Watch: Blake Bortles makes nice sideline catch and Twitter loves it

Twitter loved the catch Blake Bortles made on the sideline

Sean McVay designed a play specifically for Blake Bortles last week against the Steelers, getting him on the field for a key third-down read-option. It didn’t work, but perhaps McVay put him in the wrong position.

Maybe he belongs at wide receiver.

During Sunday night’s game against the Bears, Bortles made a nice sideline catch on a throw-away by Jared Goff. He made it look easy, too.

Twitter saw Bortles’ grab and absolutely loved it, calling for McVay to put No. 5 on the field.

 

NFL Week 11 Awards: This was the worst pass interference call against a defender

The good, the bad, and the hilarious from Sunday’s NFL action.

Sunday’s Week 11 NFL action saw some very interesting things take place on the field… including a number of issues with refs being seemingly confused about what makes something pass interefence.

But we also saw Lamar Jackson doing his thing once again in leading the Baltimore Ravens to an easy win over Deshaun Watson and the Houston Texans.

We saw Julian Edelman throw more touchdown passes than Tom Brady in the Patriots’ big win over the Eagles in Philly.

And we saw the Minnesota Vikings come all the way back from 20-0 halftime deficit to beat the Broncos, albeit on a controversial final play of the game.

So now let’s have some fun and take a look back at the good, the bad, and the hilarious from Sunday’s NFL action.

The worst job of calling defensive pass interference against a defender who got mauled: This call against Arizona.  

Seriously, what is going on in the NFL? Kyle Juszczyk tackled Cardinals LB Joe Walker on that play… and Walker got called for pass interference? Yeesh.

The best job of blocking Nick Bosa by a future Hall of Fame WR: Larry Fitzgerald. 

Now that is one way to slow down Bosa.

The best job of copying your QB’s weird hip-thrusting warmup after scoring a TD: Ezekiel Elliott.

Zeke apparently saw that funny video of his QB, Dak Prescott, warming up his hips. Well played, sir.

The best job by a WR of outshining his GOAT QB: Julian Edelman.

Edelman threw one more TD pass than Tom Brady did against the Eagles and this strike proved to be the game-winner.

The best run by a QB who does ridiculous things each week: This one by Lamar Jackson.

Jackson is SO FUN to watch. Not so fun to try defend, though.

The best slo-mo shot of a tricky INT: This one for the Saints. 

That. Is. Art.

The best TD run by a really fast QB: Kyler Murray. 

Yup, Kyler Murray has some wheels on him.

The most bonkers bad beat of the NFL season: This one by the 49ers.

Gambling on NFL games is bad for your wallet and for your heart.

The best hype man for his star QB: Mark Ingram.

I need a Mark Ingram in my life.

The worst job of trying to tackle a running back: Jacksonville Jaguars.

That’s a great run by Marlon Mack… and some poor tackling by the Jaguars.

The best air guitar celebration by an excited fan: This dude in Indy.

Not sure he had to lick his fingers but when you’re in the zone you’re in the zone, I guess.

Eric Paschall after another 30-point effort: ‘I belong in this league’

Eric Paschall became the first member of the 2019 NBA Rookie Class to record multiple 30-point games this season. That says a lot.

With a bevy of injuries to his club, Steve Kerr hasn’t had many reasons to smile this season. Through the team’s first 14 games, though, rookie Eric Paschall has given him at least one.

On Sunday night, Paschall became the first member of this year’s rookie class to record two 30-point efforts when the young forward admirably led the club in its matchup with the New Orleans Pelicans. Although the Warriors were on the wrong end of a 108-100 decision, Paschall was a bright spot. He shot 10-for-17 from the field en route to his 30 points, and looked quite comfortable being the lead dog for Kerr’s club.

“It’s my teammates and my coaches just giving me the confidence to go, so I feel like that’s all that it is,” Paschall said of his assertiveness (via the San Francisco Chronicle).

“I feel like I belong in this league, and I just try to continue to prove that.”

