NFL Player News

McCaffrey returned to practice Friday, Max Henson of the Panthers' official site reports.

McCaffrey was held out of Thursday's session in order to rest, but his presence on the field offers assurance he'll be good to go for the Panthers' Week 16 matchup with Atlanta. For the first time in his career, McCaffrey will have to adapt to a new quarterback, as Taylor Heinicke is set to fill in for the injured Cam Newton (shoulder) over the final two contests.

Penny (knee) was held out of practice Thursday, Brady Henderson of ESPN.com reports.

With a pair of DNPs under his belt this week, Penny is trending toward a second consecutive absence as a result of a knee injury. He could flip the script Friday by returning to practice in some capacity, making the Seahawks' final Week 16 practice report one to watch out for. With Penny's status still in limbo, Chris Carson (28 touches Week 15) and Mike Davis (13) are poised to handle the bulk of the backfield reps Sunday versus the Chiefs.

Breida (ankle) was a limited practice participant Thursday, Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

In the wake of another aggravation of his ankle injury, Breida has been able to practice in a limited capacity this week, which mostly is par for the course with the 49ers' starting running back. An absence aside Week 14, he's played at least 39 percent of the offensive snaps in 10 of 13 appearances. In his most recent one Week 15 against the Seahawks, he logged a season-best 73 percent of those snaps, which translated to 96 scrimmage yards on 22 touches. If he's at all hindered this Sunday against the Bears, though, Jeff Wilson is on hand to help fuel the ground game.

Conner (ankle) did not practice Thursday.

Conner has missed the Steelers' last two games and back-to-back missed practices this week hint at another absence Sunday against the Saints. If he ends up sitting out that contest, rookie Jaylen Samuels would once again head the Pittsburgh backfield in Week 16, with Stevan Ridley on hand to work in a complementary role.

Ford is expected to handle a reduced role Sunday against the Patriots after fellow running backs LeSean McCoy (hamstring) and Chris Ivory (shoulder) turned in full practices Thursday.

Both McCoy and Ivory were sidelined for the Week 15 win over the Lions, resulting in Ford slotting in as the main backup to Marcus Murphy. When Murphy (elbow) exited early with an injury of his own, Ford was pressed into an extended role in his NFL debut, logging 14 carries for 46 yards and hauling in his lone target for seven yards. Murphy is now out of the picture after being placed on injured reserve earlier this week, but Ford will sink to third on the depth chart with McCoy and Ivory on track to play Sunday in New England. Unless the Bills opt to deliberately limit the veterans' workloads over the final two games, it's hard to envision Ford getting double-digit touches again in 2018.

Patterson missed practice Thursday due to an illness.

We'd expect Patterson to recover in time for Sunday's game against the Bills, at which time he should see an uptick in snaps, given that Josh Gordon is no longer in the Patriots' wideout mix. The same applies to both Chris Hogan and Phillip Dorsett, who will vie with Patterson for the team's Week 16 wide receiver targets that don't go to Julian Edelman.

Williams (toe) logged a limited practice Wednesday, Michael Cohen of The Athletic reports.

For the second straight session, Williams' workload was capped as he tends to a toe injury. He's expected to fill in as the Packers' lead back with Aaron Jones (knee) on injured reserve, but owners may have to wait until Friday to get some clarification on his availability for Sunday's road game against the Jets. The only other running back on the 53-man roster is Kapri Bibbs.

Gordon (knee) does not carry an injury designation for Saturday night's game against the Ravens, Ricky Henne of the Chargers' official site reports.

Gordon, who has missed the Chargers' past three games with an MCL issue, is thus poised to return to action Saturday and assuming no in-game setbacks, he should be ready to head the team's Week 16 backfield. That said, it remains to be seen how close to his normal workload he'll see in his first game back, with coach Anthony acknowledging via Ross Tucker of SiriusXM that "Melvin's practiced all week and he's doing fine. I don't know that he's himself but he's going to play." With Austin Ekeler (neck) listed as doubtful and expected to be inactive, Justin Jackson will be next in line for carries when the Chargers wish to spell Gordon this weekend.

The Chargers list Ekeler (neck/concussion) as doubtful for Saturday's game against the Ravens.

Per Sam Fortier of The Athletic, coach Anthony Lynn effectively ruled Ekeler out for the second straight game after meeting with the media Thursday, though the running back will technically carry the doubtful designation into the weekend. Ekeler was unable to practice at any point Tuesday through Thursday, with Lynn relaying that the 23-year-old remains in the concussion protocol and continues to deal with weakness in his shoulder. Fortunately for the Chargers, top back Melvin Gordon (knee) will be available Saturday after a three-game absence, leaving Justin Jackson to fill the complementary role that has typically fallen to Ekeler.

Mixon (wrist/thigh) was a limited participant in Thursday's practice, Jay Morrison of The Athletic reports.

Mixon replicated his activity level from Wednesday but may have gotten dinged up along the way, as he had previously been listed on the Bengals' report with only a wrist issue. Neither the wrist nor the thigh injury should prevent him from suiting up Sunday in Cleveland, though Mixon's fantasy managers would surely prefer to have him avoid a designation heading into the contest. If he suits up as anticipated, Mixon should be in store for another ample workload on the ground after amassing 53 carries over the past two weeks while averaging a healthy 4.5 yards per tote.