NFL Player News

Texans head coach Bill O'Brien said after Wednesday's practice that Savage (concussion) wouldn't play Sunday against the Jaguars, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reports.

This isn't a surprising development after Savage was knocked out of the Week 14 loss to the 49ers, though he was briefly allowed to reenter the contest despite appearing to lose feeling in his hand when he suffered the concussion. The handling of that situation will be the subject of a joint investigation by the NFL and NFL Players' Association, but it shouldn't have any bearing on Savage's status. He'll be held to the normal standards of the NFL's concussion protocol, with O'Brien holding out hope that Savage might be ready to play Week 16 against the Steelers. T.J. Yates, who relieved Savage last week, will pick up the start in Jacksonville, with practice-squad quarterback Taylor Heinicke likely to earn a promotion to the 53-man roster and act as the backup.

Mariota (knee) was a full participant at Wednesday's practice, but his hamstring injury from earlier this season is still having an impact, and his fibula fracture from last year may require a clean-up procedure at the end of the campaign, according to Paul Kuharsky of PaulKuharsky.com.

Mariota finds himself on the injury report ahead of the Titans' Week 15 game in San Francisco with a minor injury in the same left knee that he has worn a brace on ever since suffering the second MCL injury of his playing career in 2015 (the first occurred in 2013, while he was still in college). Though it doesn't seem that any of these lingering leg injuries pose a threat to his availability, they might help to explain why Mariota has taken a clear step back in his third professional season. If he does end up having surgery on his leg or ankle, it probably won't have a major impact on his offseason preparation, assuming he's able to go under the knife shortly after the season. The Titans enter Week 15 positioned for a playoff spot, but their recent form doesn't exactly hint at a deep run.

Savage (concussion) didn't practice Wednesday.

It's looking highly unlikely that Savage will pass all phases of the concussion protocol before Sunday's game against the Jaguars after suffering a serious-looking head injury just three days ago. With that in mind, T.J. Yates is in line to draw the starting assignment in Jacksonville, according to ESPN.com.

The Texans are expected to promote Heinicke from the practice squad in advance of Sunday's game against the Jaguars, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Heinicke is set to act as the backup to T.J. Yates in Week 15 with Texans head coach Bill O'Brien effectively ruling out normal starter Tom Savage (concussion) for the weekend. A third-year quarterback that spent time with the New England and Minnesota organizations, Heinicke has yet to play in an NFL game and will only see the field Sunday if Yates struggles mightily or succumbs to an injury.

Lynch (ankle) has been ruled out for Thursday's game against the Colts.

With Lynch still recovering from a sprained right ankle that he suffered back in Week 12, Trevor Siemian will continue to start at quarterback for the Broncos on Thursday, with Brock Osweiler acting as the backup.

Taylor (knee) was a full participant in practice Wednesday.

As head coach Sean McDermott predicted before the session, Taylor was able to take part in the majority of the drills during the Bills' first practice of the week, which should eliminate any concern about his availability for Sunday's game against the Dolphins. The Bills finished out the Week 14 overtime win over the Colts with their third-string quarterback (Joe Webb) running the offense after Taylor was made inactive shortly before the contest and fill-in starter Nathan Peterman exited early with a concussion. Taylor had previously ceded starting duties to the rookie Peterman in a Week 11 loss to the Chargers, but McDermott reiterated Wednesday that Taylor would start for the rest of the season if healthy enough to do so.

Packers head coach Mike McCarthy confirmed Wednesday that Rodgers (collarbone) would practice this week in preparation for a return to the starting lineup Sunday against the Panthers, Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com reports.

Rodgers broke the news Tuesday on his personal Instagram account that he received medical clearance from the Packers' team doctor to play this week, paving the way for him to come off injured reserve and reclaim starting duties following a seven-game absence. Though Ian Rapoport of NFL Network relays that Rodgers' surgically repaired right collarbone hasn't completely healed, the quarterback demonstrated enough progress in his recovery while practicing over the last week for the Packers to greenlight his return. Given the nature of his injury and the length of his absence, the two-time NFL MVP might not be in peak form in his return to game action Sunday, but Rodgers at less than full strength still ranks as a far better option under center than Brett Hundley, who led Green Bay to a 3-4 record while Rodgers was out. Per Demovsky, Rodgers won't be eligible to return from IR until Friday, at which time the Packers would have to remove a player from the 53-man roster to create room for the franchise signal caller.

Bills head coach Sean McDermott said Peterman remains in the NFL's concussion protocol and will be a limited participant in Wednesday's practice, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Peterman's ability to practice suggests that he has progressed through the protocol on at least some level, but he'll need to put in a full practice before the end of the week and receive clearance from an independent neurologist in order to dress Sunday against the Dolphins. The rookie, who started in the Week 14 win over the Colts in place of the injured Tyrod Taylor (knee) before exiting with the concussion, is expected to return to a backup role once cleared with Taylor set to go through most of practice Wednesday and seemingly on track to start in Week 15. If Peterman is held out Sunday, third-string quarterback Joe Webb would handle backup duties behind Taylor.

Bills head coach Sean McDermott said Taylor (knee) will take part in most of the team's drills during Wednesday's practice and will start Sunday against the Dolphins if healthy.

After being benched in favor of rookie Nathan Peterman in a Week 11 loss to the Chargers, Taylor was reinserted as starter for the following two contests. Taylor came out of the of the Dec. 3 loss to the Patriots with a knee injury, however, which ultimately resulted in him ceding starting duties to Peterman in the last weekend's victory over the Colts. Taylor's injury was never considered significant, and his participation in most of practice Wednesday likely means that he's trending toward suiting up in Week 15. Even if Taylor ends up being listed as a limited participant Wednesday, it seems likely that he'll progress to a full practice by week's end, which would clear up most of the concern regarding his status.

Rodgers (collarbone) announced Tuesday via his personal Instagram account that he has been medically cleared to play.

It sounds like Rodgers, who has been practicing since Dec. 2, will take reps with the first-team offense throughout the week in preparation for his return to the starting lineup Sunday against the Panthers. Assuming Rodgers incurs no setbacks with his throwing shoulder during practice, look for the Packers to formally activate him from injured reserve within the next few days. Brett Hundley, who went 3-4 as the starting quarterback while Rodgers was sidelined, will return to his normal backup role.