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Bengals Activate Joe Burrow From IR

November 26th, 2025 at 10:24pm CST by Sam Robinson

Joe Burrow will indeed return before December. Despite the Bengals’ swoon, they are activating their star quarterback from IR, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport confirms.

This moves Burrow in place to face the Ravens in what looms as a crucial divisional tilt — though, the game is not exactly pivotal for the Bengals at this point. While Baltimore and Pittsburgh are vying for the AFC North crown, Cincinnati has fallen to 3-8. Burrow’s latest injury, along with another woeful defensive effort, has buried the Bengals. With Cincy poised to miss the playoffs for a third straight season, questions about whether Burrow should return from his turf toe malady are valid. But he is coming back anyway.

Burrow returned to practice November 10, and while Week 14 initially loomed as his most likely return date, the Bengals have seen enough from their centerpiece player to pull the trigger without waiting for a post-Thanksgiving mini-bye. Considering Burrow’s extensive injury history and Cincinnati’s place in the AFC standings, this is a strange decision. But such a move clearly points to team and player being comfortable with this return.

The Bengals have lost four straight since their Joe Flacco-guided upset win over the Steelers. Pittsburgh prevailed in the rematch, with Cincy losses to Chicago, New England and the Jets also commencing. For all intents and purposes, the Bengals are out of the playoff race. Yet, they will redeploy probably the most important player in franchise history with six games remaining.

Seeing his rookie season marred by an ACL tear and his 2023 campaign end early due to wrist surgery, Burrow has already undergone a toe procedure after going down in Week 2 of this season. While it would seem risky for all parties to reinstall Burrow with little at stake now, a recent report indicated the team would proceed in this direction regardless of record.

Joining Chad Pennington as a two-time Comeback Player of the Year, Burrow delivered standout seasons in each of his three healthy NFL slates. He powered the Bengals to Super Bowl LVI upon returning from the ACL tear and then nearly piloted a title defense in 2022. Last season, Burrow put up MVP-caliber numbers — only to see the Bengals’ defensive struggles render that showing moot. The Bengals have Burrow signed through the 2029 season, but they have already seen their QB wield tremendous influence in the building. Burrow’s push to see Tee Higgins extended succeeded, and it will be interesting to learn if the sixth-year passer aggressively lobbied to return to action rather than being shut down.

This season is all but certain to mark a rare occurrence of a superstar quarterback missing the playoffs in three straight seasons. Though, Burrow’s play has little to do with Cincy’s struggles since the 2022 AFC championship game. This is also Burrow’s final season in his 20s; the 2020 No. 1 overall pick will turn 30 late in the 2026 season.

Burrow having missed 22 games due to injury as a pro, along with battling some summer attendance issues for health reasons, has made him an unreliable NFL great. The end of this season could at least provide some positive momentum for the standout passer, though it would also not surprise to see the Bengals reassess this situation if more losses ensued.

The former Heisman winner led the NFL with 4,918 passing yards and 43 touchdowns last season. The Bengals finished 9-8 despite All-Pro seasons from Ja’Marr Chase and Trey Hendrickson. A 25th-ranked defense — which keyed Lou Anarumo‘s firing — held Burrow back; the Bengals’ first Al Golden-led defense ranks 32nd. Chase will return from his one-game suspension, but Higgins will miss Week 13 due to a concussion. Not practicing again this week, Hendrickson has not played since October because of a hip injury.

For the time being at least, this will both end Flacco’s stay atop Cincinnati’s QB depth chart and inject an interesting wild card into the AFC playoff proceedings. Flacco has played fairly well since being acquired via trade, but the team’s plan of obtaining Flacco to keep its playoff hopes afloat failed. The team is 1-5 in Flacco starts. The Bengals are done with their Steelers matchups but still face the Ravens twice. They also match up with the Bills next week. Burrow certainly will give the struggling team a better chance of pulling off upsets in those games, but the Pro Bowler’s health will be the key element in this equation from a Bengals perspective.

