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Mickey Loomis on Saints’ 2017 draft stars Lattimore, Ramczyk

Mickey Loomis shared few details (but differing outlooks) on Saints 2017 draft stars Marshon Lattimore and Ryan Ramczyk:

You can point to some moments in the New Orleans Saints’ recent history as important milestones or turning-points — one of them being the team’s historic 2017 draft class, which started with a pair of future Pro Bowlers. The Saints owned two picks in the first round that year and spent them on two instant starters in cornerback Marshon Lattimore and offensive tackle Ryan Ramczyk.

But both players’ futures with the team are in doubt. Time and injuries and drama behind the scenes have prompted speculation that neither of them could be long for New Orleans. And when Saints general manager Mickey Loomis spoke to reporters on Wednesday in his end-of-year press conference, he was short on details, but offered vastly-different messages on each of them.

Let’s start with Ramczyk. He’s missed 13 games over the last three years with a persistent knee injury, including the last three matchups in 2023. Ramczyk has been dealing with a degenerative cartilage condition and said earlier this year that career-ending surgery is an option in the offseason, and while Loomis didn’t go into details, he did share a more-uplifting perspective on the right tackle’s outlook.

“I have a positive feeling about where he’s going to end up,” Loomis said. “And I think he does as well.”

That sure suggests Ramczyk will be back in 2024, even if Loomis didn’t spell it out clearly. But what about Lattimore?

Lattimore has missed a full 17-game season’s worth of matchups over the last two years, but the injuries were unrelated. This year he got rolled up on by a teammate while helping finish a tackle, and missed the final seven games with a slow-to-heal high ankle sprain (which typically sideline NFL players for six to eight weeks). The year before, Lattimore suffered internal organ injuries in a freak accident when he collided with other players while rallying to the ball. Both times he got hurt while cleaning up someone else’s mistake.

Rumors have swirled about discord between Lattimore and Saints head coach Dennis Allen leading to a possible trade. And the Saints made that more likely by restructuring Lattimore’s contract for 2024 to center on an option bonus, not a signing bonus, which his new team would be responsible for paying.

But when asked about that decision, Loomis kept his hands close to his vest, saying the restructure was about cap management. On the unique option bonus maneuver, he responded: “There’s a reason but I’m not going to get into it.”

That’s not exactly telling the world that Lattimore is available and the Saints are open for business, but it’s awful close. Trading one of the best defenders in pro football wouldn’t make a lot of fans happy, and the optics of giving Lattimore the boot while keeping a head coach with a career-losing record would be awful. But that appears to be a path Loomis is willing to tread even if it’s expensive and unpopular.

So while we’re reading the tea leaves here, Loomis’ comments suggest that Ramczyk will be back in 2024, but Lattimore may not be, if the team can find a trade partner. Or at least the team is prepared for life without their star cornerback. Or maybe we’re reading his words all wrong. Either way, it’s shaping up for another eventful Saints offseason. Hopefully a successful season and return to the playoffs is waiting on the other side of it.

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Chiefs TE Travis Kelce clarifies comments on Chris Jones’ holdout

#Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce clarified his comments on Chris Jones holdout after addressing the lineman’s absence on his podcast last week. | from: @EdEastonJr

The start of the 2023 NFL season is this Thursday, with the Kansas City Chiefs kicking things off at home against the Detroit Lions. The Chiefs have the opportunity to defend their Super Bowl title with many returning players, one of whom likely won’t be on the field this week due to his ongoing holdout.

Chiefs All-Pro defensive tackle Chris Jones remains absent from the team, with negotiations regarding his contract still an issue. Fellow All-Pro and teammate Travis Kelce made a suggested plea for Jones to return to the team during the most recent episode of his New Heights podcast with brother Jason Kelce. During Monday’s press conference, Kelce addressed his comments on the podcast and revealed his last communication with Jones.

“I was more so just trying to have some fun with talking about the situation. Try and bring light to it just trying to be funny,” said Kelce, “But at the end of the day, you know, Chris has his situation. He has his reasons. It ain’t none of my business. I’m trying to win football games, and hopefully, we can get him back as soon as possible because I know how great of a player he really is.”

Jones joined the Chiefs tight end recently in filming a commercial for DIRECTV, which is ironically the last time they both spoke, according to Kelce. He didn’t want to pry into his business and explained to reporters his reasons.

“I don’t know what his situation is,” Kelce explained. “I stay out of everybody else’s situation in terms of that, just so I don’t wrap my head around. You know what I’m doing but or what they’re doing based off of my intentions.

“I just, I just keep it moving, man. Hopefully, like I said, we can get it back. And we can just be the best football team we possibly can. But I never based someone else’s situations or their decision-making off of, you know, things that I may have done. I just don’t think it’s fair.”

Kelce did mention that he had a blast working with Jones on the comedic commercial during the offseason.

