NFL Player News

Defensive coordinator Terrell Williams is currently away from the team for medical reasons. Kuhr took over his duties earlier this week and will continue in that role on Sunday. While it’s not ideal to switch play-callers this early in the year for continuity purposes, Kuhr gets a potentially great matchup versus a Miami offense that looked dead on arrival last week.

This looked like a possible concussion. Grupe will be credited with tackling Cardinals returner Devin Duvernay because he technically knocked Duvernay out of bounds, but the engagement proved costly. Duvernay got behind the Rams’ punt coverage, and Grupe valiantly lowered his shoulder in an attempt to bring Duvernay down. Duvernay responded in kind and sent Grupe tumbling to the ground before jogging out of bounds. Grupe struggled to get up and was eventually helped off the field. Rams P Ethan Evans is the emergency kicker.

Johnson has been highly efficient as the Bears’ No. 2 back over the past two games, with Kyle Monangai (toe/hand) sidelined. Johnson saw much of his opportunity in the second half with the Bears up big. Johnson slid down at the two yard line late in the fourth quarter to allow the Bears to run out the clock and secure the victory. In Chicago’s run-first offense, Johnson in Week 7 against the Patriots will be a deep league flex play if Monangai remains sidelined.

McCarthy’s first play of the game was a read-option where he kept the ball and rushed for a loss of two yards in the red zone. With the Saints down 24 points in the fourth quarter, McCarthy replaced a struggling Jameis Winston and started throwing several deep targets downfield. He threw an interception his first drive but led multiple successful drives late in the fourth quarter. Charlie Jones corralled a 49-yard pass away from a defender, making a near-interception into a long completion for McCarthy. Martin Emerson dropped an interception later in the drive before McCarthy connected with Isaiah Likely for a touchdown. Averaging 11.6 yards per attempt, McCarthy was one play away from leading a comeback against the Saints. Instead, we will wait to see if John Harbaugh will name the 23-year-old the starter for Week 7 against the Texans; he would be a fantasy QB2 if he starts.

Robinson couldn’t get anything going against a Chicago defense allowing the fifth highest rate of yards before contact. The Bears were intent on snuffing out the Atlanta rushing attack and forcing Michael Penix to move the ball through the air. It worked for much of the game. Robinson, who had 425 rushing yards in his previous three games, remains the engine of the run-heavy Falcons offense and should get back on track in Week 7 against the Niners.

This game was never quite as easy as many thought it would be given Philadelphia’s injuries. Young looked pretty good, but he was often under pressure, and the Panthers continued to make things harder on themselves with 13 penalties for 149 yards. A few of those really killed the momentum on some Panthers drives. Still, Young made enough big throws and receivers were schemed open into space repeatedly throughout the day. We’d expect that to continue next week against a Bucs defense that might not be as talented as this Eagles one.

Gardner injured his left calf today, which is concerning because he injured the same calf twice last year. The first injury occurred in Week 13. He resumed playing in Week 17, lasting 35 snaps before re-injuring it. Gardner was labeled questionable to return following today’s injury, but he never made it back onto the field. He will likely undergo imaging on Monday. Stay tuned.