Month: January 2021

Steelers vs Browns injury update: K Chris Boswell misses practice

Chris Boswell is back on the injury report and could miss Sunday’s game.

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There are no days off for the Pittsburgh Steelers as they prepare to take on the Cleveland Browns. On Thursday the team got together and the biggest surprise from the practice report is it seems kicker Chris Boswell’s hip injury has cropped back up as he missed Thursday practice.

Here’s the full practice report.

K Chris Boswell (Hip) did not participate

S Terrell Edmunds (Shoulder) did not participate

QB Ben Roethlisberger (NIR) did not participate

C Maurkice Pouncey (NIR) did not participate

G David DeCastro (NIR) did not participate

LB T.J. Watt (NIR) did not participate

DT Cameron Heyward (NIR) did not participate

LB/S Marcus Allen (Stinger) full participant

DE Stephon Tuitt (Back) full participant

LB Ola Adeniyi (Shoulder) full participant

DE Tyson Alualu (Ankle) full participant

It’s big for the Steelers getting Allen, Adeniyi and Alualu back to practice after missing early in the week. Allen could find himself starting at safety this week if Edmunds can’t play and Adeiyi and Alualu will definitely be needed with Heyward and Watt resting this week.

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Bengals luck into Penei Sewell at fifth overall in new 2021 NFL mock draft

The Cincinnati Bengals get some big help in a new 2021 NFL mock draft.

While the two-game winning streak for the Cincinnati Bengals has been a fun ride for fans, in the background the draft positioning and NFL mock draft possibilities have taken center stage.

The Bengals have dipped to fifth in the 2021 NFL draft order thanks to the two wins. That could mean missing out on a top offensive tackle prospect like Oregon’s Penei Sewell.

But it doesn’t guarantee it will happen.

Just look at a new mock from Touchdown Wire’s Mark Schofield, which has Sewell falling to the Bengals at fifth overall anyway:

“So it makes a great deal of sense to find someone who can. Even though a few recent wins have the Bengals sliding down a few spots in the draft, with the way the board falls they still see the top tackle in this class drop into their lap. They should run to the podium in this scenario.”

It will take some magic for this to happen of course. Jacksonville seems destined to take Trevor Lawrence and Sewell would have to fall past the New York Jets, a team that might think it already has a franchise passer in Sam Darnold.

Still, the linked scenario isn’t all that hard to see happening. Sewell is an incredible prospect, but teams with needs at quarterback or with strong offensive lines already won’t take him.

Sewell, at this point in the draft evaluation process, still makes the most sense for the Bengals because he’d pair nicely with Jonah Williams. It will just take a little luck — and we’ll have to see where the Bengals land in the final draft order after the Week 17 game against Baltimore.

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Looking back at the top Chicago Bears headlines of 2020

In many ways, this year has felt like 3 different seasons with the Bears. As we kick off 2021, let’s take a look back at the top headlines.

In many ways, this year has felt like three different seasons with the Chicago Bears. It’s certainly been a rollercoaster of a ride — from an unlikely offseason to a 5-1 start to a six-game losing streak to a late playoff push in Week 17.

As we kick off 2021, let’s take a look back at the top Bears headlines from 2020.

21 fights on our MMA wishlist for 2021

Here are 21 fights MMA Junkie hopes to see happen in 2021.

Well, 2020 wasn’t a great year, but surprisingly we did get some good MMA, all things considered.

This year has been a rough one for everyone, including the sports world. Many events were canceled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, and for a brief time, there were serious questions if we were going to see any type of event in 2020. However, many MMA promotions and sports organizations were able to get back on their feet with restrictions and COVID protocols in order to host events during these strange times.

It’s uncertain what’s in store for the MMA world in 2021, but hopefully it’s less positive coronavirus tests and more fights. Below is a wishlist of 21 fights we’d like to see in 2021.

LaMelo Ball joins Lonzo Ball, LeBron James, Kevin Durant for best starts after historic game vs. Mavericks

After tallying 22 points, eight rebounds and five assists against the Mavs, LaMelo Ball joined a decorated list of recent players to achieve that line.

