NFL Player News

The Chiefs placed McKinnon (groin) on IR on Sunday.

With McKinnon now out for the rest of the regular season, the Chiefs' backfield down the stretch is slated to be led by Isiah Pacheco and Clyde Edwards-Helaire, with La'Mical Perine in reserve. Look for added details with regard to McKinnon's injury to arrive in the coming days, but for now it's unclear if he's a candidate to to rejoin the mix should Kansas City make an extended playoff run.

The Chiefs signed Perine to their 53-man roster Sunday.

The move comes with Jerick McKinnon being placed on the Chiefs' injured reserve list with a groin injury. Perine joined the team's practice squad Aug. 30 and has been elevated by the team twice this year. He'll take over as the RB3 in the Chiefs' backfield behind Isiah Pacheco and Clyde Edwards-Helaire.

Homer (hamstring) is active Sunday against the Cardinals.

Homer closed the week with back-to-back limited practices, setting the stage for him to be able to suit up against Arizona. With D'Onta Foreman (personal) inactive, the 25-year-old could see some extra work in the Bears' backfield.

Vaughn (coach's decision) is inactive for Sunday's game against the Dolphins, Todd Archer of ESPN.com reports.

Vaughn has now been a healthy scratch for six consecutive weeks, with his last appearance coming in Week 10 against the Giants. He 68 scrimmage yards on 27 touches this season.

Foreman (personal) is listed as inactive Sunday against the Cardinals.

Foreman made a mid-week appearance on the Bears' Week 16 practice report Thursday as a non-participant due to a personal matter. He then returned to drills one day later as limited but still entered the weekend as questionable for Sunday's contest. Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported Sunday morning that Foreman wasn't in line to play, and that has come to fruition. With Foreman out, Chicago's backfield will be manned by the combo of Roschon Johnson and Khalil Herbert.

Chandler is expected to remain the Vikings' lead back for Sunday's game against the Lions, even though Alexander Mattison (ankle) is active for the contest, Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com reports.

While Mattison was sidelined for the first time this season in last Saturday's 27-24 overtime loss to the Bengals, Chandler stepped into the starting role and made the most of the opportunity. He carried 23 times for 132 yards and a touchdown to go with three catches for 25 yards on four targets, with his 157 yards from scrimmage besting Mattison's top total through the first 13 games of the season by 32 yards. Though Mattison is available, he was listed as questionable heading into Sunday after managing just one limited practice this week and may be in store for a minor change-of-pace role while he's less than 100 percent healthy. Head coach Kevin O'Connell hasn't expounded on his plans for the Minnesota backfield beyond Week 16, but given Mattison's underwhelming numbers as the Vikings' lead back for most of the season, Chandler could have an opportunity to stick atop the depth chart the rest of the way if he delivers another credible performance versus a tough Detroit run defense.

Abanikanda (ankle) is active ahead of Sunday's game against the Commanders.

Abanikanda was held to limited participation in practice throughout the week, but it now seems as if he'll be able to play through his ankle issue in Week 16. The rookie is expected to serve as the Jets' No. 3 running back behind Breece Hall and Dalvin Cook on Sunday.

Dillon (thumb) is active for Sunday's game in Carolina, Mike Spofford of the Packers' official site reports.

Dillon will put an end to a one-game absence due to a broken right thumb, but the primary reason he missed last Sunday's loss to the Buccaneers in the first place was ball-security issues. The Packers appear to believe it won't be a problem for Dillon this weekend as he rejoins Aaron Jones (knee/finger) in the team's backfield. In the seven games (Weeks 1, 4 and 7-11) in which both running backs have been available this season, Dillon has racked up 71 carries for 241 yards, 15 catches (on 19 targets) for 138 yards and no touchdowns.

Mattison (ankle) is active for Sunday's game against the Lions.

Coming off his first absence of the season in the Vikings' Week 15 overtime loss to the Bengals, Mattison turned in just one limited practice this week, but the coaching and training staffs apparently came away encouraged enough with his health to give him the green light to play Saturday. However, Mattison likely isn't close to 100 percent healthy and could be in store for a smaller role than usual out of the backfield, as Ty Chandler is expected to serve as the team's lead back, according to Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com. Head coach Kevin O'Connell hasn't outlined his plans for the backfield beyond Week 16, though he suggested earlier in the week that Chandler could have an opportunity to stake his claim to the No. 1 role beyond Sunday's game. Chandler broke out for the best performance by a Minnesota running back all season in last week's loss to Cincinnati, finishing with 132 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries to go with three catches for 25 yards on four targets. Mattison, meanwhile, is averaging a middling 3.9 yards per carry and hasn't found the end zone on 168 carries through 13 appearances.

Walker (shoulder) is active for Sunday's game at Tennessee.

The second half of Walker's 2023 season has been characterized by injuries, with the current shoulder issue capping the second-year running back to one limited session (Friday) during Week 16 prep. Nevertheless, coach Pete Carroll told Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic on Friday that Walker would play Sunday, and Adam Schefter of ESPN mimicked that sentiment via a report late Saturday. Now that Walker's status has been confirmed, there's a good chance he handles a similar workload to last Monday's win against the Eagles, when he parlayed a 56 percent snap share into 22 touches for 112 yards from scrimmage and a rushing TD. Meanwhile, reserve RB Zach Charbonnet logged 44 percent of snaps into four carries for 16 yards in that contest.