NFL Player News

Tyson exited Thursday's practice early due to a possible hamstring injury, per Mike Triplett of NewOrleans.Football, though it isn't believed to be a serious issue, Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football reports.

The biggest knock on Tyson coming out of Arizona was his lengthy injury history, including a hamstring injury suffered prior to the 2026 NFL Draft, in which the Saints selected Tyson eighth overall. It's not clear whether this latest hamstring issue is related to the previous injury. The team's early optimism suggests Tyson's availability for Week 1 against the Lions doesn't appear to be in jeopardy, but the rookie first-round pick is unlikely to play in Saturday's preseason opener against the Jaguars.

Tillman didn't practice Wednesday due to an undisclosed injury, Zac Jackson of The Athletic reports.

Tillman can ill-afford a lengthy absence, as Jackson adds that the 2023 third-round draft pick could be on the wrong side of the roster bubble for the Browns, who will begin preseason play Saturday against the Bears. Rookies KC Concepcion and Denzel Boston appear to have leapfrogged Tillman in a Browns wide receiver room that also includes Jerry Jeudy and Isaiah Bond.

Flowers (quadriceps) is participating in team drills at Thursday's practice, Jonas Shaffer of the Baltimore Banner reports.

Flowers appears to be practicing without limitations Thursday, having progressed in his recovery after returning in limited fashion Tuesday from a left quadriceps contusion he sustained Saturday. Baltimore is expected to rest key starters for Saturday's preseason opener against the Eagles, so Flowers isn't expected to suit up despite being healthy.

Pearsall announced Thursday in a post on his personal Instagram account that he underwent season-ending surgery to repair the PCL in his right knee, David Lombardi of SFStandard.com reports.

The procedure typically carries a wide-ranging recovery timeline of 6-to-12 months, so while Pearsall will be ruled out for the season, it's not clear if he'll be available for the start of the 49ers' offseason program next spring or the start of training camp next summer. The wideout will wind up having played in just 20 of a possible 51 regular-season contests and one of two playoff games through his first three NFL campaigns, missing time as a rookie while recovering from a gunshot wound to the chest before being hampered by the PCL injury off and on in 2025. He'll turn 27 in September and will be entering the final season of his rookie contract in 2027.

Bateman is in full uniform for Thursday's practice.

Bateman didn't take part in either of the Ravens' last two practices, but the team didn't disclose whether his absences were injury-related or part of a planned maintenance plan. Either way, Bateman will be back on the field Thursday, but it's unclear if the Ravens intend to have him suit up in Saturday's preseason opener versus the Eagles. While Bateman projects to head into Week 1 as a starter alongside No. 1 wideout Zay Flowers, rookie third-round pick Ja'Kobi Lane has generated considerable buzz during camp and could be a threat to poach reps in two-receiver sets as the season unfolds.

The Jaguars envision Thomas serving as the 'X' receiver in their offense during the upcoming season, Cameron Wolfe of NFL Network reports.

After an outstanding rookie campaign in which he put up a 87-1,282-10 receiving line on 133 targets over 17 contests, Thomas saw his production crater in Year 2 (48-707-2 line in 14 games). Though the Jacksonville offense took a step forward as a whole under first-year head coach Liam Coen, Thomas ended up sacrificing heavy target volume to Jakobi Meyers and Parker Washington, who emerged as trusted weapons underneath and in the intermediate area for quarterback Trevor Lawrence. Wolfe notes that while the Jaguars value Thomas "a ton" and have no desire to trade him, the coaching staff learned last season that the wideout's strengths lie in using his blazing speed to run deep routes on the perimeter rather than taking contact on routes in the middle and shorter areas of the field. While that sort of role typically doesn't lend itself to consistently heavy target counts week to week, it's not one that's completely bereft of fantasy value. Wolfe cites Brandin Cooks -- whose tenure with the Rams overlapped with Coen's time as an assistant for the team -- as a player in a similar mold as Thomas who was able to turn in productive seasons on modest target volume while primarily serving as a vertical threat.

Lemon (hamstring) won't take part in Thursday's practice, Eliot Shorr-Parks of Sports Radio 94 WIP Philadelphia reports.

The rookie first-round pick will be sidelined for his seventh practice of training camp, but he was spotted in a helmet catching passes from a JUGS machine off to the side, per Martin Frank of The Delaware News Journal. While his presence on a side field is seemingly a good sign, Lemon appears unlikely to be available for Saturday's preseason opener versus the Ravens. With DeVonta Smith also having been slowed by a hamstring injury in camp, Dontayvion Wicks and Hollywood Brown have been seeing added reps with the first-team offense.

Smith (hamstring) won't participate in Thursday's practice, but he was spotted working out off to the side, Dave Zangaro of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.

Smith will sit out his seventh practice of training camp, though his ability to run routes and take part in rehab work on a side field is a sign that he could soon be ready to take part in team drills. While the wideout will almost certainly sit out Saturday's preseason opener versus the Ravens, that might have been the case even if he was fully healthy.

Coach Dave Canales highlighted Legette on Wednesday for having a strong training camp, Darin Gantt of the Panthers' official site reports.

"Really good to see him back out there playing like himself," Canales said. "Playing fast, just knowing where to be. He's doing a phenomenal job; he's the guy that we're counting on. He looks explosive. And then what I've seen him do is just make great plays on the boundary, back of the end zone, just some of those spatial plays where he can go attack the ball, find a way to get his feet down, and he's really attacked that part of his game, and that's something that I've seen him really improve on." Legette acknowledged he wasn't very good in 2025 and took a "step back" this offseason to refocus on getting better. He worked out with Bryce Young multiple times away from the team during the spring and now has a good chance to claim the WR3 role in Carolina after rookie Chris Brazzell was lost for the season due to a knee injury early in camp.

Pickens has impressed throughout the Cowboys' training camp, Dan Rogers of SB Nation reports.

Pickens had a spectacular season in 2025, reeling in 93 catches for 1,429 yards and nine touchdowns, all of which were career highs, over 17 regular-season contests in his first year with Dallas. The wide receiver did tail off as the season came to a close, though, averaging 57.4 receiving yards and 4.0 catches over the team's final five games after averaging 95.2 yards and 6.1 receptions over the team's previous 12 contests. Pickens will look to put together a more complete campaign this year, and he has already been connecting on all cylinders with quarterback Dak Prescott, using his advanced ball-tracking ability to make acrobatic plays throughout training camp. The Cowboys have as good of a receiving duo as any team in the league, as the talented Pickens will be paired with No. 1 option CeeDee Lamb again in 2026.