Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
Takeaways from a huge Sunday for the #49ers:
The 49ers overcame a small amount of adversity set up by their end-of-season schedule with a 27-10 win over the Commanders in Washington. More on that adversity later.
It was a game San Francisco was heavily favored to win, and one they controlled for most of the contest save for a couple series in the first half and early in the second half.
Here are our takeaways from a huge day for the 49ers:
Brooklyn Nets guard Cam Thomas said after Sunday’s 124-108 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder that the Nets need more trust on defense.
The Brooklyn Nets’ defense has not been good this season at any point and as the losses pile up, it seems that the same issues happen time and again. After plenty of talk in the offseason about this team’s identity being defense, this season has shown the opposite over the first 33 games.
Brooklyn (15-18) lost to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday 124-108, marking the 17th time this season that the Nets have given up at least 121 points to their opponent. As with any other team in the NBA, the chances of winning are borderline-impossible when you allow the other team to score that much in a game.
Sunday was arguably Brooklyn’s worst defensive performance this season as they allowed the Thunder to shoot 54.2% from the field, 54.5% from three-point land, and go 16-of-20 from the free-throw line. While the Nets understandably had issues defending potential MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who had 24 points, Brooklyn allowed six Thunder players in total to score in double-figures, including rookie Cason Wallace who had 10 points off the bench.
What Brooklyn has been used to this season is trying to outscore the opponent if they couldn’t stop them and third-year guard Cam Thomas, who scored 20 points, is an important part of that task. Unfortunately for the Nets, he could not get much offensive help from his teammates and Brooklyn had no way to keep up with Oklahoma City.
With regards to the defensive end, Thomas said, according to Brian Lewis of the New York Post, that the Nets have to build more trust on that side of the floor if they want to improve their performance. Not a bad idea for a team that came into this game ranked 23rd in defensive rating and after this showing, that rank will either stay the same or get worse.
Cam Thomas on how much the #Nets need to work on trust to solve defensive woes: “A lot obviously. A lot. Everybody feels like if nobody has your back on a rotation then we’re not gonna help as much. That’s with anybody. So obviously that's a part of it."
— Brian Lewis (@NYPost_Lewis) January 1, 2024
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Why was Johnathan Abram, not Jordan Howden, starting at safety for the Saints? The coaches had a good reason, and Abram made the most of his opportunity:
Jordan Howden has been a regular face in the New Orleans Saints secondary, so it was a little jarring to see him not in the starting lineup next to Tyrann Mathieu on Sunday. But the Saints coaching staff had a good reason for making a change: Howden was sidelined in practice to start the week with an illness that was still limiting him.
That prompted them to call up Johnathan Abram, who took Howden’s place as Marcus Maye’s fill-in. And Abram certainly made the most of that opportunity. He tied with Mathieu for the second-most tackles in Sunday’s win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers while also forcing a fumble, intercepting a pass, and breaking up another throw into his coverage.
Saints head coach Dennis Allen complimented Abram’s performance after the game, saying: “I thought he played really well, I was extremely proud of him. Happy for him, the way that he played. Great effort play on the strip to cause a fumble that Demario (Davis) recovered. There was a number of things he did well, but that stands out.”
Allen pointed to Abram as a veteran in the defensive backs room who has spent more time studying game tape than maybe anyone else on the roster; Abram started out on the practice squad to start the year before getting chances to dress out for games here or there prior to this start. Props to him for seizing his opportunity.
Maybe it’ll lead to a larger role for him with free agency on the horizon. A former Raiders first-round draft pick out of Mississippi State, Abram suited up for a couple of different teams last year before he reunited with Derek Carr in New Orleans. He quickly established himself as a valuable player on the depth chart, and the Saints are fortunate to have him. We’ll see if he can continue to make a positive difference in Week 18’s regular season finale.
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Instant takeaways from the Packers’ 33-10 win over the Vikings.
In a must-win game to keep their playoff hopes alive, the Green Bay Packers dominated this matchup — on both sides of the ball — with the Minnesota Vikings from start to finish.
The Packers are now one win away from making the playoffs, controlling their own fate.
Let’s dive into my instant takeaways from Green Bay’s performance in Minneapolis.
