January 16, 2026
Carolina Panthers left tackle Ikem Ekwonu (knee) underwent surgery on his right knee this week to fix a ruptured patellar tendon that he suffered in last weekend's Wild-Card loss to the Los Angeles Rams, according to Joseph Person of The Athletic. Orthopedist David Chao predicted that Ekwonu will miss the start of next season and might not be fully recovered until 2027. The Panthers already exercised Ekwonu's fifth-year option, guaranteeing the former sixth overall pick in 2022 $17.6 million for 2026. Contract-extension talks with the organization will now take a back seat to the 25-year-old's recovery. Ekwonu's knee will be immobilized for four to six weeks. There's a possibility that Ekwonu will be ready to play again in October, but he might not be back to his normal self until the start of the 2027 season for the Panthers' offensive line.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Athletic - Joseph Person
January 16, 2026
When asked if quarterback
Anthony Richardson Sr. (eye) had a role on the team next season, Indianapolis Colts head coach Shane Steichen was non-committal while referring to Richardson's eye injury that caused him to end the year on Injured Reserve, according to The Athletic's James Boyd. General manager Chris Ballard also openly theorized about
Riley Leonard being the backup in 2026 if Richardson "doesn't get to where we think he can be." Boyd assumes that the Colts won't want to pick up Richardson's fifth-year option, since the former fourth overall pick in 2023 has played in just 15 games in his first three years due to various injuries. The 23-year-old is still recovering from an orbital fracture that affected the vision in his right eye. When healthy, A-Rich hasn't sustained a high level of play for the Colts, which is why they brought in
Daniel Jones (Achilles) in 2025.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Athletic - James Boyd
January 16, 2026
The Athletic's James Boyd writes that Indianapolis Colts wide receiver
Michael Pittman Jr. sits atop the list of potential big names that the Colts could part with this offseason due to salary considerations, mutual decision, or poor performance. Pittman pretty much admitted after the season finale in Week 18 that he could have played his last game with the team. He has a $29 million salary cap hit in 2026, but the Colts would clear $24 million in cap space with only $5 million in dead money if they release him. Boyd thinks Pittman will either have to restructure his contract with Indy or play elsewhere next season. The sense is that Pittman doesn't want to leave, but
Alec Pierce took over as the Colts' top wideout in 2025, with Pittman catching 80 passes for 784 yards (second-fewest of his career), although he did have a career-high seven touchdowns.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Athletic - James Boyd
January 16, 2026
Los Angeles Rams wide receiver
Jordan Whittington (knee) practiced in full all week and has been removed from the final injury report on Friday, per ESPN's Sarah Barshop. Whittington will be active for the NFC Divisional Round on Sunday against the Chicago Bears after missing the Wild-Card win over the Carolina Panthers due to a knee injury he suffered in the Week 18 regular-season finale versus the Arizona Cardinals. The 25-year-old pass-catcher is well off the fantasy radar despite recovering from his knee injury. It's hard to trust any Rams receiver beyond
Puka Nacua and
Davante Adams, and all of L.A.'s wideouts will be more risky this weekend with a blizzard expected in Chicago on Sunday. Whittington only caught 18 of his 25 targets during the regular season for 171 yards, and he wasn't able to find the end zone at all.
--Keith HernandezSource: ESPN.com - Sarah Barshop
January 16, 2026
Los Angeles Rams rookie tight end
Terrance Ferguson (hamstring) practiced in full all week and has been cleared to play in the Divisional Round in the playoffs on Sunday against the hosting Chicago Bears, according to Sarah Barshop of ESPN. Ferguson suffered a hamstring injury in Week 17 and missed the last two games, including the Wild-Card win over the Carolina Panthers. Since the 22-year-old's injury, the Rams have gotten tight end
Tyler Higbee back from Injured Reserve.
Colby Parkinson also remains involved at the position, which makes Ferguson one to avoid for fantasy playoff lineups this weekend. Ferguson scored in each of his last two games, but he'll be more of a long shot to return any value against Chicago in adverse weather conditions. He had only 11 catches during the regular season for 231 yards and three touchdowns on 25 targets.