LaMelo Ball made history on Wednesday with his 22-point, 8-rebound, 5-assist performance against the Dallas Mavericks, the best game of his young rookie season.

He became the first Hornets rookie since Kemba Walker in 2012 to record 15 points, five rebounds and five assists and the first to finish with 20 points, five rebounds and five assists since Kendall Gill in 1991.

On top of making Hornets history, Ball joined a host of other standout players to record 20 points, five rebounds and five assists inside their first four NBA games. Among the list of most recent players to achieve that feat is a number of familiar names, ranging from Ben Simmons to brother Lonzo Ball to MVPs in Kevin Durant and LeBron James.

Looking back at the start of Lonzo’s career, his performance came in the second game of the season against the Phoenix Suns. The difference for him is that it was his lone double-digit scoring performance in his first six games and one of only two in his first 11 games.

LaMelo, meanwhile, already has a pair of double-digit scoring games, though he also has a scoreless performance in his opener. Ultimately, the single game doesn’t mean much but given the names he’s joining on the list of recent players to do so, it’s certainly a good omen to his career.

LaMelo Ball joins Lonzo Ball, LeBron James, Kevin Durant for best starts after historic game vs. Mavericks

After tallying 22 points, eight rebounds and five assists against the Mavs, LaMelo Ball joined a decorated list of recent players to achieve that line.

LaMelo Ball made history on Wednesday with his 22-point, 8-rebound, 5-assist performance against the Dallas Mavericks, the best game of his young rookie season.

He became the first Hornets rookie since Kemba Walker in 2012 to record 15 points, five rebounds and five assists and the first to finish with 20 points, five rebounds and five assists since Kendall Gill in 1991.

On top of making Hornets history, Ball joined a host of other standout players to record 20 points, five rebounds and five assists inside their first four NBA games. Among the list of most recent players to achieve that feat is a number of familiar names, ranging from Ben Simmons to brother Lonzo Ball to MVPs in Kevin Durant and LeBron James.

Looking back at the start of Lonzo’s career, his performance came in the second game of the season against the Phoenix Suns. The difference for him is that it was his lone double-digit scoring performance in his first six games and one of only two in his first 11 games.

LaMelo, meanwhile, already has a pair of double-digit scoring games, though he also has a scoreless performance in his opener. Ultimately, the single game doesn’t mean much but given the names he’s joining on the list of recent players to do so, it’s certainly a good omen to his career.

Patrick Graham made Giants defense restart practice on Thursday

An angry Patrick Graham made his New York Giants defense start practice over from the beginning on Thursday.

New York Giants defensive coordinator Patrick Graham has been largely pleased with his unit this season, but his patience has worn thin over the previous three weeks. And on Thursday, it completely went out the window.

After the defense got off to a slow start in practice, Graham stopped drills and went into an expletive-laden tirade before starting the entire session over from the beginning.

“Our daily focus is to get better every day. We have to do a better job tackling. I have to do a better job coaching it up. Whether it’s the tackling, the scheme or whatever. That’s what I take from any other previous week. I’m just trying to learn from that week and what we can do better,” Graham told reporters prior to practice.

The Giants defense had been the strength of the team leading up to a Week 14 game against the Arizona Cardinals, but things have gone downhill since then. They surrendered 26 points to the Cardinals, 20 points to the Cleveland Browns and 27 points to the Baltimore Ravens.

With an offense that’s struggling to score, Graham knows that’s not effective enough.

“I have to do a better job of coaching. I have to do a better job of coaching and laying out the plan. I have to do a better job of calling it, mixing in zone and man and stuff like that,” Graham added. “I don’t know if they’re figuring it out. It’s football, these guys get paid too, and they have good players, so they execute. It’s just a matter of I have to coach better, I have to do a better job. I’m working on it every day just trying to get better.”

