NFL Player News

Grant had one carry for a 56-yard touchdown in Sunday's 20-17 win over the Chargers.

The stat line is a little misleading because it isn't as though Grant came in on offense and set the world on fire with a big play. The touchdown was part of a fake punt and within Grant's duties as a special-teams player. He's still squeezed out of the Jaguars backfield with the return of Leonard Fournette and did not appear on offense during Sunday's game.

Artis-Payne rushed for 68 yards and a touchdown on seven carries in Monday's 45-21 win over Miami.

Artis-Payne zig-zagged for a seven-yard touchdown in the third quarter, putting Carolina up by three scores for his first score in over a year. Artis-Payne's seven carries were a season high and the bulk of his production came on one 43-yard gain. Given the beating Carolina put on Miami and the possible desire to conserve the rushing abilities of Christian McCaffrey, Jonathan Stewart, Cam Newton and others, it is hard to predict whether Monday's performance will lead to similar performances down the line. At this point, it's probably worth waiting for an encore before taking Artis-Payne too seriously.

Ellington played 43 of 80 offensive snaps during Thursday's 22-16 loss to the Seahawks en route to two carries for four yards and one touchdown and three receptions (on six targets) for 26 yards.

In his return from a one-game absence Week 10, Ellington managed just 14 of the Cardinals' 77 offensive snaps, receiving two touches (both catches) in the process. On Thursday, he actually handled seven more snaps on offense than starting RB Adrian Peterson. Of course, Peterson was a workhorse on the ground with 21 rushes for 29 yards, and will typically contain Ellington primarily to pass-catching duty. On the season, Ellington is averaging 4.1 catches on 6.3 targets for 37.1 yards per game, but Thursday's TD marked his first of 2017.

Williams had nine rushes for 19 yards and two receptions for 20 yards as the Dolphins lost to the Panthers 45-21 on Monday.

Williams missed several practices during the week due to an illness, so perhaps a subpar game should have been expected here. Unfortunately for his fantasy owners, Kenyan Drake had a solid night with 82 yards rushing, including a touchdown run of 66 yards, and may be in line to take away more snaps from Williams as the season moves along.

The Saints signed Williams off the Broncos' practice squad Tuesday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Expected to serve as a change-of-pace option to LeSean McCoy in Buffalo heading into this season, the Bills pulled an audible and waived Williams at the end of the preseason slate, likely hoping he would pass through waivers unclaimed. Once he did, though, the Broncos offered Williams a practice-squad salary more than four times the minimum, and he's resided in Denver in the meantime. With Tuesday's transaction, Williams will join a Saints rushing attack ranked third in the NFL at 142.2 yards per game. While Mark Ingram and Alvin Kamara will continue to serve as a high-quality one-two punch out of the backfield, the addition of Williams suggests he was brought in to ease the burden on those two as the team seeks its first playoff berth since 2013.

McFadden carried the ball once for minus-2 yards in Sunday's loss to the Falcons.

With Ezekiel Elliott (suspension) unavailable, McFadden was the clear No. 3 in the Cowboys backfield behind Alfred Morris and Rod Smith, although his limited usage may have been partially due to the team's need for extra pass protection with left tackle Tyron Smith (groin) also out of action. McFadden may see a few more touches next week against the Eagles, but it's unlikely he'll suddenly become a major part of the Dallas offense.

Drake rushed seven times for 82 yards and a touchdown in Monday night's 45-21 loss to the Panthers. He also caught both of his targets for 10 yards.

Drake's night was highlighted by a 66-yard touchdown run during the third quarter. Although that marked Miami's best play of the game, and Drake's second rush of 40-plus yards in as many weeks, it came while the Dolphins were down 24 points. Nonetheless, considering Damien Williams only managed 19 yards on his nine carries, it seems Drake's big-play ability should see him spearhead the team's Week 11 rushing attack.

McCaffrey rushed five times for 23 yards and a touchdown in Monday night's 45-21 win over the Dolphins. He also caught three of seven targets for 27 yards and another score.

McCaffrey was efficient with his touches on a night when top tailback Jonathan Stewart went for 110 yards on 17 carries. Not only did McCaffrey take a zone-read handoff four yards for Carolina's opening touchdown, but he piled on with a two-yard touchdown grab along the sideline during the third quarter. In doing so, the rookie has now scored five times over the past six games, sending him into the Panthers' bye week full of confidence.

The Ravens released Rainey on Monday, Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun reports.

Rainey's release opens up a roster spot for the addition of offensive lineman Andrew Donnal, formerly of the Rams. Furthermore, it could be a sign that wide receiver Michael Campanaro is ready to return to his return-man role on special teams, in addition to Danny Woodhead (knee), who's been designated to return from IR and should return to the fold within a matter of weeks.

Williams (illness) is listed as active for Monday night's game against the Panthers.

Williams missed practice both Thursday and Friday, but added recovery time afforded by the Dolphins' Monday night kickoff has enabled him to suit up against Carolina. In doing so, he'll continue to work in a backfield timeshare with Kenyan Drake. It's an arrangement that led to Drake logging 37 out of a possible 67 snaps on offense in Miami's Week 9 loss to the Raiders, while Williams saw action on 30 snaps. In the process, Drake recorded nine carries for 69 yards, while hauling in all six of his targets for 35 yards. For his part, Williams ran seven times for just 14 yards, but managed to make his mark in the passing game, catching all six of his targets for 47 yards and a TD. With a similar arrangement likely on tap Monday, Williams is worth a dart in PPR formats.