— Go back and watch the Packers play the Vikings in Week 8 and then watch tonight’s game, and you’ll see just how far Jordan Love and this offense has come. Love was excellent this time around—poised, as Matt LaFleur likes to say, and in complete control from start to finish.
— The Vikings’ defense blitzes at the highest rate in the NFL and did a good job of throwing a lot of different looks and disguising where the pressure was coming from. But as the Packers offensive line has done over the last six games, facing other blitz-heavy opponents, they held up well. And when there was pressure in Love’s face, he hung in there and knew where to go with the ball. A few weeks ago, quarterbacks coach Tom Clements said that Love’s decision-making when under pressure is where he had improved the most.
— Also, Love was again very good at making protection adjustments at the line of scrimmage pre-snap. Very much in command.
— This offense is humming right now. Effective and efficient through the air and on the ground, while scoring 30-plus points for the second game in a row. Love was again without key skill position players as well.
— The Vikings started Jaren Hall at quarterback then switched to Nick Mullens, but credit to the Packers pass defense in this one. Entering the fourth quarter, Justin Jefferson had just 46 yards with Jordan Addison and KJ Osborn combing for 20. Even with the uncertainty at quarterback for Minnesota during the second half of the season, the Vikings pass game still ranked sixth in yards per pass attempt. Credit to Corey Ballentine and Carrington Valentine, both of whom were challenging the Minnesota receivers.
— I don’t think it’s a coincidence that from an operation standpoint, things looked a bit more smooth in the secondary with Darnell Savage back in the lineup. Matt LaFleur has complemented him previously on his leadership and communication on the back end.
— Whether it was Hall or Mullens, I thought the Packers’ pass rush did a very good job of disrupting both, which helped out the passing game. Green Bay finished the game with 14 quarterback hits. Preston Smith and Kenny Clark were both very good again.
— Given how the last three games went for the Packers defense. Given how things might go for Joe Barry once the season ends. I imagine this one – against a dynamic trio of pass-catchers – felt pretty good for him and the players. “I just want to win for the Green Bay Packers,” said Barry on Thursday.
— The Vikings defense entered Sunday allowing only 3.7 yards per rush, but Aaron Jones eclipsed the 100-yard mark at over 5.0 yards per attempt. Some of the success on the ground for Green Bay was Jones being Jones, but there were also some really nice running lanes created by the offensive line. Sean Rhyan again saw ample playing time.
— I wrote beforehand that this game felt like it had big game potential for Jayden Reed and prior to leaving with an injury that was unfolding because of the team being without Christian Watson or Dontayvion Wicks, but also because of the matchup against this Minnesota secondary. Reed finished the game with six receptions for 89 yards and two touchdowns.
— We saw several examples of complementary football by Green Bay. Off of both turnovers created by the defense, the offense went down and scored a touchdown. Then on the Vikings opening drive of the second half, the defense got a fourth-down stop, which was followed by the offense putting together an 8:00 scoring drive.
— Bo Melton is out of practice squad elevations following this game but my guess is that he will be signed to the 53 man later this week. He may end up taking the roster spot of Samori Toure, who he has already passed on the game day depth chart.
— The Anders Carlson experience continued with him missing an extra point but making both field goal attempts. Against Minnesota’s return units that have given the Packers fits previously, I thought the kick and punt coverage units held up well. Unfortunately, there was another special teams blunder with Toure’s fumble.
— The Packers were 7-for-12 on third downs while Minnesota was 1-for-7 before the final five minutes of the game. They had four red zone trips – which is good! – and converted two of them into touchdowns. Minnesota was 1-for-2 inside the 20-yard line. Green Bay would dominate the time of possession holding the ball for nearly 15 more minutes than the Vikings.
Dallas and the Eagles square off at the same time as two of five games in their timeslot with impact on the NFC seedings.| From @KDDrummondNFL
The Dallas Cowboys are one win away from keeping a two-decade tradition alive. No team has repeated as NFC East champions since the 2003 and 2004 Philadelphia Eagles. With both the Cowboys and Eagles sporting identical 11-5 records, the tiebreaker process is a central conversation piece entering Week 18.
If the Cowboys win their sixth and final division match, at Washington, they take the division for the second time in three years. If they lose the opportunity is afforded the Philadelphia Eagles. As such, the NFL will have both teams kick off at the same time, 3:25 pm Central on January 7.
