NFL Player News

Speaking Monday on 106.7 The Fan’s Grant and Danny, Ekeler said when asked about a potential return for the Commanders’ playoff week, “This is one category it’s tough to talk about, just because you don’t want to say something and something else happens, so it’s kind of a week-to-week thing.” Ekeler wouldn’t go into any more detail regarding a potential return, but the team’s decision to designate him for return suggests he’ll have a good shot at returning at some point. A full practice on Wednesday keeps Week 18 on the table. The Commanders will have 21 days to activate him from injured reserve, but a Week 18 return may be too early for Ekeler, who suffered a brutal concussion in the team’s Week 12 loss to the Cowboys.

The Bills will have their three-deep backfield fully available for this one. Elusive starter James Cook and passing-game specialist Ty Johnson are rightfully locked into their respective roles but the 5-foot-8, 220-pound Davis provides an important physical element to the group. The Bills fortuitously face the Ravens with a largely healthy roster, declaring only QB Mike White (3rd QB), WR Jalen Virgil, OL Ryan Van Demark, OL Sedrick Van Pran-Granger, DT DeWayne Carter, CB Kaiir Elam and KR/PR Brandon Codrington inactive. Codrington is the team’s most notable absence, helpfully averaging 11.6 yards per punt return. Khalil Shakir is expected to fill in for Codrington in that regard.

Flowers went through a short pregame workout before the Ravens made his status official but his inability to practice all week made him a long shot to play. Rashod Bateman gets another shot at playing the Ravens’ No. 1 wide receiver role but tight ends Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely will assuredly challenge him for the team lead in targets. The Ravens also declared RB Rasheen Ali, C Nick Samac, OLB Adisa Isaac, DT Josh Tupou, S Marcus Williams and S Beau Brade inactive.

According to NBC’s Melissa Stark, Hurts was being evaluated for a knee injury after his leg was rolled up on following a sack late in the third quarter. He could be seen limping and sporting a brace, but after a brief evaluation, Hurts will attempt to play through the injury.

Hurts left leg got stuck under Kobie Turner after Turner sacked the Eagles’ QB1 late in the third quarter. Hurts was visibly limping after the play and made his way to the sideline one play later to be evaluated by trainers. Kenny Pickett was seen warming up on the sideline following a 44-yard field goal by Jake Elliott. We’ll have more on this injury soon.

We don’t know the specifics of Fiske’s injury, but the stud rookie exited in the first quarter after sacking Jalen Hurts and never returned to the field. Fiske totaled 8.5 sacks and 10 TFLs during the regular season and has been a key player along the Rams’ defensive front.

The shoulder injury Mitchell suffered early in the first quarter will now sideline him for the remainder of the game. The rookie corner’s absence will be felt in the second half, but may be less impactful since the snow set in and appears to be having an effect on both team’s passing games.

It’s hard to know what happened here. Fiske made a drive-ending sack of Jalen Hurts midway through the first quarter and immediately limped his way off the field. He was ruled as questionable to return shortly after, so we’ll see where things go from here.

Brutal. Lost in the sauce of Washington’s return to the NFC Championship Game was the early loss of Cosmi, who was confirmed to have suffered a torn ACL on Sunday. The fourth-year guard has been a staple along The Commanders’ offensive line, starting in 49-of-57 career games while appearing in all 17 regular season games in each of the last two seasons. Cosmi signed a four-year extension with the Commanders this offseason and will now look to rehab ahead of the 2025 campaign. There’s a good chance his recovery will stretch into the early portion of next season.

Mitchell suffered his injury while making a tackle on a scrambling Matthew Stafford. The rookie first-round pick has played a key role in Philly’s defensive success, appearing on the most defensive snaps of any defender on the team while earning a PFF coverage grade of 74.0. Mitchell exited on the Rams’ first drive of the game and did not return for the second series. After exiting the blue medical tent, Mitchell was seen heading to the locker room for X-rays.

This shouldn’t come as a surprise. Kingsbury’s stock was already on the rise after he elevated the Commanders to a top-five offensive season and a 12-5 record in his first season as their play-caller. His performance in the NFC Divisional Round that saw the Commanders upset the No. 1 seeded Lions undoubtedly boosted his stock even more, with other teams still in the hunt for a head coach. Kingsbury wouldn’t be the first offensive-minded candidate the Cowboys have pursued this offseason, as they recently wrapped up an interview with former offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, who is expected to be in the running for Dallas’ head coaching vacancy for some time. Kingsbury also has requests from the Bears and Saints for interviews but has not met with either team at this time.