NFL Player News

Stevenson (foot) is active for Sunday's game against the Jaguars in London.

After sitting out the Week 6 loss to the Texans with the foot injury, Stevenson failed to practice Wednesday and Thursday, but he turned a corner by putting in a full session Friday en route to carrying a questionable tag into the weekend. Stevenson avoided any setbacks leading up to Sunday and will presumably return to his typical starting role, though the extent of his workload isn't known. After fumbling four times in the Patriots' first four games, Stevenson lost out on some snaps to Antonio Gibson in a Week 5 loss to the Dolphins, though Stevenson bounced back in that contest with a strong performance, as he carried 12 times for 89 yards and a touchdown while adding four catches for three yards. Assuming he can continue to keep the fumble issues at bay, Stevenson should be able to rebuild some job security, and his fantasy outlook could also be helped by the Patriots' recent change at quarterback from Jacoby Brissett to rookie first-round pick Drake Maye.

Etienne (hamstring) is inactive for Sunday's game against the Patriots in London.

Approximately an hour before Jacksonville revealed its inactive list, head coach Doug Pederson told Steve Wyche of NFL Network that Etienne had a good week of practice before being listed as questionable heading into Sunday, but the Jaguars are deciding to err on the side of caution by keeping the running back out for at least one game. In Etienne's absence, Pederson suggested that the Jaguars would lean primarily on Tank Bigsby and D'Ernest Johnson to fill snaps out of the backfield, with practice squad call-up Jake Funk serving as a third option. If Etienne can increase his practice activity next week without experiencing any setbacks with his hamstring, he should have a good chance of returning to action next Sunday versus the Packers in Jacksonville.

Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson suggested that Johnson is in line to take on a greater role out of the backfield for Sunday's game against the Patriots in London due to Travis Etienne (hamstring) set to be inactive for the contest, Steve Wyche of NFL Network reports.

With Etienne set to miss his first game of the season, the Jaguars will keep Johnson, Bigsby and practice-squad call-up Jake Funk active as their three running backs for Week 7. When Etienne exited the Jaguars' Week 6 loss to the Bears after playing just 11 snaps, Johnson (34 snaps) finished with far more playing time than Bigsby (16 snaps), but a negative game script and Johnson's standing as Jacksonville's preferred option on passing downs was likely a significant factor. Though Johnson should still rank as the clear choice ahead of Bigsby on third downs and obvious passing situations, expect Bigsby to serve as the Jaguars' lead runner in Etienne's absence this week. Bigsby is averaging an impressive 7.2 yards per carry on 41 totes this season, though Johnson has been competent in his opportunities on the ground as well (16 carries for 67 yards). Johnson's fantasy utility for Week 7 will likely be mostly limited to deeper PPR leagues.

Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson said that Bigsby is in line to take on a greater role out of the backfield for Sunday's game against the Patriots in London due to Travis Etienne (hamstring) set to be inactive for the contest, Steve Wyche of NFL Network reports.

Though Pederson noted that Etienne had a good week of practice before being listed as questionable heading into Sunday, the 2021 first-round draft pick ultimately couldn't shake off the hamstring injury he sustained in the Jaguars' Week 6 loss to the Bears. While Pederson is seemingly leaving the door open for Etienne to return to the lineup Week 8 versus the Packers, his absence Sunday likely leaves the door open for Bigsby to serve as the Jaguars' top option on the ground. D'Ernest Johnson is expected to have a sizable role of his own -- likely as Jacksonville's top passing-down back -- but in non-PPR formats especially, Bigsby still profiles as a strong lineup option for Week 7. Even while working behind Etienne this season, Bigsby has flashed over his 80 snaps through six games, carrying 41 times for 297 yards (7.2 average) and two touchdowns. A workload of 10-to-15 carries could be enough for Bigsby to produce a useful line for fantasy managers.

Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson told Steve Wyche of NFL Network that Etienne (hamstring) -- who is officially listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Patriots -- won't play.

Expect the Jaguars to include Etienne on their inactive list, which will be released 90 minutes prior to the 9:30 a.m. ET kickoff in London. With Etienne set to miss his first game of the season, Tank Bigsby and D'Ernest Johnson will see expanded profiles out of the backfield. Look for Bigsby to serve as the Jaguars' top option on the ground, while Johnson operates as Jacksonville's passing-down back.

Jones (hamstring), who is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Lions, is expected to play, Ben Goessling of the Minnesota Star Tribune reports.

Jones is on track to play unless he wakes up Sunday feeling any issues with his hamstring, according to Goessling. What initially was believed to be a hip injury that forced him out of the Vikings' last game Week 5 against the Jets was later clarified to be a hamstring issue. Jones sat out practice Wednesday, but he returned to the field as a limited participant Thursday and Friday. The Vikings are expected to officially clear Jones to play upon the release of their inactive list 90 minutes prior to Sunday's 1 p.m. ET kickoff.

Robinson (knee) remains listed as questionable but is expected to play Sunday against the Panthers, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

After not practicing at all last week and missing last Sunday's loss to the Ravens, Robinson got in a round of limited practices this week and seems to be trending in this direction. Robinson should step right back into his role atop the Commanders backfield, handling the bulk of the early-down work while Austin Ekeler mixes in and sees the majority of the passing-down snaps.

Evans (hamstring) was not activated from injured reserve ahead of Sunday's game against the Titans.

Evans will miss his seventh consecutive game to open the season after he was injured in late August. The Bills will continue to roll with James Cook, Ray Davis (calf) and Ty Johnson in the backfield for another week. Evans is unlikely to have a substantial role once he's activated. His 21-day practice window was opened 10 days ago.

Stevenson (foot) remains listed as questionable but is expected to play Sunday against the Jaguars, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Stevenson was a full participant in Friday's practice and said after the session that he would be ready to play in the London game, per Mike Reiss of ESPN.com. Fantasy managers planning on using Stevenson will still want to confirm that he's active for the contest, with the Patriots set to reveal their inactive list 90 minutes prior to Sunday's 9:30 a.m. ET kickoff. While Stevenson missed the Week 6 loss to the Texans, Antonio Gibson filled in as starter and took 13 carries for only 19 yards in the game. While Stevenson should supplant Gibson in his expected return Week 7, the distribution of snaps and touches between the two backs isn't clear. Even so, Stevenson's rest-of-season outlook seems to be trending upward, as the Patriots offense as a whole could be more dynamic after rookie No. 3 overall pick Drake Maye took over as New England's starting quarterback Week 6 and looked generally impressive in his first extended NFL action.

Williams logged three carries for 17 yards during Thursday's 33-10 defeat to the Broncos.

Williams appeared to fall back on the running back depth chart after four consecutive games with fewer than 12 rushing yards. The 29-year-old was already a non-factor behind bell-cow starter Alvin Kamara, but he was overshadowed Thursday by second-year running back Kendre Miller, who logged six carries after missing the first six games with a hamstring injury. Williams and Miller both saw just one rushing attempt in the first half, so it's hard to say that either made much of an impact. It's probably too early to say that Miller has secured the No. 2 running spot given his injury history, but Thursday's workload certainly indicates that a change could happen soon. It will be worth monitoring whether Williams or Miller sees more action behind Kamara during next week's game versus the Chargers on Sunday, Oct. 27.