NFL Player News

Per Matt Zenitz of CBSSports.com, "there's currently optimism" that Shakir (undisclosed) will be available Week 1 against the Texans on Sunday, Sept. 13

Since making an appearance during preseason Week 1 on Aug. 15, Shakir has been sidelined due to an undisclosed injury, including no activity at Tuesday's practice. The Bills will post their first Week 1 injury report next Wednesday, and how he's listed then will provide a sense for his status ahead of the regular-season opener.

Coach John Harbaugh said Nabers (knee) participated in individual and team drills at Wednesday's practice, Connor Hughes of SNY.tv reports.

Nabers has had a notable week, from telling Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com on Monday that he was unsure about his status for the season opener to not being seen at the open portion of Tuesday's practice. He ended up mixing into drills Tuesday after the session was closed to the media, and Harbaugh's comments Wednesday indicate Nabers was somewhere between a limited and full participant. The Giants are required to post their first Week 1 injury report next Wednesday, and how Nabers is listed there may be telling ahead of the Giants' Week 1 matchup with the Cowboys on Sunday, Sept. 13.

Evans (groin) returned to practice Wednesday, Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com reports.

Evans has barely practiced this summer due to various nagging injuries, but his return to the field Wednesday gives him some time to get ready for next Thursday's season opener against the Rams in Australia. The Niners are flying out Wednesday of this week to get their body clocks acclimated to the time change. As long as Evans avoids setbacks over the next week, he should be available against Los Angeles, though it's fair to wonder how much chemistry he's built with Brock Purdy at this point.

Coach Dave Canales suggested Wednesday that McMillan will work out of the slot more this season, Sheena Quick of Fox Sports Radio 1340 reports.

If preseason usage means anything, it would seem Canales was putting the plan into action this summer. After playing just 15.3 percent of his regular-season offensive snaps out of the slot as a rookie, McMillan was in the slot on nine of 22 snaps (40.9 percent) across two preseason games. Moving to the slot more would give the 6-foot-5 McMillan significant size and speed advantages inside and allow for more easy "layup" style catches to get the ball in his hands quicker. The 2025 Offensive Rookie of the Year figures to be the center of Carolina's offense this season after posting 70 catches for 1,014 yards and seven scores across 17 regular-season contests last season.

Pickens didn't suit up for any of the Cowboys' three preseason games.

After surpassing the 1,000-yard receiving threshold just one time in his first three seasons with the Steelers, Pickens broke out with a 93-1,429-9 line on 137 targets in 17 regular-season games in 2025 in his first campaign as a Cowboy. He was helped by the fact fellow WR CeeDee Lamb missed three contests due to injury, but Pickens still exhibited a tremendous rapport with QB Dak Prescott. Dallas extended the franchise tag to Pickens this offseason, and he signed it in April without reaching an extension before the deadline in mid-July, meaning he again will be in the midst of a contract year in 2026.

Jefferson connected on a couple highlight-reel grabs from quarterback Kyler Murray during the Vikings' final training camp practice Aug. 26, Andrew Krammer of The Minnesota Star Tribune reports.

Though most of the Vikings' key starters ended up sitting out Friday's 34-6 loss to the Broncos in the preseason finale, Jefferson and Murray displayed a strong connection while sharing the field together for the last time in front of assembled media before the Sept. 13 season opener versus the Packers. During red-zone work, Murray made a strong anticipation throw over the middle to Jefferson that went for a touchdown, and on the very next play, the wideout hauled down a one-handed touchdown grab on a throw Murray made while facing heavy pressure. While it may be ambitious for Jefferson to return to the great heights he displayed over his first three years in the NFL when he averaged 108 catches, 1,608 yards and 8.3 touchdowns per season, the upgrade in quarterback play that Murray is expected to provide should help Jefferson handily outperform the 84-1,048-2 receiving line he posted over 17 games in 2025 with J.J. McCarthy, Carson Wentz and Max Brosmer throwing passes to him.

TeSlaa will enter the season as the Lions' No. 3 receiver despite a poor showing during training camp and going without a reception on three targets over 44 snaps during his two preseason appearances, Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press reports. "I'm not too concerned," wide receivers coach Scottie Montgomery said last week, regarding TeSlaa's lackluster camp. "I do want our guys making every single play. And we did hold him accountable for some of the things that went on, and that's the difference in being in the room and being outside of the room."

TeSlaa operated primarily as the Lions' No. 4 receiver during his 2025 rookie campaign, appearing in all 17 games and finishing with a 16-239-6 receiving line on 27 targets. Even on the limited volume of targets, the 6-foot-4, 214-pound wideout made a number of highlight-reel grabs during his first NFL season, but he hasn't shown the same ability to win on contested balls during his second training camp. He also made a couple of critical blunders in the Lions' preseason-opening loss to the Bengals, dropping a pass that led to an interception and failing to reel in another catchable target on a fourth-down pass. Montgomery noted that getting more exposure to facing No. 1 cornerbacks in both camp and the preseason has likely played a part in TeSlaa's lack of output, but the Lions apparently saw enough growth from him beyond his box-score contributions to hand him the No. 3 job and are keeping just four total receivers on the 53-man roster heading into Week 1. TeSlaa will still face a difficult path to fantasy relevance as the fifth option in the Detroit passing game when all of Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, Jahmyr Gibbs and Sam LaPorta (hip) are available.

Flowers (lower body) did not participate in Wednesday's practice, but he did run sprints on the side, Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com reports.

Flowers has been held out of practice since last week with what is believed to be a minor lower-body issue, but it's a positive sign that he received clearance to run. It was reported Tuesday that Flowers will practice fully next week and suit up for Week 1, and he appears to be on track to do so.

Williams concluded Lions training camp on a positive note Thursday, connecting with quarterback Jared Goff on a number of impressive contested catches throughout the day, Nolan Bianchi of The Detroit News reports.

Touted as a standout performer during the Lions' earlier workouts of the summer, Williams authored another strong performance in a scrimmage-style practice to wrap up camp. On the Lions' opening drive alone, Williams beat cornerback Rock Ya-Sin for a 22-yard gain on the first play of the day, reeled off a 18-yard gain on a screen play to convert a third-and-12 and evaded tight coverage to make a sliding catch on a five-yard pass to the back end of the zone on a fourth-and-goal. Williams recorded another reception on a post route later in the day to convert a third-and-10, but the play was negated by a holding penalty. While No. 1 wideout Amon-Ra St. Brown remains Detroit's clear top target in 2026, Williams should still be in store for reliable weekly volume in a consolidated passing game that also includes Sam LaPorta (hip) and running back Jahmyr Gibbs. Heading into the summer, No. 3 wideout Isaac TeSlaa looked like a potential candidate to carve out a more notable role in his second season, but he didn't record a reception in either of his two preseason appearances and had a number of underwhelming performances during camp practices, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press.

Egbuka (toe) worked on a side field with trainers Wednesday and ran without any obvious issues from the injury, Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Egbuka has missed a ton of practice time this summer and didn't see any preseason action. However, it sounds like he's nearing 100 percent ahead of the Bucs' Week 1 game against the Bengals in 11 days. Seeing him return to full practices next week would be a positive development. Egbuka is expected to be a big beneficiary of Mike Evans' departure over the offseason, as he'll have a chance to establish himself as the Bucs' clear WR1 ahead of veteran Chris Godwin.