NFL - NEWS & NOTES

Titans hold on to defeat Saints 23-21



Things looked precarious for the Titans late in Sunday’s matchup with the Saints.

Up by eight, Tennessee allowed a 15-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Trevor Siemian to receiver Marquez Callaway with 1:16 left in the fourth quarter. But New Orleans committed a false start before the snap of the two-point conversion play. And after getting backed up 5 yards, Siemian’s throw to Mark Ingram at the goal line fell incomplete.



The Saints attempted an onside kick, but Tennessee recovered. And that was enough to end the game, giving the Titans a 23-21 victory.

New Orleans was only in that position because kicker Brian Johnson missed a pair of extra points. The Saints have experienced kicker issues all season, and with Wil Lutz out for the year, New Orleans may need another.

The game turned on a controversial roughing the passer penalty late in the first half. Ryan Tannehill had thrown an interception in the back of the end zone, but the foul bailed him out. Tannehill then rushed for a 1-yard touchdown to give Tennessee a lead that the team wouldn’t surrender.

Tannehill finished the game 19-of-27 passing for 213 yards with a touchdown pass. D’Onta Foreman had 30 yards on 11 carries and Adrian Peterson had 21 yards on eight carries. Receiver Marcus Johnson led the team with 100 yards on five receptions, including a 50-yard catch-and-run.

With Alvin Kamara out due to a knee injury, Siemian was 19-of-34 passing for 298 yards with two touchdowns. Ingram had 47 yards on 14 carries with a TD, also catching four cases for 61 yards.

Now at 5-4, the Saints are on the road next week to face the Eagles.

Leading the AFC, the 8-2 Titans will be at home again next week to face the Texans.

PFT

 

Lions tie Steelers



It was a game neither team deserved to win. And neither team did win.

The Lions and Steelers played to a 16-16 tie today in Pittsburgh, the NFL’s first tie game this season.



It was an ugly game that left the Lions at 0-8-1 and the Steelers at 5-3-1.

The ugliest performance of all came from Lions quarterback Jared Goff, who completed 13 of 24 passes for 92 yards, and also lost 37 yards on four sacks. For an NFL team to gain just 55 yards on 28 pass plays is stunning ineptitude that raises the question of why Goff is still the Lions’ starter.

Mason Rudolph was the Steelers’ starter because Ben Roethlisberger has COVID-19, and the Steelers’ offense suffered. Rudolph marched them down the field for a touchdown on his first drive, but could do next to nothing the rest of the game. Rudolph wasn’t helped by his receivers, who lost two fumbles in overtime.

A lone bright spot is that both teams had a young running back top 100 rushing yards, with Najee Harris carrying 26 times for 105 yards for Pittsburgh, and D'Andre Swift carrying 33 times for 130 yards for Detroit.

But that was about it. Otherwise, this was just a bad football team without any winners to be found.

 

Packers’ defense leads the way in 17-0 win over Seahawks



Aaron Rodgers returned on a cold and snowy day at Lambeau Field, but he wasn’t the primary reason the Packers beat the Seahawks.

It was Green Bay’s defense that got the job done, shutting Seattle down in a 17-0 win.


Rodgers returned from his COVID-19 absence and completed 23 of 37 passes for 292 yards, with no touchdowns and one interception. He was fine but far from great; the interception to Jamal Adams in the end zone was a particularly bad decision.

But Rodgers was still a lot better than Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, who was returning from a broken finger and couldn’t do anything. He finished with two interceptions and led the Seahawks to no points, the first time the Seahawks have ever been shut out with Wilson at quarterback. And an ugly game got even uglier for the Seahawks’ offense at the end, when DK Metcalf was ejected in the final minutes.

It was another big showing for the Packers’ defense, which has been playing very good football of late. The Packers expect Rodgers to lead them into the playoffs, but today showed that Rodgers doesn’t have to be at his best for the Packers to win.

The win improves the Packers to 8-2, and they currently have the inside track for the all-important No. 1 playoff seed in the NFC. The loss drops the Seahawks to 3-6, and their playoff hopes are just about gone.

PFT

 

Eagles roll to 30-13 win in Denver



The Eagles cooled off offensively in the second half of Sunday’s game in Denver, but their first half fireworks and the work of their defense was enough to carry them to a victory.

