Kempski: Goedert, Mundt clearly ahead of Stowers

Locke spent the previous five weeks on injured reserve with a plantar fascia issue and is expected to be active for the team’s Week 8 game against the Cardinals. He brings a veteran presence to a defense that struggled mightily to start the season as the Cowboys continue inching closer to full health.

Bech has been on the shelf since fracturing his arm in Week 3, missing the minimum required four games due to the injury. He returns to a passing offense that has been heavily concentrated amongst Brock Bowers and Tre Tucker, unlikely to be a usable weekly fantasy asset. Fantasy managers can stash the youngster in hopes of a growing role moving forward.

Henderson first popped on the injury report with a missed practice Thursday before maintaining that status to end the week, ultimately unable to play through the ailment while being ruled out Saturday. Rhamondre Stevenson steps into a potential workhorse role against the downtrodden Dolphins, where he will be an upside RB2 in Week 8. Expect the team to elevate another back from their practice squad ahead of Sunday’s game to play behind Stevenson and Corey Kiner, the latter of whom is expected to serve as the primary change of pace option with Henderson out.

This was always thought to be the case after Brown missed Thursday and Friday with a “flare up” of an existing knee injury, the same issue that ultimately saw the Rams back out of trade negotiations this offseason. Brown’s absence comes at a horrible time for a team already without Mack Hollins and Romeo Doubs, leaving only DeMario Douglas, Kyle Williams, and Efton Chism as healthy wide receivers on the active roster. Fantasy managers in a bind could consider taking a shot on upside through Williams’ downfield role against a Dolphins team bleeding explosive passing through the first seven weeks.

No surprise here as Monangai hasn’t practiced since Week 4. He’s set to miss his fourth consecutive game against the Seahawks in Week 8. Roschon Johnson figures to continue to serve as the Bears’ RB2 with Monangai sidelined.

Payne suffered the injury during Friday’s practice. A previous report from Ian Rapport stated the 29-year-old defensive tackle suffered a significant foot injury and would be out for the foreseeable future. Payne will be placed on injured reserve as he’s set to miss the rest of the season. He recorded a sack, a forced fumble and 14 tackles in six games with the Commanders this year.

The Wisconsin television station received “heavily redacted” police reports on Friday evening, though they included allegations from three other women. There are multiple extremely disturbing allegations of physical violence. One alleged incident took place in January 2022. The accuser “contacted investigators in June after learning about the May investigation, telling police the allegations sounded similar to her prior experience with Jacobs.” She also said the incident had “never been reported to law enforcement, (and that she) contacted police when she believed her alleged experience with Jacobs could be relevant to the case.” The allegations highlight the folly of the NFL’s apparent wish that the situation would just go away. It has not, and now it is quite possible, if not likely, that Jacobs ends up suspended for the remainder of the 2026 season. Stay tuned.

If Parsons returns to practice next week, the Packers will have a 21-day window where he can practice before activating him to the 53-man roster. Pelissero also reported that Parsons’ most likely return date is in Week 11 against the Rams. Including the playoffs, Green Bay is 5-8 since Parsons tore his ACL last December.

Jones received a vote of confidence from Colts HC Shane Steichen earlier this week and now there’s a report from prominent NFL Insider Pelissero that the organization hasn’t discussed benching him. While that’s all well and good, the Colts still seem like they’re in the early stages of a process that will likely end with benching Jones at some point this year. The fact that Pelissero mentioned Jones’ contract includes a $10.51 million injury guarantee for 2027 is an ominous sign. Once the 2-5 Colts are officially eliminated from playoff contention, Indianapolis won’t have much incentive to risk injury with the oft-injured Jones.

With Giants GM Joe Schoen stonewalled, Harbaugh broke with traditional NFL trade-talk norms and called the Titans owner himself. Unfortunately for the Giants, the message was the same, that Simmons was off limits in trade talks. Previous reporting from Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer stated that Bears GM Ryan Poles’ long-standing relationship with Titans GM Mike Borgonzi played a huge role in Simmons ending up in Chicago. Poles and Borgonzi first met in 2007 when Poles was a guard at Boston College and Borgonzi was a recruiting assistant.