Today’s minor moves:
Carolina Panthers
Green Bay Packers
Houston Texans
Indianapolis Colts
Las Vegas Raiders
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Here are Saturday’s minor moves and standard gameday practice squad elevations:
Buffalo Bills
Carolina Panthers
Chicago Bears
Cleveland Browns
Dallas Cowboys
Detroit Lions
Green Bay Packers
Houston Texans
Indianapolis Colts
Jacksonville Jaguars
Kansas City Chiefs
Las Vegas Raiders
Los Angeles Chargers
Minnesota Vikings
New England Patriots
New Orleans Saints
Pittsburgh Steelers
San Francisco 49ers
Tennessee Titans
Washington Commanders
With Colts cornerback Kenny Moore presumed to potentially miss a few weeks, the recent signee, Hilton, will get his opportunity to supplement the team’s secondary. He may be able to earn an official spot on the 53-man roster with an impactful game. Similarly, Cropper may be able to get into his first NFL game since going undrafted in 2023 as he gets elevated to a receiving corps that will sorely miss CeeDee Lamb.
Morris is getting called up for the third time for Jacksonville. If the Jaguars intend for him to appear in another game after this week, they’ll need to sign him to the 53-man roster.
As teams enter Week 4, here are the latest practice squad transactions from around the league:
Arizona Cardinals
Atlanta Falcons
Buffalo Bills
Carolina Panthers
Cleveland Browns
Green Bay Packers
Indianapolis Colts
Miami Dolphins
Minnesota Vikings
New England Patriots
Seattle Seahawks
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tennessee Titans
The Falcons’ kicking rollercoaster took another turn in Week 3 with John Parker Romo missing both of his attempts in Sunday’s loss to the Panthers. Granted, those kicks came from 49 and 55 yards, so Atlanta may have some patience after signing Romo to a two-year contract last week. The Falcons still brought in some potential competition in Sauls, an undrafted rookie who spent training camp with the Steelers and made five of his six field goals in the preseason.
Wright is expected to be out for four to six weeks due to a foot injury, per ESPN’s Brady Henderson.
Watson signed with the Buccaneers after the draft but remained on the non-football injury list as he worked to get his weight to a more manageable level. He was waived during final roster cuts, but the team hosted him for a workout last week, per FOX Sports’ Greg Auman. Watson met the team’s athletic requirements to earn his way back on the practice squad, according to Auman, and will return just in time for the Bucs’ Week 4 matchup with the Eagles. The massive nose tackle does feel like a direct counter to the tush push, but Bowles previously said (via Auman) that Watson wouldn’t be re-signed just for one matchup and would instead need to be ready to contribute to the defense as a whole.
Panthers tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders suffered a high ankle sprain during Sunday’s victory over the Falcons, according to Joe Person of The Athletic.
The 2024 fourth-round pick will miss multiple weeks as a result with veteran Tommy Tremble likely stepping back into a starting role.
After largely playing behind Tremble as a rookie, Sanders started Carolina’s first three games this season and outsnapped his veteran teammate 129 to 97. He ranks second on the team in receptions (11) and receiving yards (92), both top-20 marks among tight ends through three games, per Pro Football Focus (subscription required).
Tremble caught all six of his targets for 38 yards to open the year and will likely see an uptick in snap count and receiving opportunities. Fifth-round rookie Mitchell Evans stands to benefit even more, as he only played 35 snaps in the first three weeks but will be elevated to a TE2 role during Sanders’ absence.
Panthers head coach Dave Canales also confirmed that right guard Robert Hunt underwent biceps surgery. His earliest return would be at the end of the season, according to ESPN’s David Newton, while center Austin Corbett avoided surgery but will be out for at least six to eight weeks. Both linemen are on injured reserve.
Carolina has since switched to Chandler Zavala at RG and Cade Mays at C while also poaching Nick Samac off the Ravens’ practice squad to back up both spots. The Panthers offense has struggled behind their injured O-line thus far and will be hoping Corbett can recover on the shorter end of his timeline
Here are today’s minor moves and Week 3’s standard gameday practice squad elevations:
Arizona Cardinals
Carolina Panthers
Chicago Bears
Cleveland Browns
Green Bay Packers
Houston Texans
Jacksonville Jaguars
Kansas City Chiefs
Las Vegas Raiders
Los Angeles Chargers
Minnesota Vikings
New England Patriots
New Orleans Saints
New York Giants
New York Jets
Philadelphia Eagles
Pittsburgh Steelers
San Francisco 49ers
Seattle Seahawks
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Washington Commanders
There were some eyes on whether or not the Browns would add a kicker for the weekend after Andre Szmyt needed to undergo some MRI testing, but no such moves were made and Szmyt heads into the weekend without an injury designation. The team did report a workout with veteran kicker Matthew Wright, though, per Howard Balzer of CardsWire.
