NFL Player News

Gillislee finished the 2017 season with 104 carries for 383 yards and five TDs to go along with one catch for 15 yards in nine games.

As he was at times down the stretch during the regular season, Gillislee was a healthy scratch for Sunday's Super Bowl against the Eagles. The 27-year-old scored four of his TDs in the Patriots' first two games and subsequently saw teammate Dion Lewis supplant him as the team's top back. Gillislee remains under contract with New England in 2018, but it's not out of the question that the Patriots consider parting ways with him, with the running back's contract for next season not calling for any guaranteed money.

Clement rushed just three times for eight yards but hauled in four of five targets for a team-high 100 yards and a touchdown during the Eagles' 41-33 win over the Patriots in Super Bowl LII on Sunday. He also returned one kickoff for 25 yards.

The rookie more than made up for his minimal role in the ground game with an outstanding effort through the air, a performance he punctuated with an acrobatic 22-yard touchdown reception with 7:18 remaining in the third quarter. It appeared that Clement may have not had full control of the ball at the time that each of his feet landed inbounds, but the call ultimately survived replay review. The former Wisconsin Badger also notched a game-long 55-yard reception, and he put together a respectable first season that included a combined 444 rushing and receiving yards and six total touchdowns. His performance Sunday could serve as a springboard to a bigger role in 2018, particularly if the team opts to not bring free-agent-to-be LeGarrette Blount back into the fold.

Gillislee (coach's decision) is inactive for Sunday's Super Bowl against the Eagles.

Gillislee avoided the injury report this week, suggesting the knee injury that's plagued him in the second half of the season was behind him. After calling himself a game-time decision for this game Wednesday, the relative health of the Patriots backfield likely made head coach Bill Belichick's decision an easy one. With Gillislee on the sideline again, the Patriots will rely on Dion Lewis, James White and Rex Burkhead to man the running back position.

Gillislee (knee) does not carry an injury designation for Super Bowl LII.

Gillislee is thus slated to be available for Sunday's game against the Eagles, though with Dion Lewis, James White and Rex Burkhead also in the Patriots' backfield mix, it's possible that Gillislee could be made inactive for the contest in the event that the team chooses not to suit up four running backs.

Though not listed on the Patriots' injury report after practicing fully Wednesday, Gillislee (knee) calls himself a game-time decision for Super Bowl LII, WEEI.com reports. "As far as health-wise, I am almost there," Gillislee noted Wednesday. "I am not where I want to be. I have battled a couple of injuries this year, but I was able to be healthy this week enough to practice. That has been great."

Given his current level of practice participation, Gillislee is clearly trending in the right direction in terms of his potential availability for Sunday's game against the Eagles. That said, Gillislee is not a lock to suit up for the contest even if he is physically capable of doing so, with Dion Lewis, James White and Rex Burkhead also in the Patriots' backfield mix.

Rawls had a miserable season, averaging 2.71 yards per carry, third lowest in the league among backs with at least 50 rushes.

Rawls was limited by an ankle injury in training camp, but that had little bearing on his awful season. The team gave up on him after a poor Week 10 showing when he rushed 10 times for 27 yards (one of two games with double-digit carries). Thereafter, he got just nine carries in the final seven games. Rawls hits the hole hard, but runs with too much impatience, seemingly trying to break off a long run on every carry. He is a restricted free agent, but the Seahawks are not expected to re-sign him.

Gillislee (knee) wasn't listed on the Patriots' injury report Wednesday.

During the bye between championship weekend and the Super Bowl, the Patriots provided game statuses as if they were playing this past Sunday. Gillislee was listed as questionable, which likely would have resulted in inactive status due to the Pats' game-day rosters during the second half of the season. With no designation in the week immediately preceding the Super Bowl, there seems to be a chance he'll be active for the second time since Week 8. On Wednesday, Gillislee told Tom Pelissero of NFL.com that "we'll have to see" regarding his chances to suit up Sunday against the Eagles, but it would surprise in a backfield with a clean bill of health at the moment.

The Giants signed Watson to a contract Wednesday, Chris Adamski of TribLive.com reports.

Watson opened the 2017 season as the Steelers' No. 3 running back, but didn't do much in the role and was demoted to the practice squad by year's end. He's an interesting name to keep an eye on in redraft leagues ahead of the 2018 campaign given the uncertainty in the Giants backfield.

Gillislee (knee) was listed as a limited participant on Wednesday's posted practice estimation.

While Gillislee's knee was not sufficiently recovered to play in the AFC championship game this past Sunday, we suspect that he'll be available for the Super Bowl against the Eagles on Feb. 4. That said, in such a scenario, he's not a lock to be active, and if he is, he'd work behind Dion Lewis, while adding depth to a running back rotation that would also include Rex Burkhead and James White.

Ellington had two carries for five yards and six catches on nine targets for 72 yards in four games with the Texans.

Ellington began the 2017 season as a pass-catching specialist for the Cardinals and had some productive games early. His name was mentioned as a possible fill-in when David Johnson suffered a season-ending wrist injury in Week 1. However, the Cardinals went to great lengths to avoid using Ellington in the RB rotation. The 28-year-old was eventually released and landed with the Texans for the final weeks of the season. There were opportunities for Ellington as a receiver in Houston due to injuries at wideout, and he played 47 snaps in his Week 13 debut. However, as the injury situation improved, Ellington was limited to just 22 snaps over the final four weeks. The Texans are already set at running back with Lamar Miller and D'Onta Foreman. If Alfred Blue returns to the fold, there will be little room for Ellington.