While the Warriors may be currently sporting the league’s worst record at 2-12, injuries to Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and D’Angelo Russell make the tough times somewhat understandable. Paschall, though, has emerged as the silver lining—he’s performed quite well.

With this season not necessarily expected to result in a playoff berth, Paschall has essentially been enjoying a year free from the burdens of championship expectations as he attempts to prove that he deserves a rotation spot when the team’s big guns return to the lineup.

“A lot of that goes to my teammates and coaches and giving me the ability to just go out and play and have fun,” Paschall said of his newfound confidence, which has been quite apparent.

After the loss to the Pelicans, Kerr raved about Paschall’s playing style, including the fact that the way that today’s NBA is officiated, he has an advantage over most defenders.

The rookie agreed with his coach’s assessment, but proved he maintains a level head about the respect he’s given by the officials and his newfound popularity.

“Sometimes, it goes against me,” he said of the officiating, “But, I mean, it’s all good. Everything’s not gonna go my way all the time, but you just gotta keep a good attitude at all times and keep playing the right way and playing hard.”

To this point, despite a rotation that has resembled a game of musical chairs, he certainly has.

That, as well as his obvious talent, should serve him well in the NBA and give him an opportunity to become an important piece for Golden State. Both now, and in the future.

WATCH: Mark Ingram scores two touchdowns in Raven’s win

Former Alabama Heisman-winning running back Mark Ingram has been a very strong presence in the Baltimore Ravens backfield, and he continued to shine in the team’s 7 – 41 win over the Houston Texans. Overall, Ingram had 13 carries for 48 yards on the …

Former Alabama Heisman-winning running back Mark Ingram has been a very strong presence in the Baltimore Ravens backfield, and he continued to shine in the team’s 7 – 41 win over the Houston Texans.

Overall, Ingram had 13 carries for 48 yards on the ground, and three receptions for 37 yards and two touchdowns.

Ingram’s first touchdown of the day was this 25-yard pass that ended with a smooth celebration in the endzone.

His second touchdown didn’t come without some display of strength.

This 12-yard touchdown pass to Ingram probably should have been stopped well short of even the first down, but he had his eyes set on the endzone.

This touchdown helped put the nail in the coffin to secure the Ravens win to improve their record to 8-3.

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WATCH: Mitchell Trubisky finds Tarik Cohen for Bears’ first TD vs. Rams

After being held scoreless in the first half, the Bears marched down the field to score on their opening possession of the second half.

After being held scoreless in the first half, the Chicago Bears’ offense came alive in the second half with a touchdown drive on its opening possession of the third quarter.

The Bears put together a 12-play 80-yard drive, which was capped by a Mitchell Trubisky to Tarik Cohen 14-yard touchdown.

That touchdown marked the third consecutive game in which the Bears scored a touchdown on their opening drive of the second half.

Chicago didn’t have a third down until the final play of the drive, which resulted in the touchdown.

The Bears currently trail the Rams 10-7 with 4:50 left in the third quarter.

Rookies, defense once again make for unlikely heroes as Raiders win third straight

Rookies, defense once again make for unlikely heroes as Raiders win third straight

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Three weeks ago, the Raiders were sitting at 3-4, coming off a long road trip. They were happy to be home for the first time in seven weeks and needed to take advantage of it. To do that, they would need their defense to play a lot better than they had, and the rookies would be asked to step up to make up for some key losses.

They got both of those things, and the result has been three straight wins.

Sunday against the Bengals, we saw some familiar heroes to the previous two wins against the Lions and Chargers.

The first big play of the game came from Maxx Crosby, who sacked quarterback Ryan Finley and forced the fumble which the Raiders recovered.

Foster Moreau would score the Raiders’ first touchdown. Hunter Renfrow had key third-down conversions on each of the Raiders’ first two scoring drives. Josh Jacobs went over 100 yards on his first carry of the 4th quarter to lead off the final Raiders scoring drive to take a 17-10 lead.

