NFL Player News

Bowers (knee) practiced "at full speed" during OTAs and minicamp, Ryan McFadden of ESPN reports.

Bowers was plagued by a knee injury during most of the 2025 campaign and was ultimately placed on IR for the final two weeks of the regular season. However, he's been able to get back to full health during the offseason and has several other factors working in his favor ahead of the 2026 campaign. First, he'll be working with a pair of new quarterbacks in Kirk Cousins and Fernando Mendoza, and Cousins was reportedly enthralled with Bowers during spring workouts. Second, the Raiders brought in Klint Kubiak -- "who has shown the ability to scheme the ball to his best pass catchers" -- as their new coach. Third, Las Vegas currently has an untested WR room, so Bowers is likely to feature at the team's top pass catcher.

Oladejo didn't participate in OTAs or minicamp because of a hamstring injury, but he's expected to be ready for the beginning of training camp in late July, Paul Kuharsky of PaulKuharsky.com reports.

Oladejo missed most of last season due to a right leg fracture he suffered in October, but that wasn't the cause of his absence from spring workouts; rather, the second-round 2025 draft pick was nursing a hamstring issue. Oladejo is slated for a rotational role during the upcoming campaign, and he's expected to work more frequently as a pass rusher than he did last season, per Kuharsky.

Lutz, who signed a contract extension with Denver last November, enters the 2026 campaign as the team's clear primary kicker, Bob Morris of SI.com reports.

Lutz has been very reliable since joining the Broncos in 2023, playing in all 51 of the team's regular-season games and making 89.0 percent of his field-goal tries. He's converted 12 of 18 attempts from 50-plus yards during that time and hasn't missed any extra points over the past two years. Morris notes Lutz's contract includes no guaranteed money in 2028, but with most of his salary guaranteed from 2026 to 2027, the veteran kicker is essentially locked in as Denver's starting kicker for at least the next two years.

Sutton could benefit from more one-on-one matchups during the upcoming season following Denver's acquisition of Jaylen Waddle, Susanna Weir of the team's official site reports.

Waddle has averaged 77.5 catches for 1,049 yards and 7.5 touchdowns over the past two seasons as the Broncos' No. 1 wideout, and the team gave its WR room a dramatic new look in mid-March by dealing for Waddle. While the trade on one hand means Sutton is more of a 1A in the pecking order alongside Waddle, it may also mean the former will have more open looks with opposing defenses needing to focus heavy attention on Waddle. It remains to be seen how exactly the Broncos' offense will adjust to Waddle's presence, but with QB Bo Nix (ankle) expected to be good to go for the start of training camp and coming off a 2025 regular season during which he threw the most passes in the NFL, there should be adequate targets for both Sutton and Waddle to put up lofty receiving numbers.

Gordon and Jaylen Wright are in line to compete for backup slotting behind De'Von Achane in training camp, Mike Masala of USA Today reports.

Achane is the Dolphins' clear-cut top back, which limits the fantasy lineup utility of his backups as long as he's available. However, if Achane misses time this season for any reason, there's streaming value to be had with the player who's next in line for carries. During the 2025 regular season, Gordon and Wright each logged 70 carries, though Wright (who averaged 4.1 yards per carry) did so in 10 contests while Gordon (2.8 yards per carry) was available for Miami's full slate.

The Bears have signed Roush to a four-year, $7.35 million contract, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

The Bears thought highly enough of Roush to take the Stanford product in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft, 69th overall. However, as a rookie, the 6-foot-6, 267 pounder's path to steady targets isn't apparent while working in an offense that returns TEs Colston Loveland and Cole Kmet.

Coach Sean Payton has been pleased with what he's seen from Waddle since the wideout was acquired in March in a trade with the Dolphins, Susanna Weir of the team's official site reports.

"He's someone who picks things up real quick," Payton said last month of Waddle, who put up a 64/910/6 receiving line (on 100 targets) in 16 regular-season games in 2025. "You can just feel his instincts, his quickness and his ability to not only run fast but stop fast. So, he's doing well." Looking ahead, Waddle and Courtland Sutton are slated to lead a Denver WR corps that also includes Pat Bryant, Marvin Mims and Troy Franklin. Assuming he builds solid chemistry with QB Bo Nix (ankle), who is excited about the explosiveness Waddle brings to the team's offense, the 2021 first-rounder -- who topped 1,000 receiving yards during his first three seasons (2021-2023) with Miami -- is a candidate to see an uptick in production in 2026, and in turn provide weekly fantasy utility in his new locale.

On the subject of his Achilles rehab, Jones said Friday, "I'm doing everything. Cleared to do everything. I think it's just about, at this point, sharpening that," James Boyd of The Athletic reports.

That said, Jones acknowledges the injury he sustained Dec. 7 last year is still on his mind, noting on that front, "you're still thinking about it. I think (you) probably will until you get playing." An important milestone in the QB's ongoing recovery will be a return to 11-on-11 drills, with Coach Shane Steichen having previously noted that the plan is for Jones to resume work in those drills when training camp begins later this month.

Minshew's teammate Jacoby Brissett, who is in the midst of a contract dispute with the Cardinals, posted a recent photo Thursday on Instagram that showed him getting in some work with several teammates, Tyler Drake of Arizonasports.com reports.

That Brissett -- who didn't take a single practice rep during Arizona's offseason program -- connected with WRs Marvin Harrison and Simi Fehoko, TEs Trey McBride and Elijah Higgins along with fellow QB Kedon Slovis is a positive sign, but at this stage it's unclear if or for how long the signal-caller's contract issue lingers once the Cardinals re-take the field. In the absence of Brissett, the team's expected Week 1 starter, Minshew took the majority of first-team QB reps throughout the offseason, so this will be a situation worth monitoring closely once Arizona's training camp commences July 22.

Ahead of training camp, Zach Selby of the Commanders' official site relays that Okonkwo (who signed a three-year deal with the team in March) and QB Jayden Daniels have already developed a strong connection through their work during OTAs and minicamp.

With Zach Ertz (knee), who drew 72 targets in 13 regular-season contests in 2025, no longer in the mix, Okonkwo tops a Washington TE depth chart that also includes returnees John Bates and Ben Sinnott, a duo that combined for 29 targets last season. During his fourth and final campaign with the Titans, Okonkwo put up a 56/560/6 receiving line on 79 targets across 17 regular-season outings. Given that the 2022 fourth-rounder has already developed chemistry with a signal-caller who Selby notes often likes to get tight ends involved in the offense, Okonkwo is a candidate to see an uptick in production in his new locale in 2026. It's a context in which the tight feels like he "can finally just unleash," while operating as one of Daniels' key pass-catching options along with top WR Terry McLaurin.