NFL - NEWS & NOTES

Monday Night Football: Justin Tucker 55-yard field goal lifts Ravens to wild win over Browns



Justin Tucker converted a 55-yard field goal with two seconds left to play as the Baltimore Ravens earned a wild 47-42 victory over the Cleveland Browns on Monday night.

A series of laterals on the final play of the night resulted in the ball going out of the back of the end zone for a safety to give Baltimore the final five-point margin.

The lead changed three times in waning stages of the contest as the Browns rallied from a 14-point deficit in the quarter. Baker Mayfield completed a 21-yard touchdown pass to Rashard Higgins, a two-point conversion off the hands of Kareem Hunt to Donovan Peoples-Jones, and scampered for a 5-yard touchdown as the Browns grabbed a 35-34 lead with 6:33 left to play.

Lamar Jackson missed most of the fourth quarter due to cramps before returning for a pivotal fourth-and-5 at the two-minute warning that resulted in the go-ahead score for Baltimore. Jackson rolled right and found Marquise Brown for a 44-yard touchdown as the Ravens went back on top with 1:51 left to play. A two-point conversion run from J.K. Dobbins gave the Ravens a 42-35 lead.

But the Browns weren’t done either. Mayfield marched straight down the field for Cleveland as it took just four plays and 47 seconds to go 75 yards for the tying score with 1:04 left to play.

Jackson completed three passes to Mark Andrews on the final drive with a fourth to Willie Snead to move into field goal range for Tucker. Jackson spiked the ball with seven seconds left to give Tucker the chance to deliver the critical blow to the Browns.

The Ravens twice led by 14 points during the game with Cleveland fighting back both times. The game featured an NFL record-tying nine rushing touchdowns between the two teams, which is a feat that hadn’t happened in 98 years.

Jackson rushed for 124 yards and two touchdowns and threw for 163 yards and a touchdown to help lift Baltimore to victory. Dobbins and Gus Edwards combined for 102 yards on 20 carries with three touchdowns, two by Edwards, as the Ravens rushed for 231 yards on the night.

Mayfield completed 28-of-47 passes for 343 yards with two touchdowns and an interception for Cleveland along with his rushing touchdown. Nick Chubb rushed for 82 yards and two touchdowns with Kareem Hunt adding a rushing touchdown and receiving touchdown out of the backfield for the Browns.

It’s the first ever 47-42 final score in league history.

NBC

 

Nine rushing touchdowns between Ravens-Browns ties for most in NFL history



The Ravens have scored five rushing touchdowns. The Browns have scored four rushing touchdowns and one passing touchdown.

That ties for the most rushing touchdowns in a single game in NFL history. Both other games came in 1922, according to NFL Research.

The teams are the first in NFL history each to have four or more rushing touchdowns in the same game.

They still have 6:33 to break the record.

Baker Mayfield has the most recent touchdown, scoring on a 5-yard run to give the Browns a 35-34 lead. Nick Chubb has two rushing touchdowns and Kareem Hunt one for the Browns.

Lamar Jackson, who remains in the locker room with cramps, has two rushing touchdowns. Gus Edwards also has two, and J.K. Dobbins has one.

NBC

 

That was probably the most fun game to watch this season.

 

Maybe for you.

For me . . . not so much.

 

Jerry Jones: “Ridiculous” to think Mike McCarthy won’t be back



Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones went on the radio on Monday to say that the team will not be moving on from head coach Mike McCarthy after the 2020 season comes to an end.

It was Cowboys owner Jerry Jones’ turn on 105.3 The Fan on Tuesday and he didn’t say anything to contradict what his son said about McCarthy’s job security. Jones said that the prospect of dismissing McCarthy after one season on the job has not crossed his mind despite the team’s poor performance on the field.

“I’ve been known to stick with these guys in early troubled times coaching,” Jones said, via Jori Epstein of USA Today. “I don’t understand frankly how so ridiculous this conversation is in terms of ever having any meat of the bone.”

Jones said he liked how McCarthy has handled the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic and remains a fan of his coaching philosophy. He also said he loves special teams coordinator John Fassel, which would suggest that Fassel will also be back for another season in Dallas.

Other changes seem like a better bet, but the Cowboys have done their best to clarify McCarthy’s level of security.

NBC

 

James Conner dealing with a quad injury



The Steelers run game has been in the doldrums for quite a while and James Conner may not be available to help the team’s attempt to turn things around against the Bengals next Monday night.

Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said that Conner injured his quad in the team’s loss to the Bills in Week 14. Conner had 10 carries for 18 yards in the 26-15 loss.

Conner suffered the injury in his return from missing two games while on the reserve/COVID-19 list. Benny Snell, Anthony McFarland, and Jaylen Samuels saw work in his absence.

The Steelers are also dealing with a couple of injuries on the offensive line. Left guard Matt Feiler is headed for injured reserve with a pec injury, right tackle Chuks Okorafor has an ankle injury, and guard Kevin Dotson, who would be in line for playing time in Feiler’s place, has a shoulder injury.

Tomlin said that Conner, Okorafor, and Dotson could all be limited in practice this week and he didn’t offer a prediction about their status for Monday.

NBC

 

Owners to discuss 17-game season at virtual meeting Wednesday



NFL owners will discuss whether to expand the regular season to 17 games for 2021 at their regularly scheduled winter meetings Wednesday. That part already was known.

But owners might not vote on the issue at their virtual meeting, Mark Maske of The Washington Post reports. Maske’s source said he was “not sure” whether the 17-game regular season would come to a vote.

The expansion of the regular season by one game was allowed by the Collective Bargaining Agreement the union ratified in March. The CBA, though, does not require the expansion for next season.

Ben Fischer of Sports Business Daily reported last week that the 17-game regular season was “far less certain” that it was before the pandemic.

But as Mike Florio has pointed out, the ongoing broadcast-rights negotiations always were a factor in whether the extra games would arrive in 2021, 2022, or beyond.

NBC

 

Matt Rhule expects Christian McCaffrey to miss another game



Injuries have kept Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey off the field for 10 of the team’s 13 games this season and it looks like that number will go up again this week.

Panthers head coach Matt Rhule told reporters on Tuesday that he does not expect McCaffrey to play in Saturday’s game against the Packers. Rhule did leave the door open to things playing out differently if McCaffrey can do more than expected at Wednesday’s practice.

McCaffrey was listed as limited by a quad injury on Tuesday, although that’s an estimation since the Panthers only held a walkthrough. The quad injury was added to the injury report last week and joins ankle and shoulder injuries on the list of reasons why the Panthers’ top offensive player has had what amounts to a lost season.

Mike Davis has handled the No. 1 running back duties during McCaffrey’s absences and it appears he’ll be back in the saddle this weekend.

NBC

 

Lions announce front-office addition of Chris Spielman

A Lions legend is joining the franchise's front office as it attempts to chart a new course.

Former Lions linebacker Chris Spielman has joined the organization as special assistant to the chairman and president and CEO, the team announced Tuesday. The full-time role will see Spielman report directly to president and CEO Rod Wood, and will include Spielman in interviews for the team's vacant general manager and head coach positions.

When it comes to the aforementioned search process, Spielman will work with a group of advisors that includes Fritz Pollard Alliance Foundation executive director Rod Graves (who is also advising the Houston Texans with their search), Rock Ventures VP of business development Mark Hollis, and Pro Football Hall of Fame running back Barry Sanders, who was a superstar running back for the Lions before abruptly retiring from the game after his age-30 season.

Lions principal owner and chairman Sheila Ford Hamp touted Spielman as "a tremendous ambassador" for the team "since the day he first put on a uniform as a rookie in 1988," adding Spielman will be allowed to "work across various departments on both the football and business sides of our organization."

"I am humbled and excited about the opportunity to be involved with the franchise that is truly a part of me," Spielman said in a release from the team. "The opportunity to work with Rod Wood and every single person in the Lions organization can't get here fast enough. To Lions fans everywhere, I will do everything in my power to help Mrs. Hamp and the Ford Family achieve their vision of something we can all be proud of."

Spielman joined Detroit in 1988 as a second-round pick (29th overall) out of Ohio State, where he starred as an All-American linebacker. The Canton, Ohio, native was a standout at Massillon Washington High School, becoming the first high school athlete to land on a box of Wheaties. He played in Detroit from 1988-1995 before joining the Buffalo Bills in 1996 and 1997, missing the 1998 season to help his wife, who was battling cancer. He signed with the expansion Cleveland Browns in 1999, but did not play in a regular season game due to a neck injury that forced him to retire.

Spielman has remained involved with the game as a broadcaster, serving as a color commentator for college and NFL games.


Detroit is looking to replace coach Matt Patricia and GM Bob Quinn, who were fired following Detroit's loss on Thanksgiving.

