NFL news roundup: Julio Jones likely done for the season, Rob Gronkowski could return in Week 6

Injury updates on Julio Jones and Rob Gronkowski are among the stories making headlines on Tuesday.

Oct 8, 2013, 8:54 PM UTC

Robert Mayer-USA TODAY Sports

The Falcons continue to face a litany of injuries to their starting lineup. Atlanta is expected lose Pro Bowl wide receiver Julio Jones for the rest of the season with a foot injury, according to Jay Glazer of Fox Sports. However, Jones is still seeking a second opinion on the injury, according to head coach Mike Smith (via the team's official website).

Losing Jones will have a major impact on the Falcons, who are already 1-4. He has the second most receiving yards in the league and is easily Matt Ryan's top target when healthy. Fellow wide receiver Roddy White has been banged up all season and the Falcons will need Harry Douglas to step up in Jones' place.

The injury to Jones puts Ryan and his offense in a rough spot moving forward, according to Dave Choate of The Falcoholic:

I don’t have to tell you that this is a hammer blow to the Falcons, who have already been suffering from a spate of injuries thus far this season. If Jones misses the season, the Falcons lose their best receiver, a guy who had put up a 41/580/14.2/2 line while basically serving as one of the team’s two reliable targets through the first five weeks. He’s been a stud, playing through a leg injury, and his loss cripples the offense.

Here are some more headlines you may have missed on Tuesday:

NFL ‘Hard Knocks’ to require team participation (with exceptions)

The folks at HBO will continue to rack up ratings with “NFL Hard Knocks.” The league has agreed to a deal with cable network to provide access to one of their teams per season. If a team fails to volunteer for the show, every team will be responsible for supplying accommodations for HBO’s film crews, according to NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport. Teams with new coaches or playoff berths will not be required to participate, per Rapport.

Hard Knocks has been around since 2001 and has run for eight seasons. The Bengals and Cowboys have been featured twice on the show, while the Jets, Chiefs, Ravens and Dolphins have each been the subject of one season.

NFL announces 3 London games for 2014

The NFL is expanding its London series of games in 2014. The league announced Tuesday that there will be three games playing at Wimbley Stadium next season. The Jaguars, Raiders and Falcons will all host home games overseas in 2014.

This season, the Steelers lost to the Vikings in Week 4 in London, while Jaguars will host the 49ers on Oct. 27. The Jaguars are scheduled to play at least one home game at Wimbley Stadium until 2016.

Rob Gronkowski expected to play for Patriots vs. Saints

The Patriots may get back their biggest weapon on offense in Week 6. Tight end Rob Gronkowski could play against the Saints on Sunday, according to Pro Football Talk. Gronkowski has missed all five games this season with a combination of back and forearm injuries.

He had surgeries on both his forearm and back in the offseason and has been recovering since the early days of summer. This season, Tom Brady has had to rely on rookies and Julian Edelman as his receivers with Danny Amendola and Gronkowski out of the lineup. Brady was held without a touchdown for the first time in 53 weeks in Sunday's loss to the Bengals.

NFL unveils new Pro Bowl uniforms

The NFL is moving away from the “AFC vs. NFC” format for Pro Bowls and their new uniforms for the annual contest show that transition. The league revealed the new threads on Tuesday for the yearly All-Star game. The color schemes for the two uniforms are unique to the league and unusual combinations.

Here is a look at the new uniforms for the Pro Bowl: