Texans’ Joe Mixon Uncertain To Play In 2025
The Texans offense seemed to find its footing against the lowly Titans in Week 4. While the unit appears to be trending upwards, they’ll still have to move forward without an offensive focal point for the foreseeable future.
While speaking with reporters, coach DeMeco Ryans said that star running back Joe Mixon is not ready to return (per Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 in Houston). The veteran continues to sit on the reserve/NFI list with a foot/ankle injury, although he’s now eligible to be activated.
Sources seemed to paint a bleaker picture. According to Wilson, it will be “much longer” for a potential Mixon return, and there’s some skepticism that the running back will even be able to play this season. This matches a report from late August that indicated that Mixon may ultimately have to sit out the entire 2025 campaign.
Mixon dealt with a lingering foot/ankle issue during the 2024 campaign that forced him to miss three games. He aggravated the issue while training this offseason. Considering the player’s age and the installation of Nick Caley‘s new offense, the Texans have continually made it clear that they’d slow play Mixon’s rehab. Now, it’s sounding like the team may not have a choice but to rely on their other RBs in 2025.
Mixon continued his high-level play after getting dealt from the Bengals to the Texans during the 2024 offseason. The two-time Pro Bowler finished the campaign with 1,325 yards from scrimmage and 12 touchdowns. Two years remain on Mixon’s contract, but none of his $8MM base salary for 2026 is guaranteed. If the player is unable to return in 2025, there’s a chance the team bails on the veteran this offseason.
Veteran Nick Chubb has led the depth chart through the first four weeks of the season, but the offseason acquisition has only managed to compile 188 yards on 47 carries. Rookie fourth-round pick Woody Marks had a breakout showing this past weekend, collecting 119 yards from scrimmage and a pair of scores. That game represented the first time this season that Marks has outsnapped Chubb, and there’s a chance the rookie may be eyeing an even larger role as the season progresses.
J.J. McCarthy Could Practice This Week; Vikings RT Brian O’Neill Sprains MCL
After missing back-to-back games, Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy appears to be making progress in his recovery from a high ankle sprain. The Vikings are hopeful that the second-year man will log some practice time this week, according to head coach Kevin O’Connell.
Early last week, O’Connell emphasized the importance of McCarthy receiving an ample amount of practice work before he regains his role as the team’s starter. Having invested the 10th overall pick in 2024 on McCarthy, who didn’t play at all as a rookie after tearing the meniscus in his right knee during the preseason, the Vikings are taking a careful approach with the former Michigan Wolverine.
Minnesota has gone 1-1 with McCarthy fill-in Carson Wentz, a late-August addition who has amassed 96 starts since the Eagles chose him second overall in the 2016 draft. Now a 32-year-old journeyman, Wentz could remain at the helm for the second leg of the Vikings’ European tour this week. Wentz has completed 44 of 66 passes for 523 yards, four touchdowns, and two interceptions thus far. He and the Vikings dropped a 24-21 decision to the Steelers in Dublin in Week 4, falling to 2-2 on the season.
The Vikings are now gearing up to take on the 1-3 Browns on Sunday in London on Sunday. If McCarthy isn’t under center, a bye after the Cleveland game could set him up to return for a Week 7 showdown with the reigning Super Bowl champion Eagles.
McCarthy, 22, has struggled early on, though. He has connected on 24 of 41 passes for 301 yards, two scores, and three picks. McCarthy looked good during a second-half comeback against the Bears in Week 1, but he didn’t fare well early in the game and turned in a rough showing in a loss to the Falcons in Week 2. With that in mind, if Wentz plays this week, he could make an argument to retain the starting job with an impressive performance against Cleveland.
Regardless of who’s at QB for Minnesota, he won’t have right tackle Brian O’Neill as a protector on Sunday. O’Connell announced that O’Neill is week-to-week with an MCL sprain, though the upper-crust RT will not require surgery or go on IR.
A career-long Viking since entering the league as a second-rounder in 2018, the 30-year-old has picked up 110 starts and two Pro Bowl nods. O’Neill represents a substantial loss for the Vikings, who are also without left guard Donovan Jackson after he underwent wrist surgery last week. Worsening matters, Minnesota saw center Ryan Kelly suffer a concussion in its loss to Pittsburgh, helping the Steelers tee off on Wentz for six sacks.
