NFL Player News

Fry wasn’t able to push Andy McCollum off the team’s roster. He could end up on the practice squad.

While the report is being called informal, Harris says, “the interest is legitimate enough to be reported.” It was reported earlier today that the Cowboys could hire offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer as its next head coach as early as Thursday, but this latest bit of news on Carroll comes hours after that report. Carroll was thought to have a chance to land the Bears’ head coaching gig before they went out and poached Ben Johnson from the Lions, and there have also been rumors that the Raiders are considering Carroll as their “backup option” after they also lost out on Johnson. Now, the Cowboys could emerge as the third team with serious interest in Carroll, although it sounds like this courting is in its earliest stages. Carroll would have a multitude of offensive weapons at his disposal should he wind up in Dallas, but will have his work cut out for him to fix a defense that ranked 31st in points allowed and 28th in yards allowed last season.

Payne suffered his finger injury in the team’s wild card win over the Buccaneers. He was limited in two of three practices last week but appears to have picked up a knee injury in the divisional round win over the Lions. Back-to-back DNPs to open the week is a concerning sign for Payne’s availability, but the team could be exercising caution for their star tackle. We’ll see where things stand come Friday when the Commanders release their final injury report before the weekend.

Ertz is dealing with a rib injury, but Wednesday’s DNP was to allow him to rest said injury — as was the case last week. The veteran tight end isn’t at risk of missing Sunday’s NFC Championship Game against the Eagles and will have some upside as a DFS value against his former team.

Zaccheaus has been limited in back-to-back practices to start the week. The veteran receiver was limited by the same injury in last week’s win over the Lions but appears to be trending in the right direction for Sunday’s NFC Championship Game against the Eagles. We’ll have more clarity on his status on Friday’s final report is released.

Johnson suffered the injury in question against the Ravens last weekend, landing hard with his arm outstretched before sliding multiple feet across the snowy field. He still has a few days to get right but the Bills obviously would prefer to have their stud slot cornerback at full health with a game against the Chiefs on tap. Both safety Taylor Rapp (hip/back) and perimeter cornerback Christian Benford (concussion) are ailing as well.

Rapp is now on the wrong side of questionable, beginning the week with two absences. The Bills’ secondary is in rough shape, with two starting cornerbacks also ailing. Hopefully, Rapp can return to practice tomorrow.

Benford began the week on a high note, participating in a limited capacity. His inability to graduate to Full Participant status today is a bit worrying though. The Bills’ banged-up secondary is tasked with slowing the Chiefs’ offense this weekend and having their No. 1 perimeter cornerback on-field would go a long way toward that end.

Dawkins missed Wednesday’s practice due to an illness, but the veteran left tackle was never considered a risk of missing Sunday’s AFC Championship Game against the Chiefs. The Bills’ bookend tackle appears good to go for the weekend with one day of practice left to go.

Hughes also said Caley “is the latest... branch off of the [Sean] McVay tree that’s probably in line to eventually get a head coaching job.” McVay’s former understudies hold myriad high-profile roles across the league so it is hardly surprising to hear yet another NFL team hopes to hire McVay’s current pass game coordinator. Hughes notes Caley’s superior, OC Mike LaFleur, was fired by the Jets after a 2021-2022 stint. Hughes indicated he does not expect LaFleur to give Caley “a ringing endorsement for what it’s like to” work in the Jets’ organization. The potential opportunity to advance his career while playing for a highly respected coach like Glenn could outweigh LaFleur’s theoretical warnings though. We will report back with new information.

With the Raiders GM vacancy now filled by former Buccaneers’ assistant GM John Spytek, the team can shift all of its focus to hiring a head coach. Carroll, 73, has been on a handful of teams’ coaching radars this offseason, and it was reported earlier this week by The Athletic’s Tashan Reed that he is “believed to be” the “backup” option to fill their head coaching vacancy. With former Lions OC turned Bears HC Ben Johnson the presumed top choice at the time, Carroll could now slide into the pole position for the Raiders job. Palmer cites Carroll’s familiarity with Tom Brady as something that could give him an inside edge on the job, while also highlighting Carroll’s track record as a proven winner. With one Super Bowl title under his belt and two Super Bowl appearances during his 14-year tenure with the Seahawks, it’s easy to see why he would be an attractive hire for a franchise in desperate need of wins and stability at head coach.