NFL Player News

Head coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday that Johnson "probably" won't be returning kickoffs against the Patriots in Week 3, Brooke Pryor of ESPN reports.

Johnson saw just six snaps (two on offense, four on special teams) during the Steelers' 31-17 loss to the Seahawks on Sunday. Despite the limited playing time, he made a big impact in a bad way by failing to retrieve a kickoff return into the end zone, which led to George Holani recovering the ball for a Seattle touchdown. Johnson has turned two carries into minus-1 yard over the first two games of the regular season, and depsite plenty of preseason hype, the 2025 third-round pick is far from being relevant in the Steelers' offense behind Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell on the backfield depth chart.

The Vikings plan to place Jones (hamstring) on injured reserve Tuesday, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.

Head coach Kevin O'Connell had already indicated that Jones was on track to sit out Sunday's game against the Bengals after straining his hamstring in the Week 2 loss to the Falcons, but the veteran running back will now have to miss at least four games while he heads to IR. Minnesota added Cam Akers to its practice squad Tuesday to bolster its backfield depth, but Jordan Mason looks set to operate as the Vikings' clear No. 1 running back in Jones' absence. Over the first two games of the season, Jones had been part of a timeshare with Mason, playing fewer than half the offensive snaps in both contests while carrying 13 times for 46 yards and adding three catches for 44 yards and a touchdown on four targets.

Akers agreed to a contract with the Vikings' practice squad Tuesday, Ben Goessling of The Minnesota Star Tribune reports.

Though Akers will begin his third stint in the Vikings organization as a member of the practice squad, he could be elevated to the 53-man roster for Sunday's game versus the Bengals due to Aaron Jones (hamstring) looking unlikely to play Week 3. Akers was most recently with the Saints during the preseason, but he was unable to win a roster spot after New Orleans opted to enter the regular season with Alvin Kamara, Kendre Miller and Devin Neal as its backfield options. In 2024, Akers saw action in 17 games between stops with the Texans and Vikings during the regular season, carrying 104 times for 444 yards (4.3 YPC) and two touchdowns while adding 14 receptions for 68 yards and three more scores.

Smith accrued one rush for two yards and failed to gather his lone target during Sunday's 20-17 loss to the Eagles.

Smith is a clear No. 3 on the depth chart for the Chiefs at running back, with Isiah Pacheco tallying 35 offensive snaps and Kareem Hunt logging 24 -- Smith saw the field for only five. Still, that puts him ahead of Elijah Mitchell in the pecking order should an opportunity present itself in the future. Until then, Smith will likely serve primarily as a returner on special teams with the potential for a touch or two on offense each game.

Harris carried eight times for 28 yards and added two receptions for 20 yards on two targets in Monday's 20-9 win over the Raiders.

After getting in limited practice reps in training camp and the preseason while recovering from a superficial eye injury, Harris took on a light role in Week 1, playing just 18 percent of the offensive snaps and logging two touches (one carry, one catch). However, the veteran poached more work from rookie first-round pick Omarion Hampton in Monday's victory. While Hampton continued to pace the Chargers backfield in playing time with a 62 percent snap share, he mustered just 24 yards on eight carries and had one catch for one yard while also committing a late fumble as the Bolts tried to ice the game. Harris wasn't much more efficient, but he still nearly doubled up his snap share from the season opener, taking the field for 20 plays (34 percent). Hampton will likely continue to lead the backfield during Sunday's game against Denver, but Harris could see his snap share tick up a little more.

Hill had three carries for seven yards and caught all three of his targets for 18 yards Sunday against the Browns.

Baltimore's run game was uncharacteristically shut down by the Browns on Sunday as Hill and Derrick Henry combined for 14 carries and 30 yards. Hill managed to contribute in the passing game with three grabs after being held to just one three-yard reception in the opener. His playing time remained in line with his Week 1 total as he played 22 snaps. His usage can vary week-to-week, but Hill's snap share sits in the 40 percent range.

Brooks was on the active roster but did not play on offense in Monday's 20-19 loss to the Buccaneers.

Brooks was active for the first time in 2025, as the Texans somewhat surprisingly made Dameon Pierce inactive, but he was limited to special teams duty. Nick Chubb performed as the main back, with Woody Marks and Dare Ogunbowale in depth roles.

Ogunbowale was on the field for 10 offensive snaps but did not have a carry or target in Monday's 20-19 loss to Tampa Bay.

The Texans made Dameon Pierce inactive for the contest, but Ogunbowale remained in his usual special teams role. Instead, it was rookie Woody Marks (13 snaps) taking on a larger role in the offense.

Hampton carried the ball eight times for 24 yards and caught one of his two targets for an additional yard in the 20-9 win over the Raiders on Monday.

There wasn't a whole lot of positive takeaways for the rookie in this one. One week after leading the backfield in touches, Hampton split the carries evenly with Najee Harris at eight apiece, and the veteran also chipped in with two receptions for 20 yards. Perhaps more crucially, a botched handoff on the Chargers' penultimate possession directly led to a fumble which gave the Raiders a modicum of life, and then Harris finished the ensuing series to ice the game. Hampton could turn things around Week 3 against a Broncos defense that just allowed 215 total yards to Jonathan Taylor.

Jeanty took 11 carries for 43 yards and caught three of four targets for one yard in Monday's 20-9 loss to the Chargers.

The Raiders continued deploying Jeanty as the team's bellcow out of the backfield, handing the rookie 11 of the 13 carries dispersed to running backs Monday. The sixth-overall pick from this year's draft failed to repeat last week's trip to the end zone, resulting in a middling fantasy score in his second pro appearance. Jeanty's monster share of backfield touches combined with the upside that made him such a high draft choice keep his fantasy ceiling raised as the season rolls along. The Boise State product's next opportunity to break out will come in a road matchup against the Commanders on Sunday.