NFL Player News

Trautman finished the 2024 season with 13 receptions on 22 targets for 188 yards and two touchdowns.

Trautman's 13 grabs this season marked a career low for the veteran tight end, while his 22 targets, 188 yards and two touchdowns were his lowest totals as a Bronco. Despite being the Broncos No. 1 tight end, the 27-year-old found himself in a timeshare with Lucas Krull and Nate Adkins for most of the season. Trautman will enter 2025 in the second year of the two-year contract he signed last March before becoming an unrestricted free agent in 2026. The 6-foot-5, 253-pounder will likely continue to play a similar role in head coach Sean Payton's system during the upcoming postseason and next season, limiting his fantasy potential once again.

Bates played the final two games of the season for the Browns, garnering one target over 15 snaps on offense.

After appearing in five games for the Jets from Weeks 2 through 6 while getting most of his playing time on special teams, Bates was waived in October. The Jets then re-signed Bates to their practice squad before the Browns signed him to a two-year deal in December. He'll remain in Cleveland in 2025 but will likely have to compete for a spot on the 53-man roster throughout training camp and the preseason.

Whiteheart caught six of nine targets for 51 yards and a touchdown over 11 games for Cleveland in 2024.

Whiteheart typically served as the Browns' No. 2 or 3 tight end when he was active this season, moving up a rung on the depth chart on the occasions starter David Njoku missed time due to injury. The 24-year-old is an exclusive rights free agent this offseason but is likely to be tendered a contract for 2025.

Knox did not play a single snap in Sunday's 23-16 loss to the Patriots.

With the Bills locking in the No. 2 seed in the AFC after Week 17, Knox and several other players missed all or most of the Week 18 contest to rest for the playoffs. The 28-year-old Knox and fellow tight end Dalton Kincaid watched from the sideline as teammate Quintin Morris handled every tight end snap in the game. Knox will return to his role as the Bills' primary backup at the position in the team's next game, when the Bills host the Broncos in the wild-card round of the playoffs.

Pruitt (knee) did not participate in Wednesday's practice, Mike DeFabo of The Athletic reports.

Pruitt was limited in practice Tuesday due to a knee issue, and he appears to have now taken a step backward in his recovery. If the veteran No. 3 tight end is unable to play during Saturday's wild-card road game against the Ravens, his absence will deplete Pittsburgh's depth behind Pat Freiermuth and Darnell Washington.

Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles said Wednesday that Otton (knee) is "trending in the right direction" and would have been a limited participant Wednesday if the team had held a normal practice, Jenna Laine of ESPN.com reports.

The Buccaneers held a walk-through session rather than a more strenuous practice, and they'll presumably list Otton as a limited participant on their first official injury report of the week. He missed the final three games of the regular season due to the knee injury, allowing Payne Durham to step in as the starter while Devin Culp took on some of the passing-down snaps. An every-down player when healthy throughout his NFL career, Otton might have a somewhat lesser role if he makes it back for Sunday's wild-card matchup with Washington.

Kincaid didn't play any snaps during Sunday's 23-16 loss to the Patriots.

Though Kincaid wasn't inactive for the regular-season finale, the Bills ended up holding out the second-year tight end and a number of other key players since they had already secured the AFC's No. 2 seed heading into the day. Since his return from injury Week 15, Kincaid's playing time has hovered below 50 percent of offensive snaps over his last three appearances, so additional rest could leave him ready to handle an increased role in Sunday's wild-card round game against the Broncos. Across 13 regular-season appearances in Year 2, Kincaid secured 44 of 75 targets for 448 yards and two touchdowns.

Yankoff (hamstring) was designated to return from injured reserve Wednesday.

Yankoff has been on IR since early November but will have a chance to return to action during the Commanders' playoff run. The UCLA product will now be able to practice with the team and could be added to the 53-man roster ahead of Sunday's game against the Buccaneers if he is healthy enough to play.

Hooper finished the 2024 regular season with 45 catches (on 59 targets) for 476 yards and three TDs in 17 games.

Though Hooper spent his first season with New England working in a tight-end time share that tilted in favor of Hunter Henry (66/674/2 in 16 games), he managed to string together steady enough production down the stretch to maintain a modest but reliable floor in deeper fantasy formats. Hooper is eligible to become an unrestricted free agent this offseason, but it's possible that the Patriots could look into bringing the 30-year-old back in 2025.

Mayer caught all four of his targets for 21 yards in Sunday's 34-20 loss to the Chargers.

He concluded the 2024 season with 21 receptions for 156 yards on 32 targets across 11 games. Mayer appeared in the Raiders' final eight contests of the season after missing Weeks 4 through 9 due to personal reasons, and his return was highlighted by a seven-catch, 68-yard performance Week 14 at Tampa Bay. The 2023 second-rounder selection's fantasy ceiling was limited by the emergence of fellow tight end Brock Bowers, who set multiple rookie records en route to a 112-1,194-5 receiving line on 153 targets in 17 games. Mayer has two years remaining with the Raiders on his own rookie contract, but given Bowers' dominance and the fact that Las Vegas' current regime didn't draft Mayer, the Notre Dame product could be a valuable trade candidate this offseason.