NFL Player News

Cardinals running back Andre Ellington (knee) will practice on a limited basis Wednesday, Darren Urban of the Cardinals' official site reports.

While Ellington's PCL sprain was expected to sideline him 1-3 weeks, he'll make a surprise appearance to start the week of preparation, albeit with his right knee in a brace. No matter how practice proceeds, though, Ellington's availability for Week 2 is suddenly in play.

Broncos RB C.J. Anderson (ankle/toe) is listed as questionable for Thursday night's game against the Chiefs. Anderson did not practice on Monday, but was able to participate on a limited basis on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Troy Renck of the Denver Post indicates Anderson is expected to play Thursday, but his Week 2 status is still worth confirming leading up to Thursday's kickoff. In the event Anderson is limited (or even scratched for the contest), Ronnie Hillman would be in line to see added touches out of the Denver backfield.

Broncos RB C.J. Anderson (ankle/toe) practiced on a limited basis on Tuesday.

That represents an upgrade in participation for Anderson, who did not practice Monday. At this stage, the running back indicates that his toe/ankle issues shouldn't keep him from suiting up Thursday night against the Chiefs. Although, it remains to be seen if Anderson draws a probable or questionable designation on the Broncos' final Week 2 injury report.

Vikings wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson had one reception for 1 yard and was targeted once in Monday's loss at San Francisco. He also had one kick return for 21 yards.

Patterson was on the field for two plays on offense. He'll have a very limited role on offense this year as the No. 4 receiver. His primary work will be as the team's kick returner.

Vikings running back Matt Asiata had one carry for 4 yards and two receptions for 25 yards in Monday's loss at San Francisco.

Asiata got 12 snaps on offense, which was a mild surprise since he was thought to be relegated to a third-string role. It looks like he could get a few plays a game in the backfield when Adrian Peterson gets a break.

Gary Kubiak has stated that he expects Broncos featured back C.J. Anderson to practice as the team prepares in a short week to play Kansas City on Thursday, the Denver Post has reported.

Anderson is dealing with an ankle injury sustained Sunday against Baltimore, but should play against the Chiefs.

He hopes to pick up the production, however, after rushing for just 29 yards on 12 carries in Week 1.

Lions rookie running back Ameer Abdullah was busy during his regular season debut Sunday against the Chargers. He touched the ball on 23.4 percent of the team's 47 offensive snaps, while also handling kickoff return duties. 

He finished with seven carries for 50 yards and four receptions for 44 yards, while totaling 105 yards on three kickoff returns. 

Coach Jim Caldwell said Abdullah's workload will likely remain the same moving forward.

"What he did (Sunday) is kind of what we see him doing," Caldwell said, the Detroit Free Press. "He's returning kicks, he's running the ball and he's catching the ball out of the backfield. I'm not certain there's anything more (he can do) than that. He had 199 yards or so of total offense. That's the kind of role that I think you'll see him play, for the most part."

While running back Christine Michael was inactive for Sunday's season opener against the Giants, Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said the newcomer has "made a lot of progress in a short period of time" since his acquisition from the Seahawks.

Although, it seems it would take an injury to the running back trio of Joseph Randle, Lance Dunbar and Darren McFadden before Michael gets his chance to make an impact.

"I do think if any time one of them has an injury or isn't 110 percent, then we'll see what Christine Michael has to bring to the table as well," Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones said Monday during a radio interview, per The Dallas Morning News.

The Cowboys finished with 22 carries in Sunday's season opener against the Giants. The trio of DeMarco Murray, Joseph Randle and Lance Dunbar averaged 29.5 carries per game last season.

Murray is now with the Eagles, but Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones said Monday the team would like to see more carries per game from Randle, Darren McFadden and Dunbar moving forward.

"Our goal is still to get up there running the ball 25-30 times a game," Jones said, per The Dallas Morning News. "I think we ended up rushing about 22 times, so we'd like four or five more rushes on there, but this group is very productive."

Randle led the charge Week 1 with 16 carries for 65 yards, while McFadden added six carries for 16 yards.

"Joseph played well," Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said. "He had some good runs, some tough dirty runs where things weren't really clean, but he made a dirty, 3-4-5 yard run. When he had a little more space he made some plays."

Eagles running back Ryan Mathews only received three rushing attempts in Monday's loss to the Falcons, but he was able to reach the endzone.

Mathews scored on a 1-yard run in the fourth quarter. He finished the contest with four rushing yards on three attempts. Mathews was also targeted four times and caught three receptions for 24 yards.