NFL Player News

Jones (knee) was a limited participant in Thursday's practice.

Though Jones was listed as a non-participant Wednesday in the Lions' first practice of the week, Kyle Meinke of MLive.com suggests the wideout's absence was likely rest-related. Jones' return to work a day later supports that notion, and if he can upgrade to full activity Friday, he'll likely avoid taking an injury designation into Sunday's game in Carolina. With the likes of D'Andre Swift (concussion), Kenny Golladay (hip) and Danny Amendola (hip) all going down as a non-participants in Thursday's practice, Jones could be looking at a high-volume role in the passing game if at least two of those banged-up pass catchers aren't available.

Ridley (foot) was a limited participant in Thursday's practice, Will McFadden of the Falcons' official site reports.

The Falcons capped Ridley's reps for the second practice in a row, but McFadden notes that any participation should be viewed as a good sign for the wideout's chances of playing through a sprained left foot Sunday in New Orleans. Ridley sat out the Falcons' Week 9 win over the Broncos with the injury before benefiting from a well-timed Week 10 bye.

Humphries (concussion) remained sidelined at practice Thursday, Erik Bacharach of The Tennessean reports.

Back-to-back absences suggest that Humphries is trending toward missing Sunday's game against the Ravens. If he remains sidelined this weekend, added Week 11 opportunities would be available for Cameron Batson and Kalif Raymond.

Arcega-Whiteside tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday and was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list, Tim McManus of ESPN.com reports.

As part of contract tracing, John Hightower was placed on the same list, while Deontay Burnett landed on the practice squad COVID-19 list. With so little time before the Eagles' next game Sunday in Cleveland, Arcega-Whiteside is poised for another absence in what has become a suddenly healthy receiving corps.

The Patriots cut Kinsey from the practice squad Wednesday, Doug Kyed of NESN.com reports.

Wednesday marked the second time this season that Kinsey was cut by the Patriots' practice squad, so he'll likely have the opportunity to return again this year. The undrafted rookie out of Berry College will look to latch on elsewhere to add depth at receiver.

The Texans signed Scott to the practice squad Wednesday.

Scott visited with the team last week and looks to be in the plans moving forward. The Clemson product hasn't played a game since entering the league as an undrafted free agent in 2017; he'll start out on the scout team with the Texans and look to work his way up to the active roster.

The Rams placed Koski on the practice squad COVID-19 list Wednesday.

Koski has either tested positive for the virus or come into close contact with an infected person. He'll need to clear the league's COVID-19 protocols before returning to team activities.

The Bears claimed Carter off waivers Wednesday, Larry Mayer of the team's official site reports.

Carter was waived by the Texans on Tuesday, and he didn't have to wait long to find a new team. The Sacramento State product has been effective in the return game this season, averaging 8.7 yards on 11 punt returns and 20.8 yards on 12 kickoff returns with the Texans. Since Tarik Cohen suffered a torn ACL in Week 3 against the Falcons, the team has used three different punt return men, so Carter could slot into that role as early as Week 12 with the Bears on their bye week.

Shepherd (shoulder) was a limited participant in Wednesday's practice, Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Shepherd's making good progress, as he's practicing to start the week after making just one appearance at practice last week. If he's able to shake off this injury, he could be in line for a decent workload Sunday against the Colts depending on the statuses of Davante Adams (ankle) and Allen Lazard (core).

St. Brown (knee) didn't participate in Wednesday's practice, Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

It has been standard of late for St. Brown to be limited in the first practice of the week, but the DNP is a bit concerning, although it could simply be maintenance related, as he handled a season-high 31 snaps in last week's win over the Jaguars. We should have a better grasp on his recovery when the Packers release their Thursday practice report. If St. Brown's able to play Sunday versus the Saints, his role will depend on whether Davante Adams (ankle) and Allen Lazard (core) suit up.