NFL Player News

Spears (groin) was upgraded to a full participant in Thursday's practice, Turron Davenport of ESPN.com reports.

Spears was limited Wednesday, but it sounds like a non-issue for the rookie heading into Week 2 against the Chargers. He played 54 percent of the Week 1 snaps versus New Orleans, totaling just 28 yards on four touches while catching only one of his four targets.

McFarland (knee) did not practice Thursday, Teresa Varley of the Steelers' official site reports.

McFarland may be in danger of missing the team's divisional clash Monday against the Browns. However, with an extra day before the game, the Maryland product will have additional time to recover before kickoff. If he were to miss, the impact may be greater in the return game as opposed to the backfield, as the 2020 fourth-round selection saw just five snaps on offense in Week 1.

Conner (calf) practiced in a limited capacity Thursday, Bo Brack of GoPHNX.com reports.

During the portion of the session open to the media, Conner was wearing a sleeve on his calf but appeared to be moving around without issue, per Brack. Still, the Cardinals placed a cap on his on-field reps for a second day in a row, giving him just one more chance to log a full practice this week. Assuming he's able to suit up Sunday against the Giants, Conner will handle the bulk of the touches out of Arizona's backfield with Keaontay Ingram a distant second in the RB pecking order.

Mostert (knee) was a full participant in Thursday's practice.

The Dolphins held Mostert out of their first practice of the week Wednesday, but David Furones of the South Florida Sun Sentinel relays that the running back's absence was more of a veteran's rest day than the result of any concern about the health of his knee. Mostert backed up that report by taking every rep at practice a day later, clearing the way for him to serve as Miami's lead back in Sunday's game at New England. Though he played 72 percent of the snaps on offense and received 12 touches (10 carries, two receptions) in the Dolphins' season-opening win over the Chargers, Mostert could see a slight reduction in his workload Sunday with rookie third-round pick De'Von Achane (shoulder) seemingly trending toward playing after sitting out Week 1.

Ekeler (ankle) wasn't on the field for the media-access portion of Thursday's practice, Jeff Miller of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Unless Ekeler fits in some work behind closed doors Thursday, he'll go down as a non-participant on the Chargers' practice report for the second day in a row. It's unclear whether the ankle injury or personal matter Ekeler is tending to has played a greater part in him sitting out practices thus far in Week 2, but in any case, his status for Sunday's game in Tennessee is murky at the moment. Joshua Kelley, who rushed for a career-high 91 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries in the Chargers' Week 1 loss to the Dolphins, would be the next man up to serve as Los Angeles' lead back this weekend if Ekeler is unavailable.

Saints head coach Dennis Allen said Miller (hamstring) was a limited participant in Thursday's practice, Katherine Terrell of ESPN.com reports.

Per Mike Triplett of NewOrleans.Football, Miller took part in drills throughout the portion of practice that was open to the media, but it's unclear how much additional work the rookie running back was able to fit in behind the scenes. In any case, Miller already looks to be in better shape to suit up Monday in Carolina that he did ahead of the Saints' game against the Titans last week, when he failed to practice in any fashion before being inactive for the contest. With Alvin Kamara (suspension) set to miss two more games, Miller could poach work from Jamaal Williams if he's able to make enough progress in his recovery from the hamstring injury to suit up Monday. Williams dominated the touches (18 carries, two catches) and snaps (77 percent share) out of the backfield in the Week 1 win, with backup running backs Kirk Merritt and Tony Jones combining for nine snaps and one touch between them and the versatile Taysom Hill (eight snaps, three carries) handling a relatively muted role as well.

Packers head coach Matt LaFleur said that Jones (hamstring) was a non-participant in Thursday's practice, Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Jones' hamstring injury kept him from taking reps with his healthy teammates for the second day in a row, but on a positive note, the running back was able to put in an individual workout off to the side while wearing his helmet, per Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com. While the Packers are hopeful that Jones will make enough progress in his recovery from the injury to suit up Sunday in Atlanta, he may need to practice Friday in at least a limited capacity to have a chance at playing. If Jones ends up being held out this weekend or is handed only a limited role, AJ Dillon would be poised to serve as Green Bay's lead back.

Evans (hamstring) wasn't in uniform for Thursday's practice, Ben Baby of ESPN.com reports.

Evans was listed as limited Wednesday, so the fact that he didn't suit up for Thursday's session suggests that the running back's status for Sunday's game against the Ravens could be in danger. If Evans ends up being ruled out, Chase Brown, who was a healthy scratch Week 1, would likely be active versus Baltimore to provide depth behind top back Joe Mixon.

Mostert (knee) was spotted at Thursday's practice, David Furones of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports.

Mostert didn't practice Wednesday, which Cameron Wolfe of NFL Network suggested was rest and maintenance-related. Now that he's back on the field, Mostert is trending toward active status Sunday night against the Patriots, though he'll probably need to log a full practice by Friday in order to avoid a Week 2 injury designation.

Edwards-Helaire (illness) is slated to return to practice Thursday, Matt Derrick of ChiefsDigest.com reports.

An illness kept Edwards-Helaire out of Wednesday's practice, but the running back's looming return to the field has him on track to be available Sunday against the Jaguars. In the Chiefs' Week 1 loss to the Lions, Edwards-Helaire logged 14 snaps, while Isiah Pacheco was out there for 31 snaps and Jerick McKinnon recorded 20. In the process, Edwards-Helaire carried six times for 22 yards and caught one pass for seven yards.