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Bengals Activate G Lucas Patrick From IR

October 16th, 2025 at 5:48pm CST by Ben Levine

The Bengals will be getting some offensive line reinforcement for tonight’s matchup with the Steelers. According to ESPN’s Ben Baby, the team has activated Lucas Patrick from injured reserve.

Patrick landed on IR after suffering a calf injury in Week 1. He required an extra missed game beyond the minimum IR requirement, but it’s a relatively quick turnaround for the veteran lineman. Patrick returned to practice last Wednesday.

Patrick inked a one-year deal with the Bengals this past offseason and ended up winning the competition for the starting right guard spot. Dalton Risner got the first shot to replace the injured Patrick, and he garnered three starts before getting replaced by fifth-round rookie Jalen Rivers. Pro Football Focus has graded both of those players as below-average this season, so there’s a chance Patrick is immediately inserted back into the lineup.

Of course, Patrick isn’t any world beater himself. The lineman was a reserve lineman for the first three seasons of his career, but he emerged as a starter with the Packers in 2020 and 2021. He had a two-year stint as a starter in Chicago before spending the 2024 campaign in New Orleans.

Elsewhere in Cincy, star pass rusher Trey Hendrickson has been ruled out for tonight’s game with a hip injury. To add some extra depth at defensive end, the team has promoted Isaiah Foskey from the practice squad. A former Saints second-round pick, Foskey will be in line to make his 2025 debut tonight.

Miles Killebrew Has ‘Significant’ Knee Injury; Steelers Host George Odum

October 16th, 2025 at 4:30pm CST by Connor Byrne

OCTOBER 16: The Steelers are placing Killebrew on injured reserve, according to Pryor. He will be sidelined for at least four games, making him eligible to return in Week 11 at the earliest. Pittsburgh now has one open spot on their 53-man roster.

OCTOBER 15: The Steelers may go without safety and special teams ace Miles Killebrew for the foreseeable future. Head coach Mike Tomlin announced that Killebrew is dealing with a “significant” knee injury. It’s unclear how much time Killebrew will miss, but the Steelers have already ruled him out for Thursday’s game against the Bengals (via Brooke Pryor of ESPN).

Killebrew, who suffered the injury while covering a kickoff return in a win over the Browns on Sunday, couldn’t put weight on his right leg. He had to be helped off the field and carted to the locker room. The 32-year-old’s absence will be felt on special teams.

A two-time Pro Bowler who’s now in the second season of a two-year, $6.5MM contract, Killebrew has not played at all on defense in 2025. However, the former first-team All-Pro ranks fourth on the team in special teams snaps.

To replace Killebrew, the Steelers could turn to another decorated special teamer in George Odum. The free agent safety visited the team on Tuesday, according to Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2. Odum, 31, divided the first seven years of his career between Indianapolis and San Francisco. He was a first-team All-Pro with the Colts in 2020 and a second-team All-Pro with the 49ers in 2022.

Odum underwent offseason elbow surgery, leading the 49ers to release him in July. Healthy again, he could catch on with the Steelers or another team as we near the second half of the season.

Bears Open Practice Window For LB Amen Ogobongbemiga

October 16th, 2025 at 4:00pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The Bears have opened Amen Ogbongbemiga‘s practice window, per Marquee Sports Network’s Scott Bair.

The linebacker and special teams ace landed on injured reserve before the regular season with a knee injury. He returned to practice on thursday as a limited participant.

Ogbongbemiga, 27, is in his fifth NFL season and his second in Chicago. He entered the league as an undrafted free agent with the Chargers in 2021 and quickly carved out a spot on special teams. He signed with the Bears in 2024 and impressed enough to earn another two-year deal in free agency earlier this offseason.

Upon his return, Ogbongbemiga will likely return to a core special teams role, as he only has 144 defensive snaps in his career. The Bears do not necessarily need the boost – their special teams grade of 86.6 from Pro Football Focus (subscription required) ranks seventh in the NFL – but he will add more experience to their coverage and return units.

Ogbongbemiga will have 21 days to practice with the Bears before he must be activated from injured reserve to the 53-man roster. Otherwise, he will revert to injured reserve for the rest of the season.

Dolphins OLB Jaelan Phillips Wants To Stay In Miami

October 16th, 2025 at 2:53pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

Despite frequently being mentioned as a trade target, Dolphins edge rusher Jaelan Phillips would prefer to stay in Miami this season.

