Steelers RB Anthony McFarland misses Thursday practice with illness

The rookie running back was on the Steelers injury report on Thursday.

A new name popped up on Thursday when the Steelers released their injury report — rookie running back Anthony McFarland. He didn’t participate in practice due to an undisclosed illness.

We remember all too well what happened just last week. Tight end Vance McDonald was on Friday’s injury report with an illness designation, and he wound up testing positive for COVID-19 that following Monday.

Of course, it’s too soon to tell if McFarland has a run-of-the-mill cold or if he contracted the coronavirus. In McDonald’s case, he tested negative for the virus in the days leading up to traveling with the team. It wasn’t until after he returned to Pittsburgh that a test came back positive.

Since McFarland was at practice on Wednesday, there’s no telling how many players could be impacted if he ends up testing positive in the future.

All we can do is hope for good news when updates are announced.

[vertical-gallery id=481312]

[lawrence-related id=481397]

Offensive tackle Paris Johnson, Jr. loses his black stripe

Ohio State had two freshmen lose their black stripes on Wednesday. Five-star offensive tackle Paris Johnson, Jr., was the latest.

You had a feeling this was coming.

We’ve seen nine other freshmen shed their black stripes up until now, but now five-star offensive tackle and top-rated Ohio 2021 prospect Paris Johnson, Jr., has also received the honor.

Johnson came to OSU from Princeton High School in Cincinnati and is expected to be the future of one of the tackle positions in Columbus. He was a highly sought after recruit that almost all of the big-name programs were salivating after, but he eventually decided to stay home with the Buckeyes.

As usual, Johnson had an opportunity to get up and talk to his teammates briefly as his black stripe was being removed by fellow veteran offensive lineman Thayer Munford.

“Hey, I love being out here with y’all every day,” Johnson said. “I love my unit and the defense that gets me right every day, and the coaching staff. Buckeyes!”

Watch the short ceremony below as shared by the Ohio State Football Twitter account.

🚨 Black Stripe Alert ‼️

Only big things in store for @ParisJohnsonJr! Congrats on losing that black stripe!#GoBuckeyes pic.twitter.com/jA48Rccm7Q

— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) October 7, 2020

[lawrence-related id=38395]

[lawrence-related id=38182]

Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes and opinion.

Download the USA TODAY SportsWire app to follow Buckeyes Wire and your other favorite teams in the Apple Store for iPhones and Google Play for Android devices.

What Chargers’ Gus Bradley said at media availability

Los Angeles Chargers defensive coordinator Gus Bradley touched on handful of topics.

Chargers defensive coordinator Gus Bradley spoke to the media on Wednesday via Zoom teleconference.

Going into the 2020 season, Bradley will have more pieces to utilize which include cornerback Chris Harris Jr, defensive tackle Linval Joseph and rookie linebacker Kenneth Murray.

Harris, the four-time Pro Bowl selection, brings a proven veteran presence to the cornerback room. Bradley said he met him at the Pro Bowl in 2019, and loves how competitive he is and feels like he will be a good addition to the defense.

To fill the void after Thomas Davis released earlier this offseason, Los Angeles traded up 14 spots to snag Murray with the No. 23 overall selection in this year’s draft. Bradley said his intensity, leadership, and length were some of the reasons why they picked him.

The Bolts released Brandon Mebane, too. To fill the nose tackle spot, the team signed Joseph. Bradley hasn’t met Joseph yet, but said that he has heard a lot about the leadership he brings, highlighting his spirited nature and feels like has a chip on his shoulder.

Bradley said that he wants to be more active at the position as a whole.

He believes Justin Jones will benefit from the changes that the team is making with the defensive scheme. As for Jerry Tillery, who didn’t wow as many people in his rookie season, Bradley highlighted his flashes. But the one thing needed to be improved upon was his strength and simply getting bigger. He said Tillery has been working hard this offseason.

A couple of the bigger questions heading into training camp is what role is Desmond King going to play after the signing of Harris, and how will Nasir Adderley see the field more as he showed a lot of promise before having his season come to an end after sustaining a hamstring injury.

Bradley said that King could play safety in their dime package. He said they may move him to the outside. King is going to have a lot on his plate heading into the final year of his contract, but he is a versatile player that they could move around.

Adderley was in the mix for the starting free safety spot, but the injury kept him off the field nearly the entire season. Heading into Year 2, Adderley could earn a job at the position, especially because Bradley said he wants to implement more two-deep safety looks and man coverage this season as opposed to just his Cover 3 system that relies heavily on zone coverage.

Rayshawn Jenkins, the team’s starting free safety from last season, showed have the same role. But Bradley thinks Jenkins might play more linebacker and strong safety this season to help with the dime linebacker void after Adrian Phillips left in free agency.

