Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
The Colts are placing K Adam Vinatieri on IR with a knee injury He needs surgery and will miss the remainder of the season Vinatieri missed eight field goals and six PATs this season, struggling with consistency and accuracy
The Colts are placing K Adam Vinatieri on IR with a knee injury He needs surgery and will miss the remainder of the season Vinatieri missed eight field goals and six PATs this season, struggling with consistency and accuracy
The Colts are placing K Adam Vinatieri on IR with a knee injury He needs surgery and will miss the remainder of the season Vinatieri missed eight field goals and six PATs this season, struggling with consistency and accuracy
The Colts are placing K Adam Vinatieri on IR with a knee injury He needs surgery and will miss the remainder of the season Vinatieri missed eight field goals and six PATs this season, struggling with consistency and accuracy
Eagles vs. Giants: NFL experts make Week 14 picks
The Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants will meet on Monday Night Football, in the first of four straight NFC East games for the Birds.
The Eagles are coming off a heartbreaking loss to the Dolphins, while Eli Manning could be starting at Lincoln Financial Field for the final time, as a member of the New York Giants.
Experts from around the league have weighed-in, and it looks like the field is picking the Eagles at home.
***
ESPN — Eagles
Tim McManus — Eagles
NFL.com — Eagles
CBS Sports — Eagles
Pro Football Talk — Eagles
Bleacher Report — Eagles
The Athletic — Giants
The Inquirer — Eagles
The Sporting News: Eagles
2020 Tennessee football recruiting.
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MEMPHIS — 2020 defensive lineman Omari Thomas has committed to the Vols.
The 6-foot-5, 300-pound prospect is from Briarcrest Christian in Memphis, Tenn.
Tennessee offered Thomas on Jan. 16, 2018, following Jeremy Pruitt being hired at UT. The in-state defensive lineman most recently visited Tennessee on Oct. 26 when the Vols defeated South Carolina, 41-21. Thomas was also in attendance for the Vols’ game against Georgia on Oct. 5.
The 2019 Early Signing Period will take place Dec. 18-20 and National Signing Day will be held on Feb. 5.
The Vols’ 2020 commitment tracker can be followed below.
University of Tennessee’s 2020 football recruiting class tracker
Previewing Monday’s Los Angeles Clippers at Indiana Pacers sports betting odds and lines, with NBA betting picks, tips and best bets.
The Los Angeles Clippers (17-7) visit the Indiana Pacers (15-8) Monday at 7 p.m. ET at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. We analyze the Clippers-Pacers odds and lines, with NBA betting advice and tips around the matchup.
Place a legal sports bet on this NBA action or other games at BetMGM.
Clippers
Pacers
NBA odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full set of today’s betting odds. Odds last updated at 10:15 a.m. ET.
Pacers 107, Clippers 102
The Clippers are coming off a 135-119 road win over the Washington Wizards Friday, while the Pacers last played Saturday in a 104-103 road victory over the New York Knicks. The Pacers now return home from a five-game road swing. They have a 9-2 record as hosts and the Clippers are just 4-6 away from home.
Take the PACERS (-110) as they have the rest and home advantages, and Leonard is expected to sit out for the Clips. Both teams were 8-2 over their last 10 games. The Pacers have the edge on defense with an average of 104.5 points per game allowed while the Clippers allow 108.7 PPG. Los Angeles scores 115.3 PPG to 109.2 PPG for Indiana.
New to sports betting? A $10 bet on the Pacers to win outright as home underdogs returns a profit of $9.09.
Stick with the moneyline and the outright victory for Indiana rather than taking a smaller payout with the -120 odds for the Pacers to cover the spread of +1.5 and stay within one point in a loss or win outright.
The Clippers are 13-11 against the spread overall and 3-7 ATS on the road. The Pacers are 12-10 ATS overall and 6-4 at home.
The Clippers rank seventh in the NBA with a pace of 103.57 possessions per game but they’re on the second half of a back-to-back and Leonard is expected to take the night off.
The Pacers rank just 23rd by pace at 99.40 possessions per game and will happily play in a slower, lower-scoring contest. Take the UNDER 218.5 (-125).
Want some action on this one? Place a bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting tips, visit SportsbookWire.com.
Esten’s NBA betting record: 70-59
Follow @EstenMcLaren and @SportsbookWire on Twitter.
Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.
