Tag: Browns

Steelers make practice squad swap on Friday

The Steelers signed RB Jonathan Ward to the practice squad on Friday.

On Friday, the Pittsburgh Steelers announced a pair of practice squad moves ahead of this week’s game with the Cleveland Browns. The team announced they were re-signing running back Jonathan Ward to the practice squad and to make room, releasing defensive tackle Domenique Davis.

Ward has been on and off of the practice squad throughout this season as the team needs depth at running back. He appeared in four games this season and has five carries for 22 rushing yards.

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Report: Saints fear grim news on Taysom Hill’s knee injury

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports the New Orleans Saints are bracing for bad news on Taysom Hill’s knee injury after an upcoming MRI:

Taysom Hill’s knee injury late in Sunday’s New Orleans Saints loss to the Los Angeles Rams may have been just as bad as it looked. Per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the Saints fear it’s a significant knee injury that will end Hill’s season. Rapoport adds that while Hill is scheduled to undergo an MRI on Monday “to determine the severity of the injury,” the team is bracing for the worst.

It’s a tough blow for one of the toughest players on the team. Hill missed four games earlier this season but played through pain while dealing with other ailments, and he’s been a great fit in Klint Kubiak’s offense when healthy. Hill was recognized as the NFC Offensive Player of the Week after the Saints’ last game and was averaging the best rushing yards per game (38.3) and receiving yards per game (21.4) of his career this season.

He’s proven to be irreplaceable. We’ll keep an eye out for updates on his status as more information becomes available.

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Ravens window for 2024 AFC North title has re-opened with Steelers loss

The fantastic finish left the Ravens just one game behind the Steelers for the division lead, with seven left to play

When the teenage/1970s version of Homer Simpson traveled to the future, which for us is the present (actually, to be accurate, it’s already the recent past), he was in pure awe of the very existence of Thursday Night Football.

Many Baltimore Ravens fans, as well as neutrals for that matter, probably matched the excitement and wonder of high school-aged Homer while watching this week’s edition of Thursday Night Football.

The Cleveland Browns’ 24-19 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers was an actual “snow globe” game, and that alone made it enjoyable to watch. Within this winter wonderland, you saw an extremely entertaining game that kept going back and forth during crunch time.

The fantastic finish on the snow-showered shores of Lake Erie left the Ravens just one game behind the Steelers for the division lead, with seven left to play. Plus, any time you see the division leaders drop a game to the last-place side, it’s a tremendous boon to all the other teams chasing them.

After the Brownies upset the Steelers in the Snow Bowl, the ESPN Analytics app updated its postseason predictor the following day. According to their projections, the Ravens have a 45% chance of winning the AFC North.

In other words, we have a division title race again! The model also gives Baltimore a 97% chance of making the postseason but only a 1% chance of earning a bye.

They do give the Ravens an 18% chance of reaching the Super Bowl, which is encouraging. As Brian in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy famously said, “60% of the time, it works every time.”

In all seriousness, though, the Ravens’ game against the Steelers on Sunday, December 21, could very well be the de facto AFC North division title game.

Saints rookie’s performance gets more impressive even on bye week

Taliese Fuaga’s performance versus Myles Garrett gets more impressive after Garrett’s monster game on ‘Thursday Night Football’

Cleveland Browns edge rusher, Myles Garrett, has recorded six sacks in the past three weeks, three sacks in Week 12 and three sacks in Week 10. When the Browns came to New Orleans in Week 11, however, New Orleans Saints rookie left tackle, Taliese Fuaga, kept Garrett off the stat sheet completely.

That performance was impressive even if you isolate it to one game. A rookie tackle going against a star pass rusher and winning the battle is a positive sign for Fuaga’s ceiling. Then, when you expand your view to multiple games, what he did becomes more impressive.

Russell Wilson couldn’t get away from Garrett in the first half of the Browns and Steelers matchup on Thursday night. Garrett had three sacks and a forced fumble against the Steelers. After the game, he proclaimed himself the best edge rusher and best defensive player in the league.

