Tag: no_mcc

Falcons vs. Giants: Inactives list for Week 16 matchup

Falcons list inactives for Week 16 game vs. New York Giants

The Atlanta Falcons have released their inactives list for Sunday’s game against the New York Giants. Six players, including rookie defensive lineman Brandon Dorlus, have been ruled out for Week 16.

On the bright side, linebacker Lorenzo Carter and wide receiver KhaDarel Hodge are active for today’s matchup in Atlanta.

Atlanta Falcons inactives list: Week 16

  1. OL Brandon Parker
  2. DL Brandon Dorlus
  3. WR Dylan Drummond
  4. WR Casey Washington
  5. OL Elijah Wilkinson
  6. RB Carlos Washington

New York Giants inactives list: Week 16

  1. CB Greg Stroman
  2. CB Dee Williams
  3. CB Divaad Wilson
  4. G Aaron Stinnie
  5. DL Casey Rogers
  6. QB Tim Boyle (3rd QB)

The Falcons and Giants are set to kick things off at 1 p.m. ET inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. Rookie Michael Penix Jr. is set to make his first NFL start after replacing Kirk Cousins in the lineup. Check out the team’s updated depth chart for Week 16.

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Falcons vs. Giants: Staff picks and predictions for Week 16

Falcons vs. Giants: Staff picks and predictions for Sunday’s game in Atlanta

The Atlanta Falcons will look for their eighth win of the year when they host the New York Giants on Sunday afternoon at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Despite ending their four-game losing streak last week, the Falcons still felt it was time to make a change at quarterback.

The team benched veteran Kirk Cousins for rookie Michael Penix Jr. as Atlanta attempts to stay alive in the NFC playoff hunt. Can Penix lead the team to a win against a struggling Giants team in Week 16?

Check out our Falcons Wire staff picks and predictions for Sunday’s game in Atlanta below:

Crissy Froyd (7-6):

Welcome to the dawn of the Michael Penix Jr. era. Will he deliver the results that the Falcons want? That much remains to be seen. But count on Penix to deliver against the struggling New York Giants, who present almost too many issues to count. Expect the New York passing game to continue to falter as Penix and company look to get Atlanta back on track in that same area. | Falcons 34, Giants 17

Deen Worley (7-6):

The Falcons’ quarterback change should breathe new life into the offense. I don’t expect it to be perfect by any means, but there should be a new shot of energy amongst the rest of the unit. Couple that with the playing against the lowly Giants who seem to be playing for a loss instead of a win, Penix should be able to get the victory in his debut. | Falcons 17, Giants 3

Matt Urben (7-6):

The Falcons finally stopped the bleeding and benched Kirk Cousins for Week 16. I think Michael Penix Jr. can do some things that Cousins isn’t capable of, including getting the ball to tight end Kyle Pitts. I think Atlanta will win convincingly and that Pitts will have a monster day (80-plus receiving yards). The Falcons get that elusive eighth win they’ve been searching for since 2017. | Falcons 19, Giants 12

Sunday’s game kicks off at 1 p.m. ET inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. The Falcons are favored by 9.5 points over the Giants.

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Denver Broncos schedule: Do the Broncos have a game today?

After playing on Thursday, the Broncos don’t play again until Dec. 28.

After playing on Thursday Night Football in Week 16, the Denver Broncos do not have a game today (Sunday, Dec. 22). The Broncos will return to action against the Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday, Dec. 28 in Week 17.

Denver will play eight home games at Empower Field at Mile High Stadium this year and nine games on the road. Because the league has an unbalanced 17-game schedule, the NFC and AFC rotate between having an extra home game. This year, the NFC gets a ninth home game.

The Broncos are led by head coach Sean Payton with rookie Bo Nix serving as their starting quarterback this fall.

View the team’s complete 2024 schedule below.

