NFL Player News

Brightwell didn't practice Thursday and is in the COVID-19 protocol, Dan Salomone of the Giants' official site reports.

Brightwell was seemingly one of several Giants players and test members that tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this week, but following subsequent retesting, only running backs coach Burton Burns has had his positive result confirmed. Meanwhile, running back Saquon Barkley (ankle) and safety Xavier McKinney were placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list Wednesday, though New York seemingly has hope that both will be cleared upon further follow-up testing. Brightwell's ability to avoid landing on the list thus far suggests the Giants have less concern about his status than Barkley's or McKinney's, but Brightwell's absence from practice suggests he's not completely out of the woods yet. Assuming Brightwell is cleared ahead of Sunday's game against the Raiders, he'll likely be limited to a special-teams role behind Devontae Booker and Elijhaa Penny, the Giants' preferred options for backfield work while Barkley is on the mend from the ankle injury.

Taylor signed a contract with the Packers on Thursday.

Taylor was waived by Green Bay at the end of August and has spent time on the team's practice squad to begin the regular season. The 23-year-old hasn't yet made his regular-season debut in the NFL but will serve as the Packers' No. 3 running back after Kylin Hill suffered a torn ACL last week.

Robinson (heel) remained sidelined at practice Thursday.

Per John Oehser of the Jaguars' official site, coach Urban Meyer indicated Wednesday that Robinson, who's considered day-to-day, has a chance to play Sunday against the Bills. However, after having logged back-to-back absences from practice, the running back presumably will have to work in some capacity Friday in order to have a chance to suit up this weekend. If Robinson ends up out or limited versus Buffalo, Carlos Hyde (calf), who returned to a full practice Thursday, would be in line for an expanded workload Week 9, with Dare Ogunbowale also in the mix for added touches.

Blasingame (knee) didn't participate in Thursday's practice, Turron Davenport of ESPN.com reports.

Blasingame missed last week's win over the Colts with a knee injury, and he's been unable to take the field for the first two days of practice ahead of Week 9. If he hopes to play Sunday against the Rams, he'll presumably need to practice in some capacity Friday.

Singletary carried seven times for 28 yards and reeled in his lone target for a one-yard gain Sunday in the Bills' 26-11 win over the Dolphins.

Though Singletary received the start and wasn't far behind Zack Moss (14) in terms of touches, the former trailed more significantly in snap share. Moss was on the field for 47 of the Bills' 73 offensive snaps (64 percent), while Singletary received 24 snaps (34 percent). Since being a surprise healthy scratch Week 1, Moss has now out-snapped Singletary in each of the Bills' last five games, a clear indication Buffalo views the former as its top option out of the backfield. Singletary should at least remain a factor in a change-of-pace role, and he could actually see an uptick in work this weekend in Jacksonville. The 5-2 Bills will enter the contest as one of Week 9's heaviest favorites against the 1-6 Jaguars, and if Buffalo races out to an early lead, the distribution of snaps and touches between Moss and Singletary may become more even.

Murray (ankle) remained sidelined during Thursday's practice, Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com reports.

Back-to-back absences from practice cloud Murray's status for Sunday's game against the Vikings, and he'll presumably need to practice in some capacity Friday in order to have a chance to play this weekend. If he remains out, however, Devonta Freeman, Le'Veon Bell and Ty'Son Williams would be in line to continue to form a backfield committee for Baltimore in Week 9.

Barkley (ankle/COVID protocol) doesn't seem likely to be available for Sunday's game against the Raiders, Ralph Vacchiano of SportsNet New York reports. "I wouldn't eliminate it," coach Joe Judge said Thursday. "But it's not moving in a direction to give us a definite answer in a positive way."

Barkley wasn't ready to return for Week 8 action in Kansas City due to lingering swelling and soreness in his left ankle. Another hurdle was placed in his path this week when he tested positive for COVID-19. The Giants remain hopeful that Barkley merely had a false positive, as he'll be retested Thursday and Friday to attempt to appease league protocols to return to the active roster, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network. But as Judge intimated, missing back-to-back practices could be the biggest reason Barkley remains sidelined for a fourth straight game this weekend. Assuming Barkley is inactive or still on the reserve/COVID-19 list, the Giants again will turn to Devontae Booker and Elijhaa Penny on Sunday.

Bears head coach Matt Nagy confirmed Thursday that Montgomery (knee) has been designated to return from injured reserve, Kevin Fishbain of The Athletic reports.

The move clears Montgomery to return to practice and gives the Bears a 21-day window in which they can either add him to back to the 53-man roster or keep him on injured reserve for the remainder of the season. Since Montgomery hasn't been on the field since suffering a left knee sprain Oct. 3, he could be a limited participant in his return to practice. The Bears will track his progress in practice over the next three days before determining whether he'll be ready to go for Monday's game in Pittsburgh, but if Montgomery remains on IR for another week, Khalil Herbert and Damien Williams (knee) -- if healthy -- will share backfield duties for Chicago.

Ward (concussion) didn't participate in practice Thursday, Darren Urban of the Cardinals' official site reports.

Ward sustained a concussion in last week's loss to Green Bay and has been held out of practice for two consecutive days. He'll likely need to return to the field in some capacity Friday if he hopes to play in Week 9.

Barkley's (ankle) placement on the reserve/COVID-19 list Wednesday may have been the result of a false positive test for the virus, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reports.

In addition to Barkley, safety Xavier McKinney was placed on the list Wednesday as the result of a positive test, while left guard Matt Skura tested positive but wasn't placed on the list. The Giants apparently have some hope that all three players' results were false positives, and Barkley is scheduled to get retested Thursday and Friday as the team looks to gain further clarity on the matter, per Dan Duggan of The Athletic. Even if Barkley exits the COVID-19 protocol ahead of the team's final practice of the week Friday, he looks destined to miss his fourth straight game Sunday against the Raiders while he continues to contend with swelling and soreness in his sprained left ankle. Expect Devontae Booker to once again serve as New York's lead back this weekend.