The league holds the kickoff time for all Week 18 games until the playoff scenarios are pretty much locked in. Here’s a look at all of the key NFC matchups, along with the full slate.
The NFL Week 18 regular season schedule is out
The NFL never misses a chance to build drama, in any form.
The league managed to create intrigue on Sunday during the Green Bay Packers’ win over the Minnesota Vikings that concluded Week 17.
The schedule for Week 18 was released late in the fourth quarter.
And here it is:
Sunday, Jan. 7
2024 NFL Draft order: Raiders in line for 11th pick after Week 17
Just one week left in the NFL season. And with the Raiders officially eliminated from playoff contention, the discussion now shifts to draft position.
As long as the playoffs were a possibility, any pick as far down as 32nd overall was on the table. All non-playoff teams will pick at 18 or above.
For the Raiders, the pick range is higher than that.
Currently they site at 11th overall in the draft order. Their final position is within the range of picks 8-14.
Here is what the top 14 in the draft order currently looks like:
1. Bears (via CAR) 2-14
2. Commanders 4-12
3. Patriots 4-12
4. Cardinals 4-12
5. Giants 5-11
6. Chargers 5-11
7. Titans 5-11
8. Jets 6-10
9. Falcons 7-9
10. Bears 7-9
11. Raiders 7-9
12. Vikings 7-9
13. Saints 8-8
14. Broncos 8-8
Should the Raiders beat the Broncos in the season finale, the Raiders would drop to the 14th pick, behind their division rivals.
In order for the Raiders to move up to the 8th spot, they would have to lose to the Broncos while the Falcons and Bears would have to win.
Quick hit fantasy breakdown of Week 17 games
The Chicago Bears locked down the top overall pick in 2024 — and it’s not theirs.
It’s official. The Chicago Bears have the first overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
This is not because of any specific failing on their part. In fact, the Bears’ 37-17 victory over the Atlanta Falcons marked their fourth win in the last five games. Chicago’s defense has been swarming and its offense, powered by Justin Fields and DJ Moore, is finally beginning to look like fans had hoped at the start of the season.
Conversely, the Carolina Panthers, who owe the Bears their first round pick following last spring’s deal that gave team owner David Tepper (seen in Week 17 launching a drink at Jacksonville Jaguars fans in a 26-0 loss) the latitude to draft Bryce Young, have been a disaster. Carolina traded away DJ Moore, two second round picks, the draft assets needed to select offensive tackle Darnell Wright 10th overall, and what’s now assured to be 2024’s No. 1 overall pick in order to select Young, who has struggled as a rookie. Those struggles have led to a 2-14 record, which will be the worst in the NFL regardless of how they fare in Week 18.
This creates a springboard for Chicago to vault into NFC North contention at the Panthers’ expense. But who’ll be picking after them? Here’s the current 2024 NFL Draft order with one week remaining in the 2023 regular season.
The Packers beat up on the Vikings on Sunday night, setting up a scenario where a win over the Bears in the season finale would clinch a playoff spot.
The Green Bay Packers used four total touchdowns from Jordan Love and a dominant defensive effort to crush the Minnesota Vikings on “Sunday Night Football” in Week 17 and set up a win-and-in season finale against the Chicago Bears.
Love tossed three touchdown passes — including two in the first half to rookie Jayden Reed — and rushed for a fourth as the Packers cruised to a 33-10 victory at U.S. Bank Stadium.
The Packers improved to 8-8. Getting to 9-8 with a win over the Bears next weekend would clinch a playoff spot as a wildcard team in the NFC.
Reed caught a 33-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter and a 25-yard score with eight seconds left in the second quarter but left with a chest injury. The Packers led 23-3 at halftime and led 30-3 late in the third quarter.
Reed now has 10 total touchdowns, the third-most by a rookie in team history. He also set the team record for total receptions by a rookie in a single season, surpassing Sterling Sharpe’s record.
Love is up to 30 passing touchdowns and 34 total touchdowns.
Vikings rookie Jaren Hall threw an interception and lost a fumble in the first half, setting up Packers touchdowns. He was replaced by Nick Mullens to start the second half.
The Packers defense allowed only 4.1 yards per play, produced two turnovers and gave up only 3-of-12 conversions on third or fourth down. The only touchdown allowed came after Samori Toure muffed a punt.
