Here are two money-line picks for this week’s NFL card: Atlanta Falcons @ Cincinnati Bengals, 1 p.m. ET, CBS The Matt Ryan-led Atlanta Falcons head to Paul Brown Stadium to face a Cincinnati Bengals team that has made it a habit to frustrate opponents at home with a crafty defense. Following an undefeated season by Cincy at home, the Wynn Las Vegas has Atlanta as a +230 underdog, indicating about a 30....
The Packers quarterback passed for 37 touchdowns with 4,115 passing yards and just four interceptions while leading Green Bay to the No. 1 seed in the NFC and a record of 13-3 in games he started. Rodgers is already coming off a season in which, at age 36, he earned his third MVP trophy. Though his numbers in 2021 didn’t quite match that of the 2020 campaign, he is once again looked at as the favorite to again receive the honor of AP NFL MVP....
But not everyone was present, as some players remained absent amid contract holdouts, while an AFC East team opted not to have one coach come back to work. Three things that matter Dolphins shake things up with coaching changes In a surprise move, the Dolphins fired offensive line coach Pat Flaherty and promoted analyst Dave DeGuglielmo to offensive line coach. NFL Media reported Flaherty “struggled to implement the new system” and has since spring, which led the Dolphins to determine they didn’t want to wait any longer before making the change....
Tom Brady’s No. 5 seed Buccaneers travel to take on Aaron Rodgers’ No. 1 seed Packers in Lambeau Field in the first contest (3:05 p.m. ET, Fox). Then it’s Josh Allen’s No. 2 seed Bills playing at Patrick Mahomes’ No. 1 seed Chiefs in Arrowhead Stadium (6:40 p.m. ET, CBS). Based on tight game spreads, these penultimate matchups were meant to be. Based on recent play and some current injuries, the on-paper pregame advantages are pretty much down to the natural edges that come with home fields....
Five AFC teams are pushing for the last two playoff spots, and the Sunday Night Football matchup between the Chargers and Raiders is a play-in game that should be a fun way to end the regular season. The Steelers and Ravens also play, but they need the Colts to open the door with a loss. The NFC picture is more focused, and San Francisco needs a victory against the Rams to slip into the wild card round....
Such eagerness is the result of a seven-month buildup capped by an increasingly excessive preseason. NFL teams, players and fans alike are ready for real games that will begin to shape the 2019 season. For half of the league, the elation of a new year will be met with the optimism associated with a season-opening win. Teams that lose in Week 1, of course, will be sent back to the drawing board immediately in an effort to avoid the dreaded 0-2 record....
The league made the move from 12 teams qualifying to 14 for the 2020 season. A lot of the reasoning comes back to interest and money, but it also creates a different playoff picture than NFL fans may be used to. There’s now a No. 7 seed to play for in each conference. There’s only one bye instead of two on each side, too. It forces a recalibration of how late-season results are viewed....
For some teams, the hype is real this year. They should feel confident about their playoff chances with wider eyes looking toward contending for Super Bowl 56. Other teams need to accept they will go through a transition or rebuild that won’t manifest into enough win-loss success in 2021. When Sporting News last released its NFL power rankings right after the draft, there was strong consideration given to how teams followed up their finishes to last season with their offseason work....
Several winning teams, including the Chiefs, have either maintained or strengthened their status as contenders. But based on personnel moves over the past two months, several other teams are much improved. Likewise, those teams who have had more key subtractions than additions are positioned for a slide going into the virtual offseason program. When putting all the teams together, how do we see all of them stacking up against each other, No....
With Packers’ star wide receiver Jordy Nelson’s injury sending shockwaves through the NFL, many coaches are publicly expressing displeasure over the number of preseason games. Bettors should approach this week’s games cautiously, as teams appear ready to sit starters sooner than in Week 3 of years past if any danger of injury exists. Many position battles are won or lost this week, making for exciting storylines and compelling preseason wagers....
The play in question came after Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott ran for a first down on a second-and-1 quarterback draw. Prescott slid down with about nine seconds left on the clock and the Cowboys, who had no timeouts, scrambled to the line to spike the ball to preserve one second to run a final play. 49ERS-COWBOYS: San Francisco survives wild ending However, as they prepared to spike it, the umpire appeared to get in the way, bumping Prescott and Cowboys center Tyler Biadasz and causing a brief delay....
That might raise a question for fan bases on the wrong end of those decisions: How much are these folks in stripes being paid to mess up a team’s season? It’s not a simple question to answer, though. The NFL doesn’t release public information on officiating salaries, and it’s rarely reported on. But there’s some data out there that can at least give us a ballpark idea of how much those whistles are worth....
All he had to do was admit he cheated. MORE: Goodell believed little of Brady’s story | Brady’s career through photos According to NBC Sports, the NFL was willing to reduce Brady’s suspension by “at least 50 percent” if Brady admitted to wrongdoing in the “Deflategate” saga, or apologize. Not exactly a win-win scenario for the four-time Super Bowl champion and two-time NFL MVP. Presumably, the suspension would have been dropped to two games, with a possibility of it being reduced to just one game....
In the 49ers’ Week 2 game against the Philadelphia Eagles, they suffered injuries to their top three running backs. The injuries aren’t season-ending ones like the Ravens suffered, but they’re still injuries that should make the 49ers consider signing a free agent. The 49ers are a run-heavy team at heart. Kyle Shanahan’s offenses are at their best when there’s a reliable ground game. Jimmy Garoppolo benefits from having a running back to take the pressure off him....
It would be wise to look at replacing the aging veterans with injury concerns as early as possible to ensure they have a team that can go 12 rounds. That includes Kyle Van Noy, a 31-year-old veteran showing signs of regression and injury issues. Here are three LB options for the New England Patriots to replace Kyle Van Noy: #1 Cory Littleton, Las Vegas Raiders Cory Littleton just had his contract reworked to make some additional cap space....
“This was a failure of due process,’’ Vincent told Sporting News after Berman overturned Goodell’s four-game suspension of Tom Brady on Thursday. “In other words, it wasn’t what Goodell did, but how he did it. (The judge) took Goodell’s word for it and said, for the purpose of this opinion, the arbitration was correct. The reversal, then, was on constitutional grounds.’’ MORE: A long, strange trip: The Deflategate timeline | So, Roger, whose balls are deflated now?...
Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network reports that the league’s 32 teams were forwarded a list of potential rule changes that includes a radical proposal for teams to retain possession after scoring. Rather than attempting an onside kick, the team could choose to take a shot at converting a first down from its 25-yard line by reaching or surpassing the 40. That’s it: 15 yards, and that team gets to keep the ball....
Panthers-Saints is the marquee divisional game this weekend. Both NFC South teams are 8-3, but the Saints hold the tiebreaker thanks to their win at Carolina in Week 3. Other exciting matchups include Vikings-Falcons, Rams-Cardinals and Patriots-Bills. The Eagles’ Carson Wentz and the Seahawks’ Russell Wilson will square off on “Sunday Night Football” in one of the best matchups of the Week 13 slate. The other prime-time games are Redskins-Cowboys on Thursday and Steelers-Bengals on Monday....
After a doubleheader on Saturday, on the docket for Sunday is a full slate with playoff seeding on the line. The early window of Sunday afternoon’s action is headlined by the Patriots’, Dolphins’ and Steelers’ pursuit of the AFC’s final playoff spot. New England controls its own playoff destiny with a win (but must do that against the Bills), while Miami and Pittsburgh will need some help due to tiebreakers should that Pats lose....
