Browns HC Kevin Stefanski said Monday that TE Austin Hooper (appendectomy) will "definitely" be back for Week 10's game against the Texans, after the Week 9 bye. Hooper was heating up prior to missing the last 2 games, with 3 straight games of 5 catches. He'll return as a top-12 fantasy option.

Browns TE Austin Hooper (appendectomy) is out for Sunday’s game against the Raiders. We’re expecting him back after Cleveland’s Week 9 bye. Hooper’s absence this weekend again leaves Harrison Bryant and David Njoku as the Browns’ TEs. Last week, Bryant ran 18 routes and saw 5 targets, while Njoku ran 13 routes and garnered 3 targets.

Browns TE Austin Hooper didn't practice on Wednesday. He seems unlikely to play against the Raiders this weekend after undergoing an appendectomy last Friday. With Hooper out last week, TE Harrison Bryant saw 5 targets and TE David Njoku 3.

Browns TE Austin Hooper missed practice on Friday with an illness and has been ruled out for this weekend's game against the Bengals. Hooper doesn't have COVID, but teams aren't taking any chances with sick guys this season. Hooper's absence leaves Cleveland with TEs David Njoku and rookie Harrison Bryant. In their 3 games together this year, Njoku has 7 targets to Bryant's 5 but Bryant has run 34 pass routes to Njoku's 28. Expect these guys to share pass-catching duties this weekend, leaving them both as TE2 fliers.

Update: HC Kevin Stefanski announced that Hooper has appendicitis and is having surgery today. We'll see if he can make it back for Week 8.

Browns TE David Njoku (knee) will be activated from IR and return for Sunday’s game against the Colts. Njoku posted a 3-50-1 line on 3 targets back in Week 1. He’s not a bankable fantasy play this week but puts a significant dent in TE Austin Hooper’s stock.

The Browns have placed TE David Njoku on IR with a knee injury. He's out for at least the next 3 weeks. Njoku played 23% of the offensive snaps and saw 3 targets in the opener, so his absence is a slight boost for TE Austin Hooper.

The Browns selected Florida Atlantic TE Harrison Bryant in the 4th round of the 2020 NFL Draft. Bryant improved his numbers each year at Florida Atlantic, culminating in a big 65-1,004-7 line in 2019. He faced lower-level competition for the most part — but he did catch 6 balls for 79 yards vs. Ohio State this past season. That game included a nice grab when lined up outside against 1st-round Lions CB Jeff Okudah. Bryant’s 3.04 yards per route run in 2019 was best among 18 of this year’s top TE prospects. He’s also considered a solid blocker. Bryant disappointed at the Combine with a 15th percentile SPARQ score but looks more athletic on tape. This is a rough landing spot, though, after Cleveland just handed TE Austin Hooper a big contract in free agency. TE David Njoku is also still on the roster, but perhaps he’s on the outs.

TE Austin Hooper is set to sign with the Browns, according to The NFL Network. Terms haven't been disclosed and the deal won't be official until Wednesday, but Ian Rapoport hears that Hooper will be the league's highest-paid TE. The 25-year-old has posted 71-660-4 and 75-787-6 lines over the past 2 seasons, ranking 6th among TEs in PPR points both years. After finishing 17th among 28 TEs with 40+ targets in Pro Football Focus' 2018 receiving grades, Hooper climbed to 6th among 35 last year. He improved from 15th to 12th in yards per route run. Hooper certainly benefitted from playing on Falcons teams that ranked top 5 in pass attempts and pass rate in both of the last 2 years. New Browns HC Kevin Stefanski's 2019 Vikings ranked 30th in both pass attempts and pass rate. Now factor in the presence of WRs Odell Beckham and Jarvis Landry, and it's tough to bank on Hooper getting the 6.4 targets per game he averaged in Atlanta over the last 2 seasons. Our snap call is to expect a decline in Hooper's fantasy production in 2020 -- although he shouldn't have trouble sticking in TE1 territory.

Update: Hooper's deal is for 4 years and $44 million with $23 million guaranteed. That $11 million average annual salary does indeed make him the league's highest-paid TE.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports that the Falcons plan to let TE Austin Hooper reach free agency when the new league year begins in March. We'd bet on that meaning a new team for Hooper, unless Atlanta knows that the TE will find a softer market than he expects. Hooper will still be just 25 when the 2020 season begins, and coming off consecutive seasons of 71+ catches. He enjoyed a career-best TE6 finish in PPR scoring for 2019. The uncertainty of his 2020 offense, however, adds risk to Hooper in early best-ball drafting. Hooper sits TE6 in ADP in both FFPC and BestBall10s drafting so far.

Falcons TE Austin Hooper (knee) practiced all week and will return for Sunday’s game against the Panthers. Hooper was leading his position in PPR and non-PPR points through 10 healthy weeks. He’s right back to high-end TE1 status.

Falcons HC Dan Quinn hinted in a Wednesday radio appearance that TE Austin Hooper (knee) is set to return for this weekend's game against the Panthers. He's been out since Week 10 but was leading all TEs in PPR and non-PPR points up until that point. We'll track Hooper's practice participation over the next few days, but he'll be back to high-end TE1 status unless we hear that he'll be limited vs. Carolina.

Falcons TE Austin Hooper (knee) is out for Thursday night's game against the Saints. Jaeden Graham has served as Atlanta's lead pass-catching TE over the past 2 weeks but has totaled just 4 targets.

Falcons TE Austin Hooper (knee) remained sidelined for Tuesday's practice. He's not going to play against the Saints on Thursday night. TE Jaeden Graham has been operating as Atlanta's lead pass-catching TE in Hooper's place but has totaled just 4 targets over the past 2 weeks.

Falcons TE Austin Hooper (knee) has been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Bucs. Jaeden Graham operated as Atlanta's lead TE last week but saw just 2 targets. He's not a viable fantasy option.

Falcons TE Austin Hooper (knee) remained sidelined on Wednesday. He's unlikely to play against the Bucs this weekend. Jaeden Graham served as Atlanta's lead pass-catching TE last week but isn't a viable fantasy option.

Falcons TE Austin Hooper (knee) is out for Sunday's game against the Panthers. He's likely looking at a multi-game absence with his sprained MCL. Atlanta will use some combination of Luke Stocker and Jaeden Graham to replace Hooper, but neither guy is a fantasy option. Hooper's absence just means more targets for WRs Julio Jones, Calvin Ridley and Russell Gage.