NFL Player News

Penix practiced in the days leading up to Week 8’s game against the Dolphins but was ultimately ruled out in favor of Kirk Cousins. The second-year quarterback is one of several Falcons players who are day-to-day to start the week, as Morris also said S Jessie Bates (ankle), DL Zach Harrison (knee), CB Billy Bowman (hamstring), and EDGE Jalon Walker (groin) would also be day-to-day to open the week. Penix appears to be trending in the right direction but if he’s unable to go, Cousins would again draw the start on the road against the Patriots.

Henry always seems to produce against the Bills, so this was nothing new. The veteran played on 46 of the team’s 70 snaps and ran a route on 28 of their 43 dropbacks, the second most of any receiving option on the team. He also hauled in an 11-yard catch on 3rd and 10 to ice the game in the fourth quarter. With Eli Raridon (ankle) and Mack Hollins (calf) leaving this game with injuries, Henry could be on the TE1 fringe radar next week against the Raiders.

Tuten continued to operate as the Jaguars’ lead back, ripping off a 15-yard carry to open the game. He found success running to the outside edges of the Bengals defense, tallying 91 total yards on the day. However, fantasy managers will be frustrated with the results as Tuten had touchdowns of 44 yards and three yards get called back due to holding penalties while Chris Rodriguez scored late in the game. The good news is Tuten out-snapped Rodriguez 36-to-15 on the day. He is still the lead back, though he cedes short-yardage and clear passing-down opportunities to Rodriguez and LeQuint Allen. Tuten gets enough opportunities to be squarely in the fantasy RB2 range on a weekly basis, he is a top-20 play for Week 5 against the Eagles in London.

A 16-touch outing isn’t bad for Irving, but the touches he did lose were extremely painful. Sean Tucker scored a goal line touchdown late in the second quarter and Kenneth Gainwell caught a touchdown from 10 yards out at the top of the fourth. Irving didn’t even see a target. It was his first game of the year without a catch. Irving remains the lead back for the Bucs, but a lack of high-value touches would cripple his fantasy value. He will be just inside the RB2 range for his Week 5 matchup with the Cowboys.

Not the most inspiring of #RevengeGame lore. Schultz was outgained by Cade Stover and Brevin Jordan. He’s trending towards TE2 usage with Nico Collins back in the lineup.

Chism III’s touchdown was a spectacular diving one-handed touch in tight coverage that gave the Patriots a late lead over the Bills. It was an unreal grab on a third-down play in the biggest moment of the game. His only other catch was also on a third-and-long to keep a drive alive. With Mack Hollins (calf) leaving this game early, Chishm III played on 30 of the team’s 70 snaps and ran a route on 18 of their 43 dropbacks. The 24-year-old came into today with just five career catches, but he could be in for a bigger role in Week 5. He is still not a priority add in fantasy leagues.

Noel and C.J. Stroud connected on a 52-yard downfield catch that Noel barely had to let up on. He did play 34 snaps, the highest amount he’s had since Week 2, in a telling sign for how the offense is trending. Still, Noel is probably best approached as a deep league boom/bust FLEX play at this point. He’s continually played the game of one step forward, one step back.

It’s hard to tell what may have happened here, but Rice appeared to land awkwardly on his left foot after making a catch on a play that would be overturned by a penalty. Rice appeared to be grabbing at the back of his leg and immediately made his way to the sideline. We will provide an update when we receive one.

Today was something of a “Full Jameis,” as the unpredictable No. 2 quarterback also took four sacks. He thankfully didn’t add any fumbles, while he found each of Malik Nabers, Malachi Fields and reserve TE Theo Johnson for touchdowns. The Nabers grab, a 25-yarder vs. LB Mack Wilson’s hopeless coverage, was Winston’s longest score. His longest completion was a 40-yarder to Fields where he got flushed from the pocket on a third quarter 3rd-and-20. It was a devastating outcome for the Cardinals, to put it mildly. Winston’s mistakes were legion this afternoon — both of his picks were awful, awful passes — but it was a much livelier effort than the G-Men or fantasy managers saw in Weeks 2 and 3. This version of Jameis might actually keep the G-Men in games while holding off J.J. McCarthy for a little while. The Commanders are an unimposing Week 5 road matchup.

The Jets had the ball for a mere 17 minutes, as the Tyson Bagent-led Chicago offense dominated time of possession from start to finish. Smith, who had a combined 58 pass attempts over his past two outings, struggled against consistent pressure from the Bears front seven. His only highlight of the day came on a 58-yard touchdown strikes to Isaiah Williams in the fourth quarter. Smith should be a superflex option next week against the Browns. The return of Adonai Mitchell (finger) would boost Smith’s ceiling.

He managed to get his finger underneath a sideline ball for a 21-yarder, and the replay booth upheld the ruling of catch on the field. He also managed fewer targets than Xavier Hutchinson (five), as well as 10 fewer yards, despite Hutchinson playing 16 snaps to Boutte’s 32. The Nick Caley WR platoon will continue until morale improves, making nobody much of a FLEX play against the Titans in Week 5.