NFL Player News

Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles said Tuesday that Mayfield will be rested for the preseason opener Friday versus the Jets, Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Bowles indicated that the Bucs had been planning for backup Jake Browning to direct the first-team offense Friday, but Browning's status is now in question after he appeared to suffer a back injury during Tuesday's session. Mayfield didn't see any action during the 2025 preseason, and a similar approach with the veteran signal-caller seems likely in 2026. The 31-year-old is heading into his fourth season with Tampa Bay on an expiring contract and will be aiming for a bounce-back campaign after noticing a steep decline in his passing efficiency and touchdown total between 2024 and 2025, in large part due to injuries that accumulated over the course of last season.

Ward and other starters are scheduled to play in Thursday's preseason opener against San Francisco, Terry McCormick of TitanInsider.com reports.

The combination of a young QB and a new coaching staff could lead to more playing time than usual this preseason. Still, there's no guarantee of Ward playing more than a series or two Thursday night.

Jaguars head coach Liam Coen said Tuesday that Lawrence and the team's other established starters will sit out Saturday's preseason opener versus the Saints, Ryan O'Halloran of The Florida Times-Union reports.

Per John Shipley of SI.com, the Jaguars don't plan on having Lawrence see much action in their final two exhibition contests either, a departure from how he's been utilized in his prior five preseasons. The QB doesn't believe a lack of preseason reps will affect his preparation heading into Week 1, especially now that he has a year under his belt in Coen's offensive system. The 26-year-old had the best fantasy season of his career in 2025, setting personal bests in touchdown passes (29), rushing yards (359) and rushing touchdowns (nine).

Coach Mike LaFleur said Tuesday that Brissett and the rest of the Cardinals' starters will play one or two possessions during Thursday's preseason game at Las Vegas, Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com reports.

LaFleur held out Arizona's starters in last Thursday's Hall of Fame Game versus the Panthers, but Brissett and the rest of the first-team offense are slated to get some run this week. Brissett will likely be throwing passes to the Cardinals' top skill-position talents, including rookie first-round RB Jeremiyah Love, WRs Marvin Harrison and Michael Wilson and TE Trey McBride.

Coach Jesse Minter noted Tuesday that Jackson and other key starters won't play in Saturday's preseason opener against the Eagles, Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com reports.

There's little to gain by putting Jackson in harms way during the preseason, and there's a pretty solid chance he'll be held out of the team's other two exhibition contests as well. Tyler Huntley, Skylar Thompson (undisclosed) and Joe Fagnano are candidates to lead the offense this weekend against the Eagles.

When the Brown' unofficial depth chart is posted later Tuesday, the top QB slot will show 'Watson or Shedeur Sanders,' Zac Jackson of The Athletic reports.

Meanwhile, Jackson notes that coach Todd Monken doesn't plan to reveal his QB plans for Saturday's preseason opener against the Bears just yet, but it's expected that whichever of the two starts that contest will give way the other in the Browns' second exhibition tilt. The two signal-callers continue to share first-team practice reps, with Monken having yet to outline a timeline for his decision on when a Week 1 starter will be named.

Coach Aaron Glenn noted Tuesday that the Jets' starters, a group that includes Smith, will play in Friday's preseason opener against the Buccaneers, Al Iannazzone of Newsday reports.

It remains to be seen how much work Smith will see Friday, but after the veteran QB gets his reps in, Cade Klubnik, Brady Cook and Bailey Zappe are candidates to see action against Tampa Bay. As the coming campaign approaches, Smith is slated to lead a New York offense paced by top RB Breece Hall and which features a diverse pass-catching group that includes WRs Garrett Wilson, Adonai Mitchell and Omar Cooper, as well as TEs Kenyon Sadiq (hernia) and Mason Taylor.

Jones won't play in the preseason, according to Jonathan Jones of CBSSports.com.

By all accounts, Jones' recovery from the torn right Achilles that he suffered in Week 14 last season has gone well, but the Colts will play it safe with their starting QB. Per Joel A. Erickson of The Indianapolis Star, Anthony Richardson will start Thursday's preseason opener against the Patriots and play the first half, while Riley Leonard will work in the second half, an arrangement that is in line to be reversed in the team's second exhibition tilt against Atlanta.

UCLA football announced Monday that Carr has joined the program as a special adviser to head coach Bob Chesney, Paolo Uggetti of ESPN.com reports.

The 35-year-old quarterback remains on the Saints' reserve/retired list for now. Carr noted during an appearance on NFL Network's "Good Morning Football" earlier this summer that he wouldn't completely close the door on a return to the NFL if the right opportunity presented itself, but that now appears far less likely to happen.

The Vikings have named McCarthy's teammate Kyler Murray as their starting quarterback, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

McCarthy, who the Vikings selected 10th overall in the 2024 NFL Draft, missed his entire rookie campaign due to injury and started just 10 games last year, with the team winning six of them. With Murray now having been named the starter ahead of Minnesota's preseason slate, McCarthy is slated to serve as the team's No. 2 signal-caller, with Carson Wentz and Max Brosmer rounding out the current depth chart.