NFL Player News

Kittle (knee/ankle) is inactive for Monday's game against the Seahawks.

Kittle played through a knee injury during the 49ers' Week 9 victory at Arizona, and while the results of an ensuing MRI haven't been made public, he was unable to practice in any capacity in advance of this contest. The 49ers thus are taking a cautious approach with Kittle, who will yield tight end reps to Ross Dwelley, Garret Celek and Levine Toilolo.

Higbee caught three of his four targets for 20 yards during Sunday's 17-12 loss to Pittsburgh.

Higbee's now up to a pedestrian 21 receptions for 192 yards and a touchdown on the season, and this was the seventh consecutive game that he's failed to make a meaningful fantasy impact. Gerald Everett's emergence as a pass-catching tight end limits Higbee's potential moving forward, too.

Smith caught his only target for one yard in Sunday's 34-27 loss to the Jets.

Smith -- who was picked in the sixth round by the 49ers last April -- was afforded 41 of a possible 72 offensive snaps (57 percent) since Evan Engram (foot) was inactive and Rhett Ellison suffered a concussion during the contest. Engram and Ellison will both have the upcoming bye to get ready for Week 12's matchup against the Bears, otherwise, Smith could make his first career start.

Seals-Jones (knee) was listed as a limited participant on Monday's estimated practice report, Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal reports.

After failing to practice at all last week in advance of Sunday's DNP, Seals-Jones would have practiced in some capacity Monday if the Browns had held a session. It remains to be seen if he'll maintain that standing or upgrade to full participation as the week goes on, but he seems to be trending in the right direction for Thursday's game against the Steelers.

Thomas caught both of his targets for 19 yards during Sunday's 20-13 loss to Chicago.

The gap between Thomas (18 snaps) and No. 2 tight end Jesse James (28) was greater than it was last week when Thomas only saw one fewer snap, but Thomas was yet again the more impactful receiver of the two. The issue is that Thomas probably won't ever handle a large enough workload to be of fantasy relevance as long as T.J. Hockenson remains healthy.

Kroft was not targeted in Sunday's loss to the Browns, though he was on the field for 43 percent of the offensive snaps.

Kroft appears to finally be over his foot and ankle issues, yet that doesn't mean he's fantasy worthy, as he's taken a back seat to rookie Dawson Knox, who seems to be a more athletic receiver than Kroft and has been working with the offense for months while the free-agent signee was rehabilitating moderately severe injuries. Knox saw 58 percent of the offensive snaps Sunday and caught four balls for 55 yards on six targets. Kroft can't really be considered the starter at this stage any longer.

Sample wore a boot on his right foot after injuring his ankle during Sunday's loss to the Ravens, Ben Baby of ESPN.com reports.

Sample didn't return after sustaining this injury Sunday, and his status is uncertain for Week 11's matchup against the Raiders. We'll know more when the Bengals release their first official injury report following Wednesday's practice. Sample has five catches for 30 yards this year, and Cethan Carter would bump into the No. 3 role if Sample's unable to play.

Smith had five receptions for 34 yards on six targets in Sunday's win at Dallas.

Smith was tied for second on the team in targets even on a day when Kyle Rudolph had four receptions and two touchdowns. Smith is getting more looks with Adam Thielen out with a hamstring injury, and his role in the offense should continue to grow because he's drawing praise from the coaching staff. He has 17 receptions and 21 targets in his last four games.

Graham caught two passes for 59 yards in Sunday's victory over the Panthers.

Graham would have had a better than average day had a touchdown he scored just before halftime not been overturned on replay, but alas, he was limited to just the two receptions. Luckily for fantasy players, one of those was a 48-yard catch-and-run on that same second-quarter drive. Those who have been counting on Graham in fantasy lineups will want to have another option on hand the next couple weeks, as the Packers will have a Week 11 bye before facing a San Francisco team that has ceded the fewest fantasy points to opposing tight ends over the first nine weeks of the season.

Vannett caught his only target for eight yards in Sunday's 17-12 win over the Rams.

The reception was only the fifth of the season for Vannett, who now has 56 yards and no touchdowns in six games with Pittsburgh. The win puts the Steelers over .500 for the first time this season (5-4) and although Vannett has a reception in four of those wins, he just isn't enough of a factor on offense to merit fantasy consideration heading into Week 11 against the Browns.