Category: NFC West Team

NFC West Team

Many consider Leaf the biggest NFL Draft bust of all time, primarily due to the fact that he was debated alongside Peyton Manning atop the ’98 class.

While poor off-field behavior and injuries contributed to Leaf’s NFL flame-out, his horrendous play — 13-33 TD-INT ratio, 48.8 rating and a record of 4-14 in 18 starts for the Chargers — would have been enough. San Diego dumped him as soon as the 2000 season ended.

Enis, who was coming off a pair of stellar seasons at Penn State, never seemed to recover from the knee injury he suffered early in his rookie season with the Bears. He lasted just three seasons in the NFL, all with Chicago, and scored only four touchdowns. His bad knee forced his retirement at age 24.

By the time his red-eye flight landed in Washington the next morning, a groggy Lawson “wandered” through his first practice with the Wizards before boarding yet another international flight to Toronto, where the Wizards opened the postseason.

In all, Lawson’s 29-hour trip spanned nearly 8,000 miles while crossing 11 time zones. That odyssey, though, feels like a layup when compared to the long, winding journey he has taken to get back to the NBA.

“People forgot about him,” Toronto coach Dwane Casey said. “I think you kind of forgot about how fast he is, how he has been a starting point guard on some very successful teams in Denver.”

Stephen Piscotty (R), 45.8 percent, Oakland Athletics at Texas Rangers (RHP Doug Fister): Though he’s left the yard just once in his first 22 games, Piscotty has enjoyed an uptick in batted-ball force (35.3 hard contact percentage) during the initial stages of his homecoming, and the new Athletic is 16-for-47 (.340) over his last 12 contests. He’s not particularly split-leaning, which lines him up to test Fister, who himself has coughed up a 34.9 hard-hit rate and must work in hitter-friendly Globe Life Park.

Ben Gamel (L), 1.5 percent, Seattle Mariners at Chicago White Sox (RHP James Shields): The smidge of thump Gamel boasts typically comes against righties. Ten of his 11 big flies last year fell within that split. Left-handed bats pummeled Shields to a .388 wOBA in 2017.

“There were probably times where he was right there, with being an All-Star when he played in Denver,” Brooks said. “We knew when we picked him up he would give us a spark somewhere.

“He’s a problem [for other teams],” Brooks added.canucks_006

New Orleans has always been skittish about Holiday’s playmaking instincts.

Eyes widened when the Giants signed Dwayne Harris in 2015, as they gave him a five-year, $17.5 million contract and guaranteed him $7.1 million, a nice chunk of change for a player who made his reputation on special teams.

Harris made it through three years of the deal until his time with the Giants came to an end Thursday, when his contract was terminated, an expected move that saves the team $2.45 million on this year’s salary cap.

Harris, 30, played his first four NFL seasons with the Cowboys and wore down the past few years, beset by nagging ailments that often forced him to limp off the field, only to return later in the game, a tribute to his toughness.

This continues a trend with Dave Gettleman, the new general manager, as he purges the roster of players who were part of last season’s 3-13 team. Gettleman on Thursday traded Jason Pierre-Paul to the Buccaneers and earlier this offseason cut punter Brad Wing and cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. He also did not pursue several of the Giants’ own free agents, such as Justin Pugh, Weston Richburg, Devon Kennard and D.J. Fluker.

His agent, Zeke Sandhu, did not reply to text and voicemail messages. Sandhu also represents Cayleb Jones.

Cayleb and Robert Jones, Zay’s father, both showed their support for the 22-year-old on Twitter Wednesday.

“I am my brothers keeper,” Cayleb Jones wrote.

Robert Jones assured his son “is with me and his mom,” while adding “he’s going to be fine!”

The Bills had no immediate comment.

Also a good idea: New Orleans posting up Holiday when the Blazers play McCollum, Lillard and Napier together.

In the fourth quarter of Game 1, he made several puzzling decisions — forcing drives just as Davis popped open behind him, jacking long 2s off-the-bounce instead of probing further, that crazy full-court pass.

