Tag: 2020 NFL season

WATCH: Darnell Mooney scores 1st quarter TD vs. Vikings

The Chicago Bears offense is starting hot for the second consecutive week, and this time it was rookie wide receiver Darnell Mooney who put the Bears on top, 7-0, in the first quarter against the Detroit Lions with his fourth touchdown of the …

The Chicago Bears offense is starting hot for the second consecutive week, and this time it was rookie wide receiver Darnell Mooney who put the Bears on top, 7-0, in the first quarter against the Detroit Lions with his fourth touchdown of the season:

Mooney has been one of the brightest stars this year after being selected in the fifth round of the 2020 NFL draft. He entered Week 15 with 42 catches for 450 yards and three scores.

The Bears are in must-win territory for the rest of the regular season. If they win out, they’ll have a shot for the seventh and final NFC wild card spot.

Where should Dolphins focus their offensive attack Week 15?

Where should Dolphins focus their offensive attack Week 15?

When the Miami Dolphins faced the New England Patriots in Week 1 of the 2020 NFL season, the team endured their worst offensive performance of the season to date. With just 11 points scored and three turnovers, the Dolphins left plenty of plays and points on the field in at 21-11 loss. But oh, how the times have changed. Since that Week 1 contest that dropped Miami to 0-1, the Dolphins are 8-4 in their 12 games since. The Patriots? They’re 5-7 in their own 12 game gauntlet between contests with Miami.

And the Dolphins offense looks different this time, too. There’a new quarterback behind center in Tua Tagovailoa — is that enough to push the Dolphins to victory? How can the Dolphins best attack a Patriots defense that was so effective in shutting them down in September?

Here are three areas of emphasis for Miami.

Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

Feed Lynn Bowden Jr.

Huh? That’s right. In the first matchup between these teams, DeVante Parker missed the second half and Miami’s other targets were exposed as insufficient. But Bowden Jr. did not play in that game and in the past several weeks, we’ve seen him claim a sizable portion of Miami’s skill-player workload. Bowden Jr. is perhaps Miami’s most dynamic receiver after the catch and if the Patriots are committed to letting the Dolphins’ secondary targets beat them, so be it. Miami can oblige and get a big workload together for Bowden Jr. and let his athleticism shine.

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NFL Broadcast Map: Will Bears vs. Vikings air in your area?

The Chicago Bears will face the Minnesota Vikings in Week 15. Will the Bears be on in your part of the country?

The Chicago Bears will host the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, where the Bears will be looking to keep their playoff hopes alive with a win against their divisional rivals in Week 15.

The Bears are coming off an impressive 36-7 win over the Houston Texans, where Chicago’s offense scored 28 points in the first half. They’re starting to establish an identity on offense, which starts with running the football with David Montgomery and utilizing quarterback Mitchell Trubisky’s strengths. But, it might be too little too late.

Chicago’s defense has also bounced back following a two-game skid, where they held Deshaun Watson and Houston’s offense to just seven points. If the Bears are going to have any chance of winning Sunday, they’re going to need their defense to rise to the challenge of stopping running back Dalvin Cook and rookie wideout Justin Jefferson.

We’ll see if the Bears can keep their slim playoff hopes alive with a win over the Vikings in Week 15.

Do you know if the Bears will be on in your part of the country?

If you live in the green area of the map, you’ll be able to watch Bears-Vikings locally at noon CT on FOX (via 506sports.com).

Most of the country will get the Seattle-Washington game (pictured in blue) and others will get Bears-Vikings (green) and Tampa Bay-Atlanta (red).

Chris Myers and Greg Jennings will be on the Bears-Vikings call for FOX.

The Bears and Vikings kick things off Sunday at noon CT.

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Weather forecast for Dolphins’ Week 15 matchup versus Patriots

The Miami Dolphins will be home once again this weekend for another showdown against a west coast team.

The Miami Dolphins are set to play their final home game of the season tomorrow afternoon against their hated rivals, the New England Patriots. This will serve as a rematch between these two teams from Week 1 of the 2020 season and while Miami would have loved to get their chance to welcome New England to the hot, sticky confines of Hard Rock Stadium in early September, getting New England this late in the game will undoubtedly still keep the Dolphins’ climate in South Florida on the forefront of everyone’s minds.

How much of an issue does the weather figure to be tomorrow afternoon? The good news is there’s not much rain in the forecast, which means the Dolphins won’t be forced to play ground and pound with the Patriots. Given that approach plays into the Patriots’ hands, the Dolphins can rest easy knowing that won’t be a forced audible to the game plan.

But what about the rest of the forecast? Here’s the latest update for tomorrow’s kickoff:

Location: Hard Rock Stadium — Miami Gardens, FL
Kickoff: 1:00 PM EST

  • High Temperature: 79 degrees
    • Feels like: 82 degrees
  • Percent rain: 10%
  • Humidity: 62%
  • Wind: 9 mph

The high in Foxborough, Massachusetts today is 34 degrees — and the high since Monday is 39. So this will be a big temperature shift for New England and could potentially play a factor in conditioning towards the end of the game. And with the Patriots playing a “grind it out” style of football, knowing that they may be out of gas come crunch time is a helpful boost to the Dolphins’ cause. Of course, Miami will need to keep things close for much longer than that in order to see them positioned to wear out the Patriots. But there’s little reason to think that the home field advantage the Dolphins are set to enjoy is going to be anything less than a very real variable in tomorrow’s contest.

