NFL Player News

Williams was signed to the Bengals' active roster from the practice squad Saturday, Marisa Contipelli of the Bengals' official site reports.

Williams has been elevated from the practice squad on two occasions this season. However, he'll now join the roster on a more permanent basis, which could mean bad news for Chris Evans (ankle) from an injury perspective. When active, Williams has played primarily on special teams, but he does have six carries for 13 yards.

Gordon (hip/shoulder) has been officially ruled out ahead of Sunday's game against the Chiefs.

It's hardly surprising given Gordon was listed as doubtful on Friday's final injury report, but the official confirmation sets the stage for rookie Javonte Williams to take on the lion's share of the backfield workload. Mike Boone and Damarea Crockett represent the only other healthy backs for the Broncos.

Bolden (knee) is listed as questionable for Monday's contest against the Bills, Phil Perry of NBC Sports Bostonreports.

Bolden put together three straight limited practices, which theoretically puts him on track to play Monday. With Damien Harris and Rhamondre Stevenson also absent from the final injury report, expect Bolden to return to his role as a change-of-pace/pass-catching specialist that he's occupied for much of the season.

Homer (calf) is questionable for Sunday's game against the 49ers, John Boyle of the Seahawks' official site reports.

Although Homer was a full participant for each of Seattle's three practice sessions this week, he'll still land on the injury report ahead of Sunday's matchup. He's logged two carries for six yards while hauling in three of four targets for 23 yards across his last two appearances.

Jefferson will compete for touches with Godwin Igwebuike as the secondary option out of the backfield behind Jamaal Williams, who is slated to start and fill a lead role Sunday against the Vikings with D'Andre Swift (shoulder) ruled out for the game, Benjamin Raven of MLive.com reports.

For one of the few times all season, Detroit had all four running backs active in its 16-14 loss to Chicago on Thanksgiving Day. Neither Jefferson nor Igwebuike appeared likely to have a role on offense heading into the contest, but Swift's early exit due to a sprained shoulder opened up opportunities for both players to pick up a handful of snaps behind Williams. Still, Igwebuike (four snaps) and Jefferson (three snaps) were barely involved, so Williams looks like he'll be on track to serve as a three-down workhorse Week 13 with Swift out of the picture. There likely won't be enough work left over for either Jefferson or Igwebuike to make a meaningful fantasy impact.

Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer hinted that Nwangwu will have a role on offense Sunday against the Lions with top back Dalvin Cook (shoulder) ruled out for the contest, Chad Graff of The Athletic reports.

In the absence of Cook -- who could be sidelined until the Vikings' Week 15 game in Chicago due to a dislocated shoulder -- Minnesota will likely turn to Alexander Mattison as a three-down workhorse, a role he handled capably in place of an injured Cook in Weeks 3 and 5. Ameer Abdullah had served as Mattison's top understudy in those contests, but since been released and picked up by Carolina, Nwangwu is the lone healthy running back behind Mattison on the 53-man roster. Nwangwu, a rookie fourth-round draft pick, has just two carries to his name (for 16 yards) and has played only two snaps on offense through five appearances, but he's shown some playmaking abilities in space on special teams with two kickoff returns for scores in the past two weeks. Look for the Vikings to find ways to get the ball in Nwangwu's hands and take advantage of his 4.32-second 40-yard-dash speed when he's on the field, but he's still unlikely to see enough snaps and touches to make for a reliable fantasy option, even in deeper leagues.

Sermon (ankle) has been ruled out in advance of Sunday's game against the Seahawks.

For the first time all season, Sermon will be sidelined for an injury-related reason -- he was a healthy inactive in Weeks 1 and 9 -- after he sprained his right ankle in the 49ers' Week 12 win over the Vikings. Head coach Kyle Shanahan suggested that the ankle issue could be serious enough for Sermon to go on injured reserve, but a decision on that front likely won't be finalized until Saturday, the deadline for teams playing Sunday to make Week 13 transactions. Even if Sermon avoids IR and is able to return next week or Week 15, he likely won't have a role on offense so long as Elijah Mitchell, Jeff Wilson and JaMycal Hasty are all healthy.

Boone is expected to serve as the Broncos' No. 2 running back behind Javonte Williams in Sunday's game against the Chiefs with Melvin Gordon (hip/shoulder) listed as doubtful for the contest, Kyle Newman of The Denver Post reports.

Gordon wasn't able to practice in any capacity this week, making it likely that he'll be inactive for the first time all season. Through their first 11 games, the Broncos have deployed a near-even backfield timeshare of Gordon and Williams, with both receiving similar snap and touch counts in nearly every game. That has left scant work for Boone since coming off injured reserve Week 6, though he showed the ability to produce on the occasions he saw carries for the Vikings the past three seasons. Even so, rather than simply plugging Boone in for Gordon as part of a timeshare, the Broncos are more likely to prepare the Williams for his first look in a three-down bellcow role, with Boone likely mixing in when the rookie requires a breather.

Hasty (ankle) is cleared to return for Sunday's game in Seattle, with no designation on the 49ers' final Week 13 injury report, Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com reports.

Hasty has now missed six games with ankle injuries (Weeks 3-6, 10-12) and worked as San Francisco's passing-down specialist in the five others. The role has mostly gone to Kyle Jusczyk when Hasty's been out, though Jeff Wilson is also capable. In any case, Hasty is averaging only 2.6 carries and 2.6 catches for 27.8 yards per game, with his usage topped by that of early down back Elijah Mitchell (17.9 carries, 1.8 catches per game).

Jacobs (ankle) is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against Washington after logging limited practices Thursday and Friday, Rachel Gossen of the Raiders' official site reports.

As a result, Jacobs' availability will be worth monitoring as Sunday's 4:05 p.m. ET kickoff approaches, though it's possible media reports emerge prior to the first wave of games this weekend that offer more clarity on the running back's status. If Jacobs ends up limited or sits out versus Washington, Kenyan Drake and Jalen Richard would be next up for snaps out of the Las Vegas backfield, with Peyton Barber a candidate to be made active after having been a healthy scratch Week 12 against the Cowboys.