NFL - NEWS & NOTES

I think this is the biggest missed story of the Eagles game.

 

A quick Google showed he played against Washington on September 13th. Still, an impressive feat.

 

He didn't start though. He came in for an injury.

 

"Starting" is totally dependent upon who else is available on the roster. The fact that he even played in an NFL game without any High School or college experience is still impressive.

 

Texans fire Bill O’Brien



After an 0-4 start and longstanding questions about his decision making, Texans coach and General Manager Bill O’Brien has been fired.

John McClain of the Houston Chronicle reports that owner Cal McNair fired O’Brien today.

O’Brien’s team has won the AFC South four of the last five years, but since being given full control of personnel, his moves as a GM have been widely panned. Those moves included trading away star receiver DeAndre Hopkins and trading away the Texans’ first-round draft picks in both 2020 and 2021 for offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil.

Romeo Crennel is expected to take over as interim head coach. Jack Easterby, who has become the second-most powerful member of the team’s front office, is expected to stay with the team.

The Texans will now move into a phase in which the most important piece — franchise quarterback Deshaun Watson — is in place, but everything else needs to be rebuilt.

NBC

 

Not surprised he got canned. Mildly shocked it was so soon into the season.

 

The Texans did play some really good teams.

 

Chiefs begin a fourth consecutive season 4-0 with 26-10 win over Patriots



The Chiefs led 6-3 at halftime. They won 26-10.

Kansas City moved to 4-0, the first team in NFL history to start four consecutive seasons with four wins. The Patriots fell to 2-2.

The Patriots’ mistakes finally caught up to them Monday night.

They dropped two interceptions, took two unnecessary sacks that cost them at minimum six points and had four turnovers. New England needs Cam Newton to return soon.

Without Newton, who tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday, the Patriots started veteran Brian Hoyer. He didn’t finish the game, making two rookie mistakes that cost the Patriots two field goals if not more.

Jarrett Stidham replaced Hoyer with 42 seconds remaining in the third quarter. He threw a 4-yard touchdown to N'Keal Harry on his first drive. He also threw two interceptions.

The first wasn’t his fault as receiver Julian Edelman had the ball bounce off his hands and into the waiting hands of surprised safety Tyrann Mathieu. Mathieu returned it 25 yards for a touchdown that gave the Chiefs a 26-10 lead.

Stidham drove the Patriots to the Kansas City 37, where Rashad Fenton intercepted him in the end zone on a pass intended for Damiere Byrd. That effectively ended any hope the Patriots had of a comeback.

The Chiefs were the Chiefs, even though they didn’t put up big numbers against Bill Belichick’s defense. They gained “only” 323 yards and Patrick Mahomes was “only” 19-of-29 for 236 yards and two touchdowns.

Tyreek Hill and Mecole Hardman both had 6-yard touchdown catches.

NBC

 

Robert Tonyan’s three touchdowns carry Packers to 30-16 win over Falcons



Packers tight end Robert Tonyan caught three of Aaron Rodgers‘ four touchdown passes as Green Bay cruised to a 30-16 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Monday night.

Rodgers had just six incompletions on the night while throwing for 327 yards and the four touchdowns for Green Bay despite being without starting wide receivers Davante Adams and Allen Lazard. The Packers have now scored at least 30 points in each of their first four victories to open the season.

Rodgers and the Packers still managed to take advantage of a significantly depleted Atlanta secondary to improve to 4-0 on the year. A 6-yard touchdown pass to Aaron Jones gave Green Bay an early 7-0 lead. After a 23-yard field goal from Elliott Fry got the Falcons on the board in the second quarter, the connection with Tonyan started to emerge.

Tonyan caught a 19-yard touchdown pass with 2:28 left in the first half to give Green Bay a 13-3 advantage. After a very quick three-and-out by the Falcons, it took just 51 seconds for Tonyan and Rodgers to hook up again as an 8-yard touchdown pass capped a 50-yard drive before the half.

Todd Gurley found the end zone twice on the night for Atlanta as they tried to manage with a hobbled and eventually sidelined Julio Jones. Gurley rushed for 57 yards on 16 carries with a 5-yard score closing the gap to 20-9 in the third quarter with Fry missing an extra point try.

Tonyan then added a 21-yard touchdown grab on Green Bay’s ensuing possession to extend the lead to 27-9. Tonyan finished the night with six catches for 98 yards. Jamaal Williams had 95 yards on eight catches for Jones finished with 71 rushing yards on 15 carries for Green Bay.

Gurley’s 3-yard touchdown again closed the deficit but the Falcons managed to get no closer. Mason Crosby added a 48-yard field goal to push the Green Bay lead to 30-16. A fourth down pass from Matt Ryan intended for Calvin Ridley was late and behind its intended target in the end zone and was broken up by Adrian Amos with 3:38 left to play.

