NFL Player News

Ekeler (hamstring) is listed as active for Sunday's game against Washington.

After missing practice Wednesday and Thursday, Ekeler looked good upon his return to the field Friday and he'll give it a go Sunday, with Ian Rapoport of NFL Network indicating that the running back should be full-go versus Washington. In the process, Ekeler is in line to head to the Chargers' ground game in Week 1, with Justin Jackson and Larry Rountree on hand to work in complementary/change-of-pace roles.

Singletary is in line to serve as the No. 1 back in Buffalo against the Steelers in Week 1, as presumed backup Zack Moss is listed as inactive for the contest.

Singletary has received nothing but praise throughout training camp, but most fantasy circles presumed some type of timeshare with Moss would be in play for much of the 2021 campaign. With Moss a healthy scratch in Week 1, Matt Breida is now the presumed backup with Singletary potentially in line for a lion's share of the backfield work. He and the Bills will take on a Pittsburgh defense that ranked 11th against the run in the 2020 season.

Sermon (coach's decision) is inactive for Sunday's game against the Lions, Jennifer Lee Chan of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

After the 49ers invested a third-round selection into him during this year's draft, Sermon not only looked on track to be a regular member of the team's weekly backfield mix, but perhaps a threat to displace Raheem Mostert as the No. 1 option. Even after a strong preseason, however, Sermon will surprisingly find himself in street clothes for Week 1. Behind Mostert, the 49ers will have JaMycal Hasty and Elijah Mitchell active in reserve.

Breida is set to serve as the No. 2 running back behind Devin Singletary with Zack Moss listed as inactive for the Week 1 matchup against Pittsburgh.

In one of the bigger surprises of Week 1, Moss looks to be a healthy scratch in Buffalo, leaving Breida open for a potentially larger role than most expected headed into the season. Breida logged 254 rushing yards on 59 attempts in an injury-shortened 2020 season with Miami and is well accustomed to serving as a change-of-pace back, as that was his role through his first three seasons in the league with San Francisco.

Moss will be inactive for Sunday's opener against the Steelers,

This will be one of the bigger surprises for Week 1. Moss did have offseason ankle surgery, but he was well up to speed early in training camp and played in the preseason. Either he had some kind of injury crop up very late in the week, he broke some kind of team rule, or coach Sean McDermott simply feels he's not fully all the way back and Matt Breida would be a more reliable short-term backup for starter Devin Singletary. This will be an interesting story to follow for those trying to guess which Bills RB will get the most opportunities stemming from the high-flying Buffalo passing game. The current listing for Moss is "healthy scratch," though we're sure there's more to follow on his situation.

Barkley (knee) is on track to play Sunday against the Broncos despite being listed as questionable for the contest, but the running back is expected to be "eased in and used sparingly" in his 2021 debut, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

After sustaining a torn ACL, mild MCL tear and partial meniscus tear to his right knee Week 2 of last season and subsequently undergoing surgery, Barkley has received full medical clearance just over 11 months later, according to Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com. While Barkley is thus on track to avoid the inactive list in the 2021 season opener, the Giants seemingly aren't planning on him handling his usual bell-cow role for at least his first game back. How extensively Barkley is used may ultimately come down to game flow and how he looks in his initial snaps early in the contest, but the wide range for his projected Week 1 workload makes him less of a slam-dunk lineup option than usual in season-long leagues, particularly in shallower formats where fantasy managers may have more appealing alternatives on hand.

Ekeler (hamstring) is on track to suit up Sunday against Washington, barring any pregame setbacks, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Though Ekeler missed practice Wednesday and Thursday, he looked good in his return Friday and is trending toward being able to go in Week 1. Confirmation of the status of the Chargers' top back will arrive before the first wave of games Sunday, with the team kicking off at 1:00 ET.

Barkley (knee) has been medically cleared and is expected to play Sunday against the Broncos, Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com reports.

Barkley was a question mark heading into Week 1 prep, and he proceeded to log limited practices Wednesday through Friday before being deemed questionable for the opener. Coach Joe Judge relayed Friday that Barkley would suit up Sunday if he came out of Friday's session without setbacks, per Raanan. Barkley appears to have done just that, but the Giants have yet to make a formal announcement about his status. There's a chance the decision won't be made until 90 minutes before Sunday's 4:25 p.m. ET kickoff, but the running back is poised to get back on the field for the first time since Week 2 of last season (Sept. 20, 2020).

Jacobs (toe) wasn't listed on the team's final injury report ahead of Monday's contest against the Ravens, Adam Caplan of SiriusXM NFL Radio reports.

Despite logging his third straight limited practice, Jacobs will nevertheless enter Week 1 deemed completely healthy. It wouldn't be surprising if the 2019 first-round pick routinely has a similar sort of practice cadence in ensuing weeks to maintain health for the balky toe injury, which he suffered toward the end of August.

Abdullah was elevated to the Vikings' active roster Saturday, independent NFL journalist Aaron Wilson reports.

The Vikings previously had just two active running backs on the roster in form of Dalvin Cook and Alexander Mattison, so this move makes complete sense. The veteran castoff has been primarily a special teams player over the past two seasons, accumulating over 500 snaps combined since 2019.