Tag: NFL

Steelers vs Cardinals: 3 reasons Pittsburgh won’t lose this week

The Cardinals defense has struggled all season and the Steelers offense should take advantage of that.

Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

The playoffs don’t start for a month but for the Pittsburgh Steelers, the season has been single elimination for the last several weeks. Pittsburgh has taken the one game at a time mantra to heart and has kept their focus during this 6-1 run they are on. This week the Steelers get the Arizona Cardinals who were mathematically eliminated from the playoffs last week and sit at 3-8-1.

There was a time when playing a bad team on the road was scary because the Steelers didn’t hesitate to play down to their opponents. But this isn’t the case this season, especially on defense. Here are three reasons the Steelers will not lose to the Cardinals this week.

The Cardinals defense can’t stop anyone

Arizona is currently ranked No. 31 in points allowed (29.2) and No. 32 in yards allowed (426.3) per game. Pittsburgh hasn’t had a 300-yard passer yet this season but if there was ever a week to do it, this would be it. The Steelers offense will be a concern for the remainder of the season but this week Pittsburgh should feast on the Cardinals D.

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PODCAST: Lamar Jackson breakdown with Ravens beat reporter

The Ravens are one of the most perplexing offenses in the NFL currently. Their style of a run heavy offense with a dual-threat QB in Lamar Jackson is not uncommon, but the way that it’s executed has never quite been seen before. The way that the …

The Ravens are one of the most perplexing offenses in the NFL currently. Their style of a run heavy offense with a dual-threat QB in Lamar Jackson is not uncommon, but the way that it’s executed has never quite been seen before. The way that the team sells it’s trickery, misdirection, and plays in general has challenged and confused every team in it’s way so far.

Buffalo is an enigma, though. A resilient team that has been in an uphill battle all season, on and off of the field. Facing criticism from many for a schedule that’s out of their control, doubts about Josh Allen, coaching, and more. They’ve risen to the occasion, and are one of the best teams in the AFC and NFL currently. They are certainly chomping at the bit for this opportunity to cement their place along with the greats in 2019.

Joining host Matt John for this episode, are the Managing Editor of Billswire, Nick Wojton. Secondly, a friend and colleague of Nick’s from college, Sean Grogan, who covers the Baltimore Ravens for Cecil Whig via cecildaily.com, to discuss the various aspects, story lines, and more for this huge AFC match up:

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Todd Gurley responds to Sean McVay calling himself an idiot for lighter workload

Todd Gurley didn’t have much to say about Sean McVay calling himself an idiot.

Todd Gurley hasn’t had the Pro Bowl season everyone’s come to expect from the two-time All-Pro running back, gaining just 642 yards on the ground in 11 games. He hasn’t been involved much in the passing game, either, catching 22 passes for 134 yards; he had at least 59 catches in each of the last two years.

It seems like the Rams were trying to keep his touches down in an attempt to keep him healthy in the future, which is something Sean McVay vehemently denied. Gurley’s workload has grown in the last few weeks, surpassing 20 touches in two of the last three games for the first time all year.

McVay said it’s the result of “me not being an idiot,” admitting he was wrong for not getting Gurley more involved – especially in the loss to Pittsburgh. Gurley was asked about McVay’s comments Thursday and didn’t have much to say about it.

“He said it, I didn’t,” Gurley said laughing. “That’s all I got to say. I don’t have anything else to say.”

When asked if he wants to continue getting more touches, Gurley repeated what he’s said in the past: It’s a team sport and there’s only one ball.

“It doesn’t matter. Hit you with the same answer: team sport, man,” he said. “Only one person gets the ball. We’ve got great running backs in Malcolm (Brown) and Darrell (Henderson Jr.) as well. Four great receivers and some good tight ends. (Tyler) Higbee had a great game last game. Whatever he calls, I’ll do my part and be ready.”

Against the Bears and Cardinals in the last three weeks, Gurley had 97 and 95 yards rushing, respectively. And his performance Sunday against Arizona included a 28-yard touchdown run that was called back due to a holding penalty.

He’s certainly running better, and the offensive line has improved, so maybe McVay has noticed that and will continue feeding the running back.

