NFL Player News

Slayton caught two of eight targets for 26 yards in Sunday's 27-13 loss to the Ravens.

Slayton finished with at least seven targets for the ninth time this season, but he recorded a measly 3.25 yards per target in this contest as he and Daniel Jones failed to connect on a consistent basis. He'll look to finish the season strong next week against the Cowboys, whom he put up an 8-129-0 line against in Week 5.

The Falcons signed Dortch to the practice squad Monday.

Dortch played two games for the Panthers last season as an undrafted rookie, yet he hasn't logged any action this year. With Julio Jones dealing with a hamstring injury, he'll add depth at wide receiver for the Falcons to finish the year.

Grant sustained a high-ankle sprain during Saturday's 26-25 win over the Raiders and is expected to miss Week 17, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

The timing of Grant's injury is inopportune for the Dolphins. With DeVante Parker (hamstring) coming off back-to-back absences and Preston Williams (foot) still on IR, the team could be without its top three wideouts heading into a Week 17 road game against the Bills. Rapoport called Grant a candidate for IR and said that he'll miss the regular-season finale, but the Dolphins themselves haven't yet officially ruled the 28-year-old out.

Coach Ron Rivera said Monday that McLaurin is nursing a high-ankle sprain, Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post reports.

Rivera noted that McLaurin suffered the injury while making a catch Week 15 against Seattle, per John Keim of ESPN.com, and he's been sidelined since. The second-year wideout is currently in a walking boot, and he was forced to spectate this past weekend's 20-13 loss to the Panthers from the booth rather than on the sidelines because team doctors recommended he not stand. High-ankle sprains often require a multi-week recovery timetable, making McLaurin's status for Week 17's must-win road game against the Eagles murky.

Jones was not targeted in Saturday's 26-25 loss to the Dolphins.

Jones saw his involvement in the Raiders' offense evaporate with fellow receiver Henry Ruggs returning from his one-week absence on the reserve/COVID list. Jones finished the contest with a single-digit snap count, and his irrelevance in most fantasy formats should continue Week 17 against the Broncos.

St. Brown hauled in his only target for a 21-yard touchdown pass in Sunday's victory over the Titans.

St. Brown was targeted only once in Sunday's contest, but he made the most of the opportunity, finding paydirt for the first time in his career. He was the only Packers wideout besides Davante Adams to do anything of note in Week 16, but St. Brown still finished a distant fourth among players at his position in snaps played, and was on the field for just one more play than fifth wideout Tavon Austin.

Valdes-Scantling was not targeted in Sunday's victory over the Titans.

Valdes-Scantling played just as many snaps (41) as Allen Lazard and just six fewer than Davante Adams, but he was limited to decoy duty in Week 16 as the downfield passing game was impacted by snowy conditions. Valdes-Scantling has had his moments this season, and he racked up 85 yards and a score as recently as Week 14. However, he also finished without a reception in four of the Packers' last five contests, including the team's Week 12 victory over the Bears. Valdes-Scantling and the Packers will face that same Chicago team in their regular-season finale next weekend.

Lazard caught both his targets for 14 yards in Sunday's victory over the Titans.

Lazard was on the field for just 62 percent of the plays the Packers' offense ran Sunday, but he essentially handled a full workload, as the 41 snaps he saw were just six fewer than any other skill player on the roster. While he spent plenty of time on the field, he was not very involved as a receiver, and his 14 yards were his fewest in a game this season. Lazard will close out the regular season against the Bears, a team that has allowed opposing wideouts to find the end zone 11 times over its last seven games.

Gage secured four of five targets for 23 yards during Sunday's 17-14 loss to Kansas City.

He equaled Hayden Hurst for second in targets behind Calvin Ridley's team high of nine, but Gage was held under 50 receiving yards for the first time over his past four outings. The 24-year-old had established himself as a high-floor fantasy option of late with four or more catches in four straight games, adding two receiving scores and a 39-yard passing touchdown between Weeks 13 and 15. Sunday's outing, however, represented his second-lowest receiving yards total since Week 5. The Falcons will now face off against the Buccaneers to close out 2020, an opponent against whom Gage accumulated five catches for 68 yards and a TD when the NFC South rivals last played Dec. 20.

Brown (ankle) had four receptions (eight targets) for 43 yards in Sunday's 40-14 loss to the Packers.

The Titans' aerial attack sputtered in the snowy conditions at Lambeau Field, resulting in just 121 total passing yards. Brown also had to deal with a tough matchup against Jaire Alexander for most of the contest, and the cold weather probably didn't help the ankle injury he had been battling recently. The stars just weren't aligned for the breakout receiver to have one of his usual strong fantasy performances. Brown will be in prime position to have a bounce-back performance next week when the Titans take on the Texans in a dome. The 23-year-old hit pay dirt twice against Houston when the two clubs met back in Week 6.