NFL hold-ins include Gibbs, Vea, Tuipulotu

ESPN reported on Thursday, August 6, that four prominent NFL players remained in training-camp “hold-ins” as the 2026 preseason opened with the Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio. The list in ESPN’s leaguewide tracker included Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs, Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive tackle Vita Vea, Los Angeles Chargers edge rusher Tuli Tuipulotu and Atlanta Falcons running back Bijan Robinson. ESPN said the disputes were tied to contract talks and had kept those players from full practice participation as camps moved into August. The NFL’s preseason schedule began Thursday night with Carolina playing Arizona, with Week 1 exhibition games set to start August 13. ### What is a hold-in, and why are teams seeing them now? NFL training camps opened around the league in late July and early August, and players seeking new deals have increasingly reported to camp without taking part in normal practice work. ESPN described the current cases as hold-ins rather than holdouts, meaning the players are present with their teams while contract negotiations continue. (espn.com) Jahmyr Gibbs and Bijan Robinson were already identified by ESPN on July 29 as apparent hold-ins when the Lions and Falcons opened camp practices. Lions coach Dan Campbell said then that both sides were “working through something” in Gibbs’ case, according to ESPN. ### Which players were still unresolved on August 6? ESPN’s August 6 tracker said Jahmyr Gibbs, Vita Vea and Tuli Tuipulotu were among the players still not practicing as of Thursday, with Robinson also included in the same roundup. (espn.com) The report framed them as the key unresolved contract situations to watch as preseason games began. (espn.com) Detroit’s Gibbs and Atlanta’s Robinson are both running backs, a position that has drawn repeated attention in recent offseasons because of extension timing and market value. Tampa Bay’s Vea and the Chargers’ Tuipulotu represent defensive players using the same approach while talks continue. ### Why does the timing matter once preseason games start? (espn.com) The NFL said the 2026 preseason opened on August 6 with the Carolina Panthers and Arizona Cardinals in the Hall of Fame Game. NFL Media’s preseason release shows the broader exhibition schedule beginning August 13, when teams including Detroit, the Chargers and others are set to play their first full week of preseason games. (espn.com) ESPN said one question now is whether any of the four players would be willing to miss games once the regular season approaches. As of Thursday, the disputes had already extended through the opening phase of camp and into the first night of preseason football. ### How does this affect the Lions, Buccaneers and Chargers in camp? (nfl.com) The Chargers’ own ESPN camp page linked Tuipulotu’s contract situation to the league’s hold-in tracker on Wednesday, showing the issue remained active inside a team-specific camp report as well as the national roundup. That means the dispute is affecting not only leaguewide headlines but day-to-day camp participation. (espn.com) ESPN’s tracker did not say on Thursday that any of the listed disputes had been resolved. For teams installing schemes and evaluating preseason rotations, that leaves Gibbs, Vea, Tuipulotu and Robinson outside normal practice work while negotiations continue. ### What comes next on the calendar? August 13 is the next major date on the preseason schedule, with Detroit at Cincinnati and the Chargers at Houston among the Week 1 exhibition matchups listed by the NFL. (espn.com) Tampa Bay is scheduled to open its preseason on August 14 against the New York Jets. The regular season remains further out, but the preseason calendar now provides the next checkpoints for whether Gibbs, Vea, Tuipulotu or Robinson return to full participation before games begin in earnest next week. (espn.com) (media.nfl.com)