Rondo flung up a couple of his own awful shots late, but the offense somehow felt more stable in his hands than in Holiday’s. Of course, it felt most stable in Davis’ hands. Give him the ball. And when Rondo rests — leaving four shooters around Davis — just run spread pick-and-roll after spread pick-and-roll.jets_053

They’ve apparently found one via trade.

The Titans also re-signed defensive end David King, who was set to be an exclusive rights free agent after finishing his first year with the team.Vikings trading for Trevor Siemian to back up Kirk Cousins

The Vikings spent a pile of money on a starting quarterback, but all three of theirs left in free agency so they needed a backup.

After years of searching for capable on the interior of the offensive line, the Dolphins could use someone with prime years left in his tank. If they feel Sitton is that guy, he may not take a second visit before agreeing to a deal.

The question is: Are we seeing the league overproducing and overkilling its product again Just as important, will it make a difference

We all make money. We all cover the draft. I’ll be writing about it. My site will cover it extensively. We all love the draft.

But this isn’t about coverage. This is about the NFL’s desire to monetize everything, to get every little drop of cash and viewers.

It can’t just let something exist. It needs to drain it to the core.

According to Adam Caplan of SiriusXM NFL Radio, Eagles tight end Brent Celek is visiting with Detroit.

The significance of the Cousins deal comes from the absence of non-guaranteed years on the back end, which allow the team to both spread the cap hit into more than three years and permit the team to keep the er around at a time when salary figures that looked good when the contract was signed suddenly become not so impressive in relation to the growth of the salary cap and increases to the market at the er’s position.

It’s understandable.It also came with his father, Wille, town and the two toasted the victory and the New Year after the game.It won’t be Week 8, however.If the Patriots are ever going to get something for Garoppolo via trade, it would be this offseason.For athlete to make the kind of commitment has made, it alters his life.

Lead with his helmet every time.In some cases, like our first player below, it hurt them rankings-wise.Since signing for just $3MM effort to rebuild his career, Latos has spun 18 3 innings which he’s allowed just six hits and one earned run.49ers_110

Falcons G Ben Garland signs RFA tender

Falcons guard Ben Garland has signed his second-round restricted free agent tender, according to D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Garland will now be paid $2.914MM for the 2018 season.

Garland was one of 14 NFL restricted free agents to be tendered at the second-round level, and he’s the first to officially sign his tender. Atlanta also tendered safety Ricardo Allen at the second-round level, but he’s yet to sign his contract. There’s no rush for Allen or any restricted free agent to sign his tender, as RFAs have until April 20 to work out offer sheets with other clubs.

McKinnon’s contract is essentially a one-year deal that bloats to a salary he’s unlikely to justify, but he can line up all over the field and is a weapon. These moves will provide a jolt for a unit that didn’t need massive additions.

It’s brilliant theater for a franchise that has gone sideways since we took one small step for man and one giant leap for mankind.

Maccagnan, the plodding dyed-in-the-wool scout, finally put his well-traveled foot on the accelerator by making an aggressive move to jump up to secure one of the top quarterbacks in this class. There’s no turning back now: Sam Darnold, Josh Rosen, Josh Allen or Baker Mayfield will be a Jet in exactly 41 days (April 26).

Maccagnan parted with precious draft capital — two second-round picks this year (Nos. 37 and 49) and a 2019 second-rounder — but it simply had to be done. The Jets might have technically “overpaid” to slide up three spots, based on the league’s draft value points system, but don’t pay much attention to this deal on paper. The value chart doesn’t factor in real-life dynamics at play.patriots_035

NBA Draft watch: Mikal Bridges, Jalen Brunson give Villanova serious pro potential

Defense, though, is Bridges’ calling card, and it forms the foundation of his profile. His long arms are disruptive to opponents as evidenced by the 2.3 steals and 1.7 blocks he averages per 40 minutes. Those are only slight upticks from his career averages of 2.2 and 1.3. His length pops on film:

As a junior, Brunson is averaging 24.4 points per 40 minutes on a 68.7 true shooting percentage. He is a capable scorer from all three levels. He has the strength to create separation for his midrange jumper using his shoulder, enough craft to get to the rim despite not much top end speed and impressive 3-point numbers. From an NBA perspective, his career 40.6 3-point percentage on 318 attempts is noteworthy.

