Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic reports that the Ravens are "working on finalizing a deal" with former Saints RB Latavius Murray. "Should get done," Zrebiec adds. There's going to be some sorting to do on this new Baltimore RB depth chart. Murray would join a team that has added Le'Veon Bell and Devonta Freeman to the practice squad in recent days. There's not enough room for all of them on the active roster. We don't see why Murray would sign with Baltimore if he expected to sit behind Bell or Freeman on the depth chart. And Murray performed well last year, ranking 15th in Football Outsiders' rushing DVOA among 47 qualifying RBs. Murray is definitely worth adding where available. Of course, we'll also see what all this means for Ty'Son Williams.
An MRI confirmed a torn ACL for Ravens RB Gus Edwards, ESPN's Adam Schefter reports. So Edwards, like teammates J.K. Dobbins and Justice Hill, will miss the entire 2021 season. That leaves Baltimore with RBs Ty'Son Williams and Trenton Cannon on the active roster and RBs Le'Veon Bell and Devonta Freeman on the practice squad. Williams is a good bet to lead the way in Monday night's opener vs. the Raiders. We'll see where the backfield goes beyond that.
Jets WR Keelan Cole was added to the injury report on Thursday with a knee issue and limited in practice. WR Jamison Crowder remains on the COVID list, so the Jets might be down to Corey Davis, Elijah Moore, Denzel Mims, Braxton Berrios and Jeff Smith at WR for Sunday's opener vs. Carolina.
Vikings TE Tyler Conklin (hamstring) was upgraded to full participation in Thursday's practice. He'll be out there for this weekend's opener vs. the Bengals and should operate as Minnesota's lead TE.
Raiders RB Josh Jacobs was limited in Thursday's practice with a toe issue. It's the 1st we've heard of it. Jacobs should be available for Monday night's game vs. the Ravens, but stayed tuned to Shark Bites for updates.
Ravens WR Marquise Brown is not listed on the Week 1 injury report. He missed almost all of August with hamstring trouble but is ready to go for Week 1. With WR Rashod Bateman on IR to open the season, Brown should be Baltimore's clear #1 WR vs. the Raiders on Monday night.
Bills WR Emmanuel Sanders (foot) remained limited in Thursday's practice. We haven't seen anything to suggest the foot will be an issue this weekend -- but it'd be nice to see him get in a full practice on Friday.
Chargers RB Austin Ekeler (hamstring) did not practice again on Thursday. Beat writers noted that he was doing more with trainers than he did on Wednesday, but a couple of missed practices to start the week has him looking iffy for this weekend's game vs. Washington. We'll get another update on his status tomorrow. RB Justin Jackson would lead a committee backfield alongside Joshua Kelley and potentially Larry Rountree if Ekeler is out on Sunday.
Broncos TE Noah Fant (leg) progressed to a full practice on Thursday. He's ready to go for this weekend's opener vs. the Giants.
The Steelers and EDGE T.J. Watt have agreed to a 4-year extension that will reportedly pay him $112 million. That includes $80 million in guarantees. It's a record annual average for a defensive player. Most importantly for IDP players, it takes away the only question we had about Watt heading into the season. he spent all of camp doing only position drills and then sitting out the team portion while seeking the new contract. Watt has been a full practice participant this week, though.
The Ravens have signed RB Devonta Freeman to their practice squad. "The idea is that Freeman will be promoted to Ravens’ active roster," ESPN's Adam Schefter tweeted. It's unclear when Freeman will be ready to join the active roster. He joins Le'Veon Bell on Baltimore's practice squad, with Ty'Son Williams and Trenton Cannon on the active roster. There's a lot of settling that needs to happen in this backfield. In the short term, Williams is the best fantasy bet.
Colts WR Parris Campbell (Achilles) graduated to a full practice on Thursday. It's confirmation that he'll play in Sunday's opener vs. the Seahawks. The Achilles issue is worth monitoring, though.
Patriots WR Nelson Agholor (ankle) did not practice on Thursday. That comes after a limited workout on Wednesday. So he appears to be in real danger of missing this weekend's opener against the Dolphins. Agholor's absence would vault Kendrick Bourne into the #2 WR role behind #1 Jakobi Meyers.
Ravens RB Gus Edwards left practice Thursday after suffering a "potentially serious" knee injury, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that the team fears he tore an ACL. Baltimore actually cut the practice short after Edwards and CB Marcus Peters injured knees on consecutive plays. Both are heading in for testing, and we'll certainly keep watch for updates. If the testing confirms that fear, Edwards would be the 3rd RB the Ravens have lost for the season, following J.K. Dobbins (ACL) and Justice Hill (Achilles'). That would leave Ty'Son Williams and Le'Veon Bell to potentially lead the backfield in Week 1 and beyond. Baltimore also recently signed RB Trenton Cannon, but he's more of a special-teamer. Grabbing Bell off waivers where possible suddenly seems like a solid plan.
Insider Doug Kyed hears that the Chargers are "optimistic" that RB Austin Ekeler (hamstring) will be able to play in Sunday's opener vs. Washington. It's good news, but Ekeler's practice participation levels on Thursday and Friday will tell the story. Stay tuned.
Titans WR A.J. Brown (knee) returned to practice on Thursday. It's confirmation that Wednesday he sat out Wednesday more as a rest day than because of knee trouble. Brown should be good to go for this weekend's dream matchup vs. the Cardinals.
Lions RBs coach Duce Staley doesn't plan on keeping RB D'Andre Swift on a snap count in Sunday's opener vs. the 49ers, despite Swift missing much of August with a groin issue. "I get caught up in the game, he’s going to get caught up in the game and every good player, every good running back that I know, anyway, once you start feeling it, you don’t want to pull him off," Staley said. "We can count the reps Monday." We'll see if HC Dan Campbell and/or OC Anthony Lynn have a say in Swift's workload. But Swift's Week 1 fantasy outlook continues to trend in a positive direction.
Washington WR Curtis Samuel (groin) did not practice on Thursday. He's looking like a long shot for this weekend's game vs. the Chargers. Look for rookie WR Dyami Brown to join WR Terry McLaurin on the outside, with WR Adam Humphries in the slot.
Chargers RB Austin Ekeler missed Wednesday's practice with a hamstring injury. It's the 1st we've heard of it. Ekeler was at least able to work off to the side with trainers -- but his status for Sunday's opener vs. Washington is now up in the air. Check back tomorrow for another update. It's unclear how L.A. would divvy backfield work between Justin Jackson, Joshua Kelley and Larry Rountree if Ekeler is out.
Vikings TE Tyler Conklin (hamstring) was limited in Wednesday's practice. He's seemingly on track to play against the Bengals this weekend, but we'll get another update on his status tomorrow.
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