Tag: 2020 season

Grading Day: Washington’s final rookie report-cards for 2020 season

Washington had yet another impressive class of rookies who contributed on the field in 2020, and a lot of them received passing grades for the year.

Keeping up with the recent encouraging trend that we’ve seen in Washington over the past several years, there was yet another solid rookie class in 2020 that provided starting-caliber players that contributed a huge role to the burgundy and gold’s eventual playoff berth.

In years past we’ve seen rookies like Terry McLaurin, and Daron Payne, and Jonathan Allen play some big roles in their first year in the NFL, and that trend continued this year with the 2020 class of players that was headlined by a potential Defensive Rookie of the Year candidate.

We may be satisfied with their work, but how excited are we for their futures? Here are our final 2020 rookie grades for Washington.

Bears QB grades: Neither Mitchell Trubisky nor Nick Foles was the answer

We’re going position by position through the 2020 Bears and grading every player, starting with quarterback.

The Chicago Bears wrapped another disappointing season that ended with an early exit from the postseason. With the offseason in full swing, it provides an opportunity for the team to look back at went right, what went wrong and how to improve in 2021.

Here at Bears Wire, we’re going position by position through the 2020 Bears and grading every player. We’re starting with the most important position on the team, quarterback.

Khalil Mack, Cordarrelle Patterson named to PFWA All-NFL Team

The Bears might not have achieved their goal in 2020, but there were some impressive performances in a season unlike any other.

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The Chicago Bears might not have achieved their goal of a championship in 2020, but there were some impressive performances in a season unlike any other.

Outside linebacker Khalil Mack and kick returner Cordarrelle Patterson were named to the 2020 All-NFL team, which is voted on by members of the Pro Football Writers of America.

Mack had 47 total tackles, nine sacks, 13 quarterback hits, 16 hurries, three forced fumbles, three passes defensed, one interception and one safety. Mack, who was voted to the All-Pro second team, was Pro Football Focus’ highest-graded edge rusher with a 92.3.

Patterson once agains showed why he’s the NFL’s best kickoff returner. He returned a kickoff for a touchdown back in Week 10, which tied him for the most kick returns of all-time with eight. He averaged 29.9 yards per return and garnered a 89.4, the highest PFF grade among returners.

For the second straight season, Patterson was also voted first-team All-Pro and to the Pro Bowl. Patterson is set to become a free agent in March, and if the Bears can sign him to a team-friendly deal, expect him to become a priority.

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Lamar Jackson and other Ravens players thank fans and organization for support this season

Baltimore Ravens players take to social media to thank fans and organization for support during the 2020 NFL season.

While the season did not end the way they wanted it to, Baltimore Ravens players took the time to say thank you to all those that were involved on the journey.

In a season that was ravaged by a pandemic and injuries that almost prevented them from making it to the postseason, the Ravens ended the season winning their final five games to finish with an 11-5 record and a playoff berth. Baltimore beat the Tennessee Titans in the wild-card round before losing to the Buffalo Bills in the divisional round of the NFL playoffs.

In what can be considered a season like no other, the players showed their support to the fans and organization that stuck with them along the way. Check out the parting messages Ravens players put out on social media:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CKMfhp9FbGn/?utm_source=ig_embed&ig_mid=719E34B5-3794-4F20-AB53-EA3641F59270

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‘Hold my crutches’, progressing Prescott tells Elliott in response to ESPN’s Cowboys joke

The QB, recovering from injury, responded to a social media post pointing out how long it’s been since the team played for an NFC title.

ESPN’s social media team had a little fun at the Cowboys’ expense on Monday, sharing a post meant to highlight Dallas’s postseason futility over the past quarter-century.

Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott clapped back with a response of his own that’s sure to resonate with the team’s fans, promising to reverse that trend just as soon as he’s healthy again. And a recent report indicates that Prescott is making “great progress” toward that end.

