NFL Player News

Taylor is inactive for Sunday's game against the Panthers.

With Taylor inactive again Sunday, Brandon Bolden and Rhamondre Stevenson will handle change-of-pace/complementary snaps in Week 9 behind New England's top back, Damien Harris.

Hubbard is expected to see his snap and touch count take a hit Sunday against the Patriots with Christian McCaffrey (hamstring) suiting up for the first time since Week 3, Darin Gantt of the team's official site reports.

Even with McCaffrey back in the fold, there's an expectation he'll be on a limit of around 30 to 40 snaps as he works his way back from a strained hamstring, per David Newton of ESPN.com. As a result, Hubbard will remain involved in Carolina's offense, but he may be hard-pressed to approach the 20.4 touches per game he was given during McCaffrey's five-game absence. It's difficult to project what can be expected of both backs, and a smaller workload for Hubbard may not pay dividends for a player averaging just 3.6 yards per carry this season.

Evans (hamstring) is officially active for Sunday's game versus Cleveland, Marisa Contipelli of the Bengals' official site reports.

Evans was considered questionable for Sunday after sitting out last week's loss to the Jets with the hamstring issue, but he's been cleared to take the field. Now that he's healthy, the 24-year-old should see sporadic opportunities as a change-of-pace back behind Joe Mixon and Samaje Perine.

McCaffrey (hamstring) is listed as active Sunday versus the Patriots, Darin Gantt of the Panthers' official site reports.

The Panthers signaled McCaffrey would be making his return to action Week 9 by activating him from injured reserve Saturday. While McCaffrey has essentially been a must-start fantasy option since entering the NFL in 2017, there's a chance he won't log his typical voluminous snap and touch counts as he eases into it after straining his hamstring back in Week 3. According to David Newton of ESPN.com, McCaffrey is expected to be limited to a "pitch count" of 30 to 40 snaps, which could leave some work left over for Chuba Hubbard -- who averaged 20.4 touches per game during McCaffrey's five-game absence -- and Ameer Abdullah.

Murray (ankle) is inactive for Sunday's game against the Vikings.

With Murray out for a second consecutive game, Devonta Freeman, Le'Veon Bell and Ty'Son Williams are in line to continue to work in a backfield time-share for the Ravens in Week 9. It's a context that resulted in Freeman logging four carries and three targets on 29 snaps in the team's Week 7 loss to the Bengals, with Bell carrying five times and recording two targets (on 22 snaps) and Williams notching two carries and two targets, while seeing 21 snaps. Until one of the team's backs emerges as the hot hand, this looks like a committee situation to avoid in most fantasy formats.

Robinson (heel) is inactive for Sunday's game against the Bills.

Robinson was considered questionable for Sunday's contest, but Adam Schefter of ESPN reported Saturday the Jaguars were pessimistic about his outlook, and he's now officially unavailable. Carlos Hyde is poised to lead Jacksonville's backfield versus Buffalo, while Dare Ogunbowale could see a lesser role while handling some work on passing downs.

The Titans remain hopeful that Henry (foot) can play again at some point in 2021, though a source familiar with the situation believes it "would be very surprising if [the running back] made it back this season," Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Regardless, Henry is out indefinitely, and in his absence, the Titans will proceed with a backfield committee that currently includes Adrian Peterson, Jeremy McNichols and D'Onta Foreman. Henry injured his right foot last Sunday against the Colts, was placed on injured reserve Monday and underwent surgery Tuesday.

Mitchell (ribs), who is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Cardinals, is expected to play but the 49ers are uncertain how long he'll be able to go, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Mitchell was on the practice field Friday for the second straight day, but he continued to sport a blue no-contact jersey during the session. Despite this report, fantasy managers will still want to check back in on the status of Mitchell approximately 90 minutes prior to Sunday's 4:25 p.m. ET kickoff, when San Francisco will release its inactive list.

Robinson is expected to test out his injured heel in pregame warmups, but the Jaguars are increasingly pessimistic that he'll be able to play Sunday against the Bills, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Robinson made an early exit from Jacksonville's Week 8 loss at Seattle with what was initially termed an ankle issue, but coach Urban Meyer clarified afterward that the running back instead was tending to a bruised heel. Subsequently, Robinson was considered day-to-day, and he proceeded to log just one limited practice Friday before the team gave him a questionable designation for Week 9. If he ends up having a suboptimal workout ahead of Sunday's contest, the Jags are poised to make Robinson inactive, but fortunately his managers will have fair warning and plenty of options to replace him in lineups with a 1:00 p.m. ET kickoff. Carlos Hyde stands to benefit in that scenario in Robinson's stead, with Dare Ogunbowale and Devine Ozigbo on hand for any reps that linger.

McCaffrey (hamstring) was reinstated from injured reserve Saturday, but he'll be evaluated by the team's staff early Sunday before his status is determined ahead of the Panthers' 1 p.m. ET kickoff against the Patriots, David Newton of ESPN.com reports.

Assuming he experiences no pregame setbacks, McCaffrey should be in line to return from his five-game absence. In the event that McCaffrey does play, however, Newton suggests that the star running back would likely be on some sort of a snap count, with Chuba Hubbard, Royce Freeman and Ameer Abdullah also candidates to mix in. Either way, McCaffrey's availability will be clarified no later than 90 minutes prior to Sunday's kickoff, when Carolina releases its inactive list.