NFL Player News

Teague (ankle) has reverted to the Steelers' injured reserve, per the NFL's official transaction log.

Teague was waived/injured by the team Thursday and ultimately went unclaimed. As a result, he will spend the rest of the season on the IR unless both parties can ultimately come to terms on an injury settlement down the road.

McCaffrey is among the Panthers' key players not slated to play in Friday's preseason game against the Patriots, Darin Gantt of the team's official site reports.

The same applies to quarterbacks Baker Mayfield and Sam Darnold, as well as wide receivers DJ Moore, Robbie Anderson and Terrace Marshall. With McCaffrey -- the team's clear-cut starting running back -- slated to sit out Friday's contest, the Panthers' coaching staff will have an opportunity to focus on evaluating the team's complementary/depth backs.

Kamara and fellow running back Mark Ingram aren't expected to play in Friday's preseason game against Green Bay, Rod Walker of The Times-Picayune reports.

The Saints figure to rest most key players, including their top two running backs, both of whom sat out the preseason opener. The real competition is behind Kamara and Ingram for the No. 3 spot -- a role that often came down to special teams under former head coach Sean Payton.

Sermon hobbled off the practice field Thursday due to an undisclosed injury, and the team has yet to provide an update on his status, David Lombardi of The Athletic reports.

If Sermon's forced to miss practice time, it would be an ill-timed absence, as fellow second-year running back Elijah Mitchell (hamstring) is already sidelined, leaving Jeff Wilson and rookie Tyrion Davis-Price to soak up most of the snaps in practice. An update on Sermon's status will likely be provided prior to Saturday's preseason game in Minnesota.

Williams and other key players aren't expected to play in Saturday's preseason game against the Bills, The Denver Post reports.

Buffalo, on the other hand, is expected to play most starters. It'll mostly be a guessing game trying to figure out the workload split between Williams and Melvin Gordon until the regular season actually starts, though Gordon did recently mention that it seems like the Broncos want Williams to be the main guy, i.e., what most had assumed anyway after his strong finish to last year. Whether that means 55 percent of the workload or closer to 70-75 percent remains to be seen.

Philadelphia expects Sanders (hamstring) to be available before the team's Sept. 11 season opener against the Lions, Reuben Frank of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.

Sanders hasn't practiced since the team's preseason opener against the Jets, but the Eagles don't view his hamstring injury as overly serious and are merely taking a cautious approach with the fourth-year running back. While that's encouraging news, hamstring injuries are notorious for having a high re-injury risk, and Sanders' absence from practice is allowing second-year running back Kenneth Gainwell to continue making his case for more first-team playing time.

Sanders (hamstring) remained sidelined at Friday's practice, Dave Zangaro of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.

Zangaro relays via coach Nick Sirianni that Sanders is getting better, but it's unclear when he'll return to the field, with the Eagles proceeding with caution with their top running back. With that in mind, Sanders presumably will be held out of Sunday's preseason game against the Browns.

Brightwell won't play in Sunday's preseason matchup against the Bengals, Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News reports.

Both Brightwell and Matt Breida (undisclosed) will be held out against Cincinnati, so Antonio Williams and Jashaun Corbin should have increased opportunities in the Giants' backfield. Brightwell will try to return for the team's final game of the preseason Aug. 28 against the Jets.

Breida (undisclosed) won't play in Sunday's preseason matchup against the Bengals, Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News reports.

Breida is dealing with an undisclosed injury and will be forced to miss a second consecutive preseason game. His final chance to take the field during the preseason will be Aug. 28 against the Jets.

With the Patriots starters expected to play some Friday night against the Panthers, per Evan Lazar of the CLNS Media Network, Harris, who didn't see action in the team's preseason opener last week, is a candidate to log some snaps against Carolina.

In the Patriots' exhibition opener, the bulk of the team's key skill players didn't log any action, but this time around it appears as though the starters will get some work in against the Panthers. As the 2022 season approaches, Harris and Rhamondre Stevenson are expected to handle the bulk of New England's early-down responsibilities, while Ty Montgomery and 2022 fourth-rounder Pierre Strong are the top candidates to help fill the pass-catching void created by the retirement of James White. Also looking to secure depth roles in the team's backfield are 2022 sixth-rounder Kevin Harris and J.J. Taylor.