“I love this team,” Phillips said this week (via Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald). He added that he “ideally” would remain a Dolphin through the Week 9 trade deadline, but acknowledged that a potential move was “completely out of my control.”

Phillips is entering the final year of a rookie deal with virtually no talk of an extension. His expiring contract and the Dolphins’ 1-5 record has made him a frequent inclusion on lists of potential trade assets.

The 2021 first-round pick gave the team a strong return on their initial investment right away with 15.5 sacks and 17 tackles for loss in his first two seasons. He seemed to be taking another step in 2023 with six sacks and 11 TFLs in his first eight games before his year came to a sudden end with a torn Achilles. Phillips returned the next season, but only had one sack and one TFL in four games before a partially torn ACL sidelined him for the majority of a second season in a row.

If Miami is not interested in extending Phillips, they should be open to moving him before the deadline. This season, he only has one sack and one tackle for loss, but three or more pressures in five of his six games, per Pro Football Focus (subscription required). That should be enough to keep teams in need of pass-rushing help interested in the coming weeks.

Other edge rusher trades this season offer a framework for a potential Phillips deal. Bryce Huff was traded from the Eagles to the 49ers conditional fifth-round pick that can be upgraded to a fourth-rounder, while Odafe Oweh was moved for safety Alohi Gilman and a Day 3 pick swap. Both players had better production in previous years but more recent downswings, like Phillips, suggesting that he could fetch a fourth- or fifth-round selection in a trade.

The Dolphins will have to weigh that against the potential for a 2027 compensatory pick if Phillips signs with a new team in free agency. His strong per-game stats in his career but lack of production in the last two years makes it hard to predict what he might fetch in free agency without some positive regression to the results of his early seasons.

49ers LB Fred Warner Undergoes Surgery

October 16th, 2025 at 11:14am CST by Adam La Rose

OCTOBER 16: Shanahan noted (via Matt Barrows of The Athletic) Warner’s surgery was a success. A firm recovery timeline is still not in place at this point, with Lynch stating during his latest KNBR appearance (h/t Barrows) he will soon speak with team doctors on that subject. Surgeons Barrows interviewed indicated a return during the playoffs could be possible, but the team’s stance on Warner’s injury being season-ending has not changed.

OCTOBER 14: The 49ers’ defense was dealt another crippling blow on Sunday when Fred Warner suffered a fractured and dislocated ankle. His recovery process will begin soon.

Warner is scheduled to undergo surgery tomorrow, Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay area notes. When speaking about the injury, head coach Kyle Shanahan added he expects the four-time Pro Bowler to return to on-field activities at some point during the offseason. While a more definitive timeline will depend on the success of the procedure, the 49ers will move forward without one of their most important contributors for the rest of the season.

Over the course of his career (all of which has taken place with San Francisco), Warner has served as a full-time starter and a consistent high-end performer. The four-time All-Pro recorded between 118 and 137 tackles in each of his first seven seasons with the 49ers, but this injury will cause an absence beyond one game for the first time in Warner’s decorated tenure. With edge rusher Nick Bosa already sidelined, San Francisco’s defense faces a major challenge in terms of keeping the team in playoff contention.

General manager John Lynch has made it clear a trade is being worked on to acquire a pass rusher capable of replacing Bosa’s presence to an extent. It will be interesting to see if the 49ers – who lost Dre Greenlaw in free agency – will add linebacker to their list of positions targeted on the trade front. As ESPN’s Nick Wagoner writes, though, the loss of Warner hinders San Francisco’s chances of competing for a Super Bowl in 2025. Parting ways with future draft capital for a rental addition could therefore prove to be a misstep.

In any event, the 49ers are currently in position to lean on internal options as they look to replace Warner. That could result in Tatum Bethune taking on a starting defensive role moving forward. The 2024 seventh-rounder has operated as a regular on special teams over the course of his first two seasons in the league. Bethune only logged 51 snaps on defense as a rookie, however, and his total in that regard sits at 48 after he filled in for Warner in Week 6. The 49ers’ plan regarding any LB moves will be based in part on how Bethune fares in his expanded role.

Sunday’s loss leaves San Francisco as one of three teams in the NFC West with a 4-2 record. Plenty of time remains for the team’s season to swing one way or the other as a result. Ahead of the 2026 campaign, though, Warner’s progress in rehabbing after surgery will be a key story to follow.

Commanders Place DE Drake Jackson On IR

October 16th, 2025 at 10:33am CST by Adam La Rose

Drake Jackson‘s Commanders debut will not come any time soon. The recently-signed defensive end was placed on injured reserve Thursday, per a team announcement.

