NFL Player News

Gillislee may be a cap casualty for the Patriots during the offseason, Jake Levin of NBC 10 Boston reports.

Signed to a two-year, $6.4 million contract last April, Gillislee opened 2017 as the Patriots' lead runner and scored four touchdowns the first two weeks, but averaged only 3.7 yards per carry on the season and mostly served as a healthy scratch from October onward. The 27-year-old does have a couple things working in his favor, with his front-heavy contract carrying a modest 2018 cap charge of approximately $2.2 million, while teammates Dion Lewis and Rex Burkhead are set to become unrestricted free agents. Even if both players head elsewhere and Gillislee is retained, the Patriots likely will find a draft pick or free agent to provide competition for carries. James White is locked in as the Patriots' pass-catching specialist and is signed through 2020.

Ogunbowale was waived by the Redskins on Tuesday.

Ogunbowale spent the final two weeks of the regular season on Washington's 53-man roster but was not active for either game. The former Wisconsin Badger will look for a new landing spot heading into his sophomore professional season.

McCaffrey likely will have a new backfield partner in 2018, though he could see more touches as a result of Jonathan Stewart's recent release, Max Henson of the Panthers' official website reports. "I think you do need to have that in the NFL today," Panthers head coach Ron Rivera said Thursday at the NFL Scouting Combine. "It's tough to have one guy that just dominates a game. You have to have guys that have similar characteristics but also do something special that can separate them."

McCaffrey had nearly as many targets (113) as carries (117) in his rookie season, with 59.9 percent of his 1,086 scrimmage yards and five of his seven touchdowns coming through the air. His mark of 3.7 yards per carry may not seem to beg for an expanded role in the rushing attack, but he at least was more effective than the recently released Stewart, who managed just 3.4 yards per tote. The Panthers likely want McCaffrey to take on a portion of Stewart's vacated carries, with the rest going to Cameron Artis-Payne, a draft pick or a free-agent signing. The No. 8 overall pick from last year's draft figures to take on more work in Year 2, but a regular three-down role shouldn't be assumed.

Abdullah will need to prove himself to the Lions' new coaching staff, ESPN.com's Michael Rothstein reports.

Lions general manager Bob Quinn seemed to acknowledge that Abdullah isn't a special talent, but Quinn nonetheless is hopeful the 2015 second-round pick can be a productive part of the team's 2018 backfield. Abdullah managed just 552 yards on 165 carries (3.3 average) and 162 yards on 25 catches (6.5 average) last season, but he at least managed to play 14 games after logging just two appearances the previous year. With Theo Riddick locked in on passing downs, Abdullah could find his roster spot in jeopardy if the Lions bring in an early draft pick or pricey free agent to compete for early-down work. The team did retain offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter, who has done excellent work with Matthew Stafford despite failing to establish a respectable running game.

Jones (knee) pleaded no contest Wednesday to one of the three charges from a traffic stop on Oct. 1, Jeff Bollier of USA Today reports.

In the midst of his rookie campaign, Jones was thrust into the justice system, with the most serious charge a citation for driving with a controlled substance (marijuana) in his system. As part of a plea deal, the other two charges were dropped, with Jones receiving a six-month suspension of his license, an order to pay a fine and court costs, and an ultimatum to undergo an alcohol assessment. With his legal woes behind him, there's a possibility the NFL weighs in with a fine, suspension or combination thereof under the league's substance-abuse policy. In the meantime, Jones will continue to focus on his recovery from a sprained MCL in his left knee in anticipation of the offseason program.

Williams underwent surgery following the season to repair a separated left shoulder, which had prevented him from playing in the Dolphins' final five games, Jason Lieser of The Palm Beach Post reports.

