Ryan Tannehill used his nose to swipe the Titans’ sideline tablet and became a meme

Amazing.

Between his time in college at Texas A&M and NFL career with the Dolphins, Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill doesn’t have much experience with playing football in cold weather. But he has figured out an unconventionally savvy swiping strategy.

Temperatures for Sunday’s AFC Championship Game in Kansas City hovered around 20 degrees, so in an effort to go over plays on the tablet while also keeping his gloves on, Tannehill opted to use his nose to swipe through the tablet.

The CBS broadcast, thankfully, shared this look with viewers, and Jim Nantz provided the much-needed commentary.

Honestly, it looked weird, but that wasn’t a bad idea. They make gloves that work on tablets, but Tannehill had to make due with what he had — which was his nose.

And predictably, the nose-swiping provided great meme material.

Next time, the Titans will need to get Tannehill a pair of tablet-compatible gloves.

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5 role players who need to step up for Packers in NFC title game

The Green Bay Packers will need meaningful contributions from up and down the active roster to beat the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. Here are five under-the-radar role players who may need to step for the Packers to win on …

The Green Bay Packers will need meaningful contributions from up and down the active roster to beat the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game.

Here are five under-the-radar role players who may need to step for the Packers to win on Sunday:

1. RG Billy Turner: The interior of the offensive line struggled throughout the first meeting in Santa Clara. Arik Armstead and DeForest Buckner dominated, and the 49ers aren’t afraid to move Nick Bosa and Dee Ford inside to create matchups. The Packers need better pass protection across the board in the rematch, but Turner, Elgton Jenkins and Corey Linsley all must be much better on Sunday. Turner had a tough night in the NFC Divisional Round against the Seahawks. The Packers can’t afford him to play another down game Sunday.

2. DL Dean Lowry: The Packers can’t get pushed around in the run game. One of Mike Pettine’s most important players for stopping the run is Lowry, who often has to take on double-team blocks inside. When the Packers have stopped the run this season, Lowry and Kenny Clark have kept offenses from getting linemen to the second level. Can he help keep Blake Martinez clean against the run Sunday? If not, the 49ers could run for a bunch of yards.

3. RB Tyler Ervin: His presence as the jet-motion man in Matt LaFleur’s scheme has become increasingly more important. He played 31 snaps over the final three games. The Packers could really use Ervin’s speed pre-snap to help slow down the pass-rush and window-dress run plays for the 49ers’ ultra-fast linebackers. He could also contribute in the passing game, and he’ll be the primary returner. Special teams often make a significant difference in big games.

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4. WR Allen Lazard: He left last week’s win over the Seahawks with an ankle injury, but Lazard is active against the 49ers Sunday. During the last meeting, Lazard had several opportunities for big plays but Aaron Rodgers couldn’t find him. The Packers need that to change on Sunday, especially if Robert Salah’s defense prioritizes taking away Davante Adams. Lazard is the offense’s best receiver behind Adams and is capable of getting open if consistently single-covered.

5. S Ibraheim Campbell: Defensive coordinator Mike Pettine will call on Campbell to play the dime linebacker role. It’ll be a stressful position to play against Kyle Shanahan’s run game and play-action passing game. Can he allow Pettine to play six or seven defensive backs on the field and still control the run? And can he help the defense cover the middle of the field, especially when Shanahan dials up a run fake? The defense wasn’t good in either area in the first meeting. How the Packers perform in one of their favorite defensive subpackages could be huge.

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Dana White criticizes UFC 246 officials Jason Herzog, Mark Smith – but admits refs have tough job

Dana White wasn’t thrilled with the UFC 246 officiating throughout the night.

LAS VEGAS – UFC president Dana White was buzzing following the conclusion of UFC 246.

One thing he wasn’t thrilled by however, was the officiating throughout the night. In particular, White took exception with the way two bouts were officiated.

The first fight White addressed in his post-fight news conference was the lackluster co-main event between Holly Holm and Raquel Pennington. White said he liked referee Jason Herzog, but wasn’t happy with his unwillingness to separate the fighters against the cage.

“(Herzog) let them clinch for four minutes for three (expletive) rounds and they fought for a minute,” White said. “That was a problem, too. That drove me crazy. If you are not doing damage or advancing position, you split the fighters up and make them actually fight. And I like this guy. I don’t want to bum this guy out or whatever, but he’s running around the Octagon. Like, what (expletive) fight is he watching? He’s moving around like he’s trying to stay out of the way like there’s a (expletive) war going on or something. These guys are leaning up against the fence for four minutes. Are you (expletive) me right now?

