49ers To Activate Jordan Reed Off IR
Entering their Week 9 game brutally thin at the pass-catcher spots, the 49ers will have some help Thursday night. They are set to activate Jordan Reed from IR, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
Reed has been on San Francisco’s IR since late September, when an MCL issue sidelined him after a productive game against the Jets. The longtime Washington tight end has struggled to stay healthy for most of his career, but the 49ers need bodies to catch passes against the Packers.
San Francisco is down George Kittle, Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk and Kendrick Bourne because of injuries and COVID-19 issues. Richie James is also questionable with an ankle injury. Reed and Ross Dwelley figure to pick up the slack for Kittle, while the 49ers will need to promote some wide receivers from their practice squad ahead of tonight’s game.
After missing the entire 2019 season because of a concussion and subsequently considering retirement, Reed signed with the 49ers on a one-year deal this offseason. The 30-year-old tight end managed to play 13 games in 2018 — when he caught 54 passes for 558 yards and two TDs — and did produce a seven-catch, 50-yard, two-TD game in Week 2 against the Jets.
Giants Interested In Patriots’ Nick Caserio
The Giants are barreling toward their fourth consecutive 10-loss season, a streak that would represent a new low for the franchise. Rumblings of the team considering a GM change have surfaced.
Were the Giants to fire third-year GM Dave Gettleman, they would have interest in Patriots executive Nick Caserio, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports reports. Caserio has been on the Giants’ radar for some time, and many around the league expect the team to have a GM vacancy soon.
Recently given a Patriots extension, Caserio will nevertheless be an in-demand GM candidate — which has been the case for a while. His new contract does not contain language that prevents him from interviewing for GM posts, which became an issue for the Texans last year. Caserio, however, has resurfaced as a Texans GM candidate. While the Texans have ex-Pats exec Jack Easterby running the show currently, the Giants also have key employees Caserio knows well.
Joe Judge and defensive coordinator Patrick Graham spent extensive time in New England, and some believe the Giants’ northeastern location would appeal to Caserio, JLC adds. Caserio has been in his current role — Patriots director of player personnel — since 2008.
Additionally, some within the Giants organization believe Gettleman should have been fired after last season. The team’s rebuild has not taken off under the ex-Panthers GM. The Giants, however, have given extensive time to their GMs, per La Canfora. In the modern era, the franchise’s shortest GM tenure came when Hall of Famer Andy Robustelli lasted only four years (1974-78). He presided over the organization’s previous modern-era low point, with George Young, Ernie Accorsi and Jerry Reese enjoying far more successful tenures. Giants ownership, however, may be preparing to change course sooner than expected after the team’s second 1-7 start in three years.
Latest On Texans’ COVID-19 Situation
The Texans are working remotely Thursday and found out they will be without at least three linebackers this week. Jacob Martin tested positive for COVID-19, per Sarah Barshop of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
Additionally, Whitney Mercilus has been deemed a high-risk close contact and will go on the Texans’ reserve/COVID-19 list. The Texans placed Mercilus and linebacker Dylan Cole on their COVID list, where guard Max Scharping remains.
Romeo Crennel said Martin and Scharping have experienced mild symptoms, per the Houston Chronicle’s Aaron Wilson (on Twitter). Obtained in 2019’s Jadeveon Clowney trade, Martin has two sacks for the Texans this season. Given a recent extension, Mercilus is tied for the team lead with three midway through his ninth season in Houston. The Texans are down to two outside linebackers, with Kyle Emanuel in concussion protocol, and three inside ‘backers ahead of their Week 9 game.
The Texans join the Bears, Broncos, Cardinals, Packers, Ravens and 49ers as teams who have dealt with new COVID-19 developments this week. The U.S. documented more than 100,000 cases Wednesday, marking the first time the number entered six-figure territory since the pandemic began. As of 1:30pm CT, the NFL is proceeding with Green Bay’s Thursday game in San Francisco, despite both the Packers and 49ers having position groups decimated by the league’s coronavirus protocols. The Texans’ game in Jacksonville remains scheduled for noon CT Sunday.
Dolphins Place Myles Gaskin On IR
The Dolphins will place running back Myles Gaskin on injured reserve, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter). Per league rules, Gaskin will be out for the next three games. On the plus side, head coach Brian Flores doesn’t anticipate that he’ll miss more than that.
[RELATED: Chiefs Trade RB DeAndre Washington To Dolphins]
The Dolphins anticipated that Gaskin would need time to recover from his sprained MCL, which is why they traded for Chiefs running back DeAndre Washington just prior to the deadline. Meanwhile, Matt Breida is still working his way through a hamstring injury, so Washington could see a larger-than-anticipated role against the Cardinals on Sunday. In a worst case scenario, Jordan Howard still figures to lead the way in touches, with support from Patrick Laird and Salvon Ahmed.
Gaskin, 23, has averaged 3.9 yards per carry through seven games. He’s been more of a contributor as a pass-catcher — so far, he’s registered 30 catches for 198 yards. With or without Gaskin, the Dolphins could use some improvement out of their ground game. The Dolphins have one of the league’s weakest rushing offenses with an average of just 98 yards per contest.
Bears, Texans Close Team Facilities
The Bears and Texans closed their team facilities on Thursday morning in the wake of COVID-19 positives. As of this writing, the Bears are scheduled to face the Titans in Nashville on Sunday. The Texans, meanwhile, are set to play the Jaguars in Jacksonville.