Williams sustained the injury Week 12 against the Patriots and was initially hopeful to play through the issue the rest of the season, but the Dolphins' team doctors refused to clear him. The running back said that by opting for surgery, he'll be at less risk of separating his shoulder again, though the procedure will likely result in him facing some restrictions or being unavailable entirely until minicamp opens. It remains to be seen if Williams, who will become an unrestricted free agent March 14, will return to Miami next season, as he may prefer to join a team with a more unsettled running-back situation that would give him a legitimate chance to compete for a starting job. Kenyan Drake seems to have a stranglehold on the No. 1 role in Miami after amassing 851 total yards and four touchdowns while averaging 5.0 yards per carry in the Dolphins' final nine games of 2017.

Broncos general manager John Elway was noncommittal Wednesday when asked if Anderson would return to Denver in 2018, Nicki Jhabvala of The Denver Post reports. "I'm not saying [Anderson will] be back for sure, but I'm not going to say [he's] gone," Elway said.

Anderson was one of the few bright spots for the 4-12 Broncos last season, finishing with a career-best 1,007 rushing yards and recording four touchdowns over 16 games. Despite Anderson's improved health and quality production, the Denver offense was still a disaster due to poor play at quarterback, a position the team plans to upgrade this offseason, likely through free agency. In order to free up the money necessary to make a serious run at one of the top quarterbacks on the market, the Broncos may opt to release Anderson, who carries cap hits of $4.5 million for the next two seasons. While those figures aren't totally unreasonable for Anderson, the team has younger, cheaper backup options on hand in the form Devontae Booker and De'Angelo Henderson, both of whom might be able to handle larger roles in 2018 without the Broncos losing much effectiveness on the ground.

Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer said Thursday that Cook (knee) is going to be "pretty close" to being ready for Organized Team Activities in the spring, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com reports.

Cook was placed on injured reserve in early October after undergoing surgery to address a torn ACL, spelling an end to what was shaping up as a spectacular rookie campaign through the Vikings' first four games. With Zimmer indicating that Vikings head athletic trainer Eric Sugarman has informed him Cook will be "good as new" upon returning to the field, the 22-year-old should slot back into the lead-back role uncontested, even though Latavious Murray performed admirably in his stead last season. If the Vikings retain Murray for 2018, he may be limited to a low-usage complementary role behind Cook, who displayed three-down abilities as a rookie.

Vikings general manager Rick Spielman suggested Wednesday that Murray isn't guaranteed to return to the team in 2018, Andrew Krammer of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. "We've discussed a lot of things," Spielman said when asked if the Vikings were set with Dalvin Cook (knee) and Murray as the team's primary running backs next season. "We're very excited, Dalvin continues to rehab. We're very excited about the progress he's making and anxious to see what we are with him in the fold along with whatever combination is there."

Though Spielman didn't say explicitly that Murray wouldn't be retained, it's clear the Vikings are still weighing whether the 28-year-old is worth bringing back at a cap hit of $6.35 million for 2018, which would make him one of the higher-paid running backs in the league. While Murray gave the Vikings quality production upon stepping in as the primary back once Cook suffered a season-ending ACL tear in Week 4, finishing with a team-high 842 rushing yards and eight touchdowns, it may be difficult for the team to justify keeping Murray at that price when he would likely be limited to a complementary role behind a healthy Cook in 2018. Assuming Murray is amenable to it, the Vikings may explore approaching his representatives about restructuring his contract so he could remain with the team at a more affordable price. If Murray isn't willing to renegotiate, however, the Vikings could cut him with little repercussions before March 16, when his $5.15 million base salary for 2018 becomes guaranteed.

Johnson said Wednesday that he has no intention of retiring and hopes to play in 2018, Josina Anderson of ESPN reports. "I'm not done yet," Johnson said. "I am still going strong. I got too much juice left."

Johnson has played exclusively with the Cardinals over the past three years on a series of short-term contracts, averaging 3.8 yards on 266 carries while scoring four times. He isn't nearly the same fast-twitch player he was in the early stages of his career and will need to land in an ideal spot in order to return to fantasy relevance, but Johnson could still be a serviceable backup for a team in need of veteran backfield depth.