Tag: NFL Week 17

Instant Analysis: Patriots avoid New Year’s Eve disaster but still fall short vs Bills

The Patriots fought valiantly but ultimately came up short in Sunday’s loss to the Bills.

The New England Patriots turned the ball over four times against the Buffalo Bills at Orchard Park on Sunday, and they still came within less than a touchdown in a game that had them pegged as double-digit underdogs.

Quarterback Bailey Zappe had his worst start of the season, throwing for 113 yards and three interceptions in the first half alone. He was able to get the turnovers under control in the second half, and he even bounced back with some impressive drives to help keep the Patriots in it.

But it wasn’t enough in the end to stand up to the Bills in their house. Aside from being a game full of too many self-inflicted wounds, the Patriots did have some positive moments against Buffalo.

Rookie cornerback Alex Austin hauled in his first interception with a leaping grab against Bills quarterback Josh Allen, and Jalen Reagor flashed his playmaking abilities on special teams with an incredible kickoff returned for a touchdown on the first play of the game.

The Patriots have one final game left on the regular season schedule back at home in Week 18 against the visiting New York Jets. A win or a loss will solidify their position on the 2024 NFL draft board and whether they’ll be in a good spot to take a quarterback.

When it comes to Sunday’s game against the Bills, there will surely be talk about Bill Belichick’s standing with owner Robert Kraft. The Patriots are 2-3 in their last five games since Zappe took over as starting quarterback, and the team managed to put up a good fight in each of the three losses.

Will that be enough to ultimately keep Belichick around a little while longer in New England? It’s certainly a question worth asking after their latest outing.

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Bengals inactive players vs. Kansas City Chiefs in Week 17

Bengals announce inactives for Week 17 vs. Chiefs.

The inactives list for the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 17 isn’t nearly as dramatic as the week prior.

With Ja’Marr Chase set to play through his injury with the playoffs on the line, things settle into a more routine list for a Bengals team that was pretty healthy this week.

The full inactives list:

  • RB Chris Evans
  • CB Jalen Davis
  • OL Trey Hill
  • OL D’Ante Smith
  • DT Travis Bell

A week ago, tight end Irv Smith Jr. was a healthy scratch as four others got work in Jake Browning’s offense, a sign of where things are at for that room. That changes against the Chiefs on Sunday, with Jalen Davis the notable inactive after being questionable on the final injury report.

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Patriots Week 17 inactives: Trent Brown OUT vs Bills

Patriots offensive tackle Trent Brown is inactive for Sunday’s game against the Bills

The New England Patriots have officially ruled out offensive tackle Trent Brown for Sunday’s game against the Buffalo Bills.

Brown has dealt with a multitude of injuries and an illness leading up to the game. However, there was hope that he would be able to go considering he was removed from the injury report on Friday.

It’s another odd situation in a season full of many for Brown, who is set to hit free agency in 2024.

The Patriots will also be missing safety Jabrill Peppers and tight end Hunter Henry for the Week 17 matchup. On Saturday, the team tried to make up for those absences by signing safety Joshuah Bledsoe to the main roster, while also elevating offensive lineman Andrew Stueber and tight end Matt Sokol from the practice squad.

Here’s the list of inactives for both teams on New Year’s Eve:

The Patriots could play spoiler for a second consecutive week if they’re able to upset a Bills team still trying to solidify a playoff spot.

Buffalo has been red-hot as of late with wins over the Los Angeles Chargers, Dallas Cowboys and Kansas City Chiefs, while the Patriots are coming off a huge upset win over the Denver Broncos.

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Takeaways from the Lions Week 17 loss to the Cowboys

Takeaways from the Lions Week 17 loss to the Cowboys, focusing on the game and not the 2-pt. conversion

The Detroit Lions lost a controversial, competitive Week 17 matchup with the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday night. The Lions fell 20-19 in one of the most bizarre end-of-game scenes in NFL history.

Detroit had an interesting game throughout the night. The focus here is on the football game that took place before and around the unbelievable (using that word in its literal definition) officiating mess.

Bucs inactives list for Week 17 vs. Saints

Three injured Bucs players are inactive for Tampa Bay’s matchup with the New Orleans Saints in Week 17.

There are no surprise inactives for Tampa Bay’s matchup against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.

Bucs cornerback Carlton Davis III, tight end Ko Kieft and edge rusher Shaquil Barrett aren’t playing today due to injury, so they are inactive — everyone else is a healthy scratch. With Devin White back in the fold, linebacker J.J. Russell is once again inactive and John Wolford will serve as the team’s emergency third quarterback as per usual.

Here’s what the Bucs inactives look like for Sunday’s matchup:

  • QB John Wolford (3rd QB)
  • LB J.J. Russell
  • DT Deadrin Senat
  • OL Brandon Walton
  • OLB Shaquil Barrett
  • TE Ko Kieft
  • CB Carlton Davis

And here’s who’s inactive for the Saints. Running back Alvin Kamara was initially questionable with an illness but is set to play.

  • QB Jake Haener (3rd QB)
  • CB Cameron Dantzler
  • RB Kendre Miller
  • S Lonnie Johnson
  • DE Isaiah Foksey
  • LB Monty Rice

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Patriots-Bills game day poll: Who wins on New Year’s Eve?

Who wins on New Year’s Eve? Patriots or Bills?

[polldaddy poll=13157962]

The New England Patriots will keep the Champagne on ice on Sunday afternoon when traveling to Orchard Park for a Week 17 New Year’s Eve showdown with the Buffalo Bills.

