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Titans trade up, select WR Dez Fitzpatrick at No. 109 overall

The Titans have made their fifth pick of the 2021 NFL draft.

The Tennessee Titans have made their second trade of the 2021 NFL draft, moving up to select wide receiver Dez Fitzpatrick out of Louisville at No. 109 overall.

The trade was with the Carolina Panthers and the Titans have sent picks 126 (fourth round), 166 (fifth round) and 232 (seventh round) to move up.

After the trade, the Titans now have three picks remaining in this year’s draft, including one in the fourth (No. 135) and two in the sixth (Nos. 205 and 215).

So there we have it: the Titans have finally addressed the wide receiver position, albeit with someone who wasn’t on anyone’s radar.

Fitzpatrick, who stands at 6-foot-2 and weighs in at 202 pounds, has the prototypical size for an outside receiver but doesn’t possess top-end speed.

Over the course of four years with the Cardinals, Fitzpatrick reeled in 154 catches for 2,589 yards and 21 touchdowns, and he caught passes from Baltimore Ravens quarterback, Lamar Jackson, in 2017.

The Louisville product has solid ball skills, is a good route-runner and plays with a physicality that the Titans will love. He’s also a plus blocker and can make contested catches as good as the next guy.

With the Titans’ current situation at the position, Fitzpatrick will have an opportunity to compete for targets as soon as 2021 behind A.J. Brown and Josh Reynolds.

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Watch: A.J. Brown gets emotional after Elijah Moore is picked by Jets

There is no question about the love between A.J. Brown and Elijah Moore.

Wide receiver A.J. Brown was hoping to reunite with his former Ole Miss teammate and friend, Elijah Moore, with the Tennessee Titans, a team that desperately needed to add to its receiving corps. during the 2021 NFL draft.

But that didn’t happen and instead Moore was selected by the New York Jets in the second round of the 2021 NFL draft at No. 34 overall.

Moore and Brown were hanging out during Day 2 of the draft, and when Moore was picked by the Jets, Brown told him how proud he was of him, while also getting in the process.

The touching moment was caught on tape. Check it out (warning: NSFW language):

https://www.instagram.com/tv/COUAyqkpnL7/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

As if we couldn’t love the always humble Brown any more, he goes and shows the big heart he has for someone he truly cares about.

Jets fans should be excited by the fact that Brown, who has emerged as a star since being drafted in 2019, believes Moore is actually better than he is.

The Ole Miss product now heads to the Big Apple where he’ll hope he can have the kind of success Brown has had in the NFL. He’ll also be joining one of Brown’s now-former Titans teammates, Corey Davis, in New York.

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Titans’ Jon Robinson, Mike Vrabel talk Day 2 picks, not taking a WR

Jon Robinson addressed questions about not taking a WR.

Day 2 of the 2021 NFL draft had some controversy in Tennessee Titans land, as the team failed to add the receiver that the fanbase has been craving for thanks to the team’s current lack of depth at the position.

Instead, Tennessee added offensive tackle Dillon Radunz in the second, and linebacker Monty Rice and defensive back Elijah Molden in the third.

The selection of Monty, which came after a trade back with the Green Bay Packers, was especially surprising, as linebacker isn’t exactly a major position of need, and definitely nowhere near as dire as wide receiver.

At the conclusion of Day 2 on Friday night, Titans general manager Jon Robinson and head coach Mike Vrabel met with the media to speak about their newest additions. Robinson did address the thought process behind waiting even longer on a wide receiver.

2021 NFL draft: Updated list of Titans picks entering Day 3

The Titans have six picks on Day 3 of the 2021 NFL draft.

The Tennessee Titans have made four picks in the 2021 NFL draft over the first two days, but general manager Jon Robinson still has a grand total of six selections to make on Day 3 from rounds four to seven.

The Titans made their first draft-day trade on Friday night, as they sent pick No. 85 to the Green Bay Packers in exchange for pick No. 92, which was used on inside linebacker Monty Rice, and pick No. 135 (fourth round).