“I literally almost got up and walked out of that fight. I was so frustrated. Anyways, I’ve (expletive) on enough referees in my day. That guy seems like a nice guy. I’m too old to (expletive) be doing this (expletive) any more and tearing these guys apart. He’s a nice guy and I don’t mean to whatever. You saw the fight. You know what I’m talking about.”

In White’s eyes, referee Mark Smith’s stoppage in the prelim bout between Drew Dober and Nasrat Haqparast was also problematic. Haqparast absorbed 12 unanswered punches before Smith stepped in.

“The Dober fight, he got hit with like 12 unanswered shots,” White said. “The reffing wasn’t 100 percent tonight. That’s a fact.”

While some viewers voiced their displeasure with referee Herb Dean’s “late” stoppage in the main event between Conor McGregor and Donald Cerrone, the UFC president wasn’t necessarily on board. White admitted referees have a tough job and will never be perfect.

“I don’t know if the Cerrone stoppage was horrible, though,” White said. “I don’t know if I’d say that. At the end of the day, the reality is we’re not in there. We’re not the refs. I wish it could be perfect, but it’s never going to be perfect. It’s never going to be perfect in football, basketball, or any other sport. It’s never going to be perfect here.

“I think it’s probably one of the toughest jobs in all of sports. Everybody is an expert. Everybody is a critic. Everybody wants to rip you apart after they don’t like the way you did it. As long as nobody gets hurt. Never once did I look at the (Cerrone) fight and go, ‘They should have stopped that sooner,’ like I did for the Dober fight.”

UFC 246 took place Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on UFC Fight Pass/ESPN+.

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How to Watch Packers vs. 49ers, NFL Playoffs Live Stream, Schedule, TV Channel, Start Time

Watch Packers vs. 49ers Live Online.

The Green Bay Packers and San Francisco 49ers meet Sunday night with the NFC Championship title and a trip to Super Bowl LIV in Miami on the line. It was the 49ers who won the last meeting between these two teams back in Week 12 with a stifling defensive performance. The game will mark the eighth time these two storied franchises have played each other in the postseason and the second in an NFC Championship game, which the Packers won 23-10 in 1998.

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Packers vs. 49ers

  • When: Sunday, January 19
  • Time: 6:40 p.m. ET
  • TV: FOX
  • Live Stream: fuboTV (watch for free)

For Green Bay, the road to Miami started last weekend with a 28-23 victory over Seattle at a frigid Lambeau Field. Aaron Rodgers threw for 243 yards and two touchdowns, with Davante Adams on the receiving end of both of those scores. He finished the day with eight catches for 160 yards. Rodgers had his worst game statistically of the year the first time these two teams met in Week 12, passing for 104 yards and one touchdown.  Adams was limited to seven catches for 43 yards in the loss as well. It’s been nine years since the Packers have been to the Super Bowl. If Aaron Rodgers wants another ring, the offense will have to click on all cylinders against arguably the best defense in the NFL.

Defensively, the matchup to watch is linebacker Blake Martinez against the 49ers slew of running backs. Martinez has a team-leading 155 tackles on the season. Fellow linebackers Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith have 13.5 and 12 sacks, respectively. If it can force quarterback Jimmy Garropolo to beat the defense with his arm, it has a good chance of winning this game. 

San Francisco earned a bye going into the playoffs, giving the team plenty of time to game plan for the Minnesota Vikings last weekend. Jimmy Garropolo completed 11 of 19 passes for 131 yards, one touchdown, and one interception, while Tevin Coleman rushed for 105 yards and two touchdowns in the team’s 27-10 victory. Raheem Mostert added 58 yards on the ground as well. The 49ers were second in rushing during the regular season behind only the Ravens. They will need to get more out of their passing game, especially with tight end George Kittle.

They say defense wins championships and the 49ers are two wins away from proving just that. Minnesota quarterback Kirk Cousins was limited to 172 yards, but even more impressive was how the unit eliminated the run game.  Dalvin Cook had just nine carries for 18 yards and the team totaled 21 yards on the ground. Nick Bosa totaled six tackles and two sacks, as the group was in Cousins’ face all game long with five total sacks and one interception. The defense’s ability to disrupt Aaron Rodgers, cause havoc in the passing game and slow down Packers running back Aaron Jones will be pivotal in this game.

