NFL Player News

Jones (shoulder) was a full participant in Friday's practice.

Jones also practiced in full Thursday, so it appears he'll be fine to suit up Monday night versus Pittsburgh. That said, Jones has yet to be hit since suffering his separated shoulder during the Redskins' second preseason game, The Washington Post reports. As a result, it'll be worthwhile to see how he handles taking hits during Monday's game. If he's at all impacted by the contact, Rob Kelley and Chris Thompson would figure to see their respective snap counts expanded. Offensive coordinator Sean McVay said Friday that he expects to use a "good rotation" of all three running backs, hinting that Kelley could poach some of Jones' early-down snaps.

Williams (ribs, questionable) was a full participant in Friday's practice and is expected to be available for Sunday's season opener against the Ravens.

Williams practiced in full the past three days, so the ailment doesn't appear likely to hinder him going into this weekend. Rather, a Bills backfield that already includes starter LeSean McCoy, Mike Gillislee and Reggie Bush could impact Williams' status against the Ravens. If Williams is active for Week 1, expectations for the rookie's level of involvement should probably be low.

Grimes is listed third on Houston's first depth chart of the regular season.

Grimes appeared to be in danger of missing out on the final roster, but his pass-catching ability seems to have bought him at least one more year. His role probably won't expand beyond three or four touches a game, unless Lamar Miller suffers an injury. If that were to happen, Alfred Blue would likely get most of the early-down work, with Grimes and/or Tyler Ervin handling passing downs. Blue is the preferred Miller handcuff, but none of the bunch offers much upside.

Barner is listed as a third-stringer on Philadelphia's first depth chart of the regular season, the team's official site reports.

Given that second-stirnger Darren Sproles is a scat back with more catches than carries, Barner could be next in line for regular early-down work if the oft-injured Ryan Mathews can't hold up for a full season. Not exactly a hulking running back in his own right, Barner is listed at just 5-foot-9 and weighs about 200 points. Fifth-round rookie Wendell Smallwood is a bit bigger -- approximately 5-10 and 210 pounds.

Anderson rushed for 92 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries and added another 47 yards and a touchdown on four catches in Thursday's win over the Panthers.

Quarterback Trevor Siemian will steal the headlines this coming week, but Thursday's game showed that this is Anderson's offense. Anderson picked up right where he left off in the postseason, serving as Denver's bell cow and two developments could further increase his value . One, Denver's new line, complemented by two-back looks, will give Anderson more and better blockers up front. Two, Siemian's tendency to take what the defense gives him and drop it off in the flat should get Anderson more involved in the team's passing game. Both developments were already on display Thursday.

Draughn (ribs) wasn't listed on the 49ers' injury report Thursday, Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area reports.

Absent from the final three preseason games due to a rib injury, Draughn will enter the regular season with a relatively clean bill of health. If Carlos Hyde's bout with a concussion had lingered into Week 1 prep, Draughn would have been first in line for touches out of the 49ers' backfield. However, Hyde didn't land on the injury report, either, indicating his removal from the league's protocol for head injuries. As a result, Draughn is destined for a minor role in Week 1, at best.

Rawls missed Thursday's practice due to an illness, John Boyle of the Seahawks' official site reports.

After enduring a lengthy recovery from a broken ankle, Rawls finally shed his injury designation Wednesday for the first time since Week 14 of last season. Seemingly in line for as much work as he could handle Sunday against the Dolphins, according to head coach Pete Carroll, Rawls may have hit another bump in the road. If the malady lingers into the weekend, Christine Michael could be more of a No. 1 back than expected.

Artis-Payne is listed as inactive for Thursday's game at Denver, Bryan Strickland of the Panthers' official site reports.

Artis-Payne fared only modestly in the preseason, averaging 3.6 YPC and notching five receptions for 54 yards in four outings. With the backfield safely in the hands of Jonathan Stewart, Fozzy Whittaker, and Mike Tolbert, Artis-Payne could be a regular inactive this season, barring an injury to the trio.

McKinnon (foot) did not participate in Thursday's practice.

While there hasn't been any suggestion his injury is serious, McKinnon did miss some practice time last week. He may have just been rested Thursday, but his injury is now more of a worry. While McKinnon is the backup to Adrian Peterson and won't have a large role if healthy, the Vikings have talked about using him more in passing situations.

Head coach Jim Caldwell inferred Abdullah will not be used as a bell-cow running back in 2016, per MLive.com. "Do I think that he's durable enough to do it? Absolutely. Do I think he's strong enough to do it? Absolutely. I just don't think that's his cup of tea," Caldwell explained. "But he'll be effective for us. His all-purpose yardage last year was pretty strong and I think you'll see the same thing with him this year."

After being taken in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft, Abdullah ultimately wrestled the Lions' primary tailback job away from Joique Bell and finished his rookie season with a team-high 597 rushing yards. However, even with Theo Riddick locked into a passing-down role, Abdullah was expected to assume a larger workload on the ground in 2016. Instead, it appears Caldwell plans to deploy a "running back by committee" approach with Zach Zenner used in short-yardage situations and rookie Dwayne Washington sporadically sprinkled in. Abdullah should easily receive the most carries by season's end, and will also see action returning kickoffs, but his candidacy as a breakout workhorse appears contingent upon injuries to other members of Detroit's backfield at this point in time.