NFL Player News

Allen (elbow), who has been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Bears, logged a limited practice Friday, Chris Brown of the Bills' official site reports.

Allen's return to a limited practice suggests that he could return as soon as the Bills' Week 10 game against the Jets. Alternatively, if the Bills elect to take things slow with the rookie quarterback, Allen could be held out through the team's Week 11 bye. As for Sunday's game, with Derek Anderson still in the NFL's concussion protocol, Nathan Peterman is trending toward earning the starting nod.

The Dolphins announced Friday that Tannehill's lingering right shoulder injury is related to the capsule that surrounds the joint and rotator cuff tendons, Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald reports.

It had previously been suspected that Tannehill was dealing with an AC joint sprain, but coach Adam Gase refuted speculation on that front when he met with the media Thursday. The Dolphins' clarification of the injury offers further optimism that Tannehill won't need surgery to address the matter, but the quarterback's timeline for a return remains murky nonetheless. While Tannehill recently started a throwing program, he hasn't progressed to the point of tossing a football at normal velocity, prompting the Dolphins to rule him out for a fourth straight game Sunday against the Jets. Brock Osweiler will receive the starting nod in his stead and could get the call again in Week 10 against the Packers if the Dolphins aren't comfortable with rushing Tannehill back before their Week 11 bye.

Coach Kyle Shanahan hasn't announced his plans at quarterback for the 49ers' Week 10 matchup with the Giants, but Beathard seems unlikely to receive the starting nod over Nick Mullens after the latter's stellar outing in Thursday's 34-3 win over the Raiders, Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Listed as questionable heading into the Week 9 contest with wrist and thumb injuries that had made gripping the football in an issue, Beathard was cleared to suit up but was limited to backup duties. That paved the way for Mullens to pick up his first career start, with the 23-year-old acing the assignment while completing 16 of 22 passes for 262 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions in the resounding win. Considering that Beathard has been a turnover machine (seven interceptions, three lost fumbles) in his six appearances this season and owns a 1-9 career record as a starter, it makes sense for the 49ers to give Mullens an extended look even if Beathard's health isn't a concern moving forward. With San Francisco not playing until Monday night in Week 10, it may be several more days before Shanahan commits to a quarterback.

Allen (elbow) was spotted wearing a helmet at Friday's practice, Joe Buscaglia of WKBW.com reports.

Allen has already been ruled out for Sunday's matchup with the Bears, but it's notable that he had his helmet on for the first time since injuring his right elbow in Week 6. That indicates he's making progress in his recovery and could have a chance to return to action Week 10 against the Jets. However, the Bills are on bye in Week 11, so unless he makes rapid progress over the next few days, it seems likely Allen will be held out at least until Week 12. Either Derek Anderson -- if he clears the concussion protocol -- or Nathan Peterman will get the nod Sunday while Allen remains sidelined for at least one more contest.

Peterman likely remains in line to start Sunday against Chicago with Derek Anderson (concussion) uncertain to play, Matthew Fairburn of The Athletic reports.

Josh Allen (elbow) has already been ruled out and Anderson remains in the concussion protocol, so unless the latter's condition takes a dramatic turn for the better in the next couple of days, Peterman will be under center in Week 9. The Bills signed Matt Barkley on Wednesday, so the team will at least have two healthy quarterbacks heading into the weekend.

Mullens completed 16 of 22 passes for 262 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions in the 49ers' 34-3 win over the Raiders on Thursday. He also lost three yards on four rushes and fumbled once, but it was recovered.

Either the Raiders are indescribably bad, Mullens is a diamond in the rough, or a little bit of both is at play. The undrafted rookie provided one of the more surprising performances of the season Thursday, connecting with eight different receivers and leading touchdown marches of 75, 66, 75 and 68 yards. Mullens showed excellent rapport with tight end George Kittle in particular, finding the second-year pro for 108 yards and a touchdown on four receptions. The stellar effort could potentially earn Mullens a Week 10 start against the Giants even if C.J. Beathard (wrist) is healthy enough to return. However, with 11 days before that Nov. 12 Monday night affair, it's unlikely any plans are confirmed for quite some time.

Carr completed 16 of 22 passes for 171 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions in the Raiders' 34-3 loss to the 49ers on Thursday. He also rushed three times for five yards before being pulled early in the fourth quarter.

Carr's final line wasn't necessarily bad from a statistical standpoint, but he simply couldn't get his team into the end zone. The fifth-year pro also took six sacks and failed to eclipse 200 yards for the second time in the last three games. Carr has impressively completed more than 70.0 percent of his passes in four consecutive contests, but the accomplishment doesn't add up to much from a team perspective considering the Raiders have lost all of those games. Carr will look to generate much better production during a divisional showdown against the Chargers in Week 10.

Beathard (wrist/thumb) is active for Thursday's game against the Raiders. However, he'll serve as the backup quarterback to fill-in starter Nick Mullens, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

In the wake of a Week 8 loss at Arizona, Beathard suffered from a lacking grip due to wrist and thumb injuries to his right hand. The development opened the door for 2017 undrafted free agent Nick Mullens to take his first NFL snap. That said, the 49ers released journeyman QB Tom Savage on Thursday, which leaves Beathard as the only other signal-caller on the gameday roster.

The 49ers confirmed Mullens will be their starting quarterback Thursday versus the Raiders.

Mullens is filling in for C.J. Beathard, who continues to have difficulty gripping a football. While he's preparing for his first regular-season snap, Mullens fared OK during the 2018 preseason, completing 31 of 43 passes for 396 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions.

Beathard (wrist/thumb) is expected to serve as the backup quarterback to Nick Mullens on Thursday against the Raiders, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Beathard will take a brief step down on the 49ers depth chart due to his inability to grip a football at the moment. While he won't start the game under center, he'll be the only other QB on the 46-man gameday roster after the 49ers released Tom Savage on Thursday afternoon, meaning Beathard could still make an appearance.