Tag: NFL

Raiders sticking with Gardner Minshew at quarterback vs Browns

Gardner Minshew is still the Raiders starting quarterback this week as the Raiders face Browns.

With two poor performances in the first three games this season, Gardner Minshew’s status as the Raiders starting quarterback seemed a bit tenuous. The day after the team’s ugly loss to the winless Panthers last Sunday, Antonio Pierce wouldn’t say for certain that Minshew would remain the starter as they headed for Week four. Adding that he needed to speak with the team first.

In the interim days, the team’s two star players Davante Adams and Maxx Crosby both took to podcasts and said they would prefer the team stick with Minshew at this point in time. Come Wednesday, Pierce made it official that the team was sticking with Minshew this week when the team welcomes the Cleveland Browns to Las Vegas.

“What I said was, I need to get with the players and evaluate the film, so there’s no issue,” said Pierce. “Gardner Minshew is the quarterback.”

Back when Minshew was named the team’s quarterback over incumbent starter Aidan O’Connell, Pierce said he would give Minshew at least the first quarter of the season before he re-evaluated it. So, this would be in keeping with that. And it also means, the question will arise again next week. And perhaps every week if Minshew continues to struggle.

Raiders saw Isaiah Pola-Mao as ‘ready to take the next step’ even before losing Marcus Epps

Even before losing Marcus Epps for the season, the Raiders saw Isaiah Pola-Mao as ‘ready to take the next step’

The injury bug has hit the Raiders defense early this season. They lost edge rusher Malcolm Koonce just before the season opener, then they lost Divine Deablo to a concussion while Maxx Crosby was slowed by an ankle injury in Week 2, and last week they saw starting safety Marcus Epps go down for the season with a torn ACL.

Replacing the contributions of most defensive starters would be a tough task. Perhaps impossible, especially with regard to Crosby. But if there was one position they may be well equipped to replace a starter it is the safety position.

That’s because perhaps their best looking non-starter coming into this season is Isaiah Pola-Mao.

“He’s been around the ball quite a bit,” head coach Antonio Pierce said of Pola-Mao. “Really good special teams player. And he’s really been that third safety for us so there’s been roles for him either it has shown up in the game or in practices he’s been repped a lot.

“So, we feel very confident to be honest with Isaiah. Thought he was ready to take the next step this year anyway, bur we really felt good with Marcus Epps and Tre’von [Moehrig] that ‘ok, we’ve got two solid starters there now’ and obviously with the injury to Marcus, next man up mentality, but obviously it’s no flinch no blinking and really confident in what Isaiah can do going forward and looking forward.”

The former undrafted free agent out of USC is in his third season with the team as a backup safety and special teamer. He had yet to break into the starting lineup, though his playing time has increased in his second season and in this year’s training camp, he had become one of the more talked about players.

Pola-Mao was dubbed as the next man up at safety, the team’s big nickel, and personal protector on special teams coverage.

Steelers Week 4 injury report features laundry list of players to kick off Colts week practice

Here’s a look at the Pittsburgh Steelers, Indianapolis Colts injury report following Wednesday’s practice.

If the initial injury report of Week 4 is any indication, the Pittsburgh Steelers could be down several players when they travel to Indianapolis to take on the Colts.

T.J. Watt, Najee Harris, Cameron Heyward, Donte Jackson and Larry Ogunjobi (rest) aside, several players were limited or did not practice.

Here’s a look at the full injury report for the Steelers and Colts following Wednesday’s practice:

Pittsburgh Steelers

Player Injury Wednesday Thursday Friday Game status
QB Russell Wilson calf LP
WR Roman Wilson ankle FP
WR Van Jefferson eye FP
RB Najee Harris NIR DNP
S DeShon Elliott quad LP
CB Donte Jackson NIR LP
RB Jaylen Warren knee DNP
LB Alex Highsmith groin DNP
G Isaac Seumalo pec LP
TE MyCole Pruitt knee DNP
LB T.J. Watt NIR LP
DT Cameron Heyward NIR LP
DL Larry Ogunjobi NIR LP

DNP: Did not practice

LP: Limited participation 

FP: Full participation

NIR: Not injury related

Indianapolis Colts

Player Injury Wednesday Thursday Friday Game status
CB Kenny Moore II hip DNP
CB Chris Lammons knee/ankle DNP
LB Grant Stuard heel LP
DE Kwity Paye quad DNP
T Braden Smith knee DNP
DE Tyquan Lewis calf/wrist LP

DNP: Did not practice

LP: Limited participation 

FP: Full participation

NIR: Not injury related

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Justin Herbert injury update: Chargers QB’s MRI shows he’s ‘progressing’

Jim Harbaugh provided an update on Justin Herbert on Wednesday.

