NFL Player News

San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan said Purdy (back) will be a full practice participant Wednesday, Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com reports.

Shanahan revealed Monday that Purdy was tending to back soreness in the wake of this past Sunday's road loss to the Rams, and while he considered the quarterback day-to-day, the injury won't affect Purdy's practice reps to kick off Week 4 prep. Purdy thus is in line to continue leading the 49ers offense Sunday against the Patriots, but the skill-position players available to him remain up in the air. Running back Christian McCaffrey (calf/Achilles) is on injured reserve for the foreseeable future, wideout Deebo Samuel (calf) won't practice Wednesday, and tight end George Kittle (hamstring) will be a limited participant, which leaves receivers Brandon Aiyuk and Jauan Jennings and running back Jordan Mason as the 49ers' healthy weapons for the time being.

Wilson (calf) was a limited practice participant Wednesday.

Wilson's injured calf reportedly is improving, but he still hasn't managed full practice participation since Week 1 and may have to settle for a backup role to Justin Fields once he's 100 percent healthy. The Steelers are preparing Fields to make his fourth consecutive start this Sunday at Indianapolis.

Packers head coach Matt LaFleur said Wednesday that Love (knee) practiced in a limited capacity and is making progress, Bill Huber of SI.com reports.

Love is still practicing with his left knee wrapped, per Ryan Wood of USA Today, but the quarterback showed improved mobility in Wednesday's session. The Packers haven't yet announced whether Love or backup Malik Willis will start Sunday's game against the Vikings, but it's encouraging to see the franchise quarterback progressing as expected. Love will have two more opportunities to upgrade to full participation in practice, and Green Bay may not make a final decision on a Week 4 starter until after Friday's session.

Chargers head caoch Jim Harbaugh noted Wednesday that the MRI that Herbert (ankle) underwent Monday showed that the quarterback is "progressing," Daniel Popper of The Athletic reports.

Harbaugh added that Herbert might take part in practice in some capacity Wednesday after shedding the walking boot on his right ankle. The Chargers will release their first Week 4 injury report later Wednesday, when the extent of Herbert's practice participation will be known. In any case, the signal-caller's status will need to be monitored closely ahead of Sunday's game against the Chiefs. After Herbert aggravated his right ankle sprain in the Chargers' Week 3 loss to the Steelers, the Chargers could opt to take a more cautious approach with the quarterback in Week 4. Taylor Heinicke came to replace Herbert in the loss to Pittsburgh, and Heinicke and Easton Stick could both be candidates to start against the Chiefs if Herbert is unable to play.

Trubisky completed his lone pass attempt for a three-yard gain and lost a yard on his lone carry in Monday's 47-10 win over the Jaguars.

Trubisky directed the Buffalo offense for the final three possessions of the night after starting quarterback Josh Allen guided the Bills to a commanding 27-point lead through the early part of the fourth quarter. He mostly handed the ball off as the Bills ran down the clock, with his lone carry being a kneeldown in the final minute of the quarter. So long as Allen stays healthy throughout the season, Trubisky's playing time will remain limited to the tail end of non-competitive games.

Head coach Dave Canales confirmed that Dalton will remain the Panthers' starting quarterback for Sunday's home game against the Bengals, David Newton of ESPN.com reports. "Andy's our quarterback," Canales said Monday. "He gives us our best chance to win. That's the approach as we get ready for the Bengals."

Canales' pronouncement comes as little surprise after Dalton stepped into the starting role Week 3 in place of demoted 2023 No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young and revitalized an offense that had averaged 176 yards and 6.5 points in blowout losses to the Saints and Chargers in the first two weeks of the season. In leading the Panthers to a convincing 36-22 win over the Raiders, Dalton completed 26 of 37 passes for 319 yards and three touchdowns while Carolina rolled to its second-best scoring total in five seasons. While the sizable investment in Young could eventually prompt Carolina to turn the starting job back over to him later in the season -- especially if the rebuilding Panthers predictably fade from the playoff picture -- the 36-year-old Dalton should have a decent amount of leash if he continues to oversee a competent offense. Dalton offers little production as a runner at this stage of his career and is working with below-average talent at the skill positions, but on sheer passing volume alone, he could offer some utility as a lineup option in two-quarterback or superflex leagues.

Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel said Tuesday that Huntley is a "possibility" to start Monday's game against the Titans, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

The Dolphins signed Huntley off Baltimore's practice squad ahead of the team's Week 3 loss to Seattle, a game in which Skylar Thompson (rib) and Tim Boyle both struggled to get anything going on offense. Huntley has had limited time to integrate himself to Miami's scheme, but the dual-threat abilities he flashed during his time with the Ravens could nonetheless give the Dolphins the best chance to win of their current options at the quarterback position. McDaniel hinted Tuesday that the team may hold an open competition at the quarterback position during practices this week, according to Joe Schad of The Palm Beach Post, though Thompson is considered day-to-day due to the rib injury sustained in the loss to the Seahawks.

Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel said Tuesday that Tagovailoa (concussion) will meet with outside neurologists this week, Cameron Wolfe of NFL Network reports.

McDaniel said "the plan hasn't changed" with Tagovailoa, which implies that the quarterback remains without a clear timeline to return from injured reserve. As a result of his placement on IR last week, the earliest possible date for the quarterback's return to game action is Oct. 27 versus the Cardinals. Ian Rapoport of NFL Network has reported that Tagovailoa has no plans to retire, but meeting with specialists this week will allow the quarterback to make the most informed decision about his playing future. Meanwhile, with Week 3 fill-in starter Skylar Thompson (ribs) considered day-to-day, Tyler Huntley and Tim Boyle could also be in contention to see playing time Week 4 versus the Titans.

Head coach Mike McDaniel said Tuesday that Thompson (ribs) is day-to-day heading into the Dolphins' Week 4 game Monday versus the Titans, though the team expects to have a better feel for the quarterback's status later in the week, David Furones of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports.

Called upon to start in the Dolphins' Week 3 loss to the Seahawks after Tua Tagovailoa (concussion) was placed on injured reserve, Thompson completed 13 of 19 pass attempts for 107 yards before exiting in the third quarter after getting shoved by a defender on a throw. The Dolphins have yet to provide a firm diagnosis on Thompson's injury beyond clarifying that he's dealing with a rib issue rather than a chest issue, and the team is not yet ruling out the third-year quarterback for Monday. Tim Boyle finished out the Week 3 game for the Dolphins, but McDaniel suggested that Boyle was only active as Thompson's backup ahead of the recently signed Tyler Huntley mainly because Huntley had only five days to get up to speed with the new playbook, per David Furones of the South Florida Sun Sentinel. McDaniel is leaving the door open for any of Thompson, Huntley or Boyle to start versus Tennessee.

Head coach Mike Tomlin said that Wilson (calf) will begin Week 4 prep as a limited practice participant Wednesday, and the Steelers are preparing for Justin Fields to make a fourth consecutive start at quarterback Sunday versus the Colts, Brooke Pryor of ESPN.com reports.

Though Wilson has suggested that he's improving in his recovery from the calf injury that he aggravated Sept. 5, the veteran signal-caller has yet to upgrade from limited participation in practice. Tomlin hasn't ruled out the possibility of Wilson increasing his participation by the end of the week, at which point the Steelers could revisit whether Wilson will be available Sunday. Even if Wilson puts an end to his three-game absence and suit up Sunday, he would be limited to a backup role, given that Fields has guided the Steelers to a 3-0 start while completing 73.3 percent of his pass attempts and committing just one turnover.