NFL Player News

Head coach Adam Gase wants to get Drake more involved in the offense next season, the Miami Herald reports.

Drake mostly just served as a change-of-pace option in his rookie campaign, taking a back seat to lead runner Jay Ajayi while also competing with Damien Williams for touches. With Ajayi seemingly locked in as the workhorse and Williams set to become a restricted free agent, Drake's shot at an expanded role may depend largely on his ability to contribute on passing downs. He should at least have a key role on special teams, after returning 13 kickoffs for 397 yards (30.5 average) and a touchdown last season.

Rodgers is expected to re-sign with Tampa Bay, ESPN's Jenna Laine reports.

Rodgers, who finished the 2016 season with 560 rushing yards and two TDs on 129 carries, also caught 13 passes for 98 yards over the course of 10 contests for the Bucs. In his expected return to the team's backfield mix, Rodgers would likely profile as a complementary option, though the team's overall approach to the position is tied to the status of Doug Martin, who is slated to miss the first three games of the 2017 season as he completes a four-game suspension for violating the league's policy on performance enhancing substances.

Gillislee was tendered by the Bills on Monday.

The tender will allow the Bills to match any offer Gillislee receives in the upcoming free-agent window. The fifth-year back proved himself as one of the top backup running backs in the NFL last season, recording 101 attempts for 577 yards and nine total touchdowns. Buffalo's run-heavy offensive style creates a lot of opportunity for its backs, as the team averaged a league-high 164.4 rushing yards per game in 2016. Even though LeSean McCoy (ankle) saw the brunt of the benefits from the Bills' rushing attack, Gillislee remained a very relevant piece of the offense. Considering McCoy's tendency to get injured, Gillislee should be one of the most valuable handcuffs available in 2017.

Eagles GM Howie Roseman said last week that Mathews was doing well as he recovers from surgery on his herniated disk, Calkins Media reports. "Ryan is doing great and we full expect him to be ready to play," Roseman noted at the Combine. "He's under contract and it's as simple as that at this time."

It has been speculated that Mathews will be released to bring the Eagles $4 million in cap relief, but Roseman would not comment on the situation since league rules prohibit cutting an injured player. The running back will be entering his age-30 season in 2017 and has always struggled with injuries and ball-control issues, but he should be healthy by the time next season begins and able to contribute wherever he ends up. Wendell Smallwood (knee) and Darren Sproles remain in the fold for the Eagles, but the club is likely to try and bring in additional help via free agency or the draft, if Mathews is in fact let go once he's healthy, according to Philly.com.

Harris will not receive a tender offer from the 49ers, which will allow him to hit the open market when free agency begins Thursday, Matt Barrows on The Sacramento Bee reports.

Harris first signed with San Francisco back in December of 2015, and although he's played 12 games for the team since then, he's also been released a couple times along the way. In total, Harris has gained 278 yards on 65 carries for the 49ers and also boasts 17 catches for 212 yards and a touchdown. While that production wasn't enough for the team to extend a tender offer his way, fellow running back Shaun Draughn's status as an unrestricted free agent leaves another opening behind Carlos Hyde on the Niners' current depth chart.

Abdullah (foot) is fully cleared to return to the field, ESPN reports.

Expectations were high for Abdullah entering the 2016 campaign, as the former second-rounder was coming off a successful rookie year and appeared in line for an expanded role within the offense. He started off hot -- averaging 5.6 yards per carry across 18 totes -- until a torn ligament in his left foot from Week 2 sentenced the tailback to injured reserve for the remainder of the season. Various combinations of Theo Riddick (wrist), Zach Zenner, Dwayne Washington and Justin Forsett comprised the Lions' running back corps game by game thereafter, but no runner in particular ever emerged as the team's clear lead back. Now healthy, Abdullah enters the offseason as the favorite for No. 1 duties in 2017. However, Detroit management has stated its intent to improve its rushing attack and could potentially add another running back via the draft to compete for the starting gig.

Rawls will compete with C.J. Prosise for touches next season, coach Pete Carroll said Thursday, according to the Seattle Times.

The most important thing for both backs is to stay healthy, something neither has proven capable of. No matter who starts, the Seahawks will use both, if healthy, as a 1-2 punch in the backfield.

Rodgers' agent will meet with the Bucs at the Scouting Combine in Indianapolis this week to begin gauging the possibility of the running back's return in 2017, Jenna Laine of ESPN.com reports.

Rodgers took on a much larger role with the Bucs last season than originally expected, as he finished the campaign with a career-high 560 yards rushing on a solid 4.3 YPC. He logged five starts overall due to injuries and an eventual suspension of Doug Martin and was able to demonstrate an ability to handle a lead back's workload. General manager Jason Licht has conceded that the team "really likes Jacquizz" and would ideally want him back, particularly in light of Martin's suspension and generally uncertain future with the club. However, due to the fact that Rodgers, a six-year veteran, is a minimum salary benefit player, the Bucs are not able to work out a deal with him until free agency officially kicks off, rendering any discussions this week purely exploratory in nature.

Martin (suspension), who met with Bucs officials in Tampa last week, is reportedly doing well and will prepare for the offseason program over the next several weeks in California, Jenna Laine of ESPN.com reports. "We've checked in with Doug," general manager Jason Licht said at the combine. "His well-being is very important to us right now. We don't have to make a decision right now. We've got time, so there's no point in coming out and saying what we want to do and what we plan on doing. We're going to let the process play out and it's good for both parties."

The Bucs reconvene in mid-April for the start of OTAs, and, as of now, Martin remains a part of their plan. His suspension doesn't prohibit him from practicing with the team in any way during the offseason, but it does allow Tampa to void a guarantee of $7 million for this coming season and release him. However, the Bucs are understandably keeping their plans close to the vest for now, while also trying to leave open the possibility of their former Pro Bowl running back returning to the team in 2017 and playing a prominent role, as he has in the past. While they'll keep their options open with respect to Martin, the front office and head coach Dirk Koetter are firmly in lockstep with respect to their goal of solidifying the running back position this offseason. "We don't have to make that decision right now," Koetter told reporters Wednesday at the NFL combine. "Doug's under contract right now and no decision has to be made on that right now. So we don't have to rush it. We can just work through it as we go. But that's one of the things high on our list is what's going to happen with our running back situation?"

Johnson (groin) will seek out the best fit as an unrestricted free agent this offseason, Alex Marvez of the Sporting News reports. "I feel at this point in my career if it's not a situation where a team wants to bring me in to be a starter, I definitely need to be somewhere where I have a role," Johnson said on SiriusXM NFL Radio on Tuesday. "I need to be involved. At this point in my career, I don't want to sit on the sideline. I want to get in the game."

After back-to-back injury-altered campaigns with the Cardinals, Johnson sees the writing on the wall in a backfield populated by a workhorse like David Johnson, who handled 73.4 percent (293 of 399) of the team's carries in 2016. At this point in the former's career, he won't contribute much, if anything, as a pass catcher, so a between-the-tackles gig is likely at the top of his list. Johnson will be entering his age-32 season in the fall, so landing atop a depth chart out of the gate isn't really in the cards. Rather, a complementary role could be his best-case scenario, whether he sticks in Arizona or heads elsewhere.