NFL Player News

Bengals head coach Zac Taylor said Saturday he plans for Burrow and the starters to play a similar amount of snaps during Monday's preseason game against the Commanders as they did during last week's exhibition opener against Philadelphia, Jay Morrison of SI.com reports.

Burrow and company played two drives during Cincinnati's preseason opener against the Eagles, both of which the star quarterback punched in, completing nine of 10 pass attempts for 123 yards and two touchdowns. He'll get another chance to log exhibition reps alongside star wideouts Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins on Monday, though with Mike Gesicki (hamstring) still not ready to go, per Kelsey Conway of The Cincinnati Enquirer, recent signee Noah Fant will be in line to start at tight end in his preseason debut. Taylor appears to be following through on his stated intention to allot the Bengals' starters more preseason snaps than ever before, so Burrow could see increased action during the team's preseason finale on Saturday, Aug. 23 against Indianapolis.

Minshew completed seven of nine pass attempts for 70 yards and a touchdown in Friday's 33-16 preseason loss to the Seahawks.

Minshew got the nod under center with Patrick Mahomes resting after playing briefly in Kansas City's preseason opener. The veteran backup looked sharp out of the gates, cashing in a short touchdown pass to Robert Tonyan on the team's second offensive drive. It was a great sign to see Minshew slinging the ball around after suffering a broken collarbone last season with the Raiders. Expect Minshew to serve as Mahomes' primary backup this upcoming season.

Darnold completed all four of his pass attempts for 34 yards in Friday's 33-16 preseason win over the Chiefs.

Darnold made his preseason debut with Seattle after signing a lucrative contract this past offseason. The 28-year-old was perfect while leading one offensive drive before giving way to the backups. Darnold is fresh off of a career year with Minnesota in which he posted 4,319 passing yards with 35 touchdowns and 12 interceptions across 17 regular-season games.

Stick completed 19 of 32 pass attempts for 173 yards, one touchdown and one interception while rushing twice for 14 yards in Friday's preseason loss to the Titans.

Stick got off to a rough start when he threw a pick-six in the first quarter before settling down with a pair of touchdown drives in the second half. The 29-year-old got extra playing time after fellow backup Emory Jones exited following a big hit late in the contest. Jones' health will now be a factor in the competition for Atlanta's third quarterback gig, with Stick taking the early lead based on production. Expect Stick to get more run in the Falcons' preseason finale against the Cowboys next Friday.

Ward completed two of seven pass attempts for 42 yards with no touchdowns, turnovers or rushing attempts in Friday's 23-20 preseason win over Atlanta.

Ward wound up starting three offensive drives that all resulted in punts for Tennessee in Friday's exhibition. While the rookie's stat line was underwhelming, it is worth noting that he was without the services of top offensive weapons Calvin Ridley (rest) and Tony Pollard (rest). Fill-in WR Van Jefferson dropped a beautifully thrown deep ball from Ward in the first quarter that could have changed the context of his outing. It is unclear how many drives the Titans plan to have Ward play in the team's preseason finale against the Vikings next Friday, but the 2025 No. 1 overall pick is slated to start for his new club Week 1.

The Browns are cautiously optimistic that Sanders (oblique) could return to practice next week and play in the team's preseason finale, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.

Per Pelissero, Sanders, who the Browns are calling day-to-day, won't play Saturday against the Eagles, but the 2025 fifth-rounder could be available Aug. 23 against the Rams. For now, veteran QB Joe Flacco is the front-runner to draw the Week 1 start for Cleveland, but Sanders, Kenny Pickett (hamstring) and Dillon Gabriel (hamstring) will all have a chance to compete for depth-chart slotting once they are healthy.

Stick is slated to start Friday's preseason game versus the Titans, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.

The Falcons are keeping QBs Michael Penix and Kirk Cousins on the sideline for a second straight exhibition, allowing Stick another chance to lead the offense. Last Friday against the Lions, Stick completed 15 of 18 passes for 149 yards and one touchdown in one half of work. A similar workload likely is in the offing for Stick before he hands things off to Emory Jones for the rest of the contest.

Cousins won't suit up for Friday's preseason game against the Titans, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.

For a second consecutive exhibition, both Cousins and No. 1 quarterback Michael Penix won't be available to the Falcons, leaving Easton Stick to start under center and Emory Jones to sub in once Stick is done for the evening. Cousins is slated to serve as the backup to Penix in 2025, but if a QB-needy team pops up at some point in the coming weeks or months, Cousins could find himself on the move.

Keenum did not practice Friday due to a leg injury, Adam Jahns of AllCHGO.com reports.

Keenum is considered day-to-day, per Sean Hammond of the Chicago Tribune, so while his injury isn't a long-term concern, it may prevent him from suiting up for Sunday's preseason game against the Bills. The veteran signal-caller is competing with Tyson Bagent for the No. 2 quarterback role behind Caleb Williams, and if he can't suit up versus Buffalo it will provide fourth-stringer Austin Reed a chance to handle increased reps.

Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said Friday that Flacco will not suit up for Saturday's preseason game against the Eagles, Noah Monroe of the team's official site reports.

Flacco is fully healthy and remains, by all indications, on track to start Week 1 for the Browns, so the team simply has little incentive to risk exposing the 40-year-old veteran to exhibition reps. Rookie third-rounder Dillon Gabriel (hamstring), who returned to team drills this week, could get a chance to start Saturday if the team feels he's sufficiently healthy, while Kenny Pickett (hamstring) and Shedeur Sanders (oblique) seem less likely to be available. The plethora of injuries to Cleveland's quarterback room will likely result on Tyler Huntley playing a substantial amount Saturday, and potentially even starting versus Philadelphia.