Tag: Jets

AFC East offseason: Jets sign QB Joe Flacco

AFC East New York Jets sign one-year deal with QB Joe Flacco.

Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott often mentions his desire to have a veteran behind his starting quarterback, Josh Allen. That’s Matt Barkley.

For now, at least.

But the New York Jets appear to be following suit with that idea. The Jets signed veteran quarterback Joe Flacco to backup Jets’ starter Sam Darnold.

According to Jets Wire, the former Super Bowl MVP landed a one-year deal worth $1.5 million, but could be worth up to $4.5 million with incentives.

The Jets also have rookie James Morgan and David Fales in their QB room. Flacco played for the Broncos in 2019. He went 2-6 as a starter and threw for only 1,822 yards, six touchdowns and five interceptions. He finished the season on injured reserve after suffering a neck injury in Week 8.

Darnold and Allen are both entering their third pro seasons.

 

[lawrence-related id=62180,62147,62141,62127]

If UGA was fielding a starting team based on current NFL players, here’s what it would look like

We assembled a starting lineup full of former Georgia football players who are currently on NFL rosters.

Georgia continues to be one of college football’s leading producers of NFL talent, with seven players being taken in the 2020 NFL Draft.

At almost every position does Georgia have an NFL star — linebacker and running back being the most notable.

From veteran passer Matthew Stafford to new Falcons back Todd Gurley, to rookie kicker Rodrigo Blankenship, former Georgia Bulldogs look to put up big numbers again in 2020.

We’ve gone through an exercise of picking the best at each position to field a starting team of former Georgia players, all from a current pool of those currently on NFL rosters. 

Remember, free agents did not make the team.

So, let’s get it started shall we?

Next … QB

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5, Page 6, Page 7, Page 8, Page 9, Page 10, Page 11, Page 12, Page 13, Page 14, Page 15, Page 16, Page 17, Page 18, Page 19, Page 20, Page 21, Page 22, Page 23, Page 24

PFF simulations project close AFC East race for Bills

Buffalo Bills, AFC East race is very close in Pro Football Focus’ simulations

Pro Football Focus used their crunched numbers and simulated the 2020 NFL season 10,000 times to see what could possible happen during the upcoming year. Their findings from those simulations gave some insight to a potentially close race to the finish line in the AFC East.

The Bills finished these simulations with an average of 7.9 wins next season. While the lowest among all division winners, by comparison, the Bills win the AFC East title in this battle, but as mentioned, it’s awfully close.

But close in a unique way.

Despite losing quarterback Tom Brady this offseason, the Patriots still have a stout defense, so seeing them land in second place in PFF’s simulation isn’t a shock. Overall, the Pats averaged 7.7 wins. But it’s not just the Patriots, the entire AFC East goes down as the tightest battle, from top-to-bottom.

The Bills, in first, are above the Patriots, Dolphins (7.4) and Jets (7.0). From first to last place, a difference of less than one win, makes the Bills-Jets the closest first-to-last place finishes in PFF’s simulations for the entire NFL.

The next closest comes in the NFC North. There, the Packers land at 8.7 wins, edging out the Lions by 1.3 wins (7.4). For much of the rest of the NFL, division winners and bottom-feeders are mostly separated by about two wins.

 

[lawrence-related id=61597,61590,61573,61564]

Watch: Ty Montgomery shares practice field highlight reel

New Orleans Saints running back Ty Montgomery has a background in playing wide receiver, which is reflected in his practice highlight reel.

[jwplayer Yy4Q6WAG-ThvAeFxT]

Ty Montgomery might be listed as a running back, but his biggest contributions to the New Orleans Saints figure to come through the air. He’s an accomplished pass-catcher whose NFL career began as a wide receiver (which is reflected in his jersey number), even if he struggled to get into rhythm in recent years when paired with inexperienced passers like then-rookie Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson. He and every other pass-catcher took a step back under New York Jets playcaller Adam Gase last season.

Still, the Saints have to hope that Montgomery will be able to make the most of his touches (if he ends up earning any at all). He has the skills set to back up Alvin Kamara’s role in the offense, allowing number-two running back Latavius Murray to play at his best as more of a downhill runner. If Kamara has to miss time again, the Saints would probably prefer Montgomery running his routes and moving around the formation rather than Murray.

And that appears to be what Montgomery is preparing for. The 27-year-old shared a highlight reel of bright moments from a recent training session on his official Twitter account, showing a nice ability to adjust to off-target passes. That’s not something he should expect to happen often when paired with Drew Brees, but it’s always good to be prepared.

[vertical-gallery id=33239]

Look: Ty Montgomery debuts his signature No. 88 in black and gold

The New Orleans Saints signed Ty Montgomery, a versatile running back/wide receiver who has worn No. 88 with the Packers, Ravens, and Jets.

