NFL Player News

Smith (knee) is out for Sunday's game against the Eagles, Dan Salomone of the Giants' official site reports.

Smith is set to miss his second game in a row with the issue. Chris Myarick is again likely to fill in.

Swaim (concussion) was a full practice participant Friday and is listed as questionable for Sunday's game in New England, Jim Wyatt of the Titans' official site reports.

Swaim was a full participant Wednesday and Friday, sandwiched around non-participation Thursday. That's unusual, but not necessarily bad, and he'll now need clearance from a team physician and independent neurological consultant in order to play this Sunday. The Titans can use all the help they can get with their WR group devastated by injuries, and Swaim should see plenty of snaps and at least a few targets if he avoids the inactive list.

Swaim (concussion) is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against New England.

If active this weekend, Swain would likely lead Tennessee's tight ends in playing time, but should he sit, MyCole Pruitt and Anthony Firkser would continue to see extra snaps, with the latter considered the more prolific pass-catcher.

Waller underwent an MRI on his knee Friday, which revealed a strained IT band, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Waller left Thursday's win at Dallas on two occasions and eventually was ruled out of the contest, ending Week 12 with a pair of catches for 33 yards on five targets. It's unclear if the injury will result in time away from the field, but the Raiders have more than a week to prepare for their next game Sunday, Dec. 5 against Washington. Foster Moreau is the next man up at tight end for Las Vegas, while Daniel Helm also is on the active roster.

Thomas (hamstring) went through position drills Friday and appears to have a shot to play in Monday's game against Seattle, Sam Fortier of The Washington Post reports.

Thomas may have done more than just position drills, but that's what reporters saw during the media-access portion of Friday's session. The tight end was designated to return from injured reserve Wednesday, opening a 21-day window where he can be either activated to the roster or sent back to IR for the rest of the season. Thomas doesn't appear in danger of the second outcome, and it even looks like he may return before No. 2 tight end Ricky Seals-Jones (hip). With both players out last week, rookie TE John Bates played all but one of Washington's offensive snaps in a 27-21 win over Carolina.

Seals-Jones (hip) didn't practice Friday, Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post reports.

At this point, Logan Thomas (hamstring) returning from injured reserve seems more likely than Seals-Jones making it back from his hip injury for Monday's game against Seattle. If both end up sitting, John Bates will fill in as Washington's top TE again.

Schultz caught three of seven targets for 46 yards and a touchdown while also catching a two-point conversion in a 36-33 overtime loss to the Raiders on Thanksgiving.

While it wasn't an efficient effort, Schultz salvaged his day with a 32-yard TD catch from Dak Prescott down the seam in the fourth quarter, with Prescott going right back to Schultz for a two-point conversion that tied the score at 30-30 with less than three minutes left on the clock. The touchdown was the fourth of the season for the fourth-year tight end, tying his career high from last year, but Schultz will likely remain a volatile fantasy option in Week 13 against the Saints.

Vannett caught his only target for 11 yards and a touchdown during Thursday's 31-6 loss to Buffalo.

Vannett, who made his season debut last week against the Eagles, split time with Garrett Griffin and Juwan Johnson but again was minimally involved in the passing game. While he at least found the end zone, you probably can' t count on many scores from someone who's topped one touchdown once in five previous seasons. Next up for Vannett and the Saints is a Week 13 home matchup against the Cowboys.

Knox brought in all three targets for 32 yards and two touchdowns in the Bills' 31-6 win over the Saints on Thursday night.

The athletic tight end made excellent use of his scant opportunities, recording scoring grabs of seven and 24 yards in the first and third quarter, respectively. Knox now has a career-high seven touchdowns and new high-water marks in receptions (31) and receiving yards (415) as well following Thursday night's effort, sending him into a Week 13 showdown with the Patriots on Monday night, Dec. 6 with plenty of momentum.

Hill was active for Thursday's 31-6 loss to the Bills, but was deemed an "emergency backup" as he continues to deal with a foot injury, Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football reports.

Hill's absence was certainly pronounced as Trevor Siemian struggled mightily to lead a functioning offense. The gadget quarterback was a full participant in practice all week so it's a little surprising the Saints didn't feel comfortable using Hill, especially as the offense floundered. The newly extended quarterback won't have much time to rehab the injury with the Saints slated to take on the Cowboys next Thursday.