LinkedIn has daily games, and they’re actually great

These are actually fun.

Move over, Wordle.

There’s a bunch of new daily games in town. LinkedIn has joined the, well, game by offering up four games in their app and online. The games — Pinpoint, Crossclimb, Tango and Queens — range from word puzzles to logic games, resetting every day and tracking your completion times and streaks.

Pinpoint asks the player to deduce an overarching topic by revealing one word at a time. The first word offered up is the most generic, with the fifth and final word being pretty obvious.

In Crossclimb, you’re given clues to figure out four or five letter words. When you’ve guessed all the words, they’ll form a “ladder” meaning you change one letter to get to the next word, another letter to get to the next and so on. Once you rearrange them in the correct order, they will unlock the first and last words to solve.

Tango asks you to complete a puzzle using just sun and moon symbols, but there are rules. You have to have three moons and three suns in each row and column, and you cannot have more than two of any symbol in a row. Sometimes, squares will also have an “x” or “=” between them, meaning the adjoining square has to be opposite or the same, respectively.

Last, but not least, is Queens. You start with a blank grid that has multiple colored shapes laid out. The goal is to put a crown in each row, column, and color. Sounds easy in theory, but it takes some thinking to make it all work.

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Two former Saints players will be on the Netflix Christmas broadcast

Two former New Orleans Saints players will be part of the star-studded on-air talent group for the Netflix Christmas Day doubleheader:

This year the NFL will be treated to something a little different for the Christmas Day football games. The two games on the day of Christmas will be shown on Netflix in 2024, and with that, they had to form their own broadcast crews made up of a conglomerate of reporters, former players, and pretty much anyone they thought would be a good fit.

With that, the New Orleans Saints had two former players tied into this list, with quarterback Drew Brees and linebacker Manti Te’o joining the 22-person on-air talent crew. While it is unclear what role everyone will be joining in, the group they put together is quite impressive.

The double header will consist of a Noon CT/ 1 p.m. ET game with the Kansas City Chiefs traveling to take on the Pittsburgh Steelers, and then a 3:30 p.m. CT/ 4:30 p.m.. ET game between the Baltimore Ravens and Houston Texans at NRG Stadium. We will get to see Drew Brees get back in the booth finally, and a debut for Manti Te’o in the NFL media landscape.

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Steelers’ DT to make history in Week 8 matchup

Steelers DT Cam Heyward will make history on Monday Night Football when his team hosts the New York Giants in Week 8.

No Pittsburgh Steelers defender bleeds Black and Gold quite like DT Cameron Heyward has in his 14 seasons with the Steelers. Heyward represents the Steel City honorably and continues to show younger generations of Steelers players exactly what it means to represent the city of Pittsburgh.

Teammate and 2022 Defensive Player of the Year T.J. Watt cemented his name in history this year when he became the second-fastest player to reach 100 career sacks, and now it is Heyward’s turn to make history.

Heyward will play in his 202nd game on Monday Night Football when his team hosts the New York Giants in Week 8, and that is more games played than any Steelers defender before him.

Heyward has played more games for the Steelers than all-time great Pittsburgh defenders ‘Mean’ Joe Greene, Jack Lambert, Mel Blount, Troy Polamalu, Jack Ham, and L.C. Greenwood, just to name a few.

While Heyward will forever have his name in Pittsburgh sports history, he will look to accomplish for this city what all-time great Steelers’ defenders have done for Pittsburgh before him—bring a Super Bowl to the Steel City.

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Here is our downloadable New Orleans Saints 2024 schedule

Here is our downloadable New Orleans Saints 2024 schedule for your desktop or mobile device:

Here is our downloadable New Orleans Saints 2024 schedule for your desktop or mobile device wallpaper, including dates and times for all 17 games on this year’s slate.

