NFL - NEWS & NOTES

Yes, its possible, but you'd think it just might go his way some day... he's due. Interesting if Jimmy G is healthy, does he switch to him over Brock Purdy?

 

RIP - Charles White



Charles White, the legendary running back and winner of the 1979 Heisman Trophy, died Wednesday, the University of Southern California announced. He was 64.

White, a tailback who still holds the Trojans' record for career rushing leader with 6,245 yards, died of cancer in Newport Beach, California, according to USC. He played for nine years in the NFL with the Cleveland Browns and the Los Angeles Rams.

"He was the toughest player I’ve ever coached," said John Robinson, who coached White at USC and with the Los Angeles Rams. "He was really unusual in that regard. He was a great player and just loved playing the game. Those are the things I remember the most. He was a really tough guy, and he was an extremely gifted athlete. But the toughness ... wow!"

"Charles White was one of the all-time great Trojans," USC athletic director Mike Bohn said. "A Rose Bowl legend, a two-time unanimous All-American and an NCAA record-setter, he made USC proud donning the Cardinal and Gold."

White, a Los Angeles native, was a two-time All-American, won a national title in 1978 and claimed the Heisman in the following season. In 1979, he also captained the Trojans and led the nation in yards rushing. White also won the Walter Camp, Maxwell and Pop Warner Awards after his senior season.

White won the Rose Bowl's most valuable player in the 1978 and 1979 seasons and was USC's third of record eight Heisman winners. The school is often referred to as Tailback U.

Cleveland selected White with the 27th overall pick in the 1980 draft. He played for the team for five years, although he missed the entire 1983 season due to injury.



In 1985, he joined the Rams and played four more seasons with Robinson.

White finished his NFL career with 3,075 yards rushing.

After retiring from the NFL, he coached USC's running backs from 1993-97 — again under Robinson, who had returned to the Trojans.

FOX

 

Absolutely..If you have a healthy Garoppolo, he is the guy. Even over a healthy Trey Lance.

Jimmy G has a TON of experience, winning 5 out of 7 playoff games in his career. It's one of the main reasons I questioned them replacing him in the first place.

Brock Purdy is a fun story, but if you are trying to win a Super Bowl, you would go with the tried and true.

 

Rookie QBs don't fare well in the playoffs. Rookie QBs with a handful of starts seems even more improbable.

 

Bears announce Kevin Warren is their new President and CEO



Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren is leaving college sports to become President and CEO of the Bears.

The Bears announced today that Warren has taken the job and will begin in the spring.


“Kevin is a man of integrity, respect and excellence, all of which are critical core values of the Chicago Bears, and we welcome his perspective and diverse thought to lead this storied organization,” Bears Chairman George McCaskey said in a statement. “He is a proven leader who has many times stepped outside of his comfort zone to challenge status quo for unconventional growth and prosperity. In this role, Warren will serve in the primary leadership position of the franchise to help bring the next Super Bowl championship trophy home to Bears fans.”

Warren replaces Ted Phillips, who has been the team’s President and CEO for the last 23 years.

“I am honored and recognize the responsibility bestowed upon me to lead the Chicago Bears during this exciting and pivotal time for the franchise,” Warren said. “I look forward to building on the rich tradition that started with George Halas and connecting with the unique and vibrant fanbase in Chicago. I join the Chicago Bears with gratitude and drive to carry out and build upon the legacy and spirit of this founding franchise and my predecessors. This is a franchise that is respected in all of professional sports, and I am humbled to be selected as the next President & CEO of the Chicago Bears.”

Before taking over as Big Ten Commissioner, Warren had extensive experience in the NFL, working for the Vikings, Lions and Rams.

The most important task for Warren will be overseeing the Bears’ plans to move from Soldier Field in Chicago to a new stadium in the suburbs.

PFT

 

NFL selects Atlanta for potential Bills-Chiefs AFC Championship



If an AFC Championship between the Bills and Chiefs had been held in Buffalo or Kansas City, it would have been played outdoors, with weather a factor.

Now? Not.


The NFL has selected Atlanta — yes, Atlanta — as the neutral site for a conference championship game between the Bills and Chiefs, if both qualify.

