Tag: Schedule

Week 11 NFL broadcast maps: Will your local station carry Saints-Browns?

Week 11 NFL broadcast maps: Will your local station carry New Orleans Saints vs. Cleveland Browns?

This week’s New Orleans Saints game isn’t exactly drawing a big crowd. Between the Saints’ 3-7 record and the visiting Cleveland Browns at 2-7, only local FOX affiliate stations in each team’s home market are preparing to broadcast the matchup.

Between bad records, an interim head coach leading the Saints, and a backup quarterback starting for the Browns, the TV executives would rather shine a brighter light on other games in the early window.

Still, Saints fans through Louisiana, most of Mississippi, and coastal Alabama and Florida will be able to cheer on their team. So will Browns faithful watching from home in Ohio and a few surrounding areas.

Kickoff is set for Noon CT/1 p.m. ET on Sunday, Nov. 17. Check the map from 506 Sports to see if you’re covered:

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A legendary Saints quarterback reached out to Darren Rizzi after Falcons win

A legendary Saints QB congratulated Darren Rizzi on beating the Falcons, but he initially thought it was Archie Manning’s famous grandson, not ‘the big dog’ himself:

A legendary former New Orleans Saints quarterback congratulated Darren Rizzi on beating the Falcons, but he initially thought it was Archie Manning’s famous grandson, not Archie himself, texting him on Monday. Rizzi shared the story and his family’s surprising connection with the Mannings when reflecting on his first career win as an NFL head coach.

Plenty of well-wishers reached out after Rizzi ended the Saints’ seven-game losing streak, but he says the message he received from the elder Manning stands out most.

“I got a lot, my favorite one so far is from Archie Manning,” Rizzi grinned. “Archie reached out. And little side story to that, my son Christian who is at the University of Texas, he and Arch are good friends. When I glanced at my phone I thought it was Arch. And then I realized, ‘Oh no, this is from the big dog, this is Archie.’ And so we had a nice correspondence. I really, really appreciated that, that was pretty cool. He was the one who started it all, right?”

Christian Rizzi is a deep snapper for the Longhorns, which isn’t much of a surprise given his father’s history coaching special teams. But their family has crossed paths with the Mannings before, and at times competed in high school football games.

“His grandsons and my sons played against each other, so that was pretty cool,” Rizzi continued.  “I’ve talked to Archie before here at practice and everything. That was pretty nice, a pretty neat text to get.”

It sounds like Manning will be watching when Rizzi leads the Saints into their next game with the Cleveland Browns. Getting out of a 3-7 skid is no small task, but that’s exactly what Rizzi must do to salvage this season. Who knows? Maybe the Saints will be in position to draft the younger Manning in a year or two once he turns pro.

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Four Big Ten teams, Wisconsin’s upcoming opponent lead Week 11 College Football Playoff rankings

Four Big Ten teams, Wisconsin’s upcoming opponent lead Week 11 College Football Playoff rankings

Four Big Ten teams land in the top five of the latest College Football Playoff rankings after Week 11 of the 2024 season.

The Oregon Ducks (10-0, 7-0 Big Ten) lead the way at No. 1, followed by Ohio State (8-1, 5-1 Big Ten) at No. 2, Penn State (8-1, 5-1 Big Ten) at No. 4 and Indiana (10-0, 7-0 Big Ten) at No. 5.

The Ducks, who are currently favored to capture the Big Ten title, will grab the No. 1 seed in the projected bracket based on those rankings. Ohio State is down at No. 5 as the top at-large team, while Penn State and Indiana are at No. 6 and No. 7, respectively.

The updated 12-team bracket gives first-round byes to the four highest-ranked conference champions. The No. 5 seed plays No. 12, No. 6 plays No. 11, and so on — all first-round games on the campus of the higher-ranked team.

Once the field is cut to eight teams, the participants populate top bowl matchups including the Rose Bowl, Sugar Bowl and Cotton Bowl.

Wisconsin is obviously far from contention with a 5-4 record through nine games. The Badgers have lost to several projected playoff participants — No. 10 Alabama and No. 4 Penn State. Most significantly, the team hosts No. 1 Oregon at Camp Randall Stadium on Saturday.

The Badgers will be looking for their first win over an AP (and CFP) No. 1-ranked team since they defeated No. 1 Ohio State in 2010. A win would shake-up the national landscape with little time remaining before the conclusion of the regular season.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion.

Drew Brees to join ESPN’s Monday Night Countdown

Drew Brees will be a part of ESPN’s Monday Night Countdown for the upcoming matchup between the Miami Dolphins and the Los Angeles Rams:

Drew Brees will be a part of ESPN’s Monday Night Countdown for the upcoming matchup between the Miami Dolphins and the Los Angeles Rams, as was originally reported by Andrew Marchand via SubStack.

