NFL Player News

Smith is listed with the first-string offense on Seattle's initial preseason depth chart, Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times reports.

Smith started the Seahawks' team scrimmage last Saturday, and the first depth chart of the preseason seems to reflect that he remains ahead of Drew Lock in the quarterback competition. During last week's scrimmage, Lock helmed the second-team offense. Seattle's preseason opener, Aug. 13 in Pittsburgh, will serve as the first of three upcoming contests to help fully settle the competition between Smith and Lock ahead of Week 1.

Winston (knee/foot) is believed to have avoided a serious injury but won't suit up for Saturday's preseason opener against the Texans, Jeff Duncan of The Athletic reports.

Winston suffered a foot injury during Monday's practice and is expected to miss a few days of practice, but it appears that he's managed to sidestep a serious issue. His next chance to suit up for preseason action will come August 19 in Green Bay. Winston is in the late stages of rehabbing from a torn left ACL suffered Week 8 last season, so the Saints could opt for caution. In the meantime, Andy Dalton stands to helm the first-team offense.

Darnold was notified Monday by general manager Scott Fitterer that he's not being shopped in trade discussions, Ellis Williams of The Charlotte Observer reports.

Darnold has been subject to trade speculation since the Panthers acquired fellow quarterback Baker Mayfield this offseason. While only one of the signal-callers will earn Carolina's starting job, with Mayfield reportedly emerging as the favorite early on, Darnold was told by Fitterer not to worry about recent chatter regarding a trade. With that assurance, Darnold will try to put his best foot forward in Saturday's preseason opener versus the Commanders.

Jones went 5-for-15 with a pair of interceptions during scrimmage in training camp Monday, per Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com.

The blame isn't all on Jones' shoulders -- New York pass catchers had multiple drops in practice, and the entire offense is learning a new system -- but it's nonetheless not promising that Jones thus far hasn't looked good in camp. Tyrod Taylor even got a rep with the first-team offense Monday, though it's unlikely that anyone but Jones will be under center when the season starts. New head coach Brian Daboll is bringing a new offense that offers reason to be optimistic, but Jones may have to prove that he can be the answer at quarterback to keep his job the entire season.

Coach Sean McVay relayed that Stafford (elbow) not throwing during Monday's practice was planned, with the QB expected to resume throwing Tuesday, Sarah Barshop of ESPN.com reports.

As long as Stafford faces any sort of throwing limitations, his progress will be worth monitoring, but Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic notes that the veteran QB isn't too concerned about an elbow issue that he describes as "something that is irritating, at the moment," but one that Stafford is working through in anticipation of being ready for Week 1 action.

Mayfield has shown improvement throughout training camp and is becoming more comfortable with coach Matt Rhule's playbook, Darin Gantt of the Panthers' official site reports.

Mike Garafolo of NFL Network suggested Monday that Mayfield "continues to impress" and has "put himself in position to be the starter Week 1." National reporters like Garafolo may not be as familiar with the team as local beat guys, but the latter also seem to view Mayfield as the favorite -- and the same goes for general public sentiment. For now, Mayfield figures to continue splitting first-team reps with Sam Darnold, though it sounds like it might not be too long before the former Brown takes the lion's share. Rhule said the earliest he'd consider announcing a Week 1 starter would be after joint practices with the Patriots next week, leading up to an Aug. 19 exhibition with New England.

Burrow (appendix) was seen throwing some light passes at the end of Monday's practice, Ben Baby of ESPN.com reports.

Earlier Monday, Burrow was able to get around the practice field without a cart, like he had been doing of late, and he proceeded to log his first activity as well. Baby relayed that Burrow was taking snaps, went through his reads and tossed the ball back to a member of the Bengals' equipment staff. After he underwent an appendectomy July 26, Burrow was given a recovery timeline of 2-to-3 weeks, so he is approaching the front end of that timetable. Still, the team isn't likely to rush its franchise quarterback back to the field with the aim to have him running on all cylinders by Week 1, when he again will have a wealth of skill-position talent at his disposal.

Winston (knee) sustained a foot injury at Monday's practice, Luke Johnson of The New Orleans Times-Picayune reports.

Initially, coach Dennis Allen noted Winston "rolled his ankle," resulting in an early exit from the session, per Katherine Terrell of ESPN.com. But both Johnson and Jane Slater of NFL Network received confirmation after the fact that Winston is tending to a foot issue. Winston is in the later stages of his recovery from a torn ACL and MCL in his left knee that he suffered Week 8 of last season, so the Saints may exercise utmost caution while he recovers from the current concern. If Winston is sidelined for any length of time, Andy Dalton is on hand to handle the reps with the first-team offense.

Burrow (appendix) is getting around practice without a cart, Ben Baby of ESPN.com reports.

Burrow returned to team meetings shortly after his late-July appendectomy and seems to be recovering along the normal timeline of 2-to-3 weeks. The Bengals don't figure to rush him, given their continuity at the skill positions and with their offensive coaching staff. They do have two or three new starters on the offensive line, all of whom profile as upgrades. Burrow is in a great situation to continue his efficient passing from last year, with the only real downside being that he hasn't used his legs the way he did at LSU. Still, he's a solid QB1, though perhaps without the fantasy ceiling of a Lamar Jackson or Jalen Hurts.

Lions coach Dan Campbell suggested Goff and other starters will play about one quarter in Friday's preseason game against Atlanta, Tim Twentyman of the team's official site reports.

Campbell also said the Falcons will play their starters, perhaps making this one of the few preseason openers in which the first units take the field. It's not all that surprising, given that they're two of the younger teams in the NFC, led by second-year head coaches and retread, veteran QBs surrounded by mostly young receivers. The Lions did sign DJ Chark this offseason, and Goff also has a nice array of young pass catchers at this disposal, including WR Amon-Ra St. Brown, RB D'Andre Swift and TE T.J. Hockenson, with first-round pick WR Jameson Williams (torn ACL) potentially helping somewhere down the line. The Lions also appear solid up front, giving Goff a much better situation that he had last year, albeit with similar potential for the Detroit defense to be a huge liability. Playing at home Friday night, Goff and Co. should have the edge over a talent-deficient Atlanta defense.