NFL Player News

Wilson (calf) did not practice Friday and declined to put a timetable on his return, but said the injury is "nothing too serious," Mike DeFabo of The Athletic reports.

Wilson said his calf injury, which coach Mike Tomlin described as tightness, was sustained while pushing a sled during conditioning tests. Per Brooke Pryor of ESPN.com, Tomlin said Friday's absence wasn't the result of a setback for Wilson, but rather, a result of the Steelers taking a cautious approach "to keep a minor thing from becoming major," and Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that the veteran QB could suit up if Pittsburgh had a game to play. Meanwhile, the situation has provided Justin Fields a chance to handle first-team reps and potentially begin building some momentum of his own in a quarterback competition that has thus far seemed strongly tilted in Wilson's favor. It remains to be seen how first-team snaps at the quarterback position will be split once Wilson returns to the field.

Fields is getting regular first-team reps while Russell Wilson misses a few days of practice with a calf injury, ESPN's Brooke Pryor reports.

Wilson first noticed calf tightness Thursday morning and has since been limited to observer status in back-to-back practices. He reportedly wanted to participate but was held back by the coaching staff, which suggests it isn't a major injury and the 35-year-old will be back in action soon enough. Coach Mike Tomlin said "nothing has changed" in regard to Wilson having "pole position" for the Week 1 start, but this at least gives Fields the opportunity to take more reps with the players he'll be throwing to if he ends up under center at some point in-season. Tomlin declined to elaborate on a plan for dividing first-team QB reps once Wilson returns to practice.

Watson (shoulder) is participating in 11-on-11 drills at Friday's practice, Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN.com reports.

Watson is taking 11-on-11 reps for the first time since undergoing offseason shoulder surgery, though he did participate in 7-on-7 activities during spring. Coach Kevin Stefanski said Thursday a decision hasn't yet been made on Watson potentially suiting up for any of Cleveland's three preseason games, but it doesn't appear that the 28-year-old quarterback is dealing with limitations at practice any longer. For the time being, Watson is commanding a thin first-team offense, with Jerry Jeudy (leg) and David Njoku (undisclosed) both limited to work on the side due to seemingly minor injuries, and Nick Chubb (knee) having started camp on the PUP list as he works his way back from a pair of surgeries.

Cleveland head coach Kevin Stefanski said Thursday that he was unsure whether Watson (shoulder) would appear in any of the Browns' three preseason games, Patrick Warren of the Browns' official site reports.

Watson, who had offseason shoulder surgery, has been throwing in camp, but the coach is being extra cautious at this stage. Stefanski said the coaching staff will discuss the quarterback's progress and make any playing decisions at the appropriate time.

Sudfeld (knee) participated in Wednesday's training camp session, Paul Sancya of The Herald Journal reports.

Sudfeld was photographed on the practice field Wednesday, and it looks like he's been medically cleared after having missed the entire 2023 season due to a torn ACL. He figures to spend training camp competing with second-year quarterback Hendon Hooker for the top backup gig behind Jared Goff.

Head coach Robert Saleh told reporters Thursday that Travis (ankle) needs more time to recover and won't be ready for training camp, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com reports.

Travis sustained a horrific ankle injury during his final season at Florida State, and it seems his recovery process is taking longer than the Jets originally anticipated. The 24-year-old landed on the active/non-football injury list one week ago, and it sounds like he will remain there for quite some time. New York agreed to terms with quarterback Ben Bryant while Travis continues to recover from his ankle issue.

The Jets signed Bryant on Thursday, Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic reports.

Bryant has agreed to terms with New York after going undrafted earlier this offseason. The 24-year-old quarterback spent time with Cincinnati, Eastern Michigan, and Northwestern during his six seasons in college, throwing for 8,212 yards, 50 touchdowns and 23 interceptions across 49 appearances.

Coach Shane Steichen said Thursday that he won't hesitate to use Richardson as a runner, Kevin Bowen of 107.5 The Fan reports.

Reporters asked Steichen about limiting Richardson's running to reduce the risk of injuries, following a rookie year marred first by a concussion and then by season-ending shoulder surgery. Steichen said that would be like limiting Steph Curry from shooting three-pointers, and Richardson himself made similar comments suggesting he won't hesitate to use his legs to pick up yards. The 22-year-old's combination of size, speed and arm strength is perhaps unmatched in league history, and it looks like he'll have a solid group of pass catchers after 2023 third-round pick Josh Downs had a nice rookie season and the Colts added Adonai Mitchell in the second round this spring to supplement No. 1 target Michael Pittman. Richardson, meanwhile, dealt with some lingering shoulder soreness during the offseason program but now seems to be back at full strength for the start of training camp. The big questions at this point pertain to his durability and accuracy.

Wilson missed Thursday's practice due to calf tightness and is considered day-to-day, Dan Graziano of ESPN.com reports.

Brooke Pryor of ESPN.com reports that Wilson wanted to practice but was held back by the coaching staff, which gave fellow offseason addition Justin Fields an opportunity to dominate first-team reps. The expectation remains that Wilson will be under center come Week 1, leading a remade offense with a new coordinator (Arthur Smith), two early draft picks on the O-line (OT Troy Fautanu, C Zach Frazier) and open competition for WR spots behind top option George Pickens.

Cousins (Achilles) is medically cleared for training camp but could have some "modifications" to his workload, William McFadden of the Falcons' official site reports.

In other words, Cousins might not get as many reps as a starting quarterback typically would even though he doesn't have any limitations in terms of the types of activities he can do. The Falcons have two good options to handle first-team QB reps when Cousins is rested, as they still have Taylor Heinicke and drafted Michael Penix eighth overall. The latter development could make things rather interesting in Atlanta if Cousins doesn't look like his Minnesota self in his age-36 season ahead. The Falcons were undeterred by the Achilles' tear he suffered late last October, giving Cousins a four-year, $180 million contract with half the money guaranteed at signing.