NFL Player News

Bradford's injured knee is "much worse than people know", Fox's Jay Glazer reported on their pregame show Sunday morning.

Glazer then elaborated that there's a possibility that the injury could be career-threatening, and not merely a week-to-week issue. That elaboration seemed closer to speculation than straight reporting, but it underscores just how serious the injury is. Teddy Bridgewater could get cleared to practice as early as next week, and there's a non-zero chance he'll be ready to play before Bradford.

Stafford (ankle) is active for Sunday's game in New Orleans, Mike Rothstein of ESPN.com reports.

In the aftermath of last Sunday's loss to the Panthers, Stafford's right ankle and quadriceps were heavily taped. Termed as mere soreness by head coach Jim Caldwell, Stafford handled every practice rep this week, in essence putting the quarterback on pace to active status. Stafford will thus make his 102nd consecutive regular-season start against the Saints' exploitable secondary, which has conceded the 28th-most passing yards (265.3) per game this season.

Bradford, who has been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Packers, traveled to New York recently to begin Regenokine treatments to address inflammation in his surgically repaired left knee, Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of NFL.com reports.

Per the report, Bradford's treatments involved drawing blood from the quarterback, spinning it down and then reinjecting it into his knee over five or six days. The Vikings are hopeful that the treatments will help remedy the knee joint pain he's experienced since suffering a non-contact bone bruise during the team's Week 1 win over the Saints. Bradford was able to return to the field for Monday's win over the Bears, but was visibly hobbled before aggravating the knee issue and exiting the contest shortly before halftime. Case Keenum will pick up his fourth start of the season in Week 6, but it's tough to project who might be under center for the Vikings in the weeks to come. In addition to Bradford's ongoing efforts to return to the field, Teddy Bridgewater, who has been sidelined since August 2016 following surgery to address a dislocated knee and additional ligament damage, could be cleared to resume practicing during the upcoming week. Once Bridgewater returns to the practice field, the Vikings will have 21 days to decide whether to activate him and bring him aboard the 53-man roster. If Bridgewater performs well during practice, he could challenge either Keenum or Bradford for starting duties.

Bridgewater (knee) is expected to pass his physical Monday and resume practicing next week, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Bridgewater required multi-ligament reconstruction after dislocating his left ankle in an August 2016 training-camp practice, but after an arduous rehab, it appears the Vikings' former starting quarterback is nearing the finish line of his lengthy recovery process. He'll meet with Dallas-based physician Dr. Dan Cooper for a checkup Monday, but if all goes as expected, Bridgewater should practice in some capacity during the upcoming week. Once Bridgewater's practice clock starts, the Vikings will have 21 days to assess his health and determine whether to move him from the Physically Unable to Perform list to the 53-man roster or to injured reserve, which would spell an end to his season. Sam Bradford performed admirably while serving as the fill-in starter for all but one game of the 2016 campaign, but now that he's battling knee complications of his own that have resulted in him being ruled out for four games in 2017, Bridgewater's potential return could loom large for the Vikings. Bridgewater has reportedly looked good while throwing and doing other football-related activities during his rehab, but his return to the practice field will hold more weight as the Vikings look to determine if he's ready to play in games again for the first time since the 2015 season.

Mariota (hamstring) is listed as questionable for Monday's game against Indianapolis.

Although he's been a limited practice participant all week, Mariota was regarded as a likely game-time decision the whole while anyway. It seems like he's close, but that his availability remains in question would imply that he would be limited even if he does start. If Mariota can't run on that hamstring, his fantasy value takes a significant hit even if he does play. It would be reassuring news for Rishard Matthews and company if he did, however.

Though he's listed as questionable on the final injury report, Stafford (ankle) is in line to play in Sunday's game against the Saints, Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press reports.

The real question pertains to Stafford's mobility, not his availability. He was a full practice participant throughout the week, and Detroit didn't add a third quarterback to its roster. While a trip to the SuperDome is always good news for a signal caller, Stafford's ankle could make it tough for him to deal with pressure, if the Saints are able to muster any. It's worth noting that the New Orleans defense gave up just 13 points over its last two games, completely shutting down both Cam Newton and Jay Cutler.

Keenum will start Sunday's game against the Packers, Courtney Cronin of ESPN.com reports.

On Friday, the Vikings ruled out Sam Bradford, who aggravated the bone bruise in his left knee Monday at Chicago. In that contest, Keenum replaced Bradford after halftime and proceeded to rack up 140 yards and one touchdown through the air en route to a 20-17 win. While he won't have Stefon Diggs (groin) at his disposal against the Packers' sixth-ranked pass defense, Keenum has nonetheless cobbled together the ninth-best quarterback rating (97.6) on the season.

Carr (back) isn't listed on the Raiders' injury report Friday, meaning he'll return to action Sunday against the Chargers, Vic Tafur of The Athletic Bay Area reports.

The Raiders were likely convinced by Carr's ability to finish every rep Friday, as he was a full practice participant, per Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com. Carr has thus fulfilled head coach Jack Del Rio's expectation for a return in Week 6, when he'll face the Chargers' fourth-ranked pass defense.

Mariota (hamstring) may be a game-time call Monday against the Colts, Jason Wolf of The Tennessean reports.

Head coach Mike Mularkey told Terry McCormick of TitanInsider.com that Mariota again increased his workload, marking his third consecutive day doing so. Mularkey expects Mariota to continue the trend Saturday, which will be key in helping the quarterback earn active status for the first time since Week 4. If not, though, the Titans will turn the offense over to Matt Cassel for the second game in a row.

The Vikings ruled Bradford (knee) out for Sunday's game against the Packers.

As expected, Case Keenum will make his fourth start of the season, after replacing Bradford at halftime in Monday's 20-17 win over the Bears. With Stefon Diggs (groin) also unavailable and Dalvin Cook (knee) already out for the season, Keenum will direct most of his passes to Adam Thielen, Kyle Rudolph, Jerick McKinnon and, possibly, Michael Floyd. Bradford's inability to practice this week isn't a good sign for his availability Week 7 against the Ravens.