NFL Player News

Wilson survived the 49ers' final roster cutdown over the weekend and will be one four runnings back on the team's 53-man unit heading into Sunday's season opener versus the Cardinals.

The top three remembers on the 49ers' running-back depth chart were already set in stone, so Wilson was primarily competing with undrafted rookie JaMycal Hasty for one roster spot. The former's inability to qualify for a traditional practice squad spot was likely enough to give him the edge over Hasty. Wilson should only be considered depth to begin the season, and he'll likely be one of the 49ers' healthy inactives Week 1.

Taylor (undisclosed) was added to the reserve/non-football injury on Saturday, Mike Spofford of the team's official site reports.

Taylor spent all of training camp on the active/non-football injury list and will now shuffle to the NFI list for the remainder of the season as he continues to recover from an undisclosed injury.

The Browns signed Kelly to their practice squad Tuesday, Matt Zenitz of AL.com reports.

After the Rams selected him in the sixth round of the 2018 draft, Kelly wasn't afforded much opportunity in a backfield led by Todd Gurley. In the post-Gurley landscape, the RB group was trimmed down to a top three of Malcolm Brown, Darrell Henderson (hamstring) and Cam Akers. The Rams proceeded to waive Kelly, who now will look to work his way up to the Browns' active roster.

The Giants waived Feaster on Saturday, Michael Eisen of the team's official site reports.

Feaster spent time with both the Jaguars and Giants in the offseason. In his final season at South Carolina, the undrafted rookie had 124 carries for 672 yards and five touchdowns.

The Titans cut Marshall on Sunday, Erik Bacharach of the Nashville Tennessean reports.

Marshall spent the offseason in Tennessee, but he didn't manage to earn a role on the regular-season roster. He spent the 2019 campaign on Kansas City's practice squad after having gone undrafted out of James Madison.

Akers is listed as the No. 3 running back behind Malcolm Brown and Darrell Henderson (hamstring) on the Rams' first unofficial depth chart of the 2020 season.

"Unofficial" is the key word here and should be taken with a grain of salt. As a five-year veteran and a player about to embark on his fourth season with coach Sean McVay, Brown had a clear path to the top job. Having said that, McVay himself told Kevin Modesti of the Los Angeles Daily News on Monday that he intends to use a three-back rotation, with touches to be handed out based on how Week 1 prep goes and how Sunday's game versus the Cowboys proceeds. Akers may have the most promise of the trio, but he'll seemingly work behind Brown and perhaps Henderson right away, based on how the latter's hamstring injury holds up this week.

Ahmed was cut by the Dolphins on Saturday, Safid Deen and Omar Kelly of the South Florida Sun Sentinel report.

Ahmed will stick with the franchise in a practice squad role, per Josh Tolentino of The Athletic. He'll compete with fellow Washington product Myles Gaskin for the first spot in line should an injury befall any of the running backs on the 53-man roster.

The Cardinals signed Ward to the practice squad Sunday, Tadd Haislop of SportingNews.com reports.

The undrafted rookie out of Central Michigan spent the offseason in Arizona. Though he wasn't able to carve out a spot on the initial regular-season roster, he could end up being called upon as an emergency option down the road.

Dobbins is listed as the No. 4 running back on Baltimore's depth chart.

Fellow 2020 draft pick Patrick Queen is listed as a starter at inside linebacker, so it can't be said that the Ravens are universally deferring to veterans on their initial depth chart. However, reports from training camp suggested Dobbins was both busy and impressive on the practice field, and coach John Harbaugh said last week that he expects the rookie to have a significant role on offense. In all likelihood, Dobbins is still in line to take some carries Week 1 against the Browns, presumably mixing in behind starter Mark Ingram. Just to be safe, fantasy managers should check back Sunday morning after inactive lists are released, as there's a decent chance Baltimore will have one of its four running backs among the healthy scratches. Gus Edwards and Justice Hill are the other options, but it is possible Dobbins could be the scratch if the offensive gameplan revolves around Ingram while the other two guys are scheduled for significant work on special teams. Either way, Ingram is the smarter fantasy choice for Week 1.

Rams head coach Sean McVay said Monday he expects to use a three-man backfield "rotation" consisting of Akers, Malcolm Brown and Darrell Henderson (hamstring) in Los Angeles' Sept. 13 season opener versus the Cowboys, Kevin Modesti of the Los Angeles Daily News reports. "That's a three-back rotation that you feel really good about," McVay said. "Exactly how those carries will be distributed is something we'll determine really as the week progresses and as the game unfolds."

The three-man committee is contingent on Henderson receiving clearance for Week 1, something McVay said he's "optimistic" will happen. Because Henderson missed extensive practice time with the injury, Akers and Brown appear to be the better bets to handle shares of snaps and touches in the season opener as the Rams transition to life after Todd Gurley. Running backs coach Thomas Brown previously said in August that he would like to see one player emerge as a "clear-cut guy who takes the majority of the reps," but any battle for the lead role will extend into the regular season. Akers, a rookie second-round pick, possesses the physical qualities to eventually claim a three-down job. The Florida State product submitted a 4.47-second 40-yard dash time while checking in at 5-foot-10 and 227 pounds at the NFL Scouting Combine, and he proved effective as a receiver during his final year with the Seminoles, hauling in 30 of 42 targets for 225 yards and four touchdowns.