[jwplayer Yy4Q6WAG-ThvAeFxT]

The New Orleans Saints made a surprising late-spring addition last week by signing free agent running back/wide receiver Ty Montgomery, the former Green Bay Packers playmaker who most recently spent time with the Baltimore Ravens and the New York Jets.

While Montgomery’s schematic fit and path to making the roster — much less earning snaps during games — is fascinating, the real story here is which jersey number he’ll be wearing. Having initially played solely at wideout, Montgomery wore No. 88 with the Packers even after he began bulking up and handling carries between the tackles.

He held onto that number with each of his next two teams, and he’ll continue to throw off observers with it in New Orleans. Montgomery announced on his official Twitter account that he would use No. 88 now that he’s playing with the Saints, which was confirmed on the official team roster.

He included an edited photo to give fans of an idea of what he’ll look like in black and gold, which we’ve embedded below:

Jokes aside, there is a benefit to Montgomery going with such an unusual number for a running back (like his previous teams, the Saints will probably skirt around NFL jersey restrictions by designating him a “RB/WR” on filings with the league office). Defensive coordinators commonly tool their subpackages to counter opposing personnel groupings.

By letting Montgomery wear No. 88, the Saints are going to force teams to think a little harder about whether to field an extra linebacker or defensive back. That narrows the margin for error considering how quickly those decisions must be made during games. It’s a small edge, but those can’t be discounted in the hyper-competitive NFL.

[lawrence-related id=33623,33611].

[vertical-gallery id=33239]

Saints sign unique Packers, Jets pass-catching threat Ty Montgomery

The New Orleans Saints signed Ty Montgomery, a unique running back/wide receiver who has played for the Packers, Ravens, and New York Jets.

The New Orleans Saints offense added a new element late in free agency by signing Ty Montgomery. News of Montgomery’s deal with the team was first reported by Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football, and confirmed by ESPN’s Mike Triplett.

Montgomery established himself during four years with the Green Bay Packers, initially slotting in as a wide receiver before splitting time lined up at running back. He was traded to the Baltimore Ravens midway through the 2018 season, and turned in an unassuming performance with the New York Jets in 2019. Of his 379 career touches, 130 were receptions while 249 were rushing attempts (including four playoff games).

What’s interesting is that Montgomery isn’t just a gadget player who can flash on sweeps or reverses. He’s had success running between the tackles, adding to the issues defenses face simply by putting him on the field (even if he usually wears No. 88, an odd number for a running back; it was issued to tight end Mitchell Loewen, who was waived to open a spot for Montgomery). Opponents may not feel comfortable assigning a linebacker to cover him, which could create opportunities for also-versatile teammates like Alvin Kamara and Taysom Hill.

Montgomery should help add depth to the Saints offense at least for training camp; if he shows enough in the preseason to earn a roster spot, he could make waves as another viable option behind Kamara, Hill, Michael Thomas, and Jared Cook, — in addition to Latavius Murray, Josh Hill, and Tre’Quan Smith. Who says the Saints offense doesn’t have enough weapons?

But he’ll face some stiff competition for one of the few spots available on New Orleans’ opening-day lineup. Expect Montgomery to contend with second-year pro Deonte Harris and former Chicago Bears returns specialist Taquan Mizzell (who spent the 2019 season on the Saints practice squad) as the Saints try to find the best fit for that gadget role, which veteran receiver Tommylee Lewis may also push for.

Montgomery’s abilities as a runner could end up giving him an edge. It should be an exciting training camp battle to watch, to say the least.

[vertical-gallery id=33239]

Tony Romo to disperse wisdom to 3 young NFL QBs in CBS special

Tony Romo’s new show airs Sunday, May 24, on CBS.

Tony Romo was hired by CBS to be the lead color analyst after retiring in 2017, and in just three seasons has became the highest paid commentator in professional sports. Now with no live sports to  occupy the airwaves, CBS is airing a new show for Romo to further display his traits that made him such a natural in the booth.

The show is titled, “In The Huddle with Tony Romo,” and will feature Romo in an online interview with three up-and-coming quarterbacks, all who happen to be playing in the New York area; Josh Allen of the Bills, Sam Darnold of the Jets, and Daniel Jones from the Cowboys NFC East foe, the Giants.

Romo will be discussing the X’s and O’s of the position, the challenges created by a virtual offseason, and other aspects of the three young quarterbacks mentioned above lives on and off the field.

This 30-minute special is set for Sunday, May 24 (2 p.m. ET), will be on CBS, and will be hosted by Tracy Wolfson.

[lawrence-related id=645985]

[vertical-gallery id=645744][lawrence-newsletter]

Frank Gore’s first Jets game vs. Bills will make NFL history

Frank Gore will make NFL History again in 2020.

