Noah Fant headlines Saints’ inactives for MNF

“He went 10-for-10 yesterday, with Justin Tucker right there. ... We’re going to keep working it,” Toub continued. It sounds like despite signing Tucker, Butker will continue to kick for the Chiefs. At least this week, anyway.

It’s a rough blow for Noel, who had been extremely efficient on his targets. It does clear up space for some of Houston’s other receivers. The recently-activated Tank Dell and recently-acquired Marvin Harrison Jr. will benefit a bit from one fewer mouth to feed after the Texans come off bye.

That now marks consecutive days on the practice field for the veteran receiver whom has missed the previous two games. The Chiefs also had their bye in Week 5, giving Rice a full three weeks of recovery, which combines with his recent practice availability to make it likely he returns to face the Broncos. The Chiefs managed just 25 combined points in the two games without Rice.

Delane’s absence raises concerns surrounding his potential availability when the Broncos in Week 8. Coming off their first loss of the season, the Chiefs will look to rebound against a divisional opponent after managing only three points against the Seahawks. Delane has been a big part of defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo’s weekly game plan, allowing the team to rank near the top of the league in man coverage rate through the first third of the season.

Wicks has not practiced since before Week 6’s loss to the Panthers and should be seen as doubtful heading into Friday’s practice session. We’d be surprised if he played in Week 8.

Assuming there’s not a non-media practice portion that adds him to the report, Smith will enter Friday as fairly unlikely to play. We’ll see if he can get on the practice field on Friday. A limited session might get him on to the questionable line. Smith last practiced ahead of Week 6.

The downgrade in participation raises serious questions surrounding his potential availability when the Patriots face the Dolphins in Week 8. Brown had been mostly limited in practice since being activated from injured reserve due to a separate ankle issue, with the absence Thursday marking the first fully missed practice in that window. Fantasy managers will want to monitor his status Friday as they make plans for their weekend ahead. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported Thursday that the veteran receiver’s absence is due to a “flare up” of a previous knee injury, placing his status for Sunday in doubt.

This doesn’t look ideal. Barkley practiced all week leading up to his return, and at this point he doesn’t even have a limited session ahead of Sunday’s game with the Commanders. There’s probably not a zero percent chance that Barkley is playing, but at this point the best Barkley-reliant managers can likely hope for is a questionable tag on Friday. Elijah Mitchell and Jaydon Blue would be in line to form some sort of committee if Barkley can’t go.

Nixon was added to the injury report Thursday with a shoulder injury and is now listed questionable for Week 8 against the Panthers. We’ll get his final determination 90-minutes prior to first kick.

Both players missed the team’s Week 7 win over the 49ers before starting Week 8 preparations with absences. A return to the practice field Thursday keeps the possibility of returns open ahead of a matchup against the Buccaneers.