The 49ers will lose some additional offensive line depth as they place their intended swing tackle, Burford, on injured reserve. Additionally, with Martinez not getting signed to the active roster, it appears that injured starter Brock Purdy will not be active as an emergency option, as was rumored a bit yesterday. Purdy should be inactive as a result.
Herbig announced his retirement at the end of July after spending a good portion of the offseason with the Commanders. The 27-year-old was coming off a 2024 season in which he missed the entirety of the year with a shoulder injury. Washington’s release of Herbig from the reserve/retired list gives him an opportunity to sign with a new team as a free agent. There’s no guarantee that he’s headed anywhere specific, but he likely initiated the transaction in order to explore his options.
September 18: Hunt underwent successful surgery in California this week, per Joe Person of The Athletic, but the team has not provided any updates regarding his return timetable.
A torn biceps could be season-ending, but Bills linebacker Matt Milano suffered a similar injury in training camp last year and was back on the field at the end of November. However, the specific nature of Hunt’s injury and the different physical requirements for his position will be major factors in his recovery timeline.
September 15: As expected, the Panthers will be shorthanded up front for a lengthy period. Guard Robert Hunt and center Austin Corbett are both headed to injured reserve, head coach Dave Canales confirmed on Monday. 
Hunt suffered a torn left biceps during yesterday’s game. Surgery will be required as a result, meaning he could very well be lost for the season. The shift to IR ensures a four-game absence at a minimum, but for both Hunt and Corbett a much longer absence is in store.
Corbett suffered an MCL injury during Carolina’s Week 2 contest. Canales noted the extent of the ailment was initially unclear (with a sprain being a possibility), but he later specified (via ESPN’s David Newton) this is a case of a Grade C injury. That represents a complete tear, meaning surgery will also be required for Corbett. Canales has left the door open for a late-season return in both cases, but it would come as a surprise if either were to be available again in 2025.
The Panthers made continuity a priority along the O-line this offseason. Corbett and fellow center Cade Mays were retained, while longtime right tackle Taylor Moton inked a two-year extension shortly before the start of the campaign. Left tackle Ikem Ekwonu is still in the fold, as is left guard Damien Lewis. With a number of depth options returning as well, Carolina’s top nine contributors up front in terms of snaps from 2024 are in the fold.
Given today’s injury news, that depth and familiarity will be called upon early. Mays is set to take over from Corbett at center after falling short in this year’s training camp competition for the gig. Canales said Chandler Zavala, meanwhile, will receive the first opportunity to take on the right guard position. The 2023 fourth-rounder made seven total starts across his first two seasons with Carolina, and that figure is now set to increase.
Hunt remains under contract through 2028, so the Pro Bowler’s future with the team is not in questions. Corbett, on the other hand, missed considerable time in each of the past two years. Yet another significant injury will hurt the pending free agent’s chances of being retained this spring along with his market value for any outside teams which show interest.
Despite walking away with a win this weekend, the Cardinals gave up 328 passing yards to Bryce Young and the Panthers. One reason for that may have been injuries to top corners Garrett Williams, Max Melton, and rookie Will Johnson. Melton and Johnson look like they’ll be fine, but Williams has been placed on injured reserve, per Cardinals staff writer Darren Urban. 
Defensive lineman L.J. Collier will reportedly join Williams on IR. A main contributor a year ago after starting 15 games in 2024, Collier has spent the first two weeks of the new season as more of a depth piece on the team’s newly revamped defensive line. The depth hurts, though, as they still await the debut of first-round defensive tackle Walter Nolen.
It’s an unfortunate loss for Arizona with Williams coming off a sophomore campaign in which Pro Football Focus (subscription required) rated him as the third-best cornerback in the NFL. Melton and Johnson are the team’s starting cornerbacks on the outside, while Williams is the primary nickelback of the Cardinals secondary.
It was a knee injury that Williams suffered on Sunday. The team didn’t go into specifics on the injury, but obviously, it’s enough to keep him off the field for at least four weeks. Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon didn’t seem too worried, though, claiming that both Williams and Collier could return at some point in the season. Melton was back at practice today and looked unbothered by his own knee injury, while Johnson didn’t practice today but will continue to be evaluated throughout the rest of the week.