They had that lead at the 2-minute mark when the Bengals got the ball at their own 20-yard line looking to drive for the tie.

In the first play, Crosby had his fourth (!!!) sack of the game. The next play Trayvon Mullen picked off Finley to seal the win.

Win streaks don’t happen like this without these kinds of contributions from unlikely places. But at some point, we can’t be surprised anymore where the heroics are coming from.

Two weeks ago against the Lions, the Raiders rookies scored all four touchdowns. Last week top pick Clelin Ferrell had a coming-out party with 2.5 sacks. The rookies were major factors again this week.

Each of the past three weeks, the game has been put in the hands of the defense to shut the door. The Lions drove to the goal line where, on fourth down, Karl Joseph knocked the pass down to end it.

Last week it was a pressure by Crosby, leading to an interception by Joseph that sealed the victory. And this week, it was the sack by Crosby followed by the interception by Mullen that ended it.

“If you’re going to win, you’ve got the lead, and they’ve got the ball, and the defense has got to close,” said Gruden. “That’s something that we’re getting better and better at. I think we’re actually looking forward to the challenges of going out there and finishing, but we always talked about the fourth-quarter pass rush. You can count sacks and stats in the first couple quarters, but when you get in a closing situation, that’s when you have to really end the game.”

It’s one thing for a veteran like Joseph to close out a game. It’s another thing for the defense to start playing the hero after how much they struggled early this season. And it’s another level to not only see the defense closing out games but that it’s rookie defenders doing it.

That was the first interception of Mullen’s NFL career. In his fourth start since he replaced Gareon Conley, who was traded to the Texans. Mullens’ emergence just makes for yet another rookie stepping up for this team.

“Guys just coming in and showing the capability and what they can do,” Mullen said of the Raiders rookie class. “How they prepare. How they take meetings seriously. How they want to elevate and get better. I think that’s the biggest thing. Everybody just wants to get better, everybody wants to see each other do good so that we can continue to win games and put ourselves in position for the rest of the season.”

In another one-score win, there was no way they do it without every contribution they got from their rookies, and most importantly, from their defense. A couple areas that a month ago, few could have predicted would be playing the hero. But here we are.

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Eric Paschall turns in fantastic effort, but Warriors lose to Pelicans

Without D’Angelo Russell, Eric Paschall picked up the slack for Steve Kerr’s team, but he couldn’t help the team avoid a 108-100 loss.

On Sunday night, for the Golden State Warriors, the Big Easy was anything but.

Despite a 30-point effort from standout rookie Eric Paschall, Golden State couldn’t keep pace with the tandem of Jrue Holiday (22 points, eight rebounds, nine assists) and JJ Redick (26 points, 6-for-11 from 3-point territory), as the Pelicans scored a 108-100 victory over Steve Kerr’s team.

Paschall became the first member of this year’s rookie class to record multiple 30-point games, as he scored 34 points in the club’s 127-118 win over the Portland Trail Blazers back on November 4. He has been one of the few bright spots on a Warriors team that has now lost seven consecutive games.

With the loss, the Warriors fell to 2-12 on the regular season and dropped the first game on their four-game swing, which will also include stops in Memphis, Dallas and Salt Lake City.

The contest also happened to be the first that D’Angelo Russell missed after being announced with a sprained right thumb on Saturday. Russell is expected to miss at least the next two weeks.

As for the game itself, the Warriors trailed throughout, but managed to cut a 17-point deficit to just three in the game’s third quarter. Still, the team shot just 37.3 percent from the field over the course of the game’s first three quarters and simply couldn’t slow Holiday down in the fourth quarter, where he shot 5-for-7 and scored 12 points.

Although the final margin happened to be just eight points, the Pelicans led by as many as 15 during the game’s final frame, and it’s fair to say that the outcome of this one was never really in doubt.

For the Warriors, aside from Paschall’s 30 points, the team got 19 points off the bench from Ky Bowman and a 14-point, six-rebound effort from Glen Robinson III.

