Have to feel for the Eagles, another OL down. But damn their last 3 offensive plays were bad, and could not understand why they were seemingly content to stay on the absolute edge of their kickers range.
The Eagles are just really getting hit hard by the injury bug... hard to overcome all that. Gotta feel for them.
Buccaneers improve to 2-1, beat winless Broncos Tom Brady had his best game yet in a Buccaneers uniform as Tampa Bay took an early lead in Denver today and never looked back. Brady completed 25 of 38 passes for 297 yards, with three touchdowns and no interceptions, as the Bucs went up 23-3 in the second quarter and ultimately won 28-10. Rob Gronkowski also had his best game as a Buccaneer, catching six of the seven passes Brady threw him for 48 yards. Mike Evans caught just two passes for two yards, but both catches were one-yard touchdowns. The Broncos were playing without injured starting quarterback Drew Lock, and the offense missed him. Jeff Driskel completed just 17 of 30 passes for 176 yards with a touchdown and an interception before he was benched in favor of Brett Rypien, who went 8-for-9 for 53 yards. At 0-3 and plagued by injuries, the Broncos are going nowhere this season. At 2-1, the Buccaneers are in good shape exiting September. NBC
Lions earn their first win and hand Cardinals their first loss After blowing double-digit leads in four straight games, the Lions showed some heart in today’s fourth quarter. A hard-fought game in Arizona ended with Matt Prater kicking a field goal as time expired and the Lions beating the Cardinals 26-23. Arizona quarterback Kyler Murray made some big plays but also made some very bad throws, with three interceptions and a couple other passes that easily could have been picked off. Murray has undeniable talent, but today was far from his best game. It wasn’t Matthew Stafford‘s best game, either, but it was good enough, with Stafford completing 22 of 31 passes for 270 yards, with two touchdowns and no interceptions. The Lions improved to 1-2 and did enough to take a little heat off General Manager Bob Quinn and coach Matt Patricia, whose job security has been called into question. The Cardinals fell to 2-1 and have to feel like they gave away a game they should have won. NBC
Russell Wilson throws five touchdowns, outduels Dak Prescott in 38-31 win The Russell Wilson vs. Dak Prescott duel was every bit as enjoyable as advertised. Wilson threw five touchdowns, giving him 14 for the season. (He should have had a sixth but more on that later.) That’s the most in NFL history through three games. Prescott threw for 472 yards and three touchdowns. He became only the second quarterback to throw for more than 450 passing yards in consecutive games, joining Jameis Winston. Prescott, though, threw his second interception with six seconds left as cornerback Ryan Neal picked him in the end zone, giving the Seahawks a hard-earned 38-31 victory. Seattle remained undefeated, while Dallas fell to 1-2. Prescott drove the Cowboys 70 yards on 16 plays as they took a 31-30 lead on a 42-yard Greg Zuerlein field goal with 3:59 remaining. It was too much time for Wilson. DK Metcalf redeemed himself after a careless fumble on his way into the end zone for what should have been a 63-yard touchdown in the first half. The Seahawks budding star caught the game-winning touchdown on a 29-yard pass from Wilson on third-and-three with 1:47 left. The Cowboys tried to double him, but Metcalf ran by safety Darian Thompson. Wilson’s pass on the two-point try fell incomplete, but Cowboys defensive tackle Trysten Hill hit Wilson in the head. The Seahawks got another chance. It’s all Wilson needed. He connected with Jacob Hollister for the conversion, giving the Seahawks a 38-31 lead. Prescott got the Cowboys as close as the Seattle 22 before an Alton Robinson sack and Neal’s pick. Tyler Lockett caught nine passes for 103 yards and three touchdowns, while Metcalf had four receptions for 110 yards and one touchdown. Cowboys pass rusher Aldon Smith had three sacks of Wilson. Both teams entered with big injuries and left with more. Seahawks running back Chris Carson grabbed for his left knee after Hill grabbed the running back’s leg and rolled over it on the tackle with 3:03 remaining. The Seahawks also lost safety Jamal Adams in the fourth quarter. He limped off with a groin injury and didn’t return. NBC
