Tag: NFL Week 16

NFL Network’s Peter Schrager endorses Yaya Diaby for DROTY

Diaby leads all NFL rookies in sacks with 6.5 — should he be named Defensive Rookie of the Year?

Bucs edge rusher Yaya Diaby didn’t get starting reps until much later in the year, but now, he’s already showing signs of a bright future.

Diaby was officially given starting reps in the team’s Week 13 game against the Carolina Panthers, and since then, he’s gotten to work. Diaby leads all rookies in the NFL with 6.5 sacks as it stands, and he also showed out in Week 16 with a great tackle for loss on Jaguars wideout Calvin Ridley. He’s been dominant, and now, he’s starting to get recognition for his efforts.

The NFL Network’s Peter Schrager said Tuesday that his pick for Defensive Rookie of the Year is Diaby, who is also second in tackles for loss among rookies. Schrager has been a fan of Diaby for some time how and also included him among the best rookie performers of the week in an NFL Network segment.

As it stands, Diaby isn’t even a candidate to bet on for Defensive Rookie of the Year. Strangely enough, Bucs defensive tackle Calijah Kancey is at +15000, while the Eagles’ Jalen Carter is the betting favorite at -10000.

Ravens prove Brock Purdy is not so perfect after all with 33-19 win over 49ers

Ravens head coach John Harbaugh and DC Mike MacDonald had a perfect scheme for Kyle Shanahan’s offensive attack in week 16

The Baltimore Ravens forced San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy into four interceptions thrown Sunday night. As expected, Ravens head coach John Harbaugh and defensive coordinator Mike MacDonald had a perfect scheme for Kyle Shanahan’s offensive attack.

Throughout, the Niners attempted to use the swing pass and outside zone runs to get running back Christian McCaffrey and skills player Deebo Samuel into space. What they couldn’t account for was the speed of the Ravens’ defense.

The dynamics of linebacker Patrick Queen were on full display in week 16. The Ravens’ defense pounced on the Niners, making open-field tackles and playing with intense awareness.

Queen and inside linebacker, Roquan Smith combined for 15 tackles on Monday night alone.

The veteran experience of head coach Harbaugh is what fueled the Ravens throughout this matchup. Purdy, while performing exceptionally this season, was not prepared to deal with the tenacity and speed of the Ravens’ defense.

The Ravens prevailed convincingly and quarterback Lamar Jackson had some choice words for the media after the win.

 
 
 
 
 
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Fantasy football inactives, injuries and weather: Week 16 Christmas Slate

Week 16 weather, injury updates and gameday inactives for the Christmas Slate.

Updates will begin when teams start releasing official pregame inactives and starter information to the league. This is typically around 60-90 minutes prior to the kickoff of their game.

Weather forecasts are courtesy of The Football Database.

Week 16 gameday inactives, weather and notes

KEY GAME-TIME DECISIONS

Early game: RB Josh Jacobs (inactive)
Afternoon game:
Night game:

Las Vegas Raiders at Kansas City Chiefs (1:00 p.m. EST)

Kickoff Weather: 35 degrees, cloudy, WNW 14 mph

Raiders

Inactives: TE Jesper Horsted, C Hroniss Grasu, TE Michael Mayer, RB Josh Jacobs, OT Brandon Parker, QB Brian Hoyer and DL Byron X. Young

Lineup notes: TE Michael Mayer (toe) will not be available. LT Kolton Miller (shoulder) is ready to go, but RB Josh Jacobs (quadriceps, illness) will not be out there.

Chiefs

Inactives: DL Malik Herring, DE B.J. Thompson, OT Donovan Smith, DE Matt Dickerson, WR Kadarius Toney, DT Neil Farrell and CB Nic Jones

Lineup notes: WR Mecole Hardman (thumb) and WR Skyy Moore (knee) are on IR. RB Isiah Pacheco (shoulder) has practiced all week and will return. LT Donovan Smith (neck), RB Jerick McKinnon (groin) was placed on IR, and RB La’Mical Perine was signed to the active roster. WR Kadarius Toney (hip) all were ruled out. CB L’Jarius Snead (knee), LB Nick Bolton (wrist, abdomen, illness), TE Travis Kelce (neck) and WR Rashee Rice (hamstring) all avoided injury tags.