With two monster performances in recent weeks, his bravado is earned. That just makes Taliese Fuaga’s Week 11 performance more impressive.

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Chargers’ Week 16 matchup vs. Broncos flexed to ‘Thursday Night Football’

The Chargers will have three primetime games throughout the remainder of the regular season.

The Chargers’ Week 16 matchup with the Denver Broncos at SoFi Stadium has been flexed to “Thursday Night Football” on Prime Video, the NFL announced Friday.

Los Angeles’ matchup with Denver at SoFi Stadium was previously set for 1:05 p.m. PT on FOX.

The Bengals were slated to host the Browns in the previously scheduled “Thursday Night Football” game.

The divisional bout is the first game to be flexed to “Thursday Night Football.” Under the new rules, effective as of 2023, up to two “Thursday Night Football” games between Weeks 13-17 can be flexed.

The Chargers will now have three primetime games left in the regular season, with the other two being against the Ravens on Nov. 25 and the Chiefs on Dec. 8.

Saints are getting the most out of Taysom Hill, and they shouldn’t slow down

Taysom Hill had his most touches of the year on Sunday, and he’s too impactful to return to the sideline. They should keep leaning on him:

To call Taysom Hill’s performance against the Cleveland Browns incredible feels like an understatement. The New Orleans Saints tight end reverted back to the days of when he was a positionless player.

Hill totaled over 200 yards, so saying this next statement may seem a bit obvious. However, the Saints have to use Hill like that every week. Let’s go deeper than production because that level won’t happen weekly. Let’s focus on touches.

Taysom Hill should be used as a secondary rushing option to Alvin Kamara and one of the most prominent receiving threats, due to Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed’s injuries

This was only the second time this season Hill has touched the football 10 or more times. That number includes rushes, receptions and pass attempts. If you take away passes, Sunday was the first time Hill hit double digit touches.

Hill’s usage as a passer has increased recently. Over the last four weeks, Hill has attempted a pass in three of the four games. It’s a good way to keep defenses on their heels a little bit when Hill is taking the snap.

Passing can vary on a game to game basis, but his targets and rushes should remain at this pace. Hill caught 8 of 10 targets and ran the ball seven times.

Seven rushes feels like a reasonable mark to stretch for each week. The Saints don’t have many receiving threats, so three catches is doable. That’s a recipe for a minimum of 10 touches in a game. Hill is way to impactful for that to not happen on a regular basis.

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Taysom Hill just won his second FedEx Air & Ground Player of the Week award

Just one tight end has won the FedEx Air & Ground Player of the Week award in its 22-year history, and Taysom Hill has now done that twice:

The FedEx Air & Ground Player of the Week awards have been a mainstay of NFL honors for 22 years, but just one tight end has earned it. And now he’s done it twice. New Orleans Saints star Taysom Hill won the award for the second time after his huge day against the Cleveland Browns, powering the Saints to a dominant win at home with three touchdown runs.

Denver Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix was also recognized with this week’s award after completing 28 of 33 passes for 307 yards and 4 touchdowns in the Broncos’ big win over the Atlanta Falcons.

FedEx has pledged that they “will make a $2,000 donation in Hill’s name to a Historically Black College or University of his choice, which will be applied towards needs-based scholarships to deserving HBCU students.”

Hill set some new personal-bests along the way, too. Hill totaled 138 rushing yards from seven carries and 50 receiving yards off of eight catches. He also completed an 18-yard pass and picked up 42 yards on a kick return, impacting the game on both offense and special teams. It’s not the type of performance you see too often in today’s game.

And it goes to show how special Hill is, and how important his presence is to the Saints’ success. They may not win every game when he sees such a heavy workload, but Hill playing well does tend to correlate with victories. When he’s running with a head full of steam there aren’t many NFL defenses who can slow him down.

