NFL Player News

Yankoff (hamstring) practiced in full Tuesday.

Yankoff was also a full practice participant all last week after being designated to return from injured reserve Wednesday. However, he wasn't activated off injured reserve ahead of Washington's wild-card win over the Buccaneers. It's unclear if Yankoff will be activated in time for this Saturday's divisional-round matchup against the Lions, but the chances of that happening would increase if fellow tight end Ben Sinnott (shoulder) isn't able to play.

Sinnott (shoulder) was a limited practice participant Tuesday.

Sinnott hurt his shoulder in the first half of Sunday's wild-card win against Tampa Bay, but he was able to return after halftime. The rookie tight end logged 10 percent of Washington's offensive snaps in the victory -- which is in line with his usual snap share in recent weeks -- and didn't get any touches or targets. Sinnott's practice participation level Wednesday and Thursday should determine whether he is tagged with an injury designation heading into the weekend.

Schultz (shoulder) was a limited participant in Tuesday's practice.

The veteran tight end has been relatively healthy this season, and it's the first time he's been listed as limited on a practice report since September. Schultz played 73 percent of the offensive snaps in last Saturday's wild-card win over the Chargers, securing two of his four targets for 23 yards. Rookie TE Cade Stover (undisclosed), was placed on injured reserve earlier Tuesday, which could lead to a little more volume for Schultz in the divisional round against Kansas City.

Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans confirmed Tuesday that Stover sustained a fractured collarbone in Saturday's 32-12 win over the Chargers and will require season-ending surgery, Jonathan M. Alexander of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Teagan Quitoriano (calf) could be reinstated from IR later this week to give the Texans a third option at tight end behind Dalton Schultz and Irv Smith for Saturday's divisional-round game against Kansas City. Stover recorded four catches for 28 yards on four targets in the win over the Chargers and finished the regular season with a 15-133-1 receiving line on 22 targets over 15 appearances.

Parkinson secured both of his targets for 13 yards during Monday's 27-9 wild-card win over the Vikings.

Tyler Higbee (chest) looked primed to have a career game early, with five catches for 58 yards on 12 snaps, but his night was cut short by a chest injury. The trio of Rams' tight ends behind Higbee on the depth chart each recorded exactly 13 receiving yards, with Davis Allen catching a touchdown in the second quarter. Parkinson's 33 snaps on offense were more than Allen (19) and Hunter Long (22) and he was the only one of the three to catch more than one pass, but with Higbee not expected to miss any additional time, Parkinson will likely revert to his role as a backup against the Eagles in the divisional round.

The Bucs signed Taula to a reserve/future contract Tuesday, Greg Auman of Fox Sports reports.

Taula spent the entirety of the 2024 season on Tampa Bay's practice squad. Still looking to make his regular-season NFL debut, Taula will compete for a roster spot with the Bucs next offseason.

Head coach Sean McVay said that Higbee (chest) has been discharged from an Arizona hospital and is expected to play Sunday in the Rams' divisional-round matchup with the Eagles, Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic reports.

With five catches for 58 yards on five targets in Monday's 27-9 win over the Vikings in the wild-card round, Higbee finished as the Rams' leading receiver, despite being forced out of the game before the end of the first half due to a chest injury. According to McVay, Higbee was "coughing up a little bit of blood" and was sent to the hospital as a result, but the tight end has seemingly avoided a serious injury. The Rams could still limit Higbee in practice to some extent this week, but the expectation is that he'll be ready to go for Sunday's game with few restrictions, if any.

The Texans placed Stover on injured reserve Tuesday after he suffered a broken collarbone in Saturday's 32-12 wild-card win over the Chargers, Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Houston reports.

The rookie tight end played 36 offensive snaps -- his second-most of the season -- and recorded four catches for 28 yards on four targets in Saturday's win, but he appears to have suffered the injury at some point along the way. Primarily used as a blocker during his rookie campaign, Stover recorded 15 receptions for 133 yards and one touchdown during the regular season. Teagan Quitoriano (calf) was recently designated for return from IR and could be activated ahead of Saturday's divisional-round matchup with the Chiefs. For the time being, however, the Texans are left with starter Dalton Schultz and Irv Smith as the lone healthy tight ends on the roster.

Knox caught two of three targets for 38 yards in Sunday's 31-7 wild-card win over the Broncos.

Knox played 46 of the Bills' 76 offensive snaps in the contest, ahead of both Dalton Kincaid (29) and Quintin Morris (5). Even with his elevated snap share, the veteran tight end was unable to get much going on his three targets. With Sunday's victory against the Broncos, the Bills are now set to face the Ravens in the divisional-round on Jan. 19. Knox will likely continue to operate in a limited role against Baltimore while sharing the majority of tight end duties with Kincaid, the preferred option in the passing game.

Hockenson brought in all five targets for 64 yards and a touchdown in the Vikings' 27-9 wild-card loss to the Rams on Monday night. He finished the regular season with 41 receptions for 455 yards on 62 targets over 10 games.

The veteran tight end was one of the few bright spots in the disappointing season-ending loss, bringing in Sam Darnold's only touchdown pass of the night from 26 yards out with just over five minutes remaining in the game. It was an encouraging finish for Hockenson amid a disappointing team outcome, as he missed the first seven games of the season while completing his recovery from multiple ligament tears in his knee that he'd suffered late in the 2023 season. Hockenson seemingly worked back to full health down the stretch and even recorded one 100-yard performance, which should leave him poised for a big 2025 season as he likely begins working with J.J. McCarthy (knee) as his quarterback.