NFL Player News

Currently sitting on the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, the Patriots have everything to lose by pulling off a win in Week 18 against the Bills — who don’t have much to play for next week, with the Chiefs already sitting on the top seed in the AFC. In addition to losing the draft pick, the Patriots also do not need to risk the health of Maye, who has taken some brutal hits over the season and appeared at one time to be concussed in last week’s loss to the Chargers before being cleared to return by team doctors. It would not be at all surprising if the Patriots opted to sit a handful of key players in hopes of preserving their top pick and the health of their team heading into next season.

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport said this morning that the ankle issue isn’t major and Mixon has a “real chance” to play, so Schultz’s reporting all but guarantees Mixon will take the field on Saturday. The Texans added Mixon to the practice report on Wednesday and then downgraded him to a DNP on Thursday. He is officially questionable for Saturday’s game. The moves all seem to have been precautionary. Barring a setback, Mixon will face the Chiefs. Per Schultz, linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair, questionable with a knee injury, is also expected to play.

Davis was limited in all three practices this week. He remains in the league’s concussion protocol but has a chance to clear it over the weekend. If he doesn’t, Ty Johnson, who is already operating as the team’s top back on passing downs, could see more work as the clear backup to James Cook. Davis is the only player with a game status for the Bills.

Leftwich, who has been out of the league for two seasons, interviewed with the Patriots for their head coach opening earlier this month. Now, the former Buccaneers offensive coordinator could once again find himself calling plays, only this time for the Seahawks. Leftwich’s work with the Buccaneers from 2019-2022 resulted in a Super Bowl title during the 2020 season, and an offense that ranked in the top five in scoring in three of those four years. The Buccaneers’ offense bottomed out in Leftwich’s final season with the team, but it’s hard to overlook the decline in play we saw from Tom Brady in that final season. During his four years as Tampa Bay’s OC, the team ranked sixth in EPA per play and offensive success rate while boasting the third-highest early-down pass rate. Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald seems to be looking for a coordinator who will steer the team in a more balanced approach. It seems unlikely that Leftwich would fit that mold, but it’s possible I’d be willing to change up his philosophy with Geno Smith under center and two solid backs in Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet.

Flowers was spotted doing some light work before Friday’s practice but did not participate in the session itself, presumably marking his third and final DNP of the week. As Harbaugh previously noted, Flowers does not need to practice to suit up on Sunday, but it’s still a bad sign for the young wideout. It looks like he won’t play, though the Ravens are taking it down to the wire to be sure. The impending questionable tag also forces the Bills to consider the possibility of Baltimore having their top receiver for this game. If Flowers is ruled out, Rashod Bateman and Mark Andrews will split the No. 1 target duties in his absence. Isaiah Likely will also be used as a de facto second receiver, giving him plenty of fantasy value for the upcoming DFS slate.

According to Fowler, tackle D.J. Humphries is healthy, but the team was impressed with how Thuney filled in at tackle earlier this season. In his three starts at left tackle, Thuney allowed 14 pressures and no sacks and didn’t surrender a single pressure in Week 17’s win over the Steelers, per PFF. Taking a “ride the hot hand” approach, the Chiefs will hope Thuney can continue his impressive play against Will Anderson and the Texans’ defensive front.

Brown has spent the last three seasons as the Steelers’ secondary coach and has also spent time as a defensive backs coach and cornerbacks coach at the college ranks from 2010-2019. In 2022, he helped the Steelers finish first in interceptions (22) and also coached Minkah Fitzpatrick to a First-Team All-Pro finish in the same season.

We’ll see if the team gives Davis additional time to clear protocol, but it’s not a great sign for the rookie’s availability as far as Sunday’s game against the Ravens is concerned. If the Bills don’t rule out Davis on Friday when they release their final injury report, they’ll presumably give him until Saturday to clear protocol before deciding on his availability. We’ll know more on this soon.

Udinski met with the Seahawks just days ago and will now have a second in-person interview with the team on Friday. The 28-year-old assistant QB coach has played a key role in the success of the Vikings and Sam Darnold since joining Kevin O’Connell’s staff in 2023 and previously worked with the Panthers from 2020-2021. As it stands right now, Udinski and Saints OC Klint Kubiak are the only two coaches to receive second interviews for the Seahawks’ OC vacancy.

Rizzi took over as the Saints interim head coach after Dennis Allen was fired following his 2-7 start. Rizzi’s Saints went 3-5 under his watch, which included wins over the Falcons and Browns in his first two games. Rizzi wasn’t given much to work with during his role as interim HC, as Derek Carr, Chris Olave, and Rashid Shaeed were sidelined for all or most of his eight weeks long tenure. Rizzi caught the eyes of Jets brass and interviewed for their head coaching job last week. It seems unlikely the Saints would hire Rizzi with so many “big-name” coaches available, but he’s a familiar face who has been with the organization since 2019, which could bear some weight in the decision-making process.

Goodell continues to push for an 18-game season while pointing out that the league would shorten the preseason from three games to two to keep the overall length of the season the same. A move to an 18-game season won’t come without its challenges, as player safety continues to be at the forefront of these discussions, but Goodell also says the number of injuries did not increase when the league made the leap from 16 games to 17 games in 2021. Any approval for this change would require approval from the NFL Players Association. It’s anybody’s guess as to how quickly this change could come, but it wouldn’t be surprising if this idea was discussed more thoroughly after the season.