The Saints will play three prime time games against the Kansas City Chiefs, Denver Broncos, and Green Bay Packers while working to rise above their rivals in the NFC South. While they are tied for the easiest strength of schedule in the league, the Saints themselves aren’t exactly an opponent teams fear of Sundays. They have a lot of doubters to prove wrong in 2024.

Here is our downloadable schedule highlighting star talents like Alvin Kamara, Chris Olave, Cameron Jordan, and Derek Carr:

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LOOK: The New Orleans Saints 2024 schedule is officially here

The New Orleans Saints 2024 schedule is officially here, with three prime time games and a lot of noon kickoffs:

Finally. The NFL announced its schedule of games for all 32 teams on Wednesday evening, including the New Orleans Saints — whose regular season slate includes three prime time games and a lot of noon kickoffs, as well as a well-placed bye week.

If the Saints are going to make some noise in 2024, it’ll be their own doing. They won’t get many high-profile national broadcasts to help draw outside attention. It’s past time for head coach Dennis Allen to prove he can get this squad to the playoffs after coming up short in each of his first two seasons on the job.

Here is the Saints’ complete 2024 schedule:

Week Date Opponent Time (CT)
1 Sept. 8 vs. Carolina Panthers Noon (FOX) Tickets
2 Sept. 15 at Dallas Cowboys Noon (FOX) Tickets
3 Sept. 22 vs. Philadelphia Eagles Noon (FOX) Tickets
4 Sept. 29 at Atlanta Falcons Noon (FOX) Tickets
5 Oct. 7 at Kansas City Chiefs 7:15 p.m. (ESPN) Tickets
6 Oct. 13 vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers Noon (FOX) Tickets
7 Oct. 17 vs. Denver Broncos 7:15 p.m. (Amazon Prime Video) Tickets
8 Oct. 27 at Los Angeles Chargers 3:05 p.m. (FOX) Tickets
9 Nov. 3 at Carolina Panthers Noon (CBS) Tickets
10 Nov. 10 vs. Atlanta Falcons Noon (FOX) Tickets
11 Nov. 17 vs. Cleveland Browns Noon (FOX) Tickets
12 Bye week
13 Dec. 1 vs. Los Angeles Rams 3:05 p.m. (FOX) Tickets
14 Dec. 8 at New York Giants Noon (FOX) Tickets
15 Dec. 15 vs. Washington Commanders Noon (FOX) Tickets
16 Dec. 23 at Green Bay Packers 7:15 p.m. (ESPN) Tickets
17 Dec. 29 vs. Las Vegas Raiders Noon (FOX) Tickets
18 Jan. 5 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers TBD Tickets

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NFL announces kickoff time for Week 18 Saints-Falcons game

The NFL announced its kickoff time for Week 18’s penultimate Saints-Falcons game, along with other matchups fans should be monitoring:

There it is: the NFL announced that the New Orleans Saints and Atlanta Falcons will kick off in Week 18 at noon CT on Sunday, Jan. 7. There are a couple of paths the Saints can take to get to the playoffs, but everything starts with a win at the Caesars Superdome. The game will be broadcast on CBS.

So what other games should be on Saints fans’ radar? The most important matchup is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers-Carolina Panthers tilt which will be broadcast in the same window on FOX. If the Saints and Panthers both win, New Orleans clinches the NFC South and a home playoff game.

But if the Buccaneers win, they’ll take the division for themselves and send the Saints scurrying for a wild-card seed. If that’s the case, here are the games to watch, and who fans should be rooting for marked in bold text:

  • Chicago Bears (7-9) vs. Green Bay Packers (8-8); 3:25 p.m. CT on CBS
  • Seattle Seahawks (8-8) vs. Arizona Cardinals (4-12); 3:25 p.m. CT on FOX

If the Packers win and the Seahawks lose, Green Bay gets the seventh playoff seed. The reverse is also true. Both teams need to lose for the Saints to clinch that seventh playoff seed. The Saints dug themselves quite a hole. They’ll  need help getting out of it, but their season isn’t over just yet.