Bears CB Buster Skrine ruled out for Week 15 vs. Vikings

The Chicago Bears will enter Week 15’s make-or-break game against the Minnesota Vikings a bit shorthanded on defense. Cornerback Buster Skrine has been ruled out, and rookie Jaylon Johnson is trending in the wrong direction too. #Bears rule CB …

The Chicago Bears will enter Week 15’s make-or-break game against the Minnesota Vikings a bit shorthanded on defense. Cornerback Buster Skrine has been ruled out, and rookie Jaylon Johnson is trending in the wrong direction too.

Worst of all, outside linebacker Khalil is questionable too with a shoulder injury. To be fair, Mack has been questionable several times this season and has suited up.

The loss of Skrine from the lineup opens the door for Duke Shelley to receive more snaps for the second week in a row. He logged 53 reps in Week 14’s win over the Texans.

Shelley played well with his extended playing time, earning a 66.3 grade from Pro Football Focus, which ranked just behind Kyle Fuller’s 66.6 on the day.

Shelley’s logged just 59 snaps on the year and has a 64.7 grade from PFF in 2020.

 

Bears unveil unique 2020 team photo

The Chicago Bears unveiled a perfect team photo for 2020

The holiday season often brings with it the hope of a better and brighter tomorrow. This is especially true in 2020, which has been one of the worst years in recorded history.

The COVID-19 pandemic has shattered everything we once took for granted. Whether it’s going out for dinner and a movie, gathering with family and friends, or enjoying a live football game, nothing is what it once was. As the calendar inches closer to 2021, there’s legitimate hope that help is finally on the way and that a return to normalcy is on the horizon. But we’re not there yet, and little things like the Bears’ team photo are a reminder of how crazy the year has been.

Social distancing has long been touted as the primary weapon against the spread of COVID-19. Obviously, social distancing is impossible for the traditional team photo. So the Bears got creative, and pretty artsy, with their 2020 picture:

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Credit: ChicagoBears.com

Kudos to the Bears for this concept. Not only is it a fun piece of art for a diehard’s mancave, but it’ll be a time-capsule that serves as a reminder of what 2020 was like.

Here’s to a better 2021.

Predicting the Miami Dolphins’ 2020 postseason fate

Predicting the Miami Dolphins’ 2020 postseason fate

The Dolphins will play their their fourteenth football game of the season this weekend against the New England Patriots, providing Dolphins fans with yet another meaningful football game after so many Decembers have been a moot point. The Dolphins aren’t just “in the hunt”, they’re currently the AFC’s No. 7 seed. With three wins, the Dolphins will guarantee themselves a spot in the postseason. With two wins, Miami will afford themselves a fair chance to sneak in.

But what will the next few weeks actually look like? Miami gets the New England Patriots, the Las Vegas Raiders and the Buffalo Bills over the next three weeks with the Bills needing just one win to clinch the AFC East and the Patriots needing just one loss to be formally eliminated from postseason play. Miami will be very dialed into the play of the Baltimore Ravens, Cleveland Browns and Indianapolis Colts in addition to eyeing their Week 16 opponent, the Raiders. All are also “in the hunt” and looking to lock in one of the AFC’s wild card berths.

Let’s take a look at each week, the contests of interest and — most importantly — make some predictions as to where the Dolphins’ season goes from here.

Week 15

Games to watch:

  • New England Patriots (6-7) @ Miami Dolphins (8-5)
  • Los Angeles Chargers (4-9) @ Las Vegas Raiders (7-6)
  • Buffalo Bills (10-3) @ Denver Broncos (5-8)
  • Jacksonville Jaguars (1-12) @ Baltimore Ravens (8-5)
  • Cleveland Browns (9-4) @ New York Giants (5-8)
  • Houston Texans (4-9) @ Indianapolis Colts (9-4)

The first domino to fall will be the Raiders’ game, who will face off against the Chargers on Thursday night. Las Vegas has fired their defensive coordinator after averaging over 30 points allowed per game through their first 13 games on the season. The Chargers are playing for pride and for coach Anthony Lynn’s job — will that be enough to score an upset? We’d like to think so, but we’ll ultimately side with the Raiders, who are playing for more.

Come Sunday, we predict that the Dolphins will be able to exact some revenge on New England at home and formally eliminate the Patriots from postseason play. Elsewhere, the Colts, Ravens and Bills hold serve, which will clinch the Bills the AFC East with two games left to play and keep Miami in the wild card picture.

One upset to watch? Cleveland playing the New York Giants. The Giants have an outside chance to win the NFC East and they own the NFL’s 7th best run defense this season; giving them a chance to lock horns well with the Browns’ No. 3 ranked rushing offense.

