Tag: Games

NFL schedules release date for its 2023 schedule release

It’s finally almost here. The NFL has scheduled a release date for its 2023 regular season schedule release: We’ll soon know when and where every Saints game will kick off:

Grab your calendar — ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that the NFL plans to announce its full 2023 schedule of regular season games for every team, including the New Orleans Saints, on Thursday, May 11. So they’ve effectively scheduled a release date for the NFL schedule release. We’ve got to wait another week to learn when these games will be played in September, October, November, December, and January (and, hopefully, February’s Super Bowl LVIII).

We already know the list of opponents the Saints will kick off against. They’ll host the division-rival Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers at the Caesars Superdome along with other NFC teams like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, and New York Giants as well as rare AFC matchups with the Jacksonville Jaguars and Tennessee Titans.

And the Saints will hit the road to visit the Falcons, Panthers, and Buccaneers in addition to the Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Los Angeles Rams, Houston Texans (AFC), Indianapolis Colts (AFC), and New England Patriots (AFC). Reporting from Germany says the Saints and Patriots will play an international series game in Frankfurt but we’ll know for sure once the NFL announces its schedule of games.

So make plans to check in next week for our full coverage of the Saints schedule release and confirmation on all of these matchups. The NFL news cycle never seems to slow down.

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LOOK: Best photos of Cameron Jordan, Demario Davis at Pro Bowl Games

LOOK: Best photos of Saints standouts Cameron Jordan and Demario Davis at the Pro Bowl Games

The New Orleans Saints were well-represented at this year’s Pro Bowl Games by defensive end Cameron Jordan and linebacker Demario Davis, who helped NFC team coach Eli Manning defeat his older brother Peyton Manning and the AFC in a 35-33 rout in front of a heavy crowd at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

It was Jordan’s eighth year to be named a Pro Bowler, but it was the first time for Davis, and they each made the most of it — even if Davis was involved with a controversial officiating decision in the Pro Bowl dodgeball game. Still, it’s good to see that they and their families enjoyed themselves on such a big stage. The 2022 season wasn’t easy for anyone and this was a well-earned, low-stakes event to unwind with their friends and peers from around the league.

Here are some of the best photos of each Saints standout from the Pro Bowl Games:

Chargers’ 2022 season in review: Assessing the play of Los Angeles’ tight ends

The Chargers only managed to get production out of Gerald Everett.

The tight end position is as important as it has ever been in the NFL, and the Chargers hosted five players at the spot in 2022. Led by veteran Gerald Everett, the group played a vital role in the team’s offense as a security blanket for Justin Herbert.

Though relatively modest compared to other tight ends around the league, Everett’s production this season wasn’t without merit. He tallied 555 receiving yards and four touchdowns on 58 catches, which was good for fifth place in the team leaderboard.

Behind Everett was third-year pass catcher Donald Parham Jr., whose enormous physical stature has proven to be a valuable asset for Herbert in the red zone and down the seams. However, he was limited to just ten catches for 130 yards and one touchdown in 2022 due to a hamstring injury and a concussion that kept him sidelined in all but six games.

The last three tight ends were non-factors. Tre’ McKitty, Stone Smartt, and Richard Rodgers combined for 93 yards on 15 catches over the year and were held out of the end zone for the 2022 campaign. McKitty started eight games for Los Angeles, while Smartt and Rodgers both made one start apiece.

With Parham’s injury concerns looming and the stagnant status of McKitty, the Chargers would benefit from a complete player at the position to complement Everett in 2023 and take over as the No. 1 when Everett hits the free agency market after the upcoming season.

NFL finalizes Week 18 schedule, Saints-Panthers kickoff time

The NFL finalized its Week 18 schedule, including the kickoff time for Saints-Panthers at the Caesars Superdome:

There we go: the NFL finalized its Week 18 schedule to put a cap on the 2022 regular season, setting the stage for the upcoming playoffs tournament. That includes the kickoff time for a penultimate matchup between the New Orleans Saints (7-9) and Carolina Panthers (6-10) at the Caesars Superdome.

As expected, the Saints and Panthers will kick off at noon CT/1 p.m. ET on Sunday, Jan. 8. This one doesn’t have any playoff implications so it makes sense to bump it down into an earlier time slot, saving the more-prominent games for bigger spotlights in the afternoon and evening. The Saints-Panthers game will be one of eight games in Sunday’s early-afternoon slot.

Two games will kick off on Saturday, pitting the Kansas City Chiefs and Las Vegas Raiders against each other at 3:30 p.m. CT followed by the Tennessee Titans-Jacksonville Jaguars matchup at 7:15 p.m. CT. Both of those tilts will be broadcast simultaneously on ESPN and ABC.

