NFL

The former longtime Saint is headed to Denver after spending over five seasons in New Orleans. After being placed on injured reserve before the regular season, Smith is looking to provide depth in the Broncos receiving room.

After being inactive on Sunday, Chase Claypool was away from the team on Monday and is not expected to practice or play this week. At this point, it would be a shock if he played another snap for the Bears, which is a disaster considering they gave up the 32nd overall pick to acquire him from the Steelers last year.

Joining Johnson on the sideline was starting free safety Eddie Jackson. While Jackson has said he expects to play, both players not being able to suit up on Tuesday is a bit of a concern with the Bears taking on the Commanders on the road on Thursday night. If the Bears are down half of their starting secondary again, that will only make things even more enticing for Sam Howell, Terry McLaurin, and the rest of the Washington offense.

Pugh was the team’s 2013 first-round pick and will now return with the Giants in desperate need of offensive line help. Left tackle Andrew Thomas is still working his way back from injury and rookie center John Michael Schmitz suffered a shoulder injury on Monday night. While Pugh will begin on the practice squad, it’s not a stretch to see him on the active roster and seeing snaps in a couple of weeks.

Carroll was asked if Geno was OK during his weekly radio show and said, “I think so.” While it’s not a heartening endorsement of health, Carroll later said, "“He kind of twisted his knee a little bit, yeah. It really was knee and ankle at first, but I think it just came down to taping up the ankle and then his knee was a little bit — he might be sore [Tuesday.] He’ll need a break.” It sounds like Geno may sit out a few practices, but should be fine long-term given that the Seahawks have a bye this week.

Mims finds a new home after spending a short time with the Lions. The Steelers need receiver depth and are looking for Mims to fill a void. He’s still recovering from an ankle injury that he suffered in training camp with the Lions.

In other words, embattled offensive coordinator Matt Canada will continue calling plays for the NFL’s worst offense. Tomlin has offered some mild critiques of the Steelers offense — 31st in EPA per play this year — but has stopped short of scaling back Canada’s role. It’s hard to say if the Steelers offense will get worse if Kenny Pickett (knee) misses time. Tomlin said Pickett would practice Wednesday, though he seems iffy for Week 5 against Baltimore.

Running a route on 86 percent of the team’s drop backs through Week 4, Goedert has a meager 14 percent target share and has yet to score a touchdown, disappointing those who drafted him in the middle rounds. He has a 19 percent target share in 2022. “Trust me — I promise you he’s still part of the plan of us wanting to get him the football,” Sirianni said when asked about Goedert’s slow start. “We need to get him the football. Sometimes there’s a dry spell in there, too, with what’s kind of going on right now. There are some different things that defenses are concerned of with Dallas that has affected some of the touches he’s gotten. It’s a bit of both. He is a great player. We rely on him.” Sirianni complimented Goedert’s run blocking — cold comfort for fantasy managers. Goedert drafters have little choice but to keep starting him, with the waiver wire barren of legit fantasy options. In Week 5, the Eagles play a Rams defense that gave up 107 yards and two touchdowns to Colts tight ends in Week 4.

Fowler described Evans’ hamstring injury as “mild,” which “bodes well for his return” after the Bucs’ Week 5 bye. Evans left Tampa’s Week 4 game against the Saints with the injury and did not return. Evans drafters can be cautiously optimistic they’ll have him back for Week 6 against the Lions. Evans is ninth in receiving yards (337) this season.

The rookie continues to function as a part-time player in the struggling Giants offense. He ran a route on about half of the team’s drop backs against Seattle and was not targeted deep, as one might expect for the blazing fast wideout. Hyatt is nothing more than a stash in deeper formats for now.