Team news: Dallas Cowboys | Page 16

On Monday, coach Sean Payton was asked whether Javonte Williams will miss “extended time,” and whether Jaleel McLaughlin’s role will expand.

“Let’s talk about Jaleel,” Payton told reporters. “He played really well. He’s one of the guys that got a game ball this morning. He was explosive in the run and the pass. He gave us some juice, so we’ll continue to look at his role. Javonte — we won’t mention or comment on until the week progresses. [That’s] typical for us, relative to injuries.”

We reported Sunday that Williams had a hip flexor and wouldn't miss much time. As the story said, the Broncos aren't obligated to disclose injury information beyond the confines of the weekly injury reports. Even if Williams can’t go, the Broncos are likely pleased with what they saw from McLaughlin, a running back found by Payton and G.M. George Paton beyond the seven rounds of the 2023 draft, the story said. He may be worth picking up even without knowing Williams' status for Week 5. It will be a tough home matchup against a good Jets defense in Week 5.

Broncos RB Javonte Williams suffered a hip flexor during Sunday’s win over the Bears.

A positive update for Williams. He is not expected to miss much time, if any at all. He may be back for Week 5 against the Jets. He left early after just five touches. Jaleel McLaughlin ended up leading the charge in the backfield with 72 yards on 7 carries in helping Denver erase a 21-point deficit for their first win of the season.

Panthers QB Bryce Young was a full participant with his ankle injury, and he’s off the injury report. Good to go. Meanwhile, RB Miles Sanders (groin) is questionable.

Related Players: Chuba Hubbard, Raheem Blackshear

Chuba Hubbard has actually been quite productive with limited touches so far this season, averaging 6.5 yards per carry and 5.0 yards created after contact per attempt. Compare those numbers to Sanders' respective 3.4 and 2.22 marks through three weeks. Hubbard would make an interesting RB2 candidate if Sanders is forced to miss a week.

The #Steelers placed WR Diontae Johnson on IR.

Related players: George Pickens, Allen Robinson, Calvin Austin III

A prime example of why we can't always trust players when it comes to their own injuries: Johnson claimed to be day-to-day after the Week 1 injury, but now finds himself missing the next four games. The earliest he can come back is Week 7. Pickens, Robinson and Austin will be the team's top-three WRs. Austin, at least, is likely still on your waiver wire and could be worth a look in deeper leagues.

Steelers’ WR Diontae Johnson is expected to be sidelined “a few weeks” due to the hamstring injury he suffered Sunday vs. the 49ers, per source.

Related players: George Pickens, Allen Robinson, Calvin Austin III

It's a big blow to the Steelers offense as Johnson was expected to bounce back this season after not scoring a touchdown all of last year. We'll have to wait word for how long Johnson misses, and now the big fear is the team places him on IR, which means he'd potentially miss the next four games. Pickens and Robinson likely take over the top-two roles at WR, but Austin could sneak into the fantasy-relevant category as well.

After the game yesterday, Javonte Williams said his knee felt even stronger as the game went on.

Related players: Samaje Perine

It's great news for Williams owners, as he made amazing progress in the offseason to be ready for Week 1. Williams finished with a team-high 13 carries for 52 yards and he added four catches on six targets but for just five yards. Perine was still a factor, leading the team in receiving yards with an unimpressive 37 yards on four targets. But Williams was the leader in the backfield and the hope for owners is he continues to trend up. Week 1 was certainly a good sign bigger workloads could be in the future.