NFL Player News

Sternberger (ankle) will make his pro debut Sunday against the Chargers in L.A., Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Sternberger had a tough preseason, missing most of it due to a concussion, only to suffer an ankle injury in the finale when he emerged from the protocol. He subsequently was placed on IR, but with three weeks of practice under his belt, he was deemed ready to contribute again. Sternberger will be available behind Jimmy Graham and Marcedes Lewis with Robert Tonyan (hip) inactive.

Tonyan (hip) is inactive for Sunday's game against the Chargers, Jason Wahlers of the Packers' official site reports.

Tonyan will watch his third straight game from the sidelines. Rookie Jace Sternberger was just activated off injured reserve with an ankle issue and will make his NFL debut in this contest, taking over the No. 3 tight-end role behind Jimmy Graham and Marcedes Lewis.

Sternberger (ankle) was activated off injured reserve Saturday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

It's probably a bad omen for Robert Tonyan (hip), who was a limited participant in practice all week, but regardless, Sternberger isn't expected to be a major contributor in his first week back from an ankle injury that forced the rookie to hit the injured reserve list following an up-and-down preseason. Both Jimmy Graham and Marcedes Lewis have made major contributions in past weeks with a handful of the Packers' receiving corps dinged up, but it's unlikely Sternberger, or the aforementioned veteran duo, will have a tremendous season-long impact with Davante Adams (toe) and company allegedly on the mend.

Dwelley caught four passes (four targets) for 29 yards in Thursday's 28-25 win over the Cardinals.

Dwelley was on the field for 70 percent of the team's offensive snaps, which was due in large part to George Kittle suffering a knee injury early on, limiting the starter to a season-low 69 percent of offensive snaps. The latter was able to play through the injury, and an MRI on Friday revealed that there was no structural damage, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Even with the career-best game Thursday, Dwelley would need Kittle to completely miss a contest before gaining fantasy consideration, and even if that were to happen, the 24-year-old is nowhere near the athletic receiving specimen Kittle is.

Smith is poised for another start Week 9 against the Panthers after teammate Delanie Walker (ankle) was ruled out for the contest, Turron Davenport of ESPN.com reports.

Smith took full advantage of Walker's injury during last week's 27-23 win over Tampa Bay, catching six of seven targets for 78 yards and a touchdown. He'll face a much tougher pass defense this time around, but his rapport with Ryan Tannehill should lead to a fair share of targets. Of course, Tannehill also seems to have taken a liking to Anthony Firkser, who caught three of five targets for 43 yards last week, logging 56 percent of snaps on offense (compared to 73 percent for Smith).

Tonyan (hip) is questionable for Sunday's game against the Chargers, Ryan Wood of the Green Bay Press-Gazette reports.

Tonyan was a limited practice participant all week and may have a chance to see game action for the first time since suffering the hip injury Week 5. Even if active, the 25-year-old is unlikely to provide much fantasy production while working as the No. 3 tight end behind Jimmy Graham and Marcedes Lewis.

Graham (ankle) doesn't carry an injury designation into Sunday's game against the Chargers, Ryan Wood of the Green Bay Press-Gazette reports.

Graham's participation in practice was limited all week due to the ankle issue, but that was probably for maintenance purposes more than anything else. Given his lack of an injury designation, Graham can be expected to play the majority of the tight-end snaps in Week 9, as has been the case in all but one of the Packers' eight games this season.

Brown (concussion) is ruled out for Sunday's game against the Broncos, Mary Kay Cabot of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

Brown will need to fully clear the league's concussion protocol before retaking the field. As long as he's unable to go, Stephen Carlson will serve as Cleveland's No. 3 tight end.

Kittle (knee) said Friday he avoided a serious injury, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Kittle apparently got good news from the MRI he required after playing through a knee injury for the entirety of Thursday's 28-25 win over the Cardinals. He hurt his knee on the 49ers' first offensive snap, yet finished with six catches for 79 yards and a touchdown on eight targets. Kittle saw his snap share drop to 69 percent, so the injury wasn't a total non-factor. He'll have some extra time to recover before the 49ers face the Seahawks in Week 10 on Monday Night Football.

Carlson was promoted to the Browns' 53-man roster from the practice squad Friday.

The 21-year-old joined the Browns as an undrafted free agent in May but was unable to make the season-opening roster, though he remained with the organization on the practice squad. Carlson should serve as Cleveland's No. 3 tight end while Pharoah Brown (concussion) is sidelined.