[RELATED: 49ers-Packers Still On Track]
This isn’t the Texans’ first rodeo. Last week, they were forced to shut down after receiving a positive player test and placing offensive lineman Max Scharping on the reserve list. Logistically speaking, that matter was much simpler since the Texans were on a bye week.
The Bears’ COVID-19 positive player is offensive lineman Cody Whitehair, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter). This news comes on the heels after Jason Spriggs‘ positive test, an indication that there could be spread among the O-Line group. The good news is that the Bears do not believe that Whitehair came into close contact with many players. The hope is that they can isolate, contain the issue, and go ahead with Sunday’s game as scheduled.
Seahawks Sign Alex Collins
The Seahawks have signed running back Alex Collins to the practice squad, per a club announcement. Collins will head to the practice squad alongside linebacker Mychal Kendricks, who was brought back after a brief hiatus. 
[RELATED: Mychal Kendricks Returns To Seahawks Practice Squad]
The Seahawks worked out Collins back in January, but didn’t end up signing him at the time. Months later, he’s back. They’re plenty familiar with Collins, as he started his career with the Seahawks back in 2016. A fifth-round pick out of Arkansas, Collins was waived after a rookie season where he played sparingly. He signed with Baltimore, and ended up having a breakout 2017 season with the Ravens.
Collins became their full-time starter, racking up 973 yards and six touchdowns in 15 games. After that, his career took some odd turns. A 2018 foot injury cut his season short and his arrest in the 2019 offseason prompted the Ravens to drop him. After spending all of 2019 out of football, this marks Collins’ first opportunity to get his career back on track.
49ers-Packers Still On Track
COVID-19 forced the 49ers to close their facility this week, but their Thursday night game against the Packers is still set to go on as scheduled (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter).
[RELATED: COVID-19 Positive Closes 49ers Facility]
In recent days, the Niners have been forced to place a number of players on the reserve list, including offensive tackle Trent Williams and wide receivers Brandon Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel, and Kendrick Bourne. The Packers, meanwhile, will be without running back AJ Dillon due to his positive test. And, because Dillon was in close contact with fellow RB Jamaal Williams and linebacker Kamal Martin, they will also be barred from playing.
The 49ers have entered the league’s “intensive protocol” to help mitigate potential spread, but as of this writing, the league is planning to go full speed ahead on Thursday night. The Niners were already set for an uphill battle thanks to prior injuries, and they’ll now have to forge ahead without many of their top receivers. Meanwhile, the Packers’ backfield could be extra shallow, depending on the status of Aaron Jones‘ calf injury.
Lions Place QB Matthew Stafford On Reserve/COVID-19 List
The Lions announced earlier tonight that they’ve placed Matthew Stafford on the reserve/COVID-19 list. Fortunately, it doesn’t sound like the quarterback will have to miss any time.
As ESPN’s Adam Schefter explains on Twitter, Stafford is “considered a high-risk, close contact from a non team member.” Since his most recent contact came on Monday, the veteran will be eligible to come off the reserve/COVID-19 list on Sunday, making him eligible to play against the Vikings this weekend.
Of course, everything could change if Stafford’s tests don’t come back negative. Fortunately, his wife, Kelly, stated on Instagram that the 32-year-old hasn’t tested positive.
As Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press notes, Stafford landed on the reserve/COVID-19 list back in July. It was later learned that his test showed a false positive, prompting changes to the NFL’s testing protocol.
Stafford’s completed only 61.4-percent of his passes this season, his worst showing since 2014. However, he’s still put up solid counting numbers, including 1,916 passing yards, 13 touchdowns, and only five interceptions in seven games. In the event that Stafford was sidelined, the team would turn to either Chase Daniel or David Blough.
Giants Claim WR Dante Pettis
Dante Pettis is heading to New York. The Giants announced that they have claimed the wide receiver off waivers. Pettis was waived by the 49ers yesterday.
While Pettis’ impending quarantine will sideline him for this weekend’s matchup against Washington, he could see a role in the Giants offense when the team returns from bye in Week 12. New York’s receiver corps is led by Golden Tate, Darius Slayton, and Sterling Shepard (along with tight end Evan Engram and running back Dion Lewis), but Pettis could slide in as a fourth receiver.
Of course, he also could have had a role in San Francisco, but he was phased completely out of the offense by the time he was let go. The former second-rounder showed some promise during his rookie campaign, hauling in 27 catches for 467 yards and five scores in 12 games (seven starts). His production plummeted in 2019, and he hasn’t had a reception in five games this season.
As Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel pointed out yesterday on Twitter, Pettis will account for around $264K in cap space. Considering the Giants’ early spot in the waiver order, there’s a good chance a handful of other teams made a claim.
Ravens To Work Out Tramon Williams
The Ravens are set to work out longtime Packers cornerback Tramon Williams, as Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. If signed, Williams would help provide depth for a group that has lost star cornerback Marlon Humphrey and others to the COVID-19 list. 
[RELATED: Ravens Place Humphrey On COVID-19 List]
Even at the age of 37, Williams believes that he can still contribute to a contender. He was briefly on the fence about playing amidst the first coronavirus wave, but he’s now intent on returning to the field.
After spending nearly a decade with the Packers to start his career, Williams circled back in 2018. He’s appeared in all 32 regular season games over the past two seasons, including a 2019 campaign where he had eight passes defended and a pair of interceptions.
Most notably, Williams was a crucial part of the Packers’ Super Bowl victory in the 2010 season. He had three interceptions during that playoff run and came up with a critical stop late in the championship game to seal the win for Green Bay.