Pelicans vs. Warriors Recap: The Good, the Bad and the Ball

Jrue Holiday and JJ Redick led the New Orleans Pelicans to their fourth win of the NBA regular season.

Despite having more than half of their roster unavailable due to injuries, the New Orleans Pelicans earned their fourth win of the regular season after beating the Golden State Warriors 108-100 Sunday at the Smoothie King Center. Here was the good, the bad and the Ball from the game.

The Good: The New Starting Backcourt

In the six games that Lonzo Ball and Jrue Holiday have started together this season, they posted an offensive rating of 106.8 and a defensive rating of 116.5 for an overall net rating of -9.6. With Ball sidelined, Pelicans head coach Alvin Gentry has started Jrue Holiday and JJ Redick in the backcourt, and the two veteran guard have looked great together.

On Sunday against the Warriors, Holiday and Redick combined for 48 points on 43.5% shooting from the field. In the previous game they started together, they combined for 45 points 61.5% shooting from the field in a win against the LA Clippers. The Pelicans are 3-1 in the games Redick and Holiday have started together.

The Bad: The Warriors

The team that made the last five NBA Finals has the worst record in the league with two wins and 12 losses and much like the Pelicans, injuries are at the center of all of their problems. The bright side is that once they’re healthy, they’ll have four All-Star players on their roster in Stephen Curry, D’Angelo Russell, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, plus — in all likelihood — a high lottery pick.

The Ball

Lonzo Ball sat out of his fifth consecutive game with an adductor strain. Ball has been sidelined since Nov. 9.

He will re-evaluated on Monday.

Winners and losers for Raiders in Week 11 vs Bengals

Raider’s wire takes a look at the Winners and Losers from a close victory for the Oakland Raiders against the Cincinnati Bengals

The Oakland Raiders never want to give Raider Nation the day off. The Raiders got stuck in a battle with the 0-10 Cincinnati Bengals but came out with the victory in a 17-10 slugfest with the worst team in the league.

The Raider offense was able to move the football with ease but had two critical turnovers that led to the Bengals’ two scores. The offensive line had one of its worst games of the season, allowing a team that came into the game with 11 sacks to finish with three sacks on the stat sheet.

Carr was under pressure for most of the day and was able to maneuver to help keep the offense moving the football.

The Raiders’ defense continued its improvement with a dominant performance against an abysmal Bengals offense. They held the opponent to meager 4.2 yards per play and kept back up quarterback under constant pressure accumulating five sacks on the day. If the Raiders defense continues to improve, it will for sure help the playoff run deep into the season.

Who stood out this week in the win against the Bengals? Let’s look at the winners and losers from the Week 11 victory, moving the Raiders to 6-4.

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Omari Spellman has been an offensive rebound machine this season

Omari Spellman has been the Warriors’ best offensive rebounder this season.

The Golden State Warriors aren’t a top-tier defensive rebounding team, but with the help of Omari Spellman, they are good at grabbing offensive rebounds.

The Warriors are tied for 12th in the NBA for offensive rebounds per game, and Spellman has been one of the team’s best offensive rebounders, averaging 2.7 per game in 15.5 minutes.

During the Warriors’ 108-100 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday, Spellman had one offensive rebound. Marquese Chriss and Eric Paschall both had a team-high three offensive rebounds.

According to Basketball Reference, Spellman led the league in offensive rebound percentage (19.1) before Sunday’s game. He also had ranked eighth in total offensive rebounds, according to Basketball Reference.

Coach Steve Kerr praised for Spellman and his rebounding ahead of the Warriors’ game against the Pelicans.

“Omari’s been relentless on the boards all year,” Kerr said, per Connor Letourneau of the San Francisco Chronicle.  “He’s a guy we really like. He’s very skilled. He’s still learning the NBA game. He’s very young. But when he goes out there, he gives us a rush of energy right away.”

With Spellman bringing some value off the bench, he could potentially be a key role player for the Warriors as they move forward.

The Warriors will play the Memphis Grizzlies on the road Tuesday at 8 p.m. EST.

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