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While there’s still over three months until the selection process takes place in Paradise, Nevada, the deadline for underclassmen to declare for the draft is rapidly approaching and falls on January 17. The deadline is then followed by a three-day grace period during which players can change their intentions. While students who have completed their four-year collegiate career such as Heisman Trophy winner Joe Burrow and Oregon quarterback Justin Herbert do not have to declare for the draft, students who choose to forego their final year or two years at college have to apply for special eligibility....

Teams got plenty of building blocks on the final day of the draft to help create the foundation of future teams and provided opportunities for hundreds of former college football players hoping for a pro career. MORE 2021 NFL DRAFT:Team-by-team grades | Winners & losers | Biggest steals Alabama and Ohio State (10) tied for the lead in draftees, followed by Georgia and Notre Dame (nine); Florida and Michigan (eight); LSU (seven); Kentucky, Penn State and Pitt (six); BYU, Clemson, Missouri, Oklahoma, Oregon, North Carolina, Stanford, Texas, UCF and USC (five)....

Stewart has been fined $18,231 for his hit on Newton with less than 40 seconds remaining in the game, while Marshall has been fined $24,309 for a third-quarter hit that was not flagged. WEEK 2 PICKS: Straight up On Monday, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said Marshall’s hit on Newton should have been a penalty. MARVEZ: NFL let Cam Newton’s head be used for target practice “(Newton) gets that passer protection when he’s in the passing mode,” Goodell told The Washington Post....

In preparation for the madness, teams tried to keep their own pending priority free agents with either a new long-term contract or the franchise tag. Consider this your Sporting News tracking hub for the latest updates on NFL deals as they come during the offseason. Here’s a complete list of NFL free agents in 2020, including the best players by position. NFL MOCK DRAFT 2020:Patriots, Raiders, Cowboys, Giants go defense; Bucs, Chargers get in on QB...

So what about players out this week or returning to action? Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Roddy White (hamstring) has been upgraded to probable for Sunday’s game at the Minnesota Vikings after missing last week’s 56-14 rout of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. As you can tell by the score, the Falcons did not even need him. The Linemakers on Sporting News’ Kenny White, one of the most respected oddsmakers in Las Vegas, rates Chicago Bears WR Brandon Marshall as a slightly better player than Roddy White, just for comparison’s sake....

Will he play Sunday against the Bills, and if so, will he be more than a decoy? Detroit is laying 7 at most books. After Megatron caught two passes for 12 yards in the win over the Jets, the Lions all but admitted they used him as a decoy. Then Johnson came out early this week and declared his ankle was feeling better. The situation became cloudy, however, when Johnson sat out practice Wednesday and Thursday....

Be sure to click through to the informative and entertaining videos, which are shot at the South Point sports book and our studios in Las Vegas. The point spreads and totals listed below are the Vegas consensus as of Saturday. You can check updated NFL Week 9 lines on our live odds page . Chargers vs. Dolphins (-2, 45), 1 p.m. ET, CBS The Dolphins rate 1-point better than the Chargers, according to our numbers, so throw in home-field advantage, and we’re happy to lay less than a field goal....

In an effort to reduce virus spread around Thanksgiving, the NFL will require all Tier 1 and Tier 2 individuals, which includes coaches, trainers, general managers, security and players to undergo COVID testing on both Monday, November 29 and Wednesday, December 1. Those who haven’t received their full series of vaccines will be required to wait for their results before entering facilities. Tier 3 individuals, such as operations personnel, in-house media and others that do not have close contact with Tier 1 individuals and players, will also need to be tested at one point that week....

It’s can be easy for analysts to put together a mock draft where they control the ultimate outcome of players going to certain teams — after all, you’re removing all the unpredictability to the process. But, introduce a little anarchy, upset the established draft order and everything becomes chaos. MORE: NFL Mock Draft with trades — Busy first round for Giants, Saints In The Sporting News’ latest mock draft, two of TSN’s NFL experts take turns picking how the first round of this year’s draft could play out....

