trade would actually be a make-or-break issue, it is possible Rodgers asked the team to make it happen. The Texans have two other slot receivers with significant NFL experience in Keke Coutee and Anthony Miller -- the latter being a recent trade addition and a 2018 second-round pick. Cobb's guaranteed $8.25 million base salary makes things tricky, but the Texans would be foolish not to at least listen to offers for the soon-to-be 31-year-old.

Toney rejoined the Giants on Tuesday after recently testing positive for COVID-19, Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com reports.

Toney missed the rookie reporting date last week when he was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list, but he's back with his teammates Tuesday as veterans report to camp. The first-round pick figures to take most of his reps with the backups this summer, while Kenny Golladay, Sterling Shepard and Darius Slayton will handle most of the snaps with QB Daniel Jones.

The Saints moved Thomas (ankle) to the preseason PUP list Monday, Field Yates of ESPN reports.

Thomas is expected to be sidelined through September, so this move was expected to occur for training camp. Barring an acceleration of his timeline, he may sit on the list throughout camp and the preseason and be a candidate to open the regular season on the PUP list as well. Tre'Quan Smith figures to headline the Saints' wide receiver corps in his absence, with Deonte Harris, Marquez Callaway and newly-signed Chris Hogan potentially factoring in.

Following the expected restructure of Aaron Rodgers' contract, Adams has indicated he's willing to discuss a new contract with the Packers, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Adams and the Packers broke off negotiations for an extension less than a week ago after things grew stale, but the reported new Rodgers deal seems to have spurred the star wideout's willingness to get things back on track. Adams figures to snare a new deal among the top-paid wideouts in the league when he signs on the dotted line as he enters the last season of a four-year, $58.96 million contract with the Packers that he signed in late 2017.

The Rams placed Atwell (undisclosed) on the reserve/COVID-19 list Monday.

Atwell's rookie training camp will get a late start because of the move, putting him behind the eight ball in terms of learning everything he needs prior to his debut season. He'll have to play catch-up with the other rookies and teammates once he's cleared from the list and also may have a tough time finding the field consistently as part of a deep wide receiver group that also includes Robert Woods, Cooper Kupp, DeSean Jackson and Van Jefferson.

Humphrey is a candidate for early season snaps in the absence of Michael Thomas (ankle), Katherine Terrell of The Athletic reports.

The Saints have a number of candidates to see expanded roles in Thomas' absence, starting with Tre'Quan Smith, Marquez Callaway, Deonte Harris and Kawaan Baker. However, at 6-foot-4 and 225 pounds, Humphrey certainly is a bigger asset as a blocker in the run game than many of them. However, even if Humphrey does find a way to work himself onto the field during the regular season, his upside as a fantasy contributor is low considering his 4.75-second 40 time from the 2019 NFL Combine was slowest among all wide receivers from that year's draft class.

Baker has an opportunity to see snaps early in the season with Michael Thomas (ankle) expected to miss at least the first four games, Katherine Terrell of The Athletic reports.

While Tre'Quan Smith is primed to hold down the No. 1 role in Thomas' absence, Marquez Callaway and Deonte Harris are the favorites to handle the No. 2 and 3 roles behind him. However, nothing is set in stone, and Baker easily could push Callaway and Harris for some sort of offensive role during training camp. In fact, if Baker can impress the coaching staff during this window of opportunity, it's not impossible that the South Alabama product is involved in the offense all season long.

Claypool says "things are getting easier" for him in the NFL, Teresa Varley of steelers.com reports.

Claypool opened his rookie season on the bench before scoring four touchdowns in his first NFL start Week 5 against Philadelphia. He had just one more 100-yard game the rest of the year, but he finished with nine receiving TDs and two rushing TDs, later adding two more scores in the playoff loss to Cleveland. The 23-year-old enters his second pro season listed as a starter on the Pittsburgh depth chart, alongside fellow wide receivers Diontae Johnson and JuJu Smith-Schuster. Each of the three is a viable candidate to lead the team in targets, with Claypool standing to benefit most if Ben Roethlisberger rediscovers his deep ball. Either way, the young wideout is confident he'll improve his route running and releases, making him a factor on short and intermediate routes in addition to the more valuable downfield and red-zone work.

Lazard will compete for snaps with fellow wide receivers Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Amari Rodgers and Devin Funchess, Wes Hodkiewicz of packers.com reports.

Any contribution from Funchess would be a welcome surprise, but even the addition of just Rodgers -- a rookie third-round pick -- gives the Packers a little more depth than they had last year. Despite averaging fewer than five targets per week apiece, Lazard and Valdes-Scantling both played more than 70 percent of offensive snaps in their active games last season, as the Packers had little else behind target-hog Davante Adams. Lazard did have 254 yards and two TDs over the first three weeks of last season before his core muscle injury and subsequent surgery, so he should be right in the mix for the No. 2 job this summer.

Callaway's role is expected to increase in the absence of Michael Thomas (ankle), Adam Caplan of SiriusXM Radio reports.

Tre'Quan Smith seems firmly established as the Saints' top receiver in the absence of Thomas, who is expected to be sidelined for at least the first month of the season. Meanwhile, Callaway and Deonte Harris appear like the clear favorites to fill the No. 2 and 3 jobs behind him. While it's too soon to tell which guy may be the more prominent fantasy contributor once the regular season rolls around, it seems like the Saints have confidence in both of them given how little the team did to make any significant investments at the position this offseason.