Team news | Page 49

The running back situation has been as confounding as it has been disappointing. The Cowboys are starting to drift away from a pure committee approach, in the sense that Rico Dowdle’s snap counts and rush attempts are noticeably greater than Ezekiel Elliott or Deuce Vaughn’s.

Related players: Dalvin Cook

The story said Elliott's value is more leadership and pass protection, and it has not been in the form of purely running the football. The story added injuries on the defense may affect when Cook is able to join the roster, but the story added Cook's time could be coming soon. For now, it looks like Dowdle is at least trending in the right direction despite the team's struggles running the ball.

The Steelers’ first loss of the season apparently won’t be prompting a quarterback change, from Justin Fields back to Russell Wilson, who technically remains QB1.

Asked on Tuesday whether he’s preparing Fields to start the Week 5 Sunday night home game against the Cowboys, coach Mike Tomlin said, “Yes I am,” via Brooke Pryor of ESPN.com.

Other reports today have said Tomlin told reporters that Wilson will have a “strong work day” on Tuesday, and that Wilson’s practice participation will increase. Wilson, per Tomlin, likely will have a “live pocket,” according to the story.

NFL beat reporter Adam Schefter believes Miami QB Tua Tagovailoa will be back this season.

Related players: Skylar Thompson, Tyler Huntley, Tim Boyle

Schefter reported Tua has been symptom free and is feeling better, and, to Schefter's knowledge, Tua hasn't been told he shouldn't come back. Schefter added Tua also wants to come back. At this point, Tagovailoa will need to miss at least two more game since he was placed on IR. Schefter added he'd be surprised if Tua didn't come back. One thing to consider is the Dolphins may need to stay afloat in the playoff race before putting him back on the field. The team sits at 1-3 so far and hasn't shown much life on offense since losing both Tua and Thompson.

Callahan: Will Levis is still the starter 100%. Said he will have an MRI, most likely an AC issue.

Related players: Mason Rudolph

Levin threw an ugly interception against the Dolphins before diving for a first down and injuring his shoulder, eventually giving way to Rudolph, who led the Titans to a win over the Dolphins. McCormick went on to say Levis really didn't throw interceptions last year as a rookie, especially like he did against Miami - another pass that was right to an opposing player. The injury is to Levis' throwing shoulder, but the Titans do have a bye in Week 5, so Levis has time to heal ahead of a Week 6 matchup, an early Sunday game against the Colts.

San Francisco 49ers star running back Christian McCaffrey has bilateral Achilles tendinitis, meaning he has it in both legs, per NBC Sports. McCaffrey recently went to Germany for treatment.

The 49ers said they expected to get a "better idea" on McCaffrey's status over the next few weeks. The team's plan was to ramp up his rehabilitation to "see how it responds." General manager John Lynch added that the team is aiming to "quiet down" the injury.

Related players: Jordan Mason, Isaac Guerendo, Patrick Taylor

The story said Achilles tendinitis is described as "an overuse injury of the Achilles tendon, the band of tissue that connects calf muscles at the back of the lower leg to your heel bone," according to the Mayo Clinic. Some Achilles tendinitis can be treated at home, while more serious cases can lead to tendon tears that may require surgery. The story went on to say, until McCaffrey, the team and the medical specialists see how the area responds to more work, it's hard to make a call on when he will be back, if he does come back this season. NFL Media reported Sunday that McCaffrey should be back, at least, by early November, but the report of bilateral Achilles tendinitis could change things. For now, Mason remains the bellcow. He had 24 carries in Week 4 with Deebo Samuel getting two. Guerendo had a fumble on special teams and had just one carry in the game.

Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson left a game with an injury for the fourth time in his eight NFL starts, but it doesn’t sound like this hip issue or Richardson’s history is a source of great concern for the team.

Related players: Joe Flacco

The story went on to say that Richardson said after Sunday’s win over the Steelers that he thought he avoided a serious injury, but would be going for an MRI. On Monday, head coach Shane Steichen said that Richardson’s read appears to be correct and that the team isn’t worried about Richardson being too much of an injury risk, according to the story. We'll have to monitor the injury this week in practice ,as there was no word about his status for Week 5. The ageless Flacco would get the start if Richardson can't go.

Steichen said Colts are not considering short-term IR for Jonathan Taylor.

Related players: Trey Sermon

Taylor suffered what is said to be a "minor" high ankle sprain in Week 4. There is no word on Taylor's status going forward but given it's still a high ankle sprain, his Week 5 availability is at least in question. Sermon should be picked up if not already owned as a Taylor owner. He'll likely be a hot commodity on this week's waiver wire.

Head coach Kevin Stefanski confirmed that the plan is for Nick Chubb to take the next step in his return from last year’s knee injury.

Chubb is on the physically unable to perform list and his return to practice will kick off a three-week window for him to work with the team before reaching a deadline to activate him, the story said. There is no word yet just how soon, if at all, Chubb will get back on the field and be ready for game action. According to the story, Stafanski went on to say, “Won’t get too far down the road on that,” Stefanski said, via Zac Jackson of TheAthletic.com. “He’s working very hard. Natural progression is for him to start practicing . . . we’ll see how he goes from there.”

Since the Falcons play on Thursday night, they were required to do an estimated practice report Monday even though they didn’t practice. They list Bijan Robinson as limited with a hamstring injury.

Related players: Tyler Allgeier

Robinson played 36 of 56 snaps against the Saints and had seven carries for 28 yards and four catches for 46 yards in Week 4 and now seems to have another injury to deal with on top of the shoulder injury that popped up last week. On a short week, this could be a bigger deal than it seems, but it's at least some good news that he is listed as limited. It will be worth monitoring leading up to Thursday night, but picking up Allegier, if available, is a good idea.

Bills quarterback Josh Allen’s feeling the aftereffects of a rough night against the Ravens defense, but it’s nothing that looks like it will impact his preparation for the team’s Week Five trip to Houston.

“Josh is sore, should be fine as we move forward here,” McDermott said. “Continue to take it one day at a time, but should be fine.”

Allen took a big hit on an ill-fated trick play on Monday against the Ravens. It seems like he'll be good to go for Week 5, which is an early Sunday game at the Texans, but owners may want to see how his practice week goes.