NFL Player News

Humphries (ankle) isn't participating in Thursday's practice, Turron Davenport of ESPN.com reports.

With Humphries' ankle injury having prevented him from logging any work in practice since the Titans' Dec. 1 win over the Colts, he'll likely be in line for a third straight absence Sunday in New Orleans. An official word on Humphries' Week 16 status will arrive at some point Friday.

Samuel (knee) was a limited practice participant Thursday, Alaina Getzenberg of The Charlotte Observer reports.

Samuel received a 'limited' tag on one of the Panthers' Week 13 practice reports due to a knee injury, only to ditch the designation prior to the contest. He'll have one more chance to do so this week, but perhaps of more interest in Carolina is the change at quarterback from Kyle Allen to rookie Will Grier. D.J. Moore and Christian McCaffrey are the top two receivers in this offense, so it remains to be seen how Samuel will fare as the third option, at best.

Watson is expected to serve as a starting receiver for Saturday's game against the Texans, Jenna Laine of ESPN.com reports.

Watson has caught seven passes for 86 yards and a touchdown on 10 targets over the past two games while handling near-identical 55 and 56 percent offensive snap shares in wins of the Colts and Lions, respectively. Expect his workload to take a more notable jump in Week 16, as the Buccaneers will be missing Chris Godwin, Mike Evans and Scott Miller to hamstring injuries, with the latter two receivers getting shut down for the season. After a big performance in Detroit (five catches for 113 yards and three touchdowns on six targets), Breshad Perriman profiles as the clear No. 1 receiver, but Watson should comfortably slot ahead of fellow wideouts Ishmael Hyman, Cyril Grayson and Spencer Schnell, all of whom resided on the Buccaneers' or another team's practice squad as recently as two weeks ago. Along with Perriman and Watson, tight ends O.J. Howard and Cameron Brate should see expanded roles in the Buccaneers' passing attack Saturday while its top two targets are out of commission.

Perriman is expected to operate as the Buccaneers' No. 1 receiver Saturday against the Texans after Chris Godwin (hamstring) was ruled out for the contest and Mike Evans (hamstring) was placed on injured reserve earlier in the week, Jenna Laine of ESPN.com reports.

Godwin failed to practice this week and isn't a lock to make it back for the Dec. 29 season finale versus Atlanta either, so Perriman looks like he could have a significant opportunity ahead of him while serving as the top receiver in what's been one of the NFL's more pass-happy attacks. Perriman took full advantage of Evans' absence and Godwin's early exit in the Week 15 win over the Lions, delivering the best performance of his five-year career with five receptions for 113 yards and three touchdowns on six targets. While no wideout can be asked to replicate that sort of efficiency, Perriman should at least benefit from an uptick in volume with Evans' and Godwin's combined 17.7 targets per game missing from the lineup. Depth wideout Justin Watson and tight ends O.J. Howard and Cameron Brate are also expected to take on pronounced roles in the passing game.

Agholor (knee) was held out of practice Thursday, Dave Zangaro of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.

Held out of practice since hurting his knee Week 13, Agholor remains in a holding pattern as the Eagles prepare for Sunday's divisional showdown with the Cowboys. Per Martin Frank of The Delaware News Journal, coach Doug Pederson referred to Agholor's situation as "status quo" this week, another sign that he's trending toward an absence. Ultimately, the team may make a ruling on Agholor's availability as soon as the release of Friday's injury report.

Hopkins (illness) was back at practice Thursday, Aaron Reiss of The Athletic reports.

Hopkins sat out practice Wednesday due to an illness, but the wideout's return to the field Thursday puts him on track to suit up Saturday against the Buccaneers. We'll circle back on Hopkins' status once the Texans' final Week 16 injury report is submitted to confirm, either way, whether he heads into the weekend minus an injury designation.

Coach Bruce Arians ruled Godwin (hamstring) out for Saturday's game against the Texans, Greg Auman of The Athletic reports.

The news comes as no real surprise after Arians indicated after last week's win over the Lions that Godwin's hamstring injury was similar to the one suffered the prior week by Mike Evans, who was ultimately moved to injured reserve Wednesday. For now, the Buccaneers will take a wait-and-see approach with Godwin for the Dec. 29 regular-season finale against the Falcons, but the third-year wideout's absence for Week 16 will loom large. Along with Godwin and Evans, the Buccaneers' receiving corps will also be missing rookie Scott Miller (hamstring), who was placed on IR earlier this week. Expect wideouts Breshad Perriman and Justin Watson, tight ends O.J. Howard and Cameron Brate and running backs Dare Ogunbowale and Ronald Jones to operate as Jameis Winston's main weapons in the passing game.

Godwin (hamstring) isn't participating in Thursday's practice, Jenna Laine of ESPN.com reports.

With Godwin having failed to practice in any fashion Tuesday through Thursday, he'll carry an injury designation into Saturday's matchup with the Texans if coach Bruce Arians doesn't officially rule the receiver out when he meets with the media at the conclusion of practice. In addition to Godwin's expected absence Saturday, the Buccaneers will be missing Mike Evans (hamstring) and Scott Miller (hamstring), who were moved to injured reserve earlier this week. That leaves Breshad Perriman and Justin Watson as the top options in a depleted wideout corps, while tight ends O.J. Howard and Cameron Brate should also be tasked with picking up some of the vacated targets.

The Buccaneers signed Mickens to the practice squad Thursday, Greg Auman of The Athletic reports.

Mickens offers upside as a depth receiver and return man. If he's able to impress while on Tampa Bay's practice squad, he could be a candidate to bump to the 53-man roster if a role on special teams opens up.

Anderson didn't practice Thursday due to an illness, Ethan B. Greenberg of the Jets' official site reports.

The wideout, who was sent home Thursday, will thus look to return to work Friday for the Jets' final practice in advance of Sunday's game against the Steelers. Anderson is coming off a Week 15 effort that saw him haul in four of his six targets for 66 yards and a two-point conversion in the Jets' 42-21 loss to the Ravens.