NFL Player News

Coach Dave Canales suggested Wednesday that McMillan will work out of the slot more this season, Sheena Quick of Fox Sports Radio 1340 reports.

If preseason usage means anything, it would seem Canales was putting the plan into action this summer. After playing just 15.3 percent of his regular-season offensive snaps out of the slot as a rookie, McMillan was in the slot on nine of 22 snaps (40.9 percent) across two preseason games. Moving to the slot more would give the 6-foot-5 McMillan significant size and speed advantages inside and allow for more easy "layup" style catches to get the ball in his hands quicker. The 2025 Offensive Rookie of the Year figures to be the center of Carolina's offense this season after posting 70 catches for 1,014 yards and seven scores across 17 regular-season contests last season.

Pickens didn't suit up for any of the Cowboys' three preseason games.

After surpassing the 1,000-yard receiving threshold just one time in his first three seasons with the Steelers, Pickens broke out with a 93-1,429-9 line on 137 targets in 17 regular-season games in 2025 in his first campaign as a Cowboy. He was helped by the fact fellow WR CeeDee Lamb missed three contests due to injury, but Pickens still exhibited a tremendous rapport with QB Dak Prescott. Dallas extended the franchise tag to Pickens this offseason, and he signed it in April without reaching an extension before the deadline in mid-July, meaning he again will be in the midst of a contract year in 2026.

Jefferson connected on a couple highlight-reel grabs from quarterback Kyler Murray during the Vikings' final training camp practice Aug. 26, Andrew Krammer of The Minnesota Star Tribune reports.

Though most of the Vikings' key starters ended up sitting out Friday's 34-6 loss to the Broncos in the preseason finale, Jefferson and Murray displayed a strong connection while sharing the field together for the last time in front of assembled media before the Sept. 13 season opener versus the Packers. During red-zone work, Murray made a strong anticipation throw over the middle to Jefferson that went for a touchdown, and on the very next play, the wideout hauled down a one-handed touchdown grab on a throw Murray made while facing heavy pressure. While it may be ambitious for Jefferson to return to the great heights he displayed over his first three years in the NFL when he averaged 108 catches, 1,608 yards and 8.3 touchdowns per season, the upgrade in quarterback play that Murray is expected to provide should help Jefferson handily outperform the 84-1,048-2 receiving line he posted over 17 games in 2025 with J.J. McCarthy, Carson Wentz and Max Brosmer throwing passes to him.

McCarthy (ankle) has practiced in full this week, Alec Lewis of The Athletic reports.

Vikings GM Nolan Teasley said Wednesday that he also expects McCarthy to remain with the team this season, whether it's as Kyler Murray's direct backup or the QB3 behind Carson Wentz. Coach Kevin O'Connell seems to want more time with the 2024 first-rounder in an effort to continue to develop the 23-year-old. Across two preseason games this summer, McCarthy completed nine of 17 passes for 115 yards.

TeSlaa will enter the season as the Lions' No. 3 receiver despite a poor showing during training camp and going without a reception on three targets over 44 snaps during his two preseason appearances, Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press reports. "I'm not too concerned," wide receivers coach Scottie Montgomery said last week, regarding TeSlaa's lackluster camp. "I do want our guys making every single play. And we did hold him accountable for some of the things that went on, and that's the difference in being in the room and being outside of the room."

TeSlaa operated primarily as the Lions' No. 4 receiver during his 2025 rookie campaign, appearing in all 17 games and finishing with a 16-239-6 receiving line on 27 targets. Even on the limited volume of targets, the 6-foot-4, 214-pound wideout made a number of highlight-reel grabs during his first NFL season, but he hasn't shown the same ability to win on contested balls during his second training camp. He also made a couple of critical blunders in the Lions' preseason-opening loss to the Bengals, dropping a pass that led to an interception and failing to reel in another catchable target on a fourth-down pass. Montgomery noted that getting more exposure to facing No. 1 cornerbacks in both camp and the preseason has likely played a part in TeSlaa's lack of output, but the Lions apparently saw enough growth from him beyond his box-score contributions to hand him the No. 3 job and are keeping just four total receivers on the 53-man roster heading into Week 1. TeSlaa will still face a difficult path to fantasy relevance as the fifth option in the Detroit passing game when all of Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, Jahmyr Gibbs and Sam LaPorta (hip) are available.

Flowers (lower body) did not participate in Wednesday's practice, but he did run sprints on the side, Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com reports.

Flowers has been held out of practice since last week with what is believed to be a minor lower-body issue, but it's a positive sign that he received clearance to run. It was reported Tuesday that Flowers will practice fully next week and suit up for Week 1, and he appears to be on track to do so.

Coach Dave Canales said Wednesday he's "very optimistic" Brooks (soreness) will be available for Week 1 against the Bears, Sheena Quick of Fox Sports Radio 1340 reports.

It's unclear if Brooks' soreness is in his surgically-repaired knee or elsewhere, but he's worked off to the side with trainers at practice each of the last two days. While Brooks has drawn a substantial amount of summer hype, Chuba Hubbard (hamstring) is expected to maintain a large role in the Carolina backfield. Neither running back may be a reliable fantasy bet out of the gates against Chicago.

Walker (ankle) was a full participant in Wednesday's practice, Pete Sweeney of The Kansas City Star reports.

Walker dealt with some swelling around his ankle last week due to some cleat issues, but the star running back is back in action Wednesday with 12 days to go before the Chiefs open their season at home against the Broncos on Monday, Sept. 14. After splitting duties with Zach Charbonnet (knee) in Seattle, Walker is expected to operate as a three-down workhorse with Kansas City this season. Only fifth-round rookie Emmett Johnson and 2025 seventh-rounder Brashard Smith round out the depth chart behind Walker.

With coach Klint Kubiak naming Kirk Cousins the Raiders' starting quarterback Wednesday, Mendoza will open the season as the backup, Sam Warren of The Athletic reports.

Mendoza was in the competition all offseason, but it was going to take some otherworldly play to knock Cousins out of the top spot on the depth chart. While Cousins completed 13 of 17 passes for 101 yards and one touchdown across 30 preseason snaps, Mendoza struggled some, completing just 26 of 46 passes for 250 yards, one touchdown and a pair of interceptions during exhibition action. Cousins is likely to have a decently long leash to begin the season, but Mendoza remains a good bet to make starts as a rookie.

Coach Klint Kubiak expressed optimism Wednesday that Jeanty (ankle) will be ready for Week 1 against the Dolphins, Adam Hill of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports.

Jeanty hasn't practiced this week after suffering what is believed to be a low-ankle sprain back on Aug. 23, but the running back has been working off to the side with trainers in an effort to get ready for the start of the regular season. Once the Raiders are required to release true injury reports next week, there will be a better idea of Jeanty's availability for the regular-season opener. Mike Washington and Dylan Laube are next up for carries if Jeanty is unable to play against Miami.