Former NFL player Will Blackmon has a new career as the NFL Wine Guy

In retirement, former NFL player Will Blackmon is studying wine instead of plays. He’s dubbed himself the NFL Wine Guy and created a wine concierge service.

In retirement, former NFL player Will Blackmon is studying wine instead of plays. He’s dubbed himself the NFL Wine Guy and created a wine concierge service.

Stopping DeVante Parker and Mike Gesicki among keys to Jets defense vs. Dolphins

The Jets defense must lock in on the Dolphins top receiving threats in this rematch of their Week 9 loss.

The only thing more demoralizing than losing to a previously winless team is doing it twice in one season.

The Jets accomplished just that in their loss to the then-0-11 Bengals in Week 13, just four weeks after they deliver the Dolphins’ first win of the 2019 season. This time the Jets will get the chance for revenge at home against a team that’s riding an offensive hot streak.

New York is severely depleted with a bevy of injuries including safety Jamal Adams, who’s recovering from an ankle injury. New York will likely lean on its dominant run defense again, though the Dolphins average the fewest rushing attempts and rushing yards of any team in the league. Miami will utilize its passing game, so the Jets should expect to see a lot of Ryan Fitzpatrick, DeVante Parker and Mike Gesicki.

With that being said,here are four keys to the Jets defense against the Dolphins.

Focus on DeVante Parker

(Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports)

The Dolphins’ recent uptick in offensive production is due in large part to DeVante Parker finally breaking out and realizing his potential.

The wideout already reached career-highs with 854 receiving yards and six touchdowns and he’s secured at least six receptions and more than 90 yards in three consecutive games. He and Preston Williams tortured the Jets secondary when the two teams met back in Week 9. Now he’s the focal point of Ryan Fitzpatrick’s targets with Williams on injured reserve. 

The Jets could have a tough time against the physical Parker, especially after giving up nine receptions for 125 yards and touchdown to the Bengals wideouts Tyler Boyd and Auden Tate a week ago. This will another good test for rookie Bless Austin to see if he’s truly capable of being a starting cornerback.

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Troy Aikman on the Cowboys awful loss: ‘I don’t know how you come back from this’

Aikman has some thoughts on the struggling Cowboys.

Former Dallas Cowboy legend Troy Aikman certainly isn’t pulling any punches when it comes to talking about the franchise he called home for 12 seasons.

The FOX analyst who drew lots of attention for his attire on Thursday night spoke about the Cowboys loss to the Chicago Bears as the NFC East leading franchise continues to struggle late in the season and the calls for Jason Garrett to be fired get louder.

His partner Joe Buck noted the Cowboys still have a shot in the playoffs if they make it, but Aikman wasn’t having any of that.

Here’s what he said:

“Yeah, I don’t know how you come back from this, I really don’t, Joe. For the last two weeks we’ve heard from them that they were going to get it going. They had a chance at home against the Buffalo Bills to finally beat a team with a winning record, that didn’t happen, they got embarrassed in that game, they come here against a team that had a lot to prove but was struggling in a lot of areas and it was the same old story.

So yes, even though we knew before this game kicked off that it didn’t matter if the lost, they were still going to be in contention, I don’t know how you sell that if you’re Jason Garrett or Jerry Jones or anyone. When you have a performance like that, to say, ‘Hey, but we’re still alive, we’ll go play this week against the Rams and it’s all right out in front of us.’ I don’t think the players hear that. I wouldn’t hear it if I were them, and this is on the players as much as it is on the coaches. They’ve got to be better, but I’m not sure I’d even talk to the team this week. I’d just say, ‘Let’s go play next week and you guys figure it out.’

“The talk is over, and it has been over for a while.”

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Jerry Jones is the one to blame for this mess that is the Dallas Cowboys

Jerry Jones should be the most upset with himself.

This is the online version of our morning newsletter, The Morning Win. Subscribe to get irreverent and incisive sports stories, delivered to your mailbox every morning.

The Dallas Cowboys lost another bad game – their third in a row – Thursday night in Chicago in what very well could have been Jason Garrett’s final appearance on the Dallas sideline.

