NFL Player News

Head coach Sean McVay told reporters Saturday that he has not decided whether Bennett will play in the Rams' preseason opener against the Chiefs on Saturday, Aug. 15, Sarah Barshop of ESPN.com reports.

McVay relayed that rookie first-rounder Ty Simpson will "definitely" play in the Rams' first exhibition game, though it's not clear whether Bennett or starter Matthew Stafford will also suit up. Bennett has not played in an NFL regular-season game since he was selected by the Rams in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft, but he's projected to operate as Stafford's backup for the 2026 campaign, with Simpson serving as the QB3.

Head coach Sean McVay said Saturday that Simpson will "definitely" play in the Rams' preseason opener against the Chiefs on Saturday, Aug. 15, Sarah Barshop of ESPN.com reports.

Matthew Stafford may get some work in the first series of work, and there's uncertainty over whether Stetson Bennett will play. As such, Simpson figures to see the bulk of the reps on offense for the Rams' first preseason game, with undrafted rookie Matthew Caldwell also in the mix for some playing time. Simpson was a first-round pick of the Rams in the 2026 NFL Draft, but Bennett has taken the bulk of second-team reps in training camp, so the rookie out of Alabama could operate as the Rams' QB3 for the upcoming season, per Nate Atkins of The Athletic.

The Dolphins waived Gronowski on Friday.

Gronowski caught on with the Dolphins in early May as an undrafted free agent, but the Iowa product will look for opportunities elsewhere, assuming he clears waivers. During his final season as a Hawkeye, Gronowski completed 63.0 percent of his passes for 1,741 yards, 10 touchdowns and seven interceptions while turning 130 carries into 545 yards and 16 scores across 13 games.

King completed 21 of 34 passes for 180 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions during the Panthers' 33-30 win over the Cardinals in Thursday's Hall of Fame Game. He added three carries for 39 yards and a score.

Kenny Pickett was under center for the Panthers' first three drives before the keys were turned over to King in the second quarter. King got to work right away, leading Carolina on a 10-play, 65-yard drive that ended with a 15-yard touchdown pass to Ja'Seem Reed before adding a five-yard touchdown pass to Anthony Tyus on the second play of the fourth quarter. King made one clutch play after another during the Panthers' final drive, including a 26-yard scramble on third-and-14, and his five-yard run on the game's final play resulted in the game-winning touchdown for Carolina. It was an impressive performance out of King, who signed with the Panthers in late April as an undrafted free agent after his name wasn't called during the 2026 NFL Draft. Although Pickett is the favorite to win the backup QB role behind Bryce Young, King could steal that job away if he can continue to play well in training camp and preseason games. The Panthers' next exhibition game takes place Saturday, Aug. 15 against the Bills.

Chiefs coach Andy Reid said Friday that Mahomes (knee) is unlikely to play in the Chiefs' preseason opener against the Rams on Saturday, Aug. 15, Sam McDowell of The Kansas City Star reports.

Reid isn't sure if Mahomes will play in the second or third preseason game, either. The Chiefs typically play their starters more than other teams in August, but it won't be shocking if they make an exception for a superstar QB coming back from an ACL tear. Mahomes' return has gone well, by all accounts, with no signs of limitation early at training camp. He may not run as often as he did last year, but he's on track for a Week 1 appearance.

Murray has taken around two-thirds of the first-team snaps at training camp, according to ESPN's Kevin Seifert.

Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell hasn't announced his timeline to name a Week 1 starter, but he is providing hints that Murray is a strong favorite over J.J. McCarthy, including earlier this week when O'Connell told reporters that Murray has "shown improvement every single day" during camp. Seifert's report notes that McCarthy has also shown progress, but not enough to truly challenge Murray in the supposed job battle.

McCarthy has taken around one-third of the first-team snaps at training camp so far, according to ESPN's Kevin Seifert.

The Vikings have divided snaps, as promised, but with Kyler Murray getting significantly more work than McCarthy. That's no surprise given McCarthy's performance last year, but the team does still seem to have some interest in developing him. The report notes that McCarthy has spent much of the summer leading Minnesota's second-string offense against the first-string defense, with mixed results. Murray remains a strong favorite to start Week 1.

Pickett started the Hall of Fame Game against the Cardinals on Thursday, completing eight of 11 passes for 62 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions.

Pickett was in on the first three drives for the Panthers, but the first pair of possessions netted a modest 38 yards on eight plays. However, the 2022 first-round pick was able to lead Carolina to its first touchdown the third time he had the ball, connecting with four different targets while helping drive the Panthers a total of 67 yards on 10 plays. Pickett kept most of his throws close to the line of scrimmage, but he recorded 19- and 18-yard completions to John Metchie and AJ Dillon, respectively, during the scoring march. Pickett projects to serve as the primary backup to Bryce Young during the regular season, and if Thursday's performance is any indication, the former appears to be picking up head coach Dave Canales' offense well in his first summer in Carolina.

Beck started Thursday's Hall of Fame Game against the Panthers and completed 15 of 19 passes for 188 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions while adding two rushes for three yards.

The rookie third-round pick had built significant momentum in training camp leading into Thursday's preseason opener, and Beck looked every bit as sharp as he'd often had during recent practices. The UM product showed immediate command of the offense by spreading the ball around to seven different pass catchers over his first two drives, and he put together a masterful march on his second possession that spanned 13 plays, 96 yards and 7:17 of game time. Beck showed off his deep ball with a 35-yard strike to Jalen Brooks during the drive, and he narrowly missed his first touchdown pass when Corey Kiner was brought down inside the 1-yard line on a catch. However, Beck would make up for it the next time he had the ball, moving the Cardinals 60 yards on four plays with the help of a 49-yard connection with Brooks and capping the drive off with a deft five-yard fade in the right corner of the end zone to Simi Fehoko. Beck played the entirety of the first half and certainly gave a nearly impeccable accounting of himself in his pro debut, and he's expected to continue seeing plenty of opportunity in Arizona's second preseason game on the road against the Raiders next Thursday.

Murray impressed at Wednesday's practice, connecting on multiple deep passes and showing off his speed on scrambles, according to SI.com's Jason Harmon.

The report suggests Murray may be putting some distance between himself and J.J. McCarthy, who reportedly has struggled at training camp while sharing the first-team reps. Reports on Murray also hadn't been great, at least until Wednesday, but he seems to be trending in the right direction, taking the lion's share of the snaps with the starters during Wednesday's practice, per The Minneapolis Star Tribune. Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell said in July that he has a timeline in place to name his Week 1 starting QB, but he didn't share that timeline with the media.