NFL Player News

A former third-round pick of the Lions back in 2020, Okwara spent last season with the Cardinals. Playing in a limited capacity, Okwara totaled 18 tackles, three TFLs, and one sack in 13 games while making one start. Okwara has started only five of the 51 games he’s appeared in for his career and will likely serve as a rotational pass rusher for the Browns this season.

We are not injury experts here at Rotoworld, so we don’t have much to offer regarding what this second opinion could mean for Mahomes. The Chiefs’ star quarterback was confirmed to have suffered a torn ACL in Week 15’s loss to the Chargers and is expected to miss the rest of the season. Gardner Minshew, who has backed up Mahomes all season, is expected to draw the start as the now-eliminated Chiefs look to finish out the final three games of their 2025 schedule.

Could a healthy Richardson start for the Colts at some point in the next three weeks? It’s not impossible to imagine. Of course, Philip Rivers didn’t join this team to sit. We’d expect Richardson to be designated to return from injured reserve in the near future. Richardson probably would be the team’s backup over Riley Leonard if both were fully healthy, but anything beyond that comes down to ego and what the Colts have left to play for.

The worst was confirmed on Monday, as the Packers will now be without their star pass rusher for the remainder of the season. Parsons suffered a non-contact knee injury in the third quarter of Sunday’s loss to the Broncos and remained down for several minutes before being helped off the field by trainers. Head coach Matt LaFleur said after the game that things “didn’t look good,” for Parsons, with reports later coming out that the team feared a torn ACL. There isn’t much to explain here. Parsons is one of the premier pass rushers in the league. He totaled 12.5 sacks in 14 games this season while also posting 41 tackles, 12 TFLs, and forcing two fumbles. The Packers now have to find a way to get by in the regular and postseason without their best player, who has accounted for 37.9 percent of their sacks this season.

Ryans said the team will monitor Marks’ injury this week, but this doesn’t appear to be too big of an issue. Ryans said after Sunday’s game that Marks could have returned against the Cardinals if needed, so his comments on Monday aren’t too surprising. Fantasy managers will want to keep an eye on his practice status throughout the week, but Marks has a nice Week 16 matchup against the Raiders on tap if he is able to go.

Edwards has appeared in 14 games for the Texans this season, tallying 13 tackles, 1.5 sacks, and two TFLs in a supporting role. Naquan Jones, who the Texans recently claimed off waivers, took over in Edwards’ absence on Sunday and will presumably be tasked with filling his role for the remainder of the season. Edwards signed a two-year deal with the Texans this offseason and should be back in time for the 2026 season.

Players typically play through any illness-related issues, but Warren’s addition to the injury report just hours before kickoff is concerning. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports Warren “woke up sick and is getting fluids” and that he is “optimistic” about playing on Monday night. His status will be one to watch for when inactives are announced 90 minutes before kickoff, but if he is unable to go, Kenneth Gainwell would be primed for a large role on Monday night against the Dolphins.

Knight is expected to undergo an MRI on Monday to confirm the diagnosis, but the belief is that he did not break anything. Knight is highly unlikely to play in Week 16’s game against the Falcons, and depending on the severity of his injury, it wouldn’t be surprising if this proved to be season-ending. We’ll check back in with an update when the team provides one, but an already thin Cardinals backfield could be looking at Emari Demercado and Michael Carter as it’s top two options down the stretch.

A 48-20 loss to the Jaguars was the final straw for Wilks, whose defense entered the day ranked in the bottom five in EPA per play entering the day and had allowed six 30-plus point performances on the year. Another indictment of Wilks is the fact that his defense has yet to force an interception through the first 15 weeks of the season. Life got harder following this year’s trade deadline, when the Jets dealt stars Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams away for future draft picks, but Sunday’s loss to the Jaguars set a new low for the season. Wilks hasn’t spent more than one season with a team since his first stint with the Panthers, which lasted from 2012 to 2017. The long-time defensive coordinator who helped lead a top-five 49ers defense in 2023 could find a new home next offseason, but this latest stop left much to be desired. Defensive backs coach/passing game coordinator Chris Harris will takeover as interim DC for the final three weeks of the season.

Pearsall battled through an ankle injury early in Sunday’s win and later went down with a knee injury. Shanahan said he believes Pearsall’s knee injury resulted from “irritating his PCL from the past,” and noted that such injuries tend to linger. Pearsall said after the game that he will have some imaging done, so we’ll likely know within the next 24 hours if there’s anything to be concerned about heading into Week 16. We’re well into the part of the season when every player is dealing with some injury or another. Hopefully, Pearsall will be available for Week 16’s game against the Colts.

Watson appeared to have suffered a shoulder injury but was later listed with a chest injury. The Packers’ top deep threat was taken to the hospital for further evaluation, but was able to fly home with the team after the game. According to Packers beat writer Rob Demovsky, Watson had a CT scan as a precaution on his lungs, but “no issue with his lungs” was found. Whether or not he’s able to play in Week 16 against the may not be known until later in the week, but it sounds like this will be a short-term absence for Watson at the worst. With the Packers playing on Saturday, we should have our first injury report on Tuesday, which will give us a better sense of where Watson’s availability could stand for next week. If he’s unable to go, Romeo Doubs and Matthew Golden would be the favorites to see expanded roles.