Chargers Designate RB Omarion Hampton For Return From IR

November 26th, 2025 at 9:27pm CST by Adam La Rose

NOVEMBER 26: A day after his 21-day practice window opened, Hampton revealed some previously unknown details on the injury that put him on IR for the past seven weeks. While we had known it was a left ankle injury that sidelined the North Carolina rookie, Hampton revealed that the nature of the injury was a fracture, per ESPN’s Kris Rhim. He’ll have a chance to make his return as soon as this weekend, if Los Angeles opts to activate him by Saturday.

NOVEMBER 25: Najee Harris will not play again this season for the Chargers. The other member of the team’s backfield tandem from the start of the season could be back soon, however.

Head coach Jim Harbaugh announced on Tuesday (via ESPN’s Kris Rhim) Omarion Hampton will return to practice today. That means his 21-day activation window will open. Hampton must be brought back onto the active roster within that time to avoid reverting to season-ending injured reserve.

Harris suffered an Achilles tear in Week 3, something which ended the chances of Hampton being eased into action in terms of workload. The first-round rookie was slated for a clear-cut RB1 role with Harris out of the fold, but that setup did not last long. Hampton suffered an ankle injury in early October, and he has resided on IR ever since. Getting him back in the fold at some point late in the season will be key.

The Chargers’ offense has been without left tackle Rashawn Slater all season. His replacement on the blindside, Joe Alt, thrived in that role when healthy be he too has been lost for the remainder of the campaign. Los Angeles traded for Trevor Penning at the deadline, but the team’s O-line will remain a major point of concern moving forward.

The Bolts find themselves in the top 10 in the league in scoring but they sit just 20th in total offense. Improvement on the ground would be welcomed, and having a healthy Hampton could go a long way in that regard. The North Carolina product received double-digit carries in four of his five appearances prior to going down. Overall, Hampton produced 450 scrimmage yards while averaging 4.8 yards per carry.

Hampton could be back as early as Week 13, and the same is also true for defensive tackle Otito Ogbonnia. The latter’s practice window is also being opened, per Harbaugh (h/t Daniel Popper of The Athletic). Ogbonnia has been sidelined since Week 7 due to an elbow injury, but he will likely be back in the fold shortly barring a setback in practice over the coming days.

The Chargers have been hit hard by injuries throughout the campaign, and they have only three IR activations remaining. Bringing back Hampton and Ogbonnia will leave them with one for the closing weeks of the regular season.

Lions Activate DE Marcus Davenport From IR

November 26th, 2025 at 8:55pm CST by Ely Allen

For the second year in a row, Lions pass rusher Marcus Davenport‘s season was put on pause after only two game appearances when he was placed on injured reserve with a pectoral strain that knocked him out of the team’s Week 2 contest. Unlike last year, though, Davenport will get to see the field again. The Lions announced today that they have activated Davenport from IR.

Injuries have played a significant role in Davenport’s NFL career to this point. Now in his eighth year in the league, Davenport has never appeared in every game of a season. Despite some offseason surgery after his rookie year in New Orleans, Davenport stayed relatively healthy throughout most of his first two years as a pro. He missed three games as a rookie then started every game of his sophomore campaign up until he suffered a foot injury that put him on IR for the final three games of the year.

He got a late start to the 2020 season, missing the first four games of the season, and as a result, he came off the bench for much of the year behind Cameron Jordan and Trey Hendrickson. At that point in his career, Davenport had shown flashes but only totaled 12.0 sacks in three years. The Saints showed their confidence in Davenport, exercising his fifth-year option, and he returned to more of starting role the next year, rewarding the team’s faith with a nine-sack performance. Those sacks came despite the fact that he missed six games in 2021, including four from an IR stint due to a shoulder injury.

Davenport underwent five offseason surgeries before playing out his fifth-year option, including a partial amputation on one of his fingers, but he appeared in career-high 15 contests, starting nine of them. While his attendance was much improved, his production was not. In his contract year, Davenport logged only half of a sack. This led to him signing a one-year, $13MM prove-it contract with the Vikings in 2023, and a high ankle sprain ended his year in Minnesota after appearing in only four of the first six games of the season.

