NFL Player News

Johnson turned four carries into seven yards during Friday's preseason defeat at San Diego.

Preseason performances for a veteran like Johnson don't mean all that much in the end, as he's merely reacquainting himself with the contact that he's endured for eight NFL seasons. The breakdown of snaps after David Johnson has been more telling. During both of the Cardinals' exhibitions to date, the second-year pro has earned the start, with the veteran immediately following in his wake. At numerous points in the offseason, head coach Bruce Arians has termed David Johnson the bell-cow back in Arizona, but Chris Johnson is still expected to be a regular contributor in the upcoming campaign.

Johnson totaled 27 yards and a touchdown on seven carries and secured both of his targets for 28 yards in Saturday's 27-21 preseason victory over the Jaguars.

The young vet capped off a 10-play, 79-yard drive with a one-yard TD on the first play of the fourth quarter. Johnson also kickstarted that possession with nine-and-17-yard gains on the first two plays, and was productive in the passing game with his two targets. Johnson continues jockeying for a spot on the depth chart behind Doug Martin and Charles Sims and took a positive step towards that goal with his production Saturday.

Draughn (back) was held out of Saturday's contest as a precaution, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

Draughn took a shot to his lower back in last week's preseason game against Houston and was held out of Saturday's contest as a precaution. Despite not playing, Draughn appears to have tightened his hold on the 49ers' primary backup job after Mike Davis -- who had a strong showing last week -- took a step back, losing two fumbles Saturday.

Martin (ribs) expects to return to practice Monday, but will likely be limited, Scott Smith of Buccaneers.com reports.

Martin is dealing with bruised ribs, which forced him to miss Saturday's preseason game against the Jaguars. After another day off for rest Sunday, Martin is expected to return to the practice field Monday, although he'll likely be eased into action. Martin is slated to be the Buccaneers' feature back this season and despite this latest injury, doesn't appear to be in danger of missing Week 1.

Anderson rushed for 30 yards and a touchdown off of six carries in Denver's preseason loss to the 49ers. He added one catch for no yards.

Anderson's 19-yard rumble into the end zone will be the main takeaway from Saturday's game, but he also showed a hard nose - grinding for extra yards and inching past down markers. He remains Denver's clear No. 1, but might share more carries than previous bell-cow backs under Gary Kubiak given the emergence of rookie Devontae Booker.

Williams carried eight times for 17 yards with one touchdown and caught two balls for 11 yards in Saturday's preseason win over the Giants.

No one really ran the ball effectively in the game, as the bigger news of the day was the release of Karlos Williams. That leaves the rookie Jonathan Williams with one less tailback to compete against for carries behind LeSean McCoy amongst a group that includes Reggie Bush, Mike Gillislee, James Wilder Jr., and Boom Herron. For what it's worth, Williams was also lined up in the backfield on both Bills first-half goal-to-go possessions.

Drake (hamstring) sat out of practice again Sunday, James Walker of ESPN.com reports.

Drake hasn't practiced in over two weeks, so his absence Sunday comes as no surprise. He remains without a concrete timetable for a return and his availability for Thursday's preseason game against the Falcons appears to be in doubt. With players the caliber of Arian Foster and Jay Ajayi at the top of the depth chart, Drake could struggle to see a significant amount of snaps during his rookie season, even when he's back to full strength.

Cunningham carried four times for 38 yards in Saturday's preseason win over the Chiefs.

With Todd Gurley firmly atop the Rams' RB depth chart and being drafted in the first round of most fantasy drafts, Cunningham's mostly of note for those looking to insure Gurley, though given that he's caught 71 passes over the past two seasons, he already holds some deep league value in PPR formats. Meanwhile, with Tre Mason not currently in the team's backfield equation, 224-pound Malcolm Brown is having a strong preseason and could also emerge as a candidate to absorb his share of carries in the event of a Gurley injury.

Hillman gained 21 yards on three carries in Saturday's preseason game against the 49ers.

While efficient on a per-carry basis, Hillman didn't get a touch until the second half, whereas rookie Devontae Booker was quite busy in the second quarter. Booker gained 36 yards on nine carries and seven yards on one reception, with all of his work coming after C.J. Anderson left the game. Anderson is the still the clear lead back and may have a three-down role, but Booker has surpassed Hillman as the preferred handcuff in the Denver backfield..

Grimes hauled in his lone target for a nine-yard gain in Saturday's preseason game against the Saints.

Despite getting just one carry through two preseason games, Grimes has a real shot to make the final roster, thanks to his special teams contributions and pass-catching skills. He probably won't have much of a role to start the season, as offseason acquisition Lamar Miller is also a more-than-capable pass-catcher.