ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — It’s not a new problem for Denver Broncos linebacker Brandon Marshall. This is his sixth NFL season and he’s still not THAT Brandon Marshall, the wide receiver who now plays for the New York Giants after spending the last two seasons with the Jets. He’s not the wide receiver who had somewhat

From the new-No. 1 Atlanta Falcons all the way down to the New York Jets, there’s at least one reason for all 32 teams to be optimistic. The Cowboys are in trouble. Or are they? Kareem Hunt will be the best of the rookie running backs. Or will it be someone else? We’re examining early-season

CINCINNATI — Bengals backup quarterback AJ McCarron passionately defended Andy Dalton on Monday, imploring fans to show the starter their support despite Cincinnati’s 0-2 start and struggles on offense. Dalton and the team were booed often during the first two games, and one fan threw something at the QB at the end of the Bengals’

Washington Redskins running back Rob Kelley suffered a rib cartilage injury, but the team hasn’t ruled him out for their Week 3 game vs. the Oakland Raiders. Unfortunately for the Redskins, he won’t be the only key player they must monitor. Kelley is considered day-to-day, along with tight end Jordan Reed (chest/sternum contusion), corner Josh

NEW ORLEANS — Safety Kenny Vaccaro was benched during the New Orleans Saints‘ blowout loss to the New England Patriots on Sunday amid reports that the Saints may be looking to trade him. Vaccaro, a first-round draft pick in 2013, said he was surprised by the benching — despite his admitted struggles in the Saints’

OAKLAND — Marshawn Lynch got hyphy on the sideline, the Oakland native dancing and celebrating his homecoming and a big Raiders lead with more than 12 minutes to play Sunday. It only got better from there for the Raiders in a 45-20 victory over their old AFL rivals, the New York Jets, with Lynch scoring

PITTSBURGH — Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger called Sunday’s 26-9 win over the Minnesota Vikings part of a “very emotional” day because of the tributes to owner Dan Rooney, who died April 13 at age 84. Before the game, Roethlisberger came out of the tunnel holding a black-and-gold ‘DMR’ shamrock flag. Rooney was featured on the

To help you set your lineups and avoid starting a player who won’t take the field, we will post fantasy-relevant updates and analysis here as NFL teams release their Sunday inactive lists before kickoff. Any rankings cited in this column come from our ESPN Fantasy staff ranks. Refresh often for the latest information. Wondering what

PITTSBURGH — With concern regarding the health of Sam Bradford‘s injured left knee, the Minnesota Vikings promoted practice squad quarterback Kyle Sloter to the 53-man roster on Saturday, the team announced. A source told ESPN’s Chris Mortensen that Bradford underwent an MRI on his knee on Tuesday, though the scan did not reveal any specific

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. was officially listed as questionable for the second straight week with an ankle injury. Beckham missed the Giants’ opener last Sunday night against the Dallas Cowboys. He is believed to have a better chance to play Monday night against the Detroit Lions, four

So much for the idea of handcuffing your fantasy starters with their real-life backups. The Jacksonville Jaguars now have two No. 1 receivers (or none, depending on your perspective) in the wake of Allen Robinson‘s season-ending knee injury. The Baltimore Ravens will use two running backs — and maybe a slot receiver — to replace

METAIRIE, La. — Drew Brees and Tom Brady have combined for more than 140,000 passing yards and 1,000 touchdown passes, including the playoffs, during a combined 35 NFL seasons. They’ve faced each other four times (advantage Brees, 3-1). They’ve won six Super Bowl rings (advantage Brady, 5-1). They’ve caught up with each other during multiple

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, whose history with concussions was a hot-button topic this offseason, acknowledged the risk he takes by playing football. In an interview that will air on “CBS Sunday Morning” on Sunday (9 a.m. ET), Brady said of concussions, “I don’t worry about them, no. I mean, I’m

CINCINNATI — After Tom Savage‘s agent blasted the Houston Texans for benching his client for rookie quarterback Deshaun Watson in Week 1, Savage said he addressed his teammates about the critical comments. “I spoke to everybody on this team about it,” said Savage, who was the Texans’ backup quarterback in the team’s 13-9 victory over

CHICAGO — Bears linebacker Jerrell Freeman revealed on Thursday that he played 55 snaps with a torn pectoral muscle in Chicago’s 23-17 Week 1 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. Freeman posted a message on his Instagram account that said he tore his pectoral muscle on the first play of the game last Sunday. Freeman was

Several Miami Dolphins players came to the aid of a Miami high school team this week that was stranded in Las Vegas after Hurricane Irma altered its travel plans. Miami Central High School upset three-time defending national champion Bishop Gorman 24-20 on Friday night but was unable to return to South Florida last weekend when

FRISCO, Texas — The NFL is trying to accelerate the timeline in its appeal of a federal judge’s injunction that blocked Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott‘s six-game suspension over a domestic violence case. The NFL quickly answered a filing from Elliott’s attorneys Wednesday, telling U.S. District Judge Amos Mazzant that the league would immediately

PITTSBURGH — Coming off a two-sack, one-interception performance that earned him NFL defensive rookie of the week, T.J. Watt has made an early splash on the NFL scene. Here are a few things you might not know about Watt. Meet ‘Big Watt’: Pittsburgh Steelers players like to mess around and freestyle rap at training camp,

TEMPE, Ariz. — The Arizona Cardinals turned to a familiar face to fill the void left by injured running back David Johnson. Veteran Chris Johnson re-signed with the Cardinals on Tuesday, less than two weeks after the team released him Sept. 1. Cardinals running back David Johnson will have wrist surgery and go to injured

DENVER — They haven’t won here since 2013, and hiring a new head coach or moving to a new city didn’t change the luck of the Los Angeles Chargers. Penalties and missed opportunities led to the Chargers’ demise as they dropped their season opener on the road against the Denver Broncos 24-21. The Chargers have

TEMPE, Ariz. — There are few, if any, tasks more daunting than the one facing the Arizona Cardinals this week. How do they, if needed, replace David Johnson? The All-Pro is seeking a second opinion on the left-wrist injury he suffered in Arizona’s 35-23 loss to the Detroit Lions on Sunday. The early prognosis isn’t

Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Ronald Darby‘s dislocated ankle will not require surgery, a team source confirmed after an MRI to ESPN’s Chris Mortensen. Coach Doug Pederson would not confirm the report during his press conference on Monday, and said he is still gathering information. Darby was carted off the field, with an air cast on his

HOUSTON — After benching quarterback Tom Savage for rookie Deshaun Watson in the first half of the Houston Texans‘ season-opening 29-7 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, head coach Bill O’Brien said he had not decided who will start Thursday night against the Cincinnati Bengals. “I’ll think about it a long time tonight and try to

One of the men who had a role in ending the stalemate between the Los Angeles Rams and Aaron Donald was rookie head coach Sean McVay, sources tell ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Rather than traveling with the team to Green Bay for the Rams’ final preseason game, McVay went to Atlanta with Rams executives to meet