With that said, here’s an updated list of picks the Titans will have on Day 3. Of course, this can change if Tennessee makes more trades.

Round 4: Pick No. 126

Round 4: Pick No. 135 (via Packers)

Round 5: Pick No. 166

Round 6: Pick No. 205

Round 6: Pick No. 215 (via Chiefs)

Round 7: Pick No. 232 (via Dolphins)

The Titans acquired the second sixth-round pick in a draft-day trade with the Kansas City Chiefs last year that saw Tennessee send back a 2020 seventh-round pick.

The seventh-round selection was acquired in the Isaiah Wilson trade with the Miami Dolphins that saw the Titans send back a 2022 seventh-round pick as well.

The big topic of conversation entering Day 3 will be the Titans’ need to finally address the wide receiver position, which was one of the team’s biggest needs entering the draft.

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What Titans’ Monty Rice, Elijah Molden said in first pressers

Rice and Molden met with the media shortly after being drafted.

The Tennessee Titans added two new pieces to their defense during Day 2 of the 2021 NFL draft on Friday night after selecting inside linebacker Monty Rice out of Georgia and cornerback Elijah Molden out of Washington.

Prior to making that pair of third-round picks, the Titans selected offensive tackle Dillon Radunz in the second, which means the team didn’t address the wide receiver position once again, something that wasn’t expected.

Whatever the case may be, the Titans may have added their slot corner and inside linebacker of the future.

Molden could slot in as soon as 2021 and makes a once-depleted secondary a little stronger, especially after the Caleb Farley pick, while Rice will likely have a year to develop with Rashaan Evans, Jayon Brown and David Long already on the roster.

Shortly after being drafted, Molden and Rice met with the media via Zoom conference. Here’s what two of the Titans’ newest additions had to say.

Spurs at Celtics: Prediction, point spread, odds, over/under, betting picks

Our prediction and best bet for Friday’s Spurs-Celtics game.

Gregg Popovich’s San Antonio Spurs visit the Boston Celtics on Friday night, and if you’re looking to do some last-minute betting research, you’re in luck! We’ll give you the latest point spread, moneyline odds and over-under number, as well as the information you’ll need to make the smartest bet on BetMGM.

The game tips off at 7:30 p.m. ET and can be seen on NBC Sports Boston and Bally Sports Southwest.

The Celtics put an end to a three-game slide with a 120-111 win over the Hornets on Wednesday night, and guard Marcus Smart will be returning to the lineup following his last-minute one-game suspension before the Charlotte game. Kemba Walker will miss Friday’s game with an oblique strain, and both Derrick White and Trey Lyles are out for San Antonio.

The lines, courtesy of BetMGM

Point spread: Celtics -4.5
Money line: Celtics -190 / Spurs +155
Over-under: 221.5

Place your legal, online sports bets in VA, CO, IA, IN, NJ, PA, TN and WV at BetMGM.

Advice and prediction

The Spurs took the first game of the season against the Celtics in San Antonio, 110-106, and are in relatively good form, having won five of their last seven games. The Celtics have been as unpredictable as ever, but both teams have plenty to play for on Friday. The Spurs are ninth in the Western Conference and tied on record with the No. 8 Grizzlies, while the No. 6 Celtics are currently only out of play-in tournament position thanks to a tiebreaker over the Heat.

I’m wary of a bet on the spread, so I’m instead targeting a bet on the over 221.5. The Spurs have hit the over in back-to-back road games on their current trip, and the last three Celtics games have blown past 221.5.

Prediction: Celtics 118, Spurs 115

Get more betting analysis and predictions at Sportsbook Wire.

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Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

UFC on ESPN 23 predictions: It’s a close one between Dominick Reyes, Jiri Prochazka

Check out our staff members’ picks for the UFC on ESPN 23 main card, featuring Dominick Reyes vs. Jiri Prochazka.

