NFL Player News

Johnston (ribs) is participating in practice Wednesday, Daniel Popper of The Athletic reports.

The extent of Johnston's participation remains to be seen, but his presence at practice Wednesday bodes well for his availability this weekend against the Patriots after he sat out most of the second half of Sunday's 20-10 loss to the Ravens. Johnston caught one of three targets for seven yards prior to hurting his ribs. The rookie wide receiver was medically cleared to return, so it's possible his inability to return to the game was at least in part performance-based.

Shenault (ankle) didn't practice Wednesday.

After leaving this past Sunday's loss to Tennessee due to an ankle injury, Shenault remains bothered by the injury. If Shenault's able to recover by Sunday's game against the Buccaneers, he could work as a depth option out of the slot or in the backfield for the Panthers in interim head coach Chris Tabor's debut. Shenault will have two more opportunities to practice before the Panthers release their final injury report Friday.

McCloud sat out Wednesday's practice with a rib injury, Matt Barrows of The Athletic reports.

McCloud has played just 10 snaps on offense over the past three weeks but has an important role on the team as the primary returner for both kicks and punts. An absence for Sunday's showdown with the Eagles might free up a few more snaps and routes for Ronnie Bell, who also would be one of the leading candidates to replace McCloud on kick and punt returns.

Dell (calf) didn't practice Wednesday, but the Texans are optimistic that he'll be available for Sunday's game against the Broncos, Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Houston reports.

Per Wilson, Dell had imaging done on his calf after this past Sunday's 24-21 loss to Jacksonville. Dell's injury is regarded as relatively minor, but he'll likely need to increase his practice participation Thursday or Friday to get the green light to play against Denver. If the rookie wide receiver is unable to play, it would be a major loss for Houston's offense, considering Dell has piled up 25 catches for 369 yards and five touchdowns in his last four games.

Wilson (shoulder) isn't practicing Wednesday, Darren Urban of the Cardinals' official site reports.

The rookie wideout missed three of Arizona's past four games with the shoulder injury and didn't practice at all last week. With a Week 14 bye around the corner, the Cardinals may not have much reason to bring Wilson back for Sunday's game against the Steelers.

Douglas (concussion) wasn't spotted participating in practice Wednesday, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com reports.

Though head coach Bill Belichick was previously unwilling to confirm as much, Andrew Callahan of the Boston Herald relays that Douglas entered the NFL's concussion protocol after being forced out of this past Sunday's loss to the Giants. Given that Douglas was previously diagnosed with a concussion Oct. 8 and proceeded to miss the Patriots' ensuing Week 6 game, the wideout may face an uphill battle to clear the five-step protocol ahead of this Sunday's game against the Chargers. If Douglas is sidelined Week 13, DeVante Parker, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Tyquan Thornton would be in line to lead the team's receiver corps.

Brown (knee) was spotted at practice Wednesday, Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Houston reports.

Brown, who Wilson relays is dealing with a knee contusion, has missed two straight games. The wideout's presence at practice Wednesday offers hope that he could return to action Sunday against the Broncos. The Texans' will release their first Week 13 injury report later Wednesday, when the extent of Brown's practice participation will be known.

Drummond was cut from the Lions' practice squad Wednesday.

Drummond joined Detroit in the spring as an undrafted free agent out of Eastern Michigan. After being unable to make the squad out of camp, he secured a practice squad spot, which resulted in one elevation to the active roster in Week 5 against the Panthers. In a corresponding move, the Lions signed fellow wideout Tom Kennedy to the practice squad.

Jets head coach Robert Saleh said Wednesday that Lazard will suit up for Sunday's game against the Falcons, Brian Costello of the New York Post reports.

Lazard was a heathy inactive for the Jets' Week 12 loss to the Dolphins, a likely result of the veteran wide receiver having struggled with drops and ill-timed penalties in his first season with the Jets. Prior to the benching, Lazard had a consistent starting role on the outside opposite Garrett Wilson, but it's possible that the 4-7 Jets will look to work rookie Jason Brownlee in more at Lazard's expense. Brownlee played all but one of the Jets' offensive snaps against Miami with Lazard inactive.

Burks is still working through concussion protocol, but head coach Mike Vrabel is hopeful the second-year wideout will return Sunday against the Colts, Jim Wyatt of the Titans' official site reports.

The 23-year-old wideout has missed three straight games due to a concussion suffered back on Nov. 2, and he previously missed Weeks 4 through 6 due to a knee sprain. In his five appearances this season, Burks has just eight receptions for 122 yards, but Tennessee's passing attack is also bottom five in the league in terms of passing yards. Fantasy managers should stay tuned to Burks' practice activity this week, but whenever the wideout is able to return, he could emerge as more of a downfield threat with strong-armed rookie Will Levis having since displaced veteran Ryan Tannehill as the team's starting quarterback.