An unexpected road scare against the Los Angeles Chargers had the Bills looking vulnerable after back-to-back wins over the Dallas Cowboys and Kansas City Chiefs. They’ll try to bounce back by making an example out of the Patriots team that beat them back in October.

However, this is a much different Patriots team than the one they initially faced.

Bailey Zappe is now the starting quarterback, and the team has been dealt multiple injury blows. It doesn’t make the Patriots any less dangerous, though, as the Denver Broncos learned last week.

Zappe and the offense put together a game-winning drive, which culminated in a 56-yard field goal kick from rookie Chad Ryland for an upset.

They’ll need even greater magic to knock off the Bills at Highmark Stadium, which is still one of the toughest places to play at in the NFL.

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Bengals could see new-look Chiefs offense on Sunday

It sounds like the Chiefs are making big changes before playing the Bengals.

The Cincinnati Bengals might see an unfamiliar Kansas City Chiefs offense led by Patrick Mahomes on Sunday.

With the Chiefs struggling at 9-6, it sounds like the Chiefs have simplified the offense going into the critical Week 17 showdown, per a writeup from Ian Rapoport of NFL Network:

Sources say the Chiefs whittled down their normal game plan from head coach Andy Reid’s massive playbook for today’s game against the Bengals, which means fewer plays, fewer personnel packages and, most likely, fewer players getting their hands on the football.

This in no way means things will be easier for a Bengals defense missing DJ Reader that just gave up far too many explosives to Mason Rudolph. In fact, it could be just what the Chiefs need to get in a rhythm, as opposed to swapping so many players on and off the field.

Both the Chiefs and the Bengals really need this one, too. The former can wrap up a divisional crown with a win, while the latter has the most on the line of any team in the NFL when it comes to playoff chances.

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Patriots vs Bills 2023 live stream: Time, TV schedule and how to watch online

How to watch Sunday’s Patriots-Bills game.

The New England Patriots make the cold trek to Orchard Park on Sunday for an AFC East rematch with the Buffalo Bills.

So much has changed since the October 22 meeting between the two teams. Mac Jones was still the starting quarterback, and the Patriots hadn’t yet created the perception as one of the worst teams in the league. There was still a faint hope that the team would hit some sort of stride and turn things around.

That doesn’t mean all hope is dead for the now 4-11 Patriots team with Bailey Zappe starting under center. They are 2-2 since Zappe took over as the starter, and they just spoiled the Denver Broncos’ playoff chances in their road trip to Mile High last week.

Coach Bill Belichick could be in his last days in New England, and the team has rallied to put forth the best fight possible in every outing. But then again, this is a banged-up Patriots team void of the talent to stand up to the Bills on paper.

They upset those odds before. We’ll see if they can do so again on Sunday. Here’s how to watch the game:

Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase expected to play vs. Chiefs

An update on Ja’Marr Chase as the Bengals get ready to play the Chiefs.

All signs have pointed to Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase playing against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday.

Now we have another report backing that up, with Ian Rapoport of NFL Network citing a source who says Chase is expected to go.

No great shock there, given Chase’s talk about playing through an injury for his team — and his bulletin-board material after ripping the Chiefs defense.

Whether Chase is near or at 100 percent or more of a high-profile decoy that opens up the field for the likes of Tee Higgins is impossible to say before kickoff, but the Jake Browning-led offense is certainly better with him on the field.

The Bengals need the help, too, given how much this game means to their slim playoff hopes.

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Final score predictions for Bengals vs. Chiefs in Week 17

A final prediction for Bengals vs. Chiefs in Week 17.

The Cincinnati Bengals are surely giving fans a sense of deja vu heading into a critical Week 17 matchup.

Back in Week 12, they took a major loss to Pittsburgh and then rattled off three straight wins under the direction of backup quarterback Jake Browning, shockingly keeping their playoff hopes alive.

Then last week, a 34-11 blowout loss to those very same Steelers.

Now the Bengals have to hope another post-Steelers rebound is on the docket, although this time the opponent isn’t an AFC South squad — it’s the Kansas City Chiefs on the road.

Sure, those Chiefs have struggled to just a 9-6 record this season and have lost three of their last four. But Patrick Mahomes (26 touchdowns, 14 interceptions) is still the quarterback, Travis Kelce is still around to exploit one of Cincinnati’s long-running defensive issues and the Chiefs defense is quietly elite, allowing just 17.7 points per game on average, the second-best mark in the league.

Perhaps the struggles for Mahomes and Co. would be more comforting had the Bengals not flopped last week in Pittsburgh, with the defense again allowing the season-long explosive plays that have ruined the season.

Not just any explosive plays, either, but massive chunks of yardage to third-stringer Mason Rudolph, allowing George Pickens to tally 195 yards and two touchdowns on just four catches.

Onlookers should reasonably expect the Cincinnati offense to look a little better on Sunday with Ja’Marr Chase back in the fold. But it’s that defense that is problematic on a big scale.

Unfortunately for Cincinnati, there isn’t really any help on the way for the defense. Opposing offenses know to exploit a unit now missing DJ Reader, one of the best outright nose tackles in football, who won’t be there to command double teams. That places more on the linebackers in all facets, which has a ripple effect on the entire unit.

The Bengals will probably be more competitive in this one simply because it isn’t a divisional opponent, which has been one of the more interesting struggles of the season they will need to address this offseason. But overcoming Mahomes and Co., struggles or not, is tough even with Joe Burrow under center and the loss of Reader will be a major deciding factor.

Prediction: Chiefs 27, Bengals 20

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