Tag: Associated Press

Quinyon Mitchell finishes 2nd, Cooper DeJean 4th in AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year voting

Eagles Quinyon Mitchell finished second and Cooper DeJean Finished fourth in AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year voting

The Eagles added cornerbacks with their first two draft picks in last April’s selection process, and it was a significant reason for the dramatic turnaround on defense.

The Associated Press revealed their 2024 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year winner, and Cooper DeJean and Quinyon Mitchell finished in the top four.  Jared Verse had 37 first-place votes to Mitchell’s nine.  DeJean finished fourth.

DeJean was among the highest-rated players in the slot, holding opponents to 50 receptions. He had five pass breakups, and quarterbacks had an 82.2 passer rating against him.

Mitchell ranked 3rd among NFL CBs with 16 forced incompletions, trailing only Zyon McCollum (17) and Denzel Ward (17). He was 3rd among CBs in yards allowed per coverage snap (0.8) behind Pat Surtain (0.6) and Derek Stingley (0.7) (min. 600 coverage snaps).

Rams defensive tackle Braden Fiske led the team, and all rookies had 8 1/2 sacks. He had 51 pressures, two forced fumbles and recoveries, 10 tackles for loss, and 10 quarterback hits.

Dolphins edge Chop Robinson had six sacks, 20 pressures, and eight tackles for loss.

Rams edge Jared Verse had 4 1/2 sacks but led all rookies in quarterback hits (18), pressures (77) and hurries (56). He also had 11 tackles for loss.

Eagles’ Zack Baun finishes 5th in voting for NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year award

Eagles’ linebacker Zack Baun finishes 5th in voting for NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year award

Zack Baun has a true rags-to-riches story, signing a one-year deal with Philadelphia last offseason under the guise that he’d have a chance to earn snaps as a pass rusher and potential special teams dynamo.

Fast-forward almost a full calendar year, and Baun earned the Eagles’ starting inside linebacker job. He propelled that opportunity into a Pro Bowl nod and All-Pro honors. Now, a star linebacker set to enter free agency, Baun can add Defensive Player of the Year finalist to his resume.

In a voting that can only be described as disappointing, Philadelphia’s star linebacker finished fifth in the voting that went to the Broncos Patrick Surtain.

Baun was outstanding in his first year, recording 150 tackles, 11 for loss, 3.5 sacks, 5 QB hits, 14 QB pressures, five forced fumbles, an interception, and a fumble recovery while playing 95 percent of the snaps before resting in Week 18.

In the Eagles’ NFC Wild Card win over the Green Bay Packers on January 12, Baun logged eight tackles, one interception, and one pass deflection. Baun had six tackles, one tackle for loss, and one pass defended in the divisional-round win over the Rams.

Spotrac’s market value for Baun is currently a 2-year, $19.4 million contract. After rolling over $10 million, the Eagles will have about $30 million in salary cap space. 

Baun could land a deal comparable to Matt Milano, but Howie Roseman not signing the linebacker to an extension by now could give fans and experts some pause on what could transpire.

Philadelphia doesn’t like to draft linebackers high, let alone spend significantly at the position.

Eagles CB duo named finalist for AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year

Eagles CB duo of Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean named finalist for Associated Press NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year

The Eagles added cornerbacks with their first two draft picks in last April’s selection process, and it was a significant reason for the dramatic turnaround on defense.

The Associated Press revealed their 2024 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year finalist, and Cooper DeJean and Quinyon Mitchell were named.

DeJean was among the highest-rated players in the slot, holding opponents to 50 receptions. He had five pass breakups, and quarterbacks had an 82.2 passer rating against him.

Mitchell ranked 3rd among NFL CBs with 16 forced incompletions, trailing only Zyon McCollum (17) and Denzel Ward (17). He was 3rd among CBs in yards allowed per coverage snap (0.8) behind Pat Surtain (0.6) and Derek Stingley (0.7) (min. 600 coverage snaps).

Rams defensive tackle Braden Fiske led the team, and all rookies had 8 1/2 sacks. He had 51 pressures, two forced fumbles and recoveries, 10 tackles for loss, and 10 quarterback hits.

Dolphins edge Chop Robinson had six sacks, 20 pressures, and eight tackles for loss.