NFL.com

 

The Cleveland Browns or Indianapolis Colts could miss the playoffs at 11-5 this year despite there being 7 playoff teams per conference.

EDIT: Ravens too actually if the Browns win out.

 

No vote taken on expansion of regular season to 17 games for 2021

The NFL has their cake, but they’re not eating it yet.

With the full power to expand the regular season to 17 games, the league’s owners did not vote during a Wednesday meeting to do so for 2021. Commissioner Roger Goodell provided that information during a Wednesday conference call with reporters.

Goodell explained that the owners did vote on a scheduling formula if/when a 17th game is added, and that the formula was approved. He did not disclose the manner for determining the extra game.

A decision on expanding to 17 games is expected in the next several weeks, Goodell said.

He also mentioned the ongoing negotiations for the next round of TV contracts. The delay in expanding the season, while potentially rooted in a desire to make the NFL Players Association clamor for more games as a way to increase revenue, likely also has some connection to the question of whether and to what extent the networks will pay for the extra games.

Regardless, to the extent that the pandemic has been cited as a reason for possibly not expanding the regular season, that simply makes no sense. The pandemic should make the NFL even more motivated to find ways to make more money, and adding 16 total games to the 256-game regular season would do that.

NBC

 

Willie, help me out here. When they say that they want to expand to a 17 game season, does that mean that the NFL does away with the bye weeks or do they simply add on another week ? I don't like it either way. They either have to start the season before Labor day (start in August) or the Super Bowl is now deep into February.

 

I think they add another bye week and every team gets two for the season.

 

The way it was proposed earlier was that they would do away with 1-2 of the pre-season games and start the season a week earlier. I don’t know if that was the format approved, but it was the predominant anticipated proposal.

 

TNF: Chargers at Raiders



The NFL couldn't have scripted this week any better. We all witnessed one of the best games of the season on Monday night. The in-game plot twists, lead changes, and memes plastered across social media brought the football viewing experience to a level we hadn’t seen this season. Now, to kick off Week 15, we get the Chargers and Raiders. Just two weeks ago, Las Vegas extended the Jets’ losing streak on a Hail Mary pass exploiting Gregg Williams’ fraudulent defensive scheme. Last week, Anthony Lynn called a running play inside the Falcons’ red zone with 17 seconds left and no timeouts and couldn’t secure a field goal. Both teams have been involved in comical fourth-quarter endings setting up TNF to be a legitimate follow-up to Week 14. To help sort through some of the fantasy-relevant storylines, I’ve put together my notes for TNF and provided a rundown of all the injury news to monitor as we head into week two of the fantasy playoffs.

Can the Chargers Bounce Back?
Their 4-9 record doesn’t reflect how well Justin Herbert has played. Over his first 10 starts, he was 15th in Expected Points Added (EPA) per Play and 16th in Completion Percentage over Expected (CPOE). The Chargers' 37.9 offensive yards per drive would rank seventh on the season and a large part of it has come through the air. While 32.8% of his passes have come while trailing by a score or more, the team’s 62.4% neutral passing rate and 51.9% red-zone passing rate has produced favorable results. Herbert has finished as a Top-12 quarterback in seven games this season. In turn, he’s brought along his pass catchers. Keenan Allen sits at the WR5 in PPR scoring on the season. Hunter Henry is the TE7. Austin Ekeler, despite being placed on IR, is ninth in PPG with an 18.0% target share. It’s a fantasy-friendly offense, but their problem is scoring once inside the red zone. Even while Herbert was making strides towards the Offensive Rookie of the Year award, they were coming away with points (field goals or touchdowns) on just 38.5% of their drives. It’s been worse over the last two weeks. Since being dismantled by Bill Belichick, they’ve averaged just 29.9 offensive yards per drive. Herbert’s been inaccurate (-6.4% CPOE) and they’ve produced points on four drives. Los Angeles may just need the right opponent to get them back on track and Las Vegas is the right team for the job.


The Raiders will already be without Johnathan Abram, Damon Arnette, Nicholas Morrow, and Clelin Ferrell. All are starters on defense. The same defense that Herbert torched for 326 yards and two touchdowns back in Week 9 has gotten worse over the past month. Las Vegas’ secondary has given up two touchdowns to opposing quarterbacks in four consecutive games. They’ve allowed an average of 18.3 points to opposing quarterbacks over this span and now have multiple starters out. The status of Keenan Allen and Mike Williams will be important to watch. Allen (11-103-1 in Week 9) and Williams (7-81-0 in Week 9) were almost unstoppable against the Raiders’ coverage and the Chargers could use a similar performance tonight.

