NFL Player News

Shakir caught all six of his targets for 105 yards in Sunday's 21-14 victory over the Dolphins.

Gabe Davis left the game with a sprained PCL, but the Buffalo offense didn't miss a beat as Shakir stepped up. He finishes his second regular season with a 39-611-2 line, cementing himself as the clear No. 3 on the team -- not bad for a fifth-round pick. Shakir will be asked to handle No. 2 wideout duties behind Stefon Diggs if Davis isn't healthy in time for Sunday's playoff opener against the Steelers.

Samuel finished 2023 with 62 catches for 613 yards and four touchdowns on 91 targets and seven carries for 39 yards and a touchdown.

Samuel was one of five Commanders to catch four TD passes and otherwise finished second to Terry McLaurin in the major receiving categories. Second-year pro Jahan Dotson was a disappointment as the No. 2 receiver and took a step back from his rookie season, whereas Samuel's 2023 receiving numbers were nearly identical to those from 2022 (62-613-4 receiving line). A lack of rushing opportunities was the biggest change for the 27-year-old, as he got just seven carries under new offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy after taking 37 the previous season. Bieniemy wasn't fired along with head coach Ron Rivera, but it's nonetheless possible Samuel ends up in a new offense for 2024 given that he's reached the end of his three-year contract. Groin and hamstring injuries limited him to 84 snaps in the first season of the deal, but he then missed just one game the past two years while handling snap shares of 71.4 percent (2022) and 55.5 percent (2023). Samuel shouldn't have too much trouble finding teams that are interested in signing him as a No. 3 receiver

Dotson finished 2023 with 49 catches for 518 yards and four touchdowns on 83 targets.

Dotson had more yards (523) and touchdowns (seven) as a rookie in 2022 despite missing five full games and having his snaps limited in two others. He didn't miss any games in his sophomore campaign, but nearly everything else was a disappointment, including his target volume (4.9 per game) and efficiency stats (59.0 percent catch rate, 10.6 yards per catch, 6.2 yards per targe). His catch rate barely rose compared to 2022 -- even though his aDOT sunk from 13.5 to 9.3 -- and his yards after catch (YAC) average dropped from 3.9 to 2.4 (usually it rises when a player sees more short passes and fewer long ones). The main positives here are that Dotson never got benched, playing 82.2 percent of Washington's snaps on offense, and may now head into his third NFL season with a new head coach and new starting quarterback. The 2022 first-round pick nonetheless figures to come off the board much later in 2024 fantasy drafts than he did this past summer, with the down season in Year 2 casting serious doubt upon his future.

Palmer brought in two of six targets for 10 yards in the Buccaneers' 9-0 win over the Panthers on Sunday.

The rookie finished third on the team in targets, but he wasn't overly efficient with them on an afternoon where Baker Mayfield threw for just 137 yards overall. Palmer closed out the regular season with at least five targets in three straight contests and a 39-385-3 receiving line, and he'll now aim to continue producing in a third receiver role versus the Eagles' vulnerable secondary in Monday night's wild-card matchup.

Davis caught his only target for 18 yards in Sunday's 13-12 loss to the Chiefs. He also tallied three carries for 17 yards and recorded 69 kick-return yards.

Despite all the injuries to Chargers wideouts, the 2023 fourth-round pick was merely a gadget option, as Davis had nearly as many receptions (15) as carries (14) in his pro debut. The speedy target might have been unceremoniously passed over on the depth chart by castoff receivers such as Alex Erickson, Keelan Doss and Jalen Guyton, but Davis did prove to be an effective return man, combining for 760 return yards to go along with one touchdown. Los Angeles' receiving corps could undergo a massive overhaul due to cap woes, which would leave Davis and fellow TCU target Quentin Johnston as one of the last few pass catchers standing entering the 2024 campaign.

Doss caught one of his five targets for eight yards in the 13-12 loss to the Chiefs on Sunday.

Doss had been on the Chargers' practice squad for a few years, and the 27-year-old finally got a chance to play thanks to injuries to Mike Williams (knee), Joshua Palmer (knee) and Keenan Allen (heel). It's entirely possible the wideout, who made his NFL debut in 2019, enters the offseason as an unrestricted free agent.

Erickson caught two of his five targets for 29 yards in Sunday's 13-12 loss to the Chiefs.

The 31-year-old joined the active roster Week 11 and, after injuries to Joshua Palmer (knee) and Keenan Allen (heel), somewhat miraculously emerged as the team's top target. finishing with 16 receptions for 232 yards, both of them higher figures than his past three seasons combined. It's safe to say the veteran wideout won't be a highly sought-after free agent despite the positive small sample size, but it's possible Erickson could at least make a preseason roster given his special teams acumen.

Burks was not targeted in Sunday's 28-20 win over the Jaguars.

Burks was a popular breakout selection throughout the offseason, though he underwhelmed significantly by recording only 16 catches for 221 yards and no touchdowns across 11 games. In part, the depressed numbers were due to a concussion and a knee injury that combined to sideline him for five games. However, Burks made little impact even when he was on the field, as he topped 50 receiving yards in only two games. He'll be entering a pivotal third season and will need to find a way to stay healthy and consistently command targets in Tennessee's offense to break out, though he hasn't shown the ability to do either early in his career.

Palmer, who left Sunday's 13-12 loss to the Chiefs early with a knee injury, tallied 38 receptions for 581 receiving yards and two touchdowns across 10 games during the 2023 season.

When Palmer was healthy, the third-year receiver seamlessly stepped up in the absence of Mike Williams (knee) and established himself quickly as a reliable target opposite Keenan Allen for quarterback Justin Herbert. The 24-year-old had at least seven targets in four straight games prior to leaving the Week 8 contest against the Bears due to a knee sprain that drew an injured-reserve stint. With cap woes possibly impacting the return of both Allen and Williams, Palmer could see a significant role in 2024 alongside first-round pick Quentin Johnston in an offense that figures to see major changes from a coaching perspective.

The Texans reverted Johnson to their practice squad Monday, per the NFL's transaction log.

Johnson got his first elevation of the season Week 18 against Indianapolis and logged four snaps on offense along with five snaps on special teams without recording any stats. His opportunity was largely a result of both Noah Brown (back) and Robert Woods (hip) sitting out the victory that earned the Texans a playoff spot. Johnson's likelihood of being elevated again for Saturday's wild-card game against Cleveland likely depends on whether Brown and/or Woods will be able to make it back into action.