Bears OT Wills leaves practice early on Thurs.

Higgins is sporting a T-shirt and shorts at today’s practice. We expect to see him listed as a non-participant at the end of the day. Consecutive absences put him on the wrong side of questionable for the Bengals’ Week 5 game against the Dolphins, though he still has at least a small chance of turning things around tomorrow. Stay tuned.

Nabers is currently going through route running drills with his position group, putting him on track to play in Week 5 against the Commanders. Nabers sat out yesterday, citing extra soreness in his surgically repaired knee, but told ESPN’s Jordan Raanan that he usually feels better as the week progresses. A WR1 finish is in play this week, assuming he is active.

It looks like Chase will practice in some capacity today. He made the long walk to the Bengals’ practice field, fully suited up in pads, carrying his helmet. Given the NFL’s five-phase concussion protocol, we expect to see him listed as a limited participant today, but we will provide an update if he upgrades to full participation. Chase has a chance to play in Week 5 against the Dolphins.

Jackson began the week on the wrong side of questionable after spraining his ankle in Week 4 against the Titans. Ravens coach Jesse Minter has already said that Jackson doesn’t need to practice “much” in order to play. While some sort of limited session is still possible for today, it is unlikely, with Jackson skipping warmups. If he can get in a limited session tomorrow, he has a chance to play. Stay tuned.

McLaurin could technically return later in the session and go down as a limited participant, but we highly doubt that will happen. He will be listed as a DNP for the second day in a row, making it extremely unlikely he is available for Week 5. After facing the Giants this week, the Commanders get a slightly longer rest period before taking on the 49ers on Monday in Week 6. If they are worried about McLaurin re-aggravating the issue, they get their bye the following week, which would give him plenty of time to recover. For now, Stefon Diggs and Antonio Williams will lead the team’s receiver room.

Diggs was held out of Wednesday’s session because of the hamstring issue. Even a limited practice today puts him on track to suit up on Sunday. Terry McLaurin, on the other hand, looks likely to miss another week with a hamstring injury of his own. That will put Diggs in the WR1 seat for Week 5 against the Giants. Antonio Williams will continue to operate as the team’s No. 2 receiver.

That role increase is, of course, Payton’s way of saying he is taking back play-calling duties from OC Davis Webb. Schefter tried to cushion the blow by saying Webb will still have a “significant game-planning and game-day role.” While Schefter didn’t outright say that Payton is now the play-caller, PFT’s Mike Florio reported this morning that Webb is no longer on the headset. It’s one of the most predictable outcomes of the season. Payton is a legendary coach known for his offensive genius. He was always going to take back the play-calling gig the moment things went south, though we doubt he expected it to happen this quickly. The Broncos are a dismal 27th in points per game. They rank slightly better in EPA per play at 21st, but that’s still a disappointing start for this offense.

McCarthy told reporters the team is evaluating Pittman’s roster spot, meaning they could place him on injured reserve. He would miss at least four weeks while on IR. Pittman tried to play through the foot injury but only made it two weeks before aggravating the issue. He was spotted using a scooter to support his foot in the locker room on Wednesday. We suspect the Steelers will place him on IR to give Pittman enough time to fully recover. Germie Bernard will now operate as the team’s permanent WR3, with Roman Wilson taking on more work as the clear No. 2 receiver. Both players will be decent FLEX options for Week 5.

Daniels is practicing in full and is expected to return to the lineup this week. He has suffered the same elbow dislocation twice in the past year, but his game-changing running ability is a big part of what makes Daniels a potential superstar quarterback. Blough might be more tactile with how he calls quarterback runs, but they will still be in the playbook this week. Daniels will be a low-end QB1 once he is officially cleared to play.

Williams has already been ruled out for Week 5, but Wiederer notes that he is “progressing notably with his on-field recovery steps.” He added that the Bears having a Thursday game in Week 7 complicates things slightly. If Williams returns in Week 6, he will have an unusually short turnaround to his next game. That’s a bridge the Bears will potentially have to cross next week. For now. Tyson Bagent will draw the start again on Sunday. Ben Johnson has made magic with both of his backups so far. We fully expect the offense to survive one more week without Williams under center.