That led to his current two-year stay in Detroit which has seen him — and several other Lions pass rushers — plagued with injuries. It looked at the start of the year that Davenport and star pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson would shake off their prior year injuries, but Davenport will get another chance at that as he returns to the active roster. During Davenport’s absence, outside linebacker Derrick Barnes (4.0 sacks) and defensive end Al-Quadin Muhammad (6.0) have filled in admirably opposite Hutchinson (8.5).

The Lions made several roster moves while activating Davenport from IR. They also activated LSU fifth-round rookie offensive guard Miles Frazier from the reserve/physically unable to perform list, where he started the season due to a knee injury. To make room on the 53-man roster, they waived backup running back Craig Reynolds. Detroit signed tight end Anthony Firkser and wide receiver Tom Kennedy to its practice squad and designated center Kingsley Eguakun and tight end Zach Horton as standard gameday practice squad elevations for its Thanksgiving Day matchup against the Packers tomorrow.

NFL Minor Transactions: 11/26/25

November 26th, 2025 at 7:34pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are Wednesday’s minor moves and some standard gameday practice squad elevations for the annual Thanksgiving slate of games:

Arizona Cardinals

Cincinnati Bengals

Dallas Cowboys

Green Bay Packers

Kansas City Chiefs

New England Patriots

Philadelphia Eagles

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Green Bay’s regular kicker Brandon McManus was off the injury report with three full practices this week, so Havrisik will take his leave after filling in for three games this year. The team had been keeping Havrisik close even during McManus’ healthy stretches, but after the backup missed two extra point attempts at MetLife this weekend, the Packers relinquished him to the waiver wire.

Jones missed most of his rookie campaign due to a knee injury, and the same has been true for most of his sophomore season. This time, though, he’s coming back with a bit more time left in the season.

O’Connell had already been called up as a gameday elevation three times this year, so if Seattle wanted to see him on the field again, this move was necessary. In his most recent elevation, O’Connell was asked to play a much bigger role, staying in for over half the team’s defensive snaps. In his first extended opportunity, O’Connell finished second on the team with nine tackles and even logged his first career sack.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/26/25

November 26th, 2025 at 6:44pm CST by Ely Allen

Today’s midweek practice squad transactions:

Arizona Cardinals

Los Angeles Rams

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

Philadelphia Eagles

Seattle Seahawks

49ers Sign LB Eric Kendricks

November 26th, 2025 at 2:45pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The 49ers signed veteran linebacker Eric Kendricks to their practice squad on Wednesday, per a team announcement.

Kendricks spent the first eight years of his career with the Vikings before a one-year stint with the Chargers in 2023. He nearly signed in San Francisco during the 2024 offseason before reversing course and joining the Cowboys instead. He started 15 games and led the team with 138 tackles, marking his ninth-straight season with at least 100 tackles. The 33-year-old did not re-sign in Dallas despite a significant late-season injury to DeMarvion Overshown that sidelined him into 2025.

Kendricks received little interest this offseason and declined an October invitation from the Ravens to join their practice squad. He turned Baltimore down for the same reason he spurned the 49ers last spring: his desire for guaranteed playing time, as opposed to fighting for a starting job or contributing to a rotation. San Francisco been losing defenders left and right this season, including multiple inside linebackers. Fred Warner went down with a season-ending injury in October and his replacement, Tatum Bethune, is expected to miss at least one more game with a high ankle sprain. That will give Kendricks an opportunity to play right away, which, this late in the season, was enough to motivate a signing.

Curtis Robinson replaced Bethune when he went down in Week 11 and got the start in Week 12. He struggled, earning just a 32.0 grade from Pro Football Focus (subscription required) and missed two of his four tackle attempts. Kendricks, a veteran with a strong history of place into his 30s, will likely be an upgrade that could help the 8-4 49ers secure a playoff spot. Despite their strong record, they still sit in third place in the NFC West and may need a wild card berth to make the postseason.

In a corresponding move to signing Kendricks, the 49ers released undrafted rookie linebacker Stone Blanton from their practice squad.

