NFL

Atlanta Falcons practice squad wide receiver Cameron Batson was arrested early Saturday morning in Atlanta after allegedly fighting with police officers and fleeing the scene of a traffic stop.

According to ESPN, the Atlanta Police Department stated in a release that Batson was pulled over at 2 a.m. ET on Saturday for speeding and failing to maintain his lane on an interstate. Officers on the scene determined that Batson was intoxicated.

Batson allegedly resisted arrest, and an officer fired his gun during the struggle, but no one was hit. Police say Batson then got into his truck and drove away before crashing, fleeing on foot and ultimately getting subdued and arrested.

The Falcons released the following statement on Batson's arrest: "We have been made aware of an overnight incident involving Cameron Batson and are currently gathering information from law enforcement agencies. We take this matter seriously and have no further comment at this time."

Batson, 27, originally signed with the Tennessee Titans as an undrafted free agent out of Texas Tech in 2018.

He spent four seasons with the Titans, registering 22 receptions for 197 yards and two touchdowns in 27 games from 2018-2021. He also returned 16 kickoffs for an average of 19.4 yards.

After a torn ACL cut Batson's 2021 season short, he signed with the Falcons in free agency ahead of the 2022 campaign. The move reunited Batson with Arthur Smith, who became Atlanta's head coach after previously serving as the Titans' offensive coordinator.

The Falcons released Batson in August, but he then signed with the practice squad and has spent the entire 2022 season in that role.

The 5-10 Falcons will host the 4-11 Arizona Cardinals on Sunday in their second-to-last game of the season.

The Arizona Cardinals announced Saturday that wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins will not play in Sunday's game against the Atlanta Falcons due to a knee injury.

Hopkins had been listed as questionable on the Cards' injury report after not practicing Friday.

The 4-11 Cardinals have little to play for over the final two weeks of the 2022 regular season, as they have already been eliminated from playoff contention.

If anything, it would behoove the Cardinals to lose their final two games of the season to improve their draft position. Perhaps they considered that while weighing whether to sit Hopkins this week.

The 30-year-old veteran missed the first six games of the season due to a suspension for violating the NFL's performance-enhancing drug policy, but he hit the ground running upon his return. Despite playing in only nine games this season, Hopkins has racked up 64 receptions for 717 yards and three touchdowns, putting him on pace for more than 120 receptions and 1,300 yards over a full 17-game season.

Last week's 19-16 overtime loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers was Hopkins' worst game of the season by far, as he finished with only one reception for four yards on 10 targets. Before that, Hopkins had recorded at least 60 yards or a touchdown in every game he played this season.

Third-stringer Trace McSorley started at quarterback for Arizona against Tampa since starter Kyler Murray is out for the season with a torn ACL and backup Colt McCoy was also unable to play due to a concussion. With Murray and McCoy both still out, the Cardinals announced Friday that they will start journeyman David Blough at quarterback against Atlanta.

Hopkins is one of the Cardinals' most important players, and they made a big investment in him in 2020 after acquiring him from the Houston Texans. They extended his contract by two years and $54.5 million, tying him to the team through the 2024 season.

There isn't much sense in risking Hopkins' health in meaningless games since he will either return as the Cards' No. 1 receiver in 2023 or get dealt for some assets to aid in a rebuild.

With Hopkins out Sunday, Blough's top options at wideout will be Marquise "Hollywood" Brown, Greg Dortch, Robbie Anderson and A.J. Green.

HEIGHT: 6'5"

WEIGHT: 275

HAND: 10"

ARM: 33 1/2"

WINGSPAN: TBD

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40-YARD DASH: 4.95

3-CONE: 7.46

SHUTTLE: 4.65

VERTICAL: 28.5"

BROAD: 9'2"

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POSITIVES

— Great size and strength for an NFL defensive end, and he has some pop in his hands to lock out offensive tackles one-on-one. Solid hand placement when taking on blocks too.

— Physical at the point of attack and sets the edge pretty easily with his upper-body strength.

— Refuses to get blocked by tight ends and can close the gap with them.

— Squeezes and comes straight down the line of scrimmage when unblocked on the backside of zone runs to make tackles near the line of scrimmage.