With their season on the line this Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys, the Giants defense has no margin for error. Fair or unfair, they will have to carry the load and Graham wants them ultra-focused. Clearly.

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Studs and duds from the Wisconsin Badgers’ 2020 football season

The Wisconsin Badgers closed their 2020 season Thursday with a 42-28 victory over Wake Forest in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl. Here are studs…

Alas, today is Jan. 1, and the year 2020 is finally behind is — most likely for the best in many ways.

For the Wisconsin Badger football program, 2020 began on a rough note with the team’s 28-27 Rose Bowl loss to Oregon on New Year’s Day.

As Badger fans know, it didn’t get any easier. The Big Ten Conference initially postponed the 2020 season, kickoff came in late October, the team saw starting quarterback Jack Coan break his foot before the season, three regular-season games were canceled due to COVID-19 and numerous injuries were suffered by key players.

But in the end, if there’s one word to describe the team it’s resilient. The Badgers could’ve shipped it in after a loss at Iowa capped a three-game losing streak and especially when the program experienced a COVID-19 outbreak and didn’t play for two weeks.

But the Badgers didn’t, and they finished the year two victories. That captures the resilience of the team and the football program as a whole.

Related: Meet Wisconsin football’s class of 2021, the highest-ranked group in school history

So as we look back upon the 2020 season, we do so while giving credit to everybody that worked hard to make this season happen, as well as to everybody in the locker room and on the coaching staff for battling through hardship and sacrificing a lot to successfully finish the year.

With that, here are studs and duds from the Badgers’ 2020 football season:

Video comprehensively breaks down Mississippi State and Tulsa brawl in Armed Forces Bowl

Jomboy breaks it all down.

The Armed Forces Bowl between Mississippi State and Tulsa on Thursday ended with a huge brawl, leading to many jokes about the use of arms to push and shove and such.

And when there are fisticuffs in sports, you know who’s jumping in to break it all down: Jomboy, which has given us breakdowns of beefs including Manny Machado getting mad at the Dodgers, Joe Kelly vs. the Astros, Phil Nevin yelling at umpire Angel Hernandez and so much more.

In the final breakdown of 2020, you’ll see what happened (a “flex-off”) before the bowl game, how it all escalated after the final whistle, and a lot more.

(WARNING: there’s some NSFW language in there).

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Week 17 test in Buffalo will provide valuable experience for Dolphins

Week 17 test in Buffalo will provide valuable experience for Dolphins

The Miami Dolphins boast one of the greatest natural homefield advantages in all of football. For the early portions of the season, the Dolphins’ humid home climate can serve as a culture shock to teams from across the country to fly in and play the Dolphins in Miami. The Dolphins went as far as to engineer the canopy at Hard Rock Stadium so that the last part of the field to leave the sunlight is the opposing team sideline. No matter how many fans are in the stands, that advantage is real.

But when you get to this time of year, the warm weather Dolphins suddenly find themselves at a disadvantage — especially for late season games in the AFC East. Last year the Dolphins found a way to go north and upset the New England Patriots in Week 17. They’ll need another upset over the division champion this season to ensure their ticket to the postseason is punched.

But the matchup against the Bills this weekend will be a lot more than just a “must win” game — it is going to serve as the same kind of culture shock that Miami has given so many other teams who travel south. Because Orchard Park is calling for a high of 37 degrees and a 70% chance of wintry precipitation on Sunday during the game. The Dolphins will be playing in the snow.

And the calendar is always going to threaten deep playoff runs with some wintry conditions — so this trip to Buffalo isn’t just good “crunch time” experience, it is a good primer for what the Dolphins should expect conditions to be like in years to come as they look to return to their past glory and play in Super Bowls. That is, of course, unless Miami plans on locking up the No. 1 seed in the AFC year in and year out.

So keep an eye on this storyline, Dolphins fans. How does Tua Tagovailoa play in the snow? How physical do the Dolphins remain up front when the cold weather makes every hit on the field sting. If Miami is up to the challenge on that front, that will be half the battle for this weekend’s must have clash.