NFL Player News

Harvey has drawn praise early in camp, impressing Denver's coaching staff with his explosiveness and speed, according to Nick Kosmider of The Athletic.

With padded practices underway, Harvey has turned heads with his ability to maintain speed while making quick cuts to avoid defenders. After Tuesday's practice, head coach Sean Payton highlighted a play the rookie running back made during the session, saying Harvey "had a run today that was something, and we kind of turned and looked at each other." The UCF product demonstrated great decision-making on his way to multiple big gains. Harvey has even showed a willingness to step up into oncoming pressure in protection, though Payton noted that this will be an area of his game that needs growth. "For him, specifically, the protections, the speed of the game...there's that learning curve for all young players. Some of it happens a little quicker than others, but he's doing exceptional," Payton said. According to Kosmider, the 24-year-old Harvey and veteran J.K. Dobbins have routinely taken the bulk of snaps with the Broncos' first-team offense. Though the presence of Dobbins likely caps Harvey's potential as a true workhorse back, his continued development could lead to a bigger share of the backfield workload based on Denver's need for explosiveness in the ground game.

James made a strong first impression on the 49ers' coaching staff during team practices in training camp, according to Matt Barrows of The Athletic.

James was taken in the fifth round of the 2025 Draft in an effort to bolster San Francisco's backfield depth after veteran backups Elijah Mitchell and Jordan Mason departed this offseason. The 21-year-old James stood out in padded practices, drawing praise from head coach Kyle Shanahan for his ability to "hit the holes hard" and from offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak for his ability to pick up blitzes. Starter Christian McCaffrey and backup Isaac Guerendo will sit atop the RB depth chart to start the regular season, but James has put himself in position to win the No. 3 role.

Holani is competing for the No. 3 running back job after Kenny McIntosh suffered a torn ACL on Monday, Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic reports.

The Seahawks selected Damien Martinez in the seventh round of this year's draft, but Holani ran with the second team during Tuesday's practice while Martinez worked with the third team. One of the two is likely to land the No. 3 role behind Kenneth Walker -- who didn't practice Tuesday -- and Zach Charbonnet, although Jacardia Wright and D.K. Kaufman are also in the mix. Holani rushed three times for 10 yards through five regular-season games as a rookie in 2024.

Travis Etienne seemed to be the feature back during Tuesday's practice, after Bigsby got more work with the starters last week, John Shipley of SI.com reports.

Even though Etienne got more work, Bigsby performed well Tuesday, reaching the second level on multiple runs. The big takeaway is that both running backs are playing a lot of first-team snaps, while rookie fourth-round pick Bhayshul Tuten has been limited by a minor hamstring injury. Snaps and touches are up for grabs under new coach Liam Coen, who oversaw a dramatic transformation of Tampa Bay's running game last year.

Achane has impressed during the early portion of training camp, making several big plays at practice Tuesday, Hal Habib of the Palm Beach Post reports.

Achane opened 11-on-11 team drills Tuesday with an impressive run, and he logged a pair of big plays to close out the day, including a deep pass from Tua Tagovailoa. It's encouraging to see Achane meshing well with Miami's revamped offensive line, and he remains the Dolphins' clear lead back after a stellar sophomore season in which he tallied career-high totals across the board with 203 carries for 907 yards (4.5 YPC) and six scores, plus an outstanding 78-592-6 receiving line on 87 targets. Miami's decision to replace tight end Jonnu Smith with Darren Waller, who spent last season in retirement, leaves Achane with less target competition in the short and intermediate areas of the field, and the combination of Jaylen Wright, Alexander Mattison and Ollie Gordon look more like threats for short-yardage duties than the overall backfield workload.

The Steelers released Patterson (undisclosed) on Tuesday, Teresa Varley of the team's official site reports.

Patterson had posted on X on Monday that he was being released, and the official transaction, which gives the Steelers an extra $2.8 million in cap space, became official Tuesday. Patterson has been utilized across multiple positions on offense and has plenty of special-teams experience as a returner, so the veteran should garner interest from teams as the 2025 season approaches.

The Patriots placed Lampe on injured reserve Tuesday due to an undisclosed injury.

It's unclear what type of injury Lampe is working through, but by being placed on IR, he will be forced to miss the entire 2025 season unless he is waived by the Patriots with an injury settlement. The Northern Illinois product was signed by the Patriots as an undrafted free agent in early May.

Colts head coach Shane Steichen said Tuesday that Ahmed has a back injury, Nate Atkins of The Indianapolis Star reports.

Indianapolis will take a day off from training camp Wednesday, so Ahmed's next opportunity to take the practice field will come Thursday. The veteran running back joined the Colts' practice squad last season after being cut by Denver, but he didn't suit up for regular-season action with either team.

As Thursday's Hall of Fame Game against the Lions approaches, coach Jim Harbaugh acknowledged that there is still no timetable for the return of Harris (eye) to practice, Kris Rhim of ESPN.com reports.

Harris, who sustained an eye injury as the result of a fireworks mishap on the Fourth of July, has been on the active/non-football injury list since July 17, though the running back has been spotted on the field during practice in shorts and a t-shirt. Until he's ready to return to drills, 2025 first-rounder Omarion Hampton should continue to see added first-team reps. Once Harris is cleared to practice, he'll be able to make his case for a key backfield role alongside his highly touted rookie counterpart.

Hampton is in line to play in Thursday's Hall of Fame Game against the Lions, Eric Smith of the Chargers' official site reports.

While coach Jim Harbaugh said that "veteran traditional starters" won't play in the contest, Hampton -- as well as rookie WRs Tre Harris and KeAndre Lambert-Smith -- is slated to see snaps versus Detroit. Hampton, who was taken 22nd overall in the 2025 NFL Draft, is destined to play a key role this season in a Chargers backfield that also features Najee Harris, who is on the active/non-football injury list after sustaining an eye injury as the result of a fireworks mishap on the Fourth of July.