Bears TE Cole Kmet was on the receiving end of the third of QB Justin Fields' four passing scores in Thursday night's win over the Commanders. Kmet easily beat LB Cody Barton on a crossing route for the four-yard TD. He finished the night with five catches on five targets for 42 yards and the score. WR D.J. Moore dominated in this one, but Kmet finished second on the team in targets, catches, and yards. His 17.2% target share was actually his second-lowest mark through the first five games of the season. He's averaging 5.8 targets on a 19.1% share for the year. With that type of volume -- and QB Justin Fields looking more comfortable as a passer -- Kmet should be viewed as a weekly low-end TE1.
Bears WR D.J. Moore racked up 230 receiving yards and a single-game franchise record three TDs in Thursday night's win over the Commanders. He got going early with a 58-yard deep reception and a 20-yard TD on Chicago's first possession. Moore's assault continued throughout the night with a strong combination of route running and after-catch skills. In fact, he racked up a whopping 141 yards after the catch, per Pro Football Focus. His second TD came on an impressive contested grab from 11 yards out in the second quarter; the third a relatively easy 56-yard catch and run after CB Kendall Fuller tried to jump Moore's route for an INT. Moore has now topped 100 yards in two straight games and three of the last four. More importantly, he's racked up 32 targets on a 27.8% share over the past four weeks. Don't expect the Bears passing game to continue producing anywhere close to how it has these past two weeks. But QB Justin Fields looks improved and can certainly support Moore as at least a WR2 on this type of volume. Plus, Moore has three more favorable matchups on tap vs. the Vikings, Raiders, and Chargers.
Bears QB Justin Fields threw four TDs for the second straight game in Thursday night's easy win over the Commanders. He'd thrown four TDs in exactly 0 NFL games prior to these last two -- and only reached three TDs once. Fields was locked onto top WR D.J. Moore against Washington, connecting with him on eight of 10 throws for 230 yards and three scores. Fields' other TD went to TE Cole Kmet. There was a lot of bad defense from the Commanders in this one, but Fields is certainly looking more comfortable in the pocket and throwing downfield a lot more than he did last season. He added 57 rushing yards on 11 carries in this one for a monster fantasy day. Fields has a good chance to stay hot going forward in favorable upcoming matchups vs. the Vikings, Raiders, and Chargers.
San Francisco CB Charvarius Ward returned to limited practice Thursday after sitting out Wednesday with a heel injury. We'll see about his outlook for Sunday night's game against the Cowboys.
Niners LB Dre Greenlaw opened this week by missing Wednesday's practice and then returning for a limited Thursday. It's the same way he opened Week 4's practice slate after hurting an ankle in Week 3. Greenlaw played through the injury last Sunday and tallied 10 tackles in the win over Arizona. We'd bet on him being ready for this week's clash against Dallas. We'll watch for confirmation.
Broncos LB Josey Jewell (hip) returned to full practice Thursday. That certainly points to him playing Sunday against the Jets, after missing Week 4. We should get confirmation Friday afternoon, but plan to have Jewell available for your IDP lineups. Jewell's return figures to knock down LB Drew Sanders' playing time. We'll see exactly what the rookie's role looks like, though. He was pegged for an increased role in the Week 3 loss to the Dolphins that Jewell left early with the injury.
Chiefs LB Nick Bolton (ankle) put in limited practices Wednesday and Thursday. That's noteworthy because he missed every practice the past two weeks, along with both games. We'll see about Bolton's game status after Friday's practice. His return would send LB Drue Tranquill back to a part-time role.
Dolphins Edge Jaelan Phillips put in limited practices Wednesday and Thursday. That's progress after he missed practice all last week with an oblique injury that cost him the Buffalo game. We'll see Friday about Phillips' game outlook. Meanwhile, S DeShon Elliott (groin) graduated to a full Thursday practice. He spent all last week limited before missing the game and then remained limited Wednesday.
Bears RB Roschon Johnson sustained a concussion in the first half of Thursday night's game vs. the Commanders. We'll track his progress through the protocol next week.
Bears RB Khalil Herbert injured his right leg in the third quarter of Thursday night's game vs. the Commanders. The leg bent awkwardly as Herbert went down to catch a low pass. Herbert was able to walk off the field with the help of trainers but headed straight to the medical tent. We'll update his status when we know more.
Update: Herbert tried to return with his right ankle heavily taped, but he was unable to make a cut on his first carry back and limped off the field.
Raiders QB Jimmy Garoppolo (concussion) was limited in Thursday's practice. So he's made some progress through the protocol but still has work to do to be cleared for Monday night's game vs. the Packers. We'll keep you updated on Garoppolo's status over the next few days.
Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb (rest, knee) returned to a full practice on Thursday. It's confirmation that he's good to go for Sunday night's showdown with the 49ers.
Cowboys RB Rico Dowdle (hip) put in a full practice on Thursday. He looks set to resume No. 2 RB duties behind Tony Pollard vs. the 49ers on Sunday night.
Broncos RB Javonte Williams (quad) returned to a limited practice on Thursday. He seemingly has a chance to play vs. the Jets this weekend. We'll see what Williams does on Friday and how he's listed on the final injury report.
Rams WR Cooper Kupp (hamstring) was listed as a full participant in Thursday's practice. It sure looks like he'll make his 2023 debut vs. the Eagles this weekend. OC Mike LaFleur said Kupp “looks healthy," adding that when Kupp was “gearing up for that first game” before he went on IR, “you could tell he almost could tell that something was still a little bit off. And from my vantage point, it looks like he feels really good.”
Rams RB Kyren Williams (hip) returned to a limited practice on Thursday. He's expected to be available for this weekend's game vs. the Eagles, but we'll see how Williams is listed on the final injury report tomorrow.
Bengals TE Irv Smith (hamstring) was upgraded to full participation in Thursday's practice. He's on track to return for this weekend's game vs. the Cardinals. Cincinnati could certainly use Smith to step up in a struggling offense that'll likely be without WR Tee Higgins. But Smith would be tough to trust in Week 5 fantasy lineups after totaling just five catches for 27 yards over the first two weeks of the season.
Bengals WR Tee Higgins (rib) remained sidelined for Thursday's practice. He's looking like a long shot to play vs. the Cardinals this weekend, but we'll see how he's listed on the final injury report tomorrow.
Bills S Jordan Poyer followed a limited Wednesday practice with full participation Thursday. That seems to put him on track to play Sunday against the Jaguars in London. Poyer missed the Week 4 win over the Dolphins with a knee injury. We'll watch his status the rest of the week.
Steelers QB Kenny Pickett (knee) was upgraded to full participation in Thursday's practice. It's confirmation that he'll be able to play vs. the Ravens this weekend. Pickett sits at the very bottom of our Week 5 QB Rankings.
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