So says one NFL general manager who instead views a running back, Penn State’s Saquon Barkley, as the potential first overall pick. Preseason buzz was centered around the idea that three college quarterbacks — USC’s Sam Darnold, UCLA’s Josh Rosen and Wyoming’s Josh Allen — had the potential to be drafted within the first three picks. But none have stood out thus far in the 2017 season. MORE: SN’s latest mock draft...
This year’s event was a virtual celebration rather than a gala at the Super Bowl venue because of COVID-19 restrictions. SN’s NFL AWARDS: Full list of 2020 winners Several of the award recipients also received Sporting News honors as voted by fellow players. Aaron Donald was SN’s Defensive Player of the Year and Washington QB Alex Smith was Comeback Player of the Year; both received the same honors from The Associated Press’ voters....
Nathan Shields of Saipancakes turns regular old pancakes into works of art. And his latest masterpiece? Edible versions of all 32 NFL logos. MORE: Greatest Thanksgiving performances | Richard Sherman blasts NFL | Adrian Peterson weighs in on Ferguson If you don’t start every Sunday with an NFL logo pancake, are you even a real fan? Source: FanSided
It’s also a big weekend in college football for massive matchups, including Alabama vs. Tennessee in the SEC and Penn State vs. Michigan in the Big Ten. That should put many of the top pro prospects on full display at midseason. Combining the updated order for picks No. 1 through No. 18 according to Tankathon, plus the current NFC and AFC playoff seeding, here are Sporting News’ updated projections for the top 31 picks in the 2023 NFL Draft (with the Dolphins forfeiting their original selection):...
Positives have been at a premium for both teams, who arrive into Monday Night Football joint bottom in their division with a 0-3 record. Both teams came close from ending their losing streaks in Week 3, with the Steelers losing 24-20 in San Francisco against the 49ers, while the Bengals were defeated 21-17 on the road by the Buffalo Bills. With the Baltimore Ravens leading the division with a 2-1 record, playoffs hopes for both Cincinnati and Pittsburgh are already wafer-thin and they will be almost certainly extinguished for whoever loses on Monday....
During a segment of Chicago radio station WSCR-AM on Friday, Arkush revealed his thoughts on Rodgers, saying he considered his off-field character in addition to his on-field performance this season in regard to MVP voting. He called Rodgers a “jerk” and compared his season to others in the race such as Colts running back Jonathan Taylor, Rams receiver Cooper Kupp and Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady. Rodgers has been in the news throughout the 2021 NFL season, not only for his offseason holdout from the Packers and uncertain future in Green Bay, but also because he misled reporters when discussing his vaccination status earlier in the year....
There are 14 games on the slate, with only one double-digit spread and a lot of razor-thin lines. That makes the upcoming schedule even more challenging. That won’t stop us from our fearless forecasts or our latest pigskin prognosticatons. Here’s breaking down all the Week 11 matchups as we look for a lot of winners and good success against the numbers: MORE: Week 11 NFL power rankings | Week 11 picks straight up...
MORE: Get the latest NFL Week 17 odds, lines & more here Last week was pretty good in getting back on track above .500 ATS with some solid results straight up, too. That should make us feel more confident about our latest fearless forecast. Without further ado and keeping in mind the final week is weird with teams resting and playing for different things, here’s the final salvo of 16 selections:...
Week 8 doesn’t have the same amount of massive spreads, but with the games back up to 15 on the slate, there are few more close games to navigate. There also are some more marquee matchups with plenty on the line. With that mind, here’s providing our latest best pro pigskin prognostications in another probing preview: (Game odds courtesy of FanDuel) NFL POWER RANKINGS:Packers, Titans, Raiders bump up; Chiefs, 49ers tumble further ahead of Week 8...
All three teams are double-digit favorites heading into Week 9. Philadelphia opens the action on Thursday night against the Texans. That’s not a glamorous game, but it’s a chance to watch Jalen Hurts continue his MVP-caliber season for the undefeated Eagles. Hurts, a Houston native, should be in top form against the Texans with favorite target A.J. Brown. Buffalo also is a heavy road favorite against the Jets. Josh Allen also is in the MVP mix, and favorite target Stefon Diggs is tied for the NFL lead with seven TD receptions....
