Jason Witten (spleen) is officially doubtful for Wednesday's game – The Cowboys appear ready to take the cautious road with Witten and give him at least another week and a half before considering him for the team's Week 2 matchup on September 16. Given the severity of his injury, playing it safe is better for Witten, the Cowboys and all of the star tight end's owners. Meanwhile, Jerry Jones has declared both Dez Bryant (knee) and Miles Austin (hamstring) 100|PERCENT| for the season opener.
Rashard Mendenhall (knee) has not been ruled out for Week 1 – Mendenhall apparently created a major stir at Monday's practice by displaying the type of burst and long speed he had prior to tearing his ACL. It remains a bit of a long shot for him to suit up Sunday night at Denver, but coach Mike Tomlin has not ruled it out. Whether he plays or not though, the real takeaway here is that Mendenhall may be much closer to return than originally thought, and not just a return to the field in general, but to being the player that was the bellcow for the Steelers in 2009 and 2010. With Jonathan Dwyer impressing recently and looking like the possible Week 1 starter, this news just further injects concern into the value of Isaac Redman, who just so happens to still be nursing an ankle injury.
Marshawn Lynch (back) is questionable for Week 1 – With his back spasms lingering into the beginning of this week, Lynch's availability for Sunday has become uncertain. The issue could become a headache all year if he cannot get his balky back under control, and that could spell a much larger role for rookie handcuff Robert Turbin, who suddenly looks like he could be a quality spot starter as soon as this weekend.
Trent Richardson's (knee) role for Week 1 appears very cloudy – Coach Pat Shurmur expressed optimism on Monday that Richardson would be back in time for the team's matchup with the Eagles, even noting that if he were to play, he'd be the starter. But president Mike Holmgren spoke more hesitantly, saying that the team would not be wise to rush Richardson back. Ultimately, it seems that even if Richardson were to suit up he may be too great a risk to start because of the uncertainty of his immediate role.
BenJarvus Green-Ellis (foot) was declared ready to go by coach Marvin Lewis – BJGE missed most of the preseason with a bothersome foot injury but it seems he's on track for Monday night's visit to Baltimore. Given the matchup though and the amount of practice time Green-Ellis has missed, he doesn't look like a strong start this week.
Golden Tate (knee) is expected to miss one or two weeks – Tate looks like a sure bet to miss Week 1 after getting his knee twisted up on a punt return in the final preseason game, and it's possible he'll be out until Week 3 when Seattle hosts Green Bay on Monday Night Football. In his absence, Braylon Edwards will slide into the starting lineup opposite Sidney Rice. After displaying nice downfield chemistry with Russell Wilson in the preseason, Edwards could be a sneaky flex start the next couple weeks.
David Garrard (knee) was released by Miami – With Matt Moore being a competent backup to rookie Ryan Tannehill, it didn't make much sense for the Dolphins to carry another experienced vet to ride the bench. And with Garrard's knee issue still hampering him, it made the decision for the Dolphins to part ways with him an easy one. Don't expect Garrard to have any fantasy relevance this season even if some team does add him for depth.
The Chargers are taking advantage of the new IR rule with Vincent Brown (ankle) – Under the new rule, each team can designate one player to be placed on a short-term IR that only requires the injured player to miss the first six weeks. After that point, if the player has returned to health he can rejoin the active roster. In the case of Brown, that means he may be back to the team as early as Week 8 following the team's Week 7 bye.