Garrett’s employment status has often been the topic of discussion at this of the year during his 10 seasons as head coach of the Cowboys and it feels like this time will end with him being shown the door.

Owner Jerry Jones will be the one to eventually break that news to Garrett, which is rich because Jones is really the main person to blame for the mess that has been the Dallas Cowboys in recent years.

Sure, the team has won three NFC East titles during Garrett’s time but they’ve  never seriously challenged for a Super Bowl in that time. The franchise has just three playoff wins (two by Garrett) since 1997 and haven’t appeared in a NFC Championship Game since the 1995 season when they won the Super Bowl.

That is embarrassing, especially considering all the money this team makes and how popular this franchise continues to be.

All that failure lands on the shoulder of one man – Jones. Dallas has been an inept franchise long before Garrett was handed the keys to the battered car. Does the coach deserve to be criticized? Yes, of course. He has made a lot of boneheaded decisions throughout the years.

But Jones has been the man calling the shots, making the deals, bringing in the players and maybe sticking with Garrett for far too long as his head coach.

Jones has made the job of coaching the Cowboys a circus during his years as the owner. His locker room press conferences after games can only add fuel to the massive fire that builds whenever the Cowboys are self-destructing.

Just this week he went out of his way on a radio show to say he thinks Garrett will be coaching in the NFL next season. But he didn’t say Garrett would necessarily be doing that with the Cowboys, which added even more noise to a situation that was plenty loud enough

Jones has hired head coaches by the names of Dave Campo and Chan Gailey, who had little success in Dallas. He got lucky by getting Bill Parcells to come out of retirement for a little bit, but not even Parcells could get them to a NFC title game. He’s given Garrett 10 freakin’ years to become a winner.

Now Jones has a 6-7 team with way too much talent to be 6-7. Luckily for them they are in the NFC East, which is a dumpster fire this year. Dallas is still in first place with the Eagles hot on their tails at 5-7 and facing Eli Manning and the Giants on Monday night. Chances are the Cowboys will win the NFC East again this year, but it doesn’t feel like it will lead to much.

This season is shaping up to be another lost season, led by an owner who doesn’t have what it takes to build a winner.

And that’s on him.

Not Jason Garrett.

Thursday’s biggest winner: Troy Aikman’s hoodie.

The Hall of Fame QB kept it casual while calling last night’s Cowboys-Bears game on FOX as he rocked a hoodie with a sweater and jacket. Did fans have fun coming up with jokes about the hoodie? Oh boy did they.

Quick hits: Is Brady washed?… College Football Playoff nightmare… Steve Belichik just like his dad… And more!

Steven Ruiz thinks Tom Brady is now just Kirk Cousins, which is… OK?

Michelle Martinelli and Evan Thorpe look at 1 chaotic scenario that would be a nightmare for the College Football Playoffs.

Steve Belichick is just like his dad. I mean, JUST LIKE his dad.

Charles Curtis and Steven Ruiz have their NFL Week 14 picks against the spread.

(Follow me on Twitter at @anezbitt. It might change your life. Just don’t tell me about your fantasy team.)

Jason Garrett thought the Cowboys played ‘fine’ at times during brutal loss to Bears

Jason Garrett shared his thoughts on another bad loss.

The Dallas Cowboys went into Chicago on Thursday night knowing their game with the Bears had a must-win feel to it.

And boy did they not go out there and play like it.

Dallas left town with a 31-24 loss, their third straight defeat, and it was never really as close as that final score might lead one to believe.

The Cowboys fell behind early after scoring on their first drive. They were outplayed in all facets of the game, and could only watch in the fourth quarter as Mitch Trubisky put the nail in their coffin with a 23-yard TD run through the heart of the defense in the fourth quarter.

The Cowboys played with very little heart, especially knowing that Jason Garrett’s job is pretty much on the line.

Garrett, however, though the team played “hard” and “fine” at some parts of the game but that they didn’t play well enough to win:

Here’s Garrett with more coach-speak about the loss and his team:

The first drive was great but the points put up in the fourth quarter by Dallas felt hollow, since the game was pretty much over.