A long-term NBA backup can still lead an NCAA Tournament champion. Alongside Bridges, one of the sport’s best two-way players, Brunson and Villanova have positioned themselves to make another March run. No one-and-dones necessary.

All statistics in this article are current as of Jan. 16, 2018. Unless otherwise noted, they are pulled from Sports-Reference.

Snubs: Chris Paul has missed too many games; Lillard is on the cusp, but can’t beat out Green’s overall value; Jokic has not really made strides this year; Jordan (and teammate Lou Williams) would make a nice story representing the scrappy Clippers in LA, but the numbers have not been there consistently.

But Friday morning, Walker found himself in a situation he had never encountered during his seven years with the Hornets. The All-Star point guard has become available on the trade market with Charlotte looking at a potential teardown ahead of the Feb. 8 deadline, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

“I’ve seen [the rumors],” Walker said to a tight circle of media members after Friday’s practice. “This is the first time I’ve really been in this kind of situation. What can I do? I’m still here, and I’ve been here for the last seven years. I’m gonna do what I gotta do to help my team win games. All I can do. I have no control over those kinds of things.”indians_014

The offensive line is obviously one of the Cowboys’ strengths, but it’s also not without its weak spots.

Super Bowl “Quarterback Comparisons,” yet again, were almost invariably presented as head-to-head, as if the game starts and the opposing QBs both run on to the field to play one-on-one, defense versus offense, then switch. As Ben Roethlisberger wisely counseled, “It’s not tennis!”

If MSG’s New Devils studio/rinkside man Bryce Salvador — who spent the final six-plus seasons of his NHL career with New Jersey — wants to be heard as a valued contributor, he has to drop this “we” stuff. Salvador’s pleasant and enthusiastic, eager to please. But the audience’s sensibilities should supersede that of the team.

As one NFC pro personnel guy told me via text: “$30M puts you at a huge cap disadvantage and he’s not the guy that’ll lift a franchise by himself.” Devoting too much in the way of cap space and resources to a quarterback who is unable to do more with less can seriously hamstring a franchise going forward.

Orlando Brown, OT, Oklahoma. La’El Collins struggled at the right tackle spot this year, and bringing in an excellent right-tackle prospect would allow him to kick inside and improve the two weaker spots on an otherwise outstanding line. Brown might not be able to handle the best speed rushers in the league, but he should serve as a long-term starter at right tackle and give the Cowboys line the boost it needs to get back to dominance.

General Manager David Gettleman loves his defensive linemen. Just ask Washington Redskins star cornerback Josh Norman, who had his franchise tag rescinded in 2016 as Gettleman bet on his pass rush instead of the mercurial star corner. This offseason, Gettleman traded defensive end Kony Ealy to New England with the hopes he could add a chaos-inducing star like Thomas at No. 8. Whether Thomas aligns outside on early downs or transitions inside on third down, this feels like the right value and spot for Thomas.

What’s wrong with Cam Newton? The Panthers are 2-1 entering Sunday’s game against at 3-0 New England, but Newton continues to struggle.

He threw three INTs last week against the Saints, who are not known as one of the more stout defensive teams in the league, and has just two TDs and four INTs this season while averaging fewer than 200 passing yards per game. Newton, one of the most mobile quarterbacks in the game, has been sacked 10 times already.

Newton, who’s had offseason shoulder surgery, has run less often than he has in the past, when he’s been most dangerous.nike-youth-cardinals-053

What you saw from the Eagles on Sunday was high-level stuff from Pederson, who schemed guys wide open for Foles.

Meanwhile, Teddy Bridgewater, who has been out since suffering a gruesome knee injury in training camp in 2016, may be close to returning, according to Glazer, with a physical scheduled for Monday. In the meantime, Case Keenum is the QB.

