NFL - NEWS & NOTES

WEEK 7 IS HISTORY...

 

All three of the 1-6 teams have their lone win, on the road.

 

Look at that NFC North.............all 4 teams are in great shape.

Tightest Division so far.

 

I'll believe the Bears are real when I see it. They are definitely doing well but the competition is lacking. Really good chance we see 3 teams in though, especially after Atlanta probably has no more competition in the South. 2 maybe 3 teams in each the East and West have a chance still.

 

Deebo Samuel has been discharged from hospital

Tuesday brought a positive update about 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel’s health.

According to multiple reports, Samuel has been discharged from the hospital. Samuel left Sunday’s loss to the Chiefs with an illness and went to the hospital later that night. Head coach Kyle Shanahan said that Samuel had fluid in his lungs and described his condition as pneumonia.

Shanahan said that the team will see how Samuel recovers over the coming days. They also lost Brandon Aiyuk to a season-ending knee injury on Sunday and they played the entire game without Jauan Jennings, so any good health news for the receiving corps is welcomed with open arms for the Niners.

Wednesday’s practice will provide the next update about where things stand with Samuel, Jennings and any other injured Niners heading into this week’s game against the Cowboys.

PFT

 

The Buccaneers won’t put receiver Mike Evans on injured reserve immediately, hoping he can return after the off week for the Nov. 24 game against the Giants, Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Evans is expected to miss the next three games, Stroud adds.

The Bucs play the Falcons, Chiefs and 49ers before their off week.

 

RB Alvin Kamara agrees to two-year, $24.5 million contract extension with Saints

Alvin Kamara's offseason contract squabbles are being put to rest.

Kamara and the New Orleans Saints have agreed to a two-year, $24.5 million extension which will put him under contract through the 2026 season, NFL Network Insider Mike Garafolo reported Tuesday, per sources.

Garafolo adds that the deal includes over $22 million guaranteed and the $1.5 million in incentives makes it worth up to $26 million.

Amid an offseason where Christian McCaffrey and Saquon Barkley cashed in with market-setting deals, Kamara let it be known during the 2024 offseason he'd like to be compensated at the going rate for elite NFL running backs.

The five-time Pro Bowler staged an early exit from mandatory minicamp to show his displeasure, but didn't go so far as orchestrating a holdout during training camp despite a new deal not coming to fruition. The former third-round pick also

"I want to be a Saint I want to retire here," Kamara said on July 24, adding that he was going to play even without the new deal he was seeking.

Kamara put aside his frustrations and began the 2024 campaign by proving his worth. The Saints RB gained 290 scrimmage yards (198 rushing, 92 receiving) and scored five touchdowns during New Orleans' scorching 2-0 start, setting the table for a potential big-time pay day in 2025.
Instead, the Saints recognized Kamara's value seven weeks into the season and will now have NOLA's fan favorite in black and gold through 2026.

The Saints have since cooled off drastically since that 2-0 start, dropping the past five straight games while quarterback Derek Carr nurses an oblique injury. Kamara has totaled 690 scrimmage yards and seven TDs through Week 7.

Kamara, who's just 233 yards shy of becoming the Saints' all-time leading rusher, got into his desired pay grade earlier than expected. It will also bolster his desire to keep his entire NFL career in New Orleans.

NFL.com

 

Rams WR Puka Nacua (knee; injured reserve) returns to practice with 21-day window opened

Cooper Kupp is expected to return from injury this Thursday night, and the second half of the Los Angeles Rams' dynamic wide receiver duo might soon join him.

Puka Nacua, whose knee injury has limited him to just 25 snaps so far in 2024, had his 21-day practice window opened by the club, officially designating his return from injured reserve and bringing his presence back to the practice field on Tuesday.

Nacua had been dealing with a knee issue through training camp and the preseason but aggravated the injury midway through the second quarter of the Rams' Week 1 overtime loss to the Lions. The second-year wideout had four receptions for 35 yards before his early exit.

Nacua's placement on injured reserve soon followed, and so did the Rams' offensive woes after Kupp injured his ankle in Week 2. The Rams' normally potent offense has struggled to find its footing without the Kupp-Nacua one-two punch, averaging 212.8 passing yards and 19.0 points per game along a 2-4 season entering Week 8.

