NFL Player News

Taylor (6'7/228) listed LSU as one of his top three schools earlier in July, and ultimately the Bayou Bengals beat out Penn State and Colorado for his pledge. The 6-foot-7, 228-pound native of Grand Junction, Colorado (Central HS) took official visits to both LSU and Penn State in June, and he had also taken multiple unofficial visits to the Colorado campus in Boulder. Taylor was able to get a good feel for how new passing game coordinator Joe Brady wants to use the tight end position, and that influenced his decision to pick LSU. “They were doing a lot of really good stuff with the tight ends during spring ball, just using them in different ways, and that was really attractive to me,” Taylor told 247Sports. “They were telling me they pulled a big receiver to use him at tight end so they can pass it to him more and they showed me they’re going to use their tight ends as a hybrid spot, rather than just blocking.”

Dillon will step into the main backup role for Week 3 after Jonathon Brooks (groin) wound up on injured reserve. There’s no real timeshare here; Hubbard will be the main back. But Dillon could cut into PPR point territory as Panthers OC Brad Idzik was described as “pleasantly surprised” by the veteran’s receiving ability.

Shipley now has a chance to suit up on Monday night against the Bears. With starting RB Saquon Barkley (stinger) and RB2 Tank Bigsby (abdomen) also practicing, Shipley may not get any work, even if he is active.

Bowers did not practice today, but head coach Klint Kubiak said that was part of the team’s plan for managing his injury. Bowers had been limited each of the past two days. It seems plausible given how often he’s being managed at practice that he’d be on a snap count if active, but that’s just our speculation. Kubiak added that the team will not be working Bowers out pre-game like they did ahead of Week 2. Bowers-reliant managers are used to having contingency plans at this point and that will remain the case for Week 3.

Bigsby is tentatively on track to be available for backup duties in the Eagles’ Monday Night Football game against the Bears. Starting RB Saquon Barkley (stinger) continues to practice, so he should be good to go for his regular workload.

Jones, 33, sat out on Wednesday before returning to practice on Thursday. He tweaked his knee in Week 2, but it is not going to sideline him this week. Vikings receiving specialist RB DeeJay Dallas will rotate in behind him, but is unlikely to warrant PPR FLEX consideration. Rookie RB Demond Claiborne is only a bench stash. Jones can be treated as a low-end RB2/FLEX.

He returned to practice today and practiced in full after missing Thursday to an illness. That’s not exactly a guarantee he’ll play; he was a healthy scratch last week behind Alvin Kamara.

Players aren’t always the most reliable source and Thomas may still be listed as questionable, but Thomas did practice in full today per John Harbaugh. The Giants star left tackle will protect Jameis Winston against the Titans.

Whittington is WR Puka Nacua’s (hip) direct backup, so he will be out there running a decent number of routes. Whittington has, however, never managed to establish himself as a reliable contributor. He does not need to be rostered in 12-team leagues. Rams TE Colby Parkinson (knee) will be questionable.

The Saints will be without their gadget wide receiver and return specialist. His absence should allow WR Bryce Lance to consolidate routes in the No. 3 wide receiver role, but Lance is only a 14-team dart throw. Hopefully, Brown is back at it next week.

We do not yet know today’s participation level, but Etienne logged two limited sessions to begin the week. Hopefully, we get a report pre-game revealing the injury’s severity, so we can better assess his potential usage. Given the Saints’ prior backfield workload splits and Etienne’s soft-tissue strain, he should probably be viewed as a low-end RB2/FLEX starter right now.