Patrick Mahomes claps back at Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase

#Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes has responded to #Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase’s recent comments:

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Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes has responded to recent comments made by Cincinnati Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase.

When Bengals QB Joe Burrow was asked who the best QB in the world is right now, he responded by saying that it was Mahomes. Burrow was clearly showing respect for a rival, who got the best of him in the playoffs this past season. Chase seemingly took exception to Burrow making that comment when asked about it by media members on Tuesday.

“Pat who?” Chase asked reporters.

Well, it didn’t take long for Mahomes to clap back at the Bengals wideout.

During the Chiefs’ Super Bowl LVII ring ceremony, Mahomes posed for the camera showing off his two rings, and sent out a tweet that’s an instant classic.

“That’s Who,” Mahomes wrote, followed by two ring emojis.

Chase, of course, doesn’t have a single Super Bowl ring, let alone two. The Bengals are also one of the twelve NFL teams to have never won a Super Bowl title.

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Discussing Notre Dame running back’s ‘controversial’ comments

Did you have anything wrong with what he said?

A lot of eye brows were raised and attention was put on sophomore Notre Dame running back [autotag]Audric Estime[/autotag] on Wednesday as he met the media and provided the next Fighting Irish opponent with some surefire bulletin board material.

Estime was asked about what he sees in BYU, who sits at 4-1 and ranked 16th in the latest USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll.  Despite the solid start to the year and nationally ranking to go along with it, Estime isn’t fearful of what BYU brings to the table.

But was what Estime said worth the pushback some seem to want to give it?

You first have to listen to the actual audio before making a grand conclusion, so let’s go ahead and do that.

If you ask me (and you should if we’re being honest) it’s a 19-year old answering a question honestly and a pleasant change of pace for Notre Dame fans.

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Shaquille O’Neal tells Kyrie Irving to ‘man up’ after Nets’ star flips off Celtics fans

“I don’t really want to hear all that.”

Kyrie Irving didn’t seem to care for how fans in Boston were treating him during the Nets’ Game 1 loss to the Celtics in Sunday’s Eastern Conference Quarterfinal.

In fact, he made it abundantly clear that was the case. First, by flipping off fans multiple times over the course of his 39-point outing. Then by doubling down on his courtside interactions with his postgame comments.

“[If] somebody’s going to call me out of my name, I’m going to look at them straight in the eye and see if they’re really ’bout it,” Irving said. “Most of the time they’re not.”

The Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal and the NBA on TNT panel had a much different reaction, essentially telling Irving to get over it.

Not to go all “both sides” here, but if Irving wants to pay off all the likely fines he’ll incur for talking smack to fans, that’s his business. That doesn’t mean everyone else can’t judge him for it, either. Those antics might make him feel good in the moment, but as Charles and Shaq noted, unruly fans are nothing new in this league and they’re sure to get more fired up after hearing what Irving had to say Sunday.

We’ll see if Kyrie is able to take on the Celtics and their crowd in Game 2 this Wednesday night.

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Everything HC Greg Gard said after Wisconsin’s 62-57 loss to Iowa

The third time wasn’t the charm for the Wisconsin Badgers last night, as they fell to the Iowa Hawkeyes 62-57 and saw their Big Ten dreams

The third time wasn’t the charm for the Wisconsin Badgers last night, as they fell to the Iowa Hawkeyes 62-57 and saw their Big Ten Tournament dreams come to an end.

The final minutes of the game were more of the same for Greg Gard’s team, with turnovers and a massive cold spell on offense allowing the Hawkeyes to pull away and complete their third win over the Badgers this season.

Related: Wisconsin basketball legend Sam Dekker says which all-time Badger he would want taking the last shot

Here is everything Gard said after the loss:

Greg Gard went off on Big Ten officiating and more after Wisconsin’s 77-73 loss to Iowa

Today after the Wisconsin Badgers lost 77-73 to the Iowa Hawkeyes thanks in large part to numerous questionable moments from the officials,

Greg Gard, just like Bo Ryan before him, isn’t commonly known as a fiery coach that makes a mark during postgame press conferences.

There are some instances, however, when that tendency is forced to change.

Today after the Wisconsin Badgers lost 77-73 to the Iowa Hawkeyes thanks in large part to numerous questionable moments from the officials, Gard showed us a side of him that we haven’t previously seen.

This is referring specifically to the late-game performance by Bo Boroski and the Big Ten referee crew that handed Iowa the game and continued to unfairly evaluate the play of Brad Davison.