The Worldwide Leader added to their postgame coverage of the weekend’s NFC Divisional round with an Instagram post originally put out by the NFL_Memes Twitter account. The post points out the disparity between the number of NFC Championship Games the Cowboys have been to since 1997 and the number that Tom Brady has been to.

The punch line, obviously, is that Dallas hasn’t played for the conference title in twenty-four years, while Brady did it in his first season since coming over from the AFC.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CKMMwMVhhXJ/

Okay, sure, kick the Cowboys while they’re down. But Prescott saw the post, too. And he took the opportunity to make sure Dallas fans know that he’s working hard to be ready to contend for the very next conference crown come 2021.

Jumping into the comments, Prescott tagged Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott and replied, “Hold my crutches,” as first noticed by Mauricio Rodriguez.

The five-year veteran was off to a blistering start in 2020, on pace to shatter passing yardage records before a gruesome compound fracture and ankle dislocation brought his season to an end in Week 5.

Since then, he’s been rehabbing the ankle and is reportedly on track to re-join the team when official activities begin in the spring. All this comes while he is also preparing to enter into negotiations with Cowboys ownership over his next contract. Prescott played in 2020 under the franchise tag after talks between the two sides over the summer could not bring about new terms.

A healthy Prescott could mean big things for a talented Cowboys club that woefully underachieved this past season, and the two-time Pro Bowler is apparently making serious strides in proving to owner Jerry Jones that he will be fully ready to roll in 2021.

NFL insider Ian Rapoport gave an update on Saturday’s edition of NFL GameDay Morning, one that should be music to the ears of Cowboys Nation.

“He’s coming along great,” Rapoport said, citing unnamed but multiple sources. “He’s walking right now, which is a big step, working the anti-gravity treadmill and the HydroWorx pool, which takes pressure off his ankle but allows him to get in shape. He is making great progress, and based on the work he’s put in, what they think, he’s going to come back better than ever.”

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Browns’ end-zone fumble recalls Cowboys-Raiders 2017 must-see moment

When Rashard Higgins lost the ball through the end zone during Sunday’s postseason game, Dallas Cowboys fans knew exactly what would happen.

Cleveland’s Rashard Higgins was the central character in one of the most dramatic and talked-about plays of the divisional-round weekend. The Browns wide receiver was seemingly on his way to a late-second-quarter touchdown against Kansas City after hauling in a Baker Mayfield pass. Racing Chiefs defender Daniel Sorensen to the goal line, Higgins laid out, reaching the ball toward the corner pylon. The hit by Sorensen jarred the ball free. (Ignore Sorensen’s leading-with-the-helmet hit, because the refs did, too.) The loose ball skittered into the end zone, rolled around for an agonizing moment, and then tumbled out of bounds.

Much of the football-watching world held its breath waiting to see what the result of the play would be. But Cowboys fans already knew. They’d seen it before.

In Week 15 of the 2017 season, the Cowboys were visiting Oakland, hoping to keep their postseason chances alive by beating the Raiders. Dallas had moved into a 20-17 lead on a Dan Bailey field goal. (The infamous “index card measurement” from referee Gene Steratore gave the Cowboys a first down that had extended the go-ahead drive.)

Quarterback Derek Carr led the Raiders down the field in the waning minutes and appeared poised to re-take the lead with under a minute to play. On a third down call, Carr slipped away from DeMarcus Lawrence and Taco Charlton, who were quickly collapsing the pocket. Carr tucked the ball and took off for the corner of the end zone, some fifteen yards away.

Safety Jeff Heath launched himself at about the three. Carr extended the ball for the pylon. Fumble forward. Into the end zone. Then out of bounds.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JR8HhRLNX-E

Section 7 of the NFL rulebook covers fumbles. Article 3, Item 4 specifically addresses a fumble out of bounds in the end zone:

  1. If a ball is fumbled in the field of play, and goes forward into the opponent’s end zone and over the end line or sideline, a touchback is awarded to the defensive team

The Cowboys were awarded possession at the Raiders’ 20. They ran out the clock and won the game.