Cornerback Darius Slay returned a fumble 82 yards for a touchdown on the final play of the third quarter to stretch the Eagles’ lead back to 14 points after the Broncos carried the play for most of the previous 15 minutes. Denver would never put any more points on the board and the Eagles are now 4-6 after a 30-13 victory.


Slay’s fumble recovery came after a Jalen Hurts interception that looked like it might swing the game in the Broncos’ favor. They drove for field goal attempts on their first two second half possessions — one was blocked — and looked set to cut the lead even further before running back Melvin Gordon coughed the ball up on a fourth down run.

Hurts dazzled by going 15-of-20 for 176 yards and two touchdowns in the first half, but he only threw three passes in the second half as the Eagles prioritized the running game. Jordan Howard ran 12 times for 83 yards, Boston Scott carried 11 times for 81 yards, and Hurts added 53 yards as the Eagles ground things down while winning in the second half.

Rookie wideout DeVonta Smith caught both touchdowns, but the move away from passing meant he stayed at four catches for 66 yards for the game. The Eagles lost tight end Dallas Goedert to a head injury in the first half and Quez Watkins dropped what would have been another touchdown late in the first half.

The Broncos were able to string together 10 straight points to briefly tie the game in the first half, but playing from behind for most of the day isn’t a great look for their offense. Teddy Bridgewater was 22-of-36 for 226 yards, although 64 of those yards came on a catch-and-run by Albert Okwuegbunam so there weren’t a lot of big chunk plays for the Denver offense on Sunday.

The Eagles will be at home to face the Saints next Sunday while the Broncos, who fell to 5-5 on the year, will have a bye before returning against the Chargers in Week 12.

PFT

 

Cam Newton, Christian McCaffrey lead Panthers over Kyler Murray-less Cardinals



Matt Rhule has Kliff Kingsbury’s number. The two met in 2018 and Rhule’s Baylor Bears beat Kingsbury’s Texas Tech Red Raiders 35-24. Kingsbury was fired the next day.

Carolina beat the Cardinals 41-21 in 2020 in Rhule’s fourth game with the Panthers.


It was an even bigger blowout Sunday as the Panthers led 23-0 at halftime and won going away 34-10.

In his Panthers’ debut in his second stint with Carolina, Cam Newton ran for a 2-yard touchdown on his first play and threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to Robby Anderson on his second play. He finished 3-of-4 for 8 yards and a touchdown and ran for 14 yards and a touchdown on three carries.

Christian McCaffrey starred in his fifth game of the season. He ran for 95 yards on 13 carries and caught 10 passes for 66 yards. He had almost as many yards as the Cardinals, who finished with 169.

P.J. Walker, who started in place of the injured Sam Darnold, was 22-of-29 for 167 yards and an interception.

Colt McCoy started in place of Kyler Murray for a second consecutive week with the starting quarterback nursing an ankle injury. By the time McCoy left with a chest injury in the second half after a sack by Shaq Thompson, the game was out of hand.

McCoy lost a fumble and threw an interception and finished 11-of-20 for 107 yards. Christian Kirk was the leading receiver for the Cardinals, who were without the injured DeAndre Hopkins, with Kirk making seven catches for 58 yards.

 

Between bad reffing, blowouts, and just general ineptitude from a growing number of teams, is this the worst product the NFL as a whole has put out in at least recent memory? I know that the Bears sucking is the driving factor, but I am just not interested in the NFL. I haven't watched a single non-Chicago game this year, despite having already paid for the season's access to every game.

 

Sunday Night Football: Patrick Mahomes throws five TDs, Chiefs beat Raiders 41-14



If someone told you on Oct. 24 that in three games the Chiefs would have sole ownership of first place in the AFC West, would you have believed them?

Even the most ardent fans in Kansas City may have taken issue with that prediction. But first place is where the Chiefs find themselves after winning their last three games, including a 41-14 victory over the Raiders on Sunday Night Football.


Quarterback Patrick Mahomes played his best game of 2021, completing 35-of-50 passes for 406 yards with five touchdowns and no picks, recording a season-high in yards and matching his season-high in touchdowns.

Tight end Travis Kelce led the Chiefs with 119 yards on eight catches. Running back Darrell Williams also had 101 yards on nine catches — including a 38-yard touchdown he caught over safety Jonathan Abram in the fourth quarter. And receiver Tyreek Hill put together seven receptions for 83 yards with a pair of TDs.

