NFL - NEWS & NOTES

Taysom Hill leads Saints to 39-32 win over Seahawks

 

A pass interference penalty gave the Commanders the ball on the 2-yard-line with 19 seconds left and the Titans up 21-17, but the Commanders couldn’t finish the job.

Carson Wentz threw two incompletions that were near-interceptions and then got picked off by Titans linebacker David Long on a pass intended for running back J.D. McKissic. Time expired after a final kneeldown and the 21-17 win lifts the Titans to 3-2 on the season.

Derrick Henry ran 28 times for 102 yards and two touchdowns to pace the Titans offensive attack on Sunday. Henry has now posted five touchdowns in his last four games as he picks up steam after a slow start to the season.

Ryan Tannehill was 15-of-25 for 181 yards and a touchdown pass to Dontrell Hilliard on a screen that the running back broke for a score. He was sacked five times by members of the Commanders defensive line, but avoided turnovers on a day when they didn’t have much margin for error.

Wentz couldn’t do the same, which makes going 25-of-37 for 359 yards and two touchdowns to wide receiver Dyami Brown on his other throws mean very little. The Commanders needed their quarterback to get the job done in the final moments and Wentz was not able to rise to the occasion.

The Commanders will be in Chicago next weekend and another loss will make it even harder for head coach Ron Rivera to continue pleading for patience. The Titans will have a bye before returning to action against the Colts in Week Seven.

PFT

 

Seahawks RB Rashaad Penny suffers fractured tibia in loss to Saints

Seattle Seahawks running back Rashaad Penny suffered a fractured tibia in Sunday's 39-32 loss to the New Orleans Saints, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported, per sources.

Penny will undergo tests Monday to determine associated damage and to see if surgery is necessary, Rapoport added.

Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll told reporters that the starting ball-carrier had suffered a "serious" ankle injury.

Penny exited the game on a cart midway through the third quarter following a 6-yard run. He had 54 yards on eight carries on the afternoon.

NFL.com

 

Baker Mayfield is not the QB for the Panthers they need to draft a franchise QB I'm watching this game Baker Mayfield limped off the field it's half-time now

 

He limped back on the field in the second half.

 

With 3 minutes left in the game, Atlanta got the stop with Grady Jarrett sacking Tom Brady.

But... Jerome Boger happens...

 

The NFL needs to overreact to the Tua situation, so that they can show people they care without actually changing anything. It's who they are and it's what they do. Add Tom Brady to the equation? I'm surprised they didn't just award them with a free touchdown and run a minute off the clock.

 

Jimmy Garoppolo and the San Francisco 49ers are atop the NFC West.

Garoppolo turned in a solid game today in Carolina, with two touchdowns and no interceptions, as the 49ers cruised to an easy 37-15 win over the Panthers.


The win improves the 49ers to 3-2 and first place in the NFC West. The 49ers are 2-0 within the division and currently own the tiebreaker over all their division foes.

in part; PFT

 

Eagles Move To 5-0 With 20-17 Win In Arizona

 

Cowboys Defense Stifles Rams, Dallas Wins 22-10

 

I haven't picked up the full details of the restructure yet, but Cleveland has traded to pick up Falcons linebacker Deion Jones.

The trade terms are that the teams are simply flipping a sixth rounder for a seventh rounder - in other words, ignore that aspect of it as it's utterly insignificant. Moving him is all about the cap space. The Falcons apparently decided he's not a fit for Dean Pees' system, and they're pretty well stocked with linebackers even without him. So Atlanta has been shopping him around trying to recoup about $4M of cap space for this season. Cleveland decided to go for it and made the deal.

One odd thing is that the numbers on his contract on OverTheCap seem different now than they did this summer. There must have been some other restructuring involved that wasn't listed back then. And it's about to vanish once they update the page to move him over to the Browns - who have reportedly restructured him yet again.

 

Sunday Night Football: Justin Tucker’s last-play field goal delivers 19-17 win for Ravens



Joe Burrow scored on a quarterback sneak with 1:53 remaining to give the Bengals a 17-16 lead. It was too much time for Lamar Jackson and Justin Tucker.

Jackson drove the Ravens 50 yards in seven plays and Tucker did what Tucker does: He kicked a 43-yard field goal for the win.


Baltimore’s 19-17 victory ends the team’s five-game home losing streak. The Ravens moved to 3-2, while the Bengals fell to 2-3.

