NFL Player News

The Buccaneers waived Kpeenu on Saturday, Greg Auman of Fox Sports reports.

Kpeenu signed with the Bucs on Aug. 16 as an undrafted free agent out of North Dakota State. The running back was likely meant to push Kadarius Calloway and Josh Williams as they attempted to compete for a 53-man role in the running back room. Now that the preseason has ended, Kpeenu is set to move on and will now be placed on waivers. If the 23-year-old clears waivers, he will become a free agent Monday after Sunday's cutdown day.

Hardman is being released by the Bills on Saturday, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com reports.

Hardman inked a reserve/futures deal with the Bills in January and entered training camp competing for a depth spot on the 53-man roster. He caught four passes on eight targets for 20 yards and a touchdown across three preseason games, adding three kickoff returns for 80 yards and four punt returns for 50 yards. That versatility on special teams was not enough for Hardman to survive the training camp roster cuts, but he now has the opportunity to sign with another team before the start of the regular season.

The Panthers waived Davis on Saturday, Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Houston reports.

Davis signed with the Panthers in mid-May as an undrafted free agent out of Utah State. The running back had a touchdown in Friday night's preseason finale against the Texans. With a backfield already consisting of Chuba Hubbard (hamstring), Jonathon Brooks, Trevor Etienne (ankle) and AJ Dillon, the barrier to the 53-man roster was just too high for the young player. Davis will now be placed on waivers and will remain there through Monday due to Sunday's cutdown day activities. If the 26-year-old clears waivers, he will become a free agent able to sign with any franchise's 53-man roster or practice squad.

Head coach Todd Bowles said Saturday that he expects McMillan (knee) to be available for the Buccaneers' Week 1 clash against the Bengals on Sunday, Sept. 13, Greg Auman of Fox Sports reports.

McMillan has been recovering from a knee injury he sustained in early August, which has limited his reps in training camp practices and prevented him from playing in each of the Buccaneers' three preseason games. There's optimism that the third-year wideout will not miss regular-season action, but his practice participation over the next two weeks will provide more clarity on his status for Week 1. With Mike Evans now in San Francisco, McMillan is projected to be Tampa Bay's WR3 this season behind Chris Godwin and Emeka Egbuka (toe), with Tez Johnson and rookie third-rounder Ted Hurst also in the mix for snaps on offense.

Egbuka (toe), per head coach Todd Bowles, will "hopefully" be ready for Week 1, Greg Auman of Fox Sports reports.

Egbuka continues working his way back from the toe injury he sustained earlier this month, and while the door is open for him to take the field in Tampa Bay's season opener, Bowles is not yet sure if he will do so. Further updates on Egbuka's status will come, but perhaps not officially until the Buccaneers begin to release injury reports.

Head coach Sean Payton told reporters that Mims bruised his foot during the Broncos' 34-6 preseason win over the Vikings on Friday, Chris Tomasson of The Denver Gazette reports.

Mims sustained the injury early in the first quarter and was listed as questionable to return after going to the locker room, but he didn't end up taking another snap in Friday's exhibition contest. It doesn't appear to be a serious injury, but his practice participation over the coming weeks will determine whether he'll suit up for Denver's Week 1 clash against Kansas City on Monday, Sept. 14.

Metchie caught one of three targets for five yards and returned two kickoffs for 47 yards in Friday's 16-13 preseason win over the Texans.

The 26-year-old journeyman is on his fourth team in the last three seasons, but Metchie has a path to winning a spot on the Panthers' Week 1 roster due to Chris Brazzell (knee) being out for the year, Xavier Legette (ankle) limping as well, and Trevor Etienne -- the team's top kickoff returner in 2025 -- exiting Friday's exhibition early after picking up an ankle issue. Metchie's had plenty of trouble staying healthy himself since being a second-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft by Houston, and he's never topped 29 catches or 256 receiving yards in a season.

Horn caught his only target for five yards and added six yards on his only carry during Friday's 16-13 preseason win over the Texans.

The 2025 sixth-round pick also returned two punts, but those gained just two yards. With Xavier Legette (ankle) getting hurt in practice this week, the Panthers' No. 3 receiver job could be open to begin the campaign, but Horn didn't exactly make a strong final case to claim it. Over 14 regular-season games as a rookie, Horn caught 11 of 15 targets for 108 yards and added 69 rushing yards on eight carries.

Dillon carried the ball six times for 12 yards and caught three of four passes for 20 yards in Friday's 16-13 preseason win over the Texans.

With Chuba Hubbard (hamstring) and Jonathon Brooks getting held out for the final preseason game, Trevor Etienne got the start but was quickly sidelined by an ankle injury. Dillon stepped in and played into the second quarter but didn't make much of an impact. The former Packer is trying to get his career back on track after not playing at all in 2024 due to neck issues and then getting just 12 carries over seven regular-season games in 2025 with the Eagles, but if the injuries to Hubbard and Etienne linger into Week 1, Dillon could have a surprisingly robust role in the Panthers' opener.

Fairbairn converted both his field-goal attempts and his only PAT during Friday's 16-13 preseason loss to the Panthers.

The 32-year-old kicker heads into the regular season having not missed a kick in either of the two preseason contests in which he saw action. Fairbairn has become one of the most reliable placekickers in the league with Houston, converting better than 90 percent of his FGs in three of the last four seasons and finishing in the top five in the NFL in points each of the last two campaigns.