When the Buffalo Bills welcome the New York Jets to New Era Field for their currently scheduled season opener, there will be some history made that both sides can share.

The Jets signed former Bills running back Frank Gore this offseason. Gore is currently tied with Emmitt Smith for the most regular season games played by a running back at 226.

Once Gore takes the field for Gang Green against his old team, no running back will have ever played in as many games. Of course, the Bills helped Gore add 16 to that total last season, as he was active in every game for Buffalo in 2019.

In addition, Gore will also join running back Marcus Allen in the record books. This year will the 16th season of Gore’s career, making him just the second running back to play 16 NFL seasons along with Allen.

Gore is currently third on the all-time rushing list with 15,347 yards, sitting behind Emmitt Smith and Walter Payton, respectively. Gore added 599 rushing yards to his career with the Bills last season and could add even more with the Jets.

In 2018, Gore played under current Jets head coach Adam Gase while the two were with the Dolphins. That year, Gore had a much better season than last year with the Bills. He had a total of 722 rushing yards and averaged 4.6 yards per carry, as opposed to his 3.6 average in 2019.

Hopefully he does most of his future yardage additions in his 14 other games not against the Bills in 2020.

 

[lawrence-related id=61141,61124,61101,61104]

Every prime time NFL game featuring former Georgia football players

After the release of the 2020 NFL schedule, here’s a look at every prime-time game that former Georgia football players will appear in.

On Thursday, the NFL released its 2020 schedule, providing more optimism that a football season will take place come September.

With Georgia having added seven new players into the league via the NFL Draft, there’s going to be a number of UGA fans hoping for a chance to watch some former Dawgs play on prime-time television.

The Patriots, Cowboys, Chiefs, Packers, 49ers, Rams and Buccaneers will be featured most in prime time during the 2020 NFL season with five games apiece.

Georgia players on those teams:

Cowboys, Packers and Bucs do not have any Bulldogs.

Patriots: C David Andrews, RB Sony Michel, OL Isaiah Wynn

Chiefs: WR Mecole Hardman

49ers: TE Charlie Woerner

Rams: OLB Leonard Floyd, ILB Natrez Patrick, DB Tyrique McGhee.

Here is a list of every nationally televised NFL game featuring Georgia Bulldogs.

Some of these game are subject to a time change and some of the players signed as undrafted free agents. As of right now, these are the teams they are on.

For a full list of Georgia players and their NFL teams, click here.

Thursday Night Football:

  • Start time: 8:20 p.m. ET
  • TV channel: Fox, NFL Network
  • Live stream: Amazon Prime

Thursday Sept. 17: Browns at Bengals

Georgia players on Browns: RB Nick Chubb, RB Brian Herrien

Georgia players on Bengals: DT Geno Atkins, WR AJ Green, DT Tyler Clark, DB Shawn Williams

Thursday Sept. 24: Dolphins at Jaguars

Georgia players on Dolphins: OG Solomon Kindley

Georgia players on Jags: WR Chris Conley, WR Terry Godwin, DT Abry Jones, S J.R. Reed

Thursday Oct. 1: Broncos at Jets

Georgia players on Broncos: N/A

Georgia players on Jets: WR Lawrence Cager, OLB Jordan Jenkins

Thursday Oct. 8: Buccaneers at Bears

Georgia players on Bucs: N/A

Georgia players on Bears: WR Reggie Davis, DT John Jenkins, WR Riley Ridley, LB Roquan Smith, WR Javon Wims

Thursday Oct. 15: Chiefs at Bills

Georgia players on Chiefs: WR Mecole Hardman

Georgia players on Bills: QB Jake Fromm, WR Isaiah McKenzie

Thursday Oct. 22: Giants at Eagles

Georgia players on Giants: OT Andrew Thomas, LB Tae Crowder, OLB Lorenzo Carter

Georgia players on Eagles: RB Elijah Holyfield

Thursday Oct. 29: Falcons at Panthers

Georgia players on Falcons: RB Todd Gurley

Georgia players on Panthers: N/A

Thursday Nov. 5: Packers at 49ers

Georgia players on Packers: N/A

Georgia players on 49ers: TE Charlie Woerner

Thursday Nov. 12: Colts at Titans

Georgia players on Colts: K Rodrigo Blankenship, OLB Justin Houston

Georgia players on Titans: C Ben Jones, OT Isaiah Wilson, OLB D’Andre Walker

Thursday Nov. 19: Cardinals at Seahawks

Georgia players on Cardinals: OL Lamont Gaillard

Georgia players on Seahawks: DB Jayson Stanley

THANKSGIVING

Thursday Nov. 26: Texans at Lions (12:30 p.m. CBS)

Georgia players on Texans: OLB Davin Bellamy, WR Tyler Simmons

Georgia players on Lions: RB D’Andre Swift, QB Matt Stafford, DT John Atkins, TE Isaac Nauta

