NFL Player News

Phillips agreed to a contract Wednesday with the Panthers, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Phillips will be reunited in Carolina with quarterback P.J. Walker, who also played for the Houston Roughnecks in the XFL this past spring. The Walker-to-Phillips connection was the deadliest quarterback/wideout combination in the league, with the 25-year-old Phillips leading the XFL in catches (31), receiving yards (455) and touchdowns (nine) over his five games. Despite that impressive production, Phillips will have a tough time earning a roster spot after joining Carolina midway through training camp.

Beckham reports he's "definitely feeling a lot better" this preseason than he did in 2019, Anthony Poisal of the Browns' official site reports.

Beckham has made a few athletic catches during camp, including a snatch of a deep ball while out-jumping double coverage. "It was a heck of a play by Odell," offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt said. "We are going to give Odell and those receivers as many chances. That was one of the ones that stands out, but there have been three or four more in practice where we just give those guys a chance to catch the ball, put it in play and give them opportunities to make a play." Beckham was obviously hampered in 2019 by a core injury that limited him to a career-low in yards per game (64.7). A healthy Beckham will have a big role even if the team leans more on Nick Chubb and the running attack.

Wesley signed a contract with the Bears on Tuesday, Larry Mayer of the team's official site reports.

Wesley spent time with the Bears' practice squad last year and was cut by the team in July, but he's getting a second chance. The 24-year-old wide receiver posted 57 receptions for 1,050 yards and four touchdowns in his senior collegiate season at Northern Colorado in 2018. He'll likely need to make an impact on special teams to secure a roster spot.

Grant did not practice Tuesday due to a minor undisclosed injury, Barry Jackson of the Miami Harold reports.

Grant and Isaiah Ford have spent camp in competition for the No. 3 receiver gig since Allen Hurns and Albert Wilson each decided to opt out of the 2020 campaign. Ford would likely benefit from an uptick in reps in the event that Grant were to miss significant time, but it doesn't appear that his injury will hold him out for long. Rookie seventh-round pick Malcolm Perry has also been handling limited reps out of the slot.

Slayton (undisclosed) returned to practice Tuesday, Dan Duggan of The Athletic reports.

Slayton didn't participate in Monday's session, after which coach Joe Judge said that "trainers are dealing with him," per Zack Rosenblatt of The Newark Star-Ledger. Now back in action, Slayton can continue building toward his second season after putting up a 48-740-8 line on 84 targets as a rookie in 2019.

Coach Kyle Shanahan called Aiyuk "week-to-week" due to a mild left hamstring strain, Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com reports.

Prior to suffering the injury at Sunday's practice, Aiyuk was thoroughly impressing in camp. He may have been helped by the absence of Deebo Samuel (foot) and others in the receiving corps, but the rookie first-round pick's performance on the field was helping to put himself on the fantasy radar. Now, Aiyuk will focus on his recovery with the aim of getting healthy by the 49ers' regular-season opener Sept. 13 versus the Cardinals.

Claypool has been consistently impressive at training camp, according to Mark Kaboly of The Athletic.

The rookie's teammates seem to agree, with TE Eric Ebron tweeting that Claypool will be "a PROBLEM in this league," while LB Keith Davis noted that the second-round pick has bounced back after struggling with drops early in camp (per Dale Lolley of DKPittsburghSports.com). In fantasy terms, Claypool has generally been viewed as more of a stash/prospect, given that he only had one big season at Notre Dame and was then drafted by a team with JuJu Smith-Schuster, Diontae Johnson (undisclosed) and James Washington already on the depth chart. It's still true that the path to snaps and targets appears difficult, but Claypool could force his way into the picture, or an injury could open something up. For what it's worth, Johnson had sports hernia surgery this past winter and has been held out of practice for undisclosed reasons since the middle of last week.

Reed practiced with the running backs Monday, Gilbert Manzano of The Orange County Register reports.

The rookie fifth-round pick has a running-back body at 6-foot, 224 pounds, but he primarily worked as a wide receiver and kick return specialist in college, finishing his UVA career with 129 receptions, 106 kick returns and only 34 carries. In terms of his short-term fantasy prospects, Reed might actually be more promising at wide receiver, where the Chargers appear desperate for depth behind Keenan Allen and a banged-up Mike Williams (shoulder).

Coach Matt Nagy said he isn't too worried about Robinson's ankle injury, Jeff Dickerson of ESPN.com reports.

Robinson has been held out of practice since Sunday with what's believed to be a minor ankle injury. He's entering the final season of a three-year contract, and his 2019 performance would seem to make him a prime candidate for an extension, even though the Bears already have a slew of significant financial commitments for 2021 and beyond. Robinson finished last season No. 3 in targets (154) and No. 5 in target share (27 percent), posting a 63.6 percent catch rate and 7.4 YPT in an offense that completed 64.0 percent of its passes for 6.2 YPA. He accounted for 32.1 percent of the Bears' receiving yards and 35.0 percent of their receiving TDs (seven of 20).

Williams is expected to be out 2-to-4 weeks due to a sprained shoulder, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.

With such a timeline, Williams' availability for Week 1 in Cincinnati could be in peril, which is backed up by comments from coach Anthony Lynn earlier Tuesday. Per Daniel Popper of The Athletic, Lynn said Williams is "out for awhile" and may not be ready for the opener. The Chargers will take a wait-and-see approach with the fourth-year wideout, and in the meantime the likes of Jalen Guyton and Joe Reed seem poised to work on the outside in Williams' place.