--Keith HernandezSource: ESPN.com - Sarah Barshop
January 16, 2026
The Buffalo Bills announced on Friday that they activated defensive tackle Ed Oliver (biceps, knee) from Injured Reserve. Oliver is still listed as questionable for the Divisional Round game against the Denver Broncos on Saturday, but he's expected to play for the first time since Week 8. The 28-year-old interior defensive lineman suffered a torn biceps back in October and also had surgery on his knee in December. If Oliver is active, as expected, he will probably be on some sort of snap count. However, his presence on the defensive line will be a boost for a banged-up Bills defense. In three games played earlier this season before his biceps injury, Oliver had 12 tackles, three sacks, and a forced fumble. His presence will make it a little more difficult for the Broncos to run the football on Saturday.
--Keith HernandezSource: Buffalo Bills
January 16, 2026
The Buffalo Bills announced on Friday that they elevated wide receiver
Mecole Hardman from the practice squad to the active 53-man roster for Saturday's Divisional Round game against the hosting Denver Broncos. The team also elevated running back
Frank Gore Jr. from the practice squad. Hardman will give Buffalo extra receiver depth after
Gabe Davis (knee) and
Tyrell Shavers (knee) both tore their ACLs in last Sunday's win over the Jacksonville Jaguars in the Wild-Card round of the playoffs.
Joshua Palmer (ankle) is also on Injured Reserve for the Bills, so their depth at the WR position behind
Khalil Shakir will be tested in Denver. The 27-year-old Hardman is unlikely to have a big role on offense this weekend against a tough defense. In just two regular-season games in 2025, he had one target and no receptions.
--Keith HernandezSource: Buffalo Bills
January 16, 2026
The Buffalo Bills announced on Friday that they activated wide receiver
Curtis Samuel (elbow) from Injured Reserve. Samuel is still considered questionable to play on Saturday against the Denver Broncos in the Divisional Round. The 29-year-old hasn't played since Week 11 due to an elbow injury, but he's trending toward returning to give the Bills extra WR depth this weekend with both
Gabe Davis (knee) and
Tyrell Shavers (knee) tearing their ACLs in last weekend's Wild-Card win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Bills also elevated wideout
Mecole Hardman from the practice squad to help make up for the losses of Davis and Shavers. Samuel caught only seven passes on nine targets for 81 yards and one touchdown in six regular-season games, and he's unlikely to have a big role on Saturday if he's active.
--Keith HernandezSource: Buffalo Bills
January 16, 2026
Los Angeles Rams backup quarterback
Jimmy Garoppolo (back) will be listed as questionable for Sunday's Divisional Round contest against the hosting Chicago Bears, according to head coach Sean McVay. Garoppolo was held out of Thursday's practice due to a back injury that he picked up earlier this week. The Rams are being extra cautious with the 34-year-old veteran signal-caller going into the Divisional Round this weekend. If he's active on Sunday, he will continue to serve as the insurance policy for
Matthew Stafford, who is the favorite to win the NFL MVP this year. Jimmy G saw action in only three games during the regular season, but he didn't attempt a single pass with Stafford staying healthy all year.
--Keith HernandezSource: Los Angeles Times - Gary Klein
January 16, 2026
Seattle Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald said the team is "really optimistic" that quarterback
Sam Darnold (oblique) "is going to be able to play" in Saturday night's Divisional Round game against the visiting San Francisco 49ers, according to Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic. Macdonald said there's a possibility that Darnold's oblique injury limits him physically, but he also said that Darnold is confident he'll be able to operate normally. The 28-year-old signal-caller felt something in his oblique in Thursday's practice and shut it down early, and he's officially questionable to play this weekend. Darnold became the only QB in history to lead two different teams to 14-win seasons in back-to-back years. However, in two games against the Niners this year, he hasn't gone over 200 yards passing and hasn't thrown a TD pass. With an injury to boot going into the playoffs, we wouldn't blame fantasy managers for passing on Darnold.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Athletic - Michael-Shawn Dugar
January 16, 2026
Houston Texans wide receiver
Justin Watson (concussion) didn't practice all week and has officially been ruled out for Sunday's Divisional Round game against the New England Patriots. Watson suffered a concussion in Monday night's Wild-Card win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. If the Texans advance to the AFC Championship next weekend, Watson won't be guaranteed to be ready to return. In addition to Watson being out, the Texans will also be without top receiver
Nico Collins, who also suffered a concussion on Monday against the Steelers. Rookie
Jayden Higgins and
Christian Kirk, who had 144 receiving yards on Monday, should be the team's top two receivers, with rookie
Jaylin Noel and
Xavier Hutchinson also having elevated roles on offense.
