NFL Player News

This echoes The Athletic’s reporting that Hunter, who injured his knee last week during a practice session, avoided “long term damage” to his knee. Hunter will miss at least the next three weeks and possibly more if the Jaguars want to be careful with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. The Jaguars could also be without Brian Thomas, who sustained an ankle injury during the team’s Week 9 win against the Raiders. Jacksonville on Tuesday acquired Jakobi Meyers from the Raiders. Meyers could immediately see significant playing time if Hunter and Thomas are sidelined.

Dart is currently in the league’s concussion protocol and has already been ruled out for Week 11. No quarterback has run more aggressively than Dart this year. The rookie ranks fifth among all quarterbacks in carries despite sitting on the bench for the first three games of the year. He has been checked for a concussion on four separate occasions. Some of Dart’s style will never go away, but expect interim head coach Mike Kafka to emphasize playing safe to his rookie once he is back in the lineup. Jameis Winston will start until Dart is ready to return.

Williams suffered a high-ankle sprain on Thursday versus the Jets. Per Rapoport, he is expected to return in 4-6 weeks. He will miss at least four games while on injured reserve. Williams has 3.5 sacks and 35 pressures this year. He was one of the Patriots’ big-ticket signings in free agency in the offseason.

Johnston was limited throughout the week before being given a questionable tag. Barring a setback during warmups, Johnston will be good to go versus the Jags. Per usual, he will be a boom/bust WR3.

Thomas Jr. was limited in practice throughout the week before being given a questionable tag. The young wideout is dealing with a high-ankle sprain and has played through several other issues this year. Giving him an extended break to come back healthy for the playoff push is in everyone’s best interest. Jakobi Meyers and Parker Washington will run as the Jags’ top receivers this week. With an extra week of practice under his belt, Meyers should take on the No. 1 role versus the Chargers.

Simmons hasn’t played since Week 7. It looked like he would be out again this week when the Titans held him out of practice on Wednesday. However, he returned for two limited sessions and a questionable designation entering the weekend. It sounds like the Titans will have their top pass-rusher back versus Davis Mills and the Texans. Simmons has 4.5 sacks this year.

Rapoport specifically called him a No. 1 receiver when referring to how the Jags see him. Hunter is currently on injured reserve with a season-ending LCL tear. He is expected to be ready for the start of the offseason program in 2026. Hunter looked like he was turning the corner as a wideout just before suffering the knee injury in practice. That, of course, sparked questions about whether he will continue playing on both sides of the ball. For now, that appears to be the plan. Hunter will be one of the most fiercely debated players in fantasy circles heading into his second season.

Dolphins owner Stephen Ross reportedly wants to retain McDaniel as the team’s head coach for 2026. As Rapoport notes, “There is no bigger champion” of Tua than McDaniel. More importantly, the Dolphins would take on a cap hit of over $90 million if they cut their starting quarterback next year. That can be spread over two years with a post-June 1 designation, but it would still be extremely painful for the team. It’s possible Miami gets hot down the stretch and their season doesn’t go down as a total implosion, but there isn’t a path for this setup to contend for a Super Bowl anytime soon. Keeping Tua and McDaniel for another season would pointlessly delay the inevitable.

Neal moved from tackle to guard during the offseason but hasn’t played a snap of football this year. He could technically return this year, but that sounds unlikely at this point. The former No. 7 overall pick will head into free agency as a true salvage project for another team.

Per Schefter, London got sick after the team’s Week 10 trip to Berlin. He was held out of practice on Wednesday and returned for a limited session on Thursday. London remained limited on Friday, the team added a back issue to his report, and he was listed as questionable. Make sure to check in on Atlanta’s inactives ahead of kickoff, but we will assume London is good to go for now. To no one’s surprise, London remains a top-end WR1 for fantasy purposes this week.

Ridley hasn’t played since Week 6 because of the hamstring issue. He was listed as questionable for Week 11 after getting in three limited practices. Ridley’s return should provide a small boost to a struggling Tennessee offense, but they weren’t getting much going before he went down with the hamstring injury. Don’t expect a massive turnaround for Cam Ward and company with him back in the lineup. Ridley is nothing more than a WR4 for his first game back.