Injury Expectations | Wednesday Update | Week 11

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KEY WEDNESDAY MEDIA UPDATES

***Philip Rivers self-reported symptoms concerning for a concussion on Monday and was started on the return-to-play protocol. He was cleared for individual drills in his helmet and shoulder pads on Wednesday and officially listed as a limited participant. He's progressed well and the team is optimistic he'll play this week. Unless he has recurrent symptoms, he'll likely return to a full practice by Friday and be cleared to play this week.

***Leonard Fournette is back on the injury report with ankle soreness. There is no indication of concern after his limited Wednesday practice. When he was somewhat surprisingly deactivated with an ankle injury before the bye week, the Jaguars didn't clear him to return to practice at any point that week.

***It would appear Jordan Reed's hanstring strain did not respond well to last week's limited practice. After last Friday's DNP, Reed was again unable to practice on Wednesday. He was seen doing agility work on the rehab field. It's not a great sign for his Week 11 availability. Zach Ertz returned to a full practice and multiple beat writers noted no limitations. He should be good to return to his pre-injury workload this week.

***The Packers sounded optimistic about Ty Montgomery in their post-game press conference on Sunday. But he did not practice on Wednesday as the team chose to keep him on the rehab field. That's different than his previous recovery from a rib injury when he was cleared for individual drills in pads. Watch Thursday's practice participation carefully. The early trend is not positive here.

***Terrance West looks likely to be healthy enough to play this week. Alex Collins has seized control of early down duties now, however, and it's unclear how much work West would see. Danny Woodhead is not on the active roster yet and the Ravens are therefore not required to list him on the injury report. Reports suggest he continues to be limited, however, and it's not certain he'll be activated this week.

***Drew Stanton may be making progress in his recovery from last Thursday night's knee injury but Blaine Gabbert continues to take the first team reps. I think Gabbert is likely to start over Stanton. Brett Hundley and Brock Osweiler are expected to start this week, as are DeShone Kizer and Tom Savage.

THURSDAY NIGHT INJURY EXPECTATIONS

Here are the key offensive players listed on the practice participation or game status report for Thursday Night Football:

Marcus Mariota | Ankle | Not Listed
Delanie Walker | Forearm | Not Listed

Mariota was banged up during the second half of last week's game. He suffered a left shoulder injury that didn't make the injury report. His ankle is the primary concern but full practices on Tuesday and Wednesday are reassuring. Walker took a hard hit to his forearm in the end zone and missed a play on Sunday. He also returned to a full practice. Both players are off the game status report and expected to play without limitation.

Martavis Bryant was limited on Tuesday with an illness but returned to a full practice on Wednesday and was removed from the injury report. He's fallen behind JuJu Smith-Schuster on the wide receiver depth chart but is expected to be active and play a role in multiple wide receiver packages. Vance McDonald is questionable but did not practice on Tuesday or Wednesday. The Steelers almost never activate a player on gameday who doesn't participate in practice during the week.

The Steelers will be without Joe Haden on defense. Michael Mitchell is questionable but expected to be available.

EARLY WEEK PRACTICE PARTICIPATION REPORT AND EARLY EXPECTATIONS

The Wednesday and Thursday practice participation reports are our first chance to see which players each NFL team are limiting in practice after the previous week's games. Players limited in mid-week practice aren't necessarily in danger of missing that week's game. But they all need to be watched closely.

*Note: Monday night players with asterisk practice Thursday/Friday/Saturday.

Note: Monday night players with asterisk practice Thursday/Friday/Saturday.

Follow me on Twitter @JeneBramel for breaking injury news and analysis throughout the week.