NFL Player News

Thomas was placed on Washington's reserve/COVID-19 list Wednesday.

Thomas' placement on the list doesn't necessarily indicate that he has COVID-19, as the list was created by the league for players who either test positive for COVID-19 or who have been been in close contact with an infected person or persons. The 29-year-old is slated to compete for Washington's starting job at tight end.

Engram (foot) is healthy for the start of training camp, Art Stapleton of The Bergen Record reports.

Engram had Lisfranc surgery in December, but he indicated at the time that he wasn't dealing with a "full-blown tear," and he seems to have avoided the lengthy rehab process that Eagles wideout Alshon Jeffery is contending with. In any case, the Giants picked up the fifth-year option on Engram's rookie contract, keeping him under team control through 2021. He's been a solid fantasy starter throughout his career in terms of per-game production, but injuries limited the tight end to 19 appearances over the past two years.

Alie-Cox (undisclosed) has been placed on the Colts' Active/PUP list.

Once he's able to return to practice, Alie-Cox, who caught eight passes for 93 yards in 16 games last season, will look to secure a reserve tight end slot on the team behind Jack Doyle and Trey Burton.

Sweeney has been placed on the Active/PUP list due to a foot injury, Chris Brown of the Bills' official site reports.

The second-year tight end has some work to do to gain some form of meaningful role in the Buffalo offense now that Tyler Kroft is healthy again and set to compete with Dawson Knox for the top TE spot. We'll see if Sweeney can get back at it in relatively short order so he can stake his claim to the No. 3 role.

49ers GM John Lynch says Kittle plans to attend training camp, Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Entering the final season of his rookie contract, Kittle has a rock-solid argument for the largest payday an NFL tight end has ever seen. Lynch says communications with Kittle's agent have been productive so far, apparently inspiring confidence that a deal will be reached soon enough. Meanwhile, Deebo Samuel (foot) is in danger of missing the start of the season, potentially creating an opportunity for Kittle to handle an even larger target share than usual.

Swaim (concussion/ankle) is set to have a tryout and physical with the Texans on Tuesday, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.

Swaim was placed on IR by the Jaguars last October due to a concussion and ankle injury. There has yet to be an update on his status, so his upcoming physical will bring more clarity to his current health.

Wood-Anderson was waived by the Seahawks on Sunday.

The undrafted rookie was always a long shot to stick in Seattle's crowded tight end corps, as Greg Olsen, Will Dissly (Achilles), Jacob Hollister, Colby Parkinson (foot) and Luke Willson are all capable enough to realistically compete for roster spots. The Tennessee product will turn his attention to competing for a depth role elsewhere.

Houston was cut by the Cardinals on Sunday.

One of two tight ends that were signed as undrafted free agents by the team this offseason, Houston couldn't make the 80-man roster to open camp. The San Diego State product only notched 45 catches for 420 yards and three touchdowns in 49 contests in his collegiate career. He'll look for more of a blocking and depth role elsewhere for 2020.

Wolf was waived by the Rams on Saturday, Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic reports.

The 24-year-old joined the Rams on a reserve/future contract at the end of the season but won't begin training camp with the team. Wolf is still looking to make his NFL debut since going undrafted out of Tennessee in 2018.

Kroft is in good position to log a productive 2020 campaign with the Bills, Maddy Glab of the team's official site reports.

Kroft is coming off an injury-plagued 2019 campaign, in which he had just six catches for 71 yards and a touchdown across 11 games. Now fully recovered from the broken foot that caused him to sit out the first seven weeks of 2019, and having agreed to restructure his contract in order to remain with Buffalo, the 27-year-old should have real opportunities to compete with Dawson Knox for starting snaps in training camp. Kroft showcased solid receiving capabilities with the Bengals back in 2017, when he accumulated 42 catches for 404 yards and seven scores while playing a full 16-game slate. While a bounce-back season almost seems likely, it's difficult to envision Kroft entering elite TE territory, given that he plays in a run-oriented offense, will compete for looks with Knox all season, and at best would be the fourth or fifth option in the passing game.