NFL Player News

Smith is dealing with an ankle injury and won’t suit up for the season finale against the Chiefs. That means Kenny Pickett will get another start for a Raiders team positioned to get the first overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. Pickett threw for 64 yards and an interception in a Week 14 start against the Eagles.

Gase has not coached since his 2019-2020 run as the Jets’ head coach. He served as the Dolphins’ head coach before that, from 2016-2018. The Chargers swapped out former OC Greg Roman for new OC Mike McDaniel this offseason, and are evidently not done adding new offensive staffers.

Grossi spent the past two seasons serving as a passing game specialist with the Broncos. The team initially hired him as an offensive staffer in 2022, where he worked closely with the Broncos’ wide receivers. He coached at Southern University and A&M College before that.

Crosby was asked to comment on a FOX Sports report that indicated his time with the Raiders could be coming to a close. The veteran pass rusher responded by saying that “any talk of wanting out of Las Vegas” did not come from him. Whether the Raiders try to move Crosby, 28, for a significant haul remains to be seen, but it appears as though Crosby is happy with his current team. It is also nice to hear that his rehab process is going well. Per Crosby, this is his “eighth surgery in seven years.”

Watson remains under contract through 2026, having signed a one-year extension in September 2025. The 26-year-old wide receiver suffered a season-ending ACL tear in 2024 and retook the field for the first time in Week 8, 2025. He impressively averaged a career-high 2.28 yards per route run despite coming off a significant knee injury.

The former third-round pick is a talented, yet oft-injured player. He has missed multiple games in each of his first four seasons. Dean was unable to play until Week 7 this year after suffering a torn patellar tendon in the 2024 postseason. He later missed Weeks 17 and 18 with a hamstring injury. Through four regular seasons, Dean has totaled 166 tackles, eight sacks and one interception.

The report comes from NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, who notes that the Texans run the same defensive scheme as the Browns. Browns DC Jim Schwartz resigned yesterday. Undlin spent 2015-2019 coaching defensive backs with the Eagles. Schwartz ran the Eagles’ defense from 2016-2020. Vasso signed on with the Eagles as a defensive quality control coach and assistant secondary coach in 2016. He was promoted to the title of assistant coordinator/defense in 2020.

Spillane got in two limited sessions to close the week, which is a good sign. The veteran linebacker aggravated an ankle injury in the AFC Championship Game that initially sidelined him in Weeks 14-18. Patriots LB Harold Landry (knee) was limited on Wednesday, sat out on Thursday and resumed practicing in a limited capacity on Friday.

Maye injured his right, throwing shoulder in the Patriots’ AFC Championship Game victory over the Broncos. He was limited through last week’s first two practices before being sidelined on Friday by an illness. After resting and rehabbing through the weekend, he rattled off three straight full practice sessions this week. This year’s MVP runner-up is ready to go.

Up until Thursday, Darnold had been a limited practice participant since injuring his oblique during the Seahawks’ final Divisional Round practice. As of Friday evening, he has two full sessions under his belt. Last time we saw Darnold on the field, he threw for a season-high 346 yards and three touchdowns. He is good to go for Sunday’s game.

The Seahawks had Emmanwori take the day off to receive treatment on Thursday, after spraining his ankle on Wednesday. Emmanwori suffered a high-ankle sprain in September and sprained the same ankle this week, but imaging indicated he avoided a high-ankle sprain this time. He practiced fully today, which is a great sign for his readiness to play a normal allotment of snaps on Sunday. Seahawks LT Charles Cross (foot) was also cleared to play after practicing fully today.