Denver Broncos 2024 Schedule

Week Date TV Opponent Time (MT) Broncos Tickets
1 9/8 CBS @ Seattle Seahawks 26-20 L
2 9/15 CBS  vs. Pittsburgh Steelers 13-6 L
3 9/22 FOX @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers 26-7 W
4 9/29 CBS @ New York Jets 10-9 W
5 10/6 FOX vs. Las Vegas Raiders 34-18 W
6 10/13 CBS vs. Los Angeles Chargers 23-16 L
7 10/17 Amazon Prime Video @ New Orleans Saints 33-10 W
8 10/27 CBS vs. Carolina Panthers 28-14 W
9 11/3 CBS @ Baltimore Ravens 41-10 L
10 11/10 CBS @ Kansas City Chiefs 16-14 L
11 11/17 FOX vs. Atlanta Falcons 38-6 W
12 11/24 CBS @ Las Vegas Raiders 29-19 W
13 12/2 ESPN vs. Cleveland Browns 41-32 W
14 12/8 BYE
15 12/15 CBS vs. Indianapolis Colts 31-13 W
16 12/19 Prime @ Los Angeles Chargers 34-27 L
17 12/28 NFL Network @ Cincinnati Bengals 2:30 PM Tickets
18 1/4 or 1/5 TBD vs. Kansas City Chiefs TBD Tickets

The Broncos have not returned to the playoffs since their Super Bowl-winning season in 2015. Now entering his second season on the job, Payton will aim to snap the club’s eight-year playoff drought this fall.

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SportsbookWire’s NFL Week 16 picks: ML, ATS and O/U predictions for all games

The SportsbookWire staff makes their NFL Week 16 picks and predictions for moneylines, spreads and totals.

Update Saturday, 9:14 p.m. ET: This column was originally published Dec. 19 before the Broncos-Chargers Thursday night game and the 2 Saturday games (Texans at Chiefs and Steelers at Ravens).

Before looking at SportsbookWire staff’s Week 16 NFL picks, here are the against-the-spread (ATS) and Over/Under (O/U) leaders, according to Teamrankings.com.

The Denver Broncos (9-5 straight up) own the best ATS record in the league at 11-3. They play at the LA Chargers (8-6 straight up/9-5 ATS) Thursday night.

The Pittsburgh Steelers (10-4) are 10-4 ATS and the Minnesota Vikings (12-2) are 9-4-1 ATS.

Six teams are 9-5 ATS. They are the Arizona Cardinals (7-7), Buffalo Bills (11-3), Detroit Lions (12-2), Chargers, Philadelphia Eagles (12-2) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-6).

The Tennessee Titans (3-11) are the worst ATS team at 2-12. They visit the Indianapolis Colts (6-8 SU, 8-6 ATS) Sunday. BetMGM Sportsbook lists the Titans as 3.5-point underdogs as of Thursday at 1:03 p.m. ET.

The Cleveland Browns (3-11) and New York Giants (2-12) are each 4-10 ATS.

When it comes to totals, the Baltimore Ravens (9-5) are the league’s top Over team at 11-3 O/U, while the Carolina Panthers (3-11) and Cincinnati Bengals (6-8) aren’t far behind at 10-4 O/U each.

The best Under team are the Houston Texans (9-5) at 4-10 O/U.

Six teams are 5-9 O/U. They are the Atlanta Falcons (7-7), Chicago Bears (4-10), Chargers, Vikings, Giants and Eagles.

There are 2 Saturday games: The Texans visit the Kansas City Chiefs (13-1) at 1 p.m. ET (NBC / Peacock), while the Ravens host the Steelers in an AFC North showdown at 4:30 p.m. ET (FOX).

NFL Week 16 staff picks

Odds provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list of NFL odds and check out more NFL expert picks and predictions from SportsbookWire.com.

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Falcons release LB Rashaan Evans, sign wide receiver to roster

Falcons release linebacker Rashaan Evans, sign wide receiver to 53-man roster

The Atlanta Falcons have signed wide receiver Chris Blair off the practice squad and released linebacker Rashaan Evans in a corresponding move, the team announced on Saturday afternoon.

Blair, a preseason favorite, has been elevated from the practice squad three times this season and now officially joins the 53-man roster. The 27-year-old appeared in just one game, playing exclusively on special teams.

