NFL Player News

Smith-Schuster didn't look to be involved in the portion of Thursday's practice that was open to the media, Brooke Pryor of ESPN.com reports. "I don't know about the injury, but I know that we've all kind of had the sniffles and the cold stuff going on, me included. I wouldn't speak on the injury aspect of it," offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner said, when asked if a health-related reason was behind Smith-Schuster's lack of activity.

Smith-Schuster dealt with a toe issue earlier this season, but he avoided the Steelers' injury report entirely ahead of the Week 6 win over the Chargers and didn't suffer any reported setbacks heading into the Week 7 bye. With that in mind, the wideout may be dealing with an unrelated injury or illness, but clarity on that front may not arrive until the Steelers release their first practice report of Week 8 after Thursday's session concludes. If available, Smith-Schuster will benefit from a juicy matchup against the winless Dolphins on Monday Night Football this week, as well as the return of Mason Rudolph (concussion) under center in place of Week 6 starter Devlin Hodges.

Assistant head coach Raheem Morris said Thursday that Gage has received the first crack at filling in for the departed Mohamed Sanu in the slot during practices this week, Jason Butt of The Athletic reports.

Both Gage and Justin Hardy are likely in line for elevated roles on offense following Tuesday's trade that sent Sanu to the Patriots, but Morris' comments suggest the former has the early edge on seeing the most work in three-wideout sets alongside Julio Jones and Calvin Ridley. Though Sanu earned six targets per game through the Falcons' first seven games, Gage won't necessarily be in store for that sort of volume. Instead, expect the Falcons to spread Sanu's vacated targets among a number of pass catchers that includes Gage, whose fantasy stock will get a bump.

Shepard (concussion) remained a limited participant in Thursday's practice, Dan Salomone of the Giants' official site reports.

Shepard has now maintained limited activity in each of the Giants' last five practices, but until he upgrades to full participation, his return to game action shouldn't be viewed as forthcoming. Coach Pat Shurmur admitted as much earlier Thursday, stating that it's a "strong possibility" that Shepard will remain unavailable for a third consecutive game Sunday in Detroit, per Dan Duggan of The Athletic. The Giants will affix an official injury designation to Shepard following their final practice of Week 8 on Friday.

Coach Pat Shurmur said Thursday that it's a "strong possibility" that Shepard (concussion) won't play in Sunday's game against the Lions, Dan Duggan of The Athletic reports.

Though Shepard continues to participate in practice in limited fashion and said Tuesday that he has been free of concussion-like symptoms for two weeks, the Giants look prepared to proceed without their top wideout for yet another game. Shurmur added that Shepard is still in concussion protocol, so he'll continue to be evaluated on a week-to-week basis.

Dorsett (hamstring) was limited at Wednesday's practice.

Dorsett hauled in three of his four targets for 46 yards and a TD in Monday night's 33-0 win over the Jets. Since he made it through with no reported setbacks in that contest, we'd expect him to be available this weekend versus the Browns. When the Patriots acquired Mohamed Sanu, it looked like Dorsett's role in the offense would take a hit, but now that Josh Gordon (knee) is on IR, he figures to continue to see his share of snaps and targets in the coming weeks, though eventually Dorsett could lose touches to rookie N'Keal Harry, who is eligible to be activated off IR in advance of Week 9.

Treadwell will serve as the No. 3 receiver with Adam Thielen (hamstring) ruled out, Paul Hodowanic of the Pioneer Press reports.

Treadwell struggled to find his footing with the Vikings for three years after they selected him 23rd overall in the 2016 NFL Draft, and the team cut him Aug. 31. He was brought back in late September, and now he'll finally get back into a starting role. Fantasy gamers should understand by now that Treadwell's upside is limited, however, as he posted just 35 receptions for 302 yards and a score over 15 games last year.

Berrios (hamstring) was a limited participant in Wednesday's practice.

It looks as though Berrios picked up a hamstring issue during Monday's loss to the Patriots. If the second-year pro were forced to miss any time, Jamison Crowder would step up as New York's primary punt returner.

Adams (toe) was a non-participant in practice Wednesday, Matt Schneidman of The Athletic reports.

Adams provided a glimmer of hope that he was taking another step in his recovery, taking part in warmups before leaving the field at the start of position drills, per Schneidman. The latter should have been an indication Adams would have DNP next to his name on the Packers' ensuing injury report, but coach Matt LaFleur kept the door open for a return on Sunday night at Kansas City. "I think it could go right up to game time, to be truthful," LaFleur told Ryan Wood of the Green Bay Press-Gazette. Adams will help his cause by increasing his on-field work Thursday and/or Friday, at which point he'll get a gameday designation. Ultimately, the Packers don't have to make a decision on his availability until 90 minutes before Sunday's 8:20 p.m. ET kickoff, making him difficult to trust in fantasy lineups if he doesn't make the requisite progress.

Perriman (hamstring) was a full participant in Wednesday's practice.

Perriman managed to put Tampa Bay's bye to good use, and he appears fully recovered from the hamstring issue that caused him to miss the last two games. The 2015 first-round pick is on track for Sunday's tilt against the Titans, but he could now be facing competition from Scott Miller for the No. 3 receiver role. In the two contests that Perriman missed, Miller caught three of nine targets for 39 yards and a touchdown. Perriman himself has notched only three catches (on 12 targets) for 16 yards across four appearances.

Coach Kyle Shanahan said Taylor (foot) may not return after eight weeks on injured reserve, Cam Inman of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

After being placed on IR on Sept. 20, Taylor had a chance to return to the lineup Week 11 against the Cardinals, but a setback will extend his recovery time. However, he hasn't been ruled out for the year. The third-year pro likely will have a limited role in the offense if he's able to return after the 49ers acquired Emmanuel Sanders via trade from the Broncos.