Burrow got a push from Mitchell Wilcox to made sure he got over the goal line and then celebrated in the end zone with Gronk-like spike. Evan McPherson‘s PAT was close as it went over the top of the upright but ruled good for a one-point Bengals lead.

The Ravens started at their own 25 after a touchback with 1:57 remaining and three timeouts. Jackson’s 19-yard run was the key play to get the Ravens in Tucker’s range.

The outcome could have been decided earlier in the night.

Baltimore settled for two red zone field goals. John Harbaugh made a tough decision with 9:46 remaining and holding a three-point lead, while facing a fourth-and-one at the Cincinnati 3. The Ravens tried to draw the Bengals offsides before calling on Tucker to kick a 25-yard field goal.

Tucker kicked a 37-yard field goal after the Ravens stalled at the Cincinnati 19 on their first drive.

Twice Jackson overthrew wide-open receivers, and Tylan Wallace and Devin Duvernay both would have scored walk-in touchdowns. Jackson completed 19 of 32 passes for 174 yards with a touchdown and an interception. He rushed for 58 yards on 12 carries.

Mark Andrews caught eight passes for 89 yards and a touchdown.

With 8:03 remaining, the Bengals turned the ball over on downs after going for it on fourth-and-goal at the 2. A shovel pass had no chance.

Burrow was 24-of-35 for 217 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Hayden Hurst caught six passes for 53 yards and a touchdown. Joe Mixon rushed for 78 yards on 14 carries.

PFT

 

That was the softest of soft tackles on Brady... Falcons got screwed over in a huge way. The official needs his head examined and so does Goodell and the NFL. Totally inexcusable to see Brady coddled like that.

Whats a defense supposed to do if they cant tackle a QB? Its hard to play defense as it is, but if you cant wrap up a QB and gently put him down, wtf?

Falcons already outscored the Buc's, 15-0 in that quarter and could very well have won that game had that call not been made... it was one of the dumbest things ive seen this season so far, but its early still, im sure i'll see a lot more stupid from the NFL.
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SideNote - The Falcons are a good football team. Im convinced of that and Ive seen enough to make that assessment.

 

Referee on Falcons' Grady Jarrett roughing passer penalty: Defender unnecessarily threw QB to ground

Grady Jarrett seemingly made the play the Falcons needed late in the fourth quarter Sunday, but it instead hurt Atlanta's cause after a flag was thrown.

In a one-score game with 3:03 left to play, Jarrett flew past Buccaneers left guard Luke Goedeke on a stunt and slung Tom Brady to the ground for a would-be sack on third down. That action, however, is what ultimately led to a roughing-the-passer penalty that gave the Bucs an automatic first down and 15 yards to boot.

Falcons head coach Arthur Smith stood in disbelief as referee Jerome Boger detailed the penalty. Atlanta never got the ball back, falling to their NFC South rival, 21-15.

"I'm not going to get into that," Smith said after the game. "I haven't seen the film."

Jarrett declined to speak with the media, possibly signaling his frustration of the call.

Said Brady post-game: "I don't throw the flags."

The flag drew quick criticism, but Jarrett's sack didn't seem laced with ill-intent. The Falcons defensive tackle came into the Bucs backfield with full steam ahead as Brady slowly tried to evade the rush. It appeared Jarrett's momentum attributed to him slinging Brady to the ground hard once having the QB corralled in his grasp.


Boger explained the penalty during a postgame interview with pool reporter Greg Auman of The Athletic.

"What I had was the defender grabbed the quarterback while he was still in the pocket, and unnecessarily throwing him to the ground," Boger said. "That is what I was making my decision based upon."

Asked by Auman if there was a specific measure he looks out for considering the play appeared slightly similar to that of Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa's brutal hit against the Bengals on Sept. 29, Boger replied, "No, not necessarily."

Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles, who's been a well-respected defensive coach in the NFL the past 22 years, wasn't shocked by the call. He told reporters he's noticed officials flagging such plays more often recently and that league safety is currently at an all-time high.

"They are starting to crack down on some of the things, slinging backs," Bowles said. "I don't know. Right now, the way they are calling (it), I think a lot of people would've gotten that call."

NFL.com

 

Raiders-Chiefs Preview

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) There was a play last Sunday night at Tampa Bay when Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes did a pirouette away from a defender, then flicked a pass to Clyde Edwards-Helaire standing in the back of the end zone for a touchdown.