--Keith HernandezSource: Houston Texans PR
January 16, 2026
Houston Texans running back
Jawhar Jordan (ankle) was upgraded to a full practice on Friday and will be active for the Divisional Round this Sunday against the hosting New England Patriots, according to the team. Jordan suffered a high-ankle sprain in the Week 18 regular-season finale against the Indianapolis Colts, didn't practice at all the following week, and was inactive for Monday night's Wild-Card victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. With the 26-year-old second-year back unavailable, veteran
Nick Chubb saw double-digit carries in the blowout win as rookie
Woody Marks' backup. Most of Chubb's action came in garbage time in the second half. Jordan surpassed Chubb as the RB2 in Houston late in the year and will likely be the team's RB2 this weekend in a bad matchup. The Pats allowed the fourth-fewest half-PPR points per game to RBs during the regular season.
--Keith HernandezSource: Houston Texans PR
January 16, 2026
Chicago Bears wide receiver
DJ Moore (knee) upgraded to a full practice on Friday and has been removed from the final injury report for Sunday's Divisional Round matchup against the Los Angeles Rams, according to Bears Communications. Meanwhile, fellow wideout
Rome Odunze is questionable as he continues to battle a stress fracture in his foot. Moore played 86% of the offensive snaps in last week's Wild-Card win over the Green Bay Packers and caught six of his seven targets for 64 yards and his seventh touchdown reception of the year. The Rams' defense has been a pretty solid fantasy matchup for opposing receivers this year, but managers must take into account that there are expected to be brutal weather conditions in Chicago on Sunday night that will make it difficult for the passing attack. Moore has been a boom/bust flex option for fantasy managers all year.
--Keith HernandezSource: Bears Communications
January 16, 2026
Houston Texans tight end
Dalton Schultz was held in check in his team's AFC Wild Card Round win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, recording just three catches for 12 yards on four targets. However, the 29-year-old could be in line for a larger role in the Divisional Round against the New England Patriots, as star Texans wideout
Nico Collins (concussion) has been ruled out due to a concussion. Schultz established himself as a trusted option for Texans quarterback
C.J. Stroud during the regular season, finishing the year with 82 receptions for 777 yards and three touchdowns on a career-high 106 targets. Outside of Collins and Schultz, no other Houston pass-catcher earned more than 68 targets in 2025. While Schultz may not carry explosive upside, he could be a good bet to function as Stroud's short-area security blanket in a tough matchup against New England. Fantasy managers should view Schultz as a solid tight end option in the Divisional Round, particularly in PPR-scoring formats.
--Will BradySource: RotoBaller
January 16, 2026
New England Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez (concussion) will not carry an injury designation into the weekend and is good to go for his team's Divisional Round matchup against the Houston Texans, per Doug Kyed of the Boston Herald. Gonzalez recorded 54 solo tackles and 10 passes defensed across 14 games during the regular season and was named to his first Pro Bowl. Pro Football Focus graded Gonzalez as the 43rd-best cornerback out of 114 qualified players at the position in 2025. While Gonzalez will be able to play, star Texans wideout
Nico Collins (concussion) has been ruled out with a concussion of his own. As a result, Texans quarterback
C.J. Stroud will be working with a shorthanded wide receiver corps against a fully-loaded Patriots secondary.
--Will BradySource: Boston Herald - Doug Kyed
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