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Each team’s remaining schedule in the crowded NFC South title race

The Saints are tied with the Falcons and Buccaneers at the top of the NFC South. Let’s look at each team’s remaining schedule:

Mutually mediocre. That’s how our John Sigler described the NFC South. 13 games through the season it’s difficult to describe them in any other way. The Carolina Panthers are out of the playoff race altogether, but the other three teams still have a chance at the division title and a wild card spot. If each team continues their trajectory, it’s unlikely the NFC South will get two teams into the playoffs.

Despite how underwhelming the division has been the last two seasons, someone has to win. The Atlanta Falcons, New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers are all tied at the top of the division at 6-7. New Orleans still plays both the Falcons and Buccaneers before the season is over.

But those aren’t the only games left to play. Let’s look at each team’s remaining schedule:

New Orleans Saints’ known opponents for 2024 season (so far)

Here are the New Orleans Saints’ known opponents for the 2024 season (so far). One advantage of a poor finish is a better schedule the next year:

One silver lining for a poor finish is knowing you’ll land a better schedule next year — a slate of opponents for a third-place team is, presumably, easier to knock down than a series of first-place squads.

That didn’t matter for the New Orleans Saints in 2023; head coach Dennis Allen had the easiest schedule in the league and still opened December in third place, the same spot he finished with in the NFC South a year ago. But hope springs eternal. Whether or not Allen is coaching the Saints in 2024 is unknown.

What we do know is the matchups and locations for all but three of New Orleans’ games next year, with two home games against the same-ranked teams in the AFC North and NFC West as well as a road trip for the same-ranked NFC North team waiting to be decided.

Another thing known in advance: the Saints will have nine home games in 2024, the first time they’ll enjoy that benefit of the 17-game schedule after relocating their season opener in 2021 to Jacksonville in the wake of Hurricane Ida and playing a “home” game in London in 2022. With extensive renovations to the Caesars Superdome progressing well, fans will finally get the full experience next season. Hopefully the team can give them something to cheer about.

But if current standing hold, here are the teams the Saints will see in 2024:

Saints 2023 game-by-game season predictions

We’re making our 2023 season season predictions for the New Orleans Saints game-by-game. Is Dennis Allen’s squad a playoff team?

It’s finally here: the start of the 2023 NFL season, with the New Orleans Saints set to kick it all off with the Tennessee Titans on Sunday. And the schedule looks, at least on paper, very favorable.

Just one of their opponents this year won 10 or more games last season — the Minnesota Vikings, who the Saints took down to the wire in London a year ago. Of the other teams lined up against them, only the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (who they’ll play twice), New York Giants, and Jacksonville Jaguars are returning from the playoffs. A benefit to finishing third-place is you’ll have to face other also-rans around the league the next season.

But can the Saints actually go the distance? Here are our game-by-game predictions for the 2023 season:

Cameron Jordan is on track to join Drew Brees in Saints’ exclusive 200 Club

Cameron Jordan is on track to join Drew Brees in the Saints’ exclusive 200 Club. Find some wood and knock on it, just to be safe:

Sports bring out superstitions in a lot of fans, so if you’re more than a little stitious, find some wood and knock on it. But it’s worth noting that Cameron Jordan is in rare air. The big defensive end has been his team’s best defender for a generation, and he’s on pace to join Drew Brees in the New Orleans Saints’ exclusive 200 Club.

That’s right — Brees is the only player in franchise history to wear black and gold into 200 or more regular season games (having done so 228 times). Jordan is entering 2023 with 192 regular season games played in a Saints uniform, so he needs just eight more to achieve it. If you’re curious, that makes Week 8’s Indianapolis Colts road game the one to watch.

But what about postseason games? If you count the playoffs, Jordan (203) has already joined Brees (245). But so have a couple of other all-time greats, and Jordan has some work to do to catch up on No. 9. Here are the members of the Saints’ 200 Club* and those who came close to making the cut:

*Including the playoffs