It was the kind of play that perhaps only Mahomes can make, and he made it look easy.

The way Raiders coach Josh McDaniels sees it, those kinds of did-you-see-that plays are going to happen, probably again when the AFC West rivals face each other Monday night. Mahomes is due for at least one a game. The trick is to make sure that one incredible play doesn't set the tone for the rest of the night.

''When you play a great player in any sport,'' McDaniels said, ''they're going to produce some moments like that during the course of the game. I think the biggest thing is you just have to try to be consistent and disciplined in your approach, if you can keep playing and have the right idea and make it as hard as you can on him.

''I think everybody tries to do that,'' McDaniels added. ''Some may have more success than others. But you're not going to stop this guy from doing some really good things for their team. That's just the nature of the sport.''

It's what makes facing the Chiefs (3-1) such a daunting challenge.

And unless you're facing them, it's also what makes them so much fun to watch.

''It may be surprising to some,'' Edwards-Helaire said of those highlight-reel plays, ''but it's just one of those things that, not necessarily we work on, but it's scramble rules. It's football, man. Spacing. You have to get to the open spot.''

Or, to describe it more succinctly: ''That's Patrick, man,'' Edwards-Helaire said.

The Raiders (1-3), who are coming off a much-needed win over Denver, have some playmakers of their own on offense, and it will be up to Derek Carr and the rest of them to keep up with Kansas City's second-ranked scoring offense.

Josh Jacobs is coming off arguably the best game of his career, catching five passes while running for 144 yards and two touchdowns. Davante Adams caught nine passes for 109 yards. And fellow wide receiver Hunter Renfrow, who has been out with a concussion since Week 2, was back at practice this week and could play Monday night at Kansas City.

''Any division game, you've got to pay a little bit more attention,'' Adams said. ''We obviously know those are going to be huge games, and especially against a really good team like this. You can't take anybody lightly, but you've definitely got to get up to play a team like this, especially going into their place where the Raiders haven't done a great job in the past.''

BUTT-KICKER RETURNS

The Chiefs are hopeful that Harrison Butker, otherwise known as (at)buttkicker7 on Twitter, will return for the first time since spraining his plant ankle in the opener against Arizona. Matthew Wright was perfect as his replacement last week in Tampa Bay, but the Chiefs clearly prefer to have their accurate, strong-legged kicker on the field.

RUN TO THE CARR

Carr ran for a career-high five first downs last week for the Raiders. Two came on short-yardage sneaks and three more on scrambles as he ran for 40 yards, his most productive day on the ground since 2017. And if defenses continue double-teaming Adams, Renfrow and Darren Waller, Carr intends to keep running.

''I take it upon my shoulders and find a lane and go,'' he said. ''It's definitely something I'm conscious about.''

RED ZONE WOES

The red-zone issues that have plagued the Raiders in recent years still haven't been solved, despite a new coaching staff and an upgraded roster. The Raiders have converted 44% of their red-zone drives into touchdowns, tied for fourth worst in the NFL, and they are fourth worst on defense, too, allowing TDs on 76.9% of red-zone drives.

''It comes down to being locked in and knowing your assignment and being disciplined enough to go execute,'' Adams said.

PRIME TIME

The Chiefs are playing in prime time for the third time - one Thursday, one Sunday and now Monday - in their first five games. But don't think for a moment they don't like the spotlight. Kansas City has won its last five Monday night games while Mahomes is 6-1 as a starter in such high-profile contests.

STINGY DEFENSE

Mahomes and the Chiefs' offense earned most of the plaudits for their 41-31 win over the Buccaneers, but all the defense did last week was allow a franchise-low 3 yards rushing on six carries to Leonard Fournette and Co.

''The thing that makes me most excited is the influx of young guys we've got, and those guys have an opportunity to grow and get better,'' Chiefs coach Andy Reis said. ''If you keep working and do it day-in and day-out, and work, you have a chance to be something special. But you have to stay in that frame of mind.''

 

Last time the Raiders and Chiefs met... 48-9, Chiefs.

 

Here's what I didn't get yesterday. You've got 2 minutes and timeouts to use and you're near the goal. Why do you pass twice when you need 2 yards. The Packers can run the ball and yet they didn't even try it. The play calling was terrible there.

 

Panthers part ways with head coach Matt Rhule