Seahawks Designate Ethan Pocic To Return
The Seahawks announced that they have designated Ethan Pocic to return from injured reserve. The offensive lineman will aim to take the field for the first time since his back injury sidelined him. 
Per league rules, the move will kickstart a two-week practice window for Pocic, who will be eligible to return in Week 15 against the Panthers. The move also means that the Seahawks cannot bring another player back from IR in 2019. The Seahawks used their other IR-DTR slot to bring Ed Dickson back into the fold last week, but the tight end quickly reverted to IR after his knee troubles re-emerged.
Pocic has served as a swiss army knife of an offensive lineman for the Seahawks, but he’ll likely be deployed at center to hold down the role previously filled by Justin Britt. Since Britt tore his ACL, Joey Hunt has been the starter, with Jordan Roos as his backup.
Pocic, a 2017 second-round pick, has started in 16 games as a pro. Between now and Week 15, the 9-2 Seahawks will have to keep fighting without him as they face the Vikings and Rams.
Falcons’ Julio Jones Won’t Play Vs. Saints
Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones is inactive for tonight’s game against the Saints, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The Falcons ruled Jones out after testing his shoulder strength and it’s not immediately clear whether he’ll be able to play in Week 14 against the Panthers either. 
Jones’ right shoulder will cause him to miss his first regular season game since the 2016 season. Through eleven games this year, Jones has reeled in 64 catches for 950 yards and four touchdowns – good numbers in spite of the Falcons’ overall woes.
After signing Jones to a three-year, $66MM extension in September, the Falcons would probably like to play it safe with Jones and keep him out of action, since the playoffs are out of reach. That’s unlikely to fly with the multiple-time Pro Bowler, however.
Jones’ unprecedented contract is fully guaranteed, with all but $2MM being completely locked down at the time of signing. After years of pushing for an extension, Jones set a new benchmark at his position and passed his previous AAV of $14.25MM – good for just 12th among wideouts – on a rocket ship.
The Falcons figure to overhaul their team in the offseason, but Jones will remain the face of the club for years to come.
Patriots To Sign Kai Forbath
The Patriots are expected to sign veteran kicker Kai Forbath to replace Nick Folk, sources tell ESPN.com’s Field Yates (on Twitter). With that, Forbath will serve as the Pats’ kicker against the Texans on Sunday. 
On Thursday, we learned that Folk will miss one game as he recovers from an appendectomy. The surgery was minimally invasive, so the belief is that he will be ready to roll against the Chiefs on December 8.
Forbath kicked in three games for the Jaguars last season and served as the Vikings’ full-time kicker in 2017. For his career, Forbath has made 85.7% of his field goal tries for the Redskins, Saints, Vikes, and Jaguars.
In other Pats news, the club released tackle Jared Veldheer from the reserve/retired list earlier this week. Despite his injury issues, the nine-year veteran is reportedly in good shape and could profile as an emergency fill-in for a contender in need.
Cowboys Won’t Fire Jason Garrett During Season
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and EVP Stephen Jones plan to allow Jason Garrett to finish the season as the team’s head coach, no matter what happens from here on out, a high-ranking source familiar with their thinking tells ESPN.com’s Ed Werder (on Twitter). This jibes with comments made by the elder Jones earlier this week regarding Garrett’s job security between now and Week 17. 
Beyond that, there’s little guaranteed for Garrett. The Cowboys have yet to reach the promised land on the coach’s watch and Jones isn’t the patient type.
“Disappointed is not the word,” Jones said after the team’s 13-9 loss to the Patriots. “There’s no question that we were given an opportunity, there were things we could have taken advantage of.”
The Cowboys entered Thursday’s game against the Bills with a 6-5 record, good for first in the NFC East, and a 64% chance to edge out the Eagles for the divisional crown. If they make the playoffs, they’ll vie for their first Super Bowl win since the 1995 season.
Giants To Place Zak DeOssie On IR
The Giants are expected to place longtime long snapper Zak DeOssie on injured reserve with knee and wrist injuries, sources tell NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo (on Twitter). The injury may mark the end of DeOssie’s time with the Giants, as he looks ahead to his 36th birthday in May. 
DeOssie entered the league as a 2007 fourth-round pick of the Giants and went on to win two Super Bowls rings the club. The long snapper and Eli Manning represent the last two players from the Giants’ last Super Bowl victory, and both players could exit the organization in the coming months. After those two, the longest tenured Giants are cornerback Janoris Jenkins and wide receiver Sterling Shepard.
DeOssie was named to the Pro Bowl twice, in 2008 and again in 2010. Before now, he missed just four games in his career, all in the 2015 season.
The Brown product re-upped with the Giants on a one-year deal in the spring, fresh off of his previous two-year contract worth $2.315MM. He’ll be eligible for free agency in March.