— Times the snap well on passing downs to help make up for some of his lack of acceleration on the line of scrimmage, and he takes good angles off the edge as a pass-rusher to beat tackles with slower feet.

— Has good leg drive when bull-rushing to help collapse the pocket against offensive tackles. Also does a good job of working to get on an edge and has a couple of good counters off the bull, like a cross chop, club over and rip move.

— Decent at turning speed to power as a rusher.

— Good pass-rushing motor to get coverage sacks, and he gets his hands up if he can't get to the quarterback to bat balls at the line of scrimmage.

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NEGATIVES

— Doesn't show a lot of athletic ability on the field and isn't quick-twitched.

— Subpar acceleration off the line of scrimmage, which becomes an issue when he doesn't time up the snap.

— Has a habit of stopping his feet on contact and stands up out of his stance too much for his height. He'll get washed out by double-teams and might struggle against more physical offensive tackles at the next level.

— Struggles to recognize and get underneath pullers as the spill player in run fits, he will get kicked out occasionally on the front side of power and counter.

— Hasn't shown many finesse moves he can win around the edge with as a pass-rusher at the next level, partially because he needs to be more accurate with his initial chops to get the offensive lineman's hands down when working a move.

— Not very bendy. His ankles aren't flexible.

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2022 STATISTICS

— 12 GM, 23 TOT, 11 TFL, 7.5 SK, 1 FF, 3 PBU

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NOTES

— DOB: April 22, 2001

— A 3-star recruit in the 2019 class, No. 396 overall, No. 27 SDE, per 247Sports' composite ratings

—Injuries: 2019 (hip, missed season); 2022 (leg, missed two games)

— 16 career starts, played behind Aidan Hutchinson (2022 second overall pick) and David Ojabo (2022 second-round pick)

— 2022 Honors: Second-team All-American (FWAA), Academic All-Big Ten, first-team All-Big Ten, Smith-Brown Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year

— 2021 Honors: Academic All-Big Ten

— Father played offensive line at Florida State, and sister played basketball at Georgetown

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OVERALL

After being hidden behind a couple of top-50 picks last season, Mike Morris burst onto the scene and was one of the most physically dominant edge defenders in the country. He's aggressive at the point of attack and might have the best upper-body strength of any defensive end in this year's draft class.

Morris puts his power to good use as a pass-rusher and against the run, as he can collapse the pocket with a bull rush and can be hard to block one-on-one. However, the NFL Scouting Combine will be important for him, as he didn't show a ton of impressive athletic traits on the field.

Probably the biggest concern with the Michigan product moving forward is whether he has enough athletic ability and bend to win around the edge and add a finesse move or two to his pass-rushing arsenal.

That could make his scheme fit a little difficult, as he'll need to show more athleticism to play as an edge in an odd or even front, and he's not big enough to play as a 3-technique. Right now, his best fit is as a defensive end in an even front for a team that is looking for a power-rusher.

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GRADE: 6.9 (Potential Role Player/Round 4)

OVERALL RANK: 100

POSITION RANK: DL14

PRO COMPARISON: Za'Darius Smith

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Written by B/R NFL Draft Scout Matt Holder

Cleveland Browns star edge-rusher Myles Garrett told reporters on Friday that head coach Kevin Stefanski's decision to keep him on the sidelines for the first series of Saturday's game against the New Orleans Saints stemmed from a "misunderstanding."

"I was sick and I didn't communicate well enough," he continued. "That's how it went down. Got to respect how [Stefanski] feels about the situation and his judgment."

#Browns Myles Garrett confirmed his 3-play benching was a misunderstanding connected to him being sick. He said it was Kevin Stefanski’s decision and he abided by it pic.twitter.com/mmjtv930sr

— Mary Kay Cabot (@MaryKayCabot) December 30, 2022

Garrett, who missed multiple practices during the week due to an illness, added that being benched to start a game wasn't a great look on his part.

"It's just a bad look for a starter just in general," he told reporters. "So just don't put myself in that situation again."

Stefanski said the situation is in the past.

"He's done a nice job [this week]," he said. "Been good."

When he's been on the field, the 27-year-old Garrett has been superb, registering 45 tackles (15 for loss), 13.5 sacks, 22 quarterback hits, four passes defensed and two forced fumbles in 14 games. That earned him his fourth Pro Bowl selection.

