NFL Player News

Williams, who opted out of the 2020 campaign, is expected to return for the Chiefs and play next season, Charles Goldman of USA Today reports.

Williams and right guard Laurent Duvernay-Tardif are both expected to return for Kansas City in 2021 after both opted out of the team's 2020 campaign. With Clyde Edwards-Helaire coming off a solid rookie season, in which he managed 1,100 yards from scrimmage in 13 games, Williams looks likely to be No. 2 on the depth chart in his age-29 campaign, but he certainly boasts the skill set to succeed in a change-of-pace role. With Le'Veon Bell set to hit free agency, Williams' strongest offseason competition likely will come from Darrel Williams, who saw a season-high seven targets in Super Bowl LV.

Williams compiled two rushes for five yards and a pair of receptions on seven targets for 10 yards in Super Bowl LV versus the Buccaneers.

It was a rough night all around for the Chiefs' passing attack, and Williams was no exception to the rule. On a positive note, he turned in a season-high target count in the biggest game of the year, though a lot of the designed screens were read well by the Tampa Bay defense and resulted in grounded balls. The 25-year-old back enters the offseason as a restricted free agent, so the Chiefs will have the final say on whether or not he's in a Kansas City uniform next season.

Jones rushed 12 times for 61 yards and failed to bring in his only target during the Buccaneers' 31-9 win over the Chiefs in Super Bowl LV on Sunday.

As was the case through the Buccaneers' divisional-round and conference-championship wins, Jones played a complementary role to Leonard Fournette, although he did trail his teammate in carries by only four. The third-year back may have never ceded the lead-back role to Fournette had he not been felled by a quadriceps contusion during warmups before a wild-card game against Washington, but Jones still averaged 4.0 yards per carry over the three postseason games he played in. Moreover, Jones just narrowly missed his first 1,000-yard season by 22 yards despite missing two games, and he also set a new career high with seven rushing touchdowns. With Fournette set for unrestricted free agency in March, Jones may find himself battling Ke'Shawn Vaughn for the starting running back job next season.

Edwards-Helaire had nine carries for 64 yards during Kansas City's 31-9 loss to Tampa Bay during Super Bowl LV. He also secured two of three targets for 23 yards.

Edwards-Helaire resurfaced as the clear No. 1 back while Darrel Williams (two carries) and Le'Veon Bell (zero touches) were relegated to backup duties, but with the Chiefs playing from behind almost from start to finish, he wasn't afforded many opportunities. Williams (seven targets) did see more action in the passing game than Edwards-Helaire, but he also had a costly drop in the third quarter on a would-be touchdown pass from Patrick Mahomes. All things said, Edwards-Helaire put together a healthy rookie season, with 181 carries for 803 yards (4.4 YPC) and four scores across 13 regular-season games, in addition to 36 catches (54 targets) and one more touchdown. However, his production scarcely lived up to the first-round draft capital that was required to grab him in most fantasy leagues. After apparently breaking out with 161 rushing yards against the Bills in Week 6, Edwards-Helaire failed to break the 50-yard mark on the ground in all but two of his remaining seven contests. There's no question that Edwards-Helaire is talented enough to warrant consideration as a potential breakout candidate in Year 2, and he certainly stands to benefit from Kansas City's offensive line getting healthy, but this could shape up to be a pivotal offseason for the former LSU standout.

Vaughn (coach's decision) is listed as inactive for Sunday's Super Bowl LV versus the Chiefs, Scott Smith of the Buccaneers' official site reports.

With Vaughn sidelined, the Buccaneers instead will roll with Leonard Fournette and Ronald Jones at running back, while LeSean McCoy is available in case he's needed out of the backfield.

Abdullah ended his 2020 season carrying the ball eight times for 42 yards and catching eight of his nine targets for 58 yards in 16 games. He also had two touchdown receptions

Abdullah hasn't been a fantasy asset since 2017 with the Lions. In three seasons since then between Detroit and Minnesota, he has 58 touches in 42 games. With Dalvin Cook and Alexander Mattison ahead of him on the depth chart, the 27-year-old Abdullah wasn't a vital part of the Vikings' ground attack. Abdullah, an unrestricted free agent once again, won't be much more than a depth option wherever he lands.

Gore signed a reserve/future contract with the Chiefs on Saturday, per the NFL's official transaction log.

The 26-year-old spent time on the Chargers' practice squad this season, but he'll head into the offseason with the Chiefs on a future deal. Gore has yet to make his NFL debut since going undrafted out of Louisiana-Monroe in 2019.

Patriots safety Devin McCourty expects Bolden to resume his football career in 2021, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com reports.

Bolden originally was scheduled to be a free agent this offseason, before a COVID-19 opt-out pushed the final year of his contract back to 2021. He's scheduled for a $1.98 million cap hit, with the Patriots able to free up $1.49 million if Bolden is released, per overthecap.com. The 31-year-old RB has largely made a living on special teams, getting only 52 touches in 61 regular-season appearances from 2016 to 2019.

Barkley told Rob Maaddi of the "AP Pro Football" podcast Wednesday that he's doing "really well" in his rehab from knee surgery, but the running back has yet to outline a target date for his return to action.

Barkley tore the ACL in his right knee Week 2 of the season before undergoing a procedure Oct. 30. Given the timing of his season-ending surgery, Barkley would appear to have a solid chance to be ready to run behind the Giants' revamped offensive line in time for the team's 2021 opener. His rehab process will remain worth tracking throughout the Giants' offseason program and training camp.

Washington rushed eight times for 15 yards over 11 regular-season games in 2020.

Washington saw very limited action as a running back this season, and he ended the year with one fewer touch than he saw in 2019, including no work as a receiver. He played primarily on special teams, and that's likely the role he'll fill in 2021 if he returns to the Saints. Washington will be an unrestricted free agent this offseason after spending the last three seasons with New Orleans.