Seahawks Reunite With S Quandre Diggs

November 26th, 2025 at 2:04pm CST by Connor Byrne

3:12pm: Diggs is indeed joining the Seahawks’ practice squad, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. He may not need too much time to adjust to Mike Macdonald‘s defense, as Diggs played under former Macdonald assistant Dennard Wilson in Tennessee.

12:42pm: Safety Quandre Diggs enjoyed a productive run with the Seahawks from 2019-23. After the Seahawks released Diggs in March 2024, he spent a season and a half in Tennessee. Now back on the market after the Titans waived him earlier this month, it appears Diggs will return to Seattle.

Diggs indicated on X that he is rejoining the Seahawks. The two sides are indeed working toward a practice squad deal, Brady Henderson of ESPN reports.

Diggs was a full-time starter in his first season with the Titans, but a Lisfranc injury limited him to eight games. He returned this year to start in four of nine games before the Titans released him at his request. The 32-year-old has picked up 30 tackles and one pass defensed this season. Pro Football Focus ranks his 2025 performance a respectable 39th among 93 qualifying safeties.

A sixth-round pick of the Lions in 2015, Diggs first landed in Seattle in an October 2019 trade. The Seahawks bought low on the defender, giving up a 2020 fifth-rounder for Diggs and a 2021 seventh.

General manager John Schneider made a shrewd move in acquiring Diggs, who wound up serving as a full-time starter during his initial stint with the team. Diggs made three Pro Bowls and intercepted 18 passes over 72 regular-season games.

Once he officially reunites with the Seahawks, Diggs will provide quality depth to one of the league’s best defenses. The Seahawks, off to an 8-3 start and in the running for an NFC West title, rank seventh in both yards per game and points per game allowed. However, the team is nicked up at safety, which explains why it’s circling back to Diggs.

Starter Julian Love, who hasn’t played since Week 4, went on IR with a hamstring injury on Nov. 1. Love has missed four games since then, but there’s no indication a return is imminent. Worsening matters, replacement Ty Okada is now an IR candidate after injuring his oblique in a win over Diggs’ previous team, the Titans, last week, according to Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times.

With Love and Okada down, Coby Bryant, D’Anthony Bell, and versatile rookie Nick Emmanwori are the only healthy safety options on the Seahawks’ roster. Diggs would join undrafted rookie Maxen Hook as practice squad choices.

Seahawks To Sign RB Cam Akers

November 26th, 2025 at 1:54pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The Seahawks adding to their backfield by signing running back Cam Akers to their active roster, per Schultz

Akers, 26, started the season on the Vikings’ practice squad and was released this week after he ran out of game day elevations. In his three appearances, he only played eight snaps on offense and seven on special teams. Last year, he appeared in 17 games – five with the Texans and 12 with the Vikings – for a total of 444 yards and two touchdowns on 104 carries. This will be his return to the NFC West after starting his career as a Rams second-round pick in 2020.

Akers’ arrival in Seattle does not bode well for third-string running back George Holani, who is currently dealing with a hamstring injury. Head coach Mike Macdonald said on Monday (via ESPN’s Brady Henderson) that Holani could go on injured reserve pending further testing. That could very well be the corresponding move to open up a 53-man roster spot for Akers.

However, Akers is a somewhat curious replacement for Holani, who has been a non-factor on offense behind Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet. Holani has 133 snaps on special teams this season with only 36 snaps and 24 touches on offense.who has primarily been restricted to special teams duties. Akers only started playing special teams in 2024 and has just 49 snaps in his entire career.

As a result, the Seahawks may need to find another player to take Holani’s special teams work. Akers will slot in behind Walker and Charbonnet, likely serving as injury insurance more than anything else. Walker is averaging 4.6 YPC and 75.8 total yards per game, Charbonnet has been an effective short-yardage back with seven touchdowns (tied for ninth most in the league), and both have picked up first downs on over 20% of their carries. There does not seem to be much opportunity for Akers, and even if Walker or Charbonnet go down, the Seahawks could simply turn to them as one of their lead backs.