It's been a bit of an odd year for both Garrett and the disappointing Browns (6-9), however. Garrett missed an early October game against the Atlanta Falcons after crashing and flipping his car on Sept. 26, though he managed to avoid serious injury.

The Browns, meanwhile, struggled to a 4-7 start under Jacoby Brissett while Deshaun Watson was suspended. Since Watson's return to the starting lineup, the team has gone 2-2, though Sunday's 17-10 loss against the Saints officially eliminated them from postseason contention.

"We're trying to figure it out all together and right now we don't really have the recipe to get wins consistently as we'd like," Garrett said. "But I think most of the pieces are here and we just have to tighten a couple of screws."

Jalen Hurts and Deebo Samuel appeared at their respective team practices this week, but that does not mean they will play in Week 17.

Hurts is officially listed as doubtful with the shoulder injury that forced him to sit out the Philadelphia Eagles' Week 16 loss to the Dallas Cowboys.

Samuel has been out with knee and ankle injuries since Week 14. His status is still uncertain for Sunday.

Fantasy football players may have gotten excited when they saw the news of Hurts and Samuel at practice, but they will likely have a minimal impact on fantasy matchups in Week 17.

Below is a look at the other injuries affecting the fantasy landscape in Week 17.

• Jalen Hurts, QB, PHI: doubtful (shoulder), per NFL.com
• Deebo Samuel, WR, SF: out (knee, ankle)
• Alvin Kamara, RB, NO: full participant in practice (quad)
  
• Lamar Jackson, QB, BAL: out (leg)
  
• Colt McCoy, QB, ARI: out (concussion)
  
• Antonio Gibson, RB, WSH: out (knee/foot)
  
• Tua Tagovailoa, QB, MIA: out (concussion)
  
• DeAndre Hopkins, WR, ARI: questionable (knee)
  
• Christian Watson, WR, GB: questionable (hip)
  
• Chris Olave, WR, NO: questionable (hamstring)
  
• Tyler Lockett, WR, SEA: limited participant in practice (hand)
  
• Austin Ekeler, RB, LAC: limited participant in practice (knee)
  
• Jerry Jeudy, WR, DEN: limited participant in practice (ankle)
  

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Hurts Officially Listed as Doubtful

Hurts made an appearance at Eagles practice in each of the last two days. Despite that, the QB is officially listed as doubtful with the shoulder injury he suffered in Week 15 against the Chicago Bears.

Philadelphia will host the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, and Gardner Minshew will likely make his second straight start.

Nick Sirianni and the Eagles coaching staff should have trust in Minshew's ability to earn the win after he came close to beating the Dallas Cowboys on the road on Christmas Eve.

The 26-year-old came through for fantasy football players last week, as he threw for 355 yards and a pair of touchdowns, though he tossed two interceptions.

Still, Minshew's comfort level in the Eagles offense makes him the ideal replacement for Hurts.

The fantasy status of running back Miles Sanders, receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith and tight end Dallas Goedert should not be affected by Minshew's presence in the pocket.

If Minshew is unavailable in your league, Mike White, Brock Purdy and Teddy Bridgewater are among the possible Hurts replacements.

Those aren't ideal options, but they're likely the best you can get with the current status of quarterbacks across the NFL.

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Samuel Back at Practice

Samuel made an appearance at 49ers practice Thursday, but he was doing individual work instead of participating in team drills. He has been dealing with knee and ankle injuries, and Week 17 may be too soon for the 49ers to bring him back.

Fantasy football players would love to see Samuel on the field, but the team should be able to handle the Las Vegas Raiders without him. The last thing the 49ers want is to rush him back and for him to get hurt before the postseason starts.

San Francisco scored 37 points in Week 16 as George Kittle had a pair of touchdown catches, Brandon Aiyuk had 81 receiving yards and Jauan Jennings had a pair of catches.

If Samuel is active, he would likely be on a snap count as the 49ers work him back into the offense after two weeks off.

Washington's Jahan Dotson, Arizona's Marquise Brown and Isaiah Hodgins of the New York Giants are among the waiver-wire pickups you can make if you still need wide receiver help.