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WATCH: Lonzo Ball notches triple-double in showdown with Clippers

In a tight loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday, Pelicans guard Lonzo Ball notched his third triple-double of the season.

Lonzo Ball continued his strong play of late with yet another triple-double on Saturday afternoon in a matinee match-up with the Los Angeles Clippers. Ball finished with 18 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds, his third triple-double with the Pelicans, all coming in the last month of action. The Pelicans, though, would fall to the Clippers in a tight affair, 133-130.

Ball exploded for 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting from the field and 2-of-3 three-point shooting. His biggest plays included a steal and score for an and-one. He then followed it up with a basket over the top of Patrick Beverley before taunting him.

Since notching his first triple-double of the season in a win over the Rockets 10 games ago, Ball is averaging 17.1 points, 9.3 assists and 7.6 rebounds while shooting 38.0% from three-point territory. In all but one of those 10 games, he’s scored in double figures. In the lone contest he didn’t, he tied a career-high with 13 assists against the Jazz.

It’s been one of the strongest stretches of play in Ball’s career as he looks to have finally carved out a role with the Pelicans.

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5 standouts in East-West Shrine Game

The East won 31-27 and the story was how the running backs looked.

The East-West Shrine game featuring many NFL prospects was played on Saturday in Florida. The East beat the West 31-27 in a higher-scoring game than in years past.

Who were the players to stand out in the game?

Charlotte RB Bennie LeMay

Douglas DeFelice-USA TODAY Sports

The Charlotte RB was the game’s offensive MVP with 16 carries for 80 yards and two touchdowns.

He had 1,072 rushing yards and nine touchdowns in 2019, along with 242 receiving yards and four more scores.

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Danny Vitale, Raven Greene inactive, JK Scott active for Packers in NFC championship

It’s official: the Green Bay Packers will have a punter for the NFC Championship Game against the San Francisco 49ers. JK Scott, who was listed as questionable with an illness, is active Sunday. The Packers didn’t add a punter on Sunday, making it …

It’s official: the Green Bay Packers will have a punter for the NFC Championship Game against the San Francisco 49ers.

JK Scott, who was listed as questionable with an illness, is active Sunday.

The Packers didn’t add a punter on Sunday, making it likely Scott would be able to play.

However, the Packers listed fullback Danny Vitale and defensive back Raven Greene as inactive.

Vitale, the offense’s only fullback, is battling a knee injury. He’ll be replaced by rookie tight end Jace Sternberger, who has played snaps at fullback the last two games.

Greene, who was officially activated off injured reserve on Saturday, is inactive. He hasn’t played in a game since Week 2.

Packers inactives: 

RB Dexter Williams
WR Ryan Grant
OL Alex Light
S Raven Greene
CB Ka’dar Hollman
OL John Leglue
FB Danny Vitale

49ers inactives:

QB C.J. Beathard
RB Jeff Wilson Jr.
CB Dontae Johnson
TE Daniel Helm
LB Azeez Al-Shaair
WR Jordan Matthews
DT Kevin Givens

49ers inactives: 49ers at full strength for NFC championship showdown with Packers

The 49ers are at full strength for the NFC championship game.

The 49ers’ clean injury report didn’t change any through the weekend, and they’ll be at full strength for the NFC championship game. No surprises popped up on their list of inactives.

Here’s the seven inactive players for Sunday:

QB CJ Beathard
RB Jeff Wilson Jr.
CB Dontae Johnson
TE Daniel Helm
LB Azeez Al-Shaair
WR Jordan Matthews
DL Kevin Givens

Not seeing a key starter on the inactives list has to be a huge sigh of relief for the 49ers going into the biggest game of the year.

The key injury-related things to watch are defensive end Dee Ford and linebacker Kwon Alexander’s snap counts. Ford was a full participant in practice Friday after missing Wednesday and going limited Thursday. He played 22 very effective snaps against the Vikings.

Alexander played 54 percent of the snaps in the divisional round as the strong side linebacker. It’ll be interesting to see if his role expands against a Packers offense where the third linebacker spot won’t be on the field as much.

Here are the Packers inactives: