NFL Player News

Sanders carried the ball three times for three yards in Thursday's preseason loss to the Titans.

The Eagles deployed a true backfield committee in their preseason opener, with five different RBs getting either three or four carries, but Sanders may have been the least impressive of the bunch. The rookie still has plenty of upside given his athleticism and the investment the team made in him as a second-round pick, but Sanders will need to show more than this if he wants to overtake Jordan Howard at the top of the depth chart.

Edmonds rushed twice for four yards in the Cardinals' 17-13 preseason win over the Chargers on Thursday.

Despite the fact he'd been working with the first team the majority of training camp thus far, Edmonds saw minimal action Thursday. The 2018 fourth-round pick came in on the Cardinals' second series after David Johnson started the contest, but he was unable to find much running room on his pair of carries. Edmonds enjoyed a fairly solid rookie season considering the sub-par offensive cast around him, as he garnered 311 total yards from scrimmage on 80 total touches. He'll likely see a boost in carries during the Cardinals' second preseason game against the Raiders next Thursday.

McNichols rushed the ball eight times for 44 yards in the team's first preseason game against the Eagles.

McNichols gained 37 of his 44 yards on one rush early in the second quarter, when he made a nice cutback move to burst through the line. He continued to weave through the open field to turn in the team's longest rush of the contest. The former Buc was listed as the fourth-string back on the team's first unofficial depth chart but was the second RB on the field in the preseason opener with Derrick Henry (calf) and David Fluellen (ankle) not in uniform, though McNichols could make the team due to his strong potential as a receiver out of the backfield.

Higdon rushed eight times for 37 yards in Thursday's 28-26 preseason opening loss to the Packers.

Higdon finished with two more carries and 13 more yards than fellow undrafted rookie Damarea Crockett, but Crockett also had a touchdown while Higdon failed to find the end zone. It's unlikely more than one of these two running backs makes the roster, especially with the Texans trading for Duke Johnson earlier Thursday, so Higdon will have his work cut out for him throughout the remainder of the preseason.

Artis-Payne rushed five times for eight yards and caught both his targets for 30 yards in Thursday night's 23-13 preseason win over the Bears.

Artis-Payne started at tailback for the Panthers and registered a 17-yard reception on the team's second offensive play. He then hauled in a 13-yarder on the second play of Carolina's second drive, but otherwise was held in check. The veteran was replaced by Elijah Holyfield in the second quarter, and although the rookie would score two touchdowns (one rushing, one receiving) while featuring until the end of the game, he also lost a fumble. That performance left a mixed impression as Holyfield aims to move up the depth chart, and the incumbent second-stringer Artis-Payne should get more time to show his stuff in next week's meeting with the Bills.

Drake registered 12 rushing yards on four carries during Thursday's 34-27 win against the Falcons.

Drake ripped off a nine-yard rush on the game's very first play from scrimmage, but managed just three yards on his subsequent three carries before being pulled. It wasn't exactly an inspiring 2019 debut for the 25-year-old back, but given the context of the game and the fact that he only received four offensive touches, there's no change in his value as result of this performance. Drake is evidently a home-run hitter as a rusher (11 rushes of 20-plus yards on 253 carries the past two seasons), but what was most noteworthy last year was his uptick in receiving. In 2018, Drake eclipsed previous career highs in receptions (32), receiving yards (239) and TDs (one) by counts of 21, 238 and four, respectively

Williams rushed eight times for 24 yards and brought in five of six targets for 33 yards in the Colts' 24-16 preseason loss to the Bills on Thursday.

Williams gave a solid accounting of himself with plenty of work beginning late in the first quarter and going through the third. The 2016 fifth-round pick is battling for a backup role after having only played three games since the end of his rookie campaign, and Thursday's effort was certainly a good start for Williams in making a case for himself. However, he has plenty of quality competition for a roster spot, as incumbent Jordan Wilkins and fellow newcomers D'Onta Foreman and Spencer Ware (PUP-ankle) are all vying for complementary early-down work behind Marlon Mack.

Montgomery rushed three times for 16 yards and a touchdown and caught all three of his targets for 30 yards in Thursday night's 23-13 preseason loss to the Panthers.

Montgomery showed just why there's significant hype surrounding him ahead of his rookie campaign. Not only did he display his open-field ability on a 23-yard catch during the second quarter, but he capped that same drive with a seven-yard touchdown scamper. Although veteran tailback Mike Davis got the start, his three rushes for nine yards in a target-free outing certainly left Montgomery as Chicago's most impressive performer at the position, adding more steam to his preseason stock.

Chubb caught a 14-yard pass and enjoyed a 12-yard run during Thursday's 30-10 win over Washington.

Chubb's touches came on back-to-back plays on the Browns' opening touchdown drive before he was rested for the remainder of the contest. Gaining some chunk yardage early is an encouraging beginning for Chubb, who's coming off of an exciting rookie campaign. He figures to be plenty busy during the first half of the season with Kareem Hunt serving a suspension, Duke Johnson in Houston, and little experienced depth behind him.

Singletary rushed nine times for 27 yards and brought in all three of his targets for 21 more yards in the Bills' 24-16 preseason win over the Colts on Thursday.

The rookie third-round pick saw the heaviest workload of all the Bills' running backs, and his three receptions actually led all the team's pass catchers as well. Singletary is currently slotted third on the team's first unofficial depth chart, but if Thursday's exhibition opener is any indication, it's clear coach Sean McDermott plans to give the Florida Atlantic product a long look in preseason. The real upside for Singletary is if anything were to happen to LeSean McCoy, or if the Bills eventually decided to punt on the veteran's salary.