NFL Player News

Siemian was placed on the Bears' injured reserve Saturday, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.

Siemian is set to undergo season-ending surgery for an oblique injury sustained in pregame warmups ahead of Chicago's Week 12 loss to the Jets. The 30-year-old quarterback was then ruled out for Sunday's game against the Packers, and he'll now turn his focus toward recovering ahead of the 2023 season. With Siemian done for the year, the Bears have signed Nathan Peterman from the practice squad to serve as the backup quarterback behind Justin Fields on Sunday.

Stafford (neck) was placed on injured reserve Saturday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Stafford is eligible to return in Week 17, but given the Rams' record through 13 weeks, it's hard to imagine the team will have much incentive to activate the Super Bowl-winning QB in what amounts to a lost season. The veteran quarterback began the year with questions regarding his damaged elbow, but Stafford seemed to ease those concerns with six consecutive weeks throwing for no less than 240 yards. While his 10:8 TD:INT ratio will go down as one of the worst rates in his career, it's hard to fault Stafford too much given the litany of injuries and poor play among the Rams' pass catchers. It's possible the Rams and Stafford could revisit the medical gameplan regarding his elbow given the 34-year-old now has an elongated recovery timeline, but expect more clarity on that situation to occur over the coming weeks.

Rodgers (ribs/thumb) doesn't have an injury designation for Sunday's game against Chicago, Matt Schneidman of The Athletic reports.

He might be in pain but will get the start, just as he promised earlier this week. Rodgers managed limited practices Thursday and Friday ahead of what's essentially a must-win game against the Bears, hoping he can play through his pair of injuries and keep Green Bay in the playoff hunt. The 39-year-old (as of Friday) did say he'd try to have an "open mind" if the Packers eventually are eliminated and want to take a look at QB Jordan Love and other young players. For now, Rodgers will be relying on some of those young guys, namely rookie WR Christian Watson, who caught six TD passes (including one from Love) the past three weeks. There's also some hope for fellow rookie Romeo Doubs (ankle) to end a month-long absence, as he's been deemed questionable ahead of Sunday's 1:00 p.m. ET kickoff.

Bridgewater (knee) is questionable for Sunday's matchup against the 49ers, David Furones of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports.

Bridgewater was limited throughout Week 13 prep due to a knee injury that's sidelined him for five consecutive contests. The backup quarterback is once again listed as questionable, but if he remains out for a sixth straight game, Skylar Thompson would presumably continue to operate as the top backup behind Tua Tagovailoa.

Coach Matt Eberflus said Friday that Siemian will undergo season-ending surgery on his oblique, Jason Lieser of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Siemian was slated to fill in for an absent Justin Fields (shoulder) this past Sunday at the Jets, but he injured his oblique in warmups and suddenly was a game-time decision. He ended up playing through the pain and logged all 56 offense snaps in the loss while completing 14 of 25 passes for 179 yards, one touchdown and one interception. In the wake of the performance, Siemian was unable to practice during Week 13 prep and now will be sidelined for the rest of the campaign. Fields is in line to return Sunday against the Packers, and Eberflus noted practice-squad member Nathan Peterman will be the backup quarterback, even with the Bears signing Tim Boyle of the Lions' practice squad Wednesday.

Fields (shoulder) practiced fully Friday and doesn't have a designation for Sunday's contest against the Packers, Courtney Cronin of ESPN.com reports.

With back-to-back uncapped practices under his belt to cap Week 13 prep, Fields is healthy enough to play through the separated shoulder with partially torn ligaments in his left, non-throwing shoulder. He'll thus miss just one game as a result, and his upcoming foe is a familiar one in an NFC North rival. Green Bay's defense allowed Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts to run rampant for 157 yards on 17 carries this past Sunday, so Fields has an appealing matchup with which to continue his run of success prior to sitting out Week 12.

Wolford will start Sunday's game against Seattle, though Rams coach Sean McVay said there's "a chance" Bryce Perkins also gets some snaps, Stu Jackson of the Rams' official site reports.

Wolford has been second on the depth chart most of the year and filled in for an injured Matthew Stafford in a Week 10 loss to Arizona, but Wolford then missed Week 11 with a neck injury and was merely the backup to Bryce Perkins for last week's loss in Kansas City. The 27-year-old Wolford now gets his second start of the season, and while it isn't a bad matchup, he has little to work with in the NFL's most-injury-depleted offense. He also hasn't shown much in limited playing time, completing 47 of 78 passes (60.3 percent) for 448 yards (5.7 YPA), one TD and three INTs. Perkins will be the backup this Sunday with Stafford ruled out again and uncertain to return before the end of the season.

Stafford (neck) won't play in Sunday's game against Seattle and remains uncertain to return this season despite clearing the concussion protocol this week, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

The Rams still have a ton of injuries on the offensive line and aren't realistically in the playoff hunt, so Stafford might be shut down even if he's medically cleared to play. He's dealing with a neck injury in addition to his second stint this season in the protocol for head injuries, leaving John Wolford as the starter Sunday against the Seahawks, though coach Sean McVay suggested he also could use Perkins, Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic reports.

Rodgers (ribs/thumb) is practicing Friday, Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com reports.

Rodgers returned to practice Thursday as a limited participant and already has said he expects to play in Sunday's game against the Bears. He's reportedly been playing through an avulsion fracture in his right thumb for most of the season, but it was a rib injury that forced him out of a 40-33 loss to the Eagles in Week 12.

Jones completed 22 of 36 passes for 195 yards with one touchdown and no interception in the Patriots' 24-10 loss to the Bills on Thursday night. He also rushed three times for seven yards and committed a fumble that was recovered by New England.

Jones fell short of the 200-yard mark for the third time in the last five games on a night that was critical to the Patriots' playoff hopes. The second-year signal-caller did extend his interception-less streak to four contests, but after some modest early success New England failed to garner any points on six consecutive possessions until a 17-play, 57-yard march in the fourth quarter after the Pats were already down 17 points. What's more, that march ended in a meaningless field goal when Jones threw three incompletions and took a sack on the last four plays after getting down to the Bills' 15-yard line. Jones' play and that of the entire offense will undoubtedly be the subject of plenty of scrutiny going into a Week 14 road interconference clash against the Cardinals on Monday night, Dec. 12.