NFL Player News

Browns coach Rob Chudzinski comfirmed running back Trent Richardson missed practice Thursday with a lower leg muscle pull. "It's precautionary," Chudzinski said. "We are holding him out. He may miss minicamp in a week and a half. I'm not sure, we'll just take it day-by-day."

Cardinals running back Ryan Williams told the Arizona Republic that he was more concerned about his knee than his play last season, saying he played scared. Williams came back from a torn patella tendon suffered in 2011 and wasn't ready for the physical punishment that comes with playing running back. Per the story, he got nervous when then-quarterback Kevin Kolb would call '39 toss' because it exposed his right side and his injured knee. The lack of confidence left him "pretty much scared all last year to get the ball in my hands." He added hurting his shoulder was a "blessing" because it allowed him time to get his knee feeling good. Now he says he's not scared anymore. "This is the healthiest I've felt in the past two years," Williams said. "It feels good to be able to run like myself, instinctive and not having to think about what I’m doing, just going out and doing it. I've been working real hard, so things are looking good. My stars are aligned this year."

The Boston Globe reports running back Brandon Bolden was absent from OTA practice Tuesday after spraining his ankle while training. He's expected to return in late May/early June.

With Willis McGahee not in attendance and Knowshon Moreno not cleared for team drills, Ronnie Hillman and rookie Montee Ball split reps at the Broncos' OTA practice on Monday. USA Today reports Hillman had more first-team reps. Quarterback Peyton Manning has high expectations for Hillman. “Everybody in Year 2 ought to be better than they were in Year 1," Manning said. "Ronnie got great experience last year as a rookie. We’re really counting on him this year to have more of a role in the offense. ... It’s not just kind of a limited package like we did last year. We are really expecting him to make that next-level jump. It starts during these OTAs and training camp and being more of an established veteran running back. To me, after your rookie year, you are a veteran in my opinion. Second year, third year, fourth year—it doesn’t matter. A lot of the expectations out of Ronnie, and we’re counting on him to do good things for us this year.”

The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports that Dolphins rookie Mike Gillislee, who ran for 1,152 yards and 10 touchdowns in his senior season at Florida, will compete with Lamar Miller, a 2012 fourth-round pick, and Daniel Thomas, a 2011 second-round pick, for the starting tailback spot during training camp this summer. Gillislee was drafted in the fifth round this year.

When asked about his running backs Colts head coach Chuck Pagano conceded that Vick Ballard was the primary option but that Donald Brown would be in the mix. He even went as far as to call him a "home-run hitter" while expressing thankfulness for his health. "Donnie’s in great shape and healthy and looks fantastic to this point in the offseason program," Pagano said. "Can Vick be an every-down guy? Yeah. Can Donnie be an every-down guy? Yeah. They are different types of runners and are more than capable on third down, knowing the protections and picking up blitzers and being effective once they get out to catch the football and doing those things out of the backfield."

Patriots running back Shane Vereen told ESPN he's been more focused this offseason knowing that a larger role awaits him in training camp now that Danny Woodhead has left for San Diego. "There's a little more focus on my part. There has to be," Vereen said. "[I need to] just be more consistent. More reliable. That comes with practice and that comes with time, so hopefully we'll get there. ... I'm a dual threat, it means I have to know multiple positions. I have to know everything, really. Here, it wasn't always easy coming in. You've got to learn how to learn the system, make sense of it to yourself. I'm more of a visual learner, so I learn a lot by seeing it on the field. [But] I've been to plenty of practices, seen and taken a lot of mental reps as well as physical reps. I don't think it's much of an issue any more."

The Kansas City Star reports that Chiefs running back Shaun Draughn missed a full-squad workout Tuesday while recovering from a sports hernia.

The Miami Herald reports that Dolphins running back Daniel Thomas expects to compete for the starting job even though Lamar Miller is considered the front-runner. “I don’t know why [Miller] would have the inside track,” Thomas said. “It’s an open competition. Everybody has a fair shot. The best player is going to get the job. Nobody has a leg up. I’m looking to be that guy…. That’s why I put the work in.” Thomas said he trained in Arizona with other players including Tim Tebow, Terrell Suggs, LaRon Landry and James Harrison: “I wanted to get my legs back stronger [after knee surgery],” he said. “I’ve been very inconsistent. I’ve had a lot of injures. This is the year I’ve got to put everything together. When I’m healthy and on top of my game, I feel like I can play with the best of them.”

The Cardinals official team website reports that the running back battle for the starting job between Rashard Mendenhall, Ryan Williams and rookies Stepfan Taylor and Andre Ellington could be wide open. “You really can’t tell until the lights come on,” coach Bruce Arians said. “... Until you turn the lights on, you really don’t know about them.” Mendenhall had his best years under Arians in Pittsburgh and now that he’s had so much time to recover from his knee issues – plus his one-year-need-to-prove-it contract – he could be primed for a rebound season. Williams seems certain he will be effective this year, after never being certain in his knee early last season before suffering his shoulder problem. If both come through, Taylor and Ellington won’t be needed. Even if they are, they have to show they are ready.