Evans, 29, has a wealth of experience in this league but only appeared in two games during his second stint in Atlanta. The veteran linebacker started all 17 games for the Falcons in 2022, recording a career-high 159 tackles (86 solo) which led the team that season.

Former Falcons defensive coordinator Dean Pees retired during the 2022 offseason and Evans was not re-signed. Look for the team to sign Evans back to the practice squad now that there’s a spot available.

Atlanta has elevated wide receiver Dylan Drumond from the practice squad ahead of Week 16’s matchup against the New York Giants. Rookie quarterback Michael Penix Jr. is set to make his first NFL start in place of Kirk Cousins.

Check out what Raheem Morris, offensive coordinator Zac Robinson and tight end Kyle Pitts had to say about the quarterback change. Sunday’s game kicks off at 1 p.m. ET at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

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Kyle Pitts has four-word response to Falcons benching Kirk Cousins

Kyle Pitts has four-word response to Falcons’ latest quarterback change

“I just work here,” Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts said in response to Atlanta’s latest quarterback change. The immensely talented former top-five pick has been through his share of signal-callers since being drafted in 2021.

Pitts, 24, began his NFL career with Matt Ryan under center before Marcus Mariota took over in 2022. In 2023, Desmond Ridder and Taylor Heinicke played musical chairs with the starting quarterback job under Arthur Smith.

After that failed experiment, the Falcons signed quarterback Kirk Cousins during the 2024 offseason and drafted Michael Penix Jr. in the first round. Cousins was expected to solidify the position while Penix developed for the future.

However, plans changed when Cousins hit arguably the worst four-game stretch of his career to begin the second half of the season. Since Week 10, the veteran QB has thrown for nine interceptions and just one touchdown.

Head coach Raheem Morris needed to stop the bleeding and benched Cousins for Penix after the team’s Monday night win over the Las Vegas Raiders.

Penix will be the sixth quarterback Pitts has played with in his four NFL seasons, so it’s easy to understand why the tight end is apprehensive to say anything drastic.

“I didn’t think it would have happened this early or now,” said Pitts on the latest quarterback change. “Also, I just work here.”

Pitts has 40 receptions for 536 receiving yards and three touchdowns this season. Although he hasn’t had a ton of reps with Penix, the former Florida Gator was asked which traits could make the rookie successful in his first NFL start against the New York Giants.

“He’s very mature,” Pitts said of Penix. “And he’s played a lot of ball.”

The Falcons hope that experience translates into a win when the Penix era officially begins this Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

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Falcons injury report: Latest updates on Drake London, Lorenzo Carter

Falcons injury report: Drake London limited at Friday’s practice

The Atlanta Falcons have released their final injury report ahead of this weekend’s game against the New York Giants. Wide receiver Casey Washington has been ruled out for Week 16 due to a concussion.

Two other Falcons — linebacker Lorenzo Carter and wide receiver KhaDarel Hodge —  are officially questionable for Sunday’s game in Atlanta.

Falcons wide receiver Drake London was limited during Friday’s practice due to a knee injury but did not receive an official injury designation.

Falcons Week 16 injury report

Player Injury Wed Thu Fri Status
Darnell Mooney Rest LP LP  —
KhaDarel Hodge Ribs LP DNP LP QUEST.
Ross Dwelley Ankle LP LP FP
Charlie Woerner Quad LP LP DNP
Zach Harrison Rest LP LP   —
Kaleb McGary Elbow FP FP FP
Casey Washington Concussion DNP DNP LP OUT
Demone Harris Illness DNP FP FP
Nate Landman Rest   — LP   —
Lorenzo Carter Groin   — LP LP QUEST.
Richie Grant Illness   — LP FP
Chris Lindstrom Rest   — LP  —
Ruke Orhorhoro Rest   — LP  —
Drake London Knee   —   — LP

The Falcons and Giants will kick things off at 1 p.m. ET inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium. It will be the first career start for rookie quarterback Michael Penix Jr., who replaced Kirk Cousins as the team’s starter.

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