Weather won’t be a factor. And the game won’t be played on grass, the preferred surface of the NFL’s players.

But it could be conducive to a pinball machine of scoring, with offenses unimpeded by cold or wind or rain or snow.

There’s another factor to consider. By picking one of the various Super Bowl host cities for the AFC Championship, the NFL could be viewing this as a test run for possibly making future conference championships neutral-site games.

Regardless, this one should have been outside. In the elements.

At least the hot dogs and beer will be cheap.

PFT

 

He also famously defended himself from boogie men with a garbage can lid while high on crack. It’s the reason he didn’t have a long NFL career. He was always out on suspension, but one season he made it back and had a couple of good years.

 

I thought this was exaggerated until I looked it up. So sad.

 

Chargers list Mike Williams as questionable



The Chargers only have one player with an injury designation for Saturday night’s game against the Jaguars, but it is a significant one.

Wide receiver Mike Williams is listed as questionable because of a back injury. Williams missed practice all week and head coach Brandon Staley said that’s because the belief is that he needed time off more than practice work.


“The reps aren’t what matter, the rest is,” Staley said, via Bridget Condon of NFL Media.

Williams was injured in the Week 18 loss to the Broncos, which led to criticism of Staley for having him and other starters on the field in a game that had no bearing on the team’s playoff position.

PFT

 

Oh, no problem at all. I just wanted to get the details of what Snead did in there, because your scenario of flipping with the Texans and then trading down again is exactly the kind of thing i was referring to.

I'm sure Poles would be leaning towards getting the bounty rather than using the #1 on one specific player. The main question is whether it will turn out that he gets the right offer(s).

 

Interesting that they chose an NFC city as the potential AFC host.

Test run for future neutral site championships? Hmmm.... having the conference championships and earlier playoff games as a home game for one of the teams involved pretty much guarantees a sell-out crowd, even if it's -20 and snowing. So what would be the business advantage of having neutral site conference games? Unless the league just wants to throw a bone here and there to various stadiums, there doesn't seem to be much reason for it. Maybe the TV networks are the driving force.

 

Or maybe the league chose MBS just to say they're doing their part to go green...

Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta zero waste achievement | 11alive.com

 

I think the author (Mike Florio) was just thinking out loud and interjecting/speculating... I dont believe he has any inside data from the NFL on their plans for the future. In my opinion, based on nothing, this is just a one time deal for the situation on hand created on the MNF unfortunate incident.

I believe everything in the near future will return back to the normal standard, because the scheduling and current system allows for teams to fight for seeding and home field advantage, which is huge for the winning teams, their fanbase and stadium/team revenues. The all-mighty dollar will always be the driving force with the owners.

The NFL Competition Commitee, in my mind, wouldnt buy into changing the current system of teams vying for home field advantage over neutral sites but thats all just speculation and my $.02 on it anyway. I like the seeding process myself as it currently stands... I think its the best way to go at this point. Basically, Im not a fan of neutral sites for playoff games of any kind. If a game turns out like the Bears vs Packers ice bowl, so be it. Kinda makes the NFL interesting. Home field advantage, weather, field conditions and fanbases are all part of the game... I kinda like that, personally.

 

Completely agree. Was actually thinking about neutral sites at least for championship games. But that almost feels like punishing the higher seed, not to mention the city they play in. Home field advantage actually means something now.

 

Lane Johnson working, Jalen Hurts throwing at Friday’s practice



Quarterback Jalen Hurts‘ shoulder has been the most-discussed injury around the Eagles in recent weeks, but he’s not the only player who has missed time.

Right tackle Lane Johnson missed the final two games of the regular season with an abdominal injury. He is expected to need surgery to repair the injury, but is putting it off in hopes of returning to action in the postseason.


Johnson’s chances of doing that are looking better on Friday. Reporters at the open session of Eagles practice report that Johnson is participating in drills as the Eagles get some work in before taking the weekend off.

Hurts is also on the field and, unlike Thursday, he is throwing while taking reps with the team’s other quarterbacks.

With a bye this weekend, the Eagles won’t need to submit an injury report so any official word on participation levels will have to wait for next week.

PFT

 

For his career, Tom Brady owns a 7–0 mark against Dallas.

