NFL Player News

Coach Jay Gruden relayed Monday that Kelley is day-to-day with a knee injury.

Per the report, Kelley "checked out OK" after undergoing an MRI, but we suspect that, at a minimum, the running back's practice participation in advance of Sunday's regular season finale against the Giants will be impacted by his knee issue.

West gained 27 yards on 10 rushes and secured all three of his targets for 28 yards in Sunday's 31-27 loss to the Steelers.

West saw backfield mate Kenneth Dixon notably outperform him on the ground, but he did enjoy more success than his fellow tailback in the passing game. Nevertheless, with the Ravens now officially out of playoff contention, the team may opt to give the promising rookie plenty of opportunities in the season finale against the Bengals. West has been adequate when given lead back opportunities, but Dixon is widely regarded as the more talented back overall, likely rendering West more of a complementary option in Week 17.

Harris didn't receive a carry, but caught his lone target for 14 yards in Saturday's win over the Rams.

Harris got into the game late in the fourth quarter after Carlos Hyde went down with what we now know is a torn MCL. While Shaun Draughn (who had 16 touches Saturday) is the likely candidate to start next week, Harris has done well in that role as early as last season, so he can't be ruled out as an option to start either. Whoever starts next week will have a tough matchup with Seattle's defense to deal with.

Draughn only gained 17 yards on 10 carries, but he tied a season-high with six catches for 48 yards in Saturday's 22-21 win over the Rams.

This was the type of performance those in deep PPR leagues were hoping for from the receiving back all season. Unfortunately, this was just the third time Draughn had five or more catches, and only the fourth time he topped 30 receiving yards, making him more of a headache than a fantasy factor this season. That being said, the journeyman back may get a healthy dose of touches next week if Carlos Hyde (knee) is unable to suit up. The matchup would come against the Seahawks, so even with a start, Draughn would be a desperate flex play at best.

Patterson caught two of four targets for 13 yards Saturday against the Packers.

Patterson is ending the season on a much quieter note than expected as teammate Adam Thielen is taking over the receiver position in Minnesota. Unless he's able to break free for a touchdown in the return game, expect more of the same from Patterson in the regular season finale next week against the Bears.

Asiata rushed six times for 34 yards and caught three of four targets for 30 yards in Saturday's loss to the Packers.

Asiata was expected to see an expanded role in the absence of Adrian Peterson (knee/groin), but Minnesota could never commit to the ground game while playing in catch-up mode most of the day. Furthermore, as the Packers are much stronger against the run than they are against the pass, Asiata's services simply weren't needed in the red zone because QB Sam Bradford was able to exploit the Green Bay secondary three times through the air. His outlook moving forward is contingent upon Peterson's health, but if his teammate sits, Asiata could be in store for a larger workload in the Vikings' regular season finale Week 17 against the Bears.

Richardson has been released by the Steelers.

Richardson has been inactive of late and with the return to health of fellow RB DeAngelo Williams, he's the odd man out heading into Week 16's action.

With reference to Martin being made inactive Saturday against the Saints, coach Dirk Koetter called the move a "coaches' decision" influenced by Tampa Bay's special teams needs, ESPN's Jenna Laine reports.

With the Bucs wanting both Charles Sims and Peyton Barber available on special teams, Martin was the odd man out Saturday, while Jacquizz Rodgers -- who was a healthy scratch last week -- suiting up and serving as the team's lead back in Week 16. "We really only have room for one primary ball carrier right now," Koetter noted. "I felt like it was better for us this game to go with Jacquizz." Martin has missed six games this season with a hamstring injury, but his deactivation Saturday was not injury-related. Rather, a 2.9 yards per carry average on the season (down from his 4.9 YPC in 2015) is a more tangible reason for his surprising scratch. How Koetter handles the team's backfield in Week 17 remains to to be seen, but the Bucs do at least have a wafer-thin chance of making the playoffs.

Kelley suffered a knee sprain in Saturday's win over the Bears, the Washington Post reports.

Kelley finished up the day with 19 carries for 76 yards, but only five of the carries (for 15 yards) came in the second half of the contest. Kelly's status is thus worth monitoring as next Sunday's regular season finale against the Giants approaches. If he ends up out or limited next weekend, Mack Brown and Chris Thompson would be in the mix for carries, with Matt Jones presumably a candidate to be made active in such a scenario.

Hightower gained 29 yards on eight rushes and secured his only target for 11 yards in Saturday's 31-24 win over the Bucs.

Hightower played a clear second fiddle to backfield mate Mark Ingram, as the latter received 10 additional touches on the ground, and two more targets through the air. The 30-year old's involvement in the offense has been on a downward trend in recent weeks, with Hightower seeing single-digit carries in three of the past four games. He did score two touchdowns in the only game during that span in which he saw double-digit totes, Week 15 versus the Cardinals. The veteran will try to close out the season on a strong note against the Falcons in Week 17, but could once again find himself as only a complementary option to Ingram.