In the meantime, fifth-round rookie Denzel Burke stepped up in a big way in his debut on the team’s defense — Burke played only on special teams in Week 1. Third-year corner Kei’Trel Clark saw an increase in snap count, as well. Clark probably has the best chance to fill the slot cornerback role of Williams’. In extremely limited playing time last season, Clark spent about 39 percent of his time in the slot.
Another option to compete for the nickel role is Darren Hall, who was called up from the practice squad to take Williams’ spot on the active roster. Two more practice squad slots were made vacant when defensive tackle Elijah Simmons was signed to Tampa Bay’s active roster and linebacker Elliott Brown was released. Filling the three newly vacant slots are defensive tackle Zachary Carter, defensive tackle Kyon Barrs, and cornerback Ekow Boye-Doe.
Today’s minor moves:
Carolina Panthers
Detroit Lions
Indianapolis Colts
Los Angeles Rams
New York Giants
The Panthers’ late comeback attempt came up short on Sunday, dropping them to 0-2. Attempts at turning the season around will likely include replacements being counted on along the offensive line. 
Both right guard Robert Hunt and center Austin Corbett suffered injuries yesterday. Hunt is dealing with a biceps injury which occurred in the fourth quarter. Corbett, meanwhile, is facing the prospect of missed time due to a knee ailment.
In each case, an MRI is pending. As Joe Person of The Athletic writes (subscription required), though, neither Hunt nor Corbett are optimistic about their respective outlooks. Biceps tears carry lengthy recovery timelines when surgery is required, while Corbett was “distraught” in the locker room after the game when contemplating the fallout of his latest injury (h/t ESPN’s David Newton).
Hunt was one of the Panthers’ two big-ticket guard investments during free agency in 2024 (Damien Lewis being the other). The former Dolphins second-rounder played 16 games during his debut Carolina season, earning a Pro Bowl nod along the way. Expectations were high for a strong follow-up, but it appears a lengthy absence will instead be in store. Hunt is under contract through 2028.
Corbett, by contrast, is a pending free agent. The eighth-year veteran avoided major injuries during his time with the Browns and Rams early in his career. After logging a full campaign with the Panthers in 2022, however, the 30-year-old has been struck by a series of injury woes. Corbett ended the ’22 season with an ACL tear and was limited to just four games the following campaign (during which he suffered an MCL tear). In 2024, a biceps tear ended his season in Week 5.
This offseason, Corbett was retained on a one-year pact while the Panthers also kept Cade Mays in the fold. The two engaged in a training camp competition for the starting center gig, and Corbett won out. The 69-game starter now appears to be facing another lengthy tenure on the shelf, something which would hinder his market value next spring and presumably move Mays into a first-team role.
Carolina’s offensive line welcomed back left tackle Ikem Ekwonu yesterday. The unit could be notably shorthanded along the interior moving forward, though. It will be interesting to see what further testing reveals for both Hunt and Corbett as the Panthers look to build off the momentum from their second half showing yesterday.
Ikem Ekwonu was sidelined for the Panthers’ season opener. Carolina’s left tackle is set to make his season debut today, however. 
Ekwonu underwent an emergency appendectomy late in August. The procedure resulted in a day-to-day status and created questions about his ability to suit up in time for Week 1. That did not wind up being the case, but ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports the 24-year-old is expected to play this afternoon.
That will be welcomed news for a Panthers team which struggled on offense last week. Ekwonu is entering his fourth season with the team, and the former No. 6 pick has started each of his 49 games on the blindside to date. After playing every contest in 2022 and ’23, Ekwonu missed two games last season. Another campaign without any major absences would be key for the Panthers’ prospects this season but also the chances of a long-term commitment being worked out.
Ekwonu is currently scheduled to receive $17.65MM in 2026 given Carolina’s decision to pick up his fifth-year option this spring. The NC State product has made it clear he would welcome an extension, although no indications about contract talks emerged over the course of the summer. A healthy season would of course be pivotal in determining the Panthers’ willingness to make a multi-year investment in this case. Improving in Year 4 would also help Ekwonu’s earning power after an up-and-down start to his NFL career.
The 0-1 Panthers will take on the Cardinals this afternoon. Improvement will be sought out on offense, and Ekwonu being back at full strength marks a positive sign with respect to the team’s chances of taking a needed step forward in Week 2.