NFL Player News

Jackson (knee/illness) is expected to suit up against the Bengals on Sunday despite having missed Thursday's practice due to a stomach ache, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Neither Jackson's current ailment nor the knee injury that caused him to miss Wednesday's practice are expected to be enough to seriously endanger his readiness for Sunday's game against the Bengals, though it is notable that he's now missed back-to-back practices for the first time in his young career. Tom Pelissero of NFL Network notes that the Ravens consider both issues to be minor, so if Jackson is at least able to upgrade to 'limited' participation Friday it'll bode well for his Week 5 availability.

Lock (right shoulder) remained limited at practice Thursday, Ryan O'Halloran of the Denver Post reports.

While Lock is clearly moving in the right direction, coach Vic Fangio isn't quite ready to sign off on the QB returning to action in Week 4, noting that "besides just the throwing, which is the obvious evaluator, you also have to know if he's capable physically and mentally to take a hit or go to the ground." With that in mind, Troy Renck of Denver 7 News believes that Brett Rypien is trending toward starting Sunday's game against the Patriots. Added clarity on that front should arrive no later than Friday's final Week 5 injury report.

Garoppolo (ankle) was a limited participant in Thursday's practice, Keiana Martin of the 49ers' official site reports.

Garoppolo appeared to participate in his second consecutive limited practice without a brace or extra padding on his right ankle, per Jennifer Lee Chan of NBC Sports Bay Area. The starting quarterback has one more opportunity to prove his health at practice before the 49ers tag him with an official injury designation for Sunday's game against the Dolphins. In the event that Garoppolo were forced to miss a third straight game, the team would have to decide between Nick Mullens or C.J. Beathard under center for another week.

Jackson, who missed practice Thursday, is dealing with both a knee issue and an illness, per the Ravens' injury report, Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic reports.

Jackson's back-to-back absences from practice now have added context, with Tom Pelissero noting during an appearance on NFL Network that both of the QB's issues are considered minor and that his status for Sunday's game against the Bengals shouldn't be impacted.

Coach Anthony Lynn has announced that Taylor (ribs/chest) will back up Justin Herbert once he's cleared to play, Gilbert Manzano of The Orange County reports.

The Chargers had originally planned to ease Herbert -- who was the No. 6 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft -- into his anticipated role as the team's franchise QB, but that process was accelerated when he played very well after Taylor suffered a punctured lung while receiving a pain-killing injection to his rib area just before Los Angeles' Week 2 kickoff. If Taylor is unable to bounce back in time for Monday night's game against the Saints, Easton Stick will continue to serve as Herbert's backup in Week 5.

Burrow has connected on only one of his 20 attempts on passes thrown 20 or more yards beyond the line of scrimmage through four games, Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic reports.

It's a historically low percentage of completions of that type, since the stat first started being tracked, but it's not all attributable to Burrow's failings. He has missed on some of those throws, but he's also not been helped by his receivers in hauling those passes, plus opposing defenses have been trying to force him to throw more intermediate passes.

Chargers head coach Anthony Lynn said Thursday that Herbert will serve as the team's starting quarterback moving forward, Gilbert Manzano of The Orange County Register reports.

The decision, which comes in advance of Monday's game against the Saints, is a reversal of Lynn's previous stance, as the coach originally indicated that Week 1 starter Tyrod Taylor (ribs/chest) wouldn't lose his job due to an injury. Herbert's impressive play while filling in for Taylor forced Lynn's hand, however, and the rookie will now assume the position the Chargers had in mind for him when they selected him sixth overall in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Garoppolo (ankle) was spotted at the early portion of Thursday's practice, Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com reports.

Garoppolo was limited in his return to practice Wednesday, and considering the nature of his high right ankle sprain, it wouldn't surprising to see his reps capped again Thursday. San Francisco will continue to monitor Garoppolo's health in order to make a decision about his availability for Sunday's game against the Dolphins. David Lombardi of The Athletic notes that the 49ers' primary focus may be making sure that Garoppolo is fully ready to suit up for Week 6's divisional matchup against the Rams.

Coach Ron Rivera said Allen, who will be Washington's starting quarterback Sunday against the Rams, will be evaluated on a game-by-game basis, JP Finlay of NBC Sports Washington reports.

Despite losing the past three games, Washington finds itself behind just the Eagles (1-2-1) and tied with the Cowboys (1-3) in the NFC East. Allen himself served as the backup to Dwayne Haskins through the quarter mark of the season, but the latter's play seems to have been at the forefront of Rivera's decision. Even after posting season bests in completion percentage (71) and yards (314) this past Sunday against the Ravens, Haskins was sitting at 61 percent, 234.8 yards per game and four touchdowns versus three interceptions. Meanwhile, Allen, who followed Rivera and offensive coordinator Scott Turner from Carolina to DC, has experience in the system. In 12 starts last year for the Panthers, Allen completed 62 percent of his passes, averaged 252.3 yards per game and had 17 TDs versus 15 picks.

Jackson (knee) didn't practice Thursday, Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com reports.

Hensley points out that this is the first time that the QB has missed back-to-back regular season practices during his three-year NFL career. Initial reports indicated that Jackson's knee issue isn't considered serious, but obviously what he's able to do at practice Friday will be telling with regard to his status for Sunday's game against the Bengals.