Points of Interest in TNF
For the Chargers, my focus will be on the ancillary receivers. Keenan Allen and Mike Williams are truly questionable heading into Thursday night which is an obvious issue as they have the top two wide receiver target shares on the team. Enter Tyron Johnson and Jalen Guyton. Johnson (Oklahoma State UDFA) saw the largest increase in workload with Williams sidelined last week. His 15.9% target share was fourth on the team, but he at least saw one red-zone target (which he converted) along with two deep attempts. Johnson, with his 6’1”-frame and 4.41-speed, essentially filled Mike Williams’ role. Jalen Guyton played the majority of the snaps opposite Keenan Allen, but Johnson’s performance in Week 14 should earn him more time on the field.

For the Raiders, I’ll be watching Nelson Agholor. At the start of the season, the list of fantasy-relevant pass-catchers in a Derek-Carr led offense was (in order) Darren Waller, Henry Ruggs, and Hunter Renfrow. But Agholor has been a bright spot in the offense and one of their best acquisitions to boost the passing game. The oft-ridiculed receiver has the highest target share of any wide receiver (15.0%) despite having a 14.7 aDOT. His 926 air yards are just slightly behind A.J. Brown’s (934) to put Agholor’s usage into context. But his seven touchdowns show how much we (and opposing defenses) have forgotten about Agholor’s skill. With Henry Ruggs out on the reserve/COVID-19 list, Agholor has the chance to take a step forward as the team’s primary receiver. The Chargers have a tough secondary and have allowed just three wide receivers to go over 100 yards. However, two of those receivers (Calvin Ridley in Week 14, Emmanuel Sanders in Week 5) are known for their combination of speed and nuanced technique when running routes. Agholor isn’t quite on their level, but we’ve seen flashes for him to be worth watching on Thursday night.

YAHOO

 

Loss tonight would all but end the Raiders’ playoff hopes



For most of this season, the Raiders have been right in the thick of the AFC playoff race. But they’re in danger of falling out of contention.

If the Raiders lose to the Chargers tonight, their chances of making the playoffs would fall to almost nil.

A loss tonight would drop the Raiders to 7-7, which would put them 2.5 games behind the Browns and Colts in the wild card race, 1.5 games behind the Dolphins for the final wild card, and 1.5 games behind the Ravens, who are currently behind the Dolphins in the wild card tiebreaker.

At that point, even winning their final two games (against the Dolphins and Broncos) and finishing 9-7 probably wouldn’t be enough to put the Raiders in the postseason. At that point, the Raiders would need a lot of help in the form of losses by the Dolphins and Ravens. And the Raiders would also lose a tiebreaker to the Patriots if both teams finished 9-7.

So for the Raiders, consider tonight a must-win game.

NBC

 

The Raiders are already gone as the Eagles would say, there's a chance that one of those other teams could miss the playoffs at 11-5.

 

Report: Owners debating whether to play two or three preseason games



For years, the NFL justified a potential expansion of the regular season from 16 to 18 games by explaining that the preseason would be reduced from four games to two games, keeping the total number of games played at 20 per team — just like it was when the NFL played 14 regular-season games and six preseason games.

Now that the NFL has secured the ability to play 17 regular-season games, the question becomes whether to keep the total number of games at 20.

Seth Wickersham of ESPN.com reports that Commissioner Roger Goodell favors shrinking the preseason from four games to two. Some owners, including very influential ones like Robert Kraft of the Patriots, Jerry Jones of the Cowboys, John Mara of the Giants, and Art Rooney II of the Steelers, want three games.

The CBA allows the NFL to play up to three preseason games per team, in any year during which the regular season has 17 games. The question becomes whether teams will surrender the revenue from a third preseason game.

There’s a collective-bargaining component to this as well. Why voluntarily play two preseason games when the NFL has the right to stage three? That should be the carrot, frankly, to increasing the number of regular-season games to 18.

Maybe that’s where it all ends up, and maybe that’s where it needs to end up given the damage done by the pandemic. Eighteen and two, with at least 19 weeks of action and perhaps an effort to expand the number of windows, with maybe Sunday morning games, Monday doubleheaders, and prime-time games on Tuesday or Wednesday.

NBC