Aidan O’Connell replaces Gardner Minshew

The Falcons ruled out kicker Younghoe Koo for Sunday night’s game against the Vikings and elevated Parker Romo from the practice squad.

The Falcons listed the reason for Koo as non-injury related. One can speculate that has to do with Koo’s miss at the end of the game in Week 1 against the Buccaneers that would have tied the game. Romo will now kick against the team he played four games for in 2024, going 11/12 with a long of 55.

Raiders tight end Brock Bowers returned to practice Saturday after missing Thursday and Friday.

Bowers was recovering from the knee injury he suffered in the season-opening win over the Patriots. Perhaps the Raiders were just resting him. He told the media after the game his knee was fine. With Bowers practicing Saturday, his chances now bode pretty well that he’ll be available for Vegas (and his fantasy owners) Monday night against the Chargers. Bowers is TE5 entering Sunday with Tucker Kraft having already played.

The Patriots traded wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk to the New Orleans Saints.

The teams will also swap future draft picks. The Patriots get a 6th in 2027, the Saints get a 7th in 2028. This is a rare occurrence where a player who is on injured reserve is traded. The Saints clearly like Polk enough to stash him for the season and take on over $2 million in guaranteed money over the remaining two years of Polk’s contract in 2026 and 2027.

The Patriots drafted two wide receivers in 2024. Neither are with the team after just one season. In addition to Polk, 4th-round pick Javon Baker is now with the Eagles’ practice squad.