NFL Player News

Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo said Friday that Stevenson will not start at running back in Sunday's game against the Dolphins, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com reports.

Antonio Gibson will get a turn as the Patriots' lead back Week 5 while the 26-year-old Stevenson slides down a spot on the depth chart after fumbling in each of the Patriots' first four games. According to Mayo, Stevenson is still in line to remain in the game plan versus Miami. Gibson has seen just 29 carries to Stevenson's 65 through four games, but the former is averaging 5.3 yards per tote to Stevenson's 4.1 average.

Akers may be see Dameon Pierce (hamstring) added back to the Texans backfield Sunday against the Bills, as the latter is questionable to play in the contest, Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Houston reports.

While Joe Mixon (ankle) will miss a third game in a row this weekend, Pierce put himself in a position to return for the first time since Week 1 after logging a limited practice Friday. If Pierce is active Sunday, he won't necessarily take on a large workload, considering Akers has been preparing for a third consecutive start, per Wilson. However, in such a scenario, Pierce and Dare Ogunbowale would be on hand for any RB reps that don't go to Akers. In Weeks 3 and 4, Akers combined for 22 carries for 74 yards and caught one of three targets for an eight-yard touchdown.

White (groin) has been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Broncos, Rachel Gossen of the Raiders' official site reports.

With White sidelined versus Denver, Alexander Mattison is slated to lead Las Vegas' Week 5 backfield, with Ameer Abdullah and Dylan Laube on hand to mix in. White now will turn his focus to a potential return to action Sunday, Oct. 13 versus the Steelers.

Mattison is set to operate as Vegas' top running back against the Broncos on Sunday, as Zamir White (groin) has been ruled out, Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com reports.

White picked up the groin injury in practice Wednesday and subsequently sat out Thursday and Friday. Even before the injury to White, Mattison had been headed for an uptick in opportunities, as Mattison's averaging 5.1 yards on 17 carries this season compared to White's paltry 3.1 YPC on 49 rushes. Ameer Abdullah and Dylan Laube also could see more touches in White's absence.

Badie (back) won't play Sunday against the Raiders, Aric DiLalla of the Broncos' official site reports.

Badie's absence isn't surprising considering coach Sean Payton said Wednesday that an IR stint could be on the table for the running back. Badie hasn't practiced since hurting his back in the first half of Denver's Week 4 win over the Jets. His next chance to suit up will be Week 6 against the Chargers.

Miller (hamstring) was a full participant in practice Friday, Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football reports.

Miller upgraded to full participation Friday after logging a limited session Thursday. He's trending in the right direction ahead of Monday's game against the Chiefs, but Miller will need to be officially activated from injured reserve before he can play. If such a move transpires, Miller would likely jostle with Jamaal Williams for touches behind Alvin Kamara (hip/ribs), the latter of whom has kicked off Week 5 prep with consecutive limited practices.

Hunt (shoulder) remained limited at practice Friday.

Hunt also was limited Thursday, so he'll presumably need to practice fully Saturday in order to avoid an injury designation ahead of Monday night's game against the Saints. In this past Sunday's 17-10 win over the Chargers, Hunt made his season debut and recorded a 45 percent snap share while carrying 14 times for 69 yards and adding two catches (on three targets) for 16 yards. On the heels of that effort, health permitting, he's poised to maintain a key role in Kansas City's Week 5 backfield, which also includes Samaje Perine (five carries last week) and Carson Steele (two carries versus Los Angeles) and may welcome back 2020 first-rounder Clyde Edwards-Helaire from the reserve/non-football illness list.

Edwards-Helaire, who remains on the reserve/non-football illness list, practiced in a limited capacity Friday.

The Chiefs placed Edwards-Helaire on reserve/NFI prior to Week 1, which ruled him out for at least the first four games of the campaign. The team then designated him for return this Wednesday, opening a 21-day window for him to be evaluated for a potential return to the active roster. Edwards-Helaire so far has managed back-to-back capped sessions this week, and Kansas City's final Week 5 injury report will include a game status for him ahead of Monday's matchup with the Saints. If he's listed as anything other than out Saturday, the team will have until Monday at 4:00 p.m. ET to activate him, which, if it comes to pass, could mean he's in contention to reps out of the backfield immediately along with Kareem Hunt, Samaje Perine and Carson Steele with lead runner Isiah Pacheco (fibula) on injured reserve.

Kamara (hip/ribs) was a limited practice participant Friday, Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football reports.

Kamara was listed with the same pair of injuries last week and ended up taking 26 touches for 119 yards and a touchdown on 81 percent snap share in a loss to the Falcons. The concern for Monday's game in Kansas City isn't Kamara's health but the health of his blockers, as the Saints already have starting center Erik McCoy (groin) on injured reserve and now have three additional interior linemen missing practice due to injuries. It won't be hard for the Chiefs to get superstar DT Chris Jones in favorable matchups, which is bad news for Kamara's rushing outlook but could help his receiving volume.

Bigsby (shoulder) doesn't have an injury designation for Sunday's game against the Colts after logging three limited practices this week, Demetrius Harvey of the Florida Times-Union reports.

Bigsby and Travis Etienne (shoulder) got the same treatment throughout the week, notching a trio of capped sessions apiece before being declared healthy on Friday's injury report. Etienne remains the favorite to get the majority of playing time in Jacksonville's backfield, but Bigsby may have earned a larger role after rushing for 90 yards on just seven carries in the 24-20 Week 4 loss to Houston.