Bradley said that he could see Adderley, Jenkins or rookie Alohi Gilman in that spot.

One of the biggest goals this season is creating more takeaways. He said the defense didn’t do a good enough job of taking the ball away last season. The unit ranked second-worst in the league with a -17 turnover differential.

The bottom line is that we can expect the majority of the players on the defensive side of the ball to be moved around quite a bit this upcoming season, and a possible change to the scheme could benefit the group as a whole.

The biggest and best steals of the 2020 NFL draft class

Every draft class has a group of unheralded and underdrafted players who become NFL stars. Here’s this year’s group of sleeper candidates.

Player value is in the eye of the beholder, and certainly in the eyes of the team decision-makers selecting a draft prospect. When the Seahawks took Richard Sherman in the fifth round of the 2011 draft, Sherman was a lightly-regarded cornerback and ex-receiver with embryonic coverage skills, but he was also a perfect fit for Pete Carroll’s single-high coverage schemes, which require his cornerbacks to be aggressive off the line of scrimmage and to cover at a lockdown rate down the boundary. Because he was in the right place, Sherman was able to become the pre-eminent cover cornerback of his era.

The Bengals stole Georgia defensive tackle Geno Atkins in the fourth round of the 2010 draft because Atkins was allegedly undersized. But that organization understood that Atkins’ height (6-foot-1) also amounted to leverage, and Atkins used his leverage, not to mention his play speed and hand technique, to make eight Pro Bowls and amass 75.5 sacks, 171 quarterback hits, and 100 tackles for loss.

So, when it comes to deciding right off the bat who’s a draft steal, opportunity takes a part. Scheme fit and coaching are important. And talent will out in the right place. With all that in mind, here are the draft picks in 2020 we think have the best opportunities to outpace where they were actually selected.

Pages: 123456789101112131415

Troy Pride, Jr. – No. 113 pick – Carolina Panthers

Strengths: Effective in off-coverage, athletic and good play recognition.
Weaknesses: Allowed too much production from opposing receivers

Troy Pride, Jr. – No. 113 pick – Carolina Panthers

Strengths: Effective in off-coverage, athletic and good play recognition.
Weaknesses: Allowed too much production from opposing receivers

Michael Pittman, Jr. – No. 34 pick – Indianapolis Colts

Strengths: Amazing size, toughness and football smart.
Weaknesses: Not elusive or fast

Michael Pittman, Jr. – No. 34 pick – Indianapolis Colts

Strengths: Amazing size, toughness and football smart.
Weaknesses: Not elusive or fast

2020 NFL Draft: Top prospects to watch in National Championship Game

Here are a few of the top prospects that could help the Bears to watch in Monday’s National Championship Game between LSU and Clemson.

All eyes will be glued to Monday night’s National Championship Game, where the LSU Tigers and Clemson Tigers will battle for the collegiate championship glory.

There will be plenty of scouts in attendance, and the Bears have plenty of needs they need to address this offseason. Monday night’s game will feature some of the best prospects heading into the 2020 NFL Draft.

Here are a few of the top prospects that could help the Bears to watch courtesy of Draft Wire:

EDGE K’Lavon Chaisson

LSU

With Leonard Floyd’s future in question, Chicago needs an edge rusher that can thrive opposite Khalil Mack. Chaisson’s explosiveness coming off the weakside is something that should make him an attractive option for teams.

In 2019, Chaisson had 58 total tackles, 6.5 sacks, 13.5 tackles for loss, two pass breakups and one forced fumble. His freakish athleticism and natural ability shows he can be effective as a speed rusher off the edge.

[lawrence-related id=435384,435433,435073,435064,434530]

Pages: 12345678

Secret superstars of the divisional playoffs

Though any are unknown, every player in the postseason has the opportunity to turn that around. Here are eight such players.

Every NFL postseason has its share of surprise performers. Whether it’s Otto Graham in the Browns’ first year in the NFL schooling the Los Angeles Rams in the 1950 championship game, or L.C. Greenwood — perhaps the least-known member of the Steel Curtain front four — racking up four sacks against the Cowboys in Super Bowl X, or then-Bills backup quarterback and current Colts head coach Frank Reich authoring the biggest comeback in NFL history against the Houston Oilers in the 1992 wild-card round, or Washington running back Timmy Smith shocking the Broncos with 204 rushing yards in Super Bowl XXII, it’s just as likely that the most important postseason performance comes from a guy whose name you’re not familiar with just yet.

This postseason is no exception, and there are all kinds of potential stars you might not know who are mere hours away from their breakout performance. Here’s one potential secret superstar for each of the eight divisional round teams this weekend.

Pages: 123456789