When the same thing happened to Cleveland on Sunday, the ensuing announcement from officials of a Kansas City touchback reignited a brief firestorm on Twitter over “the worst rule in football.”

The Browns, obviously, still had another half of football in which to recover, though the missed touchdown opportunity certainly changed the momentum and the team’s playcalling after the halftime break. The thought of a closer game where Kansas City is forced to play without Patrick Mahomes may indeed haunt the dreams of Browns fans for some time.

It won’t be the first heartbreaking fumble to snuff Cleveland’s postseason life. On the exact same date in 1988, running back Earnest Byner coughed it up at the 1, down by just seven points to Denver with 72 seconds to go and a trip to Super Bowl XXII hanging in the balance.

The rest of the world recalls that AFC Championship contest for “The Drive” engineered by Broncos quarterback John Elway. Browns fans instead look back in anger at “The Fumble.”

Even though Sunday’s call helped decide a playoff game, don’t expect there to be a rule change anytime soon, because, as many have argued, there isn’t a clear-cut alternative that seems fair to all parties involved. As Sports Illustrated‘s Dan Gartland points out, “Extending the ball near the goal line is a high-reward play, so why shouldn’t the risk also be high?”

Even if casual fans aren’t well-versed on the rule, most NFL coaches are. And they make sure their players know the dangers of reaching a live ball toward the goal line.

Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski is one of them.

“I will never ever doubt Rashard Higgins’ effort or our guys’ effort,” Stefanski told reporters after the game, as per ProFootballTalk. “Our rule there is not to reach the ball out when it is first and goal, and he knows that. Again, [I] appreciate his effort. He battled like he always does, but we have to fight that urge because it is such a big loss if it does end up being a touchback.”

For now, look for the apparent absurdity of the fumble-through-the-end-zone rule to be debated, at least by fans, and at least for a little while. Until, of course, it happens again.

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Cowboys DE Tyrone Crawford has surgery on brink of free agency

The eight-year veteran gave an update last week from his hospital bed; he’s set to hit free agency but is said to be considering retirement.

Another member of the Cowboys has undergone a surgical procedure to begin their offseason. After wideout Amari Cooper went under the knife for a minor ankle procedure and linebacker Jaylon Smith had his wrist operated on, word comes now that defensive end Tyrone Crawford has had some sort of leg surgery.

The eight-year veteran gave an update last Thursday via his Instagram account which shows him in a hospital bed “straight after post-surgery,” the 31-year-old says. “Got it done,” Crawford reports as he shows a shot of his right foot propped up in a plastic boot.

The Boise State alum played sparingly for Dallas in 2020, taking just 40% of the Cowboys’ defensive snaps. He was placed briefly on the Reserve/COVID-19 list in November after spending the first half of the season coming back from hip injuries and surgery that prematurely derailed his 2019 campaign. One of the locker room’s leaders, he served as one of the team’s on-the-field captains as recently as Week 16 versus Philadelphia.

Crawford is on the cusp of becoming a free agent, having signed a lucrative five-year contract back in 2015. Thought to be a cut candidate this past offseason (mainly a salary cap consideration), Crawford might have solidified his stock with a strong 2020; the versatile Canadian can play either end or tackle, and the Cowboys’ defensive line was in desperate need of a hero for much of the season. But the former third-round draft pick was in on just 14 tackles and two sacks this year.

Crawford was said to be considering retirement before the season came to an end. Rehabbing his leg/foot will now give him plenty of time to mull that possibility over in full.

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Twitter reacts to the Saints borrowing trick play from the Bears

If there was something familiar about the Saints’ trick play, it’s because the Bears ran the exact same play against them last week.

With the New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers deadlocked in a close divisional battle, Saints head coach Sean Payton pulled out a trick play to give his team the lead in the second quarter.

