NFL Player News

Siemian will miss the remainder of the 2019 season after injuring his left ankle in Monday's 23-3 loss to the Browns, Connor Hughes of The Athletic reports.

According to Rich Cimini of ESPN.com, Siemian has a ligament issue with his ankle and will need surgery. The 27-year-old drew the Week 2 start in place of Sam Darnold (illness), playing just one and a half quarters before suffering the season-ending injury. The Jets' only healthy quarterback is currently Luke Falk -- who will start under center until Darnold returns -- so it wouldn't surprise if the team held quarterback tryouts and brought in more passers for insurance.

Falk appears likely to serve as the Jets' starting quarterback for Sunday's game against the Patriots with Sam Darnold (illness) and Trevor Siemian (ankle) not expected to be available for the contest, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com reports.

Heading into Monday's loss to the Browns, the Jets were already preparing to be without Darnold until Week 5 while he recovered from mononucleosis. Siemian picked up the starting nod in place of Darnold on Monday but lasted just one and a half quarters before exiting with what appeared to be a serious left ankle injury. Falk, who had just signed off the practice squad earlier in the day, impressed in relief of Siemian, completing 20 of 25 attempts for 198 yards in the 23-3 loss. Unless Siemian's upcoming MRI delivers better news than anticipated, he'll likely be sidelined for at least one game, leaving Falk to pick up his first career start. In such a scenario, the Jets would presumably add another healthy quarterback to the roster to provide depth behind Falk.

Blough was named the backup behind Matthew Stafford on Tuesday, Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press reports.

Josh Johnson was originally the backup behind Stafford, but the team released him Tuesday, leaving Blough as the No. 2. The Lions also signed Jeff Driskel to provide depth behind Blough and Stafford. Blough went undrafted out of Purdue in this year's draft after passing for 9,734 yards, 69 touchdowns and 43 interceptions in four years as a Boilermaker.

Driskel signed a contract with the Lions on Tuesday, Justin Rogers of The Detroit News reports.

Driskel was available after being waived by the Bengals with an injury settlement last Wednesday. It seems that the 26-year-old is fully healthy now and will provide depth for the Lions behind David Blough and Matthew Stafford.

The Lions released Johnson on Tuesday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Johnson initially won the backup job in Detroit behind Matthew Stafford after surviving the annual roster cuts Aug. 31, but it appears the club wants to go in a different direction. The Lions promoted David Blough to backup and signed Jeff Driskel for depth. Johnson hasn't appeared in more than four games in a season since seeing the field in nine contests for Tampa Bay in 2011.

Allen and Will Grier both took snaps with the first-team offense at Tuesday's practice while starter Cam Newton was limited to rehab work after aggravating a left foot injury in the Week 2 loss to the Buccaneers, David Newton of ESPN.com reports.

Newton has been bothered by the foot issue since the third week of the preseason and hasn't been in top form through the first two weeks of the regular season, as evidenced in particular by his lack of involvement in the run game (five attempts for minus-2 yards). General manager Marty Hurney labeled Newton as day-to-day and was unwilling to speculate on his availability for Sunday's matchup with the Cardinals, potentially leaving Allen or Grier in line for the starting assignment. Considering Allen broke camp as the No. 2 quarterback, he would be the odds-on favorite to start if Newton is sidelined. If Allen does in fact get the nod Sunday, the Panthers would likely ask him to play the part of game manager and opt for a ground-heavy attack if the game flow allows for it.

The Giants announced Tuesday that Jones will take over as their starting quarterback Week 3 against the Buccaneers.

After Eli Manning turned in a rough showing in Sunday's loss to the Bills, coach Pat Shurmur gave no assurances that the veteran would retain the top spot on the depth chart. The 0-2 Giants will now turn the offense over to Jones, who displayed an accurate arm in the preseason and offers a more mobile option in the pocket than Manning. The rookie could have some ups and downs in his initial run as the starter, but he'll at least gain some meaningful experience in 2019 and help the Giants assess whether he's their long-term solution behind center.

Although Bridgewater will have the first opportunity to replace Drew Brees (thumb) during his absence, coach Sean Payton could be quick to replace him with Taysom Hill if Bridgewater struggles early, Mike Triplett of ESPN.com reports.

Bridgewater had Payton's full support Monday after a so-so performance in emergency duty versus the Rams on Sunday following Brees' first-quarter exit. The 26-year-old signal-caller completed 17 of 30 passes for 165 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions, a serviceable but uninspired line that ultimately failed to give the Saints a realistic chance of keeping pace with Los Angeles. While Payton named the team's poor offensive line play and 11 penalties as primary culprits for the offensive struggles, he may not be as tolerant should the Saints find themselves at 1-3 following their next pair of contests. Hill outperformed Bridgewater in the preseason and is more of a dual threat than the current starter, making him a natural candidate for a crack at the top job should the offense need a spark a couple of games into Brees' projected 6-to-8-week absence.

Falk completed 20 of 25 attempts for 198 yards during Monday's 23-3 loss to Cleveland.

The results certainly were not reflected on the scoreboard, but Falk's baptism-by-fire NFL debut was far from disastrous, as the 2018 sixth-round pick completed 80 percent of his passes and led New York into scoring position twice over the course of nine offensive drives at the helm. The situation at quarterback for Week 3 is yet to be fully sorted out, but if Trevor Siemian (ankle) proves incapable of suiting up against the Patriots, Falk is in line to get his first career starting nod against a New England defense that has surrendered three points on 24 possessions thus far this season.

Mayfield completed 19 of 35 attempts for 325 passing yards, one touchdown and one interception during Monday's 23-3 win against the Jets.

Mayfield fell apart late in the Week 1 loss to Tennessee, committing three fourth-quarter interceptions as the Browns' deficit gradually increased from nine to 30 over the final 15 minutes of play. Monday night's showing was much more encouraging, with the Browns leading wire to wire as a result of Mayfield taking Cleveland down the field for scores on three of its first four drives. One aspect of the offense that will be crucial to clean up moving forward is reducing sacks, as Mayfield has absorbed eight through two games. Week 3's matchup may provide relief from a pocket pressure perspective, as the Rams rank below average to this point with four sacks recorded, though the pass defense has been stingy in containing opponents to 403 total yards.