The Eagles backup quarterback, who was 2 for 12 on passes over 20 yards in the regular season according to Pro Football Focus, was slinging bombs down the field all game long against one of the best secondaries in football.

Second, the Eagles are loaded with talent. Even after losing those players, Philadelphia has a star wideout in Alshon Jeffery, a star tight end in Zach Ertz, two dangerous downhill runners in LeGarrette Blount and Jay Ajayi, one of the best right tackles in football in Lane Johnson, an excellent center in Jason Kelce and a defensive line that is the best in football, with Fletcher Cox, Timmy Jernigan, Brandon Graham, Vinny Curry, Derek Barnett and Chris Long providing wave after wave of pressure for opposing quarterbacks.

Brown had his work cut out for him against an assailing Georgia pass rush that boasts the long and ferocious duo of Davin Bellamy and Lorenzo Carter. The Oklahoma tackle was his usual self paving lanes for the run game but was shockingly knocked off his block a few times with swipe moves. It wasn’t an abysmal game, as he only moves down one spot.

The Jets are the very best NFL team in all of East Rutherford, N.J. That’s not exactly high praise at the moment. But it’s more than anyone had a right to expect from them this season.

The Cowboys took care of business Thursday night against the Redskins and get to play the Giants this Sunday. They’ve endured four of the six games of RB Ezekiel Elliott’s suspension. But time is running short and they’re simply too far behind some very good teams in the NFC playoff chase.

By the time Aaron Rodgers is ready to play, the Packers probably won’t have realistic playoff hopes. The top-heavy NFC just has too many good teams ahead of them. There might not be any good reason for Rodgers to come back this season.
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Bengals fans donate to Blake Bortles’ charity for beating Steelers

Bills fans flooded the Andy & Jordan Dalton Foundation with donations after Andy Dalton’s last-minute touchdown pass to Tyler Boyd not only secured a Bengals win at Baltimore, but also sent the Bills to the playoffs for the first time since the 1999 season.

Lakers coach Luke Walton saw better results when he removed his starters while trailing by four points early in the third quarter against New York and inserted rookies Alex Caruso and Kyle Kuzma with Corey Brewer, Larry Nance Jr. and Jordan Clarkson. They led the Lakers to their fifth straight home victory.

During our home winning streak, we have been really, really good defensively, Walton told reporters after the game. I was searching out a group that was willing to play that type of defense. … We got a group in there that was committed to that end of the floor, and then we just stuck with them because they were playing hard and playing the right way.

That wasn’t a given for the Bills’ standout center. Leslie Wood was due to deliver around the same time Buffalo was heading to Jacksonville for its Jan. 7 postseason road matchup against the Jaguars. Complicating matters further, Leslie was in Louisville, where the couple lives in the offseason.

Considering his importance to Buffalo’s offense and the fact that this was the first playoff opportunity of his nine-year NFL career, Wood faced a difficult choice for which he was trying to find a solution. Wood said one option was a courtesy extended by Bills owners Terry and Kim Pegula and New Era Cap, which is the title sponsor of the franchise’s home stadium.

It was kind of a crazy time preparing for a game and the birth of my first son coming, Wood said.

As it turned out, Wood had nothing to worry about. Garrett was born last Thursday with his dad in attendance.patriots_173_2b5dcac6ad38ecca-180x180

Ginn gets plenty of yards after the catch, but Brees puts the deep throw right where it needs to be.

After shaking off years of 7-9 jokes with the firing of Jeff Fisher, the Los Angeles Rams have made the postseason with an 11-5 record and will face the Atlanta Falcons at home in the NFC Wild Card Round on Saturday at 8:15 p.m. ET on NBC (live stream).

Despite retaining much of the same talent, the Falcons’ offensive production saw a steep dropoff compared to last season’s Super Bowl run. A big change was losing offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan, who became the head coach of the 49ers, with former USC head coach Steve Sarkisian taking over the play calling.

