Here’s are Thursday’s practice squad changes from around the NFL:
Atlanta Falcons
Cleveland Browns
Houston Texans
New York Giants
Philadelphia Eagles
Here are the latest minor moves from around the NFL…
Arizona Cardinals
Atlanta Falcons
Denver Broncos
Jacksonville Jaguars
New England Patriots
New York Giants
Conner, a sixth-round pick from Texas, has yet to debut as a rookie after suffering a knee injury in the preseason. The Cardinals placed Conner on IR with a return designation when they trimmed their roster to 53 players on Aug. 26. Now that Conner’s back at practice, the Cardinals will have 21 days to activate him.
Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson will miss Thursday’s game against the Jets with a toe injury, leading the Pats to elevate Johnson. He’ll work behind TreVeyon Henderson and Terrell Jennings, though the latter is playing through a knee issue. It’s the third and final standard elevation of the year for Johnson, meaning the Patriots will have to sign him to their active roster if they want to promote him again. The 29-year-old has totaled just 15 snaps (nine on special teams, six on offense) this season.
Connor Byrne contributed to this post.
The Jets are placing star wide receiver Garrett Wilson on injured reserve, per a team announcement.
Wilson was diagnosed with a knee sprain after exiting Sunday’s victory over the Browns with a projected return timeline of three to four weeks. The Jets have elected to free up a roster spot by placing him on injured reserve, which will sideline him for the team’s next four games.
That will deprive Justin Fields of his best wideout for another handful of games. Unsurprisingly, the fifth-year quarterback has been significantly better when Wilson has been on the field. The Jets have gotten precious little out of their other pass-catchers this year; rookie tight end Mason Taylor leads the pack at 27.3 receiving yards per game, and none of his healthy teammate are over 25.0 YPG.
Wilson already missed a few weeks with an injury to the same knee, which has multiple implications.
First, it shows that the Jets cannot necessarily rely on one of their other receivers to step up. They had the opportunity during Wilson’s first absence and could not deliver.
Second, it may encourage the team to take a more cautious approach with Wilson’s return. He could come back in Week 14 at the earliest with four games remaining in the season. The Jets are already all-but-mathematically eliminated from the playoffs right now, and by the time Wilson is eligible to play, they will likely be mathematically eliminated, too. They may want to keep Wilson on the shelf for the rest of the season to ensure he does not suffer another, more severe injury that could impact 2026.
The Cowboys designated safety Malik Hooker to return from injured reserve on Thursday, per a team announcement.
Hooker, 29, started the first four games of the season (alongside Donovan Wilson, his running mate for the last four years) before a toe injury landed him on IR. That started a shuffle of safeties in Dallas, which, along with their cornerback injuries, has contributed to their bottom-five pass defense.
Juanyeh Thomas replaced Hooker in Weeks 5 and 6 before he was sidelined by recurrent migraines. Markquese Bell started next to Wilson in Week 7, but Wilson suffered an elbow injury in that game. That pressed undrafted rookie Alijah Clark into action for his first career start the following week. Thomas’ condition briefly improved, allowing him to start with Bell in Week 9, but he was placed on the non-football illness list shortly after.
Head coach Brian Schottenheimer said last week that he is hoping that both Hooker and Wilson can play in Week 11. The Cowboys are set to play the Cardinals on Monday Night Football, so their starting safeties will have an extra day to practice.
Hooker, a former first-round pick, dealt with a handful of injuries in Indianapolis during his first four NFL seasons. He only missed four games across his first four years in Dallas before his toe issue this season.
The veteran’s return should help a cowboys pass defense that has struggled this year. Dallas has allowed the fourth-most yards per attempt and per game this year. They seem to have made some progress in the last few weeks, though they have faced an easier slate of opponents.
Hooker will have 21 days to practice with the team before he must be activated to the 53-man roster. Otherwise, he will revert to season-ending injured reserve.
Isaiah Hodgins is heading back in New York. The sixth-year receiver has worked out a deal to return to the Giants, as first reported by Dan Duggan of The Athletic. 
