NFL Player News

Taylor (hamstring) was activated off injured reserve Saturday.

This was just a procedural move considering coach David Culley confirmed Thursday the veteran quarterback would start Sunday's contest against the Dolphins. Taylor was a surprisingly effective quarterback through his first two starts this season, totaling 416 yards and a 3:0 TD:INT ratio while completing 70 percent of his passes prior to injuring his hamstring. He'll face off against a Miami defense that allows the second-most passing yards per game through eight weeks.

Watson (not injury-related) has been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Dolphins.

Watson wasn't traded ahead of the NFL's Nov. 2 trade deadline, and now he's poised to remain a fixture on the Texans' inactive list in the coming weeks. As for Week 9, Tyrod Taylor (hamstring) is slated to come off IR and reclaim the team's starting QB assignment, which had been held by Davis Mills since Taylor was injured in Week 2.

Stafford (back) returned to practice Friday as a limited participant and doesn't have an injury designation for Sunday's game against the Titans.

The Rams withheld Stafford from practices Wednesday and Thursday due to the back issue, but head coach Sean McVay never expressed much doubt about the veteran signal-caller's ability to play this weekend. Even though he had his reps capped in his return to practice, Stafford still looked good enough in the workout for the Rams to give him the green light for Sunday. He'll look to strengthen his MVP bid while facing off against a Tennessee pass defense that has surrendered 267.4 passing yards per game, which ranks 24th in the NFL.

Murray (ankle) is listed as questionable for Sunday's contest in San Francisco and is being viewed as a game-day decision by head coach Kliff Kingsbury, Darren Urban of the Cardinals' official site reports.

Despite having a longer turnaround for the Week 9 contest after the Cardinals played Thursday against the Packers in Week 8, Murray wasn't able to demonstrate much progress in his recovery from the medial sprain of his left ankle he sustained in the loss to Green Bay. Murray failed to practice in any capacity Wednesday through Friday, though Kingsbury has said the quarterback doesn't need to practice in order to play. Arizona plans to re-evaluate Murray on Sunday morning with the hope that an extra two days of rest will be enough for the pain in his ankle to subside, but it's uncertain if a report on his status -- one way or the other -- will arrive before the first wave of games kick off at 1 p.m. ET. Regardless, a final word on Murray's availability or lack thereof will arrive no later than 90 minutes prior to the 4:25 p.m. ET kickoff, when Arizona releases its inactive list. Veteran Colt McCoy has taken reps with the starters all week and will be prepared to step in under center if Murray can't go.

Tagovailoa (finger/ribs) is questionable for Sunday's game against the Texans, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reports.

Tagovailoa has some swelling on a finger on his (left) throwing hand, but the team ultimately expects him to play through it. The finger is the bigger concern for Tua at this point compared to the fractured ribs that led to a stint on injured reserve earlier in the season. If Tagovailoa plays, he'll be without one of his top usual targets in DeVante Parker, who has been placed on IR as he recovers from shoulder and hamstring injuries.

Saints head coach Sean Payton confirmed that Siemian will start at quarterback Sunday against the Falcons.

Siemian and Taysom Hill (concussion) were both candidates to start after No. 1 quarterback Jameis Winston (knee) suffered a season-ending ACL tear in the Saints' Week 8 win over the Buccaneers, but Payton ultimately settled on Siemian, who backed up Winston in the victory. Siemian proved to be a capable game manager against a tough Tampa Bay squad, but his numbers (16-for-29 for 155 yards and a touchdown, two carries for two yards) weren't anything special from a fantasy perspective. Payton added that Hill will be active Sunday, so Siemian could be at risk of losing some snaps in the red zone, given that Hill provides a more formidable rushing threat. Moreover, Siemian will need to perform well against Atlanta to ensure he retains the starting gig beyond Sunday, as Payton appeared to suggest that the team's quarterback situation could be evaluated on a week-to-week basis.

McCoy took all the reps with the first-team offense during practices Wednesday through Friday to keep himself prepared to start in the event Kyler Murray (ankle) is unable to play Sunday against the 49ers, Darren Urban of the Cardinals' official site reports.

Arizona head coach Kliff Kingsbury reiterated Friday that despite not taking reps on the field during practice this week, Murray has continued to stay on top of the Cardinals' game plan and hasn't been ruled out from starting Sunday. For now, Kingsbury is terming Murray as a game-day decision, as the Cardinals want to see how he looks following two more days of rest before making a call on his status Sunday morning ahead of the team's 4:25 p.m. ET kickoff. If Murray hasn't made enough progress to make the start, the 35-year-old McCoy would pick up his first competitive snaps of 2021, as all three of his prior appearances this season have come when the outcome was already decided. Though McCoy has 30 career starts on his ledger since entering the NFL in 2010, the Cardinals would presumably tailor their game plan to incorporate more runs rather than relying on a pass-heavy attack.

Coach Robert Saleh wouldn't commit to White (forearm) or Zach Wilson (knee) as his starter for the Jets' Week 10 game against the Bills, though both quarterbacks are expected to resume practicing Monday, Eric Allen of Jets 360 Productions reports.

Wilson was the starter while healthy, but White came in for one full game and parts of two others following Wilson's injury and performed at a higher level than the rookie second-overall pick had been able to reach. Ultimately, Saleh's decision could be made easier if one of the quarterbacks ends up needing more time to heal, but at least in White's case, it appears he'll be cleared in time to face the Bills next Sunday after hurting his forearm in the first half of Thursday's loss to the Colts.

Wilson (knee) is expected to resume practicing this week, Al Iannazzone of Newsday Sports reports.

The Jets avoided placing Wilson on IR in hopes that he would resume practicing after a two-week absence, and it appears that will be the case. With fellow quarterback Mike White (forearm) -- who impressed in Wilson's absence before getting hurt himself -- also expected to practice before the Jets' Week 10 matchup with the Bills, coach Robert Saleh will have to figure out how to divvy up first-team reps between the two recovering quarterbacks.

Darnold (concussion/shoulder) was a limited participant in Friday's walk-through practice and is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Patriots, Darin Gantt of the Panthers' official site reports.

After suffering the head and right shoulder injuries in the Panthers' Week 8 win over the Falcons, Darnold appeared on the Week 9 practice report as a limited participant Wednesday through Friday. The concussion seems to be the greater concern of the two injuries at this juncture, as head coach Matt Rhule noted that the quarterback still needs to clear the NFL's five-step protocol in order to suit up Sunday, per Joe Person of The Athletic. If Darnold gets the green light from an independent neurologist to play, he'll likely start for Carolina, but P.J. Walker also took reps with the first-team offense this week and will be ready to go Sunday in the event the Panthers hold Darnold out.