NFL Player News

Winston completed 22 of 35 passes for 345 yards with four touchdowns and one interception in the Buccaneers' 34-32 loss to the Falcons on Sunday. He also rushed twice for 23 yards.

With reports emerging earlier Sunday that the team planned to bring him back as its starting quarterback in 2019, Winston promptly went out and put together one of his best performances of the season. The four-year veteran's quartet of passing scores equaled a season high, while his yardage total served as his third-best figure of 2018. Winston finishes his abbreviated 2018 campaign with five 300-yard passing efforts overall, but he now faces an offseason of uncertainty from a coaching perspective. Head coach Dirk Koetter could well be on his way out after another non-playoff campaign, and his exit would mean Winston would be learning a new offensive system heading into 2019.

Stafford completed 20 of 32 pass attempts for 266 yards and two touchdowns during Sunday's 31-0 win against the Packers.

Entering Week 17, Stafford was coming off a gauntlet run of elite NFL secondaries. A veteran with seven consecutive 4,200-yard passing seasons prior to 2018, Stafford was limited to an underwhelming 187.7 passing yards per game with a 5:5 TD:INT ratio over his past six outings. This slump having come while facing four of the league's 10 best pass defenses in Buffalo, Minnesota, Arizona and Chicago, Stafford was poised for a bounce-back performance taking on a Green Bay defense that entered the regular-season finale having surrendered the seventh-most completions to opposing quarterbacks while forcing the fourth-fewest interceptions. Stafford did just that, wrapping up 2018 with his first multi-touchdown performance since Week 10 as the Lions completed a 6-10 campaign. With two losing seasons and only one playoff appearance over his past four years as the starter, Stafford aims to lead Detroit back to the postseason in 2019 with the team benefiting from a fourth-place schedule.

Allen won't return to Sunday's game at New Orleans due to a shoulder injury, Jourdan Rodrigue of The Charlotte Observer reports. Allen's final line Sunday reads 16-for-27 passing for 228 yards and two touchdowns.

Allen took a massive hit from the Saints' Marcus Davenport midway through the fourth quarter and remained on the turf for some time. He subsequently had his right throwing shoulder examined on the sideline, according to Joe Person of The Athletic. With Allen and Taylor Heinicke (elbow) going down in back-to-back games in place of Cam Newton (shoulder), Garrett Gilbert takes over the offense for the final minutes of the Panthers' season.

Rodgers has been diagnosed with a concussion and won't return to Sunday's game versus the Lions.

The confirmation of a concussion marks the third of Rodgers' career, as noted by Jason Wilde of ESPN.com. As a result, Rodgers is in the protocol for head injuries and won't be eligible to speak with the media until he gains clearance from an independent neurologist, which clouds whether he may undergo knee surgery immediately after the season, according to Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com. No matter how the upcoming months go for Rodgers, he'll end his 11th year as the starting quarterback in Green Bay with 4,442 yards passing, a 25:2 TD:INT and 269 yards on 43 rushes (6.3 YPC).

Rodgers left Sunday's game against the Lions to be evaluated for a concussion.

If Rodgers is diagnosed with a concussion, it would be a fitting end to what has been a lost season in Green Bay. Fortunately for the quarterback, there won't be any meaningful game action for many months, so he would have plenty of time to recover. DeShone Kizer will fill in at QB for as long as Rodgers is sidelined.

Winston will return as the Buccaneers' starting quarterback in 2019, according to Adam Schefter on ESPN Sunday Countdown.

Due to a combination of uneven play and off-the-field concerns in his first three campaigns, Winston was a question mark to return to the only home he's known as a professional. Ryan Fitzpatrick's scorching start to the season during Winston's three-game suspension didn't do the latter any favors. However, Winston has settled into a nice groove since Week 11, completing 64.6 percent of his passes, throwing for 300-plus yards twice, and recording nine touchdowns versus three interceptions over the last six games. He also tacked on 149 rushing yards at 5.3 YPC during that span. The preceding has been enough for the Buccaneers to roll with Winston and his team option for 2019.

Gabbert is expected to draw the starting assignment Sunday against the Colts with Marcus Mariota (neck) unlikely to be available for the contest, Chris Mortensen of ESPN reports.

Mariota suffered a neck stinger in the Titans' Week 16 win over the Redskins that left him "numb and tingly" afterwards, in the quarterback's own words. He only managed two limited practices this week to take a questionable tag into Sunday, and though he's set to go through a pregame warmup prior to the 8:20 p.m. EST kickoff before his status is decided, the Titans are inclined to err on the side of caution. According to the report, an independent spine specialist has warned the Titans that allowing Mariota to play through the injury would put his ability to throw the football at significant risk beyond this week, so the team will more than likely heed that advice and turn to Gabbert for his second start of the season. Given the limitations as a passer Gabbert has shown both this season and since entering the NFL in 2011, he'll likely act mainly as a game manager so long as the game flow allows for it, with Tennessee expected to lean heavily on a ground-heavy attack with a playoff berth at stake.

Mariota (neck), who is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Colts, isn't expected to play in the contest, Chris Mortensen of ESPN reports.

Ian Rapoport of NFL Network previously relayed that Mariota would warm up with the intention of playing through the stinger on the right side of his neck in the regular-season finale, but Mortensen's report suggests the Titans aren't yet comfortable clearing him for action. Citing sources, Mortensen notes that Mariota's stinger puts him at risk of further damage to his neck, so it's expected Tennessee will err on the side of caution, even with a playoff berth up for grabs. Mariota's status won't be known officially until the Titans release their inactive list 90 minutes prior to the 8:20 p.m. EST kickoff, but assuming the top signal-caller is unavailable for the contest, Blaine Gabbert would garner the starting nod for the all-important Week 17 game.

Mariota (neck/foot) will participate in a pregame warmup with the intention of playing Sunday against the Colts, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Mariota, who is questionable with a stinger in the right side of his neck, will have a better idea about his status after warming up. He's not expected to be 100 percent for the contest but is hoping to play with a spot in the playoffs on the line. Given that the Colts and Titans are playing in the last game of the regular season at 8:20 p.m. EST, fantasy players in active season-long leagues wouldn't have any ideal alternatives at quarterback on hand beyond Andrew Luck and Blaine Gabbert in the event Mariota ends up being scratched. Regardless of whether Mariota plays or not, the Titans presumably plan to lean heavily on their ground game, led by the surging Derrick Henry.

Prescott said he plans to play every snap Sunday against the Giants, but he acknowledged the possibility that doesn't happen, David Moore of The Dallas Morning News reports.

Locked in as the No. 4 seed in the NFC, the Cowboys seemingly intend to use their usual starters but likely will sub players out at some point in the game. Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott have both said they're ready to handle their usual workloads, while star pass rusher DeMarcus Lawrence took a more realistic approach, saying there's no way he will play all four quarters, per Clarence E. Hill Jr. of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Prescott seems to be in line for the Week 17 start, but there's a good chance Cooper Rush eventually fills in at quarterback.