Hodgins has since confirmed the news (h/t ESPN’s Jordan Raanan), which is now official. He had been on the Steelers’ practice squad, but he will now return to the Giants by joining their active roster. Today’s news comes one day after Lil’Jordan Humphrey departed New York’s taxi squad to return to the Broncos.
The Giants’ receiving corps has been without Malik Nabers since his ACL tear. As expected, the unit has struggled following that injury and Darius Slayton could now miss time with a hamstring ailment. This Hodgins reunion could thus result in immediate playing time.
The former Bills sixth-rounder only made three regular season appearances with Buffalo before finding himself in New York. Hodgins racked up 391 yards during his time with the Giants in 2022 before serving a regular role on offense once again the following year. 2024 was a different story, though, as the 27-year-old bounced on and off the Giants’ active roster while only playing three games.
At the end of the campaign, Hodgins signed a futures pact with the 49ers. That allowed him to spend training camp in San Francisco, although he did not survive final roster cuts. Hodgins joined the Steelers by inking a practice squad deal; after not seeing any game time in Pittsburgh, he will no look to do so in a familiar environment.
The Giants will begin the post-Brian Daboll era on Sunday against the Packers. It will be interesting to see if Hodgins suits up for that contest and in doing so logs a depth role on offense. Even if not, he could chip in over the closing weeks of the campaign and thus look to earn an extended stay in New York.
After making just two appearances this season, Khalen Saunders is set to see his time in Duval County come to an end. The veteran defensive tackle is being released, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports. 
Saunders played out his rookie contract with the Chiefs before serving as a two-year Saints starter. He was traded to Jacksonville in August in exchange for center Luke Fortner. That change of scenery did not result in much in the way of playing time for Saunders. The 29-year-old has logged only 25 snaps so far this season.
With this move taking place after the trade deadline, Saunders will hit the waiver wire. Provided he goes unclaimed, the former third-rounder will become a free agent and look to join a contender for the closing stages of the campaign. It will be interesting to see if a Kansas City reunion will be explored.
The Chiefs were linked to an addition along the defensive line before and after the trade deadline. Kansas City has already taken the route of bringing back a veteran shortly after being released elsewhere once in 2025 in the case of Mike Pennel. Doing so again would allow for Saunders, who won a pair of Super Bowls during his time with the Chiefs, to reprise his former role as a depth contributor. Kansas City has $3MM in cap space at the moment.
Jacksonville still has the likes of Arik Armstead, DaVon Hamilton, Austin Johnson and Maason Smith in place along the defensive line. That group will be counted on to continue handling the bulk of snaps up front to close out the campaign, with the Jags (5-4) competing for a playoff berth. Saunders was a pending free agent prior to today’s release.
The Western Illinois product landed a three-year, $12.3MM pact during his first trip to free agency. A deal of similar value will not be forthcoming in the middle of the campaign, but it will be interesting to see where Saunders winds up for the stretch run.
Drake Jackson joined the Commanders one month ago, but in the immediate aftermath of that decision he was moved to injured reserve. The fourth-year defensive end has continued to rehab his injured knee since then. 
Jackson is now moving closer to a Washington debut, though. His practice window has been opened, per a team announcement. Jackson now has up to 21 days to prepare for his first game action since Week 8 of the 2023 campaign. A torn patellar tendon cost him all of last season and ultimately led to the end of his 49ers tenure.
As a former second-round pick, Jackson was viewed as having upside for interested suitors but it remains unclear how much of an impact he will be able to make upon being activated. The Commanders’ defense has been reeling in recent weeks, and head coach Dan Quinn has taken over play-calling duties for the unit. Any additional help will be welcomed at this point.
If Jackson, 24, manages to serve as at least a depth contributor down the stretch, his free agent stock will receive a boost. The Commanders rank mid-pack in terms of sack production this season, with Dorance Armstrong and Von Miller leading the way. Jackson posted three sacks as a rookie, and then matched that figure in Week 1 of the following season before being held without one over the remainder of his appearances. Expectations will be tempered in this case, but the USC product could carve out a rotational role late in the year.
The Commanders have used one of their eight IR activations so far in 2025. Another will be accounted for when safety Will Harris – who was designated for return yesterday – is brought back into the fold. The same will also be true in Jackson’s case.
