NFL Player News

Jackson (knee) faces an "uphill battle" to play in Sunday's wild-card game in Cincinnati, Ian Rapoport and Mike Garofolo of NFL Network report.

Though Adam Schefter of ESPN reported over the weekend that Jackson had a "strong chance" to be available for the Ravens' postseason opener, Rapoport notes that optimism about the quarterback's ability to play Sunday has begun to dwindle over the past 24 hours. Jackson, who hasn't practiced since suffering a PCL sprain on his left knee Dec. 4 against the Broncos, missed the Ravens' final five games of the regular season. While Jackson is reportedly working hard to rehab the knee, he apparently hasn't made enough progress to put himself in position to resume practicing Wednesday. If Jackson remains a spectator in practice throughout the week, he'll likely be officially ruled out for the wild-card round Friday, which would then set the stage for Tyler Huntley (shoulder/wrist) to direct the Baltimore offense.

Taylor played in three games during the regular season, completing six of eight pass attempts for 58 yards and a touchdown while throwing one interception. He also rushed five times for 70 yards and lost one fumble.

Taylor came into the campaign as a candidate to see a fair amount of work with Daniel Jones having suffered through two straight poor seasons and coming off a neck injury that cut his 2021 campaign short. However, Jones stayed healthy and improved his play significantly under new head coach Brian Daboll, keeping Taylor relegated to a pure backup role. Taylor did look good in the one contest during which he was allowed to let loose, completing all five of his passes for 47 yards and a touchdown while rushing twice for 40 yards during garbage time of a blowout loss Week 14 against Philadelphia. The veteran is signed with New York through next season, whereas Jones is coming up on free agency, though Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports that the Giants will look to bring the latter back after their surprising success during the current campaign. Even if Jones doesn't return, it seems likely that New York would look elsewhere for a replacement rather than hand the reigns over to Taylor, who hasn't logged a full season as a starter since he was with Buffalo in 2017.

Stafford (neck) said Monday that he expects to avoid surgery to address his spinal cord contusion and plans to be a full participant for OTAs in April, Cameron DaSilva of USA Today reports. "I had obviously the thumb a couple years ago, and then elbow stuff that I wasn't able to really participate in a whole lot of stuff when it comes to throwing the football for a long time," Stafford said. "So to be able to do that at a way more regular pace, which is exciting for me as a player, that's what I want to do. I want to be out there, I want to be able to throw and be a part of the team."

After guiding the Rams to a Super Bowl title in his first season with the team in 2021, Stafford didn't throw in offseason workouts last spring while he battled elbow tendinitis. Even though he concluded the 2022 campaign on injured reserve, Stafford looks like he'll enter the Rams' offseason program more healthy than he was at the same point a year ago. Having received assurances from doctors that he won't require a potentially career-threatening surgery for his spinal cord, the 34-year-old Stafford has dismissed the possibility of retirement and also noted Monday that he remains committed to the Rams in spite of the uncertainty of whether head coach Sean McVay will stick with the organization in 2023.

Lawrence (toe) was a limited participant in Tuesday's practice.

Lawrence has been a fixture on Jacksonville injury reports since spraining his left big toe in a blowout loss to the Lions in Week 13, but there's little doubt that he'll be available to make his postseason debut this Saturday against the Chargers in the wild-card round. While managing the injury for the past five weeks, Lawrence has piloted Jacksonville to a 5-0 record and has completed 67.9 percent of his throws for 7.6 yards per attempt, eight touchdowns and two interceptions to go along with 80 yards and two scores on the ground.

The Commanders signed Fromm to a reserve/future contract Monday.

Fromm joined the Commanders' practice squad in mid-October and spent the entire campaign there. The 2020 fifth-round pick made three appearances with the Giants in 2021, completing 45 percent of his passes and throwing three picks, but he's yet to see any NFL action outside of that span.

The Saints signed Luton to a reserve/future contract Tuesday.

Luton joined the Saints' practice squad after being waived by Jacksonville at the end of August. The backup quarterback was up and down between New Orleans' practice squad and active roster throughout the campaign, getting cut entirely on two separate occasions, but he never made any appearances. With his new contract, he'll have an opportunity to compete for a roster spot throughout offseason work and leading up to training camp in 2023.

Browning reverted to the Bengals' practice squad Monday, per the NFL's transaction log.

Browning was elevated from the practice squad for the second week in a row to cap off the 2022 regular season. However, he still has yet to make his NFL debut, as the fourth-year quarterback was ultimately ruled inactive prior to Sunday's win over the Ravens. While it's unclear if he'll be brought up again, Browning should continue to serve as the Bengals' de facto No. 3 quarterback behind Joe Burrow and Brandon Allen during the team's upcoming playoff appearance against Baltimore on Sunday.

Wilson finished his second season with 1,688 passing yards and a 6:7 TD:INT in nine starts. He added 102 yards and one touchdown on 28 rushing attempts, in addition to catching a two-yard touchdown.

Wilson didn't show much progress from his forgettable rookie season, but the team around him improved substantially, allowing him to post a 5-4 record in 2022 after opening his career with a 3-10 record. The second player selected in the 2021 NFL Draft likely will remain on the Jets' roster in the fall, but Wilson won't be handed the starting role and probably will come into camp as the backup. New York's expected to add an alternative under center, either by re-signing Mike White or pursuing a veteran starter via trade or free agency.

Coach Mike McDaniel noted Monday that he's not sure if Bridgewater (knee/finger) is ready to practice in full at this stage, David Furones of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports.

That said, per Marcel Louis-Jacques of ESPN.com, McDaniel did suggest Monday that he believes Bridgewater may have been in a position to have entered this past Sunday's game against the Jets if Week 18 starter Skylar Thompson had been forced to exit the contest. Considering that, Bridgewater appears to be trending in the right direction as this weekend's playoff opener against the Bills approaches, while that status of Tua Tagovailoa (concussion) -- who has not yet been cleared for football activity -- remains unclear, per Louis-Jacques.

Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said Monday that Thompson (undisclosed) picked up "some bumps and bruises" during Sunday's win over the Jets, Marcel Louis-Jacques of ESPN.com reports.

Thompson does not appear to be dealing with any definitive injuries, though it wouldn't be surprising if he was less than 100 percent healthy after absorbing nine quarterback hits from the Jets' defense. It will be worth monitoring the rookie's status on Wednesday's injury report, as starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (concussion) still has not been cleared for football activity as of Monday. McDaniel also added that veteran signal-caller Teddy Bridgewater could have stepped in under center if needed Week 18, as he was ruled active pregame after being deemed questionable with a dislocated right pinky finger and lingering knee injury Friday. Should Thompson's injury status worsen, then Bridgewater or practice-squad quarterback Mike Glennon could be in line for more prominent roles in Sunday's matchup against Buffalo during the wild-card round of the playoffs.