NFL Player News

Raiders quaterback Derek Carr (thumb) is active for Sunday's game against the Ravens.

Following the regular season opener, Carr's journey to a definitive diagnosis eventually settled on a bruised thumb, which don't afflict his practice participation in advance of Week 2. With no Terrell Suggs (Achilles) on the other side, Carr will avoid one of the league's most fearsome pass rushers, but Baltimore's front seven remains relatively stout across the board, thereby curbing the QB's appeal.

Jets quarterback Geno Smith (jaw) has officially been ruled out for Monday's game, the Jets' official site reports.

He was a limited participant in practice, and it is not a surprise that he won't play Monday, as it was reported earlier in the week that he would miss "about the next three games." Ryan Fitzpatrick will get the start again in his place.

The Lions have made official what had been all-but-official: Quarterback Matthew Stafford (arm) will probably play Sunday in Minnesota.

A full participant throughout the week of practice, Stafford was never in any real danger of missing the game. He'll face a Vikings pass defense that appears tough on paper, but the group wasn't really tested in Week 1 as San Francisco rode running back Carlos Hyde to a 20-3 victory.

Raiders quarterback Derek Carr has received a thumbs-up from offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave for his practice week after losing most of the season opener against Cincinnati to a bruise on his throwing hand.

"He was better (Thursday) than (Wednesday)," Musgrave told CSNBayArea.com. "(Wednesday) was still good, but (Thursday) he appeared more confident with cutting it loose and those kind of things."

Carr admitted that he was too pumped up to throw with touch in Week 1 before he sustained the injury in the fourth series. He plans on calming down enough to perform better Sunday against Baltimore.

"I got so excited for the first week that I was throwing fastballs," Carr said. "I was out there trying to throw through people. That was just me being excited those first couple series."

Carr completed 7 of 12 passes for 61 yards before going down.

Jets quarterback Geno Smith (jaw) was technically a limited practice participant Thursday, nj.com reports.

That said, the quarterback's timetable for a return hasn't changed and Smith still expected to miss "about the next three games," according to the report.

Raiders quarterback Derek Carr practiced again Thursday and looked fine, according to ESPN.com's Bill Williamson.

After practicing fully Wednesday, Carr declared himself ready to play Sunday against the Ravens, with the second-year QB on track to draw an official probable designation for Week 2's contest.

Texans coach Bill O'Brien confirmed Thursday that Ryan Mallett will start at quarterback Sunday against the Panthers.

After Brian Hoyer started for the Texans in Week 1 against the Chiefs, Mallett relieved him with 6:10 left in the game and the Texans down by 27-9. Mallett proceeded to complete 8 of 13 passes for 98 yards and TD in the game, while adding "a spark to our team," in the words of O'Brien.

Given how quickly the team yanked Hoyer after he won the job during the preseason, we're not sure how much job security Mallett possesses. The fifth-year signal caller does have a big arm, so if can demonstrate a degree of accuracy and limit his mistakes on Sunday, he could cement his status atop the team's depth chart.

Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson will be a huge feature in the team's offense in Week 2, despite his subpar performance last week.

Quarterback Matthew Stafford said of Johnson: "You have a great player like that, you want to get him the ball as much as you can," Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press reports.

Johnson disappointed in Week 1 with just two receptions for 39 yards. His four targets trailed both Golden Tate and Eric Ebron who had eight and five passes come their way, respectively. It's dangerous to put too much weight into one game, but it warrants monitoring how the Lions' targets are divided up in the coming games. Throws speak louder than words.

Eagles quarterback Sam Bradford (ankle) wasn't listed on the Eagles' injury report Wednesday.

There was some worry in the aftermath of Sunday's regular season opener that Bradford had sprained his ankle due to an evident limp, but whatever may have ailed him didn't hinder his practice reps to kick off this week. He'll thus prepare for his second game as an Eagle on Sunday against the Cowboys.

Raiders quarterback Derek Carr (thumb) practiced fully Wednesday, Scott Bair of csnbayarea.com reports.

Bair also notes that Carr, who injured his thumb while using his throwing hand to stiff-arm an opponent this past Sunday, had zip on his passes Wednesday, with the QB clearly trending in the right direction with regard to Week 2 availability.