NFL Player News

Smith (ankle) is active for Sunday's game against the Bengals, Zach Berman of The Athletic reports.

The rookie fifth-round pick was reinstated from injured reserve Saturday after sitting out the first seven weeks of the season, and he's ready to make his professional debut in Cincinnati. Smith is likely to see work on special teams while serving as a depth receiver behind A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith and Jahan Dotson.

Baker is active for Sunday's game against the Jets.

With Ja'Lynn Polk (concussion) inactive, DeMario Douglas, Kayshon Boutte, Kendrick Bourne, K.J. Osborn, Tyquan Thorntonand Baker are available to handle the Patriots' Week 8 wideout duties. Baker is off the fantasy radar, however, until he logs steady snaps and production in New England's offense.

Lazard (chest) is inactive for Sunday's game against the Patriots.

Lazard, who didn't practice this past week, headed into the weekend listed as doubtful, so it's no surprise that he'll be sidelined versus the Patriots. In his absence, Mike Williams figures to join top WR options Garrett Wilson and Davante Adams in three-receiver sets, with added opportunities in the slot potentially on tap for Xavier Gipson when Wilson shifts to the outside. Also in the Jets' Week 8 WR mix are Xavier Gipson, Irvin Charles and Malachi Corley.

Hill (foot) is active for Sunday's game against the Cardinals.

A late-week addition to the Dolphins' injury report, Hill was a limited participant at practices Thursday, then sat out Friday's session entirely. Despite carrying a questionable tag into the weekend, Hill didn't seem to be at any major risk of sitting out against Arizona, as head coach Mike McDaniel said Friday that he was optimistic the star wideout would be ready to play Sunday. As expected, Hill has now been officially cleared to play and should see a big boost in his fantasy prospects with the return of quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (concussion), who will start after returning to practice this week and being activated from injured reserve. During Tagovailoa's four-game absence, Hill averaged just 3.5 catches and 41.0 yards from scrimmage per contest and failed to score a touchdown while he was on the receiving end of substandard quarterback play from the likes of Skylar Thompson, Tyler Huntley (shoulder) and Tim Boyle.

Flowers (ankle) is listed as active for Sunday's game against the Browns.

After not practicing Wednesday or Thursday due to an ankle issue that he sustained early in this past Monday night's win over the Buccaneers, Flowers returned to a limited session Friday, during which the wideout was moving around well, according to Jamison Hensley of ESPN. In the absence of any limitations or in-game setbacks, Flowers -- who approached Sunday's contest listed as questionable -- should have an opportunity to maintain his key role in the Ravens' passing game, a context that has led to him recording a 34/412/1 receiving line on 49 targets through seven games to date. Prior to his one-catch effort against Tampa Bay (while recording a 71 percent snap share), the 2023 first-rounder had combined for 16 catches on 21 targets for 243 yards in his two previous outings.

Higgins (quadricep) is inactive for Sunday's game against the Eagles.

After injuring his quad while running a route during Friday's practice, Higgins will miss his third game of the season and his first since Week 2, when he was sidelined to begin the season with a hamstring issue. According to Jordan Schultz of Fox Sports, the fact that the Bengals are beginning a stretch of three games in 10 days factored into the decision to make Higgins inactive for Week 8, but the wideout could be ready to return to the lineup next Sunday against the Raiders. While Higgins is sidelined against Philadelphia, Andrei Iosivas, Trenton Irwin and Jermaine Burton could step into increased roles behind No. 1 wideout Ja'Marr Chase.

Higgins (quadricep) remains listed as questionable but is not in line to play Sunday against the Eagles, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Higgins' status will be officially confirmed once the Bengals' inactive list is posted 90 minutes prior to Sunday's 1 p.m. ET kickoff. In Higgins' looming absence, Andrei Iosivas, Jermaine Burton and Trenton Irwin are candidates to see increased snaps behind No. 1 wideout Ja'Marr Chase.

Raymond could be the beneficiary of increased snaps due to Jameson Williams serving a two-game suspension and set to miss contests Sunday against the Titans and in Week 9 at Green Bay, Eric Woodyard of ESPN.com reports.

Amon-Ra St. Brown remains locked in as the Lions' No. 1 wideout, but Williams' absence will likely free up more snaps and perhaps an extra target or two for the likes of Raymond, Tim Patrick and Allen Robinson, while tight end Sam LaPorta could also see more involvement in the passing game after a slow start to the season. The 5-foot-8, 180-pound Raymond -- who clocked a 4.34-second 40-yard dash time coming out of college in 2016 -- is probably the Lions' best option to replace the downfield routes and gadget plays that were often designed for Williams, though Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson may not dial up those kind of play calls as frequently with Williams out of the lineup. While playing fewer than 40 percent of the snaps in both of the past two weeks, Raymond was able to make an impact during his limited time in the field, recording seven catches for 112 yards and a touchdown on 10 targets.

Higgins (quadricep) remains listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Eagles, but his chances of playing don't appear to be promising, a source tells Kelsey Conway of The Cincinnati Enquirer.

Jordan Schultz of Fox Sports echoes Conway's report, noting that Higgins faces an uphill battle to play Sunday after injuring his quad in Friday's practice. Higgins' Week 8 status will be confirmed either way once the Bengals post their inactive list approximately 90 minutes prior to Sunday's 1 p.m. ET kickoff. Andrei Iosivas, Jermaine Burton and Trenton Irwin could all be in store for increased snaps behind No. 1 wideout Ja'Marr Chase if Higgins is inactive for the contest.

Westbrook-Ikhine is expected to move into a regular role in three-receiver sets beginning with Sunday's game against the Lions after the Titans traded DeAndre Hopkins to the Chiefs on Wednesday, Turron Davenport of ESPN.com reports.

Though he could slide down a spot in the pecking order at receiver when or if Treylon Burks (knee) returns from injured reserve, Westbrook-Ikhine projects to see the biggest bump in snaps following Hopkins' departure. Calvin Ridley and Tyler Boyd will presumably continue to see more targets from quarterbacks Will Levis (shoulder) and Mason Rudolph, however, so Westbrook-Ikhine could struggle to carve out enough volume to attain fantasy relevance in a weak Tennessee passing offense. Westbrook-Ikhine has recorded a 3-19-2 receiving line on six targets over his 94 snaps through six games in 2024, and he didn't display much promise in 2023 (28-370-3 line on 45 targets in 14 regular-season games) despite occupying a top-three role for most of that season.