Team news: Washington Commanders | Page 5

Commanders ruled out WR Curtis Samuel for Sunday’s game at New England due to a toe injury.

Related Players: Jamison Crowder

Crowder should get the immediate boost in production, particularly after he turned his seven targets into a 7-95-1 line last week. He is still a desperation play.

The Eagles signed Julio Jones to their active roster, off their own practice squad.

Related Players: Olamide Zaccheaus

Julio caught a touchdown in his second game with the Philadelphia Eagles, and he is now officially off of the practice squad. We shouldn't expect fantasy-relevant usage from the veteran, but he should continue to operate in the Quez Watkins role.

The Cardinals are putting TE Zach Ertz on IR, sources tell me and Tom Pelissero.

Related players: Trey McBride

Ertz, who has 27 catches for 187 yards and a TD this season, suffered a quad strain on Sunday. The plan is for him to return later in the year, the post went on to say. In the meantime, McBride will officially take over the TE1 role, but may have even before Ertz's injury. McBride had six targets in Week 7 and finished with a line of 3-29-0. However, he made some waves in Week 6 when he played more snaps and finished with a line of 4-62-0. If you're struggling at the position, McBride is certainly worth a look.

Eagles QB Jalen Hurts finished the game with a knee brace.

Related players: Marcus Mariota

Hurts was one of the last out of the locker room after halftime and reports said Mariota was close to getting ready to enter the game. Hurts was seen limping after the game but the QB played off the injury during his postgame press conference and says he'll be fine. It was a season-low for rushing yards for Hurts as well. It will be worth monitoring heading into Week 8, which is an early Sunday game against the Commanders.

But in the Cardinals’ Week 6 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday, it was Trey McBride — not Zach Ertz — pacing the tight ends room in offensive snaps (44). His receptions (four) and receiving yards (62) were also tied for the team lead.

HC Jonathan Gannon said McBride has been consistent since OTAs. He also called him an explosive player and a good blocker. McBride may not be on the fantasy radar just yet, but now could be the time to add him, especially if you are among the fantasy owners who don't have a legit TE1 option.

Chargers RB Austin Ekeler (ankle) is off the team’s injury report and is good to go for Monday against the Cowboys.

This will be Ekeler’s first game since the season opener against Miami. The bye week gave Ekeler one more week of rest and now he is ready to roll on Monday night against the Cowboys. The offense should go back to going through Ekeler quite a bit, spending right back where he belongs, near the top of fantasy boards.

Austin Ekeler is on the field doing individual drills.

Ekeler injured his ankle back in Week 1 and hasn't played since. He'll be a welcome return to the Chargers offense and could even be a boost for QB Justin Herbert. Keep an eye on his practice status for the rest of the but it appears he could be back for Week 6. The possible bad news to this is the Chargers play on Monday night at home against Dallas, so the hope would be we know Ekeler's status well before that game takes place.

Chargers officially are listing RB Austin Ekeler and S Derwin James as doubtful for Sunday’s game vs. the Raiders.

Related Players: Joshua Kelley, Isaiah Spiller

The role that we had pegged for Joshua Kelley in Austin Ekeler's absence has not been as fruitful as most hoped, including his 12 yards on 11 attempts in Week 3. The footage of Ekeler at practice floating around was mostly just him jumping up and down, not actively participating in practice, so we'll keep an eye on his situation as the week progresses.

Chargers RB Austin Ekeler, dealing with a high-ankle sprain, was back at practice for the first time in a couple of weeks. He was limited.

Related Players: Joshua Kelley, Isaiah Spiller

The role that we had pegged for Joshua Kelley in Austin Ekeler's absence has not been as fruitful as most hoped, including his 12 yards on 11 attempts in Week 3. The footage of Ekeler floating around was mostly just him jumping up and down, not actively participating in practice, so we'll keep an eye on his situation as the week progresses.