Jerry Jones spoke to reporters in one of his patented impromptu press conferences but he didn’t say anything about Garrett’s job status. He ranted about how his team never had a chance and got run over, which was all true, and that they need to start winning games again.

The Cowboys are a mess right now but they’re somehow still atop the NFC East at 7-6.

But it feels like another lost season is staring them in the face.

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Steelers injury report: James Conner out, JuJu Smith-Schuster misses 2nd day in a row

Check out the practice report for the Steelers from Thursday.

The Pittsburgh Steelers released their second injury report of the week on Thursday. It appears they will be without two of their offensive starters this weekend.

Two players sat out of practice on Thursday and another was limited.

Did not practice

  • G Ramon Foster (day off)
  • WR JuJu Smith-Schuster (knee)

JuJu missed practice for the second day in a row, making it less likely that he is able to play against the Cardinals.

Limited

  • RB James Conner (shoulder)

Conner is getting limited work but revealed he is only getting some reps with the scout team. He ruled himself out of the game this weekend.

WR Diontae Johnson (illness) was upgraded from limited on Wednesday to practicing fully Thursday.

Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Stitcher Radio.

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Detroit Lions at Minnesota Vikings odds, lines, picks and best bets

Previewing Sunday’s Detroit Lions at Minnesota Vikings sports betting odds and lines, with Week 14 NFL betting picks, tips and best bets.

The Detroit Lions (3-8-1 and losers of four straight games) limp into U.S. Bank Stadium Sunday to play a Minnesota Vikings (8-4) team still stinging from a second-half collapse Monday night against the Seattle Seahawks. Kickoff is at 1 p.m. ET. We analyze the Lions-Vikings odds and lines, with NFL betting picks and tips for this matchup.

Detroit at Minnesota: Week 14 preview, betting trends and notes

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  • Detroit is 4-5 against the spread in its last nine games, much better than its 1-8 straight-up record in that span.
  • Minnesota won four of its last five games when favored by double digits. It was 2-2-1 ATS in those games.
  • The Lions have scored 20 or more points in nine of their 12 games.
  • Minnesota is 7-1 against the moneyline as a favorite and 5-3 against the spread in those games.
  • The Vikings have won 10 straight games against teams with a losing record.
  • Detroit is one of only three teams that have led at some point in every game this season, joining the San Francisco 49ers (10-2) and Kansas City Chiefs (8-4).

Detroit at Minnesota: Key injuries

Vikings WR Adam Thielen (hamstring) has yet to practice, but head coach Mike Zimmer said Thursday he has a good chance to play Sunday. RB Dalvin Cook (chest) has been limited in practice.

The biggest injury issue in Detroit is QB Matthew Stafford (hip/back), who is expected to miss his fifth straight game.

Detroit at Minnesota: Odds, betting lines and prediction

Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Thursday at 7 p.m. ET.

Prediction

Minnesota 34, Detroit 16

Moneyline (?)

Minnesota is a gigantic favorite (-667), which takes most bettors out of the running due to lack of interest in the small return of $1.50 on a $10 bet. The Lions (+480) will need a miracle to win, but they’ve beaten Minnesota in two of three meetings at US Bank Stadium.

A small bet on Detroit would yield almost a 5-to-1 return on investment, but with David Blough making his second start, the best advice is to AVOID.

Against the Spread (?)

Minnesota (-115) is a 12.5-point favorite and still giving away worse betting odds than the Lions (-106). It’s a big number, but the Vikings are 5-0 at home and won those games by an average of 13.6 points. The Lions are on their third QB and a free-agent running back going up against a strong defense. Lay the points with the LIONS (-12.5, -115).

Over/Under (?)

This one is kind of a mystery at 42.5 points (Over: -115, Under: -106). Minnesota is averaging more than 29 points per game at home, the Lions have averaged 19 PPG without Stafford and, when the team met in October, they combined for 72 points. Unless you believe Detroit is going to score 10 or less, take the OVER (-115).

Want action on this game? Sign up and bet at BetMGM. If you’re looking for more sports betting picks and tips, visit SportsbookWire.com.

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