Ryan completed 28 of 39 passes for 285 yards for the Falcons. With Jones out due to a hamstring injury, Olamide Zaccheaus ended up leading Atlanta in receiving with eight catches for 86 yards.

NBC

 

Ezekiel Elliott: I can’t fumble anymore



Last Sunday’s game between the Browns and Cowboys looked like it was going to be a seesaw affair until a pair of turnovers in the second quarter.

Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott lost a fumble on a sack to set up one Browns touchdown and Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott lost another to set up a second score. The Browns eventually opened up a 41-14 lead and held on for a 49-38 win.

It was the third straight game with multiple turnovers by the Cowboys and the third time that Elliott has fumbled the ball this season. This fumble came while he was sitting on a Browns defender at the end of a run and Elliott said Wednesday that he “kind of eased up” because he thought he was down.

“I can’t give up the ball anymore. . . . It hurts,” Elliott said, via the team’s website. “I look at myself as a leader for this team. And I look at myself as someone who’s supposed to help pick the team up when we get down and not be the cause of falling behind.”

The Cowboys have scored 109 points the last three weeks, but nine turnovers have left them playing from behind for the majority of games and they’ve only been able to climb out of the hole once. Finding a way to end that pattern against the Giants will be the top priority for Dallas this weekend.

NBC

 

Another Titans player tests positive for COVID-19; Sunday's game vs. Bills in doubt

Another day brings another positive COVID-19 test in Tennessee. The latest result casts serious doubt Sunday's game against the Buffalo Bills can be played.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported that another Titans player tested positive during Wednesday's round of testing, per a source informed of the situation.

Pelissero added that the inconclusive test from the previous day also came back positive, per a source.

Tennessee's facility remains closed.

NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported the number is now 21 members of Titans organization -- 12 players, nine personnel -- to test positive for the novel coronavirus.

With the positive tests trickling in one or two by day, Tennessee hasn't been in their facility since the Week 3 game against the Minnesota Vikings. The NFL postponed the Titans-Steelers game scheduled for last Sunday until Week 7.

With the Titans' bye burned last week and the Bills set to play next Thursday night, the league is in a tough spot trying to figure out how to play the game, given the positive test results continue.


The league is reviewing and trying to concoct a pathway to play the game, but beyond adding an additional week at the end of the year, the options are thin.

The NFL sent a memo to the teams this week, noting that violations of the COVID-19 protocol could result in losing draft picks and potential forfeitures of games. While the league has tried to avoid the forfeit route thus far, it's possible it becomes the only option.

NFL.com

 

Okay. I don't know about you guys, but, it appears to me that something drastically different is going on with the Titans. Virtually every other franchise (operating under the same Covid-19 protocols) have between zero and two or three positive test results. Frankly, I've lost track of how many positive tests they've received but it is a statistically significant number.

Why is it that 31 teams can operate under these protocols and still field a team every week but the Titans can't ???

 

Good question. 21 Titans have tested positive so far and their facility hasnt been open since week 3. Something is sorely amiss.

 

NFL Research awards at the quarter mark: Top QB, rookie, more​

With the first four weeks in the books, NFL Media researcher Cole Jacobson identifies standouts of the 2020 NFL campaign thus far. Using a combination of conventional stats and advanced analytics available to the NFL Research team, here are some of the top players, games and moments of the season's first quarter.

Most devastating pitch-and-catch combo: Green Bay Packers' Aaron Rodgers to Allen Lazard
Lazard missed Week 4 after undergoing core muscle surgery, but this duo's accomplishments in Weeks 1-3 were off the charts. Rodgers is 13 of 17 for 254 yards (14.9 yards per attempt), 2 TDs and a 157.1 passer rating when targeting Lazard this season, per Next Gen Stats. Among all pairs with 15-plus targets, the duo ranks second in both passer rating (trailing the Jaguars' Gardner Minshew-D.J. Chark connection by 1.2 points) and in yards per attempt (trailing the Vikings' Kirk Cousins and Justin Jefferson by 2.5 yards). Rodgers and Lazard have been especially deadly on the deep ball (20-plus air yards), connecting on 3-of-4 attempts for 158 yards.