Rams edge Jared Verse had 4 1/2 sacks but led all rookies in quarterback hits (18), pressures (77) and hurries (56). He also had 11 tackles for loss.

Eagles linebacker Zack Baun named a finalist for NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year

Eagles linebacker Zack Baun named a finalist for NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year

Zack Baun has a true rags-to-riches story, signing a one-year deal with Philadelphia last offseason under the guise that he’d have a chance to earn snaps as a pass rusher and potential special teams dynamo.

Fast-forward almost a full calendar year, and Baun earned the Eagles’ starting inside linebacker job. He propelled that opportunity into a Pro Bowl nod and All-Pro honors. Now, a star linebacker set to enter free agency, Baun can add Defensive Player of the Year finalist to his resume.

Baun was outstanding in his first year, recording 150 tackles, 11 for loss, 3.5 sacks, 5 QB hits, 14 QB pressures, five forced fumbles, an interception, and a fumble recovery while playing 95 percent of the snaps before resting in Week 18.

In the Eagles’ NFC Wild Card win over the Green Bay Packers on January 12, Baun logged eight tackles, one interception, and one pass deflection. Baun had six tackles, one tackle for loss, and one pass defended in the divisional-round win over the Rams.

Spotrac’s market value for Baun is currently a 2-year, $19.4 million contract. After rolling over $10 million, the Eagles will have about $30 million in salary cap space. 

Baun could land a deal comparable to Matt Milano, but Howie Roseman not signing the linebacker to an extension by now could give fans and experts some pause on what could transpire.

Philadelphia doesn’t like to draft linebackers high, let alone spend significantly at the position.

Notre Dame player honored by USBWA for fifth time in six weeks

Yes, the Irish are that good.

(This story has been updated to include additional information.)

At this rate, it will be shocking if the USBWA isn’t honoring a Notre Dame player almost every week for the rest of the season. The Irish have been that good.

[autotag]Hannah Hidalgo[/autotag] was one of five players to earn weekly national honors by the organization for the week ending Dec. 15. She previously earned them for the week ending Nov. 24.

Through six weeks of the season, Notre Dame has had one of its players honored by the USBWA every week except for one. [autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag] and [autotag]Sonia Citron[/autotag] have earned national honors once, and [autotag]Kate Koval[/autotag] was honored as the nation’s top freshman once. The only thing the Irish haven’t won is the weekly team honor, but it would not be surprising if they did so before season’s end.

This hardly is a surprise given that Hidalgo already was named the ACC Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for this past week. She also was the AP national player of the week. What probably stood out the most among voters was finishing two assists shy of a triple-double against UConn:

You know more awards will be coming for her very soon.

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Florida C Jake Slaughter named to AP All-America First Team

The postseason honors keep coming for Florida center Jake Slaughter, who was named an AP All-America First Teamer on Monday.

The Associated Press named Florida center [autotag]Jake Slaughter[/autotag] to the All-America First Team on Monday.

It’s Slaughter’s third All-America honor after being named to the first team by Pro Football Focus and second team by CBS Sports/247Sports. USA TODAY Sports included him on the All-SEC First Team, as did the AP, but the SEC did not name Slaughter in the All-Conference three-deep list. He was also snubbed as a finalist for The Rimington Award, given to the nation’s best collegiate center.

Slaughter is the third center in program history to be named to the AP All-America First Team, following in the footsteps of Bill Carr (1966) and Maurkice Pouncey (2009). He’s the second Gator to make the list under Billy Napier after guard O’Cyrus Torrence earned his brick in 2022. Torrence was selected in the first round of the 2023 NFL draft.

Slaughter anchored Florida’s offensive line, playing 728 of 746 offensive snaps this season. Pro Football Focus graded him as Florida’s best offensive player (81.2), pass blocker (83.8) and run blocker (79.1) this year. Those figures rank fifth, 18th and sixth, respectively, among FBS centers who played at least 475 snaps.

He allowed just eight quarterback pressures — six hurries, one sack — earned a 98.7 efficiency rate and drew threw penalty flags all year.

Slaughter has one year of eligibility remaining but could opt to turn pro as a redshirt junior. The transfer portal is also an option, but he’s a player Florida would fight to keep if losing him came into question. Slaughter must decide by Jan. 15.

