NFL Player News

Mixon noted Wednesday that his ankle is feeling better, Tyler Dragon of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Mixon added that he's hopeful he'll be able play Sunday against the 49ers, but such an outcome is far from a lock. Another update on Mixon should come later Wednesday, when the Bengals' practice report will reveal the extent of his participation in the team's first session of the week.

Coach Bruce Arians said Jones would stick in a backup role Thursday against the Panthers with Peyton Barber retaining the staring gig at running back, Greg Auman of The Athletic reports.

Barber's starting assignment doesn't necessarily kill Jones' weekly or season-long fantasy upside, as Arians noted that he would ride the hot hand between the two backs as Thursday's game rolls along. Jones was the better producer of the two in the Week 1 loss to the 49ers, taking 13 carries for 75 yards while Barber grinded out 33 yards on eight totes. Both backs will still have to contend with Dare Ogunbowale handling the majority of the work on passing downs, but another standout showing from Jones on the ground might be enough for him to push past Barber on the depth chart heading into Week 3.

Edmonds had a five-yard carry during Sunday's 27-27 tie with Detroit. He was targeted once, but was unable to make the catch.

One carry and one target is not a great start and the timing of both paint an even less rosy picture. Edmonds' lone target came on a short pass facing third and long late in the second quarter. His lone carry was on the final play of the first half, allowing the clock to run out. Edmonds didn't get a lot of work as David Johnson's backup in 2018, and now the Cardinals are running their offense with more four-receiver sets and a quarterback who is himself a threat to run the ball. Edmonds is unlikely to get enough touches on any given week to be a fantasy factor.

Freeman accounted for 56 rushing yards on 10 carries, while also registering a five-yard catch during Monday's 24-16 loss to Oakland.

In what appeared to be a bizarro version of the 2018 Broncos backfield, it was Freeman -- and not the electrifying Phillip Lindsay -- who turned out to be Denver's most efficient rusher on a per-carry basis. Largely boosted by a 26-yard scamper that he peeled off midway through the third quarter, Freeman cruised to a 5.6 yards-per-carry clip while Lindsay was contained to fewer than 4.0 yards per rush. It's arguable that Oakland will turn into a proficient run defense with additions of Clelin Ferrell and Vontaze Burfict to the front seven, along with the arrival of rookie enforcer Johnathan Abram. But even with those additions, the Raiders' offering remains a far cry from what the Bears -- coming off a No. 1 finish in rush defense during 2018 -- will bring to the table in opposing Denver's backfield in Week 2.

Perine saw just one snap against the Seahawks on Sunday and wasn't given a carry.

The new addition from the Redskins was up against it with a short time to learn the Bengals offense, but even after Joe Mixon got hurt in the third quarter, the Bengals still didn't look for him.

Jacobs ran for 85 yards and two touchdowns on 23 carries, while adding a 28-yard reception on his only target during Monday's 24-16 win against Denver.

After fielding eight carries per game last year in the Alabama backfield alongside Damien Harris and Najee Harris, the No. 24 overall pick was thrust into a bellcow role Week 1, commanding 82.8 percent of the Raiders' running back touches. A Broncos defense that surrendered the eighth-most 20-plus yard runs last year was susceptible once again to the ground attack Monday night, allowing Jacobs to gain six-plus yards on five of his 23 carries, while twice seeing the powerful rookie back surge his way through stacked goal-line boxes to hit pay dirt from inside the five-yard line. In Week 2, Jacobs will go up against a Kansas City defense that faced just 16 rush attempts from the Jaguars on Sunday, but allowed 5.1 yards per carry on those plays.

Mostert moves up to second on the 49ers' running back depth chart with Tevin Coleman (ankle) already ruled out for Week 2, Jennifer Lee Chan of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

We got a brief look at Mostert's potential role over the final two and a half quarters of Week 1's matchup against the Buccaneers where he rushed for 40 yards on nine carries. The 27-year-old possesses breakaway speed, as evidenced by his 7.7 YPC in a limited role last season. Matt Breida figures to see the largest share of carries against the Bengals on Sunday, but Mostert could see 30-40 percent of running back touches if last week was any indicator. Coleman currently doesn't have a firm timetable for his return, so Mostert is worth taking a mid-level flier on during the waiver period because Breida has shown signs of being injury-prone early in his career (he even left Sunday's game briefly due to dehydration before returning).

Breida should be in line for a larger share of carries with Tevin Coleman (ankle) already ruled out for Sunday's matchup against the Bengals, according to Jennifer Lee Chan of NBC Sports Bay Area.

Breida now becomes San Francisco's top rushing option following the injury news, although he was already expected to be a significant part of the backfield rotation this year. The 24-year-old had a quiet season debut (15 carries for 37 yards) after taking over for Coleman against the Buccaneers on Sunday, but don't let that deter you from rolling the big-play back (5.3 YPC in 2018) against the Bengals this week. Raheem Mostert figures to occupy Breida's "1B" role until Coleman can return to action.

Murray rushed six times for 43 yards and a touchdown in Monday night's 30-28 win over the Texans.

Murray also caught two of his three targets for a total of four yards, but his Saints debut was undoubtedly highlighted by his 30-yard touchdown scamper to begin the second quarter. For someone who had scored 20 of his 26 rushing touchdowns over the past three seasons from inside the 10-yard line, Murray's long-distance end-zone trip marked an unusual occurrence. As New Orleans' new big-bodied complement to superstar speedster Alvin Kamara in their accomplished running game, Murray's play Monday only enhances his outlook ahead of Week 2's matchup against the Rams.

Kamara rushed 13 times for 97 yards and caught seven of eight targets for 72 yards in Monday night's 30-28 win over the Texans.

Kamara got off to a slow start, but progressively made a bigger impact as the game unfolded. Along with a 28-yard run to nearly get him over 100 on the ground, Kamara went for 41 yards on a reception, showing his signature big-play ability in both departments. Although it was backup Latavius Murray who ripped off a 30-yard touchdown Monday, Kamara's 169 yards of offense still made for an impressive season debut, even by his superstar standards.