NFL Training Camps 2016: Updates, Rumors and Analysis for August 19

We're coming to the end of the line for training camps across the NFL.

With the second week of the preseason now underway, camps across the league are winding down. Some teams have already closed up shop. By the end of the weekend, all but a handful of teams will have followed suit.

Of course, "closed up shop" is a relative term. It's more that the shop changes names. Training camp gives way to the end of the preseason gives way to opening night gives way to FOOTBALL!!!

Sorry, I got a little carried away.

At any rate, whatever you call the practices as teams prepare for Week 1 the fact remains that the news, updates and speculation keeps rolling along.

Here's a look at Friday's latest.

Le'Veon Bell's Suspension Reduced to Three Games

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After getting drubbed 17-0 by their in-state rivals from Philadelphia Thursday night, the Pittsburgh Steelers could use some good news.

On Friday they got some.

Per ESPN's Adam Schefter, the four-game suspension of running back Le'Veon Bell, who reportedly drew the ban for missing multiple drug tests, has been reduced to three games on appeal.

A few days ago, Bell told Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com that this appeal was very important to him—that he wanted to make sure his side of the story was known both by fans and his teammates.

“People who know me know what type of person I am," Bell said. "I take care of my body, I go out here and work hard and give everything I can. The fact that they still don’t judge my character just from what people hear, it means everything in the world to me.”

It no doubt means a lot to the Steelers too to have Bell, who gained over 2,000 total yards two years ago before struggling through an injury-marred 2015, back in action as soon as possible.

The 24-year-old is now eligible to rejoin the team in advance of its Week 4 tilt with the Kansas City Chiefs.

Davante Adams Shining in Camp

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Last year when Jordy Nelson got hurt, many pundits predicted a big season for young wideout Davante Adams of the Green Bay Packers. Instead, despite starting 12 games, Adams managed fewer than 500 receiving yards and scored all of once.

Adams struggled so mightily that we entered the summer with some predicting that Adams might not even make the 53-man roster in 2016.

It looks like those warnings lit a fire under the third-year pro. According to Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com, Green Bay head coach Mike McCarthy singled Adams out as a player who showed up to training camp ready to make a dent for the Packers this season.

“Davante’s having a very good camp,” McCarthy said. “That’s what you see; he’s healthy and he’s taken a step. I think, really, he’s kind of in line with our whole team. I thought our team took a step in the right direction today. Yes, Davante’s healthy. As with all of our guys, they obviously play better when they’re healthy.”

Nelson has seen the improvement too. I think you can see his confidence back," Nelson said. "The speed is back, and he's just playing fast. That makes a difference."

Playing well in practice and exhibition games and making it count once the regular-season games begin are two different things. But the more weapons Aaron Rodgers has at his disposal in 2016, the better Green Bay's chances of rebounding offensively.

Bruce Ellington Set to Break Out?

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Let's keep the good news rolling!

Lord knows the San Francisco 49ers can use it. It has the makings of a long season in the Bay Area, in large part because of an offense that appears preciously short on skill-position talent.

But maybe not quite as short as we believed.

According to Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee, third-year wide receiver Bruce Ellington has emerged in camp as the favorite target for presumptive starter Blaine Gabbert.

"Ellington has been perhaps Blaine Gabbert's favorite target this summer," Barrows said, "and he seems ready for big season after a series of minor injuries—hamstring strains, ankle sprains—slowed his development over the past two seasons."

Head coach Chip Kelly said he'd like to see more consistency from all his young wideouts. "What we do need to see is consistency," Kelly said. "We haven’t really seen a ton of that right now. We’ve seen them flash, which is awesome because you know what they can do, but it’s being consistent not only on a daily basis but really, on a play-to-play basis, that you can count on them."

However, there's a catch. Ellington hasn't practiced this week thanks to a sore hamstring, and it's unlikely that he'll play this weekend against Denver.

What? You expected the good news to last forever?

Christime Michael Continues to Impress

Elaine Thompson/Associated Press

Last week, I wrote that tailback Christine Michael was turning heads in training camp.

If anything, since that report the fourth-year pro has only gotten better since—so much so that it's looking like Michael is going to be a significant part of the Seahawks offense in 2016.

Fresh off a 10-carry, 55-yard performance against the Minnesota Vikings in which Michael was easily Seattle's most effective player on offense, ESPN's Sheil Kapadia wrote that Michael has gone from playing his way off the team last year to making believers of his teammates.

"His desire to get first downs," quarterback Russell Wilson said, "his desire to get to the end zone, it really shows up, and he does it every day in practice. And when you do it in practice every day, you expect great things on game day. And so that's why that's showing up."

Head coach Pete Carroll echoed Wilson's sentiments. "Just because he’s growing and he’s maturing," he said, "he’s more concerned about all of the things that are really important -- his reads, his pass-protection stuff, his ball-catching skills, everything is up."

It's been an impressive rebound for Michael, and it's one the Seahawks badly need as Week 1 approaches.

That's because...

Thomas Rawls May Not Play in Preseason

Elaine Thompson/Associated Press

...Just as at the end of last year, it might be Michael carrying the water in the Seattle backfield when they open the season against the Miami Dolphins.

Tailback Thomas Rawls, who was a revelation for the Seahawks last year before suffering a season-ending ankle injury, has been activated from the PUP list. But as Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times reports, Rawls' return to game action might not come until games start to count.

