NFL Player News

Hubbard’s absence in Week 5 paved the way for Rico Dowdle to have a career day against the Dolphins, which understandably raised questions about where Hubbard stands entering Week 6. Canales said on Monday that the team having “two good backs” is “a good problem,” but it’s hard to imagine Dowdle’s emergence not coming at the expense of Hubbard’s fantasy managers. Hubbard has struggled out of the gate this season, totaling 53-217-0 on the ground while adding another 13 receptions for 94 yards and two scores. It sounds like Hubbard is trending toward a return this week, which will make for an interesting Week 6 matchup against the Cowboys with Dowdle putting himself on the map.

Washington remains one of the Dolphins’ primary returners despite his increased receiving involvement. His day began with a muffed punt that he successfully recovered in the end zone for a touchback. Things improved from there. Washington delivered multiple double-digit gains, functioning effectively as a weapon behind the line of scrimmage and in the flats. He also turned in a 17-yarder via a corner route on play action. Rookie WR Caleb Douglas (ankle) may return for next week’s game against the Saints. If he remains sidelined, Washington should be FLEX-viable, though his ceiling is questionable.

Waddle was invisible for much of the game until a late red zone touchdown with the Broncos in up-tempo catch-up mode. It was his first touchdown reception as a Bronco. Waddle, who now has three down games in his first four contests as the Broncos’ nominal WR1, will probably struggle until Denver OC Davis Webb figures out how to maximize his personnel, including the struggling Bo Nix. Against the 49ers Waddle was targeted on a meager 16 percent of his routes. Hopefully that rate will rise in Week 5 against the Chargers.

Willis’ biggest plays of the day are the ones that didn’t count. Willis rolled out of the pocket, escaping pressure, on the Dolphins’ third drive and hit Chris Bell downfield for what could have been a 68-yard touchdown. Unfortunately, the officials determined that the tiniest edge of Bell’s right cleat grazed the sideline pre-catch, during the scramble drill, negating the play altogether. Heartbreaking. Willis also had a 10-yard scramble called back due to holding on the Dolphins’ fifth drive. He attempted a running fadeaway pass 25 yards downfield to Bell on 3rd-and-8 on the Dolphins’ ninth drive, but the catch was contested and ultimately fell incomplete. He is a QB2 against the Bengals next week.

Kelce was held in check throughout the entirety of this one and has been targeted just six times in his last two games. Were it not for an 11-yard score in last week’s win over the Dolphins, we would be looking at back-to-back disappointing fantasy weeks for the future Hall of Famer. Kelce and the Chiefs are now heading into their bye week. He could see an increase in targets with Rashee Rice (hamstring) and Tyquan Thornton (ankle) both at risk of missing multiple weeks, but Kelce now has three games on his 2026 ledger with five or fewer targets.

Mims also lost a fumble in the loss. Mims has been virtually invisible in the Broncos offense through four games, though that could change if Pat Bryant’s injury proves to be the long-term variety. Even in that case Mims would be nothing more than an ultra deep league option.

Sutton was the recipient of a couple off-target intermediate looks from Bo Nix, who struggled to place the ball against the 49ers secondary. Sutton could see an expanded role in the Denver offense if Pat Bryant is out long term following his leg injury in Week 4. Sutton has been targeted on 16 percent of his pass routes this season; he has nine receptions through four games. Sutton should only be rostered in deeper leagues.

Worthy saw a season-high seven targets in this one after Rashee Rice (hamstring) exited just a few plays into the game. Worthy came up with a handful of key plays for the Chiefs, with his biggest coming on a 41-yard reception that put the Chiefs in position for a short touchdown pass to Tyquan Thornton a few plays later. The Chiefs now head into their Week 5 bye, but they could be down multiple receivers, with Rice and Thornton (ankle) both suffering injuries in this one. While we don’t yet know the extent of Rice’s injury, Thornton’s ankle injury looked like a potential season-ender. Worthy could well be worth a stash in leagues where he is still available, as he could soon be the top receiver for the Chiefs when they return in Week 6 to face the Chiefs. Second-year receiver Jalen Royals, who ran 21 routes in this game, could also see an expanded role in the coming weeks.

Claiborne was given chances to contribute on the Vikings’ seventh and 10th drives. The rookie was unable to maximize his touches and had a catch behind the line of scrimmage that he took back to the line, negated by a holding penalty. Claiborne’s best play was an eight-yard run off the right tackle. That said, he out-touched DeeJay Dallas, who bagged only a 10-yard checkdown on the opening drive.

Tucker’s longest catch came on a 23-yard reception late in the fourth quarter as the Raiders looked to drive and tie up the game. Had the replay officials called for a review of the play in time, the catch likely would have been overturned, but the play was upheld, much to the disappointment of the Chiefs and head coach Andy Reid. The eight targets Tucker saw in this one set a new season high. He’s totaled 44 or fewer yards in three of four games this season and will be hard to trust as anything more than a dart-throw WR4 in Week 5 against the Patriots.

Evans toughed it out through a painful rib injury. He endured a couple shots to the midsection in the first half and remained in the game, eventually leading the Niners in targets and receiving yards. Accounting for 31 percent of the team’s air yards coming into Week 4, Evans profiles as a high-upside WR2 in most formats. Evans and the rest of the 49ers have a tough Week 5 matchup against a Seahawks secondary that has smothered opposing passing offenses so far this season.