*Runners-up: Seattle Seahawks' Russell Wilson to Tyler Lockett, Jacksonville Jaguars' Gardner Minshew to D.J. Chark

Best comeback: Chicago Bears over Atlanta Falcons, Week 3
Both teams had already been part of a comeback this season -- the Bears rallied against the Lions in Week 1 and the Falcons blew a 19-point lead in Week 2 -- but this was the most impressive one yet. Chicago trailed 26-10 midway through the fourth quarter before going on to score 20 unanswered points in the final 6:20 to win the game. The win probability for the Bears had fallen to 1 percent, the lowest such figure of any team that has gone on to win a game this season, per Next Gen Stats. Some magic from Nick Foles -- who replaced Mitch Trubisky in the third quarter -- sparked the Bears, as he became the first player since at least 1991 to throw three-plus touchdowns in the final eight minutes of a game that he did not start. The 2020 Bears are the first team in NFL history to win multiple games in the same season after trailing by 16-plus points in the fourth quarter.

*Runner-up: Dallas Cowboys over Atlanta Falcons, Week 2

Best unit: Pittsburgh Steelers' defensive front
The Steelers' defensive front has maintained its status at the league's finest, even after losing DT Javon Hargrave to the Eagles in free agency. Pittsburgh's interior D-linemen and edge rushers have a 90.2 overall grade from Pro Football Focus this season, the highest mark for any non-QB positional unit this season. With T.J. Watt, Bud Dupree and Cameron Heyward leading the way, the Steelers lead the NFL with 5.0 sacks per game. Pittsburgh pressures opposing QBs on 41.0 percent of dropbacks, besting the second-place mark by nearly 10 percentage points (Rams, 32.5%), per Next Gen Stats.

*Runners-up: New England Patriots' OL, Cleveland Browns' RBs/FB

Best quarterback: Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks
How to pick between Russell Wilson and Aaron Rodgers when each one is breaking every record in sight? It isn't easily done, but we give the nod to Seattle's QB1. Wilson leads the NFL in yards per attempt (9.4) and passer rating (136.7), the latter of which would break Rodgers' single-season NFL record (122.5). Wilson's completion percentage above expectation of +8.6% leads all qualified QBs (Rodgers is third at +6.9%), according to Next Gen Stats. Plus, Wilson's dominance on deep balls is unmatched: He leads all QBs in pass yards (430), pass TDs (7) and passer rating (147.7, min. 10 attempts) on throws of 20+ air yards.

*Runner-up: Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers

 

Best rookie: Justin Herbert, QB, Los Angeles Chargers
While Herbert and Joe Burrow have both been extremely impressive in their debut seasons, a deeper look at the numbers gives Herbert the slightest of edges. Herbert became the second player since at least the 1970 merger to have 850-plus passing yards and a 100-plus passer rating in each of his first three career games, joining some guy named Patrick Mahomes. The NGS analytics paint Herbert well, too: Herbert's +5.9% completion percentage over expectation ranks sixth among all qualified QBs (Burrow, at +6.0%, ranks fourth). What ultimately separated the two was the deep ball. Burrow has completed only one of 23 attempts of 20-plus air yards, while Herbert is 4 of 10 on such passes with 164 yards and 3 TDs.

*Runners-up: Joe Burrow, QB, Cincinnati Bengals; Justin Jefferson, WR, Minnesota Vikings

Most clutch play: Seattle Seahawks DE L.J. Collier's goal-line stop of Cam Newton, Week 2
The game of the year so far was largely defined by elite offensive play on both sides, but it was a defensive stop from the 1-yard line that clinched the win for Seattle. Cam Newton had scored twice on 1-yard runs earlier in that game, but the third time was the charm for Pete Carroll's defense. Next Gen Stats placed the Seahawks' win probability at 83 percent prior to Collier's game-sealing play.

*Runner-up: Buffalo Bills QB Josh Allen's game-winning TD pass vs. the Rams, Week 3

Best record-breaking performance: Tom Brady, QB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Just when you think Tom Brady has done it all, he finds another way to make history. The 43-year-old Brady threw five touchdown passes in a Week 4 comeback win over the Chargers, becoming the oldest player to accomplish the feat (Warren Moon previously held the record by throwing 5 TDs at age 40 in 1997). Brady also became the only player in his 40s to throw TD passes to five different receivers in one game, broke his own record as the oldest player with back-to-back games with three-plus pass TDs and broke a tie with former teammate Adam Vinatieri for the most regular-season wins of all-time (now at 222).

*Runner-up: Dak Prescott, QB, Dallas Cowboys (most passing yards in four-game span, at 1,690)

Best cover man: Jessie Bates III, S, Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals have jumped to 16th in scoring defense after ranking 25th a year ago, and the third-year safety is a major reason why. Bates' PFF coverage grade of 89.3 is second in the NFL among all cornerbacks and safeties with 75-plus coverage snaps (he trails only Packers CB Jaire Alexander). Bates has allowed five completions for 40 yards on 10 targets for a 60.4 passer rating, with five pass breakups, per PFF. His forced incompletion percentage is 50 percent, best in the NFL among 174 players with 10-plus targets.

