NFL Player News

Grier (foot) was fully cleared of his bone bruise and mid-foot sprain in February, Joseph Person of The Athletic reports.

The 2019 third-round pick started the final two games of his rookie year and completed 28 of 52 passes for 228 yards and four interceptions, but he went down in the season finale with the foot injury. Grier certainly struggled in his first NFL showing, but the Panthers were in a complete tailspin throughout the second half of the season. Teddy Bridgewater is set to start after signing a three-year, $63 million deal, while Grier will battle XFL standout P.J. Walker for backup duties.

Trubisky (shoulder) led offseason workouts with teammates in the Chicago area, Bryan Perez of NBC Sports Chicago reports.

Trubisky had an interesting offseason, starting with January surgery on a partially torn labrum in his left shoulder. The Bears traded for Nick Foles a couple months later, then declined to pick up the fifth-year option on Trubisky's rookie contract. Coach Matt Nagy said his incumbent will take the first snap with the starting offense at training camp, but Foles will be given every opportunity to win the Week 1 starting job. Given the distinct possibility of a truncated preseason, Chicago's QB battle may be determined on the practice field. Whoever wins the job will be directing a passing attack with major question marks beyond No. 1 receiver Allen Robinson, though the Bears hope Ted Ginn and Jimmy Graham will be upgrades on 2019 starters Taylor Gabriel (free agent) and Trey Burton (Colts).

Prescott signed his franchise tag from the Cowboys on Monday, David Helman of the team's official site reports.

The Cowboys extended the exclusive version of the tag, which gave Prescott no chance to talk with other organizations as a bargaining tool. With that figure at $31.4 million for the 2020 season, his representatives have until July 15 to reach agreement on a contract extension, but those talks have stalled as the Cowboys are aiming to lock Prescott into a five-year deal, while the quarterback is seeking four more years. In any case, Prescott now is obligated to report for the start of training camp.

Prescott intends to sign his $31.4 million franchise tender with the Cowboys by Monday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

The two sides still have until July 15 to agree to an extension, but signing the tender means Prescott will be contractually obligated to report for the start of training camp, ending any potential of a holdout. The 26-year-old has been in communication with new coach Mike McCarthy despite not participating in the team's offseason program, but due to the offseason restrictions from COVID-19, he hasn't missed any on-field activities.

Tagovailoa (hip) began working out at the Dolphins' team facility Monday, Omar Kelly of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports.

Now that the young quarterback is able to continue his injury recovery and training at Miami's facility, team doctors and trainers will be able to more accurately assess Tagovailoa's progress. According to his physical therapist, Kevin Wilk, Tagovailoa has been "doing miraculously well" in his rehab, to the point that he sometimes needs to be encouraged to slow things down. A timeline for when Dolphins players are able to take the field together remains unknown, but when that happens, Tagovailoa should be out there in some capacity, and at that point, a better sense of how close he is to being ready for game action will become more apparent. With veteran signal-caller Ryan Fitzpatrick also in the mix, there's no compelling reason to rush Tagovailoa, especially considering the uniqueness of this offseason. That said, as a top-five draft pick, the Alabama product is destined to eventually become the team's starter after he's deemed healthy and demonstrates his command of the offense.

Hackenberg is attempting to begin a career in professional baseball, Ralph Vacchiano of SportsNet New York reports.

The 2016 second-round pick by the Jets hasn't been on an NFL roster since August 2018, and he never played a snap during his time with New York or the Raiders. Hackenberg also played in the Alliance of American Football before it was shuttered, but he was benched after three starts. He's unlikely to make a return to football at this point, but he'll attempt to continue his athletic career on the diamond.

Winston (thumb) is expected to be the top backup behind starter Drew Brees, Larry Holder of The Athletic reports.

Holder notes this is just speculation, as the Saints have not undergone any sort of organized team activities or minicamps, but the claim makes sense given Winston's resume as a starter, and the overall role presumed backup option Taysom Hill has on the totality of the offense. Hill's offensive flexibility makes him a valuable commodity regardless of the backup quarterback label, and the $16 million extension he signed in the offseason reinforces the notion the 29-year-old is likely considered the "future" starter as opposed to Winston. Still, as we saw with Teddy Bridgewater in 2019, the comfy confines of the Saints offensive system can do wonders for the prospects of a backup quarterback, especially one as gifted as the 2015 No. 1 overall pick.

Jones is focused on reducing his fumbles and gaining strength, Dan Duggan of The Athletic reports.

Jones spent part of the offseason with his college coach, David Cutliffe, who is well known for working with both Peyton and Eli Manning. Cutliffe believes quarterbacks who can't maintain focus downfield under pressure are lost causes, whereas Jones lands on the other end of the spectrum, perhaps too eager to make big plays. The 23-year-old had an NFL-high 18 fumbles last year, sporting the ninth-highest sack rate (7.6 percent) while tying Ryan Fitzpatrick for the most hits taken (66) on pass plays. Jones reportedly is up near 230 pounds after being listed at 221 last season, but Cutliffe believes the more important factor for ball security will be an improvement in pocket movement. The offense surrounding Jones looks much the same as last season's, but with first-round pick Andrew Thomas stepping in at right tackle and new head coach Joe Judge bringing in Jason Garrett to run the offense. Jones showed potential as a rookie, with 24 passing touchdowns and two rushing scores in 12 starts.

Coach Matt Nagy said Monday that Trubisky (shoulder) has been "really, really good in the fact that he's taken this [competition] head-on," Kevin Patra of NFL.com reports.

Nagy has previously stated that the team's Week 1 starter will be determined in an open competition between Trubisky and Nick Foles, whom the team acquired for a fourth-round pick in a trade with Jacksonville in April. The Bears then declined to pick up Trubisky's fifth-year option, a hint that Foles is viewed internally as the frontrunner to beat out Trubisky in training camp and the preseason. The 25-year-old demonstrated a career-low 6.1 yards per pass attempt last season while leading one of the least potent offenses in the league. He's also recovering from January surgery to repair a partially torn labrum in his non-throwing shoulder.

Prescott has been in contact with new Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy even though he has yet to sign his franchise tag offer or agree to a contract extension, Jonny Auping of DallasCowboys.com reports. "There has been communication," McCarthy confirmed. "This is the way these business situations go sometimes and [I] respect that. I have confidence that it will work out."

Under normal circumstances, Prescott being in contract limbo would have prevented him from participating in on-field activities with his teammates, but at the moment all he's missing are some virtual meetings. The fact that he's stayed in touch with McCarthy suggests the quarterback won't be behind in understanding any new wrinkles being added to the offensive scheme once in-person team activities are allowed to ramp up. Prescott and the Cowboys have until July 15 to work out an extension, a move that would free up additional cap space for the team -- otherwise he'll play out the 2020 season under the franchise tag at a salary of $31.4 million.