Here's a look at some of the top rumors for Thursday, Dec. 31:
New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman has been practicing, albeit on a limited basis, for nearly three weeks as he tries to return from a Jones fracture in his left foot. So when will the team's top wide receiver be ready to play? Tom E. Curran of CSNNE calls Edelman's odds of playing in Week 17 against the Miami Dolphins "real long." A return this week would match the timeline of Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant, who suffered the same type of fracture in Week 1 and returned in Week 8. However, some thought that Bryant returned sooner than he should have, and the mercurial receiver is now set for another surgery on the foot in the near future. The more cautious the Patriots can be with Edelman, the better, especially because they've clinched a first-round playoff bye and can sew up home-field advantage by beating the Dolphins, which can certainly be done without Edelman's services. For a player who is so dependent on lateral agility, Edelman could use as much time as possible before playing, and that still wouldn't guarantee that he'll be back to his old self. If he returns for the playoffs but can't run a full route tree to his usual standards, the Patriots' offense could certainly be vulnerable against playoff-caliber defenses.
After he entered the league's concussion protocol on Wednesday, Johnny Manziel's status for Sunday's game against the Pittsburgh Steelers was put very much in doubt. Now, Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer hears from a league source that Manziel will indeed miss the game and Austin Davis will get the start, with either Terrelle Pryor or a yet-to-be-signed option as the backup. As Cabot also points out, this will mark the fourth straight season in which the Browns have started their third-string signal-caller in the season finale, a rather shocking statistic that speaks to how deeply Cleveland has been buried in QB purgatory. While the situation speaks well to the league's improvements in its battle to limit concussions -- Manziel self-reported concussion-like symptoms -- it also signals the end of the second-year QB's audition to prove he can be a franchise quarterback. Manziel will finish the season with six starts and four other appearances, posting 1,500 passing yards (57.8 completion percentage), 6.7 yards per attempt and seven TDs against five INTs, good for a rating of 79.4. He also rushed for 230 yards on 37 carries (6.2 yards per carry) and fumbled six times. His total QBR for the season was 54.7, which would rank 23rd among qualified quarterbacks.
One reason for Detroit Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson's down season -- by his standards -- might be a nagging ankle injury, which has kept Megatron on the team's injury report since Week 10, though he hasn't missed a game during that span. According to Carlos Monarrez of the Detroit Free Press, Johnson plans to play in the regular-season finale on Sunday and doesn't expect to need offseason surgery on the ankle. It sounds like the injury was never overly serious, and Johnson deserves credit for gutting it out without missing a game. However, lingering ailments can be a worrisome sign for a player's future as he ages, and it's worth wondering whether or not the team has doubts about Johnson's ability to stay healthy moving forward. On Monday, we discussed the 30-year-old's uncertain future with the team, and Megatron's health could certainly be a factor in that discussion.
At times this season, Chicago Bears wide receiver Alshon Jeffery was mentioned in trade rumors as he approached the end of his rookie contract. Now, the Bears are "seriously interested" in signing Jeffery to a long-term extension, according to John Mullin of CSN Chicago. Jeffery's nagging injuries -- he's missed six games with various ailments this season and missed six during his rookie campaign -- will probably have an affect on negotiations, but it's difficult to predict what sort of contract Jeffery and his agent will seek. Bryant and Demaryius Thomas each signed five-year, $70 million deals last offseason, but both had stayed healthier and produced more than Jeffery has so far. The latter's production over the last three seasons (82.0 receiving yards per game, 21 TDs in 41 games) is a bit behind what Bryant (82.0 ypg, 41 TDs in 48 games) and Thomas (93.4 ypg, 35 TDs in 48 games) managed from 2012-2014. That said, the franchise tag for wide receivers this offseason will come in above $14 million, so Jeffery may be content to play at that price on a one-year, "prove it" deal if the Bears choose to tag him. Even after Jeffery's injury-riddled season, it would be surprising to see a rebuilding team let one of its brightest stars leave in free agency.