NFL Player News

Patterson left Sunday's game against the Vikings and is being evaluated for a concussion.

As evidenced by this news, Patterson will now enter the league's concussion protocol and need to be cleared by an independent neurologist in order to return. As long as the veteran is sidelined, Anthony Miller will likely take over kick return duties.

Boone is expected to serve as the Vikings' lead option on the ground Sunday against the Bears with Dalvin Cook (shoulder) and Alexander Mattison (ankle) both inactive for the contest.

While the Vikings' top two backs on the depth chart were sidelined in the Week 16 loss to the Packers, Boone drew his first NFL start but couldn't capitalize on the opportunity, carrying 11 times for 28 yards and notching a five-yard reception. Boone should be on the field for the Vikings' initial snaps again in the regular-season finale, but if he struggles to get going early, coach Mike Zimmer could choose to rely more heavily on fourth-stringer Ameer Abdullah. In the loss to Green Bay, Abdullah served as the top pass-catching specialist out of the backfield (six catches for 31 yards on seven targets) and nearly matched Boone's output on the ground on far fewer carries (four totes for 27 yards).

Cook (shoulder), who is inactive for Sunday's contest against the Bears, is planning to return from a two-game absence for the Vikings' wild-card matchup next weekend, Chad Graff of The Athletic reports.

Cook has only been able to practice on a limited basis since injuring his shoulder in the second half of the Vikings' Week 15 win over the Chargers, but he may have pushed harder to play in the regular-season finale if Minnesota had playoff positioning at stake. Instead, since the Vikings are locked in as the NFC's No. 6 seed regardless of how Week 17 action plays out, Cook will benefit from some additional time to rest his shoulder. Graff notes that Cook was still taking part in warmup drills Sunday despite being inactive, an early sign that he'll be ready to handle a full workload by the time the postseason arrives.

Williams (shoulder) is listed as inactive Sunday at Detroit, Ryan Wood of the Green Bay Press-Gazette reports.

Missing just the second game of his three-year career, Williams will defer to Dexter Williams and Tyler Ervin as the backup running backs to Aaron Jones. Depending on the result of this Week 17 contest, Jamaal Williams may have two weeks to rest up before the Packers take the field again.

Mattison (ankle) is inactive for Sunday's game against the Bears.

While continuing to manage the ankle injury, Mattison was unable to advance beyond limited participation in practice this week. Because the Vikings are already locked in as the NFC's No. 6 seed entering Sunday, Mattison won't be asked to play through the injury with the playoffs on the horizon. Both Mattison and Dalvin Cook (shoulder) should be ready to go for the wild-card round, but Mike Boone and Ameer Abdullah will headline the Minnesota backfield in the meaningless regular-season finale.

Singletary is inactive for Sunday's game against the Jets.

John Brown, Cole Beasley and Dawson Knox will also sit this one out, with the Bills locked into their No. 5 playoff seed.

The Jaguars promoted McNichols to the active roster Saturday, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reports.

With Leonard Fournette (neck) doubtful for Sunday's season finale against the Colts, McNichols will add depth in the Jags' backfield. The 24-year-old McNichols hasn't played an NFL game this year, and he's only played in three games since entering the league in 2017.

Kelly was promoted to the Rams' active roster Saturday.

With Darrell Henderson (ankle) on injured reserve, Kelly will serve as the No. 3 running back in Sunday's season finale against the Cardinals. Kelly -- a sixth-round pick by the Rams in the 2018 NFL Draft -- has suited up in seven NFL games, rushing 30 times for 81 yards (2.7 yards per carry) and catching two passes for 27 yards.

Jacobs (shoulder/illness) has been downgraded to out for Sunday's game against the Broncos.

Initially deemed doubtful, it's no surprise that Jacobs will sit out for the season finale. DeAndre Washington and Jalen Richard will handle the backfield against the Broncos. Jacobs -- a rookie first-rounder out of Alabama -- had a fantastic season prior to fracturing his shoulder, and he'll end the season with 1,150 rushing yards and seven touchdowns while adding 20 catches for 166 yards. He should be able to make a full recovery for the 2020 season and resume duties as a bell cow.

Barner doesn't carry an injury designation heading into Week 17's game against Tampa Bay.

Barner was upgraded to a full participant in Friday's practice after managing both shoulder and hip injuries. The veteran is expected to handle return duties for the game while providing depth at the running back position behind Devonta Freeman and Brian Hill for Week 17.