	Reyes vs. Prochazka	Chikadze vs. Swanson	Cutelaba vs. Jacoby	Jotko vs. Strickland	Dvalishvili vs. Stamann	Botelho vs. Carolina
MMA Junkie readers’ consensus picks 2021: 50-34	Prochazka (69%)	Chikadze (59%)	Cutelaba (59%)	Strickland (69%)	Dvalishvili (70%)	Botelho (81%)
John Morgan @MMAjunkieJohn 2021: 57-31	Prochazka	Chikadze	Cutelaba	Strickland	Dvalishvili	Botelho
Ken Hathaway @kenshathaway 2021: 56-32 2018 Champion	Prochazka	Chikadze	Jacoby	Jotko	Dvalishvili	Botelho
Danny Segura @dannyseguratv 2021: 54-34	Prochazka	Chikadze	Cutelaba	Strickland	Dvalishvili	Botelho
Simon Samano @SJSamano 2021: 54-34	Reyes	Chikadze	Cutelaba	Jotko	Dvalishvili	Botelho
George Garcia @MMAjunkieGeorge 2021: 54-34	Reyes	Swanson	Jacoby	Strickland	Stamann	Botelho
Nolan King @mma_kings 2021: 53-35	Reyes	Chikadze	Jacoby	Strickland	Dvalishvili	Botelho
Brian Garcia @thegoze 2021: 53-35 2017 Champion	Prochazka	Swanson	Jacoby	Strickland	Stamann	Botelho
Dan Tom @DanTomMMA 2021: 52-36 2020 Champion	Reyes	Swanson	Jacoby	Strickland	Dvalishvili	Botelho
Matt Erickson @MMAjunkieMatt 2021: 51-37	Reyes	Chikadze	Cutelaba	Strickland	Dvalishvili	Botelho
Mike Bohn @MikeBohnMMA 2021: 49-39 2014 Champion	Prochazka	Chikadze	Cutelaba	Strickland	Dvalishvili	Botelho
Abbey Subhan @kammakaze 2021: 49-39	Reyes	Swanson	Cutelaba	Jotko	Dvalishvili	Botelho
Farah Hannoun @Farah_Hannoun 2021: 48-40	Reyes	Chikadze	Jacoby	Strickland	Dvalishvili	Botelho
BetMGM Betting Favorites	Prochazka -135	Chikadze -175	Cutelaba -120	Strickland -275	Dvalishvili -250	Botelho -275

After an event in Florida, the UFC is back on its home turf with a former light heavyweight title challenger at the top of the bill.

UFC on ESPN 23 takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card airs on ESPN2 and streams on ESPN+.

(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)

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In the main event, former 205-pound title challenger [autotag]Dominick Reyes[/autotag] (12-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) meets [autotag]Jiri Prochazka[/autotag] (27-3-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC). Prochazka is a slight favorite at -135 at BetMGM, but it’s Reyes with a slight 7-5 lead in the picks from our 12 editors, writers, videographers and radio hosts.

In the co-feature, [autotag]Giga Chikadze[/autotag] (12-2 MMA, 5-0 UFC) is a -175 favorite against [autotag]Cub Swanson[/autotag] (27-11 MMA, 12-7 UFC) at featherweight. Chikadze doubled up on Swanson in our picks at 8-4.

Our most contentious fight from a picking standpoint is at light heavyweight between [autotag]Ion Cutelaba[/autotag] (15-6 MMA, 4-5 UFC) and [autotag]Dustin Jacoby[/autotag] (14-5 MMA, 2-2 UFC). Cutelaba is a mild favorite at -120, and the picks are dead even at 6-6.

[autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag] (22-3 MMA, 9-3 UFC) and [autotag]Krzysztof Jotko[/autotag] (22-4 MMA, 9-4 UFC) have similar records going into their middleweight bout. But Strickland is a big favorite at -275, and he’s got a 9-3 lead in the picks.