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Matthew Judon was a major factor in Week 14, rattling Bills QB Josh Allen all game long and posting 1.5 sacks and a key forced fumble.
In a game that came down to a final drive and featured two stout defenses who kept opposing mobile quarterbacks in relative check, it might not come as a surprise that a defensive player is the Baltimore Ravens’ player of the game in Week 14 against the Bills. If you watched the game, you likely aren’t very shocked we’re awarding it to outside linebacker Matthew Judon.
Judon was a major factor in this game, starting rattling early. In the first quarter, Judon rattled Bills quarterback Josh Allen, notching a sack and stripping the ball in the process. That would prophesize the type of day Judon would ultimately have, finishing with 1.5 credited sacks (though it certainly looked like two), a forced fumble, a tackle for a loss and five overall tackles.
With Buffalo hanging around until the last drive, Judon’s efforts may have been the difference. Allen couldn’t really get into a rhythm the entire game thanks to the pressure Judon and the defense was bringing, way overshooting on several of his passes. Had the defensive backs actually caught a few of the passes that landed in their hands, Judon could have very well been responsible for even more turnovers.
In what has become a career year for the Ravens’ top pass rusher, the question looms as to whether or not Judon will remain in Baltimore after the offseason. It seems we go through this every year — the Ravens have an elite player on defense that seems to play his best football in his contract year, opening the door for a big payday. Sadly, it seems the offer they sign ends up coming from another team.
Whether or not general manager Eric DeCosta feels Judon is worth keeping around remains to be seen, but the outside linebacker has been a cornerstone of the Ravens’ defense this season. And Judon’s level of play will certainly be a necessity as the Ravens look ahead toward the post-season. In a season where everyone has been overshadowed by Lamar Jackson, Matthew Judon made sure no one forgot him.
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The Bills offense had their hands full against the Baltimore Ravens defense during a 24-17 loss in Week 14.
The Bills offense had their hands full against the Baltimore Ravens defense during a 24-17 loss in Week 14.
The passing offense specifically never got going. Buffalo’s No. 1 receiver in John Brown was limited to only three catches and 26 yards on five targets. After the game, the wideout suggested his team wasn’t just facing problems from the Ravens.
Brown said that the referees were missing calls against Baltimore, even suggesting that they should be hit where it hurts most, their wallets.
“One thing… refs need to start getting fined, maybe that will make it a better game,” Brown said. “They got away with a lot of stuff.”
To Brown’s point, there were a few plays on the field that seemed questionable, and more than just a missed holding penalty here or there.
On one missed call including a Bills receiver, Robert Foster was clearly touched by Ravens cornerback Jimmy Smith during a target on Sunday:
Terrible missed call by an official right on the spot. Blatant PI on Robert Foster not called. #Bills pic.twitter.com/KBdrhVh9ul
— Bradley Gelber (@BradleyGelber) December 8, 2019
While Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott did not address the officials during his postgame press conference, he was certainly upset doing the game and his anger was clearly directed at referee:
I don’t think I have ever seen Sean McDermott this fired up before. Wow. #Bills pic.twitter.com/KVgbPYUUWE
— Bradley Gelber (@BradleyGelber) December 8, 2019
Other missed calls by the refs could’ve included the Ravens appearing to have too many men on the field early the game as well. But when it was all said and done, the Ravens were actually the team handed more penalties in the game, nine of them for 99 yards compared to the Bills’ five penalties for 49 yards. A big chunk of those penalty yards for the Ravens came via defensive pass interference calls as well.
While Brown would likely say those calls were too little, too late, he didn’t only take things out on the men in stripes.
“Just have to make a few more plays. On offense we have to execute better. I have to make more plays. I should’ve made that last play,” Brown said.
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The New Orleans Saints took an aggressive approach in their loss to the San Francisco 49ers, but Sean Payton and Drew Brees don’t regret it.
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The New Orleans Saints were determined to stay aggressive in their game with the San Francisco 49ers. They expected it to be a close game, where an extra possession or score here or there would ultimately make the difference. If you had told them going in that the final score would end up being just two points apart, they wouldn’t have been surprised.
Now, no one expected it to be 48-46 as time expired. The Saints didn’t take much solace in the success they had against the NFL’s best pass defense, but it’s impossible not to be encouraged by all of the scoring opportunities they created. Count Saints quarterback Drew Brees among the group who was happy to be competitive in so many high-leverage situations.