*Runner-up: James Bradberry, CB, New York Giants

Best call by a coach: Andy Reid's fourth-down play-call in overtime, Week 2
Reid's Chiefs had the ball on the Chargers' 46-yard line on fourth-and-1 with 4:06 remaining in overtime. Reid could have punted or sent in Harrison Butker for a 63-yard field goal attempt, but he chose to keep the offense on the field, a decision that ultimately added 20.3 percent to Kansas City's win probability (most of any coaching call this season), per EdjSports. The gamble paid off, as Darwin Thompson converted with a 2-yard gain. And Butker still got to have his shot at a career-long kick: It came from 58 yards later on that drive, and it was good, winning the game for the Chiefs.

*Runner-up: Colts coach Frank Reich's decision to go for it on fourth-and-1 in the fourth quarter in a Week 1 loss at Jacksonville (added 6.7 percent to Indianapolis' win probability).

Iron man award: Justin Simmons, S, Denver Broncos
Simmons has played all 281 defensive snaps for the Broncos, making him one of three Denver players (and one of 33 NFL players) to not miss a defensive snap this season. What separates him from the pack? He's not just on the field; he's flying around it! Per Next Gen Stats, Simmons' stop distance (average distance traveled before making a tackle) is 21.44 yards, most in the NFL among all players with 25-plus tackles this season.

*Runner-up: Bobby Wagner, LB, Seattle Seahawks

 

Late Cairo Santos field goal lifts Bears to 20-19 victory over Buccaneers



Tom Brady and Nick Foles are both playing for different teams than they were the last time they met in Super Bowl LII. But just like that February day in 2018, it was Foles that emerged victorious on Thursday night in Chicago.

Cairo Santos converted a 38-yard field goal with 1:13 left to play as the Bears earned a 20-19 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The game was far from the offensive shootout the Super Bowl was. Foles completed 30 of 42 passes for 243 yards with a touchdown pass and an interception on the night for the Bears.

Brady and the Buccaneers controlled much of the first half before a late first half flurry found Tampa Bay trailing at halftime.

Ryan Succop converted field goals from 39 and 35 yards and Brady tossed a 2-yard touchdown to a hobbled Mike Evans as the Buccaneers built a 13-0 lead.

The Bears finally mounted a significant drive with a 10-play, 70-yard march that led to a 3-yard David Montgomery touchdown run to close the lead to 13-7 with just under two minutes left in the half. As Tampa Bay tried to mount a two-minute drive to answer, Ke'Shawn Vaughn took a huge hit from Kyle Fuller and fumbled. The play was initially ruled an incomplete pass before being overturned on review with Robert Quinn getting the recovery.

The short field given to Chicago led to a go-ahead score before the break. Jimmy Graham made a terrific one-handed touchdown catch for a 12-yard score from Foles as the Bears took a 14-13 lead into the locker room.

Offenses then became stagnant with the teams trading lone field goals into the early stages of the fourth quarter. Succop’s 25-yard field goal with 4:49 remaining gave Tampa Bay a 19-17 lead.

The Bears were unable to mount a drive on the following possession and punted away to the Buccaneers with just 2:48 remaining. However, Brady and the Buccaneers only burned 16 seconds off the clock on their possession as Chicago took over with a final chance with 2:21 left to play.

Santos’ field goal gave the Bears the 20-19 lead but Brady and the Buccaneers still had 1:13 left for a chance to win it themselves. However, Brady seemingly lost track of the downs and an incomplete pass to Cameron Brate on a fourth-and-6 sealed the victory for Chicago.

Brady completed 25 of 41 passes for 253 yards and a touchdown while Ronald Jones rushed for 106 yards on 17 carries for the Buccaneers.

NBC

 

Some real good stuff happening this season with these rookies. Fun to see.

Herbert gets the starters gig for the rest of the season is a no-brainer for the Chargers.

 

Cowboys confirm Tyron Smith out for season



The Cowboys have suffered a very big loss on their offensive line.

Dallas left tackle Tyron Smith will miss the rest of the season, head coach Mike McCarthy confirmed today.

That had been expected after news surfaced that Smith’s history of neck injuries was showing no signs of getting better and was instead getting worse. McCarthy said today that Smith needs neck surgery.

The 29-year-old Smith has been one of the best left tackles in the NFL for the last decade, and the Cowboys will have a hard time replacing him. Brandon Knight is expected to be the starting left tackle going forward.

Dallas has already lost starting right tackle La'el Collins for the season, so Dak Prescott is going to have a very difficult job this season, leading an offense behind a line that isn’t giving him much protection.

NBC