Patriots To Place LT Will Campbell On IR

November 26th, 2025 at 1:15pm CST by Connor Byrne

The Patriots will go at least four games without starting left tackle Will Campbell. After Campbell sprained his MCL in a win over the Bengals in Week 12, the Patriots will place him on IR on Wednesday, head coach Mike Vrabel announced (via Mike Reiss of ESPN).

The good news for the Patriots is that this does not appear to be a season-ending injury. Campbell will be eligible to return for the Patriots’ regular-season finale in Week 18. If he’s not back then, it could be shortly after that, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.

With the Patriots off to a 10-2 start and atop the AFC standings, it’s doubtful their season will conclude in Week 18. They’re on track to break a four-year playoff drought, and Campbell’s among the reasons for their success. The Patriots used the fourth overall pick in last spring’s draft on Campbell, a former LSU Tiger who has started in all 12 of the Pats’ games during their red-hot start.

With Campbell out for the next few weeks, Vrabel said that Vederian Lowe will take over on star second-year quarterback Drake Maye‘s blindside (via Doug Kyed of the Boston Herald). Lowe, who played the final 28 offensive snaps against the Bengals, was a 13-game starter for the Patriots in 2024.

With the Patriots installing two new starting tackles in Campbell and Morgan Moses, Lowe came up in trade rumors before the season. No deal came to fruition, though, and Lowe has spent 2025 as a backup. He’ll now have to step up in Campbell’s absence.

The Patriots’ injuries along the line don’t end with Campbell. Starting left guard Jared Wilson is also likely to miss this week’s game against the Giants, Vrabel said (via Kyed). Wilson, a third-rounder from Georgia, has joined Campbell in emerging as a full-time rookie starter. While Wilson suffered a high ankle sprain early against Cincinnati, there’s hope he’ll return sooner than the typical four- to six-week timeline, according to Rapoport.

Ben Brown, a 10-game starter last year, came on in relief of Wilson in Week 12. He seems likely to line up next to Lowe on Monday against the Giants’ Brian Burns-led defensive front. With the Patriots on a bye after that, it’s possible they’ll only go one game without Wilson.

Panthers Sign Robert Rochell, Place Corey Thornton On IR

November 26th, 2025 at 12:36pm CST by Connor Byrne

The Panthers are signing cornerback Robert Rochell off the Cowboys’ practice squad, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports. He’ll immediately join the Panthers’ active roster.

A fourth-round pick in 2021, Rochell started five regular-season games as a rookie for the Super Bowl-winning Rams. Rochell intercepted the lone pass of his career that season, but he didn’t factor into the Rams’ playoff run.

Now 27 years old, Rochell hasn’t started a single game since his rookie campaign. He has mostly served on special teams throughout his career. He worked as a reserve for the Rams over 17 games in 2022 before totaling 20 appearances over the next two seasons with the Packers.

Rochell signed with the Cowboys last June, but he didn’t survive final cuts. He hooked on with their practice squad after that and ended up appearing in two of the Cowboys’ games this season. All 16 of his snaps came on special teams.

The addition of Rochell will help the Panthers replace fellow corner Corey Thornton, who broke his fibula in a loss to the 49ers on Monday. With Thornton set to miss the rest of the season, the Panthers placed him on IR on Wednesday, according to Joe Person of The Athletic. The undrafted rookie from Louisville played in all of the Panthers’ first 12 games and made 14 tackles. He totaled 210 snaps (127 on defense, 83 on special teams).

In other Wednesday transactions, the Panthers signed linebacker Krys Barnes from their practice squad to their active roster. They also signed cornerback David Long to their taxi squad.

Barnes has received the maximum of three standard gameday elevations this year, meaning the Panthers had to sign him in order to use him again. Over 112 snaps (69 on defense, 43 on special teams), Barnes has made 12 tackles.

Long was previously with the Colts, who released him from their practice squad on Nov. 4. The 27-year-old hasn’t played in any games this season, but he combined for 79 appearances and 12 starts from 2019-24. Long had a three-game stint with the Panthers in 2023.

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