NFL Player News

Elliott was brought in for a visit by the Patriots on Saturday, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com reports.

Elliott has been looking for a new team to sign with since he was released by the Cowboys on March 15. The 28-year-old is coming off the least productive campaign of his seven-year career, tallying career lows in rushing yards (876), yards per carry (3.8), receptions, (17) and receiving yards (92). Yet, the 228-pound back did still prove valuable as a pass blocker and in short-yardage rushing situations while serving as a secondary running back behind Tony Pollard in 2022. Elliott could serve a similar depth role with New England, as the team does not have a proven running back behind burgeoning starter Rhamondre Stevenson. However, Elliott's certainly not guaranteed to land with the team, as the Patriots have also been linked to fellow free-agent running back Dalvin Cook, and the team previously brought in Leonard Fournette and Darrell Henderson for similar visits.

Taylor (ankle) formally requested a trade after meeting with Indianapolis owner Jim Irsay on Saturday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Taylor and Irsay reportedly met for almost one hour on the owner's bus parked at Colts training camp Saturday, according to Nate Atkins of The Indianapolis Star. Irsay said the two did not discuss a possible extension for the star running back and that "at this point, that's not something we're discussing," per Atkins. Taylor is entering the final season of his four-year rookie contract with the Colts, and he has reportedly never been offered any extension by the team, according to Stephen Holder of ESPN.com. Irsay said that the Colts "will not" trade Taylor this preseason or before the trade deadline in October, per Holder, but he could put pressure on the team by refusing to play unless traded. Taylor led the league with 1,811 rushing yards in 2021, though his production took a hit in 2022, when he tallied 861 rushing yards on 192 carries across 11 games, as he missed time throughout the campaign while dealing with an ankle injury. He underwent surgery to address the injury Jan. 29, and he opened training camp on the active/PUP list after not participating in minicamp. Given his status as one of the NFL's top offensive players when healthy, Taylor should attract a significant amount of trade interest from teams without a clear-cut or elite No. 1 running back.

Pierce set a goal to rush for 1,000 yards in 2023, DJ Bien-Aime of ESPN.com reports. "That's what I expect from me," the running back said. "[Offensive coordinator Bobby] Slowik expects that. Everybody around me expects that, and I'm going to try everything in my power to get that."

Pierce fell 61 yards shy of 1,000 yards during his rookie 2022 season, but he missed the final four games with an ankle injury. The organization has done everything to help Pierce achieve that goal by investing heavily in the offensive line. In March, the Texans extended left tackle Laremy Tunsil (three years, $75 million), then extended right guard Shaq Mason (three years, $36 million) in May before adding another three years to right tackle Tytus Howard ($56 million) prior to training camp. That signals an offense that will seek to establish itself as a rushing threat, which would take pressure of presumed starting quarterback C.J. Stroud, the rookie selected second overall in the 2023 Draft.

Bills offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey told reporters Thursday that he's "really excited" about Cook and believes he has "three-down back" potential, Joe Buscaglia of The Athletic reports.

The Bills gave Cook a minor vote of confidence this offseason when they let Devin Singletary leave for Houston and settled for Damien Harris and Latavius Murray -- signed for less than $2 million apiece -- as veteran backfield additions. Cook, a 2022 second-round pick, did well with his chances last year, averaging 5.7 yards on 89 carries and 8.6 yards on 21 catches, with the stipulation that much of his work came in garbage time. Harris and Murray will compete for work, especially carries between the tackles, but Cook is at least a slight favorite over Harris to play the most snaps of the bunch. Passing-down specialist and punt returner Nyheim Hines is out of the Buffalo backfield equation for 2023 after sustaining an ACL injury in a jet ski accident.

Robinson said Friday that he feels healthier than he ever was last season, ESPN's John Keim reports.

Four months after being drafted in the third round last spring, Robinson was shot in the leg twice in an attempted carjacking two weeks before the start of the regular season. He came back Week 5 and quickly became Washington's lead runner, averaging 17.1 carries for 66.4 yards in 12 games. It sounds like Robinson anticipates being more explosive this year, after averaging only 3.9 yards per carry with a long gain of 24 last season. He also mentioned the likelihood of seeing more targets (12 last year) under new offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, though Antonio Gibson recently suggested he'll be the one getting most of the snaps in obvious passing situations. A shared backfield with Robinson doing more of the running and Gibson more of the receiving is logical given the former's size (225 pounds) and the latter's background as a college wideout. For what it's worth, RBs coach Randy Jordan agrees that Robinson looks more explosive this summer and has been more confident making cuts.

Dobbins (undisclosed) is an observer at Friday's practice, Brian Wacker of The Baltimore Sun reports.

Dobbins remains on the PUP list with an unspecified injury, though his frustration with extension negotiations is rumored to be a factor after he told reporters in June that "the business side is very hard" and "it's never just roses and daisies." The 24-year-old is entering the final year of his rookie contract and his first year under OC Todd Monken, who likely will call fewer rushing plays than former OC Greg Roman but could also given Dobbins more of an opportunity to catch passes. Behind Dobbins in the backfield, Baltimore has veterans Gus Edwards, Melvin Gordon, Justice Hill and undrafted rookies Keaton Mitchell and Owen Wright.

Evans was waived by the Panthers on Friday.

Evans has spent time with both the Rams and Panthers this offseason, but the undrafted rookie out of Louisville has yet to gain a foothold in the NFL. He'll hope to get a look from another NFL team in training camp.

Cook (shoulder), who is slated visit to the Jets this weekend, said Friday that he thinks the chances he signs with New York are "pretty high," Nick Shook of NFL.com reports.

While other teams could remain in the mix to sign the free-agent running back, Cook expressed optimism Friday in his appearance on NFL Network's "Good Morning Football" that he'll be able to work out a deal with the Jets. If Cook does in fact join New York, he would provide quality depth and experience to a backfield that currently features Breece Hall (knee) -- who is making his way back from surgery to repair a torn ACL -- Michael Carter, Israel Abanikanda and Zonovan Knight.

Offensive coordinator Wes Phillips said Thursday that Mattison "always knows what he's going to do" and is a better player than people realize, Ben Goessling of the Star Tribune reports.

Mattison ran a 4.67 40-yard dash coming out of Boise State in 2019 and didn't have a single 20-yard gain on 89 touches last year, but what he lacks in explosiveness he arguably makes up for with versatility, having proven himself competent as a blocker and pass catcher while also possessing the size and strength to handle large rushing workloads. Although Phillips acknowledged that the Vikings will miss Dalvin Cook's big-play ability, the OC seemed to hint that Mattison should do a better job keeping the offense on schedule and avoiding runs for no gain or lost yardage. Whether that's true remain to be seen, but it's at least clear the Vikings have confidence in Mattison, as they re-signed him to a two-year, $7 million contract and still haven't added a veteran RB to compete for carries. In fact, they're the only team in the NFL with fewer than five tailbacks on the roster at the start of training camp, with Mattison joined by 2021 fourth-round pick Kene Nwangwu, 2022 fifth-round pick Ty Chandler and 2023 seventh-rounder DeWayne McBride.

Montgomery (undisclosed) is participating in training camp, Mike O'Hara of detroitlions.com reports.

His undisclosed injury from spring practices apparently hasn't lingered into summer. Montgomery thus figures to get plenty of first-team reps throughout training camp, with the question being to what extent he shares that work with first-round pick Jahmyr Gibbs. It's a safe bet both enter Week 1 in significant roles, likely with Montgomery doing more of the rushing and Gibbs doing more of the receiving, though both are capable of beating a defense on the ground or through the air.