Patriots Notes: Williams, Tavai, Ownership
Milton Williams earned the largest contract of the 2025 offseason, with his $104MM in total value and $63MM in guaranteed money pacing the class. The financials obviously played a big role in the defensive lineman ultimately joining the Patriots, although Williams recently admitted that the presence of newly hired head coach Mike Vrabel was the true deciding factor.
“I wanted to be under Vrabel,” Williams said (via ESPN’s Mike Reiss). “He played in this league. He knows what D-line looks like. I could pick his brain for anything I could add to my game to make me a better player. This scheme fits exactly my play style, being aggressive up front.”
There were rumblings that Williams was destined for the Panthers before the Patriots swooped in at the eleventh hour. After handing the veteran the most lucrative contract in franchise history (in terms of AAV), New England was clearly hoping their acquisition could anchor their defense. So far, Williams has lived up to the bargain, as he’s totaled a pair of sacks and five tackles for loss in his first four games with the organization.
Williams garnered his contract following a successful run with the Eagles. The defensive tackle was often deployed as a rotational option, with the former third-round pick topping out at 501 defensive snaps played in 2024 (which represented less than half of his team’s total defensive snaps). There were some questions if Williams would be capable of transitioning into a near-full-time role with the Patriots, and he hasn’t had an issue staying on the field for his new club. Through four games, Williams has appeared in a career-high 68 percent of his team’s defensive snaps.
As the organization looks to continue building off a 2-2 start, they’ll be getting some defensive reinforcement. After cornerback Christian Gonzalez made his season debut this past weekend, the team will soon welcome back linebacker Jahlani Tavai. The veteran landed on IR with a calf injury to begin the season and is now eligible to be activated. According to Reiss, a Week 5 return has been the player’s target throughout his rehab.
Tavai provided a bit of stability for the Patriots over the past few years. He averaged 112 tackles per season between 2023 and 2024, although he may be hard pressed to reach those levels in 2025. He’ll be joining a deeper inside linebackers corps that’s currently led by Robert Spillane and Christian Elliss.
The organization is also staying busy off the field. Kurt Badenhausen, Eben Novy-Williams, and Scott Soshnick of Sportico recently reported that Robert Kraft agreed to sell a minority stake in his franchise. The buyers are Sixth Street (3 percent) and Dean Metropoulos (5 percent), and the Kraft family will continue to own about 90 percent of the team. The funds are intended to be reinvested into the team and won’t be used to finance the New England Revolution, the Kraft family’s MLS club.
Notably, this stake in the franchise represents a valuation of $9 billion. Per Sportico, that would be the second-richest valuation for a franchise in NFL history, with a recent Giants stake equaling a $10 billion valuation. The league recently allowed a select list of private equity firms to purchase small chunks of NFL teams.
Eagles Add LS Cal Adomitis, Place LS Charley Hughlett On IR
The Eagles swapped long snappers today. According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the team signed Cal Adomitis. He’ll be replacing Charley Hughlett, who landed on injured reserve.
Adomitis brings 49 games of experience to Philly. The Pittsburgh product spent three seasons with the Bengals, including a rookie campaign where he got into three playoff contests. He was among Cincy’s final cuts at the end of the 2025 preseason.
It’s uncertain what ailment Hughlett is dealing with, although the long snapper has recently dealt with his fair share of injuries. He missed 12 games with the Browns last season, and he was limited during his first training camp with the Eagles. He managed to get into each of Philly’s first four games, but now he’ll be sidelined for at least the next month. One of the most experienced long snappers in the NFL, Hughlett has appeared in 156 career games.