Packers pull away late to beat Saints The Saints gave the Packers too many chances in the fourth quarter, and the Packers made them pay. The Packers left New Orleans with a 37-30 win over the Saints Sunday night, continuing a run of impressive offensive performances. The fact that 37 was their lowest point total of the year (they scored 85 in the first two) has a lot to do with the fact they’re 3-0 at this point. Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers threw for 283 yards, with three touchdowns and no interceptions, despite the absence of wide receiver Davante Adams. In his stead, Packers wideout Allen Lazard had six catches for 146 yards and a touchdown. The Saints played more efficiently on offense, but came unwound in the fourth quarter. From Taysom Hill‘s fumble which led to a Packers field goal, to multiple pass interference penalties late, the Saints frayed at the end of a game that was tightly played through three quarters. Quarterback Drew Brees was a sharp 29-of-36 for 288 yards and three touchdowns, with Alvin Kamara doing a lot of the heavy lifting. Kamara had 13 catches for 139 yards and two touchdowns, but they gave the Packers too many chances. NBC
Report: Chris Carson avoids serious injury Seahawks running back Chris Carson appears to have been fortunate, after he left yesterday’s game with an ankle injury on a suspect tackle. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Carson suffered some degree of knee sprain, but he could return to the field “shortly.” Carson’s having an MRI today to determine the extent of the damage, but it appears he avoided the worse. Carson left the game late after he went down late in the fourth quarter, and had his leg twisted by Cowboys defensive tackle Trysten Hill. Rapoport suggests that Hill will likely be fined, but not suspended for the alligator roll move. Hill was also flagged for roughing the passer for a helmet-to-helmet hit on Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson later in the fourth quarter, which could make it an expensive loss for him. NBC
49ers like what they saw from what’s left of a roster For 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan, the gnawing feeling started last Sunday, when he realized he’d be without a significant part of his depth chart the following week. But on Monday, he was back to work with his team at the Greenbrier resort in West Virginia, and when Wednesday’s practice rolled around, he could tell a difference among the part of the roster he had left. “Then when the players came in Wednesday, it was just nice because they were totally different than how they were Monday,” Shanahan told Peter King of NBC’s Football Morning in America. “It was just cool when we got to practice on Wednesday. Our guys were over it by then and then each practice they gained more confidence. You start to see some of the guys we have on our team. The depth. The attitude. I better try and figure out the right way to say this. But it almost ends where anytime you turn on the TV, everyone’s talking about injuries and how you got no chance with all the guys we’re missing. Our guys—and it was true, we did have some injuries and the guys didn’t feel great about going back to play there again—you try to put all that in perspective with the guys. “I was like, hey, this NFL’s a tough league. If we don’t change our mindset on this, we’re gonna get embarrassed. You start that on Wednesday and you try and just address it, address the elephant in the room so you can get over it.” Not only did they lose defensive linemen Nick Bosa and Solomon Thomas to season-ending ACLs last week, but they entered the second game of their East Coast trip without quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, tight end George Kittle, and several other key parts. It hardly showed in the result, as they thrashed the Giants yesterday the same way they did the Jets the previous week (a combined 67-22). It wasn’t without hurdles, as they lost Kittle-replacement Jordan Reed during the game, only to see tight end Ross Dwelley step up, the same way backup quarterback Nick Mullens and so many other backups did. “It was a good learning experience for everyone,” Shanahan said. “I just learned . . . our team likes football. People kinda counted us out, and that’s how we felt a lot last year. It wasn’t till we were about 7-0 I feel like people started taking us seriously. In football, you never stay the same; you’re always a different team. You go through things together. But our depth and our love of the game—I think those things really helped us through a tough time.” That kind of resilience will pay off once some of the regulars get well, as the 2-1 49ers try to recover from a disastrous run of injuries so early in the season. NBC
