NFL - NEWS & NOTES

Packers offensive lineman Elgton Jenkins will not hit the open market in the spring.

Jenkins and the Packers have agreed to a four-year contract extension worth $68 million and a max value of $74 million, PFT has confirmed.


The deal makes Jenkins the second-highest-paid guard in the league.

A second-round pick in the 2019 draft, Jenkins has appeared in 52 games with 50 starts over his first four years. He’s started 12 games in 2022 for Green Bay.

PFT

 

After last nights, TNF game...

 

Sad that the entire NFC South is still in contention.

If the NFL were a soccer league, the chase between the four teams wouldn't be for a playoff spot - it would be to avoid relegation.

 

I hadn't heard anything about Jackson being disgruntled, but he's playing this season on his fifth year option. His agent will be looking for the huge payday. I'm sure he'd love to get it in Baltimore. It hasn't happened yet though, which is a bit surprising. So maybe the SI guy is right about the potential that the deal won't happen. That side of it makes sense - if I'm the GM and it comes down to the franchise tag to avoid having my QB hit free agency, I'd trade him and move on.


In addition to Ridder, I'll be watching a lot of Atlanta's guys on one-year contracts in the remaining three games to see how well they make their case for returning on multi-year deals. For the offense, wide receivers Olamide Zaccheaus, Damiere Byrd and KhaDarel Hodge, starting linemen Elijah Wilkinson and Kaleb McGary, tight ends Anthony Firkser, Parker Hesse and MyCole Pruitt, backup linemen Colby Gossett, Chuma Edoga and Germain Ifedi and fullback Keith Smith are all pending free agents.

 

Bears put Jaylon Johnson, Kindle Vildor on IR



The Bears ended the seasons of two of their cornerbacks on Friday.

Jaylon Johnson and Kindle Vildor have both been placed on injured reserve. They will miss Saturday’s game against the Bills as well as the final two games of the regular season.

Johnson was listed as questionable to face Buffalo due to finger and rib injuries. The 2020 second-round pick had 35 tackles, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery in 11 starts this season.

Vildor has been out with an ankle injury since late November. He had 34 tackles and an interception in 11 appearances.

As expected, the Bears activated running back Khalil Herbert from injured reserve. They also signed cornerback Breon Borders to the active roster and elevated wide receiver Nsimba Webster and tight end Chase Allen from the practice squad for Saturday’s game.

PFT

 

Eight Saturday NFL games will be played in far from ideal conditions



We love a good bad weather game. Sometimes, however, the weather is too bad for the game to be good.

On Saturday, eight games will be played in cold-as-balls conditions. Via Andrew Siciliano of NFL Network, the folks at AccuWeather have generated so-called “RealFeel” temperatures for Saturday.

The coldest it will feel is in Cleveland, for Saints at Browns. Thirty-seven below. THIRTY-SEVEN BELOW!

In Chicago, for Bills-Bears, it will feel as if it’s 21 below. In Pittsburgh, for Raiders-Steelers, nineteen below.

The Seahawks-Chiefs game in Kansas City will generate a “RealFeel” of twelve below. For Texans-Titans in Nashville, four below. In Boston, for Bengals-Patriots, it will be two below.

In Baltimore, it will feel like a balmy eight above for Falcons-Ravens. And in Charlotte, the coldest ever Panthers game will be played, and it will feel like 17 degrees for Lions-Panthers.

The attendance, or lack thereof, at Saturday’s outdoor games will be interesting, to say the least. But the games will go on, no matter what. Despite risks of hypothermia, it’s never too cold to play an NFL game.

Or to tailgate outside one, like in Minnesota where they’ll play Giants-Vikings indoors but pregame in the open air.

PFT

 

Good Morning Everybody! Hope your safe from the Storm and able to be warm.

Some good football games today.



Merry Christmas Eve!

 

Jakobi Meyers, Rhamondre Stevenson are expected to play Saturday



Patriots wide receiver Jakobi Meyers and running back Rhamondre Stevenson played leading roles in one of the most stunning endings in NFL history last week and they’re set to get a chance to redeem themselves or offer up an encore this Saturday.

Meyers (shoulder) and Stevenson (ankle) were both listed as questionable on the Patriots’ final injury report of the week. Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that both players are expected to be in the lineup against the Bengals.


Stevenson kicked off the ending sequence against the Raiders last Sunday by lateraling to Meyers at the end of a run with no time left on the clock in a tie game and Meyers tried an even longer backward pass to keep the play alive. That toss was picked off by Raiders defensive end Chandler Jones, who then turned to stiff arm Patriots quarterback Mac Jones into the turf and sprint for a game-winning touchdown.

Rapoport adds that running back Damien Harris (thigh) is more of a game-time decision than his teammates after joining them in the questionable category.

PFT

 

Nashville mayor asks Titans to delay today’s kickoff because of strain on power grid



Just hours before today’s scheduled kickoff of the Texans-Titans game, Nashville Mayor John Cooper publicly called on the Titans to delay the game because of the strain on the power grid from the bitter cold temperatures in the area.

The Tennessee Valley Authority is planning rolling blackouts to reduce load on the grid, and the mayor says the Titans should delay the game to cooperate.


“I’ve been informed that TVA’s unilateral rolling blackouts will continue. All non-essential businesses should reduce power usage. I’ve asked the Titans to postpone their 12pm game in solidarity with our neighbors. TVA needs to invest in infrastructure to withstand extreme temps,” Cooper wrote on Twitter.

The NFL usually tries to cooperate with local authorities, but asking a team to delay kickoff the morning of the game, when the forecast has made it clear all week that it was going to be cold enough to put an extra strain on the grid, seems like poor planning from the mayor.

There are other concerns as well: Some fans had surely already left home for the stadium by the time the mayor made his request, and some are already beginning to tailgate. Delaying the game is going to cause those fans to spend more time in the bitter cold. Delaying a game on December 24 also means affecting Christmas Eve plans for tens of thousands of people.

So this may be a request that the NFL and the Titans decline to fulfill. Whether the power grid will be able to function well enough to keep everything running smoothly at Nissan Stadium, however, remains to be seen.

PFT

 

Official delay of 1 hour has been granted by the NFL.

 

Bears up early on the Bills, 7-0

I like that.

 

Lions have tied up with the Panthers, 7-7

 

Bengals up and all over the Patriots, 12-0

 

Willie's Halftime report.

 

Justin Jefferson sets Vikings single-season receiving yard record



Move over Randy Moss because Justin Jefferson is now holds the Vikings record for single-season receiving yards.

Jefferson broke the mark with his second catch of Saturday’s home game against the Giants. The 25-yard pickup moved Jefferson up to 1,649 yards on the season, which leaves Moss’ 1,632 yards in second place.

Jefferson added a 13-yarder later in the drive, so he’s continuing to make progress toward Calvin Johnson’s NFL record of 1,964 yards for a single season.

Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins capped the record-setting drive with a 12-yard touchdown pass to tight end T.J. Hockenson. The Vikings now lead 7-0 with just over three minutes left to play in the first quarter.

PFT

 

UPDATE...

 

Don’t look now, but the Carolina Panthers might host a playoff game in three weeks.

The Panthers steamrolled the Lions 37-23 today, keeping their hopes of winning the NFC South alive. With a very big game looming next week against the Buccaneers, the Panthers just need to keep winning and they’ll clinch the division title.

 

Vikings beat Giants on 61-yard field goal at the whistle

 

Cincinnati Bengals remain the hottest team in the AFC... won their 7th straight, 22-18 over the Patriots.