“ESPN wanted Brees before he ended up on NBC,” Marchand wrote. “Right now, Brees to ESPN full-time is not a thing, but, if he does well, I could see maybe developing into something.”

This could — or could not — indicate a return to broadcasting for Brees. It has been a long time since we have seen him in this capacity with his last major appearance occurring when he called the Wild Card game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Las Vegas Raiders in 2022.

He did that game for NBC with Mike Tirico up in the booth. The former Saints quarterback didn’t exactly perform up to standard and was met with plenty of public criticism for his performance, which hardly compared to what he was able to do on the football field.

That’s not exactly an anomaly, though, considering other highly noted players turned broadcasters like the legendary Tom Brady initially struggled when making the transition.

Whether or not Brees gets a handle here and pursues this career in full capacity will be something to watch.

The Dolphins and the Rams are set to kick off at 8:15 p.m. ET on Monday evening in SoFi Stadium.

Wisconsin basketball rockets up both KenPom and ESPN BPI after win over Appalachian State

Wisconsin basketball rockets up both KenPom and ESPN BPI after win over Appalachian State

Wisconsin basketball improved to 3-0 on the 2024-25 season with a blowout win over Appalachian State on Sunday.

The win was powered by transfer wing John Tonje, a common sentence in the season’s early stages. He finished with 17 points on 8-of-14 shooting, plus seven rebounds, five assists and two steals. Senior center Steven Crowl also had his best outing of the young season, adding 17 points on 7-of-12 shooting.

Related: Big Ten basketball power rankings after first week of 2024-25 season: Wisconsin’s downfall was greatly exaggerated

Wisconsin is off to a strong start. Though the opponents are far from the class of the sport, the Badgers are taking clear steps forward with every contest. That improvement, mixed with decisive winning, should be enough to create optimism surrounding the team’s rest-of-season outlook.

For more on that outlook, here is where Greg Gard’s group stands in KenPom and ESPN’s Basketball Power Index after the win over Appalachian State:

  • KenPom: No. 40 overall (up nine spots) — No. 37 offense, No. 55 defense
  • ESPN BPI: No. 29 overall (up 10 spots) — 13.1 rating, 18.8 – 11.2 projected record, 6.7% chance to win Big Ten Conference

Those trend lines are just from the decisive victory over Appalachian State. The movement has the team now ranked No. 5 in the Big Ten by BPI and No. 10 by KenPom.

The latter may be a bit more reserved on the Badgers’ quality after only three games. Regardless, it’s worthwhile noting that our updated Big Ten basketball power rankings aren’t the only measure that is upgrading Wisconsin after the first week of the season.

The Badgers are back on the Kohl Center court for a premier matchup against No. 10 Arizona on Friday. A win would only continue the team’s current upward trajectory.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion.

Where Wisconsin football stands in ESPN SP+ entering big game vs. No. 1 Oregon

Where Wisconsin football stands in ESPN SP+ entering big game vs. No. 1 Oregon

Wisconsin will enter Saturday’s matchup against the No. 1-ranked Oregon Ducks as sizable underdogs.

Aside from the Las Vegas spread, every metric system projects a big gap between the two teams — and understandably so. Oregon is 10-0 on the season, 7-0 in Big Ten play and has won each of its last four games by at least 21 points. Wisconsin, meanwhile, is 5-4 on the season and recently allowed 329 rushing yards in a blowout loss to Iowa.

Related: Updated game-by-game predictions for Wisconsin football entering big game vs. No. 1 Oregon

ESPN SP+ is one of those metrics. Wisconsin exits its bye week ranked No. 44 overall (No. 86 offense, No. 22 defense) with an overall rating of 5.9. Oregon is up at No. 3 overall (No. 2 offense, No. 10 defense) with a rating of 27.4.

Ignoring factors like home-field advantage, SP+ sees the Ducks as 21.5 points better than the Badgers at this stage of the season.

Wisconsin enters the matchup after consecutive the losses, including the mentioned blowout at Iowa. The team sits one win short of bowl eligibility. It could clinch a postseason berth and then some with an upset win over the Ducks.

The matchup is Wisconsin’s first home game against a No. 1-ranked team in the AP Poll since it famously defeated then-No. 1 Ohio State in 2010. Luke Fickell and company will look to repeat that well-known performance.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion.

Denver Broncos 2024 Schedule

The Broncos will have seven games remaining on their schedule after today’s clash with the Chiefs.

The Denver Broncos schedule continues today with a road game against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 10 of the 2024 NFL season.

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 11:00 AM Tickets
11 11/17 FOX vs. Atlanta Falcons 2:05 PM Tickets
12 11/24 CBS @ Las Vegas Raiders 2:05 PM Tickets
13 12/2 ESPN vs. Cleveland Browns 6:15 PM Tickets
14 12/8 BYE
15 12/15 CBS vs. Indianapolis Colts 2:25 PM Tickets
16 12/22 FOX @ Los Angeles Chargers 2:05 PM Tickets
17 12/28 or 12/29 TBD @ Cincinnati Bengals TBD 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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Wisconsin future opponent inexplicably ends Rutgers four-game losing streak

Brutal loss for PJ Fleck on Saturday

There’s a reason that college football is among the toughest things to accurately predict, let alone just in sports.