Jim Harbaugh provided an update on Justin Herbert on Wednesday.

Harbaugh said that Herbert’s MRI revealed he’s “progressing” on his high ankle sprain.

Harbaugh added that Herbert is not in his walking boot and might do some things in practice on Wednesday.

Herbert aggravated his injury in the third quarter against the Steelers and was removed for the remainder of the game.

Herbert was just one of four players injured and removed in Week 3. The other three were Joey Bosa (hip), Rashawn Slater (pectoral) and Joe Alt (knee).

Harbaugh said Bosa, Slater and Alt are not expected to practice on Wednesday.

The Chargers host the Chiefs this Sunday at 1:25 p.m. PT.

Here’s the TV broadcast map for Rams vs. Bears in Week 4

Check the map to see if you’ll get the Rams-Bears game on TV this weekend

For the first time this season, the Los Angeles Rams will be playing in the early Sunday afternoon window. Their road game against the Chicago Bears will kick off at 1 p.m. ET, an early start for the West Coast Rams.

The Rams will be shown on FOX for the third week in a row, with Adam Amin and Mark Sanchez on the call for the third time, as well. It’s not exactly a marquee game and with plenty of other contests to compete with in the 1 p.m. ET window, Rams-Bears won’t be broadcast to a huge market.

Check the map from 506 Sports below to find out if you’ll get the game on TV. If you’re in the yellow area, you’ll have it on your local FOX channel.

The Rams have won three straight games against the Bears dating back to 2019, with their most recent victory coming in Week 1 of the 2021 season at home – a resounding 34-14 win at SoFi Stadium.

Both teams come into this one at 1-2 and desperately need a win to avoid falling to 1-3, especially with their division leaders being undefeated at this point in the season.

Around the NFL: Former Seahawks G Damien Lewis suffers elbow injury

Around the NFL: Former Seahawks G Damien Lewis suffers elbow injury

It has been a brutal start to the season for the Carolina Panthers, and another tough blow has been announced. Former Seattle Seahawks and current Panthers guard, Damien Lewis, has injured his elbow and is likely to miss at least one game. Fortunately, it does not appear Lewis will be headed for the Injured Reserve list.

This news was broken by NFL Insider Jordan Schultz.

https://twitter.com/Schultz_Report/status/1839024656201699390

Lewis was originally a third round pick by the Seahawks in the 2020 NFL draft and quickly became a starter in Seattle. During his four years in the Pacific Northwest, Lewis started all 63 possible games (regular season and playoffs included) for the Seahawks. His snap count tracker never dipped below 91% in any given season he was in Seattle.

Lewis was a reliable player along the line, and he parlayed it into a four-year deal worth $53 million with the Carolina Panthers this offseason. the Seahawks were never going to give Lewis such a contract, especially after general manager John Schneider’s comments about guards being overdrafted and overpaid. But considering how poor the interior offensive line has been, perhaps it’s fair to wonder if the Seahawks should have made a comprable offer.

Whether or not they should have is moot at this point. The reality is Lewis is now in Carolina, and his injury is going to hurt the Panthers’ chance at another upset. After benching quarterback Bryce Young, Carolina torched the Las Vegas Raiders 36-22 in Sin City last weekend. Now, they face the shockingly 0-3 Cincinnati Bengals desperate for a win.

If Andy Dalton (who became the first quarterback this season to throw for 300+ yards and 3 touchdowns last week) wants to pull off another upset, particularly one against his former team, he’s going to have to do so without one of his best offensive linemen.

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Antonio Pierce admits Raiders still in process of ‘learning curve’ of zone blocking scheme

Three games in and the Raiders are still struggling with ‘learning curve’ of zone blocking scheme

You’d hope the kinks of a new blocking scheme would have been worked out by the start of an NFL season. With a full offseason to work in the new system, this is something the coaches are responsible for ensuring their players are adept at handling before putting it on the field live when the games count.

It’s painfully obvious that the Raiders offensive players are either not getting it or the coaching staff is not coaching it properly. Perhaps some of both. Their historically bad run game is living proof of that.

“We’re watching it firsthand. You guys have seen it. There’s a learning curve and we’re still going through the process,” Pierce said of the transition from power blocking to zone blocking.