Colts’ T.Y. Hilton Won’t Play Vs. Titans
The Colts will be without T.Y. Hilton against the Titans due to a setback with his calf injury, GM Chris Ballard announced on Thursday. It’s a bad blow to the Colts, who are pushing for a playoff spot in the Week 13 home matchup.
Hilton is now considered week-to-week. He first suffered the calf injury during practice on Oct. 30, which cost him games against the Steelers, Dolphins, and Jaguars. Head coach Frank Reich said that Hilton did not aggravate the injury in his limited snaps against the Texans last Thursday night, but something went wrong for the star wide receiver between then and now.
Without Hilton, the Colts will rely on Zach Pascal, Chester Rogers, Marcus Johnson, and Ashton Dulin. Meanwhile, fingers are crossed for the return of rookie Parris Campbell, who has missed the last two games with a fractured right hand. If Campbell can’t go, wide receiver Chad Williams could be a candidate for promotion.
At 6-5, the Colts have a 35% chance of making the playoffs, according to FiveThirtyEight. Those odds will dip significantly if they can’t beat their AFC South rivals this week. Meanwhile, they’ll be paying close attention to the Texans, who are in the divisional driver’s seat, as they take on the Patriots.
Patriots’ Nick Folk To Miss Time
The Patriots, once again, are in search of a new kicker. Nick Folk recently had an appendectomy that will prevent him from playing this week, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Word of Folk’s surgery was first reported by Mike Petraglia of CLNS (on Twitter). 
The surgery was done laparoscopically, which should mean a short recovery time and only one missed game for Folk. Still, the Pats will need a leg to fill in for Sunday’s game against the Texans.
The Patriots’ kicker role has been in flux ever since Stephen Gostkowski‘s season-ending hip surgery. After Gostkowski hit the IR, the club turned to Mike Nugent, but he was replaced by Folk after missing two field goal tries against the Browns. Even though the Pats won that game to advance to 8-0, Bill Belichick bounced him in favor of Folk.
With the Pats, Folk has connected on 7-of-9 field goal tries and all three of his extra point attempts across three games. Two of those misses came on Sunday against the Cowboys, but the Pats still came away with the 13-9 win, with Folk’s 42-yard connection in the fourth quarter helping to seal the deal.
Browns Cut Devaroe Lawrence
The Browns have released Devaroe Lawrence, per a club announcement. The release of Lawrence will open up a spot for fellow defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi, who is returning from suspension.
[RELATED: NFL Upholds Larry Ogunjobi’s Suspension]
Cutting Lawrence wasn’t necessarily an easy call for the Browns. Prior to his release, Lawrence appeared in all eleven games for Cleveland while appearing in 30% of the team’s snaps.
Per league rules, he’ll hit the waiver wire as a post-trade deadline cut. The league’s 31 other teams will have a 24 hour window to claim him and it’s possible that he could get picked up. Lawrence would only cost the prorated portion of his $570K salary for 2019 and is slated to make just $660K next year.
Lawrence, 27, has eight tackles and one fumble recovery to his credit this year.
Steelers Bench QB Mason Rudolph
It’s now official, per an announcement from head coach Mike Tomlin. The Steelers will start quarterback Devlin Hodges this week against the Browns, sending Mason Rudolph to the bench. 
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Rudolph completed just 8 of 16 passes for 65 yards and a red zone interception before being yanked against the Bengals. After Hodges entered in the third quarter, he finished out 5-of-11 for 118 yards and a touchdown in a comeback win.
Tomlin was non-committal when asked about a potential shakeup after Sunday’s game, but this was the expected move. Hodges is not a world-beater, nor does he profile as the heir apparent to Ben Roethlisberger, but he might be the team’s better option as they push for the playoffs.
At 6-5, the Steelers have a 27% chance of making the playoffs, according to FiveThirtyEight. In the next three weeks, they’ll see the Browns, Cardinals, and Bills.
Vikings Waive Josh Doctson
The Vikings have waived Josh Doctson, according to a team press release. To take his place on the roster, the club promoted linebacker Cameron Smith from the practice squad. 
Doctson, 26, hasn’t lived up to his 2016 first-round draft billing. He effectively lost his rookie season to injury and didn’t show much in his subsequent seasons with the Redskins. The Vikings gave him a shot this year, but he leaves Minnesota without recording a single reception.
It’s bad news for Doctson, but potentially excellent news when it comes to Adam Thielen‘s recovery. Thielen has been sidelined by a hamstring injury, but his return may be just around the corner. Unfortunately, the release of Doctson will not foreshadow the return of Chad Beebe. The wide receiver was nearing his potential return from injured reserve, but this week’s ankle surgery means that he will not be able to play again in 2019.
The Vikings are 8-3 following back-to-back wins over the Broncos and Cowboys. Next up – a Monday night showdown against the Seahawks.