[autotag]Merab Dvalishvili[/autotag] (12-4 MMA, 5-2 UFC) is a big favorite, too, at -250 in his bantamweight bout against [autotag]Cody Stamann[/autotag] (19-3-1 MMA, 5-2-1 UFC), and only two pickers are taking Stamann in an upset.

And to open the main card, we have our only unanimous pick at 12-0. [autotag]Poliana Botelho[/autotag] (8-3 MMA, 3-2 UFC) pitched a picks shutout in her women’s flyweight bout against [autotag]Luana Carolina[/autotag] (6-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC).

In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Prochazka (69 percent), Chikadze (59 percent), Cutelaba (59 percent), Strickland (69 percent), Dvalishvili (70 percent) and Botelho (81 percent) are the choices.

Check out all the picks above.

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2021 PFL 2 predictions: Can Curtis Millender upset Rory MacDonald?

Check out our staff members’ picks for the 2021 PFL 2 main card, featuring welterweights and light heavyweights.

	MacDonald vs. Millender	Cooper vs. Ponet	Tibau vs. Zeferino	Camozzi vs. Sordi
MMA Junkie readers’ consensus picks 2021: 50-34	MacDonald (84%)	Cooper (91%)	Tibau (56%)	Sordi (66%)
John Morgan @MMAjunkieJohn 2021: 53-31	MacDonald	Cooper	Zeferino	Sordi
George Garcia @MMAjunkieGeorge 2021: 52-32	Millender	Cooper	Zeferino	Camozzi
Ken Hathaway @kenshathaway 2021: 52-32 2018 Champion	MacDonald	Cooper	Zeferino	Sordi
Danny Segura @dannyseguratv 2021: 51-33	MacDonald	Cooper	Tibau	Sordi
Simon Samano @SJSamano 2021: 51-33	MacDonald	Cooper	Tibau	Sordi
Nolan King @mma_kings 2021: 50-34	Millender	Cooper	Zeferino	Sordi
Brian Garcia @thegoze 2021: 50-34 2017 Champion	MacDonald	Cooper	Tibau	Sordi
Matt Erickson @MMAjunkieMatt 2021: 48-36	MacDonald	Cooper	Tibau	Sordi
Dan Tom @DanTomMMA 2021: 48-36 2020 Champion	MacDonald	Cooper	Zeferino	Sordi
Mike Bohn @MikeBohnMMA 2021: 46-38 2014 Champion	MacDonald	Cooper	Tibau	Sordi
Abbey Subhan @kammakaze 2021: 46-38	MacDonald	Cooper	Tibau	Sordi
Farah Hannoun @Farah_Hannoun 2021: 44-40	MacDonald	Cooper	Zeferino	Sordi
BetMGM Betting Favorites	MacDonald -450	Cooper -650	Zeferino -175	Sordi -350

The PFL is back for its second event of the 2021 regular season with welterweights and light heavyweights on the docket.

2021 PFL 2 takes place Thursday at Ocean Casino Resort in Atlantic City, N.J. The main card airs on ESPN2 following prelims on ESPN+.

(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)

In the main event, former Bellator welterweight champion [autotag]Rory MacDonald[/autotag] (21-6-1) makes his PFL debut against [autotag]Curtis Millender[/autotag] (18-6). MacDonald is a heavy favorite at -450 at BetMGM, and he’s got a big 10-2 lead in the picks from our 12 editors, writers, videographers and radio hosts.

In the co-feature, 2019 welterweight season winner [autotag]Ray Cooper III[/autotag] (20-7-1) is back to go after his second $1 million prize. He’s the biggest favorite on the card against [autotag]Jason Ponet[/autotag] (20-12-1) at -650, and he’s our staff members’ only unanimous pick.

Our most contentious fight from a picking standpoint is between former UFC fighters [autotag]Gleison Tibau[/autotag] (34-14) and [autotag]Joao Zeferino[/autotag] (24-9) at light heavyweight. Zeferino is a mild favorite at -175, but the picks are dead even at 6-6.