Though the Chiefs took a 17-7 lead into halftime, the Raiders quickly scored a touchdown on their opening drive of the second half to make it 17-14.

But it was all Kansas City from there.

Tight end Noah Gray scored for the first time in his career, catching a 1-yard touchdown in the third quarter. Then receiver DeSean Jackson fumbled his first reception as a Raider, giving Kansas City an extra possession that the club turned into a field goal.

Up 27-14 at the start of the fourth quarter, the Chiefs added Williams’ 38-yard score and a 22-yard touchdown from Mahomes to receiver Byron Pringle to put the game out of reach.

The Raiders had a chance to add a cosmetic touchdown late in the final period. But Derek Carr’s completion to tight end Darren Waller in the end zone was negated by a holding penalty.

On fourth-and-goal, Carr’s pass to Hunter Renfrow was batted down for a turnover on downs.

After starting the season hot, Carr has fallen into a rut. With his team down 27-14 in the third quarter, Carr tossed a poor interception when he heaved the ball up toward the middle of the field as he was getting hit. Safety Daniel Sorensen, who has given up several plays this season, was there to catch it for a takeaway.

Carr finished the game 25-of-35 passing for 261 yards with a pair of touchdowns and the interception.

Las Vegas was just 1-of-9 on third down and had 15 first downs. Kansas City finished with 516 yards, 29 first downs, and 9-of-15 on third down.

With the loss, the Raiders are 5-4 and will stay home next week for a date with the 5-4 Bengals.

At 6-4, the first-place Chiefs have a big game against the Cowboys at home in Week 11.

PFT

 

It certainly has been different, but I really cant put a finger on it outside of parity.

The Refs have been atrocious overall... and effecting the outcome on a lot of games.

Injuries at key positions and with 'star' players has had an effect also and a bunch of teams flat out suck and blow.

Covid still seems to be a factor... and coaching is another point of interest that seems to play in to this also. How many 'great' coach's (motivators) are there in the NFL?

IF the NFL is a microcosm of society in general, we are in a time and space where people in general dont want to work and are quiting their jobs at a record setting pace. Maybe everybody is too comfortable with these multi-million dollar pay days and have become complacent... not realizing the true blessing they really have and they just arnt hungary anymore?

I still like my football, but something is amiss... what 'it' is is still elusive to me outside of parity and mediocre teams.

 

Report: Joe Haden considered day-to-day with foot injury



With edge rusher T.J. Watt potentially missing some time with knee and hip injuries, the Steelers have at least received some positive news on cornerback Joe Haden.

Per NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport, Haden is considered day-to-day with a foot injury.


Haden had to exit Sunday’s game after just nine defensive snaps. With the exception of Week Two — which Haden missed with a groin injury — Haden had played every defensive snap for the Steelers this season.

Haden has been with Pittsburgh since 2017 and has started 64 games for the franchise. He spent his first seven seasons with the Browns.

In 2021, Haden has 24 total tackles, five pass breakups, and a forced fumble.

PFT

 

Bruce Arians after Buccaneers' loss to Washington: 'We're a very dumb football team'

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers fell 29-19 to the Washington Football Team on Sunday after glaring issues reared their heads for the Super Bowl champs. The offense got off to a woefully slow start with two first-quarter turnovers. The defense couldn't get a stop late. And in between, mental errors galore reigned.

After the loss, coach Bruce Arians ripped his team.

"It has nothing to do with ability. It's about execution and being a smart football team. We're a very dumb football team. And that's a reflection on the coaches," Arians said, via ESPN's Jenna Laine.

The prickly coach aimed his ire at every player, from Tom Brady on down. Tampa Bay was credited with three dropped passes. And the Bucs committed six penalties for 43 yards on the game, including an O.J. Howard false start on the first snap of the game.

"Energy and passion are very fixable," Arians said. "The penalties -- they've gotta get corrected sooner or later. The first play of the game -- they're shifting, and we jump offsides. They don't even run a play, and we jump offsides. The stupidity has to go away if we're gonna go anywhere."

The Bucs tied a season-low with six points in the first half and a new season-low with just 136 total yards in the first half. Brady threw two interceptions in the first quarter.

