NFL Player News

Akins will miss practice Wednesday with muscle tightness in his leg, NFL reporter Aaron Wilson reports.

Akins is Houston's top pass catcher at tight end, a position otherwise manned by blocking specialists or untested young players. His absence from practice frees up reps for Kahale Warring, Brevin Jordan and Pharaoh Brown.

Hockenson got banged up during Tuesday's practice and exited early with an undisclosed injury, Justin Rogers of The Detroit News reports.

Head coach Dan Campbell used the words "minor" and "precautionary" when discussing Hockenson, who subsequently missed practice Wednesday, per Chris Burke of The Athletic. Even if his injury isn't serious, the tight end isn't likely to play in Friday's preseason opener against the Bills. Hockenson's absence would leave Darren Fells as Detroit's top tight end, followed on the depth chart by a slew of young players with minimal pro experience.

Freiermuth (shoulder) participated in Tuesday's practice, Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Freiermuth suffered a shoulder injury last week and was unable to appear in the Hall of Fame Game against Dallas. However, the 22-year-old's return to practice signals that he could make his NFL debut in Thursday's exhibition game against the Eagles. Freiermuth had performed well early in camp before he suffered his shoulder injury, and he's expected to compete for a role in Pittsburgh's offense ahead of his rookie season.

Angeline was waived by the Cardinals on Tuesday.

Angeline joined the Cardinals back in May but had a short-lived stint as the team decided to bring in tight end Demetrius Harris in a corresponding move. Angeline will now look to join on with a new squad ahead of the regular season.

Bryant is listed as the No. 3 tight end on Cleveland's unofficial depth chart.

Bryant played more than David Njoku (shoulder) in 2020, but the Browns are leaning toward Njoku as the top backup to starter Austin Hooper. At least that was case until Njoku missed Tuesday's practice with a shoulder injury, paving the way for Bryant to get more practice reps as the team prepares for its first preseason game Saturday against Jacksonville.

Njoku (shoulder) is listed as the No. 2 tight end on the Browns' unofficial depth chart.

Njoku has had a good camp thus far but sustained a shoulder injury that forced him to sit out Tuesday's practice. The Browns appear to value his ability in one-on-one situations, which puts him above second-year man Harrison Bryant for now. In 2020 however, Bryant played more snaps than Njoku.

Swaim is the No. 1 tight end on the Titans' first official depth chart of the season, Claire Kuwana of the Tennessean reports.

Anthony Firkser was presumed to be the player who would primarily fill in for the loss of Jonnu Smith. However, in a surprise move Swaim was listed ahead of Firkser in the first version of the depth chart. However, that doesn't necessarily mean Swaim will have a large role as a receiver, as that listing could reflect his usage as a blocker for Derrick Henry. Across 10 games and 353 offensive snaps with the Titans last season, Swaim saw only 12 targets.

Njoku didn't practice Tuesday due to a shoulder injury, Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal reports.

Njoku has had a rough past two years in Cleveland, spending time on IR due to a broken wrist in 2019, residing in Freddie Kitchens' doghouse upon his return that season and playing behind both Austin Hooper and rookie Harrison Bryant in 2020. In total, Njoku has gathered in 24 of 39 targets for 254 yards and three touchdowns in 17 appearances during that stretch. Now dealing with another injury, Njoku is in danger of missing preseason action, with the Browns set to kick off their exhibition season Saturday at Jacksonville.

Long (lower body) is not believed to have suffered a season-ending injury, Joe Schad of The Palm Beach Post reports.

Long had to be carted off the field Sunday after suffering what appeared to be a left knee injury, but which Schad now describes as a lower-body issue. It was reported that Long was unable to put any weight on his left leg, so it will be a relief for Miami if he's indeed avoided something season-ending. Durham Smythe and Adam Shaheen will handle reps behind top tight end Mike Gesicki in the meantime.

Waller (undisclosed) was spotted working out with a trainer on the side during Tuesday's practice, Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com reports.

The tight end isn't ready to practice just yet, but appears to be inching his way back into action. At this stage, consider Waller day-to-day as Saturday's preseason opener against Seattle approaches.