NFL - NEWS & NOTES

Bucs take care of business against Cowboys, who lose Dak Prescott late



The Buccaneers looked like the Buccaneers. The Cowboys looked like they are headed for another season without a trip to the Super Bowl, especially if Dak Prescott seriously injured his hand.

Tom Brady and Tampa Bay took care of business with a 19-3 opening-day win at AT&T Stadium. Brady went 18-of-27 for 212 yards with a touchdown and an interception.


It would have been a blowout without Micah Parsons‘ two third-down sacks in the red zone and some Bucs’ miscues that led to field goals instead of touchdowns. Tampa Bay reached the Dallas 25, 20, 8, 4 and 29 on five first-half drives. They kicked four field goals and Ryan Succop missed a field goal.

The Bucs led 12-3 at halftime on Succop’s field goals of 44, 38, 29 and 47.

Parsons’ two sacks came on third-down plays in the red zone, one of which resulted in an elbow injury for left tackle Donovan Smith.

Prescott and the Cowboys couldn’t generate enough offense to stay with the Bucs, gaining only 243 yards.

But Prescott remained in the game with 6:02 remaining and the Cowboys down 19-3. His throwing hand connected with the hand of Bucs edge rusher Shaquil Barrett on his follow through.

Prescott left the game for the training room after being examined by Dr. Dan Cooper, the team’s head physician.

Prescott finished 14-of-29 for 134 yards and an interception before Cooper Rush replaced him. CeeDee Lamb caught only two passes on 11 targets for 29 yards; Ezekiel Elliott rushed for 52 yards on 10 carries; and right tackle Terence Steele had four penalties.

PFT

 

Steelers hold out hope for partially torn pec for T.J. Watt



Lip readers with a moderate amount of skill knew right away that Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt believed he had suffered a torn pectoral muscle on Sunday in Cincinnati. The precise diagnosis is still pending.

Per a league source, the Steelers are holding out hope that it’s only a partial tear. That would allow him to return sooner, obviously, than if it’s a full tear.


A precise diagnosis is expected on Monday, when he undergoes an MRI.

Even if it’s fully torn, there’s a chance he could be back for the postseason, if the Steelers get there. It will be harder to get there without him, of course. He’s one of the best players in the entire league. The Steelers will miss him if he’s not there.

Alex Highsmith, the other outside linebacker, had three sacks on Sunday. Malik Reed replaces Watt.

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Kliff Kingsbury: Cardinals need better practice habits



The Cardinals suffered an ugly loss to open the season against the Chiefs today, and head coach Kliff Kingsbury says it starts on the practice field.

Kingsbury said after the game that practicing better needs to be addressed before next week’s game against the Raiders.


“Just practice habits, having a sense of urgency,” Kingsbury said, via Josh Weinfuss of ESPN. “We got to practice better. There’s no doubt. You can’t say you’re gonna do it on game day and not do it in practice.”

But when Kingsbury describes what the Cardinals need to improve upon, he’s describing one of his own responsibilities. The head coach is in charge of organizing the practice and ensuring that all of the assistant coaches and players are practicing productively. If the Cardinals’ practices aren’t going well, that’s on Kingsbury to fix.

And it needs to get fixed in a hurry: The Cardinals did not look good today, on either side of the ball. They need to look a lot better next Sunday, after a good week of practice.

PFT

 

Do the Daboll !!!

 

Shouldn’t that be called the da bowling boll?

 

This is basically a coach saying he sucks and should be fired.

 

A Marvin Lewis-class self-own

 

Falcons' Arthur Smith on collapse vs. Saints: 'You buried us in May. Bury us again. We don't care'

The Atlanta Falcons held a 26-10 lead in the fourth quarter Sunday against division rival New Orleans. Like Falcons teams of past years, they watched the lead vanish.

Jameis Winston guided the Saints to a come-from-behind victory, hitting Michael Thomas for two fourth-quarter touchdowns and helped set up the game-winning field goal.

The Falcons had a chance to win late, but Younghoe Koo's 63-yard field goal attempt was blocked, preserving the 27-26 Saints victory.

Atlanta was feistier in the season opener than most prognosticators predicted, with Cordarrelle Patterson dashing for 120 yards and a TD and rookie Drake London snagging five catches for 74 yards. The defense generated four sacks, more than it had in any game in the 2021 season.

But in the end, the result was a loss for Atlanta.

After the collapse, coach Arthur Smith pushed back against the perception of his club.