Appearing on ESPN 710 Radio in Seattle (h/t Condotta), general manager John Schneider said, "Thomas, looking at maybe getting him in at the end of the fourth game, get him some carries, let him hit a little bit.”

Carroll told Condotta they're hopeful Rawls will return to full practice participation next week. “He’s going to practice full go next week and we’ll just see what that means,” said Carroll. “No deadlines, no pressure on making a decision. We’re just going to go with him and see how it goes. By late in the week, we’ll make a determination of where he is and we’ll go to the next week if we have to."

Tight end Jimmy Graham is on a similar "wait and see" timetable, and while it's understandable for a Seattle team with visions of a deep playoff run to take a "big picture" approach, the Seahawks have to be wary of falling too far behind the Arizona Cardinals early in the NFC West.

Sprained Ankle for Jake Fisher

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All in all, it's been a good preseason for the Cincinnati Bengals. Rookie wide receiver Tyler Boyd has impressed. Through two games the Bengals defense has looked in midseason form. And all in all the Bengals look the part of a team that could vie for a trip to Houston and Super Bowl LI.

However, the injury bug has bitten the team hard on the offensive front. So hard, in fact, that star tackle Andrew Whitworth told Katherine Terrell of ESPN.com he's going to be taking steps to avoid becoming the latest victim himself after missing the preseason opener.

"I'm going to start triple taping," Whitworth joked. "I've never taped in my entire career, but the way these tackles are going down [I might have to]."

Thursday night against the Detroit Lions, it was second-year pro Jake Fisher who felt the sting. Playing in place of the (wait for it) injured Cedric Ogbuehi, Fisher was carted from the field in the first half after getting his leg rolled on.

Thankfully, it appears that the injury looked worse than it actually was. Per head coach Marvin Lewis, Fisher has a sprained ankle.

The ankle got Fisher a walking boot and likely a seat for the rest of the preseason, but things could easily have been much more dire.

Kelvin Beachum Working His Way Back

John Raoux/Associated Press

The Jacksonville Jaguars were one of the NFL's most aggressive teams in free agency this year on both sides of the ball. Among those additions were offensive tackle Kelvin Beachum, who the team has penciled in to protect Blake Bortles' blind side.

That is, if they can ever get him off the sidelines and onto the field.

However, Beachum's recovery from a torn ACL is progressing. Per Alfie Crow of SB Nation, while Beachum won't see action this weekend against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, head coach Gus Bradley indicated that he's getting closer to seeing game action.

"Yeah, he is," Bradley said. "You are starting to see him. I think he got like 11 or 12 reps yesterday and we are still progressing right there. Everything is going good. Just his confidence, his demeanor, how he is handling it, and his focus. Really, really making good strides."

Simply put, it can't be overstated how badly the Jaguars need to get Beachum out there. In 2015, only three teams in the NFL allowed more sacks than the Jaguars' 51. The year before, the Jaguars led the league with a staggering 71 sacks allowed. The year before that, only the Miami Dolphins gave up more sacks than the Jags.

This has been a bad line for a long time, and the Jaguars aren't turning things around as a franchise until that line does.

Watt's Going on

J Patrick Schneider/Associated Press

Without question, the biggest question mark looming over the Houston Texans in advance of the regular season is the health of superstar defensive end J.J. Watt.

Head coach Bill O'Brien offered an update on the reigning Defensive Player of the Year Friday—but it's not really what fans are going to want to hear.

According to ESPN's Ed Werder, O'Brien is "encouraged" by Watt's recovery from back surgery. But O'Brien also allowed it's far from a sure thing whether Watt will be available in Week 1.

"I don't think we can predict whether he'll be ready for Week 1 or Week 2, but he's going to be ready sooner rather than later," O'Brien told Werder (h/t Sarah Barshop of ESPN).

Frankly, the bigger concern isn't so much whether Watt misses a week or two. That's not good, but it isn't a season-killer.

However, a few years ago Jason Pierre-Paul of the Giants had a similar procedure over a month earlier in the summer than Watt's. Pierre-Paul made it onto the filed in Week 1 and even had a sack.

He'd go on to get one more in 11 games that year.

A year like that for Watt would be a season-killer for the Texans.

Joey Bosa Watch

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We'll wrap Friday's look around the league (and the last of my camp update pieces) with the closest thing we've had to good news in quite some while regarding the contract impasse between the San Diego Chargers and No. 3 overall pick Joey Bosa.

Mind you, it isn't word that the Bolts' first pick in the 2016 draft has signed his contract and reported to camp. In fact, according to Jarrett Bell of USA Today, the two sides remain entrenched in their respective positions regarding the offset language and signing bonus for Bosa's deal.

But, per Bell, the teams are at least speaking after over two weeks of radio silence.

Quarterback Philip Rivers tried the best he could to downplay the drama. “We know it’s a business,” Rivers said. “Shoot, when he gets here, he’ll be a teammate and hopefully he’ll be a guy who will help us win a lot of games. Until then, he’s not. It’s not one of those deals where we’re mad at him, although we certainly hope he gets here soon.”

It's become something of a tradition in San Diego. LaDainian Tomlinson, Rivers, Antonio Gates, Vincent Jackson, Marcus McNeal, Eric Weddle and Corey Liuget all found themselves embroiled in holdouts with the Chargers.

It's also a tradition that may explain why the Bolts are a last-place team with one Super Bowl appearance in franchise history.

When you consistently play hardball for no other reason than to play it, even when you win you lose.