As a result of the move, Jackson will be sidelined for at the least the next four games. Today’s decision does not come as a surprise, however. As ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports, the Commanders always planned on moving Jackson to IR upon signing him. Per NFL rules, those two transactions cannot take place on the same day.

With Jackson being added earlier this week, a brief delay was required before this IR placement. Now that it has taken place, the 24-year-old will be able to continue recovering from his torn patellar tendon. That injury limited Jackson to eight games in 2023 and he missed all of last season while continuing his rehab.

The former second-rounder posted three sacks as a rookie with the 49ers and duplicated that total in eight games in 2023. San Francisco moved on in May, leaving Jackson on the open market for several months. A number of visits were lined up, and the USC product ultimately chose to sign with Washington. That move allowed for a reunion between Jackson and Commanders general manager Adam Peters, who worked in the 49ers’ front office when he was drafted.

Jackson’s pact is no doubt a one-year deal at or near the league minimum given his missed time. His market value this spring will thus be determined by his performance when healthy as he takes on a depth pass-rushing role for the Commanders. Given the fact Jackson will make his season debut no early than Week 11, however, he will only have a small window of opportunity to carve out a notable workload and make an impact on his new team.

Bucs WR Mike Evans To Return To Practice

October 16th, 2025 at 9:47am CST by Adam La Rose

The Buccaneers’ offense will be notably shorthanded against the Lions in Week 7. Mike Evans could be back in the fold in time for that game, however.

Evans is expected to practice today, per Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times. Given the Buccaneers’ decision not to place him on injured reserve, the 32-year-old is eligible to return to game action at any time. Provided he manages to avoid any setbacks in his recovery process from a hamstring injury, that could mean he is back in the fold on Monday night.

Once Evans suffered his latest hamstring ailment, it became clear a multi-week absence would be necessary. Still, it was reported at the time this injury was not as severe as the one which resulted in three missed games in 2024. Evans has been sidelined for the same number of contests this season, so a return should be close.

Tampa Bay has two more games until the bye week, and having Evans available for that span would be key given the team’s other offensive injuries. Fellow starting receivers Chris Godwin and Emeka Egbuka are set to miss Week 7; the same is also true of lead running Bucky Irving. With that many key contributors out of the picture for at least the short term, Evans managing to return to action would be crucial in helping the 5-1 Buccaneers continue their hot start to the campaign.

Of course, Evans’ recovery timeline will also be worth watching closely given his streak of 1,000-yard campaigns. The six-time Pro Bowler has reached that mark in each of his first 11 seasons, and topping 1,000 yards again in 2025 would break a tie with Jerry Rice for the most consecutive campaigns at that level of production. Just like last year, Evans will need a strong output upon return to be able to reach the 1,000-yard threshold.

The Lions’ secondary is currently ravaged by injuries, and safety Brian Branch will miss the game through suspension. That will add intrigue to the matchup with Detroit’s ability to defend the pass a question mark regardless of who the team lines up against. A number of Tampa Bay’s complementary pass-catchers will be counted on in any case, but Evans could very well be in the mix.

Giants Complete Restructures With CB Paulson Adebo, S Jevon Holland

October 16th, 2025 at 8:58am CST by Adam La Rose

The Giants have created some financial wiggle room in advance of the trade deadline. Contract restructures have been worked out with cornerback Paulson Adebo and safety Jevon Holland, ESPN’s Field Yates notes.

As a result of the moves, New York has created roughly $4.8MM in cap space for this year. The Giants entered Thursday ranked last in the league in available funds, making a step such as this necessary to generate flexibility for additions in the near future. It has become increasingly clear New York is in the market for a receiver trade, and it was reported yesterday a splashy addition is being explored at this time.

Especially if the Giants are to acquire a receiver with term on their contract beyond 2025, taking on a notable base salary for the remainder of this season will be necessary. Doing so will now be easier, and adding to the future cap hits on Adebo and Holland’s respective pacts will be relatively easy to manage with both on the books past this year. Each of those defensive backs signed with New York in free agency as part of the team’s efforts to upgrade in the secondary.

Adebo signed a three-year, $54MM pact after playing out his rookie contract with the Saints. Holland’s first time on the open market after beginning his career with the Dolphins resulted in a $45.3MM deal being worked out over the same length. Both players have operated as full-time starters during their debut Giants campaign, and that will no doubt continue for the foreseeable future.

