NFL Player News

Dillon (quadricep) doesn't have an injury designation for Sunday's game against Tampa Bay, Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

The quad injury limited Dillon's practice participation but won't impact his availability for the NFC Championship Game. He took six carries for 27 yards in a 32-18 divisional-round win over Los Angeles last week, playing 12 percent of Green Bay's snaps on offense.

Edwards-Helaire (ankle/hip) is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against Buffalo.

Le'Veon Bell (knee) also is listed as questionable, after missing practice Thursday and Friday. Edwards-Helaire was a limited participant each day this week, making his bid to play in a game for the first time since Week 15. With both Edwards-Helaire and Bell looking truly questionable, Darrel Williams could maintain a key role in the KC backfield, after he took 17 touches for 94 yards in the wild-card win over Cleveland. Bell got only three carries last week, so he could fall out of the picture even if he's healthy enough to play.

Huntley rushed five times for 19 yards and caught one of two targets for no gain across five games of the 2020 season.

Until Week 17, Huntley only saw time in the offense in the three games Miles Sanders missed due to injury and even then only played 11 snaps behind Boston Scott and Corey Clement. If the 2020 fifth-rounder is back with the Eagles next season, it will again be in a depth and special-teams role.

Dillon (quadricep) was a limited practice participant Thursday, Olivia Reiner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Dillon was knocked out of the later stages of the Packers' divisional-round win against the Rams with a quad issue, which so far has resulted in a cap on his practice reps this week. Coach Matt LaFleur told Ryan Wood of the Green Bay Press-Gazette on Monday that he's "hopeful" Dillon will be able to suit up for Sunday's NFC Championship Game versus the Buccaneers. With two practices under his belt, Dillon is trending in the right direction, but Friday's injury report may give a sense of whether or not that's the case.

Williams (ankle) practiced in a limited fashion Thursday, Olivia Reiner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Both Williams and AJ Dillon (quadriceps) have had their practice reps managed this week. If the duo is able to gain clearance to play in Sunday's NFC Championship Game against the Buccaneers, Williams and Dillon will play second and third fiddle, respectively, to top running back Aaron Jones.

Edwards-Helaire (ankle/hip) remained limited at practice Thursday.

Meanwhile, Le'Veon Bell (knee) didn't practice Thursday, which sets the stage for Friday's session to be pivotal with regard to the official status -- heading into Championship weekend -- of two key members of the Kansas City's backfield. At present, Darrel Williams is the team's top healthy running back option. Edwards-Helaire -- who led the Chiefs with 803 rushing yards in 13 regular-season outings -- last saw game action Week 15.

Jones (quad/finger) was limited at practice Thursday, Adam Caplan of SiriusXM NFL Radio reports.

Jones picked up a few bumps and bruises near the end of the regular season and prior to Tampa Bay's playoff opener at Washington. While he only played 29 percent of the offensive snaps during the divisional-round win in New Orleans, he churned out a healthy 62 yards on 13 rushes (4.8 YPC). In the same game, Leonard Fournette led the Bucs backfield, turning 22 touches into 107 yards from scrimmage and one TD. Assuming Jones is able to suit up again Sunday at Green Bay, he seems poised to play second fiddle to Fournette yet again.

Homer (knee) is one of three running backs under contract with the Seahawks for 2021, Lindsey Wisniewski of SI.com reports.

Chris Carson, Carlos Hyde and Alex Collins can all become unrestricted free agents, while Homer, Rashaad Penny (knee) and DeeJay Dallas are still on rookie contracts. Homer, a 2019 sixth-round pick, has mostly served as a passing-down specialist to this point in his career, handling a role that emphasizes blocking. He finished 2020 on injured reserve with a knee injury, but coach Pete Carroll hinted that the 22-year-old might have bene able to return if the Seahawks had made a deep playoff run. It thus stands to reason that Homer should be healthy before the start of the offseason program in April/May, though he may end up on the roster bubble anyway.

McKinnon said he won't be re-signing with the 49ers, KNBR.com reports.

McKinnon used some pretty strong language, leaving no doubt he plans to find a new team. After missing the entire 2018 and 2019 campaigns due to knee injuries, the veteran running back played all 16 games in 2020, taking 81 carries for 319 yards and five touchdowns and adding 33 catches for 253 yards and another score. McKinnon made starts in Weeks 3,4, 9 and 10, but he otherwise worked as a passing-down specialist, getting just four carries over San Francisco's final six games of the season. He can become an unrestricted free agent in March, and he'll turn 29 in May.

The Steelers could try to re-sign Conner, but they won't necessarily bring him back as their starting running back, Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Conner was the team's lead back for the final three season of his rookie contract, starting with a breakout 2018 in which he piled up 1,470 total yards and 13 touchdowns in 13 games. He sunk to 715 yards and seven TDs in 10 games the next season, before putting up 936 yards and six scores across 13 appearances in 2020. The 2017 third-round pick can become an unrestricted free agent in March, two months prior to his 26th birthday. Staying in Pittsburgh might give him his best shot at a starting job, though it would depend on the team's other transactions in free agency and the draft. None of the guys behind Conner in the Pittsburgh backfield -- Benny Snell, Anthony McFarland, Jaylen Samuels -- was able to make a significant impact in 2020, with the team finishing dead last in both rushing yards (1,351) and yards per carry (3.6).