NFL Player News

Vikings general manager Rick Spielman suggested Wednesday that Murray isn't guaranteed to return to the team in 2018, Andrew Krammer of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. "We've discussed a lot of things," Spielman said when asked if the Vikings were set with Dalvin Cook (knee) and Murray as the team's primary running backs next season. "We're very excited, Dalvin continues to rehab. We're very excited about the progress he's making and anxious to see what we are with him in the fold along with whatever combination is there."

Though Spielman didn't say explicitly that Murray wouldn't be retained, it's clear the Vikings are still weighing whether the 28-year-old is worth bringing back at a cap hit of $6.35 million for 2018, which would make him one of the higher-paid running backs in the league. While Murray gave the Vikings quality production upon stepping in as the primary back once Cook suffered a season-ending ACL tear in Week 4, finishing with a team-high 842 rushing yards and eight touchdowns, it may be difficult for the team to justify keeping Murray at that price when he would likely be limited to a complementary role behind a healthy Cook in 2018. Assuming Murray is amenable to it, the Vikings may explore approaching his representatives about restructuring his contract so he could remain with the team at a more affordable price. If Murray isn't willing to renegotiate, however, the Vikings could cut him with little repercussions before March 16, when his $5.15 million base salary for 2018 becomes guaranteed.

Johnson said Wednesday that he has no intention of retiring and hopes to play in 2018, Josina Anderson of ESPN reports. "I'm not done yet," Johnson said. "I am still going strong. I got too much juice left."

Johnson has played exclusively with the Cardinals over the past three years on a series of short-term contracts, averaging 3.8 yards on 266 carries while scoring four times. He isn't nearly the same fast-twitch player he was in the early stages of his career and will need to land in an ideal spot in order to return to fantasy relevance, but Johnson could still be a serviceable backup for a team in need of veteran backfield depth.

Texans general manager Brian Gaine said Wednesday's that he's "fairly optimistic" that Foreman (Achilles) will be ready to play by Week 1 of the 2018 season, Deepi Sidhu of the Texans' official site reports.

Foreman looked primed to cut into starter Lamar Miller's workload after busting out for 65 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 10 carries in Week 11 against the Cardinals, but those hopes were dashed after he suffered a season-ending torn left Achilles' tendon in that same contest. The rookie running back underwent surgery shortly after landing on injured reserve Nov. 22 and has spent the past three months rehabbing, with the Texans pleased with the progress he's made to date. While no official timeline remains in place for Foreman's return to full-contact workouts, it's expected he'll gain clearance at some point during training camp. If Foreman displays renewed explosiveness in those workouts and receives the green light for the season opener, he could get another chance at unseating Miller for the lead role at some point during the campaign.

Bengals player personnel director Duke Tobin said Wednesday that Mixon will act as the team's lead runner in 2018 and will be relied upon heavily, Katherine Terrell of ESPN.com reports. "Joe really came on for us in the later part of the [past] year, second half of the season. He's going to be our bell-cow running back," Tobin said. "We are going to combine him with [Giovani Bernard] and we really feel good about that position group."

As a second-round rookie out of Oklahoma, Mixon saw lighter usage behind starter Jeremy Hill (ankle) during the Bengals' first two games before effectively emerging as the top back on the depth chart for the bulk of the campaign. Though he battled an ankle injury over the final quarter of the season and yielded more work to Bernard as a result, Mixon evidently made enough of an impression over his 14 games to earn the clear No. 1 role heading into 2018. In order to maintain the bell-cow role for the balance of the season and limit Bernard to change-of-pace work, however, Mixon will likely need to display more efficiency than he did during his first year in the NFL. Mixon's 3.5 yards per carry last season was the third-worst mark in the league for players who toted the ball at least 170 times, ahead of only Carolina's Jonathan Stewart (3.4) and Washington's Samaje Perine (3.4).

The Chargers may look to acquire another running back during the offseason in an effort to manage Gordon's workload, ESPN's Eric D. Williams reports.

Despite the emergence of undrafted rookie Austin Ekeler, who finished his first campaign with 539 total yards and five touchdowns, Williams suggests the Chargers might be eager to acquire another backup more along the lines of an "early-down bruiser", presumably to spell Gordon in short-yardage situations. While Gordon did cross the 1,000-yard rushing threshold for the first time in his career, he once again failed to average more than four yards per carry, joining Leonard Fournette as the only other player in 2017 to rush for 1,000 or more yards and not reach the aforementioned average. We'll learn more about the Chargers' offseason plans in May, when the team must decide whether to pick up Gordon's fifth-year option. Should it do that, the 2015 first-round pick will be slated to accrue just over $10 million in 2019, likely setting the stage for a potential multi-year contract down the road.

Bolden and the Patriots agreed Saturday to a one-year, $880,000 contract, Field Yates of ESPN reports.

Since going undrafted out of Mississippi in 2012, Bolden has spent all six of his NFL seasons in New England, though he's only logged 14 carries the past two years. Even with backfield mates Dion Lewis, Rex Burkhead and Mike Gillislee facing uncertain futures with the Patriots, Bolden likely won't be called upon to see an uptick in offensive snaps, as he was re-signed almost entirely for his strong work on special teams.

Crossan (undisclosed) signed a contract with the Buccaneers on Thursday.

Crossan suffered an injury during training camp last season while attempting to crack the Colts' 53-man roster. He eventually reached an injury settlement with the club and was on the market until his signing Thursday. The second-year tailback will likely compete to earn a special teams spot with the Bucs during 2018.

Sims, who will become an unrestricted free agent March 14, would likely remain in a change-of-pace role next season if retained by the Buccaneers, Jenna Laine of ESPN.com reports.

Sims saw even less action on the ground than in previous seasons in 2017, despite the since-released Doug Martin having endured a three-game suspension, injury and ultimately, a benching. The former West Virginia standout earned a career-low 21 carries, though he did post the second-best reception (35) and receiving yardage (249) totals of his four NFL seasons. Given that Sims has never logged more than 107 totes in any season as a professional, it's unclear whether any potential suitor sees him an all-around back.

Rodgers is considered an internal option to replace the since-released Doug Martin as the Buccaneers' lead back in 2018, Jenna Laine of ESPN.com reports.

Rodgers finished the 2017 campaign with just 73 total touches from scrimmage, a modest workload considering he had been the de facto lead back for the first three games of the season while Martin finished serving a suspension. Given his ability to contribute on offense and special teams along with his reasonable $1.6 million cap hit for 2018, Rodgers seems likely to return to Tampa Bay during the upcoming season and could get the opportunity to compete with Peyton Barber for the top spot on the depth chart. It's quite likely, however, that the Buccaneers bring in multiple reinforcements at running back through free agency and/or the draft.

The Buccaneers released Martin on Tuesday, Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

After following up a strong rookie year in 2012 with back-to-back disappointing seasons, Martin temporarily quieted his critics by amassing 1,673 yards from scrimmage and seven touchdowns in 2015, netting him a five-year, $35.75 million contract extension the following spring. However, Martin regressed badly thereafter, averaging less than three yards per carry in both of the past two seasons while missing time due to injury and an untimely four-game suspension, which delayed the start to his 2017 campaign. In cutting Martin loose, the Buccaneers will save $6.75 million against the cap in 2018 while taking on no dead money due to the structure of the contract. Martin's departure currently leaves Peyton Barber as the top candidate to start at running back in 2018, though there's a decent possibility the Buccaneers address the position through the draft or free agency in the coming months.