New York Giants at Philadelphia Eagles (4:30 p.m. EST)

Kickoff Weather: 48 degrees, cloudy

Giants

Inactives: S Gervarrius Owens, TE Lawrence Cager, OG Sean Harlow, LB Benton Whitley, DE Carlos Basham Jr., WR Parris Campbell and DL Rakeem Nunez-Roches

Lineup notes: TE Darren Waller (hamstring) has worked all week and will play. WR Isaiah Hodgins (illness) and DT Dexter Lawrence (hamstring) were questionable but will be out there. RT Evan Neal (ankle) will end his season on the Reserve/Injured list. PK Mason Crosby was elevated from the practice squad to handle the kicking chores after PK Cade York (quad) became the third kicker placed on IR by the Giants this season.

Eagles

Inactives: TE Albert Okwuegbunam, LB Nicholas Morrow, QB Tanner McKee, OG Landon Dickerson, LB Zach Cunningham, CB Darius Slay and RB Rashaad Penny

Lineup notes: WR DeVonta Smith (knee) was limited Saturday but avoided an injury tag. LG Landon Dickerson (thumb), LB Zach Cunningham (knee), CB Avonte Maddox (pectoral), and CB Darius Slay (knee) all were ruled out.

Baltimore Ravens at San Francisco 49ers (8:20 p.m. EST)

Kickoff Weather: 52 degrees, cloudy

Ravens

Inactives: S Arthur Maulet, OT Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu, CB Jalyn Armour-Davis, QB Malik Cunningham, QB Josh Johnson, CB Damarion Williams and C Sam Mustipher

Lineup notes: TE Mark Andrews (ankle) remains on IR. RB Keaton Mitchell (knee) joined him on IR due to a torn ACL. WR Odell Beckham Jr. (illness) fully practiced Friday and Saturday to avoid an injury label. WR Zay Flowers (foot) also will play play.

49ers

Inactives: TE Ross Dwelley, DL Arik Armstead, CB Samuel Womack, QB Brandon Allen, WR Jauan Jennings, RB Elijah Mitchell and LB Oren Burks

Lineup notes: RB Elijah Mitchell (knee) won’t play, but DT Javon Hargrave (hamstring) is active. DT Arik Armstead (foot, knee) and WR Jauan Jennings (concussion) have been ruled out.

The Morning After…Did Patriots ruin Christmas with win over Broncos?

Did the Patriots help or hurt themselves in Sunday’s win over the Broncos?

Before Santa Claus’ sleigh left the North Pole, the New England Patriots were pulling off a Christmas miracle at Mile High on Sunday against the Denver Broncos.

After blowing a 16-point lead, Patriots quarterback Bailey Zappe led the offense on a game-winning drive that was bookended by an improbable 56-yard field goal from rookie kicker Chad Ryland. The win officially knocked the Broncos out of the playoff hunt and helped the Patriots improve to 2-2 with Zappe as the starter this season.

Typically, a victory would have generated an overall rush of excitement for a team, but the Patriots also potentially knocked themselves out of a top-three pick in the 2024 NFL draft.

If the season ended today, they would be picking at No. 4 overall, which could put them out of the running for one of the top quarterbacks.

Some fans would rather not tank and win as many games as possible, while others were hoping the team would lose games to have a shot at landing either Caleb Williams or Drake Maye in the draft. The issue has split the fan base right down the middle with two more games left to play.

Here are some leftover notes from Sunday’s game:

Bengals snap count takeaways from loss to Steelers

A look at the Bengals snap counts from the game against the Steelers.

The Cincinnati Bengals fell behind early against the Pittsburgh Steelers and never recovered, suffering a big hit to their playoff hopes in the process.

Along the way, the team had to work around the losses of names like Ja’Marr Chase and DJ Reader to interesting results.

A look at the snap counts and some takeaways:

  • Rookie Andrei Iosivias played 72 percent of the snaps and had a good showing, displaying a few times that he might have the upside of a player who can be a long-term solution.
  • Trenton Irwin played 41 percent with Chase out, while Higgins got 81 percent.
  • Irv Smith Jr. was a surprise inactive, with Drew Sample leading the way among tight ends at 55 percent.
  • Rookie Jordan Battle got 81 percent of the snaps in the secondary as the youth movement continues.
  • BJ Hill led the way on the interior at 73 percent, with Zach Carter getting the biggest bump to the same number.
  • The defense also used edges inside as expected. Another longer-depth name, Jay Tufele, played 14 percent.
  • Based on the showings and usages, it’s Hill and everyone else and the interior will be an emphasis this offseason with Reader scheduled to be a free agent.

