NFL Player News

Jacksonville signed Luton to a reserve/future contract Friday, Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com reports.

Luton, who joined the NFL as a 2020 sixth-round pick of the Jaguars, most recently spent time on Miami's practice squad. Now, the 25-year-old signal-caller can prepare to spend the offseason continuing his development in a familiar situation.

Rodgers was named Most Valuable Player for the 2021 season Thursday.

Rodgers was named MVP for the second consecutive season and for the fourth time in his career. Though he was outperformed in metrics such as yards and touchdowns, Rodgers was rewarded for his accuracy and ability to protect the ball. He threw only four interceptions -- the lowest mark of any regular starter this season -- and also posted a stellar 68.9 completion percentage. Rodgers also led the Packers to a successful regular season, highlighted by a 13-4 record and the No. 1 seed in the NFC. Despite all of that success, it's not yet clear whether he will be under center in Green Bay to begin the 2022 campaign.

Garoppolo is slated to see a specialist in the coming days in order to determine whether he will need surgery to address his right thumb injury, Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com reports.

Garoppolo played the 49ers' final five games (including the playoffs) with a torn thumb ligament he suffered Dec. 23. At this stage, Garoppolo is hoping to avoid a procedure, but if he requires surgery, his recovery will be something of interest to teams that might be interested in trading for the signal-caller, who is a candidate to be moved this offseason. For his part, Garoppolo seemed resigned to being dealt this offseason, noting Tuesday that he's "excited about the opportunities to come" elsewhere. If Garoppolo's premonition comes to pass, Trey Lance would be in line to take over as San Francisco's top signal-caller in 2022.

Hurts will undergo surgery on his left ankle Wednesday and is expected to fully recover in time for the start of OTAs, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.

Hurts played through the ankle injury down the stretch of the 2021 campaign, and he was spotted in a walking boot after the Eagles' wild-card round loss to the Buccaneers. Barring any setbacks in his recovery, Hurts' procedure doesn't look as though it'll have a notable affect on his preparation for the 2022 season during the spring and summer. General manager Howie Roseman previously said in mid-January that Hurts has performed well enough in his first full season as a starter to remain atop the depth chart entering 2022, which should give his managers in dynasty leagues some amount of confidence about his outlook.

Trask is an option to replace Tom Brady, who announced his retirement from the NFL on Tuesday, Jenna Laine of ESPN.com reports.

Despite being a relatively early draft pick last spring, 64th overall, Trask was a healthy scratch each week of his rookie season. Laine notes that the Bucs drafted Trask with the thought he'd replace Brady in 2023, not 2022, but the franchise is on a new timeline after the future Hall of Famer announced his retirement Tuesday. While the Bucs figure to look at the market for veteran signal-callers, Trask should at least have the inside track for the No. 2 role entering his second season, and if things break in his favor he could even get his shot to compete for the starting job. Brady's backup from this past season, 32-year-old Blaine Gabbert, is scheduled for unrestricted free agency in the offseason.

Sudfeld reverted to the 49ers' practice squad Monday, per the NFL's official transaction log.

Sudfeld has spent several games with the active roster this season, serving as the No. 2 or No. 3 quarterback on the positional depth chart. However, he never appeared in a game.

Garoppolo is expected to have thumb surgery soon and likely will need 4-to-6 weeks to recover, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Garoppolo started 15 of San Francisco's 17 regular-season games in 2021, missing one contest in October with a calf injury and one in December with a thumb ligament injury. He also was bothered by his shoulder late in the season, yet came one drive away from reaching a second Super Bowl in the past three years. Of course, Garoppolo has been more game manager than franchise QB, and he's now looking at an uncertain future with only one season remaining on his contract and the Niners able to clear up more than $25 million in cap space if he's released. With 2021 first-round pick Trey Lance waiting in the wings, it won't come as any surprise if Garoppolo is traded or released this offseason, though his recovery from surgery could be a minor complicating factor -- at least in terms of the timing. It does sound like he'll be healthy before training camp and possibly for the start of the offseason program, be it in San Francisco or elsewhere.

Love appeared in six games during the 2021 season and completed 36 of 62 passes for 411 yards. He registered two touchdowns and three interceptions and also ran 12 times for 27 yards.

Of Love's six appearances, two were simply to kneel out the clock, and two others were brief cameos late in games when the outcome already had been determined. He did play one full game against the Chiefs in Week 9 and played the second half of the Packers' Week 18 loss to the Lions, and he was unspectacular in those contests, completing just 56.9 percent of his passes and averaging 6.4 YPA. After seeing no snaps in his 2020 rookie campaign, the 2021 season essentially was Love's first as a pro. His prospects for 2022 will hinge significantly on whether or not fellow quarterback Aaron Rodgers remains with Green Bay. If Rodgers returns, Love is looking at another season in the backup role. If Rodgers does not, though, Love will be the favorite to take over as the Packers' starting quarterback.

Garoppolo completed 16 of 30 pass attempts for 232 yards, two touchdowns and an interception in Sunday's 20-17 loss to the Rams.

Garoppolo technically performed better from a fantasy perspective this week compared to his previous two games where he failed to eclipse 200 passing yards and threw zero combined touchdowns. That said, the product fans saw on the field was horrific at times, with the veteran quarterback airmailing wide-open receivers and throwing some dangerous passes into coverage. Despite his struggles, the 49ers reached the NFC Championship Game and were one potential possession away from reaching the Super Bowl for the second time in three years with Jimmy G under center. As for the signal-caller's prospects moving forward, he still is under contract with San Francisco in 2022, but $25.5 million of his $26.9 million cap hit can be eliminated due to the front-loaded nature of his deal. That means that the 49ers could save just over $25 million in cap space if they cut the veteran and hand the keys over to Trey Lance in 2022. This move makes sense from a strategic and economic standpoint, but we will have to wait and see what GM John Lynch decides to do at the position once the dust from this loss settles.

Stafford completed 31 of 45 passes for 337 yards with two touchdowns and one interception during the Rams' 20-17 win over the 49ers in their NFC Championship Game matchup Sunday. He also rushed five times for eight yards.

The long-suffering veteran finally punched a ticket to the Super Bowl in his 13th season, playing a critical role by generating his second straight 300-yard postseason effort. Stafford's afternoon certainly didn't start off on the right foot, however, as he missed an open Odell Beckham to end the Rams' first possession and was then intercepted by Jimmie Ward at the goal line on Los Angeles' second drive. Stafford found his stride in the second half despite having to navigate a pair of sacks and persistent pressure, connecting with his starting wideout duo of Cooper Kupp and Beckham for 20 of his completions, 255 of his yards and both of his touchdowns, with Kupp garnering the scores. Stafford now will set his sights on trying to cap off a Cinderella debut Rams campaign with a victory in Super Bowl LVI on his home turf of SoFi Stadium on Sunday, Feb. 13.