Patrick Mahomes tosses four TDs, runs for another as Chiefs grab 34-20 win over Ravens In a battle of top AFC contenders, the Kansas City Chiefs proved they are still at the top of the heap. Patrick Mahomes tossed four touchdown passes and ran for another as the Chiefs gained 517 yards and improved to 3-0 with a 34-20 victory over the Baltimore Ravens on Monday night. It’s the 12th consecutive win for Kansas City dating back to last season. The defending Super Bowl champions greatly outclassed Baltimore in the first half to build a lead that was never truly threatened. The Ravens scored just three points offensively as the Chiefs built a 27-10 lead at the break. A 26-yard Justin Tucker field goal combined with a 93-yard kickoff return touchdown from Devin Duvernay served as the only points for the Ravens in the half. Meanwhile, Mahomes ran for a 3-yard touchdown and had passing scores to Anthony Sherman, Tyreek Hill and Mecole Hardman as they sliced up the Ravens Defense. Kansas City out-gained the Ravens by a 333-97 margin in the half with 18 first downs gained to just five from Baltimore. Mahomes’ run gave the Chiefs a 6-3 lead before a missed extra point from Harrison Butker. The missed extra point and a missed 42-yard field goal from Butker were about the only blemishes on the night for the Chiefs. Mahomes connected with Sherman on a 5-yard touchdown on an underhanded shovel pass to increase the lead to 13-3. Duvernay’s ensuing kickoff return score would pull the Ravens right back into the mix at 13-10 before Mahomes and the Chiefs put on the afterburners. A 20-yard touchdown to Hill and a 49-yard touchdown to Hardman rounded out the first half lead. A 42-yard Tucker field goal and a 5-yard touchdown pass from Lamar Jackson to Nick Boyle pulled the Ravens within a score at 27-20 early in the fourth quarter. However, the Chiefs answered with a 13-play, 75-yard drive that drained nearly seven minutes off the clock as Mahomes connected with Eric Fisher on a tackle-eligible play for a 2-yard touchdown to cap the victory for Kansas City. Kansas City held Jackson to a career-low 97 yards passing on the night. Jackson added 83 yards on nine carries but the Ravens Offense could not get anything going consistently. The Chiefs converted 10 of 13 chances on third down on the night. Mahomes completed 31 of 42 passes for 385 yards and four touchdowns. NBC
Vikings say they’ve had no positive tests Tuesday morning brought word that the Titans and Vikings have suspended in-person activities at their facilities after eight members of the Titans organization tested positive for COVID-19. The Vikings closed their facility because they played the Titans on Sunday and three of Tennessee’s players are part of the group that tested positive. The Vikings released a statement on Tuesday saying that no test administered by the team has come back positive. “Today the NFL notified us that members of the Tennessee Titans organization have tested positive for COVID-19,” the statement said. “As of this morning, we have not received any positive results from Vikings testing following Sunday’s game. Per the NFL protocol, we will suspend in-person club activities and close TCO Performance Center immediately. We will work closely with the NFL and NFLPA to monitor the situation, perform additional testing and determine when the facility can reopen. We will provide further updates regarding this week’s football schedule when appropriate.” Tennessee’s facility will be closed until Saturday, but continued rounds of negative tests could allow the Vikings to get back to work sooner. The Vikings are scheduled to face the Texans in Houston on Sunday. NBC
More bad news for the Eagles... Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert went for an MRI on Monday after hurting his ankle in Sunday’s tie with the Bengals and it confirmed that Goedert will miss time in the coming weeks. Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Goedert fractured his ankle. Head coach Doug Pederson said at his Monday press conference that he didn’t have a timetable for Goedert’s recovery and McLane reports that his time off the field it is not expected to be “too lengthy.” Goedert has 13 catches for 138 yards and a touchdown so far this season. Zach Ertz and Richard Rodgers will hold down the fort at tight end until Goedert is cleared to return. Wide receiver DeSean Jackson hurt his hamstring in the tie and cornerback Avonte Maddox hurt his ankle. Maddox is expected to miss time while Pederson referred to Jackson as day to day. NBC
Report: NFL could move Titans-Steelers to Monday night For now, the Titans game against the Steelers remains a go. But the Titans’ facility won’t reopen until at least Saturday after eight members of the organization tested positive for COVID-19, including three players. The NFL “wants and intends” to play the game as scheduled Sunday, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN, but a contingency plan is in place to move the game to Monday night. That would allow for additional testing and contact tracing to occur. It also would allow the Titans an extra day to practice. The NFL has moved games from Sunday to Monday in the past for natural disasters, conflicts with MLB’s postseason and even the collapse of the inflatable roof at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome. The NFL also could move the game to Week Seven by moving the Steelers’ Week Seven game against the Ravens to a week later when both have a scheduled off week. NBC