Ted Nguyen broke down a few poor run plays the Raiders had in Sunday’s brutal loss to the Panthers that were indicative of the disconnect happening on the field.

https://twitter.com/FB_FilmAnalysis/status/1838970081625375147

As Ted points out, the problem isn’t just on the offensive line. Which also suggests it’s not primarily on the players. They can’t all just be not getting it. There are some proven smart players out there who are clearly trying to just ‘do their job’ on a given play. But either the job they were given is severely flawed or the manner in which they were coached was confusing.

Pierce said Monday that there is going to need to be a lot of changes on the Raiders offense to fix the run game. He seemed to hint on Wednesday that the immediate change could be in play calling. At least until the offense can start executing the new scheme.

“At the end of the day you get the scheme team, you can be a player driven team, you can be a ‘what works’ team,” Pierce continued. “And we need to become what works. What works for the Raiders.”

Former Raiders CB Tyler Hall signs with Seahawks

Former Raiders CB Tyler Hall signs with Seahawks

The last time Tyler Hall took the field as an NFL player he was wearing Silver & Black. That was Week 16 of last season. Now heading into Week four of this season, Hall has found a new home. He is signing with the Seahawks according to his agent ISA Management.

Hall spent his first two NFL seasons with the Falcons and Rams, getting a Super Bowl ring in his second NFL season.

He joined the Raiders the following offseason and spent two seasons in Las Vegas, appearing in 18 games and starting six. In that time he put up four pass breakups and 40 tackles and a sack.

He wasn’t brought back this offseason and signed with the Philadelphia Eagles only to get injured in camp and was waived.

Now healthy again, the fifth year pro has joined the Seahawks hoping to revive and continue his NFL career. Hall will turn 26 on Halloween.

Steelers TE Darnell Washington hit with fine, team’s first of season

Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Darnell Washington plans to appeal a fine for an illegal crackback block during Week 3 L.A. Chargers game.

Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Darnell Washington told the media on Wednesday that he was levied a $6,000 fine for an illegal crackback block during the win over the Los Angeles Chargers.

Pittsburgh Post Gazette’s Ray Fittipaldo tweeted that Washington plans to appeal.

NFL compliance officers and league assistants review game film for potential rule violations after each Monday, and players are notified of the decision. Findings are made public on Saturday afternoon.

According to NFL operations, “fines collected are donated to the Professional Athletes Foundation to support legends in need and the NFL Foundation to further support the health, safety and wellness of athletes across all levels, including youth football and the communities that support the game.”

If the fine is upheld, it will be the first of the season for a Steelers player.

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Bills’ WR Khalil Shakir is the perfect fit for Joe Brady’s offense

Bills’ WR Khalil Shakir is the perfect fit for Joe Brady’s offense

Offensive coordinator Joe Brady has the Buffalo Bills offense humming through three weeks, and it’s not the in the typical Josh Allen-led ways. Brady has taken a lot of the weight off of Allen’s shoulders, using the run game, getting the ball out fast in the passing game, and letting receivers run after the catch. No player on the offense has benefitted more from this philosophy in the passing game than third-year wideout Khalil Shakir.

To say that Shakir has been reliable this year for Brady and Allen would be an understatement. His catch percentage currently sits at 100% (pretty good) as he has caught all 14 of his targets through three weeks. In fact, dating back to last year, Shakir has caught 27 consecutive targets, which ties an all-time NFL record.

Impressive from the 2022 fifth-rounder out of Boise State, right? But, what’s even more impressive is what Shakir is doing after completing those catches. Through three weeks he is fifth in the NFL in yards after the catch (117), and that’s on just 14 targets. He trails on Tyreek Hill, Chris Godwin, Malik Nabers, and Rashee Rice. Those are household names, and if Shakir isn’t a household name yet, then he should be soon at his current pace.

He has already scored two touchdowns this year on catch-and-runs, both breaking tackles to find the endzone. We have seen flashes from Shakir over his first two years in the league, but now he’s getting the chance to shine. Not only is he getting looks in the offense now, but they are quality looks. The ball is getting on him fast and there is room for him to run after the catch.

On the Green Light Podcast with Chris Long this summer, Josh Allen praised Shakir, saying, “I’m excited to see [Shakir] step into a larger role… very, very excited about his season coming up.”

People should have taken Allen’s words more seriously because Shakir is taking the world by storm. Shakir currently leads the NFL in receiving EPA at +22.6, and he leads the Bills in every major receiving stat. He’s the team leader in receptions (14), targets (14), receiving yards (168), receiving touchdowns (2), and receiving yards per game (56.0).

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