New York sits at 2-4 on the season, but both of those wins have come with first-round rookie Jaxson Dart in place at the quarterback spot. Malik Nabers will miss the remainder of the campaign due to his ACL tear, but the Giants’ offense could include a new WR option in the near future. The cap space needed to pull off an acquisition of some kind is now available.

Titans Latest Team To See HC-GM Misalignment Backfire

October 15th, 2025 at 10:48pm CST by Sam Robinson

The steady Titans descent leading to Brian Callahan's ouster was certainly predictable given recent organizational decision-making. Owner Amy Adams Strunk has fostered an unstable environment, and the power structure left standing still invites questions. The impulsive owner, as is the case with several other dysfunctional organizations, remains the common denominator during this nosedive.

Tennessee went 4-19 under Callahan, the coach Adams Strunk insisted upon when not bothering to explore Mike Vrabel's trade value. Linked to such a trade effort late in the 2023 season, the Titans bailed on that plan due to Adams Strunk not wanting to potentially miss out on some of the 2024 cycle's candidates while dealing with Vrabel trade negotiations. The result: a 23-game head coach. Callahan matched Ken Whisenhunt's tenure for the franchise's shortest for a full-time HC in 50 years.

Callahan did not appear deserving of a third season, and it took one of the most bizarre collapses -- Week 5 in Arizona -- in recent NFL history to give the Titans their win. The team's 83-point total represents the fewest points through six Titans/Oilers games since 1983. With Cam Ward development paramount, Tennessee's power structure pulling the plug makes sense. Though, Ward will debut next season -- barring an unexpected decision to retain Mike McCoy and Bo Hardegree -- with a third play-caller in 18 games. Not ideal for quarterback growth. Ward has nowhere to go but up, by his own admission, ranking dead last in QBR (by a wide margin) and EPA per play.

Although eventful due to the past two Tennessee iterations' performance, Callahan's tenure will be rather insignificant in the grand scheme. Adams Strunk's 10-plus-year run as controlling owner has included more notable impulse firings, with that list starting with Vrabel and GMs Jon Robinson and Ran Carthon. How the owner has operated will make hiring the next coach more difficult, regardless of any positive perception the Chad Brinker-Mike Borgonzi power duo generates around the league.

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Jets HC Aaron Glenn Doesn’t Want Breece Hall Trade

October 15th, 2025 at 10:01pm CST by Ely Allen

About a third of the way through the final year of his rookie contract, Jets running back Breece Hall continues to serve as the subject of trade rumor after trade rumor after trade rumor. Each time the subject comes up, though, head coach Aaron Glenn is there to deny, deny, deny. That last denial came today (via ESPN’s Rich Cimini) as Glenn reiterated to reporters that the team has “no plans to trade Hall.”

Today’s denial comes on the heels of comments the 24-year-old rusher made last Friday in London, in which he stressed that does not want to be traded. Hall was approached by reporters, again, today in the locker room, and his tune changed to something seemingly a bit more neutral.

“I haven’t posted anything this season, so (it’s) just a way for me to say I’m ready for whatever comes my way at the end of the day,” Hall confided in the media. “Whether it’s going against an opponent, whether it’s in my life, it’s just for me. It’s a football thing. So, alright, I’m ready for whatever opponent’s coming my way, whatever the case may be. It’s a for-the-game type of thing.”

Hall excited everyone back in 2022 as a second-round rookie out of Iowa State, utilizing a 5.8 yards per carry figure to surpass Michael Carter as the Jets’ starting running back after five games. Tears to his ACL and meniscus derailed a magical rookie season, and though he made a strong return in Year 2, the excitement dissipated as he failed to meet relatively high expectations upon his return to the field. Stagnant development last year, combined with some strong early looks at then-rookie running back Braelon Allen, began some speculation that Hall’s time in New York may be coming to an end.

There have already been reports that an extension is not likely in the cards for Hall. If the playoffs are quickly becoming out of reach for the Jets and Hall is expected to just walk in free agency, it would make all the sense in the world to offer Hall up to a contender in need of help at running back so that the team can get something for him rather than just watching him walk away for nothing.

Regardless, Glenn and Hall both have been adamant about wanting to stay together, and the potential long-term injury of Allen makes Hall far less expendable that he would’ve otherwise been. Still, Hall clearly senses something in the air, and with so many rumors dedicated to the subject, there’s usually fire where there’s smoke.