NFL Player News

Dalton (left hand/groin) has been ruled out for Sunday's contest at Seattle.

Dalton recently spent nearly a week on the reserve/COVID-19 list, but upon his return to the active roster Thursday he put in a full practice. He proceeded to miss Friday's session entirely and won't be available to the Bears in Week 16. With Justin Fields (ankle) potentially not able to serve as even a backup Sunday, coach Matt Nagy has tabbed Nick Foles as the team's starting quarterback, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. Dalton's next chance to play will be Sunday, Jan. 2 against the Giants.

Fields (ankle) is listed as questionable for Sunday's game in Seattle.

Fields kicked off Week 16 prep with a limited listing on the Bears' injury report, only to not participate in any drills once the team took the practice field Thursday and Friday. Coach Matt Nagy announced that Nick Foles will start at quarterback for the Bears this weekend, and it's to be determined whether Fields will be able to serve as the backup, per Kevin Fishbain of The Athletic. If Fields eventually is inactive Sunday, practice squad member Ryan Willis would serve as the No. 2 to Foles.

Huntley missed Friday's practice with a non-COVID-19-related illness, but the Ravens still are expecting him to start Sunday against the Bengals with Lamar Jackson (ankle) trending toward missing a second straight game, Aditi Kinkhabwala of NFL Network reports.

Josh Johnson took reps with the first-team offense Friday, as Huntley was away from the team while Jackson remained a spectator once again. As Kinkhabwala notes, Jackson hasn't taken any on-field reps in the past 12 days since spraining his ankle Dec. 12 against the Browns, making it unlikely the Ravens clear him to play even if he takes a questionable designation into the weekend. Provided Huntley continues to improve in the next couple of days while testing negative for the virus, he should be ready to pick up another start after he practiced fully Wednesday and Thursday. After putting his dual-threat abilities on full display last week in a narrow loss to Green Bay, Huntley profiles as an appealing option for Week 16 fantasy lineups.

The Giants are planning to have Fromm make his first career start in Sunday's game in Philadelphia, though head coach Joe Judge has yet to formally appoint the 23-year-old for the nod, Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post reports.

Judge said Monday that both Fromm and Mike Glennon -- who went 0-3 while starting each of the past three contests -- would both be evaluated in practices Wednesday through Friday before a Week 16 starter was named, but all signs point to the second-year signal-caller out of Georgia directing the offense. According to Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News, Fromm was the first quarterback to take reps at Thursday's practice, which suggests the Giants are ready to give his first extended trial at the NFL level. Fromm made his professional debut in relief of a struggling Glennon in last week's loss to the Cowboys, completing six of 12 passes for 82 yards. Because Fromm has been with the organization for less than a month, the Giants presumably will simplify the game plan and lean heavily on the ground attack Sunday, so long as the game script allows for it. As such, Fromm likely won't have much appeal outside of fantasy leagues that start two quarterbacks or have a super flex spot.

Coach Dan Campbell said Friday's "it's highly unlikely" Goff (COVID-19) will play Sunday against the Falcons, Eric Woodyard of ESPN.com reports.

Goff tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday and can technically still clear league protocols in time for Sunday's game, though the team doesn't expect him to be available. Barring a drastic change in Goff's outlook, Tim Boyle or David Blough will start for Detroit this weekend.

Allen (illness) was activated from the reserve/COVID-19 list Friday.

Taylor Heinicke was reinstated Thursday, and Washington now has its top two quarterbacks back on the active roster after both missed one game due to COVID-19. Allen should reclaim backup duties while Garrett Gilbert drops to the No. 3 option.

Tannehill completed 22 of 29 passes for 209 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions in Thursday's 20-17 win over San Francisco. He added three rushes for 22 yards.

Tannehill's final line wasn't all that impressive, as he failed to reach 225 passing yards for the sixth time in his last seven games. However, he led a second half offensive surge for the Titans and accounted for 169 passing yards and all of his yards on the ground in the final two quarters. His efforts were highlighted on a drive that spanned from late in third quarter to early in the fourth quarter, when he connected with A.J. Brown for three receptions and 72 yards and culminated in an 18-yard touchdown between the duo. Overall, Tannehill has done what's necessary to keep the Titans near the top of the AFC, though that hasn't led to notable fantasy production heading into a Week 17 matchup against Miami.

Allen (foot) was able to practice fully Thursday.

Allen was a much more dicey proposition for the Bills' Week 15 contest after injuring his toe/foot in a crushing overtime loss to the Buccaneers in Week 14, but he came out of the most recent game none the worse for the wear and likely won't have a designation this weekend. This will be one of the more important regular-season games of Allen's young career, as the winner will be in position to take the AFC East crown. Allen is slated to be missing one major weapon in Cole Beasley (COVID-19), but it also looks like veteran Emmanuel Sanders (knee) will be ready to step back in following a one-week absence.

Garoppolo completed 26 of 35 passes for 322 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions in the 49ers' 20-17 loss to the Titans on Thursday night. He also rushed once for three yards.

Garoppolo played a solid first half overall, but his late first-quarter interception in the end zone would prove to be especially costly by night's end. The veteran signal-caller then committed a second critical gaffe in the third quarter when he was picked off by Amani Hooker at his own 39-yard line, with the veteran's subsequent 21-yard return helping set up a Tennessee touchdown four plays later. Garoppolo partly made up for the pair of turnovers with a 56-yard pass to Deebo Samuel with 3:42 remaining that was followed by a two-yard scoring toss to Brandon Aiyuk two plays later, but he didn't get the ball back until four seconds remained following a Titans' go-ahead field goal. The performance snapped a two-game streak without an interception for Garoppolo, who now has 10 through 14 games. His next opportunity to right the ship and attempt to refortify San Francisco's postseason chances comes in a Week 17 home battle against the Texans a week from Sunday.

Cousins (ribs) was a full practice participant Thursday, Craig Peters of the Vikings' official site reports.

One day removed from logging a rare limited session Wednesday due to a rib issue, Cousins handled every practice rep thrown his way. The Vikings took a hit in the skill positions Thursday when Dalvin Cook (illness) tested positive for COVID-19, while Adam Thielen (ankle) managed a second consecutive LP on the team's injury report. There's a distinct possibility Cousins could be without both Cook -- who won't play Sunday -- and Thielen this weekend against the Rams, leaving Justin Jefferson, Alexander Mattison, K.J. Osborn and Tyler Conklin as his top options on offense.