NFL Player News

Asiata rushed five times for 10 yards in Saturday's preseason game against the Jets. He also caught one of two targets for nine yards.

Asiata, who notably entered the game ahead of second-year RB Dwayne Washington, was effective in pass protection but looked to be his usual plodding self as a runner Saturday. He'll likely need to make a much larger impression in the third preseason game in order to unseat Washington for the No. 4 job, as Asiata's skillset is seemingly redundant that of Zach Zenner, who sits at No. 3 on the depth chart.

Zenner rushed four times for eight yards during Saturday's preseason game against the Jets.

Zenner was the second tailback to enter the game once starter Ameer Abdullah retired for the day, but that was only the case since Theo Riddick (wrist) was on the sideline. While he was solid in pass protection as usual and scampered for a nine-yard run at one point, Zenner accrued minus-one yard on his other three attempts and appeared less effective as a runner compared to second-year RB Dwayne Washington. Though Zenner (5-foot-11, 221 pounds) seems safe in his role as a short-yardage specialist for the time being, Washington (6-foot-2, 233 pounds) is the bigger and more athletic player who could potentially pry that job away from Zenner once he shows a better command of the playbook.

Abdullah carried four times for 16 yards and caught his only target for five yards during Saturday's preseason game against the Jets.

Abdullah's performance was impressive when factoring in that he averaged a respectable 4.0 yards per carry while the rest of his teammates tallied just 2.4 yards per tote. It probably helped that stud guard T.J. Lang was there to block for him, as the former Packer finally made his Lions debut Saturday after sitting out the past few months recovering from offseason hip surgery. Look for Abdullah to see more work in the third preseason game, since that contest typically serves as the dress rehearsal for the regular season.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said Elliott (suspension) could play a few snaps in Saturday's preseason game against Oakland, Jon Machota of The Dallas Morning News reports.

Darren McFadden and Alfred Morris handled nine totes apiece in Elliott's absence Saturday against the Colts, with McFadden getting each of the team's first seven carries, though he did lose a fumble on his final touch of the game. Elliott doesn't figure to see much action this preseason as he prepares for an Aug. 29 appeal hearing for his upcoming six-game suspension.

Phillips ran the ball five times for 17 yards and tallied two receptions for 10 yards in Saturday's preseason victory over the Redskins.

Phillips is an undrafted rookie who is competing for a roster spot during training camp. He is averaging 2.6 YPC during the preseason and slots in fifth on the Packers' depth chart, so he will have a tough time making the cut.

Jones had three carries for 14 yards and caught four passes for 11 yards and a touchdown in Saturday's preseason victory over the Redskins.

Jones has been pushed for the No. 3 running back spot of late by Devante Mays, and he responded with a quality showing in the Packers' second preseason contest. For now, consider Jones behind Ty Montgomery (leg) and Jamaal Williams on the depth chart, but still ahead of Mays.

Harris has signed with the Jaguars, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Harris was released by the 49ers in May and didn't find a new team in time for training camp. He'll help with the training camp workload while T.J. Yeldon (hamstring) and Leonard Fournette (foot) deal with injuries, but the 28-year-old journeyman is unlikely to stick around beyond the preseason.

Hightower (knee) logged his first game action as a 49er on Saturday, carrying the ball three times for a loss of one and fumbling once in a preseason loss to Denver.

San Francisco went down early and only controlled the ball for 21 minutes, so Hightower wasn't afforded many opportunities to showcase his abilities. On a positive note, the 31-year-old was healthy enough to suit up after missing last week's contest with a minor knee ailment. Carlos Hyde is clearly the 49ers' top running back option after receiving all of the first-team carries in both preseason contests, leaving Hightower to compete with Joe Williams for meaningful backup touches this season.

Foreman rushed seven times for 17 yards and a touchdown while securing both of his targets for 66 yards in Saturday's 27-23 preseason win over the Patriots.

The rookie third-rounder turned heads once again Saturday, one week after making a splash in his preseason debut with nine carries for 76 yards. Foreman took a short pass from fellow first-year player Deshaun Watson and turned it into a 63-yard gain in the third quarter, setting up the latter's two-yard rushing score two plays later. Foreman then got into the end zone himself following a fourth-quarter interception of the Patriots' Jimmy Garoppolo, driving in from four yards out to give the Texans a 26-23 lead. While incumbent Lamar Miller still projects to begin the season as the lead back, Foreman has certainly moved the needle over his first two weeks of game action. He'll look to make another strong impression next Saturday night against the Saints.

Mixon rushed six times for 16 yards but did turn his only target into a 16-yard reception during Saturday's preseason loss to Kansas City.

This wasn't a strong outing from Mixon, and he was outperformed by Jeremy Hill (28 yards on six carries). However, the Oklahoma product won't lose footing in the pecking order because of a mediocre preseason showing, and it was also encouraging to see him active in the passing game. Mixon projects to open the season in the running-back committee, anyway. However, the rookie rusher owns tremendous upside and could emerge as the lead back at some point in 2017, and it could be sooner than later. After all, he's a superior athlete to Hill, and Giovani Bernard (knee) still hasn't suited up for a preseason game yet.