It was an inauspicious start to the season in New York when kicker Graham Gano was placed on injured reserve after only the third game of the season. After only appearing in 18 of a possible 34 games in the past two seasons, the Giants needed Gano healthy as they entered his sixth year with the team. Gano was able to return a couple weeks ago after missing the minimum four games but has promptly been returned to IR, per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. 
Gano, 38, has been with the Giants since 2020, earning two separate three-year extensions for a combined $30.5MM. It was a knee injury that sidelined Gano for nine games in 2023, while a groin issue held him out of seven contests last year. In addition to the injuries, Gano struggled with his accuracy whenever he was available. Gano missed six of 17 field goal attempts in 2023, with two misses coming from inside the 30-yard line. While he improved a bit in 2024, going nine for 11, one of those misses was also from inside 40 yards.
It was, once again, a groin injury that landed Gano on IR near the start of this year. The injury occurred during pregame warmups, and Gano tried to make a go of it later in the game after punter Jamie Gillan saw his sole extra point attempt blocked, but ultimately, an IR placement was needed. This time, it was reportedly neck soreness — later determined to be a herniated disk (per Ryan Dunleavy of New York Post Sports) — that threatened Gano’s playing time and ultimately led to his second IR stint this season.
After Gano’s first injury, the team signed veteran kicker Younghoe Koo to their practice squad, joining him with existing taxi squad kicker Jude McAtamney. New York opted to go with McAtamney in those four weeks without Gano, but after watching him miss three extra point attempts in two games and only sending him out to attempt field goals shorter than 32 yards, the Giants switched it up with Koo last week. Koo made both of his point after tries and both of his field goal attempts in the Windy City.
Already rostering Koo and McAtamney on the taxi squad and Gano on IR, the team added a bit more insurance yesterday by making Ben Sauls the third kicker on their 17-man practice squad. Sauls has made the rounds since signing as an undrafted free agent with the Steelers after kicking in the same stadium in college at Pitt. After failing to make the initial 53-man roster, Sauls signed with Koo’s former Falcons on a practice squad deal before getting released last Tuesday.
We identified Gano as a potential cap casualty in the offseason, and at this point, shuffling three kicking replacements on their practice squad, the Giants likely regret not acting on that possible cost-cutting move. Utilizing the potential out built into his contract, which expires in 2027, New York could have reclaimed $3.17MM of cap savings by cutting Gano early in the offseason with only $2.5MM of dead money to burn. If they had made him a post-June 1 release, they may have gotten $4.42MM in cap savings with only $1.25MM of dead money.
Instead, his contract remains on the ledger, and the Giants are paying three practice squad contracts as they search for an effective, consistent injury replacement for the third season in a row. The current situation has set Gano up to be a cut candidate once again in the near future.
Here are Wednesday’s practice squad transactions:
Buffalo Bills
Denver Broncos
Green Bay Packers
Houston Texans
Pittsburgh Steelers
Seattle Seahawks
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Wallace was one of three defensive backs to work out in Houston today alongside nickelback Beanie Bishop and safety Brandon Hill. Though Bishop showed promise in parts of his rookie campaign last year, Wallace boasts the most experience of the three and has been added to the fold as the Texans attempt to make up for the absences of M.J. Stewart and Jalen Pitre.
Here are today’s midweek NFL minor moves:
Buffalo Bills
Cleveland Browns
Denver Broncos
Houston Texans
Johnston’s injuries have seemingly led to him looking for a new team yet again, assuming he clears waivers. The veteran punter signed with Pittsburgh last year, following two three-year stints in Philadelphia and Houston. In his first game as a Steeler, though, Johnston suffered a season-ending knee injury on his kicking leg. He’d been given a chance to win the job back from Corliss Waitman, who had filled in during his absence, but lost the job and a spot on the team’s initial 53-man roster.
Rebounding quickly, Johnston signed with the Bills after they made a quick decision to move on from Brad Robbins following their season opener. Johnston got through three games with his new team before suffered an injury on his planting foot that would lead him to injured reserve. Now, the veteran heads to the waiver wire before he’ll have the ability to shop himself out for new opportunities.