Hughlett wasn’t the only Eagles player to land on IR today. As expected, Ogbo Okoronkwo also landed on the reserve/injured list. The defensive end is feared to have suffered a triceps tear this past weekend that will likely end his season after only four snaps. The veteran made his season debut on Sunday, with the Eagles turning to him while navigating a number of injuries to their pass-rush corps.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/30/25
Today’s practice squad moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: CB Jaden Davis
- Released: CB Ekow Boye-Doe
Baltimore Ravens
- Released: C Sam Mustipher
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: CB Ameer Speed
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: WR Parris Campbell
Detroit Lions
- Signed: CB Tre Flowers, LB Ty Summers
- Released: WR Ronnie Bell
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: QB Carter Bradley
- Released: QB Seth Henigan
Las Vegas Raiders
- Signed: OT Leroy Watson
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: OL Michael Dunn, CB Isas Waxter
- Released: CB Myles Purchase, OLB Rashad Weaver
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed: OT Matt Waletzko
- Released: WR Tim Jones
New England Patriots
- Signed: OT Sebastian Gutierrez, G Andrew Rupcich
- Released: G Jack Conley, DL Fabien Lovett
New York Jets
- Signed: OL Liam Fornadel
- Released: LB Ben Niemann
Philadelphia Eagles
- Released: LB Lance Dixon
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: OT Logan Brown
Minor NFL Transactions: 9/30/25
Today’s minor moves:
Carolina Panthers
- Waived: OLB DJ Johnson
- Waived/injured: WR Dalevon Campbell
Green Bay Packers
- Waived: OT Brant Banks
Houston Texans
- Signed off Panthers’ practice squad: OL Jarrett Kingston
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed off Cowboys’ practice squad: LB Buddy Johnson
- Waived: LB Cameron McGrone
Las Vegas Raiders
- Signed from practice squad: TE Carter Runyon
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed off Steelers’ practice squad: S Sebastian Castro
- Placed on IR: S Rashad Wisdom
Dolphins Waive CB Cam Smith
Cam Smith will not have a chance to continue a potential bounce-back effort with the Dolphins. The team is moving on from the former second-round pick.
Stashed on the reserve/non-football illness list to open the season, Smith received word Tuesday he is being waived. Two years remain on the cornerback’s contract, but he has not shown much since being drafted highly. The team announced the move.
Overhauling their operation at corner this offseason, the Dolphins had expressed some hope Smith could step up. Chosen with the team’s top draft choice in 2023, the former No. 51 overall pick has only played 153 career snaps. Miami carrying the depleted CB situation it does and still waiving Smith certainly illustrates a lack of faith among team decision-makers in the once-highly regarded South Carolina prospect.
Mostly a special-teamer as a rookie, Smith began last season on IR but did play a regular role during the six games in which he was active. Smith logged 133 defensive snaps, though he allowed a 75% completion rate as the closest defender and did not start any games. Drafted to play in Vic Fangio‘s defense, Smith failed to make an impression under Anthony Weaver and will look for a chance elsewhere.
This is a big miss for the Dolphins, who traded their 2022 and ’23 first-rounders to the Chiefs in the Tyreek Hill trade. Miami has seen the third-rounder from that draft (De’Von Achane) hit, but the Hill trade coupled with the Smith miss depleted the team’s capital.
Miami not seeing much from Smith this offseason also came as it cut Kendall Fuller and traded Jalen Ramsey. The team also lost Kader Kohou and Artie Burns to summer ACL tears. Monday night, the Dolphins also played without starter Storm Duck and backup Ethan Bonner. The team added Jack Jones, Rasul Douglas and JuJu Brents to its CB room in a flurry of late-summer moves.
Ravens Sign Kenyon Green To Practice Squad
Baltimore is adding a former first-round pick to its offensive line mix. The Ravens announced that they have signed Kenyon Green to their practice squad. The team worked out Green last week, according to Aaron Wilson of KPRC2.
Green, a former Texas A&M standout, entered the NFL as the 15th overall pick of the Texans in 2022. However, the Texas native was unable to live up to his draft status in his home state.
While Green started 14 games as a rookie, Pro Football Focus gave him a last-place grade among guards who played in 10-plus contests. The 6-foot-4, 323-pounder was unable to improve on that in 2023, instead missing the entire season with a shoulder injury. Green returned to play in 12 games (nine starts) a year ago, but the Texans moved on last offseason.
In a trade that hasn’t worked out for either side, the Texans sent Green and a fifth-rounder in last spring’s draft to the Eagles for safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson and a sixth-rounder in 2026. Green didn’t play a regular-season game for the Eagles, though he did spend time on their practice squad before they waived him last week. Gardner-Johnson, meanwhile, lasted three games with Houston before the team released him last week.
The 24-year-old Green is now heading to his third pro organization, though he’ll have to work his way up to the active roster. The Ravens have Andrew Vorhees and Daniel Faalele serving as starting guards, while Ben Cleveland is on the roster in a backup role.
Dolphins To Sign WR Cedrick Wilson Jr. Off Saints’ Practice Squad
After losing wide receiver Tyreek Hill to a season-ending knee injury during Monday’s win over the Jets, the Dolphins are bringing back an old friend to help the void. Miami will sign receiver Cedrick Wilson Jr. off the Saints’ practice squad, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.
This will be the second Dolphins stint for Wilson, who played with the team under head coach Mike McDaniel from 2022-23. Wilson combined for 34 catches, 432 yards, and three touchdowns over 30 games during his previous run in Miami after spending the first three seasons of his career in Dallas.
