There was no shortage of drama, with the Houston Texans and the Minnesota Vikings both requiring overtime to defeat the Bills and the Saints, respectively, and progress to the divisional round. As this graphic provided by Statista shows, the four teams that earned a first-round bye—the Baltimore Ravens, Kansas City Chiefs, San Francisco 49ers and Green Bay Packers—all enter the frame this weekend as the playoffs move into the second stage....

As disappointing as it is to be cut, it’s often not the end of the line. Each NFL team carries with it a practice squad of players that aren’t on the active roster but still train, prepare and, yes, practice with the 53-man roster. These units provide key depth for teams and allow young players to hone their crafts working with NFL teams. The rules surrounding the practice squad used to be complex, but in recent seasons, the NFL has relaxed them a bit to create more opportunities for a wider variety of players....

The seemingly never-ending Le’Veon Bell saga ended up lasting all season, the end of which was overshadowed by receiver Antonio Brown and his apparent disconnect with QB Ben Roethlisberger. By the offseason, the AFC North had seen one of the biggest turnovers in the league as two-thirds of the “Killer B” trio was gone from Pittsburgh, Odell Beckham Jr. joined Cleveland and Baltimore lost Terrell Suggs, C.J. Mosley, Eric Weddle and Brent Urban....

But it’s not all bad. The zebras on the field aren’t out there throwing flags and winding the clock because they need the exercise. They’re getting paid to be out there making sure the game is played as it should be. The best ones start to get paid quite a lot, too. At this time of year, during the NFL’s conference championship games and ahead of the Super Bowl, officials get a hefty paycheck to make sure the contests everyone sees are as close to perfect as can be....

One of the most dreaded dates for a large number of NFL players falls on Saturday this year. By then, the 32 franchises will have cut their rosters down from around 90 men to the 53 that will begin the regular season, leaving 1,184 players at least temporarily unemployed. Here’s everything you need to know about cutdown day. When is cut down day? This year, cut down day falls on Saturday, August 31....

Everyone knew coming into the 2021 season that it single-season records could be in jeopardy. There have been 16 weeks in a season regularly since 1978, and just about every single-season record has been set during that time frame. With an additional game, it’s only a matter of time till all the records are re-set once again. In particular, Michael Strahan’s single-season sacks record at 22.5 from 2001 looks to be threatened this year by two AFC North defensive players....

The Ravens and Buccaneers kick off the games this week, as the two teams meet on Thursday down in Florida. Baltimore is 4-3 and coming off a bye in Week 7, while everything has gone south in Tampa Bay. The Bucs lost to the last-place Panthers last week, dropping their record to 3-4. The Sunday slate starts early in the morning in London, as the Broncos and Jaguars travel to Europe to play at Wembley Stadium....

The Saints handled the Dophins, winning 20-0 in London to start the NFL Sunday. Later, the Bills, coming off an impressive win over the Broncos last week, face the undefeated Falcons. The Giants are still in search of their first win of the season, and take on the Buccaneers Sporting News provides live updates for all 14 games Sunday. NFL SCORES: Week 4 scoreboard, stats NFL scores: Week 4 results, highlights New Orleans Saints 20, Miami Dolphins 0 MORE: Results, stats...

The issue was noted during the seven-game early slate in Week 2. Users began to report problems with streams cutting out and not restarting at all. Many were met with a screen that looked something like this as they tried to get their preferred games — or the package’s RedZone channel — to load. Naturally, subscribers to the service were enraged by this development. Their frustration only grew as the delay continued throughout the afternoon without DirecTV addressing the issue even on any of its social media channels....

Except … in some ways, it feels like another Thursday. And as much credit as the NFL deserves for serving up three very watchable games, it deserves blame for watering down, even just a little, one of the most cherished days on its calendar. THANKSGIVING PICKS: Against the spread | Straight up For the first time in memory, the short week that rakes the nerves of fans, players and coaches appears to be infiltrating Thanksgiving....

New England has given up just 34 points in its first five games combined, the fewest points allowed at this stage of the season since the Indianapolis Colts conceded 29 in 2005 and the fifth-smallest total since 1970. On the offensive side of the ball, Tom Brady threw for 348 yards and three touchdowns, surpassing Brett Favre for the third most career passing yards in league history. The six-time Super Bowl champions kick off Week 6 when they host the New York Giants in Foxborough, Massachusetts, on Thursday Night Football....

Newton said he was asked some questions after Thursday night’s game, “but nothing too serious." Asked by reporters what questions were posed to him, Newton responded, “I don’t know, there’s too much going through my head right now for me to remember what happened.” MORE: Week 1 NFL picks | Week 1 picks against the spread The NFL this offseason implemented a provision for league- and NFLPA-appointed representatives to make sure players would enter the concussion protocol when situations call for it....

CBS in Week 14 has a big game in both its early Sunday afternoon window and its late Sunday afternoon window, and the network will present the majority of the country those games. Many will see Ravens at Bills at 1 p.m. ET on CBS followed by Chiefs at Patriots in the 4:25 p.m. ET time slot. MORE: Watch NFL Week 14 games live with fuboTV (7-day free trial)...

We’ve also arrived at the first bye weeks. With the 49ers and Jets getting an early break, there are only 15 games on the schedule. The good news is that’s one less chance to be wrong. The reality is it’s one less chance to be right. Regardless, let’s dive into our latest fearless forecast. MORE: Get the latest NFL odds at Sportsbook Review Week 4 NFL picks against the spread Game of the Week: Dallas Cowboys (-2 1/2, -115) at New Orleans Saints...

Before we get into the Week 8 forecasts, here’s a reminder that if you have any questions about sports weather or how weather could impact play (and, potentially, your fantasy, DFS, and gambling decisions), don’t hesitate to reach out to RotoGrinders’ meteorologist Kevin Roth on Twitter (@KevinRothWx) or check out the hourly NFL weather forecasts on RotoGrinders. To take your game to the next level, subscribe to RotoGrinders’ exclusive WeatherEdge tool and see how different weather conditions have impacted historical scoring....

Temperatures look to be in the 50s and 60s for most of the early-afternoon games, which is certainly a plus for this time of year. Three games are being played in a stadium with a roof (Seahawks-Lions, 49ers-Cardinals, Saints-Vikings). Week 8 Rankings:Quarterback | Running Back | Wide Receiver | Tight End | D/ST | Kicker NFL Week 8 weather updates The worst of the weather looks to be in Chicago for the Jets-Bears....