NFL Player News

Coach Matt Rhule said Monday that it's a "possibility" Darnold (shoulder) returns down the stretch, Joe Person of The Athletic reports.

Rhule also noted that Darnold still is a few weeks away from being fully recovered, per David Newton of ESPN.com, so it appears that his earliest possible chance to come off IR might be Week 16. Cam Newton has proven to be mistake prone and struggled to move Carolina's offense through the air since his reunion with the team, and David Newton reports that he and P.J. Walker may split reps under center going forward. As a result, Rhule still has real motivation to explore other possibilities at quarterback.

Rodgers hopes to avoid minor surgery to immobilize his fractured toe, but he did acknowledge it as a possibility Sunday night after aggravating the injury during a 45-30 win over the Bears, Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com reports. "That would be last resort, for sure," Rodgers said. "But I've got to see what kind of setback it was tonight."

While surgery wouldn't automatically mean missing a game, Rodgers hopes to avoid it after throwing for 300-plus yards and multiple touchdowns in each of his first three contests since suffering the toe fracture. He said a decision would come Monday after more testing, with Rodgers aiming for a plan that would allow him to play this Sunday in Baltimore. Kurt Benkert served as Rodgers' backup for the primetime win over Chicago, with Jordan Love (illness) on the reserve/COVID-19 list since last Monday (Dec. 6).

Allen, who had a walking boot on his lower left leg after Sunday's 33-27 loss to the Buccaneers, is dealing with a mild case of turf toe, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Per Alaina Getzenberg of ESPN.com, the quarterback is slated to undergo additional tests Monday. For his part, Allen, who continued to play on after suffering the injury, says he doesn't "think it's going to be a big deal." For now, consider the signal-caller day-to-day in advance of the Bills' Week 15 game against the Panthers.

Keenum played two snaps and did not attempt a pass in Sunday's 24-22 win over the Ravens.

Keenum entered the contest after a sack of starter Baker Mayfield forced him to the sidelines for evaluation. The backup handed off the ball to D'Ernest Johnson for a couple of plays before the Browns punted. Mayfield was back in the game by the time Cleveland had possession again.

Fields (ribs) completed 18 of 33 pass attempts for 224 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions while rushing nine times for 74 yards in Sunday's 45-30 loss to Green Bay. He also lost a fumble.

The entire Bears' unit put up an exciting fight against the Packers for the majority of the contest, but Fields didn't have a particularly strong game in terms of passing. The rookie quarterback was returning from a rib injury that cost him two weeks of action, but it wasn't like he was performing that well from the pocket prior to getting hurt (58 percent completion rate with a 6:10 TD:INT prior to Sunday's loss). The Vikings have been one of the worst passing defenses this season, so perhaps Fields can offer streaming value in next Monday's divisional matchup.

Rodgers (toe) completed 29 of 37 pass attempts for 341 yards and four touchdowns in Sunday's 45-30 win over the Bears, but Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that Rodgers suffered a setback with his fractured toe and will have the injury reexamined.

Chicago appeared to use Rodgers' comment about his relationship with the team as bulletin board material in the first half of this contest, but the cream eventually rose to the top in yet another win for the quarterback in this rivalry. The 38-year-old has been on an absolute roll recently, passing for 1,033 yards with 10 touchdowns and no turnovers over his last three games. It was reported that the toe that Rodgers injured three weeks ago will continue to bother the quarterback for the rest of the season, but it clearly hasn't affected his play on the field. Assuming Rodgers is able to continue playing through his toe injury, the next defense that has to deal with the star quarterback will be the Ravens next Sunday.

Heinicke will have an MRI on Monday on the knee injury he suffered Sunday against Dallas, but he's optimistic he'll be able to start in Week 15 against the Eagles, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Heinicke was replaced by Kyle Allen in what ended up being a 27-20 loss to the Cowboys. Schefter reports that Heinicke's optimism about his status moving forward is shared by his team, but a more definitive prognosis on the starting quarterback's injury should emerge once his MRI results become available.

Burrow completed 25 of 34 passes for 348 yards and two touchdowns in Sunday's 26-23 overtime loss to the 49ers.

The Bengals' offense was sluggish through three quarters before Burrow caught fire in the fourth, hitting Ja'Marr Chase for a pair of scores to force extra time and then leading Cincy to a field goal on the opening possession of OT. However, San Francisco responded with a game-winning touchdown when they got their turn with the ball. Burrow's dislocated pinkie finger didn't stop him from reaching 300 yards for the second straight game and tossing multiple TDs for the first time since Week 8, but he faces a tough test in Week 15 on the road against the Broncos.

Lawrence completed 24 of 40 passes for 221 yards, no touchdowns and four interceptions in Sunday's 20-0 loss to the Titans.

Lawrence was fairly efficient in the first half, as he completed 10 passes on 12 attempts for 93 yards. However, things unraveled in the second half as he threw all four of his picks with Jacksonville pushing to get back in the game. On the positive side of things, he did get the ball to key playmakers such as Marvin Jones, Laquon Treadwell and Laviska Shenault thanks to the fact that he attempted 40 passes. Overall, however, Lawrence continues to struggle in his rookie campaign as he has thrown for zero touchdowns in five of his last six contests.

Garoppolo completed 27 of 41 passes for 296 yards and two touchdowns in Sunday's 26-23 overtime win over the Bengals.

He also added three yards on his only carry. Garoppolo led the Niners to a 20-6 lead through three quarters, but the Bengals stormed back to tie it up in the fourth and then kicked a field goal on the opening possession of OT. However, the veteran QB responded with some heroics of his own, leading San Francisco on a TD drive capped by a 12-yard toss to Brandon Aiyuk. Garoppolo has tossed multiple TDs in five of the last six games, compiling an 11:4 TD:INT over that stretch, and he could be poised for another big performance in Week 15 against the Falcons.