Thursday Nov. 26: Redskins at Cowboys (4:30 p.m. Fox)

Georgia players on Redskins: OLB Thomas Davis, S Maurice Smith

Georgia players on Cowboys: N/A

Thursday Nov. 26: Ravens at Steelers (8:20 p.m. NBC)

Georgia players on Ravens: LS Nick Moore, TE Eli Wolf

Georgia players on Steelers: N/A

Thursday Dec. 3: Cowboys at Ravens 

Georgia players on Cowboys: N/A

Georgia players on Ravens: LS Nick Moore, TE Eli Wolf

Thursday Dec. 10: Patriots at Rams

Georgia players on Patriots: C David Andrews, RB Sony Michel, OL Isaiah Wynn

Georgia players on Rams: OLB Leonard Floyd, ILB Natrez Patrick, DB Tyrique McGhee

Thursday Dec. 17: Chargers at Ravens 

Georgia players on Chargers: N/A

Georgia players on Ravens: LS Nick Moore, TE Eli Wolf

Friday Dec. 25: Vikings at Saints

No Georgia players in this game

Next: Sunday Night Football

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3

NFL team win total best bets: How many games will the New York Jets win in 2020?

Assessing the New York Jets’ projected win total for the 2020 NFL season, with best bets for their Over/Under.

How many games will the New York Jets win in the 2020 NFL season? We look at BetMGM‘s projected win total and the Over/Under odds, while looking back at the 2019 season and key offseason roster changes.

New York Jets’ 2019 season

Record: 7-9 (3rd in AFC East)

Against the spread: 7-9

Over/Under: 7-9

New York Jets’ 2020 offseason changes

Notable additions: OT George Fant, RB Frank Gore, WR Breshad Perriman and C Connor McGovern. 

Notable departures: WR Robby Anderson, CB Darryl Roberts, LB Brandon Copeland and OT Kelvin Beachum. 

Top draft picks:  LT Mekhi Becton (Round 1), WR Denzel Mims (Round 2), RB La’Mical Perine (Round 4).

Place your legal sports wagers online at BetMGM, or play in their online casino. Bet now!

New York Jets’ 2020 opponents

WEEK (DATE) OPPONENT 
Week 1 (9/13) at Buffalo Bills
Week 2 (9/20) vs. San Francisco 49ers
Week 3 (9/27) at Indianapolis Colts
Week 4 (Thursday, 10/1) vs. Denver Broncos
Week 5 (10/11) vs. Arizona Cardinals
Week 6 (10/18) at Los Angeles Chargers
Week 7 (10/25) vs. Bills
Week 8 (11/1) at Kansas City Chiefs
Week 9 (Monday, 11/9) vs. New England Patriots
Week 10 (11/15) at Miami Dolphins
Week 11 BYE
Week 12 (11/29) vs. Dolphins
Week 13 (12/6) vs. Las Vegas Raiders
Week 14 (12/13) at Seattle Seahawks
Week 15 (TBD) at Los Angeles Rams
Week 16 (TBD) vs. Cleveland Browns
Week 17 (1/3) at Patriots

New York Jets’ 2020 win total: Best bet

Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Odds last updated Friday, May 8 at 2 p.m. ET.

Projected wins: 6.5 / OVER:  -130 / UNDER: +110

The success of the Jets in 2020 boils down to if head coach Adam Gase is the guy for the job and if QB Sam Darnold is a franchise quarterback. If either is untrue, then how could you bet the Jets Over 6.5 wins? Gase has failed to make the playoffs, or finish .500 or above, for the past three seasons (one at the Jets and two as head coach of the Miami Dolphins).

A Gase-coached team has never been ranked higher than 25th in yards per game and was ranked higher than 26th by Football Outsiders’ offensive DVOA once (his first season coaching the Dolphins in 2016). 

New general manager Joe Douglas did a good job getting pieces to fit around Darnold with Becton and Mims but they’ll need to be good fast if the passing game is going to turn around in 2020. Pro Football Focus graded Darnold as the 31st-best quarterback last season (out of 37) and the Jets passing game ranked 27th in QB Rating, 29th in passing yards per game and gave up the fourth-most sacks.

The Jets’ schedule isn’t doing Darnold any favors either; the top-10 stingiest passing defenses they face include the Bills (twice), Patriots (twice), 49ers, Chiefs, Chargers and Browns.

TAKE the JETS UNDER 6.5 wins (+110).

Want action on NFL futures betting? Sign up and place your legal sports wagers online at BetMGM. For more sports betting tips, visit SportsbookWire.com.

Follow @Geoffery_Clark on Twitter and follow SportsbookWire on Twitter and Facebook. Please gamble responsibly.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services.  Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

[lawrence-newsletter]

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1367]