Hey, we finally have an update on Sammy Morris(notes) that includes references to specific body parts and a recovery time frame!

Patriots running back Sammy Morris could be back in two weeks, the Herald has learned.

The veteran suffered a torn MCL on his first carry against the Titans and is close to returning. He’ll miss the Dolphins game and likely the visit to the Colts.

Presumably, the Boston Herald reporters who extracted this information from Pats sources relied on barbaric interrogative methods, so perhaps the reports cannot be trusted. Not sure. But those are some of the first meaningful, non-speculative notes we've seen.

If Morris only misses two more games, he'll make it back for the home matchup with the Jets on November 22. Laurence Maroney(notes) now has two weeks to demonstrate that he deserves a serious role; recall that the Patriots end-of-season schedule is extremely RB-friendly (CAR, at BUF, JAC, at HOU).

Roddy White(notes) wasn't able to practice on Thursday due to a knee injury of unknown severity. Those who report on the Falcons do not seem terribly concerned, but the threat level will be elevated if White doesn't practice Friday. [AtlantaFalcons.com]

Update: Relax. White was a limited participant in practice on Friday. His head coach expects him to be ready to play against Washington. 

Neither Aaron Rodgers(notes) (foot, toe) nor Donald Driver(notes) (stinger) practiced on Thursday. Rodgers is expected to return on Friday, and Mike McCarthy has declared that Driver will face the Bucs this week as long as doctors approve, whether he practices or not. But the best news regarding the Green Bay offense is probably this: RT Mark Tauscher(notes) and LT Chad Clifton(notes) are both expected to play. [Green Bay Press Gazette, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]

Update: Rodgers and Driver were both back at practice on Friday. Crisis averted.

The Lions' official position on Calvin Johnson(notes) is that he's a game-time decision. Megatron describes the condition of his knee this way: "I’m feeling alright. It’s just a few little nicks and bruises left in there or whatever and I’m just trying to fight through that, but otherwise I’m alright. I’m able to practice, so it’s feeling pretty good. Just a little tightness in there." [DetroitLions.com] 

Update: Both Johnson and Kevin Smith practiced Friday. Very promising.

The Colts are dealing with all sorts of injury issues right now, and their secondary isn't close to full strength. Here's the official release from the team via the Indianapolis Star:

"The Indianapolis Colts have signed veteran free agent defensive end Josh Thomas(notes) and have placed defensive back Marlin Jackson(notes) on injured reserve. Wide receiver Anthony Gonzalez(notes) underwent arthroscopic right knee surgery yesterday to clean out loose particles, and safety Bob Sanders(notes) visited with Dr. James Andrews yesterday to gather additional information on the left elbow injury he suffered last Sunday against San Francisco, the club announced today.

"Jackson suffered the left knee injury during a non-contact drill early in Wednesday's practice. He is out for the remainder of the season. Gonzalez suffered a recent setback in practice that led to yesterday's procedure. A timetable for his return is not determined."

Goodness. That's a lot of information to process. With Jackson and Sanders out and CB Kelvin Hayden(notes) (knee) dinged as well, we could see some unusually large point totals posted against the Colts' D. Over the next month they'll face Houston (twice), New England and Baltimore.

Gonzalez is tough to roster in any non-dynasty league at this point. Maybe he'll make it back by the fantasy playoffs, but the setback is clearly a bad sign and the Colts do not lack capable receiving options. [Indianapolis Star]

Update: NFL Network reports that Sanders will be "out indefinitely." This could be a season-ender, it appears. 

It was recently brought to my attention that we failed to link to the Rams Report Card following the team's first win. That was an unfortunate oversight, corrected today. It's the best report card the Rams have brought home since maybe '03, so we shouldn't ignore it. They finally received an "A" for something. Steven Jackson's family is now eligible for a bumper sticker that says "My kid made the honor roll at the Post-Dispatch Football Academy," and his offensive linemen should get 'em, too. [St. Louis Post-Dispatch]

Anquan Boldin(notes) (ankle) did not practice on Thursday; he remains a game-time decision, though there are few obvious reasons for optimism. The Cardinals travel to Soldier Field in Week 9 to face the Bears, a team that has its own receiver issues. Devin Hester(notes) (ankle) was a DNP on both Wednesday and Thursday, but he's already stated "I'm going to play." [The Arizona Republic]

Update: Hester returned to practice on Friday. Phew.

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