“You know you’re in that type of game, right?” Brees said during his postgame media availability. “We’re going to play aggressive. We faked the punt. We brought just about (every) kickoff out of the endzone and hit on a couple of those. We had a great return there. Let’s see if we can break one of these.”
Saints coach Sean Payton wasn’t nearly as eager to get into the specifics of his team’s approach. Still smarting from the loss, Payton summed up his decision to go for it on an early two-point conversion moved up by a 49ers penalty as, “Flag puts it at the one (yard line). That’s why.”
Fortunately, Brees was feeling more amiable to explain his team’s thinking in that situation: “Those are difference makers. If you just look at the statistics if you’re going from the two-yard line versus going from the one-yard line it’s a big difference. We had a play we liked. Oddly enough, they miss a line(backer). They had an extra guy who shouldn’t have been there.”
As Brees said, that first two-point try was snuffed out by the unexpected 49ers defender, who crashed down on the ball-carrier unblocked. A miscommunication between Brees and his receiver on a later two-point attempt failed to add any points, but these are obviously gambles the Saints are comfortable making.
“So, unfortunately, the play didn’t work,” Brees continued, “but that’s a big play in the game if we get (it). We’re going to play aggressive. We’re going to take chances. We’re not going to making excuses.”
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Ball will rehab his injury in Australia and is expected to make a full recovery and finish out the remainder of the season with the Hawks.
LaMelo Ball will miss approximately four weeks with the Illawarra Hawks of the National Basketball League after suffering a foot injury, the team announced.
Ball suffered a bruised foot in practice last week and was prescribed to rest by a team doctor, likely keeping him out until January at the earliest. The team announced on Thursday that Ball would not play Saturday against the Brisbane Bullets due to a sore foot.
Ball will rehab his injury in Australia as the 18-year-old is expected to make a full recovery and finish out the remainder of the season with the Hawks in the NBL. The game on Saturday marked the first of the regular season that Ball missed with the Hawks.
Prior to suffering the injury, Ball had been on a recent tear with the Hawks.
Ball recently recorded back-to-back triple-doubles and became the first NBL player in the 40-minute era to have consecutive triple-doubles. Over his last five games, Ball is averaging 23.2 points, 9.4 assists, nine rebounds and 1.6 steals while he is shooting 40.1% from the field.
In 12 games this season, Ball is averaging 17 points, 7.5 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 1.7 steals for the Hawks, while he is shooting 37.3% from the field and 24.3% from 3-point range.
A four-week timetable would have Ball missing around seven games.
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Real Jameis vs. Fantasy Jameis is quite different.
Jameis Winston leads the NFL in interceptions with 23, a whopping seven more than Baker Mayfield has accrued this season. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are 6-7 and are eliminated from postseason play.
Jameis Winston is also, per ESPN, the sixth-highest scoring quarterback by fantasy points. He may be helping you win a fantasy football championship.
That split is exactly what makes fantasy football so fun and weird. Winston keeps piling up the points for owners in fake football and may be signing elsewhere this offseason in the real version.
It’s because he’s third in the league in passing touchdowns with 26, second behind Dak Prescott with 4,115 yards, eighth among quarterbacks in rushing yards and second behind that Tom Brady guy with 512 attempts, a reminder that volume accounts for a lot in fantasy.
Games in which he’s thrown multiple interceptions are erased because he’s a 300-yard machine — he’s totaled that yardage mark nine times in 2019, with two of those games at 400 or more. For what it’s worth, the Bucs are 4-5 in those games.
Can anyone explain how Jameis Winston throws so many interceptions but still puts up 44 fantasy points🙄🙄
— Nate Rodgers (@rodgers66) December 9, 2019
We got bad Jameis today and yet he’s been unbelievable for fantasy. And the Bucs somehow are leading this game.
— Matthew Berry (@MatthewBerryTMR) December 8, 2019
This means Winston is basically Blake Bortles.
Bortles, you see, was a mediocre quarterback while starting for the Jacksonville Jaguars, but because he ran a bunch (310 yards rushing or more while with the Jags) and had a high amount of attempts, he’d be a decent fantasy pick.
And funny enough, they share a something in common. Here’s a stat from September:
This is Jameis Winston's 17th career game with multiple interceptions, passing Blake Bortles for most in the league since Winston entered the NFL in 2015. pic.twitter.com/2jiXnz9E8w
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) September 8, 2019
So here’s to you, Jameis Winston and your wild split between real life and fantasy football skills.
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