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Studs and duds for Patriots in shocking upset win over Broncos

Who were the studs and duds from the Patriots’ Week 16 win over the Broncos?

The New England Patriots ruined Christmas Eve for the Denver Broncos with a shocking 26-23 victory on Sunday night at Mile High.

Not only did they knock the Broncos out of the playoff hunt, but they did so on an incredible 56-yard field goal kick by rookie Chad Ryland. It was one of the most shocking endings to an NFL game there’s been all season.

The Patriots are quietly 2-1 in their last three games, including wins over the Broncos and Pittsburgh Steelers. Last week, they gave the Kansas City Chiefs all they could handle in Foxborough.

No one would argue that the Patriots are a good football team, but there is an argument to be made that they’ve improved significantly with Bailey Zappe under center at quarterback.

Here are the studs and duds from Sunday’s game:

Instant analysis: Patriots stun Broncos in Christmas miracle

Chad Ryland kicks a game-winning 56-yard field goal to stun the Broncos on Christmas Eve.

After blowing a 16-point second-half lead, the New England Patriots got a last-second field goal from Chad Ryland to stun the Denver Broncos with a 26-23 victory on Christmas Eve at Empower Field.

The word unsung hero doesn’t even begin to do Ryland’s 56-yard field goal justice. He has been up and down all season, to the point where the team brought in extra kickers to work out and potentially threaten his starting job. Even on Sunday, he missed a field goal and an extra point.

Yet, when the game was on the line, Ryland stepped up and put the ball through the upright for the Patriots’ fourth win of the season.

Unlike the previous two games, the offense got off to a sluggish start in the first half before finally coming alive in the second half. They poured it on in the third quarter with three touchdowns, including passing touchdowns to Ezekiel Elliott and Mike Gesicki, along with a special teams touchdown by Cody Davis on a muffed kick return.

However, the real hero of the game, along with Ryland, was Patriots defensive tackle Christian Barmore, who had a monstrous game up front. He finished the game with seven tackles, three sacks and four quarterback hits.

It was the sort of game-changing performance that might weigh heavily when the Patriots come to the negotiating table for a potential contract extension with the former Alabama standout.

Beating the Broncos is without question a feel-good moment for the Patriots, but it hurts their standing in the 2024 NFL draft. With the victory, they have dropped to No. 4 in the pecking order, which could put them out of position to land one of the top three quarterbacks.

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Social media reacts to Tampa Bay drubbing Jacksonville 30-12

The vibes were immaculate on social media after one of Tampa Bay’s most impressive games of the season.

There’s no victory Monday quite like a Christmas victory Monday, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are about to experience that and more.

The Bucs throttled the Jacksonville Jaguars 30-12 on Christmas Eve, moving to 8-7 on the year and becoming just one win away from clinching the NFC South and making the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season. It was a dominant win that wasn’t as close as the score would suggest, and naturally, Bucs fans on social media were loving it as the team gave Jacksonville a nightmare before Christmas.

Check out some of our favorite social media reactions to the big win below:

Patriots Week 16 inactives: Trent Brown IN, Matthew Slater OUT vs Broncos

Patriots special teams legend Matthew Slater is set to miss his first game since 2017.

New England Patriots special teams legend Matthew Slater is set to miss his first NFL game since 2017.

Right before kick-off for Sunday’s Christmas Eve clash with the Denver Broncos, the Patriots revealed Slater as inactive for the game. It’s a big loss for New England considering the struggles the special teams unit has faced this season.

They’re going to need Brenden Schooler to step things up significantly to make up for the absence of the greatest special teams player in NFL history.

The Patriots will also be missing tight end Hunter Henry, running back Rhamondre Stevenson and wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster. So they’ll be shorthanded in their attempt to pull off an upset at Mile High.

The good news is offensive tackle Trent Brown is in the lineup, but he’s also been working his way back from injuries, which could impact his snaps in this game. Conor McDermott being out means the team will have to lean on Vederian Lowe and Tyrone Wheatley Jr. to spell Brown when he needs a breather.

Here are the list of inactives for both teams:

Jabrill Peppers being gone on defense just might be the biggest loss for either team. The Patriots’ defensive back went from being a rotational piece to one of the most important players on the field.

They’ll have their work cut out for them in trying to overcome his absence.

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