NFL Player News

Evans displayed "sure hands and smooth route running" during the Bengals' OTAs and minicamp, Jay Morrison of The Athletic reports.

Though Joe Mixon remains the Bengals' clear-cut top back and Samaje Perine is on hand to spell him in early down situations, Evans' pass-catching skills could lead to a role in the team's offense following the offseason departure of Giovani Bernard. In order to cement a spot in the team's backfield pecking order, however, Evans -- a rookie sixth-round pick -- will need to continue to impress in training camp, where he'll compete for slotting with Perine, Trayveon Williams, Jacques Patrick and Pooka Williams.

Vaughn has impressed coach Bruce Arians during his time in Tampa, but the second-year running back's chances of seeing increased playing time in 2021 may hinge on his improvement on special teams, Scott Smith of the team's official site reports. "Ke'Shawn's made a nice move, but he has to be a better special teams players right now because of what's in front of him," said Arians. "But I have all the confidence in the world in him as a runner and a receiver."

"What's in front of him," as Arians puts it, are Ronald Jones and Leonard Fournette. Meanwhile, veteran Giovani Bernard was added this offseason, and all those factors leave Vaughn's prospects for playing time murky at best. The Vanderbilt product logged just 31 touches (26 rushes, five catches) during his rookie campaign, recording a touchdown through the air and averaging 4.2 yards per carry. Vaughn played just 37 special-teams snaps and was a healthy scratch for six regular-season games and the final three postseason contests, but it appears he could have a chance to increase his overall profile in the offense with a strong training camp and preseason in all phases.

Coach Bruce Arians remarked that he viewed both Jones and backfield mate Leonard Fournette as No. 1 backs during mandatory minicamp, Scott Smith of the Buccaneers' official site reports. "It's a hell of a group," said Arians. "Both those guys are starters in my mind. Whoever goes out first doesn't really matter to me. But that will be determined in camp."

Jones opened the 2020 season as the clear-cut top back with Fournette having just joined the team prior to Week 1, and he earned the right to hold onto that designation for most of the 14 regular-season games for which he was healthy. Jones compiled 978 rushing yards and seven touchdowns (5.1 YPC) while adding a 28-165-1 line through the air. However, an ill-timed quad contusion sustained in pregame warmups before a wild-card game against Washington altered the postseason fortunes of both Jones and Fournette, as the latter thrived with the lead-back job in that game and held it throughout the Super Bowl. Nevertheless, Jones' body of work over the last two campaigns following an abysmal rookie season certainly hasn't been forgotten, and it therefore appears both players could be headed for a dreaded timeshare scenario in 2021 as long they're healthy and replicating last year's production.

Singletary says he's gained a bit of extra speed this offseason after working with a personal trainer in South Florida, Chris Brown of the Bills' official site reports. Said trainer Nick Hicks: "We didn't sit there and try to make him into 100 meter sprinter. We just tried to make him, I guess two-tenths, three-tenths faster than what he what he what he was coming back in. We literally left no stone unturned this offseason, so yes he's going to be way faster, way more explosive than the Devin Singletary you guys are used to. Motor's got a motor now."

Singletary, while shifty and excellent in small spaces, has really lacked breakaway speed as an NFL running back (he ran a 4.66 40 at the combine a few years ago), so even if the story is a bit overblown this can only be a good thing for the third-year running back. The Florida Atlantic product will be competing in camp with Zack Moss and newcomer Matt Breida for carries, though between perhaps the hint of extra speed to go with the fact that Moss still isn't able to practice following ankle surgery, the offseason news seems favorable toward Singletary's quest to gain as large a share as possible. That said, Singletary isn't much of a touchdown threat with just four rushing scores over his first two seasons. Plus, quarterback Josh Allen frequently takes away scores from the entire running back crew.

Homer (calf) didn't take part in Thursday's minicamp practice, Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic reports.

Homer dealt with a number of health concerns last season, but a calf injury wasn't one of them. Through two pro campaigns, the 2019 sixth-rounder hasn't been much more than a depth piece in the Seahawks backfield, averaging 4.7 yards on 43 carries and 7.3 yards on 20 catches while scoring one TD in 25 appearances. Homer still resides behind Chris Carson and Rashaad Penny (knee) on the depth chart, meaning he likely will need one of the duo to miss time in the fall in order to become a consistent part of the offense.

Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott said Tuesday that Moss (ankle) isn't quite to participate in this week's minicamp practices, Dante Lasting of the Bills' official site reports. "[Offensive lineman Cody Ford] and Zack in particular, they really haven't been able to get back out there to where I'm sure that they would like to at this point. So, we look forward to getting them back at training camp," McDermott said.

Moss got hurt in the team's first playoff game last season, and the injury ended up being a serious one, as he required surgery and apparently is still ramping back up. The 2020 third-round pick should be ready to go once training camp rolls around, and it will be worthwhile to monitor his health status. The Bills seem likely to use a timeshare out of the backfield in 2021, with teammates such as Devin Singletary, Matt Breida, Antonio Williams and Christian Wade all competing with Moss for carries.

Chubb said Tuesday he wants to remain a member of the Browns after his rookie contract expires following the upcoming season, Jake Trotter of ESPN.com reports. "It would mean a lot," Chubb said. "Cleveland is where I want to be. Hopefully everything can work out in that direction."

Chubb added that his agent and the team have already discussed a potential extension this offseason. He's been a key component of Cleveland's offense since he arrived as a second-round pick in 2018, but it wasn't until he played behind one of the NFL's best lines in a run-heavy offense in 2020 season that his desire to remain with the Browns was solidified.

Penny isn't participating at mandatory minicamp this week after undergoing a cleanup procedure on his knee earlier in the offseason, Joe Fann of NBC Sports Northwest reports.

Penny was limited to three games in 2020 while recovering from surgery to repair a torn ACL in late 2019, and the cleanup procedure was on the same knee. Coach Pete Carroll expects the 25-year-old to be ready for training camp at the end of July, but it's a worrying sign for a tailback that's struggled to stay healthy over the past couple years.

McCaffrey (thigh) said during OTAs in late May that he feels "really good" and is "back to 100 percent," Jonathan M. Alexander of The Charlotte Observer reports.

McCaffrey is coming off a 2020 season in which he played in only three games due to injury, but he was supremely effective when he suited up, racking up five touchdowns on the ground and another through the air while compiling a combined 374 rushing and receiving yards. Now healthy again, McCaffrey heads into his fifth season in Carolina as the undisputed top back, but the team did use a fourth-round pick on Chuba Hubbard to add some insurance behind the 25-year-old.

Barkley (knee) said Wednesday that he was unwilling to guarantee he would be ready for the Giants' regular-season opener Sept. 12 versus the Broncos, Ralph Vacchiano of SportsNet New York reports.

Instead, Barkley said he's going to play "whenever my body tells me I'm ready," leaving his timeline for a return somewhat vague. He hasn't participated in OTAs, and his comments don't instill a ton of optimism that he will be ready to go early in training camp. At this point, it's best to monitor his progress as the season draws closer, but the Giants are likely going to take all precautions now to avoid future complications.