Running back Alvin Kamara took a direct snap and handed it off to receiver Emmanuel Sanders, who pitched it to quarterback Jameis Winston, who connected with Tre’Quan Smith for a 56-yard touchdown.

If there was something familiar about the play, it’s because the Chicago Bears ran the exact same play against New Orleans last week in the wild-card round. The only difference is, the Saints actually executed it while Javon Wims dropped the ball in the end zone.

They say that the NFL is a copycat league, and it certainly appears so with this play. Take a look at them side-by-side.

Naturally, Twitter had plenty to say about the Saints borrowing from the Bears — and they actually acknowledged that the play came from Chicago, unlike the announcers on FOX.

WATCH: Saints borrowed trick play from Bears, but they actually pulled it off

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery as the Saints borrowed a trick play from the Bears, which failed last week.

The Chicago Bears were dealt an early playoff exit by the New Orleans Saints in the wild-card round of the NFC playoffs with a 21-9 loss. It was a game that the Bears should’ve won, given New Orleans’ struggles opened the door. But Chicago couldn’t help but get in their own way.

The Saints certainly learned from that wild-card victory — and Sean Payton even took a page out of Matt Nagy’s book. In the second quarter of Sunday’s divisional game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Saints ran the exact same play that the Bears nearly executed to perfection last Sunday against them.

The only difference was that the Saints receiver didn’t drop the ball. Literally and figuratively.

When Chicago ran the play, running back David Montgomery took the direct snap and handed it off to running back Cordarrelle Patterson, who then pitched it to quarterback Mitchell Trubisky, who launched it nearly 50 yards to receiver Javon Wims for what should’ve been the game-tying touchdown in the first quarter.

Only, as Bears fans know too well, Wims dropped it. It went right through his hands, much like any sort of momentum Chicago might’ve had in that game.

When New Orleans ran the exact same play against Tampa Bay, running back Alvin Kamara took the direct snap and handed it off to receiver Emmanuel Sanders, who pitched it to quarterback Jameis Winston, who connected with Tre’Quan Smith for the 56-yard touchdown.

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. But the Saints actually pulled the trick play off — which is why they’re still in the playoffs while the Bears aren’t.

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POLL: What grade would you give the Bears’ 2020 season?

The Bears’ 2020 season was ultimately another disappointing year that ended in a 8-8 record and an early exit from the playoffs.

Unlike the start of the 2019 season, there weren’t a lot of expectations for the Chicago Bears in 2020. Despite some big offseason additions in edge rusher Robert Quinn, tight end Jimmy Graham and quarterback Nick Foles, it felt like this team was destined for the same mediocrity from the season before.

Which is exactly what Bears fans got.

In many ways, it felt like there were three different seasons of Bears football in 2020. Chicago’s 5-1 start was a surprise to many — but no one believed that this team was a true contender. They proved as much in the second part of their season, when they dropped six straight games, including rock bottom blowing a fourth-quarter lead to the Detroit Lions. In the third part of their season, the Bears rattled off three straight wins to keep their postseason hopes alive only to lose their final two games of the season against the Green Bay Packers (Week 17) and New Orleans Saints (wild-card round).

It’s hard to call a season a disappointment when you make the playoffs — aside from the fact that you didn’t win it all. But, in the Bears case, it was. Especially considering the way they got into the playoffs. An extra wild-card spot. Two losses by the Arizona Cardinals. In many ways, it felt like Chicago didn’t deserve it.

This Bears team underperformed in many areas. The defense once again regressed, the offense was one of the worst in the NFL for most of the season and they only managed to beat one team with a winning record.

While there were some encouraging aspects — Roquan Smith’s comeback year, David Montgomery’s coming out party, the rookie class and the offense scoring 30-plus points in four straight games — it was ultimately another disappointing season that ended in a 8-8 record and an early exit from the playoffs.

How would you grade the 2020 season?

VOTE!

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