NFL Player News

Barkley (ankle) was a limited practice participant Friday, Zack Rosenblatt of The Newark Star-Ledger reports.

Coach Joe Judge said Friday morning that Barkley was trending in the right direction for Monday's game in Tampa Bay, while the running back himself sounded less certain a couple hours later, noting that he felt pretty good after a busy practice Friday but still wan't sure if he'd play Monday night, per Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com. Barkley again expressed uncertainty when a reporter asked him if the ankle injury is something he'll have to manage for the rest of the year, but it does seem a majority of Giants beat writers at least expect him to give it a go this week. The final injury report comes out Saturday, with Barkley perhaps having one last shot to progress to full practice participation.

The Jaguars list Robinson (heel/knee) as questionable for Sunday's game against the 49ers after he practiced Friday on a limited basis.

After sitting out the Jaguars' initial Week 11 practice with the two injuries, Robinson managed a pair of limited sessions to close out the week. Though the lack of full activity prevented Robinson from heading into Sunday without a designation, head coach Urban Meyer noted Friday that the running back is "feeling good," according to Doug Kyed of Pro Football Focus. Meyer's assessment offers hope that Robinson will be ready to serve as the Jaguars' lead back Sunday, but fantasy managers will still want to check back in on his status when the team releases its inactive list 90 minutes prior to the 1 p.m. ET kickoff.

Mitchell (finger) isn't practicing Friday, instead working off to the side with a trainer, Cam Inman of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

Coach Kyle Shanahan said Wednesday that he expected Mitchell to bounce back from surgery Tuesday and play in Sunday's game at Jacksonville, while David Lombardi of The Athletic reports that GM John Lynch was less optimistic Friday morning in a radio appearance on KNBR. San Francisco beat writers seem to be more in line with Lynch, as Mitchell has now missed practice Wednesday through Friday. Lynch said the running back likely would be a game-day call, in which case the cross-country trip to Jacksonville becomes helpful to fantasy managers with the 49ers scheduled for 1:00 ET kickoff. Inman suggests Jeff Wilson likely will get the start if Mitchell can't go, with Trey Sermon the probable backup and FB Kyle Juszczyk potentially handling some passing downs. JaMycal Hasty (ankle) appears less likely than Mitchell to play, leaving Juszczyk, Wilson and Trenton Cannon as the passing-down options. Mitchell hasn't handled that role all year, and he isn't likely to do so anytime soon given his recent finger surgery.

McNichols (concussion) has been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Texans, Jim Wyatt of the Titans' official site reports.

After sustaining the head injury in last week's win over the Saints, McNichols didn't practice Wednesday through Friday and wasn't on course to clear the NFL's five-step concussion protocol by Sunday. McNichols' absence leaves D'Onta Foreman and Adrian Peterson as the Titans' healthy backs, but because neither player is an accomplished pass catcher, the team could promote Dontrell Hilliard from the practice squad prior to Sunday's game as a third-down option.

Coach Nick Sirianni said Friday that the Eagles will need to see how the next two days go before making a decision on Sanders (ankle) potentially returning for Sunday's game against New Orleans, Jeff McLane of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

Sanders returned to practice Wednesday, opening his 21-day window to be activated from IR after he sat out the minimum of three games. Zach Berman of The Athletic suggests Sanders is more likely to play than not this week, with the Eagles having until Saturday afternoon to place him back on the active roster for Sunday's game. It is possible they could activate him without playing him, or simply bring him back in a minor role, though Sirianni did say earlier this week that he still views Sanders as his starting running back. Granted, Sirianni also suggested other backs may be more involved compared to earlier in the season, after Jordan Howard and Boston Scott helped revive the Philadelphia running game in Sanders' absence. Sanders played around 70 percent of Philly's offensive snaps through the first six weeks of the season, yet averaged only 9.5 carries and 3.8 targets per game. It remains to be seen how things shake out now that the Eagles are more committed to running the ball but also have more options in their backfield. But first, Sanders will simply need to prove he's healthy enough to play.

Gibson (shin) was removed from Washington's injury report for Sunday's game at Carolina, Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post reports.

Gibson continues to play through a stress fracture in his shin, and it appears a Week 9 bye may have done him some good, as he managed 26 touches and 63 percent snap share in his team's Week 10 win over Tampa Bay following three straight games with 16 of fewer touches on 42 percent or less of snaps. Game script/context was also a big factor, with J.D. McKissic getting more playing time throughout an ugly October where Washington repeatedly faced deficits. While Gibson's playing time and the total team rushing volume may vary week to week, his dominance of Washington's ground workload has been consistent.

Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski said Chubb (illness) looked good in his return to practice Friday and is good to go for Sunday's game against the Lions, Zac Jackson of The Athletic reports.

After testing positive for the coronavirus Nov. 9, Chubb was sidelined for the Browns' Week 10 loss to the Patriots, but he cleared all protocols and was activated from the reserve/COVID-19 list Friday. With Stefanski confirming that Chubb checked out fine from a conditioning standpoint during Friday's practice, the 25-year-old looks like he'll be ready to lead the Cleveland ground game Week 11. Because of Chubb's lack of recent practice reps along with the fact that the Browns will be heavily favored against the 0-8-1 Lions, Cleveland could be inclined to ease up on his workload a bit in his return to action while keeping No. 2 option D'Ernest Johnson involved in the game plan on the heels of a promising Week 10 start. Regardless, fantasy managers shouldn't have any reservations about including Chubb in lineups this week.

Johnson is expected to move into the No. 2 role out of the Cleveland backfield Sunday against the Lions after Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski confirmed that Nick Chubb (illness) is good to go after practicing Friday in his return from the reserve/COVID-19 list, Zac Jackson of The Athletic reports.

After Chubb was placed on the list Nov. 9 following a positive test of the virus, Johnson stepped in to pick up his second start of the season Week 10 against New England. Though the Browns weren't competitive in a 45-7 loss, Johnson was productive with his opportunities, carrying 19 times for 99 yards and catching seven passes for 58 yards on eight targets. While Johnson has been a revelation in both of his starts, a healthy Chubb remains the Browns' unquestioned lead back, though Cleveland could be inclined to ease him back from a one-game absence with a slightly lighter workload than normal against an inferior Lions team. If that's the case, Johnson could still have some value this week as a low-end flex play in deeper leagues while Kareem Hunt (calf) remains on injured reserve.

Bolden was on the field for 17 of a possible 64 snaps in the Patriots' 25-0 win over the Falcons on Thursday night, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com reports.

While working in a change-of-pace role versus Atlanta, Bolden was out-snapped by both Damien Harris (25) and Rhamondre Stevenson (22). In the process, Bolden gained one yard on his only carry and caught both of his targets for 15 yards. Looking ahead, there will be some weeks where game script/flow leads to more targets for him, but as long as both Harris and Stevenson are available, Bolden will remain a hit-or-miss option in PPR formats.

Coach Joe Judge said Barkley (ankle) is trending in the right direction as Monday's game against the Buccaneers approaches, Zack Rosenblatt of The Newark Star-Ledger reports.

Barkley was able to return to practice as a limited participant Thursday and apparently came out of the session with no issues. It was the 24-year-old's first official practice participation since he suffered the ankle sprain Oct. 10, and he appears poised to return from the four-game absence Monday at Tampa Bay.