NFL Player News

Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel said Monday that the knee injury Waddle sustained during the team's Week 15 loss to the Texans is "not major, not surgery-related," David Furones of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports.

Waddle's status appears murky for Miami's upcoming matchup against the 49ers on Sunday, but it at least appears he's avoided a more severe outcome. Tyreek Hill remains available for the Dolphins, and if Waddle can't go Week 16, rookie sixth-round pick Malik Washington would be in a solid position to build upon the career-best 5-52-0 receiving line that he logged versus Houston. Further clarity on Waddle's status could arrive with Wednesday's first official injury report of Week 16.

Slayton caught his only target for 16 yards in Sunday's 35-14 loss to Baltimore.

Slayton's recent trend of poor production continued in the loss, as he's now caught two or fewer passes in four straight games. Even more worrisome is the fact that the veteran wideout was targeted just once in the contest. It doesn't help that the Giants' quarterback situation is a mess. With Drew Lock (heel/elbow) unable to play against the Ravens and Tommy DeVito leaving late in the first half due to a concussion, journeyman Tim Boyle ended up playing the entire second half. It's uncertain which of the three signal-callers will be behind center to begin next Sunday's matchup versus the Falcons, but Slayton's outlook isn't bright regardless of who is throwing passes for the team.

Panthers head coach Dave Canales said Monday that Legette (groin) is week-to-week and expected to be ruled out for Sunday's game against the Cardinals, Steve Reed of the Associated Press reports.

Canales said he would "love to have a chance for [Legette] to finish the season strongly," but the rookie first-round pick is expected to miss at least one contest due to the groin injury he sustained during Carolina's 30-14 loss to the Cowboys in Week 15. If Legette indeed isn't able to suit up versus Arizona, Adam Thielen, Jalen Coker and David Moore will be positioned as Bryce Young's clear top wide receivers, with Deven Thompkins acting in the No. 4 role.

Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski said Monday he's "hopeful" that Tillman (concussion) will be available for Sunday's game against the Bengals, Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN.com reports.

Tillman has missed three consecutive games while progressing though the NFL's five-step concussion protocol, but it appears that he's trending in the right direction for Week 16. Stefanski offered similar optimism regarding the status of tight end David Njoku (hamstring), who missed Week 15's loss to the Chiefs. Getting both Tillman and Njoku on the field would provide a notable boost to Cleveland's receiving corps behind Jerry Jeudy, a development that would be particularly helpful with Nick Chubb (foot) having suffered a season-ending fracture.

DuBose (head) remains hospitalized Monday but has movement in all extremities, and initial tests have revealed positive results.

DuBose will remain under the care of doctors for continued observation, but fortunately, it sounds like he avoided a worst-case scenario. The second-year pro was part of a scary collision during Sunday's game against the Texans that saw him stretchered off the field and taken to a Houston hospital.

Lazard didn't catch any of his four targets in Sunday's 32-25 win over the Jaguars.

Lazard has displayed butter fingers throughout his tenure with the Jets, and he had an especially costly drop Sunday on a dime from Aaron Rodgers that should have been a 30-yard touchdown. Anders Carlson missed a field-goal attempt on the very next play, though Lazard's struggles ultimately didn't prevent the Jets from notching their fourth win of the season. For the second consecutive game since Lazard returned from IR, Davante Adams and Garrett Wilson combined for double-digit catches and well over 200 yards, leaving limited opportunities for the team's No. 3 wideout.

Polk was on the field for 20 of a possible 51 snaps on offense in Sunday's 30-17 loss to the Cardinals, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com reports.

The 2024 second-rounder, who was out-snapped Sunday by Kayshon Boutte (45) DeMario Douglas (31) and Kendrick Bourne (27), failed to bring in his only target. With just 12 catches on 32 targets for 87 yards and two TDs in 13 games this season, Polk remains off the fantasy radar as anything but a dynasty stash.

Bourne logged 27 of a possible 51 snaps on offense in Sunday's 30-17 loss to the Cardinals, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com reports.

Bourne finished the contest with three catches (including a 37-yarder) for a team-high 44 yards. Since recording a 5-70-1 receiving line in Week 11, Bourne has caught three catches in each of New England's subsequent three games, a rate of production that limits his fantasy utility to deeper PPR formats.

Boutte was on the field for 45 of a possible 51 snaps on offense in Sunday's 30-17 loss to the Cardinals, per Mike Reiss of ESPN.com.

Boutte, who once again led the Patriots wide receivers in snaps, finished Sunday's contest with two catches on a team-high five targets for 19 yards. The 2023 sixth-rounder's steady rate of playing time should give him a chance to produce down the stretch, but at his current pace, Boutte is only a fantasy option in deeper formats.

Cooper played 32 of the Bills' 70 snaps on offense and went without a target in Sunday's 48-42 win over the Lions.

Fresh off a big Week 14 performance in the Bills' 44-42 loss to the Rams in which he recorded six catches for 95 yards on a season-high 14 targets, Cooper unexpectedly saw no involvement at all Sunday in another high-scoring affair. Though his snap share (46 percent) was similar to last week's 54 percent rate, Cooper didn't garner any looks on any of the 34 pass attempts from quarterback Josh Allen, who spread the ball around to nine different pass catchers. The Buffalo offense is rolling at the moment and doesn't look on track to slow down with the team facing two relatively unimposing defenses in the Patriots (twice) and Jets (once) over the final three games of the regular season, but Cooper's weekly output looks like it could be highly volatile down the stretch while Allen relies on an array of playmakers rather than a narrower usage tree.