NFL Player News

Falcons tight end coach Justin Peele said Monday that Pitts (knee) is "on schedule" in his recovery, Josh Kendall of The Athletic reports.

Pitts is recovering from right knee surgery undergone late November to address a Grade 2 MCL sprain. Suffering the injury Week 11 cut Pitts' sophomore campaign short, as he logged just 10 appearances, but there haven't been any hints of concern out of Atlanta about him potentially missing time during offseason workouts. In any case, Pitts should be back to full health well before the start of the 2023 season, barring any setbacks. The athletic tight end posted 1,026 receiving yards as a rookie, and depending on the Falcons' quarterback situation next season, Pitts once again may be a popular option in the early rounds of fantasy drafts.

Kelce secured seven of eight targets for 78 yards and a touchdown and committed a fumble recovered by Kansas City during the Chiefs' 23-20 win over the Bengals in Sunday's AFC Championship Game.

Kelce had found production hard to come by against the Bengals defense in three prior meetings over the last two seasons, but he appeared to be on his way to a big day Sunday after amassing a 4-55-1 line in the first half. The touchdown came from 14 yards out on a fourth-down play late in the first half to extend the Chiefs' lead to 13-3 at the time, but Kelce largely was kept in check over the final two quarters. Nevertheless, he'll be set for potentially even more work than usual during the Super Bowl LVII matchup against the Eagles in two weeks' time if any of wideouts JuJu Smith-Schuster (knee), Kadarius Toney (ankle) and Mecole Hardman (pelvis), who all left Sunday's contest with injuries, remain sidelined.

Goedert caught five of six targets for 23 yards in Sunday's 31-7 win over the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game.

It wasn't a big performance by any means, but the tight end's five receptions actually led the Eagles in a game where they didn't need to throw the ball much after the loss of Brock Purdy (elbow) derailed the Niners offense. Goedert has a 10-81-1 line on 11 targets through two playoff games this season, and he figures to have a solid floor with some upside potential in two weeks during the Super Bowl.

Kittle caught three of four targets for 32 yards in Sunday's 31-7 NFC Championship Game loss to Philadelphia.

San Francisco's passing offense went by the wayside following injuries to both of its active quarterbacks, resulting in no receiver finishing with more than 33 yards in the one-sided loss. Kittle got off to a slow start in 2022 after getting injured late in camp, but a second-half surge resulted in a strong 60-765-11 receiving line over 15 active regular-season games. The 29-year-old remains under contract with the 49ers for the 2023 campaign, but it is unclear who will be delivering balls to the athletic tight end, with Trey Lance (ankle), Jimmy Garoppolo (foot) and Brock Purdy (elbow) all finishing this season injured. Kittle no longer is in Travis Kelce's tier of fantasy tight ends, but he still should be one of the first options taken off the board in drafts next season.

Kelce (back) is listed as active for Sunday's AFC Championship Game against the Bengals.

Per Fox Sports' Jay Glazer, the star tight end felt his back lock up on the final play of Friday's practice, and as a result, Kelce was listed as questionable for Sunday's contest. With his availability versus Cincinnati confirmed, Kelce should remain a key cog in the Chiefs' passing attack provided his back spasms don't flare up again in-game. If he's limited at all or suffers any setbacks, however, added TE snaps would be available for Noah Gray and Jody Fortson.

Kelce (back) is viewed as a game-time decision for Sunday's AFC Championship Game against the Bengals, according Fox Sports' Jay Glazer.

Per the report, Kelce -- who officially is listed as questionable -- felt his back lock up on the second-to-last play of Friday's practice and has been receiving treatment to address the issue since then. Adam Schefter of ESPN previously reported that Kelce is expected to play Sunday, but Glazer indicates that the Chiefs want to see how the star tight end is able to run ahead of the team's 6:30 p.m. ET kickoff before a final call is made on his availability.

Kelce (back), officially listed as questionable, is expected to play in Sunday's AFC Championship Game against the Bengals, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Kelce popped up on the injury report late in the week, though he managed to turn in a full practice session Friday. Given that and the magnitude of the game, it would be surprising to see Kelce sidelined. Even so, it will be worth confirming his status when inactives are released shortly before the 6:30 PM ET kickoff.

Fortson (elbow) was activated off injured reserve Saturday.

It'll be interesting to see how many snaps Fortson actually sees Sunday with both Noah Gray and Blake Bell healthy and in the offensive fold for the Chiefs, but Travis Kelce's (back) late emergence on the injury report Friday could mean the team will safeguard its prized target a bit more. Fortson had just 13 targets across 13 regular-season contests this season.

Kelce (back), who was listed as a full practice participant Friday, is listed as questionable for Sunday's AFC Championship Game against the Bengals, Matt McMullen of the Chiefs' official site reports.

Though Kelce handled every rep in the Chiefs' final practice of the week, the tight end's official questionable designation makes his status worth tracking ahead of Sunday's 6:30 p.m. ET kickoff. Look for added context regarding Kelce's status to arrive closer to game time, but if he's limited at all versus Cincinnati, added snaps would be available for Noah Gray, Blake Bell and possibly Jody Fortson (elbow), who is a candidate to be activated off IR this weekend.

Hurst (calf) doesn't carry an injury designation into Sunday's AFC Championship Game against the Chiefs after practicing fully Friday.

Hurst proclaimed himself healthy earlier in the day Friday, and his confidence was validated by the official injury report. The starting tight end was a limited participant in practice Thursday, but it appears that limited session was precautionary. Hurst has caught nine of 12 targets for 104 yards, one touchdown and one fumble lost through two games this postseason.