Head coach Sean McVay's offense should certainly see a boost beginning with the expected return of Kupp for Thursday night's home game against the Minnesota Vikings. Nacua has officially taken the first step to re-join his team, and potentially salvage the follow-up to his record-breaking rookie season.

NFL.com

 

Now the Steelers need to get Cooper Kupp.

 

I think Washington and Jacksonville will be in play, but the big move would be for the Ravens or Bucs to jump at it.

 

Are the Rams going to blow it up? If they do, what do you guys think of a move by the Vikings to reunite Stafford with his old coaches in Minnesota?

 

I think it would be a big mistake to bring a new quarterback in to run a 5-1 team.

 

OK, I dig your opinion. Does your opinion imply that as it stands, Darnold would be the better option to make a playoff run?... Or is it a 'if it anint broke, dont try to fix it ' thing? I was thinking maybe Stafford is familiar with the Vikings type offense and he has experience in the 'Big Game' scenarios. Just curios and threw that out there.

Also Tim, do you think, hold no punches, are the Vikings the real deal as it stands right now? Im leery they may suffer a crash n burn, Im paranoid probably and still cant believe they sit, 5-1... even the game with the Lions was a battle and a close one, and I picked the Lions to win the SB. The defense seems at this point to be solid, but depth on offense may be the achilles heel.

 

I can't say for certain that Darnold gives them better odds at making a deep playoff run, but there are some interesting numbers to look at.

Stafford is starting off extremely slow for the Rams. Now, some of that is definitely due to a lack of weapons, but there is also the factor of a quarterback with a lengthy injury history in his age 36 season. His yards per game and TD/INT ratio is all trending in the wrong direction. His completion percentage has been better this season than last, but some of that is due to a game script that is forcing the Rams to constantly hit the short and easy. Basically, LA is forced into doing some things that may not work as well with what they normally game plan, but Stafford hasn't exactly been the player he was in 2023, and the 2021 version appears to no longer be available.

Now, that doesn't mean he wouldn't suddenly start racking up some serious numbers with MIN. The Vikings have an offensive skill group that would, without doubt, positively impact Matthew's numbers.

As for Darnold, up until last week, he has been steady and efficient while putting up solid numbers, and his passer rating through 6 games backs that up. The errant passes against the Lions will have some ready to scream 'the sky is falling', but you would have to ignore the previous 5 weeks to be all in on that line of thinking. He has the full support of the locker room, so bringing in someone to replace him would not go without internal issues. You also have a coaching staff that is seeing more big plays out of this offense than they did with Captain Kirk. I don't think they would want to suddenly run the risk of blowing up the second half of the season when the players, and coaches, are all feeling pretty damn good about where they are right now.

 

Good stuff. In my opinion, the main concern I have is the run game. Jones, in this system is a beast, but he has to stay healthy, dont know if he can, just like any other team. Darnold is doing more than I thought and is the "ULTIMATE' bridge till they review the future. Is it JJ McCarthy or someone else... time will tell.

Its fascinating how the Vikings and the others in the North seem to be going, but Im also aware that the sched and the parody without the League has a large part to play.

As of right now, in my opinion, the entire NFL is up for grabs. Very few teams are taking the bull by the horns... only makes this whole 24 campaign quite interesting. Its all just a crap shoot.

 

Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that the Titans and Chiefs have completed a trade that will send the veteran wide receiver to the back-to-back Super Bowl champions. The Titans will get a fifth-round pick that can escalate to a fourth-rounder if certain conditions are met.

When news of the pending deal surfaced on Wednesday morning, there was word that the Titans would pick up some of Hopkins’s salary to facilitate the deal. Per the most recent report, about half of Hopkins’s remaining salary — over $5 million — will be paid by his former team.

Hopkins will have to sign a new contract to reflect the new agreement, so an official announcement may take some time but the Chiefs will have a new offensive piece in their arsenal sooner rather than later.

 

Head coach Kevin Stefanski announced coordinator Ken Dorsey will take over offensive play-calling moving forward.

Stefanski noted it was fully his decision to make that change.

“I’m very confident in Ken and I’m very confident in our offensive staff,” Stefanski said during his Wednesday press conference. “I feel that this is — when you’re talking about playing good football and putting game plans together, it’s never one person’s job. It’s really a collaborative effort. I have a ton of faith in all of our coaches. And Ken calling the plays doesn’t change that collaborative approach.”