Predicted AFC Standings after Week 15:

  1. Kansas City Chiefs — 13-1*
  2. Pittsburgh Steelers — 12-2*
  3. Buffalo Bills — 11-3*
  4. Tennessee Titans — 10-4
  5. Indianapolis Colts — 10-4
  6. Miami Dolphins — 9-5
  7. Baltimore Ravens — 9-5

In the hunt: Cleveland Browns (9-5), Las Vegas Raiders (8-6)

*denotes clinched playoff berth

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How Seattle Seahawks could clinch playoff spot in Week 15

How the Seattle Seattle Seahawks could clinch a playoff spot in Week 15 of the 2020 NFL regular season.

The Seattle Seahawks travel to face off against the Washington Football Team for their Week 15 matchup and a chance to clinch a playoff spot while they are at it.

In the NFC, two teams have already gotten it done – the Packers have clinched the NFC North title and the Saints have secured at least a playoff berth.

For the Seahawks to clinch this week, they will need either a win or tie in Washington OR a tie between Minnesota and Chicago, regardless of Seattle’s outcome on Sunday.

Here are all the NFC playoff-clinching scenarios for Week 15:

LOS ANGELES RAMS vs. New York Jets
Los Angeles clinches a playoff berth with:
1) LAR win or tie OR
2) MIN-CHI tie

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS vs. Kansas City
New Orleans clinches the NFC South division title with:
1) NO win OR
2) TB loss OR
3) NO tie + TB tie

SEATTLE SEAHAWKS at Washington
Seattle clinches a playoff berth with:
1) SEA win or tie OR
2) MIN-CHI tie

TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS at Atlanta
Tampa Bay clinches a playoff berth with:
1) TB win + MIN-CHI tie

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Fast start for Dolphins essential in Week 15 versus Patriots

Fast start for Dolphins essential in Week 15 versus Patriots

The New England Patriots’ model for success is pretty clear; and it is one that the Dolphins experienced first hand with their Week 1 loss in Foxborough. The Patriots are constructed to play from the lead — they’re effective playing swarming defense and running the football. And run the ball the Patriots did against Miami the first time around; logging 217 yards rushing and forcing three turnovers against the Dolphins in a 21-11 Patriots win.

Miami can flip the script this weekend, but they’ll need a fast start to get the Patriots out of their game plan. If Miami is able to get early points, it will be a golden opportunity for Miami to squeeze the life out of the game; the Patriots are not a team constructed to come from behind in the way that the Kansas City Chiefs are. And, of course, after watching Kansas City erase a 10-0 deficit against Miami in the blink of an eye with 30 unanswered points before Miami mounted a late comeback, the Dolphins will be eager and optimistic to play with a lead once again and hold it this time.

The Patriots offense, regardless of wins and losses, has been pretty abysmal over the course of the past month. Their yardage and point totals in the last month indicate not a lot of success has been found in the heart of the Patriots season:

  • 308 yards & 23 points (win over Baltimore)
  • 435 yards & 20 points (loss to Houston)
  • 179 yards & 20 points (win over Arizona)
  • 291 yards & 45 points (win over Chargers) 
  • 220 yards & 3 points (loss to Rams)

Two of the Patriots’ touchdowns over that 5 game stretch came via special teams on a punt return and a blocked field goal — meaning the Patriots have logged just 11 offensive touchdowns in their last 5 games (Miami has 13) and is averaging 286.6 yards of offense per game in the last month. Given Miami’s successes in the heart of this season, the team should be optimistic that extending their streak of turnovers and creating an early lead can be the formula they need to claim victory in Week 15.

Ron Rivera says we’re seeing ‘everything come together’ in Washington

Ron Rivera credits Washington’s recent success to a ton of hard work from his team and everything coming together at the right time.

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Early on in the season, Washington’s new head coach was making some bold statements that had both fans and media members alike pretty skeptical.

Though they got off to a blazing start with an upset victory over the Philadelphia Eagles, what everyone saw was a bad team that had holes throughout the roster, and a team that couldn’t stop getting in its own way. Despite all of this, Ron Rivera kept on saying that Washington was ‘close’ to finding success and that he felt they were heading in the right direction. The decision to bench second-year QB Dwayne Haskins — who was thought to be the future franchise quarterback — after week 4 of the season with his reasoning being that this team could make a run at the playoffs was the tip of the iceberg, and the turning point of the season.

At the time, Washington was 1-3, coming off of three-straight tough losses, so forgive us for reacting with bewildered shock.

Fast forward to December 15th, and Washington is leading the NFC East with control of their own destiny and eyes set on the playoffs. What happened over those couple of months? According to Rivera, it was everything finally coming together for a young team that has been working hard.

It’s apparent that this young team bought into Rivera’s ways early on in the season, and they trusted him to lead them to success down the road. It’s long past time that the fanbase in Washington does the same thing. Rivera has proved that he’s the right man for this job, and there is success wherever he goes. It may take some time to formalize, but eventually, it’s going to come together.

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