NFL Player News

The 49ers elevated Cracraft from their practice squad ahead of Thursday's game against the Packers, Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com reports.

Cracraft and Kevin White will be joining San Francisco as designated replacements for fellow receivers Kendrick Bourne, Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk, all of whom were placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list a day earlier. The absences of those three players leave Trent Taylor and Richie James (ankle) as the only other wideouts on the 49ers' 53-man roster, and James, who is listed as questionable, isn't considered a lock to play. Regardless of James' status, both Cracraft and White look poised to see a fair amount of snaps at receiver out of necessity.

Brown (knee) didn't practice Thursday.

We suspect that Brown's absence was maintenance-related, a notion that will be supported by his return to a full practice Friday. If that happens, he'll almost assuredly approach Sunday's game against the Bears minus an injury designation.

Callaway (ankle) practiced in full Thursday.

Callaway was becoming more involved in the Saints offense before an ankle injury sidelined him this past Sunday at Chicago. With a full practice finally under his belt this week, he seems poised to regain his standing, especially if Michael Thomas (ankle/hamstring) continues to miss time. In his previous two appearances Weeks 5 and 7, Callaway combined for 12 catches (on 16 targets) for 109 yards.

Gage (shoulder/knee) was limited at Thursday's practice, Tori McElhaney of The Athletic reports

Gage has contended with a number of injuries this season, including a concussion and the aforementioned shoulder and knee issues. He's still managed to play at least 50 percent of the snaps on offense in six of eight games, and he may be called upon for more this Sunday against the Broncos with Calvin Ridley unable to practice due to a mid-foot sprain. Having said that, Gage will need to get past his own injury first in order to do so.

Ridley (foot) was held out of practice Thursday, Tori McElhaney of The Athletic reports.

Ridley has yet to practice this week due to the mid-foot sprain he suffered last Thursday at Carolina, but interim coach Raheem Morris noted Wednesday that the team received "good news" about the injury, per D. Orlando Ledbetter of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. That hasn't resulted in any activity on the field, but Ridley does have one more practice to make his presence felt in advance of the weekend.

Thomas (ankle/hamstring) was a limited practice participant Thursday

Thomas now has logged back-to-back capped practices to begin Week 9 prep, but he also did the same last week before being ruled out for a sixth consecutive game. It stands to wonder if the Saints want him to take the field without limitations before clearing him to return from a Grade 1 hamstring strain and left ankle injury. In any case, clarity could arrive on that front as soon as Friday, when New Orleans will post its final injury report of the week.

Miller (hip/groin) was listed as a limited participant at Thursday's practice.

Miller was also limited in Wednesday's session, so as long as he's able to practice again in some capacity Friday, he should be ready to go for Sunday's game against the Saints. However, after drawing a combined 15 targets over the Buccaneers' past two contests, Miller is a prime candidate to see his role in the passing game tail off in the second half of the season. Seven-time Pro Bowler Antonio Brown is slated to make his team debut Sunday, while Chris Godwin (finger) could also make his return from a one-game absence.

Godwin (finger) was a limited participant during Thursday's practice.

Though Godwin's ability to practice on a limited basis for the second day in a row is a welcome sight, his activity in Friday's session will ultimately be the deciding factor in whether he returns from a one-game absence Sunday versus New Orleans. Head coach Bruce Arians noted that Godwin will attempt to catch passes Friday, marking the first time he's been cleared to do so since undergoing surgery on his fractured left index finger last week. If Godwin experiences no issues with catching and securing the ball, he should be ready to handle a full snap load Sunday, but predicting how the targets will be divvied up in Tampa Bay's deep group of pass catchers may be difficult. The Buccaneers will have Antonio Brown available to make his team debut this weekend, though it's unclear how extensively he'll be involved as he sees his first game action in more than a year.

The Packers don't plan to activate Lazard (core-muscle surgery) ahead of Thursday's game against the 49ers, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reports.

Though Lazard resumed practicing a little over a week ago and made the trip to San Francisco, the Packers apparently want the wideout to put in some more on-field work before signing off on his return to game action. With Lazard sidelined for a fifth straight game, the Packers will turn to Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Equanimeous St. Brown as their primary options at receiver beyond top target Davante Adams.

Humphries (concussion) isn't participating in Thursday's practice, Erik Bacharach of The Tennessean reports.

With back-to-back absences from practice to begin Week 9, Humphries doesn't appear to have made any notable progress through the NFL's concussion protocol since sustaining his head injury in Sunday's loss to the Bengals. Unless he takes a significant step forward Friday, Humphries will likely be inactive for this weekend's tilt with the Bears. Kalif Raymond would be the top candidate to start in place of Humphries alongside A.J. Brown and Corey Davis.