Wilson joined the Saints on a two-year, $5.75MM deal with $2.85MM in guarantees in 2024; he hauled in 20 passes for 211 yards and a score in 15 games last season. He didn’t make the Saints’ season-opening roster this year, though, instead spending time on their practice squad to open the season.
The 29-year-old will now receive an opportunity to return to game action with a Miami. With Hill down, Jaylen Waddle will be the team’s unquestioned No. 1 receiver. Proven options are hard to find after that, however, with Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, D’Wayne Eskridge, Malik Washington, and Tahj Washington perhaps taking on expanded roles.
Even with Wilson not delivering on the three-year, $22.05MM Dolphins deal he signed in 2022, the career-long auxiliary receiver has a greater track record than each of those four at the NFL level. Wilson, whose 602-yard Cowboys showing in 2021 caught the Dolphins’ attention, did not eclipse 300 receiving yards in either of his previous two Miami slates.
Realistically, there’s little chance of the Dolphins adequately replacing Hill from within this year. The eight-time Pro Bowler may never suit up again for the Dolphins, who will be able to get out of his non-guaranteed $29.9MM base salary in the offseason. He was already facing an uncertain future before suffering his gruesome injury, which McDaniel confirmed on Tuesday will end his season (X links via Marcel Louis-Jacques of ESPN and Cameron Wolfe of NFL Network).
It seems Hill avoided nerve damage, but McDaniel revealed “several ligaments including the ACL are part of the dislocation.” A report Tuesday morning indicated Hill’s 2026 season is in doubt, with the future Hall of Famer suffering an ACL tear in addition to the knee dislocation and other ligament tears. This thrusts the all-time speed merchant toward a career crossroads, with an age-32 season coming in 2026. The accomplished wideout had only missed extensive time in one season — the Chiefs’ 2019 campaign — but that will change beginning in Week 5.
Raiders To Place LT Kolton Miller On IR
Kolton Miller signed a second Raiders extension this offseason, locking in the Jon Gruden-era draftee for the long term under yet another new Las Vegas power structure. But the new regime will have a look at what a Miller-less offensive line looks like for a while.
The Raiders are placing Miller on IR, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports. An MRI on Miller’s ankle revealed a high ankle sprain and a hairline fracture, per RapSheet. This move will park the Raiders tackle for at least four games, leading to big changes up front.
This will ensure Miller matches his career high in missed games. He missed four in 2023; otherwise, Miller has been a reliable piece on a Raiders O-line that continues to see turnover. The eighth-year blocker is signed to a three-year, $66MM extension — after angling for a new deal during the offseason.
Pete Carroll said Monday the Raiders would turn to Stone Forsythe, one of the new HC’s former Seahawks charges, if Miller missed time. The Raiders will go from a 111-start player to one whom the Giants waived upon moving their roster to 53 players last month. The Raiders quickly scooped up Forsythe for their 16-man practice squad and have used him as a backup in four games thus far.
Miller, 30, went down shortly before the Raiders’ game-winning field goal attempt against the Bears. He played 17 games last season, and the Raiders’ solutions when Miller went down in 2023 is no longer rostered. Both Justin Herron and Jermaine Eluemunor, each an ex-Patriot brought in during Josh McDaniels‘ short HC stint, started in place of Miller in 2023. Forsythe represents one option, with Carroll adding rookie Charles Grant could push for playing time. The third-round pick out of Division I-FCS, however, has been inactive all season.
The Raiders used two Day 2 picks on O-linemen last year — Jackson Powers-Johnson, DJ Glaze — and doubled down to start the Carroll-John Spytek–Tom Brady era by drafting Caleb Rogers and Grant at Nos. 98 and 99. Neither rookie blocker has been active this season. Grant comes from William & Mary, and the team gave him work at both tackle spots during his first NFL offseason. Glaze sits as the Raiders’ RT starter, while Rogers is another backup option.
This could certainly be a big loss for Vegas, as Miller is one of the NFL’s better tackles. Through four games, Pro Football Focus ranks the 6-foot-8 blocker fourth among all tackles. ESPN’s pass block win rate metric slots Miller ninth this season. PFF graded Miller as a top-15 tackle in each of the previous four seasons. A former Seahawks fourth-rounder, Forsythe has made 14 career starts. He logged 213 left tackle snaps in 2023, but all of his 2024 action came on the right side.