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Taysom Hill recognized with his second career Offensive Player of the Week award

Take a bow, Taysom Hill. The Saints’ standout football player was recognized with his second career Offensive Player of the Week award:

Take a bow, Taysom Hill. The New Orleans Saints football player was recognized with his second career NFC Offensive Player of the Week award after making plays as a runner, receiver, and passer against the Cleveland Browns — not counting his impressive kick return for 42 yards.

Take that with his 138 rushing yards, 50 receiving yards, and an 18-yard pass, and Hill amassed 188 yards from scrimmage with 230 all-purpose yards. Each of those totals were personal bests for him, and he had three touchdown runs on the afternoon, too.

This is the third weekly honor for Hill after he was previously named NFC Offensive Player of the Week in 2022 and NFC Special Teams Player of the Week in 2018. Call him a quarterback, fullback, tight end or wide receiver — wherever Hill lines up, he makes plays. That’s what interim head coach Darren Rizzi expressed to FOX Sports sideline reporter Jennifer Hale during Sunday’s win over the Browns.

“Taysom’s an unbelievable football player, usually the more we can use him the better off we are,” Rizzi said on the broadcast, acknowledging Hill’s highlights despite an interception and fumble on the day. “We just gotta do a better job limiting the negative plays, can’t turn the football over. But we’re going to use Taysom as much as we can.”

Hill is averaging a career-high 38.3 rushing yards per game this season on top of 21.4 receiving yards per game, which is also the most for his time in the NFL. Over the summer Klint Kubiak and the Saints coaching staff expressed an eagerness to get more out of Hill than in past seasons, and you’re seeing that pay off. Hill just needs to stay healthy, protect the football, and keep earning recognition for his efforts.

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Taliese Fuaga kept Browns’ star pass rusher off the stat sheet

Taliese Fuaga walked into the biggest challenge of his rookie season, and walked away with an impressive win against Myles Garrett:


Taliese Fuaga stepped into the biggest challenge of his career against Myles Garrett, and the rookie passed with flying colors. Garrett didn’t register a single snap against the New Orleans Saints. Not a sack, not a quarterback hit, not even a tackle.

It may make you wonder if Garrett is injured. He’s dealt with injuries, but Garrett said earlier last week he felt like he was at an 8, on a scale of 1 to 10. He’s also coming off of a 3-sack performance against the Chargers.

This is a huge win for Fuaga. He took one of the best pass rushers and made him a non-factor in the game. Garrett had just 2 pressures and a 8% pressure percentage, both are the lowest of the season for the defensive end.

Fuaga has been excellent in pass protection this year. He entered the week eighth in pressure rate allowed. His ranking may go up after a performance like this. It’s just further proof the Saints got a cornerstone piece in the first round this year.

This is the second time the Saints have erased a star pass rusher from the game. They did the same thing with Micah Parsons earlier this season. It isn’t over yet. The next standout rusher on the schedule is Las Vegas Raiders star Maxx Crosby.

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Jameis Winston was one of the first to congratulate Taysom Hill on his big day

Jameis Winston was one of the first to congratulate Taysom Hill on his big day, hurrying to embrace his old teammate after Saints-Browns:

Taysom Hill had a game for the ages when the New Orleans Saints hosted the Cleveland Browns on Sunday. Hill was a major key to the Saints’ success in their 35-14 win, accounting for three touchdown runs — plus 138 rushing yards and another 50 receiving yards, and 18 passing yards on a trick play.

His old teammate Jameis Winston had a good day, too. Winston threw for 395 yards and two touchdowns against his former team while doing all he could to keep the Browns in it, and he didn’t turn the ball over. After the game Saints players, coaches, and other personnel queued up to see Winston, but he stepped up when Hill approached him.

“You were amazing, man,” Winston laughed, arms wrapping around Hill in a bear hug.

Once upon a time Winston and Hill competed for the opportunity to succeed Drew Brees as the Saints’ starting quarterback, splitting practice reps and preseason game action to push one another to be their best. Winston won that battle, but there’s still plenty of love between the two of them. Hill had a lot of Saints fans cheering him on Sunday. On some level, another one was watching him from the opposing sideline, too.

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