NFL Player News

Moore caught one of two targets for nine yards in Sunday's 31-27 preseason win over the Giants.

Moore finished the preseason by getting a little extra work in with quarterback Joe Flacco, who likely will start Week 1 versus the Ravens with Zach Wilson (knee) still sidelined. After posting 43 catches (on 77 targets) for 538 yards and five touchdowns in 11 games as a rookie, Moore will aim to elevate his game further in Year 2, when New York's receiving corps should be bolstered by the first-round selection of Garrett Wilson.

Claypool isn't in line to play in Sunday's preseason game against the Lions, Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Claypool was among a handful of Steelers not in uniform ahead of the team's exhibition finale. The third-year pro thus will be contained to just one appearance during the preseason, as he hauled in his only target from Mitch Trubisky for 29 yards last Saturday against the Jaguars. Claypool now will turn his focus to Pittsburgh's regular-season opener Sunday, Sept. 11 at Cincinnati.

Samuel is missing Sunday's practice due to a bruise behind his knee, and while he likely won't practice this week, he should be ready for the 49ers' season opener Sunday, Sept. 11 at Chicago, Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

Samuel made one appearance during exhibition season Thursday at Tennessee, but he was unable to hook up with new starting quarterback Trey Lance on his only target while playing 10 offensive snaps. Now, Samuel is tending to a knee issue. On a positive note, his status for Week 1 doesn't seem to be in question, but his practice reps may be limited in the lead-up to that contest.

Geiger didn't log any targets but returned three kickoffs for 68 yards in the Buccaneers' 27-10 preseason loss to the Colts on Saturday night.

Geiger's final in-game audition for a roster spot went relatively well, even as he failed to log any targets over his 16 snaps from scrimmage. However, the Texas Tech product did lead the Buccaneers with an average of 22.7 yards per kickoff return, and he'd also put some good work on film as a receiver in the preseason opener against the Dolphins (four receptions, 52 yards). Nevertheless, it will likely come down to the wire for Geiger due to formidable competition in the form of Deven Thompkins, but the former could certainly still be a candidate for the practice squad if he can't make the final cut.

Darden secured both targets for nine yards and returned one kickoff for 12 yards in the Buccaneers' 27-10 preseason loss to the Colts on Saturday night.

While none of Darden's three looks came close to qualifying as impact plays, the second-year wideout at least was efficient by parlaying both his looks into catches after failing to bring in any of his three targets the game prior against the Titans. Darden appears to be a safe bet for the No. 6 receiver role given his ability to contribute on special teams, especially with veteran competition Breshad Perriman and Scotty Miller failing to do anything of consequence Saturday.

Johnson suffered a high ankle sprain in Saturday's preseason finale against the Vikings, Mike Klis of 9News Denver reports.

The injury to Johnson's ankle came on the first play of the game as the wideout was blocking on a run play and was rolled up on. Johnson's clarification that this is in fact a high ankle sprain certainly makes the outlook a bit more grim for the rookie who has had an impressive camp. An increased recovery timetable could lead to the 24-year-old missing the final roster cut ahead of the 2022 campaign.

Miller brought in one of two targets for minus-1 yard in the Buccaneers' 27-10 preseason loss to the Colts on Saturday night.

Miller logged 17 snaps from scrimmage overall, but as his final line indicates, he didn't do anything to help his already dwindling case for a roster spot. Miller certainly has his fair share of favorable history with the Buccaneers, but considering the team's depth at receiver and the emergence of Tyler Johnson along with some other young wideouts it may spell the end of the line for the Bowling Green product.

Perriman (leg) failed to bring in his only target across 23 snaps in the Buccaneers' 27-10 preseason loss to the Colts on Saturday night.

The good news was the veteran was able to make it back on the field after dealing with a leg injury, but Perriman couldn't make any progress toward firming up a roster spot. While Perriman obviously has an NFL track record, including with the Buccaneers, to fall back on when final evaluations for roster cutdowns are carried out, the team's depth at receiver thanks to the offseason additions of Russell Gage and Julio Jones combined with the emergence of Tyler Johnson and other young wideouts could leave Perriman on the outside looking in.

Thompkins brought in one of two targets for three yards and returned three punts for 13 yards in the Buccaneers' 27-10 preseason loss to the Colts on Saturday night.

Thompkins was making one last push for the final receiver spot Saturday night, but in fairness, he had limited opportunity, particularly on offense. However, the only one of the group thought to be in competition for the job who outperformed him was fellow UDFA Kaylon Geiger, who returned three kickoffs for 68 yards. Otherwise, Breshad Perriman (zero receptions on one target), Scotty Miller (one reception, minus-1 yard) and Jerreth Sterns (no targets over 16 snaps) did nothing to threaten Thompkins' standing, thereby still leaving him in play to stick on the final 53-man roster.

Slayton (undisclosed) could be cut if the Giants aren't able to work out a trade for him, Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News reports.

After a promising rookie campaign, Slayton was thought to be a big part of New York's future plans. However, he fell back down to earth with a poor sophomore campaign and now finds himself buried on the team's wide-receiver depth chart. Leonard suggests that part of the reason the Giants may part ways with Slayton involves finances -- cutting or trading him would create $2.54 million in cap space -- but there's no escaping the fact that the organization no longer sees him in its long-term plans. Slayton hasn't been able to make any noise in preseason action, either, since he played only five snaps in the opener and missed the second exhibition contest entirely. It remains to be seen if he'll play in Sunday's preseason finale against the Jets.