Related: The Twitter world reacts to Wisconsin basketball’s controversial loss to Iowa

Here is everything Gard said in his postgame press conference, with a bonus clip of freshman Jonathan Davis’ thoughts on the situation:

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Russell Wilson is right, Hall of Fame quarterbacks deserve to be heard by their front offices

Wisconsin legend and Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson has made waves recently when he said wanted to have a 20-year NFL career

Wisconsin legend and Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson has made waves recently when he said wanted to have a 20-year NFL career, leaks from his camp said he has grown frustrated with the Seahawks’ inability to protect him and when he went on the Dan Patrick Show and made what some people see as questionable comments.

Before I get into the specifics, I’m going to make this point very clear: he is completely in the right and these words are being said on purpose and for a very specific reason.

So first, the leaks.

On Monday, Jason La Canfora tweeted that he’s heard Wilson’s camp “has grown increasingly frustrated by the Seahawks’ inability to protect the 8-time Pro-Bowler.”

While leaks aren’t the most ideal way of being heard, Wilson is completely right. The former Badger is already the all-time leader in 40-sack seasons, led the NFL with 51 sacks in 2020 and has dealt with some of the more questionable offensive line play of the last decade.

And he’s Russell Wilson, one of the most elusive quarterbacks in NFL history.

So after this Tweet, Wilson went on the Dan Patrick Show and talked about whether star players should have a say in personnel decisions.

While he worked hard to avoid the question, there were some valuable points that speak volumes on how he feels as a player—comments which come down to paths of the two greatest athletes of this generation: Lebron James and Tom Brady.

“I want to be able to be involved,” Wilson said. “At the end of the day it’s your legacy, it’s your team’s legacy, it’s the guys you get to go into the huddle with…One of the reasons that Tom [Brady] went to Tampa is he felt that he could trust those guys and Bruce [Arians] was going to give him an opportunity…You think about guys like LeBron [James], he was around great players that he can trust.”

Now I’m not here to say Wilson should make draft picks and iron-out contracts, but he, Brady, Aaron Rodgers and any other Hall of Fame quarterback still in their “prime” deserves to have their voices heard.

There was one word the former Badger used constantly that I think is really important here: trust. We’ve seen what happens when Rodgers and Brady don’t trust the coaching staff and front office. In short, it isn’t good.

Now Wilson caught some criticism for these comments, criticism which I understand because these things usually work better when they’re done behind closed doors.

But if you as a franchise have your star quarterback, a Hall of Fame player that has led you to more success than you’ve ever had, going on shows and hinting towards his distrust in what the franchise is doing, you know there’s something wrong.

“At the end of the day you want to win,” Wilson said. “You play this game every day to wake up to win. You play this game to be the best in the world. You know what I hate, I hate sitting there watching other guys play.”

Guess what, Seattle hasn’t done the winning you’d expect with a guy like Wilson under center. And if they want any moving forward, listening to their star and giving him a say is what they will need to do.

As FOXSports’ Nick Wright so perfectly put it: “Without Russell Wilson, you don’t matter… If you’re worried about setting a precedent, there isn’t one. He is the precedent. He is the franchise.”

Russell Wilson is the Seattle Seahawks franchise. And having his needs met should be their first priority.

So the Seahawks now have a few options. They can trade Wilson and sacrifice any future success, or they can understand his value, listen to what he has to say and use this situation to move forward positively.

To say this is a story to watch is an understatement. This isn’t some insignificant gossipy rumor, this has a chance to become the story of the NFL offseason.

Contact/Follow us @TheBadgersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin news, notes, opinion and analysis.

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Everything Maryland HC Mark Turgeon said about Wisconsin basketball after the game

The Wisconsin Badgers rebounded from their loss in Madison to Ohio State last weekend with a 61-55 victory over the Maryland Terrapins.

The Wisconsin Badgers rebounded last night from their home to Ohio State with a 61-55 road victory over the Maryland Terrapins.

The win moves the Badgers to 13-4 on the season, to 7-3 in Big Ten play and avenges the team’s loss to Maryland earlier in the season.

Maryland head coach Mark Turgeon spoke with the media after the game and addressed the Badgers’ victory, noting the contributions of senior forward Micah Potter but also acknowledging that his team didn’t play its best game.

Here is everything Turgeon said about Wisconsin basketball after the game:

Everything Wisconsin HC Greg Gard said after yesterday’s blowout loss at Michigan

The Wisconsin Badgers fell into the buzzsaw that are the Michigan Wolverines last night, losing the game 77-54 thanks to a 43-6…

The Wisconsin Badgers fell into the buzzsaw that are the Michigan Wolverines last night, losing the game 77-54 thanks to a 43-6 Wolverine scoring run.

The game marks the Badgers’ first 20-point loss since 2018 and only their fourth since the 2010-2011 season.

Related: What Michigan HC Juwan Howard said about Wisconsin basketball after the game

Head coach Greg Gard and his team will get a rematch with the Wolverines almost exactly one month from now, though the next test for his team will come on Friday when they visit Rutgers.

Here is everything Gard said to the media after yesterday’s blowout loss:

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