NFL Player News

Via The Athletic’s draft guru, Dane Brugler, “A three-year starter at Fresno State, Muti started at left guard in offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb’s scheme. The durability issues and lack of tangible football experience are legitimate concerns, learning the sport in high school and then suffering three separate season-ending injuries over the last four years. Muti is a combative blocker and owns the core power and torque to displace defenders, flashing the violence in his hands to thud his target. He tends to get grabby with his hands and needs to streamline his technique because he won’t be able to simply overpower his opponents at the next level. Overall, Muti has NFL-starting talent and was worthy of top-50 draft consideration on ability alone, but his injury history and concerns about reliability make it tough to accurately predict his NFL future.”

Collins is a late addition to the injury report and could end up missing a game for the first time this season. Derrick Jones Jr. (knee) is set to play for the first time in over a month, and he could immediately start if Collins is unavailable. Nicolas Batum would also take on extra minutes.

Washington went down in the second quarter and attempted to come back in for a play. After his lone attempt to gut it out, he left for the sidelines and was ruled out shortly after leaving the field. Washington’s day ends with two receptions for 15 yards on two targets.

Sanders’ right foot got rolled up run blocking on the literal first play of the game. He was in a world of pain before being carted to the locker room. It’s quite possible the 22-year-old’s season is through. The second-year pro entered today sitting on a 29/190/1 line, with the touchdown coming last week.

Waddle exited in the second quarter against the Buccaneers, heading to the locker room with a rib injury. The 27-year-old has a history of getting banged-up mid-game, so we would not be surprised if he returned. He had one carry for seven yards prior to his exit. Waddle is questionable to return.

CBS Sports’ sideline reporter Tracy Wolfson reported that Fannin re-aggravated his groin injury after hauling in a touchdown in the first quarter. According to Wolfson, Fannin tried to test the injury out on the sideline but didn’t feel well enough to go back out on the field. Fannin is now in the locker room and is questionable to return.

Fannin entered Sunday’s game with a groin injury. While we don’t know the specifics of this injury, he was walking gingerly to the sideline with trainers, so it’s possible this is a re-aggravation of the same groin injury. He was briefly in the blue medical tent before returning to the sideline, so we’ll see if he takes the field on the Browns’ next possession.

The Bucs are in the middle of a tailspin, having lost six of their past seven games. A loss to the Dolphins today, plus a Panthers win, would knock them out of the playoffs entirely. Otherwise, they will face the Panthers in Week 18 with the NFC South title and a playoff berth on the line. Missing the playoffs after starting 6-2 would be a fireable offense for plenty of coaches around the league. That doesn’t appear to be the case with Bowles. The Bucs have won the NFC South in all three of his seasons as the team’s boss. More importantly, Rapoport points out that Bowles signed a three-year extension with Tampa Bay before the season. The team’s financial ties to Bowles all but guarantee they will keep him around for at least one more year, regardless of how the current season ends.

The same is true of Olamide Zaccheaus, who is also dealing with an illness. It certainly seems like something is going around the Bears’ locker room. Players tend to play through illnesses, and the Bears are taking on the 49ers in a game that has massive implications for the No. 1 seed in the NFC. We expect both players to play, but fantasy managers will want to have a backup plan in place. Luther Burden would be in line for a sizable uptick in targets if one or both of Moore and Zaccheaus are ruled out.

“While two sides still discussing, people close to Ryan say he’s seriously considering this move and talks are ongoing,” Glazer reports. He adds it would be a “significant role.” It’s become clear the Falcons could use a shakeup of some sort, though this would be a particularly risky one. 40-year-old Ryan has zero coaching or front-office experience. It would be a “very Falcons” gamble, but not one necessarily doomed to fail. Stay tuned.

The Steelers can win the AFC North today with a victory over the Browns. That would lock them in as the No. 4 seed in the AFC. It would also make their Week 18 date with the Ravens meaningless, and the Steelers would obviously choose to hold him out for that contest. If they lose today, Watt would seemingly be on the field for an AFC North title match versus Baltimore.