Which really doesnt mean a thing, but I posted it anyway.

 

First game up today... here is the low-down.

2022 NFL season: Five things to watch for in Seahawks-49ers on Super Wild Card Weekend

There were few people at the start of the season who believed Geno Smith would be quarterbacking the Seattle Seahawks into the playoffs. There were even fewer still who thought Brock Purdy would be helming a San Francisco 49ers postseason run.


Yet, Super Wild Card Weekend will kick off in Santa Clara, California, with the two most improbable quarterback stories of the season at the forefront.


Purdy will lead a San Francisco squad that’s the hottest in the NFL against a Smith-led Seattle squad that was the last in the league to punch a playoff ticket.


When the NFC West-champion 49ers, the NFC’s No. 2 seed, host the seventh-seeded Seahawks, it will be the teams’ third meeting of the year, setting a tone for a wild-card slate in which each game is a rematch from the regular season.


Though they play each other twice a season, this will be just the second time the Seahawks and 49ers have squared off in the postseason. The first was a 23-17 Seahawks win in the 2013 NFC Championship Game on the way to a Seattle Super Bowl triumph. But these are each vastly different franchises now.


Having dropped each of their previous meetings this season, the Seahawks are clear underdogs, but the 71-year-old Pete Carroll’s fresh-faced Seattle squad has defied odds since Week 1. In contrast, Kyle Shanahan has piloted the Niners to back-to-back playoff berths for the first time in his six seasons in San Francisco, living up to lofty expectations along the way.


Bolstered by a 10-game winning streak, the 49ers are healthy, boast a cavalcade of all-stars and are predicted by many to run roughshod over their division runners-up en route to the Divisional Round. But Carroll and Co. have forgone a rebuild despite moving on from Russell Wilson and Bobby Wagner, and after sneaking into the playoffs at the last minute are still standing tall in a surprising season.


Here are five things to watch for when the 49ers host the Seahawks to open Super Wild Card Weekend:

1. Can the 49ers locomotive be slowed, much less stopped? San Francisco right now looks very much like a freight train that has no stops until Glendale, Arizona. Boding all the better for the Niners is that in each the last two instances they won the NFC West (2012, 2019), they advanced to the Super Bowl. This current crop of gold panners has largely dominated, as evidenced by a league-best plus-173-point differential, and San Francisco is doing it on both sides of the ball. The 49ers head into the postseason with the top-ranked defense and fifth-ranked offense. Naysayers will argue San Francisco has had the easiest strength of schedule in the league (opponents had a .417 win percentage), but the Niners beat the opponents put in front of them, leaving most of them in their wake after lopsided smackdowns. Included in the carnage was Seattle, which was swept in the season series for the first time since 2011. Autumn after autumn, Pete Carroll’s squads had the 49ers’ numbers, but things changed drastically this year. Nick Bosa, who became the first 49er to lead the NFL in sacks with 18.5, and fellow Pro Bowlers Fred Warner and Talanoa Hufanga teamed up to hold the Seahawks to two of their three worst point showings this season. Having earned a playoff bid following a Week 18 win over the Rams and a Packers loss to the Lions, Carroll expressed his gratitude for the help received from Motown, but quipped, “unfortunately, we’re playing the Niners.” Those Niners have been handing out misfortune for months, and the Seahawks are tasked with one last chance to derail them.
2. Will Geno Smith’s comeback story add another chapter? After he beat out Drew Lock for the role of QB1, Geno Smith subsequently succeeded Russell Wilson in sensational fashion. Smith has emerged as a frontrunner for comeback player of the year after posting a new single-season franchise record with 4,282 yards passing, which earned him his first Pro Bowl bid. Will the Geno renaissance extend past the wild-card round, though? Set to play in the first playoff game of his 10-year, four-team career, Smith is matched up against a Niners defense that shut him down in two previous meetings this season. Smith led the NFC with 30 touchdown passes, but he had just one TD toss in his two outings against the 49ers. Smith also averaged just 217.5 passing yards per game and an 87.4 passer rating against S.F. in comparison to 256.6 and 102.9, respectively, in his other 15 games. Ranked No. 1 in total defense, but 20th against the pass, San Francisco has been susceptible through the air at times. For Smith’s turnaround tale to continue, he’ll have to find a way to improve the numbers against the 49ers.
3. Purdy’s more than just a feel-good story now. It’s worth mention that Brock Purdy was the 2022 NFL Draft’s “Mr. Irrelevant,” because it’s being mentioned less and less. The rookie marvel’s novelty status has diminished as it’s become increasingly clear the Niners are winning with Purdy rather than despite him. He’s won five straight starts -- including one against Seattle -- and has thrown for multiple touchdowns and 8-plus yards per attempt in each of them. The last QB to enter the playoffs on such a streak -- the last quarterback overall, not the last rookie, mind you -- was Tom Brady in 2020 ahead of the Buccaneers’ Super Bowl run. Purdy’s statistics are impressive -- 1,308 yards, 13 touchdowns and three interceptions in six games since taking over for an injured Jimmy Garoppolo -- but his ability to take on a leadership role and galvanize a team seeking a title has been most extraordinary. Purdy will become the latest drafted rookie to start a playoff game in the common draft era, per NFL Research. Could Purdy become the first rookie quarterback to win a Super Bowl? He and the Niners need to get by the Seahawks first.
4. CMC back in playoffs five seasons later. Perhaps it’s been forgotten that not that long ago Christian McCaffrey was viewed as one of the most electrifying talents in the game, able to befuddle defenses running or receiving as exemplified by his 1,000-1,000 season in 2019. A pair of injury laden campaigns in 2020-21 altered the narrative, but now McCaffrey is returning to form as a 49er. He’s set for just his second-career playoff game, returning to the postseason for his first time since his rookie season in 2017. CMC was prognosticated to be a perfect fit for Kyle Shanahan’s offense following the midseason trade that brought him to The Bay, and that prediction hasn’t been far off. McCaffrey has scored 10 total touchdowns in 11 games with San Francisco and reached the end zone in six straight tilts. That stretch includes the Niners’ 21-13 win over the Seahawks on Dec.15 when he had 108 yards rushing and a TD. It was just the third game in McCaffrey's career against Seattle, but he’s been exceptional each time, averaging 183.3 scrimmage yards per game -- the most by any player versus any team in the Super Bowl era (minimum three games), according to NFL Research. In total, he’s rushed for 320 yards, had 230 yards receiving, caught 25 balls and scored five total TDs against the Seahawks. After a long wait, CMC is back in the postseason and he might just be facing the perfect opponent.
5. New class of Seahawks earning top marks. Seattle’s success this season hasn’t rested solely on the right arm of Smith and familiar standouts such as DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett and Quandre Diggs. One of the best Seahawks draft classes in years has breathed life into the organization. First-rounder Charles Cross and third-rounder Abraham Lucas have become a starting tackle tandem that’s improved the offensive line. Second-round pass rusher Boye Mafe has made contributions, and so too has fourth-round cornerback Coby Bryant. Then there’s second-rounder Kenneth Walker III, who became just the second Seahawks rookie 1,000-yard rusher, and cornerback Tariq Woolen, who shared the league-high with six interceptions. Woolen and Walker have burst onto the scene and lead a class that’s rivaled only by the New York Jets’ this season. Ups and downs have been had by all, but they’ve each been contributors to what feels very much like a franchise rebirth. Regardless of Saturday’s outcome, these new-age Seahawks have Seattle trending in the right direction.

NFL.com

 

In my opinion, the key to this game for Seattle is going to be solving the 49ers defense. They owned the Seahawks earlier in the season. Geno Smith is a good QB, but the 49ers shut him and their receivers down pretty well previously. The Hawks run-game kinda fizzled too.

Hell, Pete Carrol sounded scared, lol, but he was just concerned and knows he's up against a power-house defense.

I really dont think this game is going to be close... I hope it is, but i believe the 9ers are just to loaded offensively and defensively. 49ers offense is stacked also, so the Seahawks defense is in for a days work where they better be firing on all cylinders. Even with the Rookie, Mr. Irrelevant, Purdy, they have a very good passing attack and you know what McCaffrey can do on the ground.

Bottom line... Long day for the Seahawks.

(now that I said all that they (Seattle) will pull off the upset)