"You guys wrote our obituary back in May," Smith said, via Kelly Price of Fox 5 Atlanta. "You'll continue to write our obituary. Who cares? Cause we have 16 games, and if we don't learn from this and get better… We gotta go play L.A. They got a three-day jump on us. So we'll watch the tape, we'll look for corrections, and then we have to get going on the Rams.


"So write whatever y'all want. You guys ranked us 45th. You buried us in May. Bury us again. We don't care. We'll get back to work."

Since 2020, Atlanta has blown three fourth-quarter leads of 15 or more points. The rest of the NFL has only two such games in that span.

NFL.com

 

Report: Elijah Mitchell may miss at least a few weeks with knee injury



It sounds like the 49ers are going to be without their starting running back for a while.

Per Ian Rapoport of NFL Media, Mitchell is likely going to miss at least a few weeks with the knee injury he suffered during Sunday’s loss to Chicago.


Mitchell is set to undergo an MRI on Monday to determine the full extent of the injury.

Mitchell suffered the injury during the second quarter and was ruled out for the rest of the game. He took six carries for 41 yards before exiting the contest.

Quarterback Trey Lance ended up as San Francisco’s leading rusher with 13 carries for 54 yards. Deebo Samuel had eight carries for 52 yards with a touchdown. Jeff Wilson Jr. took nine carries for 22 yards.

The 49ers also have Jordan Mason and Tyrion Davis-Price on their 53-man roster at running back.

PFT

 

Laughing hè knocked ÀP the fu*k out

 

Report: T.J. Watt to get second, third opinions about surgery on torn pec



We know that Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt tore his pectoral muscle during Sunday’s overtime win over the Bengals, but the wait to learn how long he will be out as a result of that injury goes on.

Watt was set for an MRI on Monday and he’ll continue consulting with doctors about next steps on Tuesday. Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that Watt is scheduled to meet with doctors to get second and third opinions about the injury.

Per the report, Watt will likely miss the rest of the season if doctors determine he needs surgery. If they find he does not need an operation, he could be back in as little as six weeks.

Steelers’ Defensive Player of the Year TJ Watt will get second and third medical opinions about his torn pec Tuesday, per sources. If doctors determine that Watt needs surgery, his season likely would be over; if he doesn’t need surgery, he could possibly return in six weeks.

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Steelers Nation holding their collective breath.

 

49ers running back Elijah Mitchell underwent an MRI on Monday to determine the full extent of his knee injury.

Mitchell has a sprained medial collateral ligament that will sideline him about two months, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Mitchell injured his knee in the second quarter after 17 snaps. He had six carries for 41 yards, and quarterback Trey Lance ended up leading the team in rushing with 13 carries for 54 yards.

The 49ers also have Jeff Wilson Jr., Jordan Mason and Tyrion Davis-Price on their 53-player roster at running back.

 

Here are four things to watch when the Seahawks play host to the Broncos:

1. Russell Wilson's homecoming. The schedule-makers really did themselves in with Wilson’s first game as a Bronco taking place in Seattle on Monday Night Football, and it's a worthy setting for the occasion. Following a blockbuster trade this offseason, Wilson, the Seahawks’ all-time leading quarterback in just about every passing stat imaginable (save for interceptions), returns to face the franchise he helped lead to its first Super Bowl. With consistent success over the course of Wilson’s 10-season run with the Seahawks came a yearly national spotlight on Seattle throughout the 2010s. Wilson rarely let the Hawks down by generating a 29-11-1 record and six fourth-quarter comebacks in prime-time games, which both rank first among the 18 QBs with 20-plus prime-time starts since 2012, per NFL Research. Seahawks fans enjoyed a 19-5 home record in such games, and the 12s often did their part by disorienting opposing QBs and outright starting the decibel-measuring craze at NFL stadiums. Wilson will now be subject to that adversity in his first road tilt in Seattle, and although what led to the mutual breakup remains ambiguous, his reception at Lumen Stadium is sure to reach both sides of the fanatical spectrum over the course of an emotional night.
2. What will Nathaniel Hackett have Russ cooking? Mystery surrounds the rookie head coach’s offense with Wilson at the helm because it has yet to be revealed. Hackett decided to sit Wilson along with most of the starters throughout the preseason despite the Broncos offense learning a new system with a new quarterback over the summer. The Hackett-Wilson connection is an important one for the Broncos, a team that’s seemingly been one quality QB away from success ever since Peyton Manning retired (last playoff game was Super Bowl 50). Hackett has had some stellar working relationships with his QBs as an offensive coordinator, from Aaron Rodgers’ recent back-to-back MVP-winning campaigns to helping get Blake Bortles one win away from a Super Bowl. Wilson takes over a well-rounded Broncos offense that consists of a stout rushing duo (Javonte Williams, Melvin Gordon) and a talented receiving corps (Courtland Sutton, Jerry Jeudy, KJ Hamler) that has really gone untapped considering the recent QBs in Denver. Hackett, who will be calling the offensive plays, is expected to maintain his balanced philosophy in Denver, but Wilson’s talent for throwing the deep ball must be an enticing option, especially considering it's been a missing element in Denver for years.
3. Geno Smith’s second chance. Following a preseason QB battle with Drew Lock, Smith finds himself as a full-fledged starter during Kickoff Weekend for the first time since 2014, and the 31-year-old will look to change the established practices Wilson left behind. According to NFL Research, Smith will be the first Seahawks QB not named Wilson to start a season opener since the late Tarvaris Jackson in 2011, and aims to become the first to get Seattle to 1-0 since Matt Hasselback the year prior. Smith, who’s never lost a season opener in his career (2-0), takes over a relatively unchanged Seahawks offense that he’s digested over the past two years and got some considerable experience in it last season, compiling 702 yards and five touchdowns to one interception in four games (three starts). Although he won’t be asked of much in Seattle’s run-heavy offense, Smith developed a pretty good rapport with DK Metcalf last season, completing 17 of 21 pass attempts to the star wideout for 251 yards, four TDs and zero INTs (156.1 passer rating). New tight end Noah Fant (acquired from Denver in Wilson trade) should also play a major role for Smith, who can quickly turn into a Seattle darling with a win on opening night.
4. Where does the Seahawks defense stand? First-year defensive coordinator Clint Hurtt takes over a unit that needed a new voice after four years under Ken Norton Jr. Seattle played to its strengths in promoting their defensive line coach. Led by Al Woods, Poona Ford and Darrell Taylor, Hurtt’s group was the bright spot of a defense that finished 28th in the league in yards allowed last season. Acquiring defensive lineman Shelby Harris (via the Wilson trade) and pass rusher Uchenna Nwosu (free agency) should only boost the Seahawks’ deep set of disruptors that offer a stout run defense and solid pass rush. Jordyn Brooks, who takes over at middle linebacker following the exit of Bobby Wagner, has been waiting in the wings the past two seasons, and star safety Jamal Adams is itching to return to form assuming he’s been reading the middling reviews since his arrival. The Seahawks aren’t short of defensive talent entering 2022, and should there be any success in Seattle this upcoming season, it will be spurred on by Hurtt’s squad. We will see how it all comes together on Monday night.

NFL.com

 

Report: Najee Harris should be good to go against Patriots



The Steelers were hopeful that running back Najee Harris avoided a serious injury when he left Sunday’s overtime win over the Bengals and it appears that hope has been realized.

Harris hurt his foot, which was cause for concern given the Lisfranc injury that Harris dealt with this summer. Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that all tests came back negative on Monday, however, and that the current feeling is that Harris will be ready to go against the Patriots in Week Two.


Harris ran 10 times for 23 yards and caught two passes for three yards and a touchdown before exiting the game.

While the Steelers got positive news on Harris, they’re still waiting for further word on how long linebacker T.J. Watt will be out after tearing his pec on Sunday.

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Bears sign Mike Pennel to active roster



The Bears signed defensive lineman Mike Pennel Jr. to their active roster from their practice squad, the team announced Monday.

Chicago cut Pennel from the 53-player roster Friday and re-signed him to the practice squad Saturday. He played 14 snaps against the 49ers after being elevated for Sunday’s game, and he made one tackle.


Pennel signed with the Bears in June after spending last season with the Falcons. He’s also played for the Packers, Jets, and Chiefs since entering the league as an undrafted free agent in 2014.

Pennel has 177 tackles, two sacks and a forced fumble in 102 career games.

The Bears also announced they signed defensive lineman Andre Anthony and offensive lineman Michael Niese to the practice squad. They waived offensive lineman Lachavious Simmons.

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That last sentence says it all. I liked a lot of what I saw on Sunday in spite of the loss, but the Falcons simply have a knack for putting together strings of mishaps to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Never mind the 2012 NFC Championship or the Superbowl. This is 3 times in the last 34 games they've choked away a huge lead in the fourth quarter, and it's only happened twice to the entire rest of the league.

Dean Pees says he wants to "change the culture around this dadgum place". Sticking with pressure and not going to soft zones in the fourth quarter would be a good start.