NFL Player News

Collins won't be under any restrictions with his snap count Monday against the Cowboys in his return from a five-game absence due to a hamstring injury, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

After he closed Week 11 prep with full practices Friday and Saturday, Collins didn't take a designation into Monday, though it wasn't immediately clear if the Texans would monitor his workload in his first game since Oct. 6. Schefter's report should ease any lingering concerns fantasy managers may have had about activating Collins, who looks in line to immediately settle back in as quarterback C.J. Stroud's top target. Before injuring his hamstring Week 5, Collins had led the NFL with 567 receiving yards.

Thornton signed with the Chiefs' practice squad Monday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Thornton was waived by the Patriots on Saturday after a disappointing three-year run in New England. The Baylor product was selected in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft by the team but never lived up to expectations. Thornton had been a healthy scratch each of the last two weeks, but he'll now have an opportunity for a fresh start in Kansas City.

Pearsall failed to bring in either of his two targets in Sunday's 20-17 loss to Seattle.

Pearsall was nowhere to be seen on Sunday after scoring the first touchdown of his professional career Week 10. The rookie still logged a healthy 37 snaps on offense (59 percent), but he didn't receive nearly as many targets as a week prior (six). Pearsall should continue seeing a handful of targets while operating as the 49ers' No. 3 receiver behind Deebo Samuel and Jauan Jennings against the Packers next Sunday.

Bateman caught two passes for 30 yards on five targets in Sunday's loss to the Steelers.

Baltimore's passing game had trouble getting in rhythm Sunday as Lamar Jackson had his least efficient game of the season. Bateman still drew a reasonable number of targets, but his numbers suffered nonetheless. However, Bateman is having a career year with personal bests in yards and touchdowns with six games to go. Next up for Bateman and the Ravens is the Week 12 Monday Night Football showdown with the Chargers.

Mitchell had one reception for 33 yards on two targets and also had one carry for two yards in Sunday's win at the Jets.

He had six targets last week with Michael Pittman out with a back injury, but Mitchell saw a reduced role against the Jets. Mitchell played on just 12 of the offense's 70 snaps but has a rapport with Anthony Richardson on deep passes. He may not get many targets as the No. 3 or No. 4 receiver as long as the other options are healthy, but he's trending in the right direction.

Boyd recorded two catches (on three targets) for 34 yards in Sunday's 23-13 loss to the Vikings.

Boyd was on the field for 58 percent of offensive snaps and ended a two-game stretch without a target. Both of his catches and all three of his targets came on a drive late in the fourth quarter, highlighted by a 30-yard gain. Boyd has reached 40 receiving yards in a game only once on the campaign.

Nailor did not have a catch on two targets in Sunday's win at Tennessee. He had two drops, according to Pro Football Focus, including a difficult, but catchable, pass attempt in the end zone.

Nailor worked as the third receiver as he played on 32 of the offense's 73 snaps. However, his drops could allow Trent Sherfield and Brandon Powell to get more time in three-receiver sets.

Johnson was held without a catch on two targets Sunday against the Steelers.

It was not an eventful homecoming for Johnson after spending the first five seasons of his career in Pittsburgh. He played 11 snaps and drew a pair of targets but failed to come down with either of them. Through three games with the Ravens, Johnson has one catch for six yards on 32 snaps and four targets. Zay Flowers, Rashod Bateman and Nelson Agholor remain the primary wide receivers for the Ravens, but there's a chance Johnson begins displacing Agholor once he gets more acclimated with the offense.

Williams wasn't targeted during Sunday's 18-16 win over the Ravens.

Although Williams saw a slight increase in playing time during his second game with his new team, he didn't draw any targets in the narrow win. The 30-year-old reached the end zone late in his Steelers debut last week, and he'll look to bounce back Thursday against Cleveland as he continues to compete for a role in Pittsburgh's offense.

Whittington returned one kick for 24 yards and failed to record a target during Sunday's 28-22 win against the Patriots.

Whittington's role since the return of Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp has been non-existent, and he hasn't managed a catch since Week 5. The sixth-round rookie's role seems to be focused on special teams at the moment (16 snaps on special teams versus five snaps on offense Sunday), and he'll continue to compete with Tutu Atwell, Tyler Johnson and Xavier Smith for a meager amount of snaps as the backups to Nacua, Kupp and Demarcus Robinson.