With a full season of learning how to utilize the bevy of offensive talent that the team boasts, Sarkisian should find more success next season, but a big statement in the playoffs would do much to quell the offseason chatter about the safety of his role on the coaching staff.

But as a rule, day in and day out, they are a part of the club, they’re a key asset, and the more you can communicate, the better. … I have a good relationship with the Jaguars players. I normally wouldn’t have a relationship with players on other teams. The big difference now, whatever the head count was at the meeting, that many more players, I now know their viewpoint, and they know us. And that’s good. I think our focus has to be on the players.”

Not only is his arm strength still there, his accuracy is, too.

Pitch Jake Arrieta on staying in the division and on the benefits of all-you-can-eat bratwursts. Try to get a better second baseman than Eric Sogard. See if Jonathan Lucroy is interested in coming back to catch. Learn from the Pirates, who let their window close with nothing but three wild-card games and a Division Series appearance to show for it. Act now, knowing that the future is still bright.?

Gabriel Baumgaertner: The Giants look like they’re trying to remedy the problems that sunk them in 2017, but they shouldn’t be investing their future in Giancarlo Stanton. Instead, they should try and figure out third base by engaging Tampa Bay for Evan Longoria, see what the Reds want for Billy Hamilton and what Toronto would need for Kevin Pillar. wings_1024

Texans promote David Quessenberry first time since cancer diagnosis

The Texans may have a lost season but they’ll receive an emotional boost Monday with David Quessenberry on the sideline for his first regular season game in three years following a battle with non-Hodgkin T-lymphoblastic lymphoma.

If the former first-round pick remains Philadelphia and the Eagles bring another receiver, he”ll be ready to show up to work and give it his all for playing time.And buoyed by strong pitching, the retooled group created big expectations when it started 23 for first place the division.If there are any positives to this newfound injury concern for the 22-year-old, it’s that the team doesn’t deem the injury serious, and Bodner mentions that this may be a condition Embiid has dealt with prior to his scary fall against the Trail Blazers.They’re obviously very talented, but the Red Sox were very talented, and the Blue Jays are very talented, too.7, missing 30 over that stretch.

Riddick, 48, also played in the NFL after being selected by the 49ers in the ninth round of the 1991 NFL Draft. He didn’t play for San Francisco, but ended up appearing in all 16 games for the Falcons the following year and played in the NFL through the 1998 season with later stops in Cleveland and Oakland. He also played in the short-lived XFL.

Riddick is among those vying to replace longtime Giants GM Jerry Reese, who was fired Dec. 4 along with coach Ben McAdoo.

Ference joins her brother leading runners up and down narrow aisles of stairs at Commonwealth Stadium.While ‘s career numbers are impressive, he feels that the continuous evolution of the passing game and the big numbers todays receivers are racking up may weaken his Hall of Fame chances going forward.put on a show the second half of the game and won his 4 th Super Bowl MVP trophy, .Following a back and forth series, the Rangers met the Flyers for Game 7 at Square Garden.Briere thanked Flyers owner Snider, team president Holmgren and former executive Luukko.

The 63-year-old has been working at a much lower level recently, spending 2015-16 as a high school coach in his native Massachusetts before resigning in the spring.

He most recently worked in the NFL as offensive coordinator for the Dolphins in 2012-13 on the heels of a mediocre four-year stint as head coach at Texas A&M, where he compiled a 25-25 record.

Scully’s call: a year that has been improbable, the impossible has happened.Aon offered plaintiff a severance package totaling $105 if he signed agreement not to sue, but he did not accept the package.But during the telecast, analyst Sean was experiencing technical difficulties with his microphone.Bosher is steady but punted only 44 times this and only five times two playoff , which says a ton about the offense., I’m unsure if is really an RFA, as he is supposed to be with the team for three years.

He was the one who kind of took me under his wing when I first got out here.Hughes mentions Tolbert and Reece, but neither is a great lead blocker.What’s great about it though, is that Sowell doesn’t panic when this happens, he looks very comfortable.And she has worked tirelessly to help low-income children have more choices of better schools.packers_160_199c48632ee44f17-180x180