NFL Player News

Pollard (foot) practiced in a limited fashion Thursday, Adam Caplan of SiriusXM NFL Radio reports.

Pollard was unable to mix into drills to begin Week 15 prep, but he ended up taking part in individual drills during the open portion of Thursday's session, per Todd Archer of ESPN.com. The result was a limited listing, which followed coach Mike McCarthy telling Michael Gehlken of The Dallas Morning News that the torn plantar fascia in Pollard's left foot is "getting better." Pollard is aiming to miss just one game as a result of the injury, but he still seems poised to enter the weekend with a designation for Sunday's road contest against the Giants.

Barkley (ankle) was a limited participant in Thursday's practice, Dan Salomone of the Giants' official site reports.

Barkley's ability to get back on the practice field in some fashion Thursday suggests that his absence from Wednesday's session was maintenance-related. So long as he maintains limited activity Friday or upgrades to full participation, Barkley should be on track to fill a lead role out of New York's backfield Sunday against Dallas. In his four outings since returning from a four-game stay on injured reserve due to an ankle sprain, Barkley is averaging 16.3 touches for 69.5 yards from scrimmage and 0.25 touchdowns per contest.

Chubb could have a clearer path to more passing-down and goal-line work Saturday against the Raiders with top backup Kareem Hunt (ankle) ruled out for the contest, Mary Kay Cabot of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

After a five-game absence from Weeks 7 through 11 due to a calf strain, Hunt had appeared in both of the Browns' last two games. Though Hunt saw lighter snap counts in both contests than he had earlier in the season, his absence for Week 15 at least removes one possible obstacle in Chubb's way for more high-value work. D'Ernest Johnson has proven to be a capable change-of-pace option in the opportunities he's received this season and should have a role in the game plan, so Chubb could still struggle to get more than 70 or 80 percent of the offensive snaps this weekend. Chubb's season-high snap share (66 percent) came in last week's win over the Ravens, but Baltimore did a good job of bottling him up on the ground (17 carries for 59 yards) and as a receiver (three catches for six yards on four targets).

Jones (knee) wasn't seen at the media-access portion of Thursday's practice, Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

The Packers appear to be managing Jones' health at the moment after he was listed as limited on Wednesday's estimated injury report. If he ultimately ends up a non-participant Thursday, he'll have just one more chance to mix into an actual practice before week's end.

Pollard (foot) was present for Thursday's practice, Michael Gehlken of The Dallas Morning News reports.

Per Todd Archer of ESPN.com, Pollard went through some individual drills during the media-access portion of the session, which is a step in the right direction for the running back as Sunday's game against the Giants approaches. Thursday's injury report will add clarity with regard to Pollard's official level of participation.

Swift (shoulder) isn't participating in Thursday's practice, Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press reports.

Swift hasn't gotten back on the field in any capacity since suffering an AC joint sprain of his shoulder in the Lions' Thanksgiving Day loss to the Bears, so at this stage, he looks to be trending toward a third consecutive missed game this weekend against Arizona. Before deciding on Swift's status one way or the other, the Lions will see if he's able to fit in any activity during the team's final practice of the week Friday. With Jamaal Williams (illness) still stuck on the reserve/COVID-19 list, Craig Reynolds, Jermar Jefferson and Godwin Igwebuike are left as the Lions' healthy options at running back.

Ekeler (ankle), who is listed as questionable for Thursday's game against the Chiefs, is expected to play, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.

The Chargers won't decide on Ekeler's status until after evaluating him in a pregame workout, but barring a setback, he'll avoid the inactive list and start at running back as he usually does. However, Taylor Bisciotti of NFL Network notes that head coach Brandon Staley mentioned that Ekeler is experiencing more soreness than expected with the ankle he sprained in last Sunday's win over the Giants. With that in mind, Bisciotti, citing a source, has been told that Ekeler won't handle a full workload while he plays through the injury, so reserve backs Justin Jackson, Joshua Kelley and Larry Rountree could be in store for more snaps than usual. Even if that's the case, Ekeler is still the odds-on favorite to lead the group in snaps and touches, so fantasy managers outside of the shallowest of leagues shouldn't have too many reservations about including him in weekly lineups.

Homer (hamstring/calf) logged a full practice Wednesday, John Boyle of the Seahawks' official site reports.

Homer has been sidelined two of the past three games due to injury, but head coach Pete Carroll expressed optimism Monday that the running back would be available Week 15 against the Rams, per John Boyle of the Seahawks' official site. With a full practice behind him, Homer joins Rashaad Penny and DeeJay Dallas as healthy running backs on the active roster, while Alex Collins (abdomen) was limited during Wednesday's session. Penny has taken over the lead role out of the Seahawks backfield after a 138-yard, two-touchdown performance this past Sunday in Houston, so Homer will have to contend with Collins, Dallas and potentially Adrian Peterson (lower back) for reps moving forward.

Williams was listed as a limited practice participant Wednesday due to a knee injury, George Stoia III of The Denver Gazette reports.

In addition to Williams, fellow running back Melvin Gordon (thumb/hip) was listed as a limited participant to begin Week 15 prep, which was fully expected after he emerged from Sunday's win over Detroit with a sprained thumb. In the case of Williams, his appearance on the injury report is more of a surprise, as the Broncos didn't disclose that he hurt his knee at any point during Week 14. His practice activity will bear monitoring over the next two days to gain a sense of his chances of playing this weekend against the Bengals.

Gordon (thumb/hip) was listed as a limited practice participant Wednesday, George Stoia III of The Denver Gazette reports.

Javonte Williams (knee) was also a limited participant, so the statuses of Denver's top two backs will need to be tracked as Sunday's game against the Bengals approaches. If both are available this weekend, they'll continue to work in a backfield timeshare, one that resulted in Gordon (111 rushing yards, two touchdowns) and Williams (73 rushing yards, 10 receiving yards, two touchdowns) putting up useful numbers in Denver's 38-10 win over the Lions in Week 14.