Arians put the plays on TB12, noting they had "nothing to do with the receivers. It was him." The critique of the G.O.A.T. -- even as one INT was popped out of the hands of Jaelon Darden -- was likely an indicator from Arians that no one was safe from criticism after the Bucs' second straight loss.


The Bucs have lost two consecutive games for the first time since Weeks 11-12, 2020, which is also the last time Brady had two-plus INTs in consecutive games. Tampa Bay's 10-point loss to Washington was also the largest defeat of Brady's career coming off a bye (entered Sunday 15-4).

"We just never really played on our terms. We played behind the whole game. They played a good game. They had a good plan," Brady said in a very brief media session following the loss. "It doesn't matter who you play if you have a bunch of self-inflicted errors too. We've gotta go out and execute the plays that were there."

The loss was a team effort, with the slow start on offense matched by a defense that couldn't get off the field in the fourth quarter, allowing Washington to march for a 19-play TD drive that milked 10:26 off the clock to ice the game late.

NFL.com
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lol... let it go, Bruce!

 

Being a Giants fan and the season being over before Halloween (Again...) certainly doesn't help but for the first time in a long time I find myself barely paying attention to the broader NFL. I didn't even bother to watch a single game yesterday which is weird for me. We have been saying for a long time the NFL needs to get the referee situation under control but this certainly feels like the worst it has been (maybe including the scab ref year...). The new taunting penalties are having a WAY outsized impact and roughing the passer has gotten completely out of hand. It's wild man.

 

I read on PFT, iirc, that maybe the Refs should be full-time employees of the NFL. This would allow focus and a grading system that works, in my opinion. We will never get the humans being human element out of the game, nor should it be, but the product can be much better.

 

Chase young tore his ACL... confirmed today via MRI and Ron Rivera.

 

MRIs on T.J. Watt’s knee, hip came back negative



Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt came out of Sunday’s 16-16 tie with the Lions with a pair of injuries.

Watt picked up knee and hip injuries during the game and he spent time in an MRI tube on Monday getting scans of both areas. Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that the tests came back negative, which is a positive for the Steelers defense but may not put him in position to play against the Chargers on Sunday night in Week 11.


Schefter adds that Watt is sore and that his availability for this week is uncertain at this point.

Left guard Kevin Dotson, right guard Trai Turner, and cornerback Joe Haded also got hurt during the tie and wide receiver Chase Claypool didn’t play due to a toe injury, so there’s a lot of injuries for the team to keep track of this week.

PFT

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Thats good news for Steelers and their Fans...

 

Packers RB Aaron Jones suffered mild MCL sprain vs. Seahawks, expected to miss 1-2 weeks

The Packers' Week 10 triumph over the Seahawks was bittersweet because of an injury to a key player.

The bitterness subsided Monday with the arrival of good news. Running back Aaron Jones suffered a mild MCL sprain, an MRI revealed, meaning he'll be out 1-2 weeks, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported.

Jones' injury appeared to possibly be much more serious, with Packers fans spending the hours after their team's latest win steeling themselves for the worst-case scenario regarding the star running back. With second-year bulldozer A.J. Dillon also available, Green Bay is equipped to handle a potential loss at the position, though it would be mighty difficult to replace the threat Jones brings to the field in both the running and passing games. And after losing Kylin Hill to a season-ending knee injury in Green Bay's win over the Arizona Cardinals, the Packers weren't as deep as they'd like to be.

Instead, they'll just have to figure out how to spend the next couple of weeks without Jones, who has accounted for over 800 scrimmage yards and seven touchdowns in 10 games this season.

If there's one thing this Packers squad knows well by now, it's how to figure out a secondary plan without one of their key players. Davante Adams missed Green Bay's game against Arizona due to a positive COVID-19 test, and Aaron Rodgers missed more than a week due to his own positive test, knocking him out of the Packers' 13-7 loss to Kansas City in Week 9.

Now they'll test their mettle without Jones in an NFC North battle against the rival Vikings.

NFL.com

 

Monday Night Football: Deebo Samuel, 49ers roll to 31-10 win over Rams



Deebo Samuel amassed 133 yards from scrimmage with a pair of touchdowns — one rushing and one receiving — as the San Francisco 49ers throttled the Los Angeles Rams 31-10 on Monday night.