And to open the main card, [autotag]Chris Camozzi[/autotag] (25-14) meets [autotag]Emiliano Sordi[/autotag] (22-8). Sordi, the 2019 light heavyweight season winner, is a -350 favorite and is a near-unanimous pick at 11-1.

In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, MacDonald (84 percent), Cooper (91 percent), Tibau (56 percent) and Sordi (66 percent) are the choices.

Check out all the picks above.

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Hornets at Celtics: Prediction, point spread, odds, over/under, betting picks

Our prediction and best bet for Wednesday’s Hornets-Celtics game.

The Hornets and Celtics face off again on Wednesday night, and if you’re looking to do some last-minute betting research, you’re in luck! We’ll give you the latest point spread, moneyline odds and over-under number, as well as the information you’ll need to make the smartest bet on BetMGM.

The game tips off at 7:30 p.m. ET and can be seen on NBC Sports Boston and Bally Sports Southeast.

These two teams met just three days ago in Charlotte, where the Hornets delivered a 125-104 beatdown in a game where four Charlotte starts scored 20 points or more. The Celtics, now on a three-game slide, are playing the second half of a back-to-back after losing to the Thunder on Tuesday night.

The lines, courtesy of BetMGM

Point spread: Celtics -7
Money line: Celtics -275 / Hornets +230
Over-under: 214.5

Place your legal, online sports bets in VA, CO, IA, IN, NJ, PA, TN and WV at BetMGM.

Advice and prediction

The Celtics just lost to an Oklahoma City team that had lost 14 consecutive games, but will only be missing Kemba Walker on Wednesday, while the Hornets will still be missing the trio of Gordon Hayward, LaMelo Ball and Malik Monk.

Still, the Hornets’ absences didn’t matter on Sunday, when Charlotte led by 10 after the first quarter and outscored the Celtics 25-16 in the fourth quarter. And now a Celtics team that has gone 1-4 against the spread over their last four is laying seven points after playing just 24 hours ago? This is a great spot for Charlotte. Take the Hornets +7.

Prediction: Celtics 117, Hornets 114

Get more betting analysis and predictions at Sportsbook Wire.

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Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

Thunder at Celtics: Prediction, point spread, odds, over/under, betting picks

Our prediction and best bet for Tuesday’s Thunder-Celtics game.

The Oklahoma City Thunder visit the Boston Celtics on Tuesday night, and if you’re looking to do some last-minute betting research, you’re in luck! We’ll give you the latest point spread, moneyline odds and over-under number, as well as the information you’ll need to make the smartest bet on BetMGM.

The game tips off at 7 p.m. ET and can be seen on NBC Sports Boston and Bally Sports Oklahoma.

The Celtics are holding on to the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference, but have followed up a six-game winning streak with a disappointing stretch of three losses in their last four games, including a blowout loss to the Hornets on Sunday. The Thunder, meanwhile, have not won a single game in the month of April, going 0-14 since a win over the Raptors on March 31st.

The lines, courtesy of BetMGM

Point spread: Celtics -11.5
Money line: Celtics -650 / Thunder +475
Over-under: 214.5

Place your legal, online sports bets in VA, CO, IA, IN, NJ, PA, TN and WV at BetMGM.

Advice and prediction

The Celtics will be without Jayson Tatum, Kemba Walker and Robert Williams III on Tuesday, while the Thunder are missing Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Gabriel Deck, Josh Hall and Mike Muscala.

Despite Tatum’s absence, the Celtics are still rightfully overwhelming favorites against the Thunder, who have gone just 3-11 against the spread during their current losing streak. In the first meeting between these two teams, the Celtics won by 17. Given the Thunder’s issues, I think we see another comfortable cover on Tuesday. Take the Celtics -11.5.

Prediction: Celtics 114, Thunder 99

Get more betting analysis and predictions at Sportsbook Wire.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.