NFL Player News

Coach Sean McDermott indicated Thursday that the Bills starters will play about "a quarter and a half" in Saturday's preseason contest against the Steelers, Alec White of the team's official site reports. Diggs didn't play in last weekend's exhibition opener against the Colts.

Per the report, QB Josh Allen will also face the Steelers after sitting out versus Indianapolis last Saturday. There's a solid chance that Diggs' only exhibition action ends up being against Pittsburgh, but McDermott noted Thursday that he sees value in playing starters during the preseason. "Simply put, it's to get them ready for the season," McDermott said.

Coach Dan Campbell said Thursday that St. Brown (lower leg) is expected to resume practicing next week, Tim Twentyman of the Lions' official site reports.

St. Brown won't be available for Saturday's preseason game against the Jaguars, but Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press reports that Jared Goff and the starters won't play anyway. It appears that the star wideout has avoided a serious injury, which is major cause for relief for Detroit's offense as a whole. Barring any setbacks, the 2021 fourth-round pick's chances of being back for Week 1 are looking optimistic. St. Brown's health is especially key for the Lions with Jameson Williams (suspension/hamstring) having suffered an injury Wednesday that may hold him out the rest of the preseason.

Coach Dan Campbell said Thursday that Williams (hamstring/suspension) won't play Saturday versus the Jaguars and "there's a good chance" he's done for the preseason, Kyle Meinke of MLive.com reports.

Williams is already suspended for the first six games of the regular season, giving him plenty of time to recover, but every missed offseason rep will be impactful for the second-year pro. A 2022 first-round pick, Williams scarcely played as a rookie while working his way back from an ACL tear suffered in college. As he won't be eligible to even participate in team practices while suspended, it wouldn't be surprising if Williams gets off to a slow start when eligible to play, and healthy, during the 2023 season.

Dulin was carted off the field during Wednesday's practice due to an undisclosed injury, Kevin Bowen of 107.5 The Fan Indianapolis reports.

Dulin worked with the second-team offense in the Colts' preseason opener against the Bills last week as he tries to win a role as the No. 4 or No. 5 receiver. The Colts view Dulin as a core special teams player, so he should be a safe bet to make the team's Week 1 roster, provided his injury isn't serious enough to warrant placement on injured reserve.

Melton (hamstring) didn't practice Wednesday, Mike Spofford of the Packers' official website reports.

A seventh-round pick by the Seahawks last year, Melton spent the majority of 2022 on Seattle's practice squad before inking a deal with the Packers in late December. He's trying to earn one of the final roster spots this summer.

Moore could be in line for increased snaps and targets in the wake of the season-ending knee injury Russell Gage suffered in a joint practice with the Jets on Wednesday, Jeremy Fowler and Jenna Laine of ESPN.com report.

Gage logged 70 targets, including 18 in the red zone, over 13 regular-season games last season, although that also came with Tom Brady at quarterback and both Mike Evans and Chris Godwin missing games due to injury. Nevertheless, Moore, who recorded three catches for 66 yards on four targets over 24 snaps in the preseason-opening loss to the Steelers, is now poised to benefit to some degree if he sticks on the active roster. Moore may arguably even have the inside track to the No. 3 receiver role vacated by Gage; despite the fact he hasn't caught a regular-season pass since 2020, he's still exponentially more experienced than his presumptive primary competitors for the job, rookie Trey Palmer and second-year pros Deven Thompkins and Kaylon Geiger.

Palmer, a rookie sixth-round pick, is in line for an increase in snaps and targets in the wake of the season-ending knee injury Russell Gage suffered in a joint practice with the Jets on Wednesday, Jeremy Fowler and Jenna Laine of ESPN.com report.

Gage logged 70 targets, including 18 in the red zone, over 13 regular-season games last season, although that also came with Tom Brady at quarterback and both Mike Evans and Chris Godwin missing games due to injury. Nevertheless, Palmer -- who recorded a touchdown in the preseason-opening loss to the Steelers and also had a stellar practice Wednesday that included a long catch against star cornerback Sauce Gardner, per Scott Smith of the team's official site -- should be in for a notable bump in his fantasy outlook considering the additional opportunities that could await him.

Burks has been diagnosed with a sprained LCL in his left knee after getting injured during Wednesday's joint practice with the Vikings, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Fortunately for Burks, he's slated to miss only a few weeks after he couldn't place any weight on his left leg and required a cart to get off the practice field. While the current concern likely will keep him sidelined for the rest of the Titans' preseason slate, the timing of the injury may allow Burks to be healthy for the team's season opener Sept. 10 at New Orleans.

Toney (knee) remained absent from practice Wednesday, Matt McMullen of the Chiefs' official site reports.

Though general manager Brett Veach previously said last week that he felt good about Toney's chances of being ready for the Chiefs' Sept. 7 regular-season opener versus the Lions, assistant GM Mike Borgonzi noted Wednesday that the team isn't inclined to hurry the wideout back until he's 100 percent, per Matt Derrick of ChiefsDigest.com. At this stage, Toney looks unlikely to play in either of the Chiefs' remaining two preseason contests.

Gage sustained a season-ending right knee injury during Wednesday's joint practice with the Jets, Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Gage needed a cart to get off the practice field following a non-contact injury. After undergoing an MRI, he's expected to have surgery on his right knee in the coming days. With Gage out for the 2023 campaign, the immediate depth behind the Buccaneers' top two wide receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin includes rookie sixth-round pick Trey Palmer, Deven Thompkins and David Moore.