In a memo sent to NFL Players Association members by executive director DeMaurice Smith and obtained by The Associated Press, the union also said the plan “doesn’t build a positive consensus to warning signs.” Smith described two meetings this month with the league in which an NFLPA commission was briefed on the league’s approach to educating players, coaches, executives, owners and NFL personnel about domestic violence. He wrote that a “good overview of domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse” was presented....
Player representatives to the union also voted for changes to marijuana testing, classification for amphetamines, punishment for driving under the influence, and neutral arbitration on appeals. But NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said in an email to The Associated Press: “There are unresolved issues. More negotiation ahead.” Aiello did not specify which issues are not resolved, but called them “significant.” Testing for human growth hormone was originally agreed upon in 2011, but the players have balked at the science in the testing and the appeals process for positive tests....
The New England Patriots and the Baltimore Ravens are ahead of the pack in the AFC but face a difficult stretch of games, while the race for the postseason got even tighter in the NFC after the Seattle Seahawks ended the San Francisco 49ers’ unbeaten record with a 27-24 overtime win on Monday Night Football. Here’s a look at the state of play in the playoff race, based on FiveThirtyEight projections....
The list of possible clinches is headlined by the Browns, which haven’t played in the playoffs since 2002. Three different possibilities for a Browns win at the Jets and one loss elsewhere to push Cleveland over the line and into the postseason. There’s also a lot on the line this week in the AFC South, NFC South and NFC West. First-round byes are also within reach for the Chiefs and Packers in Week 16....
The Rams, who already clinched the NFC West, had a chance to be the first team to clinch a first-round bye in the playoffs. But they failed to beat Bears on Sunday night. In the AFC, the Chiefs clinched a playoff spot this week with their win over the Ravens, but their battle against the Chargers for the AFC West title will continue into next week. The Patriots, meanwhile, had a chance to clinch their own division but lost to the Dolphins....
The Chicago Bears blew a 10-point lead and lost to the Detroit Lions by four points, and the Minnesota Vikings needed overtime to beat the hapless Jacksonville Jaguars. The Vikings are now 6-6 while the Bears and Lions are both 5-7. The Vikings would be the last team to make the NFC playoffs at the No. 7 seed. Meanwhile, teams have four game remaining in regular season, which means all teams in the NFC North have a shot of making the playoffs—even the Green Bay Packers, which are 9-3 but still haven’t clinched a playoff spot yet....
AccuScore has made its 2017 NFL playoff picks by simulating each wild-card game 10,000 times to predict the probabilities of reaching the next round on the road to Super Bowl 52. Below are the probabilities to win each wild-card game this weekend. MORE: SN’s NFL playoff picks, predictions NFL playoffs: Wild-card probabilities Titans at Chiefs Kansas City will host Tennessee in Saturday’s first game. AccuScore’s simulations predict that the Chiefs have a 75-percent win probability, the highest of all wild-card games....
Looking at every non-quarterback position and going through all the teams, here are the sleepers set to impact the outcome of the 2017 quest for Super Bowl LI. MORE: Predictions for 2017 NFL playoffs Eli Rogers, WR, Steelers: Injuries left Pittsburgh looking for a reliable second wideout behind Antonio Brown for much of the season. They got flashes from tight end Ladarius Green in limited snaps, but then he went on the shelf again for a while with a concussion....
With the exception of the Kansas City Chiefs and the Green Bay Packers, who secured the No. 1 seed in the AFC and NFC respectively, all other 12 playoffs teams are in action over Saturday and Sunday. The Buffalo Bills host a playoff game for the first time in 25 years, while the Cleveland Browns and Tampa Bay Buccaneers return to the playoffs for the first time since 2002 and 2007 respectively....
This strategy is far from a sure thing. Our RBs, despite being the most talented and expensive available, both face brutal matchups. You can make a case for paying down at RB (like we did with Damien Williams and Duke Johnson in our FanDuel weekend lineup) and paying up for high-target WRs, but we’re going to follow the guaranteed touches and instead hope our WRs can hit on one or two big plays and give us solid floors....
