NFL Player News

On the Buccaneers' initial unofficial depth chart, Mayfield and Kyle Trask are listed together in the QB1 slot.

The listing offers confirmation that the two players are competing for the team's top QB spot ahead of Week 1. With that in mind, Scott Smith of the Buccaneers' official site notes via coach Todd Bowles that whichever of the two signal-callers starts Friday's preseason game against the Steelers, the other one will get the nod in the team's second exhibition game and get an equal amount of playing time.

Trask has made significant strides thus far in training camp and drawn very close in his job battle with Baker Mayfield, Jenna Laine of ESPN.com reports.

Laine notes that Mayfield appeared to have a sizable lead over Trask back during June minicamp, but the paradigm appears to have shifted since training camp began. The 2021 second-round pick has looked far more decisive with the ball and has been making noteworthy plays in every practice. The two players continue to alternate first-team reps for the moment and could well compete through the duration of the preseason, with Friday's exhibition opener versus the Steelers serving as the first in-game platform for their job battle.

The Lions and Bridgewater agreed to terms of a contract Monday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Behind Detroit's starting quarterback Jared Goff, there previously wasn't much experience on the depth chart between six-year pro Nate Sudfeld, 2023 third-round pick Hendon Hooker (knee) and rookie UDFA Adrian Martinez. Bridgewater himself has 65 starts for five different teams in his career, including two for the Dolphins last year. In five appearances overall in 2022, he completed 49 of 79 passes (62 percent) for 683 yards, four touchdowns and four interceptions. Bridgewater will slot in as Goff's top backup moving forward.

Coach Kyle Shanahan said Monday he "doubts" Purdy will play during Sunday's preseason opener against the Raiders, Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com reports.

Purdy will continue to take part in joint practices this week, but it looks like if the second-year QB is to handle preseason action, it won't come until later. Instead, the 49ers could use Sunday's contest to take a longer look at Sam Darnold and Trey Lance in game situations, while Brandon Allen remains available to close it out. Purdy remains on schedule to shed his required days off from the practice schedule next week, indicating that his rehab continues to go as planned.

Coach Sean Payton said Wilson and the Broncos' first-team offense are in line to see roughly 15 snaps during Friday's preseason opener against the Cardinals, Zac Stevens of TheDNVR.com reports.

Wilson will see action for the first time since his rough 2022 campaign Friday, albeit in limited preseason work. Still, it will be worthwhile to track whether Denver's offense is able to operate more smoothly with Payton calling the shots, even if only for a series or two. Jarrett Stidham and Ben DiNucci will be in line to take the field after Wilson finishes up under center in Arizona.

Carr and the rest of the Saints' starters are expected to play in Sunday's preseason opener against the Chiefs, Luke Johnson of the New Orleans Times-Picayune reports.

Coach Dennis Allen said the team plans to play Carr and other starters for part of Sunday's game before reevaluating whether they should take the field in the other two preseason contests. Carr will be making his highly anticipated Saints debut after signing a four-year, $150 million contract with New Orleans as a free agent in the offseason.

Stroud will start Thursday's preseason opener against the Patriots, per coach DeMeco Ryans, Cameron Wolfe of NFL Network reports.

Stroud will make his NFL debut Thursday. The second overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft is competing with Davis Mills for the starting quarterback job in Houston, but considering Stroud has been receiving the vast majority of recent first-team reps, the starting spot is his to lose.

Lawrence and the rest of Jacksonville's starters on offense will play one or two series in Saturday's preseason opener against Dallas, according to coach Doug Pederson, James Palmer of NFL Network reports.

Lawrence should get his first opportunity to build chemistry with wide receiver Calvin Ridley in a game situation. The third-year quarterback also will look to rekindle his connections with running back Travis Etienne, wide receivers Christian Kirk and Zay Jones and tight end Evan Engram, all of whom are returning from last year's team.

Young will start Carolina's first preseason game Saturday against the Jets, David Newton of ESPN.com reports.

Coach Frank Reich said he has a plan regarding how long Young would stay in the game, though he wouldn't elaborate on the details. Saturday will mark the much-anticipated NFL debut for Young, whom the Panthers selected first overall in the 2023 NFL Draft out of Alabama after trading up. Young will likely be accompanied by most or all of Carolina's first-team offense for the duration of his time in the game.

Coach Sean Payton noted Saturday that the Broncos' starters, including Wilson, are slated to see playing time during the preseason, Parker Gabriel of the Denver Post reports.

With that in mind, Wilson is among the team's healthy key players who are candidates to see snaps in Friday night's preseason opener against the Cardinals. In the event that he does log snaps in the contest, we wouldn't expect it to be a long appearance for Wilson, with fellow QBs Jarrett Stidham and Ben DiNucci also on track to see action versus Arizona.