As for Sunday night’s feature: the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions will square off in a win-and-you’re-in scenario for Green Bay, though the Lions will need an earlier loss by the Seattle Seahawks (to the Los Angeles Rams) to qualify for postseason play. We’ll be pulling for former Saints assistant coach Dan Campbell to pull off the upset against the Packers.

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Predicting the rest of the Saints regular season schedule after Week 12 loss

The New Orleans Saints lost badly to the San Francisco 49ers in Week 12, falling to 4-8. What’s your prediction for the rest of their regular season schedule?

The New Orleans Saints lost badly to the San Francisco 49ers in Week 12, falling to 4-8 on the season so far. They’re down in the NFC South, but they aren’t out just yet. They still have five games left to play, with three scheduled road games and the benefits of a late-season bye week.

So what’s your prediction for the rest of their regular season schedule? Here’s how we see each game playing out:

College Football Week 13 Scoreboard: No. 2 gets routed, 4 top 10 teams fall!

Wild season just keeps getting wilder…

Rivalry weekend in college football again didn’t disappoint as the regular season is within hours of drawing to a close.  Huge games with major impacts on conference championship races, postseason bowl bids, and the College Football Playoff all took place Saturday.

The biggest game of the day happened between No. 2 Ohio State and No. 3 Michigan.  Will the loser of that one still be in good standing for the College Football Playoff?

Or would a USC win over Notre Dame unseat the losing team from a potential playoff spot?  That and so much more as the insane college football season that 2022 has been got even that much crazier over the weekend.

Here are all of your College  Football Playoff rankings, top 25 scores:

Notre Dame football rooting guide for Week 12

How high do you think Notre Dame can realistically finish the season?

The biggest problem with the College Football Playoff in my opinion has been what it has done to the roughly 120 teams that aren’t in contention for a playoff spot this time of year.  Annually there are great stories to be told of teams who have improved greatly since early-season struggles plagued them.  However, since they aren’t part of the CFP then they aren’t worth mentioning or discussing in far too many people’s eyes.

Notre Dame is one of those teams this year.  The Irish obviously started 0-2 and were left for dead after losing to Marshall and losing starting quarterback Tyler Buchner for the year.  However, Notre Dame has gone 7-1 since then and is ranked 18th in the CFP rankings that were released Tuesday night.

I know Notre Dame isn’t going to a College Football Playoff game and there is a 99.99999% chance (my secret formula told me) that they don’t go to the New Year’s Six.  As a lifelong Notre Dame fan though I still prefer the number next to their name to be the smallest number possible at the end of the year.

So how do we make that happen?  Here is what Notre Dame fans should be rooting for this weekend:

2022 NFL schedule: Game-by-game predictions for the Saints after bounce-back game against Raiders

2022 NFL schedule: Game-by-game predictions for the Saints after bounce-back game against Raiders, via @DillySanders:

It’s been a season of ups and downs in terms of expectations for Dennis Allen’s first year as the head coach of the New Orleans Saints. Right now though, after a much-needed win against the Las Vegas Raiders, people are back to being high on the potential of this team.

With a newfound confidence and the benefits of a terrible division, the Saints have the opportunity to come back from the rough start and make the playoffs. They need to do a lot, but the chance is there. Looking at the rest of the schedule, it definitely seems like a tall order.

Where things stand with these teams right now, here’s our week-by-week predictions for the rest of the Saints season:

Steelers vs Jets: 3 keys to victory for Pittsburgh

The Steelers need to focus on the run game this week to get the offense back on track.

It doesn’t seem right to be so anxious about a showdown between two 1-2 teams. But this game is huge for the Pittsburgh Steelers and given the team’s next four games after this, as close to a must-win as you can have a month into the season.

Here are the Steelers’ keys to victory this week against the Jets.

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NFL Week 2: Reasons to watch each game, starting with Saints-Bucs

Here’s why you should watch each game on the Week 2 slate, from Chiefs-Chargers to Vikings-Eagles — and Saints-Bucs

Week 1 provided plenty of excitement, from thrilling upsets by the Steelers and Seahawks to the Saints’ fourth-quarter comeback to beat the Falcons. Many of the projected top teams established themselves as just that, including the Bills, Chiefs, Chargers and Bucs, but there’s still a long way to go this season.

Heading into Week 2, there are plenty of intriguing matchups for fans to watch. The Packers and Bears will square off in a rivalry game in the NFC North, and the Chiefs will take on the Chargers with an early lead in the AFC West on the line.

Here’s why you should watch each of the 16 games on the slate in Week 2.