NFL Player News

Bridgewater was placed on the Lions' reserve/retired list Sunday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Bridgewater inked a one-year deal with the Lions in March after serving as the Buccaneers' backup quarterback to Baker Mayfield in 2025, but Bridgewater has now decided to step away from football. With undrafted rookie Luke Altmyer the only quarterback other than starter Jared Goff on the 90-man roster, the Lions will work out some quarterbacks to bring in competition for the backup job. Bridgewater was selected by the Vikings with the No. 32 overall pick of the 2014 NFL Draft. The Louisville product suited up for seven different NFL teams during his career and appeared in 83 regular-season games, with a 33-32 record over 65 starts. He completed 66.3 percent of his passes for 15,182 yards, 75 touchdowns and 47 interceptions.

Head coach Dave Canales told reporters Sunday that Young and the Panthers starters will play in Saturday's preseason opener against the Bills, Kassidy Hill of the team's official site reports.

Canales added that the starters will get about 10-to-20 reps in Buffalo. Young, the No. 1 overall pick of the 2023 NFL Draft, is coming off the best year of his three-year career. Across 17 regular-season games in 2025, he completed 63.6 percent of his passes for 3,011 yards, 23 touchdowns and 11 interceptions while adding 216 yards and two scores on 54 carries. The fifth-year option on Young's rookie contract was picked up for the 2027 season, and it looks like any contract negotiations between the 25-year-old quarterback and the Panthers won't take place until after the 2026 campaign.

King picked up a hamstring injury during Thursday's Hall of Fame Game against the Cardinals, Mike Kaye of The Charlotte Observer reports.

King played well in Thursday's exhibition game, completing 21 of 34 passes for 180 yards and two touchdowns while turning three carries into 39 yards and a score in Carolina's 33-30 victory. However, it appears King tweaked his hamstring in the process, which could prompt the Panthers to bring in another quarterback like Kyle Trask and Jack Plummer for the rest of training camp, per Joe Person of The Athletic. King entered training camp listed as the Panthers' QB3 behind starter Bryce Young and backup Kenny Pickett.

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.