The 49ers dominated all aspects of the game against the Rams in earning a fifth straight victory in the series between the two teams. Los Angeles hasn’t won a game between the two teams since a 48-32 win in the final week of the 2018 season.


The Rams have now authored two straight duds after last week’s 28-16 loss to the Tennessee Titans where they were outplayed across the board as well.

Matthew Stafford was intercepted on each of the Rams’ first two possessions. A deep pass intended for new addition Odell Beckham Jr. was picked off by safety Jimmie Ward. The 49ers then marched on a seemingly endless 18-play drive that covered 93 yards before Jimmy Garoppolo found George Kittle on an 8-yard touchdown to take an early 7-0 lead.

Ward struck again for the 49ers as he picked off Stafford for a second time on a pass intended for Tyler Higbee and returned it for a 27-yard touchdown and a 14-0 lead.

Los Angles got on the board as Stafford and Higbee connected on a 10-yard touchdown to cut the lead to 14-7. But the 49ers answered again with another lengthy scoring drive. Samuel’s 8-yard touchdown run capped an 11-play, 91-yard drive for San Francisco as they grabbed a 21-7 lead with 5:24 left in the first half.

The Rams put themselves in position to score before the end of the half. However, Sean McVay decided on a fake field goal try that resulted in punter Johnny Hekker completing a pass to Kendall Blanton well short of the sticks for a turnover on downs.

The Rams went three-and-out on each of their three possessions in the third quarter while Robbie Gould added a 50-yards field goal for San Francisco to push the lead to 24-7. With the clock running short, the Rams tried to convert a fourth-and-goal from the 49ers’ 11-yard line with just over six minutes left to play only for Stafford to throw incomplete to Van Jefferson for another turnover on downs.

Samuel then slashed his way through the Rams defense on a 40-yard catch-and-run on a pass from Garoppolo that iced the game away for the 49ers with a 31-7 advantage.

The Rams would again drive inside the 49ers’ 10-yard line and leave without a touchdown. A sack of Stafford from Nick Bosa forced a 37-yard field goal from Matt Gay as the Rams futilely cut the lead to 31-10.

Stafford completed 26 of 41 passes for 243 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions for the Rams. Cooper Kupp carried the load for the Rams with 11 catches for 122 yards. Beckham caught just two passes for 18 yards in his first action with the team since signing late in the week after his release from the Cleveland Browns.

Garoppolo was 15 of 19 for 182 yards and two touchdowns for the 49ers. Elijah Mitchell rushed for 91 yards on 27 attempts as well for San Francisco.

PFT

 

With today’s technology, they should be able to get every call corrected without adding much time to games. It would be worth an extra 10 minutes a game to correct some of these blatant mis-calls.

I would go as far as saying, personally, I would rather see 12-13 minute quarters if they are THAT worried about extended time of the games due to booth reviews.

The tech is in place, hire and train more booth refs to control EVERY game being played. Not one crew in New York to call when one needs reviewed. They could immediately stop a play if a call is controversial and fix it in real time.

 

Agree 100%... Ive always maintained that a lot, if not all calls, should be correct with all the tech in place and I for the life of me cant figure out why this is not the case.

I'd sure like to see Refs paid salary and full-timers that have classes, training and film-review and whatever it takes to improve their skill-sets. Its like the athletes have passed them by. The athletes are well trained and honed and better than ever, why cant the Refs do the same and get on the same page?

Sattlelights from space could do a good job, if not better than some of the more recent calls, lol.

 

Steelers unsure whether Ben Roethlisberger, T.J. Watt will play Sunday vs. Chargers



The Steelers are heading into this week not knowing whether their most important players on both sides of the ball will be in uniform when they face the Chargers on Sunday Night Football.

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said today that it’s too soon to say whether quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and outside linebacker T.J. Watt can play Sunday.


Roethlisberger is on the COVID-19 reserve list. He will need to test negative for two straight days before he can be activated to play on Sunday in Los Angeles.

Watt suffered knee and hip injuries in Sunday’s tie against the Lions. Tomlin indicated that Watt is a uniquely tough player who may be able to play through injuries that would sideline other players.

Tomlin also said that safety Minkah Fitzpatrick is unlikely to be cleared to return from the COVID-19 reserve list in time to play on Sunday.

PFT