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We didn’t want the kickoff moved, we didn’t want the extra point to be more challenging and we didn’t want the automatic ejection penalty. What we wanted was for the league to determine what constitutes a catch (you know, an essential part of the game), but that proved to be too difficult, even with a six-man committee. MORE: The 40 most hated NFL players in history Now, the Ravens are pushing something NFL fans do want — expanded replay....

Earmarked as one of the dark horses for the Super Bowl, the Eagles found themselves 17-0 down at home against the Washington Redskins in Week 1. The Eagles eventually reeled in their NFC East rivals to win 32-27 and start the season on the front foot. In his first game since Week 14 of the 2018 season, Carson Wentz completed 28 of 39 passes, throwing for 313 yards and three touchdowns....

Tom Brady might have turned 42 earlier this week but the New England Patriots remain the team to beat, at least in the eyes of oddsmakers. According to data compiled by Vegas Insider, the six-time Super Bowl winners are 6/1 favorites to retain the title they won in February in Atlanta, Georgia. In the history of the AFC, only the Buffalo Bills in the early 1990s won the AFC Championship Game four seasons in a row and if the Patriots are to reach Miami, their road will in all likelihood go through Kansas City just as it did a year ago....

The National Council on Problem Gambling and the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood will present formal complaints to the NFL commissioner, The Associated Press reported. Specifically, the groups take issue with “NFL Rush Fantasy” games open to children ages 6 to 12, the report said. MORE: Key figures in daily fantasy sports saga | Fantasy stars as emojis Kids playing Xbox One and Madden NFL 2016 play a season-long contest in which two winners each receive a $5,000 “scholarship,” according to The AP, and a trip to Hawaii with two guests....

The LVH SuperBook posted Week 1 numbers on April 19, so let’s take a look at how the lines have shifted since. Ravens at Broncos (-7.5, 48.5) Opening line: (-8.5, 49.5) As of Tuesday afternoon, the line here is between 7.5 and 8 around Vegas. It was actually as high as 9 last week, but those numbers were gobbled up by dog bettors around town. Remember, Baltimore won outright, 38-35 in overtime, as a 9....

Speaking of going winless, I went 0-3 last week, thanks to the offensive ineptitude of the Titans, inability of the Bears defense to limit the Raiders offense, and Baker Mayfield’s dud against the aforementioned 49ers. But I’m totally not bitter. This is a new week, so let’s continue to trust the process. WEEK 6 FANTASY RANKINGS:Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker...

There’s only one team left with one loss, making it the easy choice above the rest in our Week 8 NFL Power Rankings. But several heavyweights in both the AFC and NFC have shaken off surprising early punches to get back to crowning position. MORE: NFL playoff picture after Week 7 Here is how all 32 teams stack up — with a Super Bowl tip of the helmet to the World Series, scheduled to begin Tuesday night....

“I’ve never seen a wild-card weekend like this where we have two games around -7 and yet have hardly any teaser risk,” said Osborne. “The overall action has been good, but it’s kind of weird to be booking the games straight-up where teasers don’t come into the equation at all. I can guarantee it won’t be like this next week with Green Bay, Seattle, Denver and New England playing.“...

The product -- misspelled in the union warning -- is OxyElite Pro, which has had reports of numerous dangerous side effects dating back at least two years. On Wednesday morning, the Food and Drug Administration issued an advisory based on numerous reports of acute non-viral hepatitis in Hawaii, in which, it said, "24 of these cases share a common link'' with OxyElite Pro.'' It advises anyone who has used the product to stop immediately and contact a health-care practitioner....

This time the focus is on Western Conference defensemen; they’re divided into three tiers based on their five-on-five ice-time this past regular season, then compared to their team as a whole. The possession proxy used is zone-adjusted cors; that’s the typical shot attempt differential you’re accustomed to with a wrinkle; everything that happened within 10 seconds of an offensive or defensive zone faceoff has been wiped from the total. In theory, this should help account for some of the extreme deployment that various players have because of their particular skillsets, or the ways in which their coaches have decided to utilize them....

The team captained by hometown boy Nick Foligno (assistants Drew Doughty and Patrick Kane) picked first. Jonathan Toews, with assistants Ryan Getzlaf and Rick Nash, picked second. Here’s a running list of the draft results. Team Foligno Ryan Johansen, Blue Jackets C 2. Duncan Keith, Blackhawks D 3. Anze Kopitar, Kings C 4. Steven Stamkos, Lightning C 5. Tyler Seguin, Stars C (traded to Toews for Phil Kessel) 6. Carey Price, Canadiens G 7....

With all 32 teams getting underway, the clubs are beginning their journey towards making the playoffs and pushing for the Stanley Cup. But there are also individual awards that are up for grabs as well. Honors like the Norris, Vezina and Hart are always hot topics throughout the season and the start of the year is not different. There already have been questions circling around previous winners. Will Cale Makar win a second consecutive Norris Trophy?...

A couple games have an over/under of six, according to Vegas odds, and the New York-Pittsburgh game is at 6.5. Of course, Vegas is not always right. Several potentially high-scoring matchups disappointed on Tuesday and Wednesday night. MORE: SN DFS | DFS Lineup Builder Because of the volatile nature of goalies (and other reasons), there will be more information on social media coming closer to roster lock. Don’t be afraid to ask questions....

The 2021 BioSteel All-American Game took place earlier this month, the 2021 IIHF World Under-18 Championship is kicking off in a few days, and the Western Hockey League was able to get its players on the ice. The Ontario Hockey League season has now been officially cancelled, but a number of players have seen some time overseas and others will hit the ice in the U18s. There’s talk of a potential showcase to get some additional players on the ice before the NHL Draft, too....

The 2022 NHL Draft is set to take place over two days, starting on Thursday, July 7. There will be over 200 players that will be drafted by the weekend. With that, some players will be getting signed to deals to immediately join their NHL clubs. Contracts in the NHL can be tricky, especially when it comes to the first ones given to rookies. Here’s a closer look at the kind of deals that first-year players can sign....

The Metropolitan Division is just silly. There’s never been a ton of separation, but now that the bye weeks are here, we’re starting to get a clearer picture of just how insane this second half race is going to be. A couple of weeks ago, it seemed reasonable the top three of the Metro would feature some combination of the Capitals, Devils and Blue Jackets — but man, it’s getting air-tight at the top, and the “bottom” of the division is starting to make a push....

The veteran forwards were named captains for the game on Wednesday, the NHL announced, and will hand pick their teams during the All-Star Fantasy Draft Jan. 23. Drew Doughty, Patrick Kane, Ryan Getzlaf and Rick Nash will serve as assistant captains. The annual skills competition is scheduled for Jan. 24, while the All-Star game is slated for Sunday, Jan. 25. The league announced its All-Stars on Saturday.

Kane will be ineligible to play until at least November 30 and will not be paid his salary during that time. Kane will miss out on nearly $1.7 million that he would have been paid for the playing games, with the money instead going to the NHL’s Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund. While the league did not confirm that Kane was suspended for submitting fake documents, multiple outlets, including the Associated Press, reported Kane was under investigation for allegedly submitting a fake card earlier this month....

Washington watched its two-game lead in the best-of-seven series slip away Thursday with a 4-2 loss at Capital One Arena. For a second straight game, Andrei Vasilevskiy stood on his head, making 36 saves, and the Lightning once again capitalized on their chances, beating Braden Holtby thrice on just 19 shots. Brayden Point, Steven Stamkos and Alex Killorn had the goals, and Anthony Cirelli added an empty-netter in the game’s final second as the road team remained perfect (now 4-0) in this series....