NFL Player News

The Chiefs placed Edwards-Helaire (knee) on injured reserve Tuesday.

After he was diagnosed with an MCL sprain of his left knee following his departure from Sunday's loss to the Bills, Edwards-Helaire was generally expected to require at least a couple weeks of recovery time. The Chiefs' decision to move the second-year back to IR means that he'll officially be out for at least the next three games, with Kansas City's Week 9 contest versus Green Bay representing Edwards-Helaire's earliest possible return date. While Edwards-Helaire is on the mend, Darrel Williams and Jerick McKinnon are expected to lead the Kansas City backfield, though it's unclear how the snaps and touches might be divvied up among the two.

Running backs coach Tony Dews indicated Tuesday that Evans (knee) took part in practice last week, Jim Wyatt of the Titans' official site reports.

Evans was designated to return from injured reserve last Wednesday and apparently got in some practice immediately. His 21-day window to be evaluated in practice has thus begun, by the end of which the team must decide to either activate him or keep him on injured reserve for the rest of the season. Assuming he returns, Evans figures to join the conversation alongside Jeremy McNichols for backup duties to Derrick Henry.

McKinnon ran once for two yards and caught both of his targets for 13 yards Sunday against the Bills.

McKinnon entered the equation a bit more Sunday after Clyde Edwards-Helaire left the contest due to a knee injury that turned out to be an MCL sprain. With CEH potentially missing multiple weeks due to the injury, McKinnon figures to slot in as the primary backup for Darrel Williams in that span. However, the Chiefs could also elect to add a running back from another club, which could dilute the backfield totes further.

Ahmed logged two carries for five yards and secured two of three targets for 16 yards during Sunday's loss to the Buccaneers.

Miami's rushing attack was shut down by Tampa Bay's stout defensive front, but that didn't stop Myles Gaskin from accumulating 10 targets and two touchdowns through the air. Though Ahmed didn't turn in nearly as productive a fantasy day, he did appear to work ahead of Malcolm Brown (no touches) for the first time all season.

Gainwell rushed twice for 16 yards and caught one of his three targets for eight yards in Sunday's 21-18 win over the Panthers.

Coming off the biggest game of his young career, this certainly qualifies as a disappointing result for Gainwell. The Eagles did hardly any running in the first half though and only ended up with 22 carries total for the game -- nine of which belonged to Jalen Hurts. The rookie now has a tough matchup against Tampa Bay on Thursday night.

Williams rushed four times for six yards and caught both his targets for 15 yards in Monday night's 31-25 overtime win against the Colts.

After being inactive in Week 4, Williams was the second tailback to enter the game for Baltimore but didn't get his first touch until after both starter Latavius Murray and fellow backup Devonta Freeman has gotten theirs. Although the three split snaps over the course of the contest, when a big deficit required Baltimore to pass the ball more, Williams wasn't able to take advantage. Fortunately, neither Murray nor Freeman topped 35 scrimmage yards either, leaving the Ravens' backfield picture muddled. Given Williams' role reduction since the first couple games of the season, as well as the practice-squad presence of Le'Veon Bell, Williams' fantasy value is precarious ahead of a Week 6 matchup versus the Chargers.

Murray rushed six times for 17 yards and caught two of three targets for 13 yards in Monday night's 31-25 overtime win over the Colts.

He started at tailback but got little going over the course of Monday's contest, due both to game flow -- the Ravens trailed by 19 at one point in the third quarter before mounting a remarkable comeback -- and the presence of teammates Ty'Son Williams and Devonta Freeman. Although Murray potentially could've added a touchdown to his tally had quarterback Lamar Jackson not kept the ball and fumbled it on a zone-read play near the goal line, the veteran back overall was underwhelming Monday. With neither Williams nor Freeman topping 35 scrimmage yards, however, the Ravens' backfield picture remains muddled, potentially enabling Murray to maintain his top place on the depth chart ahead of a Week 6 matchup versus the Chargers.

Taylor rushed 15 times for 53 yards and a touchdown and caught three of four targets for 116 yards and another score in Monday night's 31-25 overtime loss to the Ravens.

Taylor dropped his first target of the night, but he then showed his open-field explosiveness by taking a simple swing pass 76 yards for a touchdown on 3rd-and-15 the very next play. The tailback later put together a pair of impressive runs following a Ravens fumble in the second half, ultimately capping that drive with a four-yard touchdown rush, his first of this season. With many strong gains and involvement as a pass catcher, Taylor turned in comfortably his best performance through five games, and he's now topped 110 scrimmage yards while scoring in back-to-back contests. Despite Monday's disappointing defeat, Taylor's recent play is certainly encouraging ahead of a favorable matchup versus the Texans in Week 6.

Kelley carried the ball two times for 17 yards in Sunday's 47-42 win over the Browns.

Kelley was activated for the first time this season and promptly usurped rookie Larry Rountree as the backup behind Austin Ekeler, earning 26 offensive snaps while Rountree and Justin Jackson saw zero. It's a bit odd to see Kelley in the backup role after struggling through the preseason and the conclusion of the 2020 campaign, but it's also not a role that has a lot of value with Austin Ekeler thriving as a three-down workhorse.

Rountree did not see an offensive snap in Sunday's 47-42 win over the Browns.

Rountree was somewhat surprisingly benched in favor of Joshua Kelley, who made his season debut Sunday and played 26 snaps. The rookie hadn't necessarily been effective in a limited workload to begin the season, but it's still surprising to see him lose his backup role to Kelley, who reportedly struggled throughout the preseason.