NFL Player News

Head coach Robert Saleh confirmed Wednesday that Wilson will be a healthy inactive for this weekend's game against the Bears as the Jets' third quarterback, Eric Allen of the Jets' official site reports.

After Wilson completed just nine of 22 pass attempts for 77 yards in last week's 10-3 loss to the Patriots, Saleh was unwilling to commit to the No. 2 overall picki in the 2021 draft retaining the starting role. Saleh clarified his plans for Week 12 when he spoke to the media Wednesday, noting that Mike White will step in as the Jets' new starter, while Joe Flacco will serve as the No. 2 quarterback. The Jets may be leaving the door open for Wilson to reclaim the starting role beyond Week 12, with Saleh noting that the young signal-caller "needs a reset," per Rich Cimini of ESPN.com. According to Allen, Saleh went on to say that Wilson is still viewed as the Jets' franchise signal-caller, in spite of his rough start to his second season. Since debuting Week 4 after missing the Jets' first three contests while recovering from a meniscectomy and a bone bruise to his right knee, Wilson has completed just 55.6 percent of his passes for 6.8 yards per attempt and a 4:5 TD:INT over seven games.

Jets head coach Robert Saleh announced Wednesday that White will start Sunday's game against the Bears.

The decision sends Zach Wilson -- the No. 2 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft -- to the bench, with Saleh noting that Wilson "needs a reset" after a poor showing in last week's 10-3 loss to the Patriots, according to Rich Cimini of ESPN.com. According to Eric Allen of the Jets' official site, Joe Flacco will serve as the No. 2 option behind White, who becomes a fantasy option to consider in Week 12 for those in two-quarterback or superflex leagues who had been relying on Wilson or are otherwise looking for some signal-caller depth. In his lone NFL regular-season action in 2021, White made four appearances (three starts) and completed 66.7 percent of his 132 pass attempts for 953 yards, five touchdowns and eight interceptions while losing one yard on five rush attempts.

Wilson is not in line to start Sunday's game against the Bears, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Jets head coach Robert Saleh was non-committal earlier this week on whether Wilson would retain the starting role for Week 12, but according to Schefter, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft is on track to head to the bench. At this stage, it's unclear whether Mike White or Joe Flacco will be in line to draw the start versus Chicago. Al Iannazzone of Newsday reports that Saleh is scheduled to address the media Wednesday, at which point a Week 12 starter could be announced.

Coach Matt Eberflus didn't elaborate on the nature of Fields' injury to his left, non-throwing shoulder Monday, Larry Mayer of the Bears' official site reports. "The injury report comes out Wednesday, and right now it's day-to-day," Eberflus said. "We'll see where it is and go from there."

Fields initially picked up the concern when he landed hard on his left shoulder on the first play of the Bears' final drive this past Sunday in Atlanta. After staying on the turf for a spell, he remained in the contest and took another hit to that shoulder on the very next play, which was followed by the game-sealing interception. Overall, Fields finished with 153 yards passing, one touchdown and the pick to go with 85 yards on the ground and another score. On Monday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported that Fields dislocated his shoulder, but such a diagnosis hasn't been confirmed. In any case, Fields' status will be watched closely as the week goes on to get a sense of if he's in danger of sitting out Sunday's road game against the Jets.

The Panthers released King from their practice squad Tuesday, Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com reports.

King joined Carolina's practice squad last Monday, but he didn't get much of an opportunity to make an impression on the organization. The former University of Miami quarterback will now look to latch on with another team, presumably on a practice-squad deal.

Coach Kliff Kingsbury said Tuesday that Murray has made "quite a bit" of progress with his hamstring injury, Tyler Drake of ArizonaSports.com reports.

Murray has missed back-to-back games, and even though he was listed as questionable ahead of Monday's game against the 49ers, he apparently wasn't considered a real option to suit up, per Josina Anderson of CBS Sports. Kingsbury indicated the Cardinals want Murray to be "full throttle" before clearing him to return. The team plays Sunday versus the Chargers, which is followed by a Week 13 bye, so if Murray ends up sitting out this weekend, he won't have a chance to play again until Monday, Dec. 12 against the Patriots at the earliest, leaving backup Colt McCoy under center for another start.

Mayfield will move back to a reserve role after interim coach Steve Wilks named Sam Darnold as the Panthers' Week 12 starting quarterback Tuesday, Darin Gantt of the team's official site reports.

With PJ Walker currently sidelined due to a high-ankle sprain, Mayfield got the nod under center this past Sunday at Baltimore, completing 21 of 33 passes for 196 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions in a 13-3 loss. Wilks evidently saw enough and will move on to a third No. 1 QB in as many games Sunday versus the Broncos. Mayfield thus will have to wait for another chance to direct Carolina's offense.

Interim coach Steve Wilks announced Tuesday that Darnold will start Sunday's game against the Broncos, Darin Gantt of the Panthers' official site reports.

With Darnold swapping in for Baker Mayfield, Carolina will be on its third starting quarterback in as many contests. PJ Walker is currently dealing with a high-ankle sprain, the same injury that caused Darnold himself to spend the first 10 weeks of the season on IR, but he'll now get his chance to direct the offense. In 12 appearances (11 starts) for the Panthers during the 2021 campaign, Darnold completed 60 percent of his passes, averaged 210.6 yards per game and tossed nine touchdowns versus 13 interceptions while fumbling nine times, losing four of them.

Allen (elbow) practiced in a limited capacity Tuesday.

Despite his listing on the Bills' second Week 12 practice report, Allen appears to be putting his right elbow injury further in the rearview mirror. According to Josh Reed of WIVB-TV, the quarterback was spotted without a sleeve on his throwing arm during the open portion of Tuesday's session. Assuming he logs another capped practice Wednesday -- or, better yet, gets back to full participation -- Allen should be good to go for Thursday's game at Detroit.

Houston head coach Lovie Smith suggested changes are coming, which could involve Allen replacing Davis Mills as quarterback, Jonathan M. Alexander of the Houston Chronicle reports. "We're not pleased with where we are. Do we need to do some things differently? Yes. We will," Smith said.

The coach's comments struck a different tone than the previous week when he was asked about making a change at quarterback. "Made some decisions on how we're going to go forward. Like all changes, anything that we do from week to week, we've got to talk to the players before we talk to you," Smith added Monday. Mills had just 22 passing yards and a pick-six in the first half of Sunday's loss to the Commanders, one week after he had just 35 yards in the first half against the Giants. It's been two years since Allen started a game in the NFL, but the Texans need to shake up an offense that ranks last in yards per game and 30th in points per game.