Photo: USA Today Sports

Wednesday Media Updates

***Austin Ekeler did not practice with a hamstring injury. There were no indications of missed practice time or injury prior to today's injury report and no details discussed in local media reports. It's impossible to know whether this is a new injury that will threaten Ekeler's Week 1 availability or performance, but it's never reassuring to see a player DNP on Wednesday with a new condition.

***Saquon Barkley continues to show improvement in limited practice time. Joe Judge told reporters he's seen a "lot of improvement" from Barkley over the past month. The Giants have yet to formally confirm Barkley will be active this week as they continue to evaluate how he responds to a full week of practice. With a road, divisional, Thursday night game in Week 2, it's unlikely Barkley will see a full workload in Week 1.

***Carson Wentz is all but certain to play after a full Wednesday practice. Now five weeks from surgery to remove a bone fragment in his foot, Wentz continues to progress on the field. He told reporters he's had "moments of pain but feels like he's in a good spot" and expects to be cleared to play. It's still unclear whether the Colts will allow Wentz to leave the pocket on designed runs.

***A.J. Brown missed practice with a known knee condition. Tennessee frequently limited practice for Brown and Julio Jones this summer. Brown is expected to play this week.

***Clyde Edwards-Helaire told reporters he's fully healthy and "ready to go" after a full Wednesday practice.

***DAndre Swift fully practiced on Wednesday after multiple practices in pads over the past two weeks. Dan Campbell has repeatedly told reporters Swift's conditioning could limit his touches and snap count but Swift looks to be fully recovered from a training camp groin strain. A full week of practice should mean 15+ touch upside.

***Curtis Samuel tested his groin injury prior to practice and could not continue. He's likely inactive this week and may struggle to be ready to play on Thursday night in Week 2.

***Noah Fant was moving around well in a limited practice session and is expected to play.

***Trey Lance has been cleared to throw and is trending toward playing in select offensive packages.

THURSDAY NIGHT INJURY EXPECTATIONS

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

Dallas at Tampa Bay

***Dak Prescott fully practiced this week after a steady and consistent increase in his throwing program over the past three weeks. It's possible Prescott will have some inaccurate throws early in the game as he acclimates to game speed but expect the Cowboys to utilize the full playbook immediately.

***Chris Godwin was added to the injury report on Tuesday with a quad injury but returned to a full practice on Wednesday and is not listed on the game status report. Antonio Brown and Gio Bernard returned to full practices as the week progressed and will be available for a full workload in their supporting roles.

Early week practice participation and playing expectations

The Wednesday and Thursday practice participation reports are our first chance to see which players each NFL team is 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: Asterisk denotes Monday night players who practice Thursday/Friday/Saturday.

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