A primary example is seen in Minnesota’s 26-19 loss to Rutgers on Saturday.

Related: Bye Week Report Card: Grading Wisconsin’s offense and Grading Wisconsin’s defense

Every trend line pointed toward a Golden Gopher victory. The team had won four straight games after starting the season 2-3, including a narrow triumph over USC, a blowout over Maryland and a big road win over Illinois. The team appeared to have elevated itself into the top third of the Big Ten power rankings.

Rutgers, meanwhile, entered Saturday losers of four straight. The team entered a nosedive after a 4-0 start. The Minnesota game was thought to eventually be yet another blemish on a poor final record.

But the Scarlet Knights won.

QB Athan Kaliakmanis led the way with 240 passing yards and three touchdowns in a rematch against his former program. Rutgers held Minnesota to only 35 total yards on 1.8 yards per carry. In all, the Scarlet Knights out-gained the Gophers 354-297. It was a somewhat decisive victory for Rutgers standards.

The result is notable for the Wisconsin Badgers as it halts Minnesota’s momentum entering the final weeks of the season. The Gophers fall to 6-4 (4-3 Big Ten) with the loss, dropping from their previous position of long shot Big Ten contention. The team now enters a bye week before hosting No. 6 Penn State. Now, there’s a real chance the team is riding a two-game losing streak when it travels to Madison to close the regular season.

Wisconsin and Minnesota will meet in that annual battle for Paul Bunyan’s Axe on Black Friday. Depending on the next few weeks, the contest could be pivotal for Wisconsin’s bowl hopes.

Any Minnesota loss is somewhat notable for Wisconsin fans. This one, however, could have significant impact on the rest-of-season outlook.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion.

Wisconsin football schedule: Are the Badgers playing today? 

Is Wisconsin playing today? Here’s a look at the schedule and the games to come. 

Will the Wisconsin Badgers be on the field today in Week 12 of the 2024 college football season?

Following a demoralizing 42-10 loss to Iowa in Week 11, the Badgers are on a bye week and will return to the field on Nov. 12.

That looming matchup is against the Oregon Ducks — the current No. 1-ranked team in both the AP Poll and College Football Playoff rankings. Oregon hosts Maryland on Saturday before making the trip to Madison, Wisconsin for the primetime Week 12 showdown.

Wisconsin will enter the matchup at 5-4 overall and 3-3 in Big Ten play. A win wouldn’t just clinch bowl eligibility for the 23rd consecutive season, it would be the program’s first win over an AP No. 1 team since 2010.

Here’s a look at what Wisconsin has left before the 2024 regular season concludes.

Wisconsin 2024 football schedule

  • Aug. 30: vs. Western Michigan (W, 28-14)
  • Sept. 7: vs. South Dakota (W, 27-13)
  • Sept. 14: vs. Alabama (L, 42-10)
  • Bye Week
  • Sept. 28: at USC (L, 38-21)
  • Oct. 5: vs. Purdue (W, 52-6)
  • Oct. 12: at Rutgers (W, 42-7)
  • Oct. 19: at Northwestern (W, 23-3)
  • Oct. 26: vs. Penn State (L, 28-13)
  • Nov. 2 at Iowa (L, 42-10)
  • Bye Week
  • Nov. 16 vs. Oregon
  • Nov. 23 at Nebraska
  • Nov. 30 vs. Minnesota
  • Record: 5-4 (3-3 Big Ten)

Injured reserve is ‘on the table’ for Saints star wide receiver

Injured reserve is ‘on the table’ for New Orleans Saints star Chris Olave. Four concussions in just three years is a lot for the wide receiver to consider:

Chris Olave won’t be active when the New Orleans Saints kick off with the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, and there’s at least a possibility the star wide receiver won’t play another down this season. Olave suffered the fourth concussion of his brief NFL career last week, which can have long-lasting impacts on his health and wellbeing.

All that’s certain is that Olave has already been ruled out for Sunday’s game. Beyond that, who can say?

“Everything’s on the table,” interim head coach Darren Rizzi said Friday, when injured reserve came up as a possibility for Olave. That determination hasn’t been made yet and Olave is still meeting with concussion specialists and team doctors before making a decision.

A stint on injured reserve would last at least the next four weeks, sidelining Olave for three home games with the Falcons, Cleveland Browns, and Los Angeles Rams as well as the bye in Week 12. But if he’s still feeling symptoms and struggling with this brain injury, the better move could be to end his season altogether. We’ve reached a point where his career in pro football should be considered seriously. Stay tuned for further updates.

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