NFL Player News

The Chargers declared safety Jahleel Addae (hamstring), linebacker Tourek Williams, corner Chris Davis, wideout Dontrelle Inman, defensive tackle Ricardo Mathews, running back Branden Oliver and defensive tackle Ryan Carrethers inactive for Monday night's game at Arizona.

Cardinals running back Andre Ellington is active for Monday Night Football against the Chargers despite a foot injury some had described as significant. Ellington tested his foot in a pregame workout and was deemed good to go.

He's not expected to carry a full workload. Running backs Jonathan Dwyer and Stepfan Taylor also should get some playing time.

With everyone wanting to know if Andre Ellington will play Monday night, the Cardinals running back tweeted, "I thank God for these blessings!" Ellington posted the tweet after testing his injured foot in a pregame workout, and the team retweeted it.

The Cardinals and Chargers will announce their inactives around 8:50 p.m. ET.

Asked which running back will start Thursday against the Steelers, Ravens coach John Harbaugh told reporters: "Bernard Pierce, Justin Forsett will both play a lot. Lorenzo Taliaferro will be involved as well."

Forsett led the way Week 1 with 11 carries for 70 yards and five catches for 14 yards. Pierce was benched after losing a fumble.

The Ravens claimed defensive tackle Christo Bilukidi off waivers from the Bengals. To make room, Baltimore released running back Fitzgerald Toussaint.

Patriots running back Shane Vereen dominated the backfield timeshare Week 1, playing 61 snaps to Stevan Ridley's 21 in the loss at Miami. Brandon Bolden played nine snaps, while rookie James White was a healthy scratch.

Vereen led the team with 36 yards on seven carries, cashing in a 2-yard touchdown in the first quarter. He caught five passes for 35 yards. Ridley ran eight times for 21 yards and had two receptions for 7 yards.

Cardinals running back Andre Ellington remains a gametime decision due to his foot injury, reports NFL Network. Ellington was limited in practice Saturday and Sunday.

"We'll talk with our medical staff and training staff and test it out tonight and see if he can go," general manager Steve Keim told Arizona Sports 98.7 FM. "But aside from that, without having a medical background, it's hard to say at this point."

If Ellington is held out of the game against the Chargers, Jonathan Dwyer likely would start at running back and be spelled by Stepfan Taylor. Arizona will release its inactive list around 8:40 p.m. ET.

The Ravens run game is changing in the wake of Ray Rice's release, but it's not promised that rookie Lorenzo Taliaferro will get in on the action anytime soon. Taliaferro had a target in Sunday's game against the Bengals but probably needs Bernard Pierce to either get hurt or disappoint before getting an opportunity. 

Working in Taliaferro's favor is his coaching staff. The Ravens' current group of coaches drafted him and probably all agree on his talent. What's more, current Ravens offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak has a knack for taking unknown rushers and turning them into prominent players (he did it with Steve Slaton and Arian Foster in Houston). Taliaferro is worth owning in deep-roster leagues at this point. 

Bernard Pierce was unowned in 24 percent of CBSSports.com leagues as of Monday afternoon. Expect that number to go up following the release of Ray Rice. But don't expect Pierce to break out in a major way, particularly following a game in which he was benched for his first-ever fumble. 

Look for Pierce to be given a chance to work as the Ravens' running downs back for the foreseeable future. He'll carry some value as a low-end No. 2 Fantasy rusher, especially on a short week when he plays the Steelers. Running backs tend to play well on Thursday games. 

The agent for running back LaMichael James posted on Twitter Monday that his client was released by the 49ers. James, who had two carries in the season opener against the Cowboys, totaled 41 carries for 184 yards and no touchdowns in 15 games since 2012.