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Oregon football boasts a trio of AP All-Americans

The Associated Press announced their All-American teams and there are three Ducks included.

Oregon Ducks quarterback Dillon Gabriel might have missed out on the Heisman Trophy, but he has plenty of other honors coming his way.

Gabriel, along with defensive lineman Derrick Harmon and offensive tackle Josh Conerly, Jr. has been selected to the Associated Press All-American team.

Harmon is on the Second Team All-American defensive team while Gabriel and Conerly are on the Third Team.

Coming from Michigan State via the transfer portal, Harmon just picked up where he left off in East Lansing, Mich. He fit into the Oregon culture right away and had a great season for the No. 1 Ducks. Harmon had 42 tackles, nine for loss to go with five sacks, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries. He was also voted to the All-Big Ten Third Team.

Gabriel had an outstanding year, his first and only year with the Ducks. So far, he has 3,558 passing yards with 28 touchdowns and just six interceptions. The Oregon quarterback also has a 73 completion percentage. the highest for his career.

Conerly is also having the best season of his career as he his the heart of the Oregon offensive line. He could declare for the NFL draft after this season is over, but the Ducks are hoping to retain his services for one more year.

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Notre Dame safety Xavier Watts repeats as AP First Team All-American

This kid is good.

If anyone needed a clear-cut example of who the leader of Notre Dame’s vaunted defense is, they have it now. For the second consecutive season, safety [autotag]Xavier Watts[/autotag] has been named a First Team All-American by the Associated Press. He and Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter of Colorado are the only holdovers from the previous season’s first team.

Although Watts’ five interceptions this season are fewer than the seven he had in 2023, he still leads all safeties in that category. The 12 he has in his collegiate career are the most for any Irish player since 1996.

He also has one fumble recovery this season, making him responsible for six of the 28 Irish takeaways that the lead the country. None were more explosive than the first 100-yard interception return in Irish history that might have been the most memorable touchdown of the victory over USC, and there were quite a few scores in that game:

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/3nlB9YIJFAI

Congratulations to Watts on this honor, and best of luck to him on the rest of the season.

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Duke women’s basketball star Reigan Richardson named AP national player of the week

Duke women’s basketball star Reigan Richardson earned AP national player of the week honors after her career game against Oklahoma.

Duke guard [autotag]Reigan Richardson[/autotag] played some of the best basketball of her career this past week, and the Blue Devils star earned national recognition for the performances.

Richardson was named the AP women’s basketball player of the week on Tuesday after she helped Duke sweep the Kansas State Wildcats, Oklahoma Sooners, and Columbia Lions.

Those first two wins, both over top-10 programs, came at the Ball Dawgs Classic out in Nevada. Richardson scored 16 points against the Wildcats, but she earned the award for her performance against the Sooners.

In a 109-99 overtime victory over Oklahoma, Richardson scored a career-high 35 points after she made 13 of her 22 attempts and five of her nine 3-point looks. She added seven assists, directly contributing to nearly half of the Blue Devils’ points, with three rebounds.

With 19 more points against the Lions at home on Sunday, Richardson ended the week averaging 23.3 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 3.7 assists for the week. She connected on 53.8% of her shots on 50.0% of her 3-point attempts.

Richardson led the Blue Devils with 12.4 points per game in 2023-24, but the senior has taken her game to another level so far this year. She’s produced 15.0 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 2.0 assists, all personal bests if she maintains that pace, and she’s made 42.9% of her triples.

Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo wins two Player of the Week awards

Way to go, Hannah!

Notre Dame’s [autotag]Hannah Hidalgo[/autotag] played only one game last week, but it made enough of an impact for every women’s basketball fan to notice her. While she was known already, she reminded everyone of her existence anyway.

One day after Hidalgo was named the ACC Player of the Week, the Associated Press named her its player of the week. This came after a win over USC in which she had a line of 24 points, eight rebounds, six assists and five steals.

The game marked the 10th time in her collegiate career in which she achieved a line of at least 20 points and at least five each of rebounds, assists and steals. No other women’s basketball player has done it that many times in the past 25 years.

On at least one day, Hidalgo was the better player on the floor than Trojans standout JuJu Watkins. Here are some of her highlights from the game:

Many more honors will come to her this season. There’s no reason to think they won’t.

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