Now that teams have their answers, the attention will turn to the rest of the offense — or in some cases the defense. Here we look back at the biggest headlines from Week 3 and the impact they’ll have heading into Week 4. Daniel Jones awakens sleeping Giants After being so harshly criticized for drafting the Duke star sixth overall in April, the team’s brass had to be smiling Sunday....

The Seahawks quarterback who entered Week 10 leading the NFL in touchdown passes (22) and passer rating (118.2) played in the national spotlight against the 49ers on Monday night, and he needed an epic performance to remain the favorite for NFL MVP considering what Lamar Jackson did against the Bengals on Sunday. Wilson provided just that in Seattle’s 27-24 overtime win. The Ravens quarterback a day prior had completed 15 of 17 pass attempts (88....

While Kaepernick is looking for a job in the NFL, Broncos defensive end Bradley Chubb is looking to build on a successful rookie season. And then there’s the developing quarterback battle in Tennessee. Those stories and more in Thursday’s edition of NFL News and Notes. Three things that matter Eric Reid’s response to Jay-Z’s partnership with the NFL Panthers defensive back Eric Reid is continuing to speak his mind....

While Tom Brady enters his age-42 season, the Bills and Jets are still entering a new era with second-year quarterbacks Josh Allen and Sam Darnold, respectively. And from the sound of it, they’re only getting better. Here are a few headlines from around the NFL: Bills QB Josh Allen raves about new wide receiver Cole Beasley Bills quarterback Josh Allen has a gigantic arm, but his best friend this season may be a receiver who makes his living close to the line of scrimmage — Cole Beasley....

Underdogs broke a Week 1 record when the Raiders covered (and won) against the Ravens on “Monday Night Football.” That marked the 12th time in the NFL’s 16 games that an underdog had covered the spread. The previous Week 1 high was 11 wins, which happened on three occasions. Underdogs weren’t just covering though. They were winning as well. Nine underdogs emerged victoriously in Week 1, including five teams that won on the road....

Picks that are being underrated by the public can yield weekly gains that make the difference between winning and losing a season-long NFL pool, while smart upset picks can drive success in weekly pools. TeamRankings is the only site that provides customized picks that maximize your edge in NFL pick ’em pools. Check out TeamRankings’ Football Pick ’em Picks, NFL Survivor Picks, and NFL Betting Picks. TeamRankings also have Bowl Pick ’em picks if you are in a college football bowl pool....

There’s only one way to rebound from one bad week: Get up on that horse and pick our favorite ponies again. Week 3 offers more 16 chances to get games right, so it’s time to focus on the positives and not think about the alternatives. Without further ado and overthinking, here are this week’s Sporting News predictions for how every upcoming matchup will play out, from this Thursday night to next Monday night:...

That has led to some disappointing straight-up results early, but at the same time, because of how tight some calls are, there has been more good fortune when navigating the spreads. Week 4 isn’t any easier; it offers a lot of slim lines but also features a few heavy favorites in lopsided matchups. Here’s trying to get better with our fearless forecasts, one pick at a time. Here’s how we see another full slate of 16 games playing out this week....

With the number of bye teams going up to six — the Bills, Cowboys, Vikings, Steelers, Chargers and Jaguars — it’s a smaller slate of only 13 games. That lighter schedule still features three massive double-digit favorites, balanced by four games where the spread is set at four or fewer points. So this week, it’s mostly either navigating a lopsided matchup or figuring out who’s a slightly better bet in a close one....

Only two Week 16 games opened with double digit point spreads. The Ravens are 10-point favorites over the Browns, and the Seahawks are 10-point favorites over the Cardinals. The rest of the schedule features a blend of toss-up games and matchups that exist not to impact the playoff picture, but to ruin our chances at a perfect week of picks. For example, the Texans, Steelers, Redskins, Dolphins and Cowboys were favored by a field goal or less against the Buccaneers, Jets, Giants, Bengals and Eagles, respectively....