Tag: timely

Falcons lose due to multiple Kirk Cousins turnovers, keeping Saints’ hopes alive

The Falcons lost to the Chargers on Sunday due to multiple Kirk Cousins turnovers, keeping the Saints’ playoff hopes alive:

Don’t look now, but there might be a quarterback change on the horizon for the Atlanta Falcons. Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins threw the game away in their Sunday loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, who won 17-13, which teed up a fascinating scenario for the New Orleans Saints as they prepare for kickoff with the Los Angeles Rams. How did we get here?

Cousins played one of the worst games of his pro career, throwing four interceptions without a touchdown pass. One of those interceptions was credited to former Saints safety Marcus Maye, who arrived in Los Angeles just this week after being waived by the Miami Dolphins. Talk about making the most of your opportunity.

As for the implications on the NFC South? That remains to be seen, but for now the Saints are still in this. The Saints go into their game with the LA Rams at 4-7, trailing the Falcons (now at 6-6) and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5-6), who visit the upstart Carolina Panthers (3-8) this afternoon.

Everything depends on the Saints sending the Rams away from New Orleans with a loss, but at this point the division — and the coveted playoff berth — are within reach for Darren Rizzi’s team.

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Dalton Schultz injury update: Texans TE returns, scores TD vs. Jaguars

Houston Texans tight end Dalton Schultz left during the third quarter of Week 13’s game with a shoulder injury.

(This story was updated to add new information.)

The Houston Texans are looking to secure their seventh consecutive road win over the Jacksonville Jaguars entering the fourth quarter, but the offense could be missing a signature player.

Tight end Dalton Schultz left during the third quarter with a shoulder injury and could be out for the rest of the game, depending on further evaluation. The Texans need a win to secure a 4-1 record in conference play before next week’s bye.

Here’s the latest on the Texans’ veteran tight end.

Dalton Schultz injury update

During the third quarter, Schultz suffered a shoulder injury when he hurdled a defender trying to pick up a first down. He remained down on the ground for a moment and was slow to get up before heading to the sidelines.

The Texans listed the tight end as questionable to return, though he managed to be healthy enough to come back in for the fourth quarter. He hauled in a 22-yard touchdown pass from C.J. Stroud for his first scoring opportunity of the regular season.

Losing him for an extensive period of time would have been a concern because the Texans are short of tight ends.

Following the scoring drive, Schultz has caught five passes for 61 yards.

Texans TE depth chart

If Schultz were to miss the rest of the game, Houston would be limited to rookie Cade Stover and former Alabama star Irv Smith Jr. Stover has mostly seen action as the team’s H-back or in 12-personnel this season after being drafted out of Ohio State last April.

Report: Calvin Austin III ruled OUT in Week 13 against Bengals

WR Calvin Austin III has been ruled out of the Steelers Week 13 contest against the Cincinnati Bengals after multiple big hits.

The Pittsburgh Steelers’ injury woes continue to mount. WR Calvin Austin III, who has been instrumental in the Black and Gold’s deep passing attack, has been ruled out of Week 13’s matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals with a head injury.

To kick off the Steelers’ first drive of the game, the speedy wideout took a huge hit from Cincinnati Bengals LB Akeem Davis-Gaither, resulting in a pass interference penalty. Austin, who is listed at 5’9″ and under 170 lbs, is not a big receiver by any means and needed time on the sideline to recover from the hit.

However, Bengals CB Cam Taylor-Britt once again delivered a hard hit on Austin following a routine catch, resulting in the Steelers receiver’s injury.

While Austin’s injury couldn’t have come at a worse time for the wideout, who was in the midst of back-to-back impressive performances, the Pittsburgh Steelers offense continued to steamroll over the Cincinnati Bengals defense, with Russell Wilson carving up the opposing secondary in Week 13.

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Texas A&M unsurprisingly drops out of the AP Top 25 after falling to Texas

Here are the lastest AP Top 25 rankings after Texas A&M’s 17-7 loss to the Texas Longhorns

Texas A&M (8-4, 5-3 SEC) ended the 2024 season with a disappointing loss to the Texas Longhorns (11-1, 7-1 SEC), who are now headed to the SEC Championship game amid the program’s first season in the conference.

Credit to Texas for keeping A&M’s offense out of the end zone, as the only touchdown came off of cornerback Will Lee’s pick-six, while Aggies OC Collin Klein came up short on several head-scratching play calls that led to two fourth-down stops in the red zone.

Head coach Mike Elko’s season will end at 8-4, which was predicted by many of us before the season began. However, the injury to star running back Le’Veon Moss completely changed the Aggies’ offensive gameplan, forcing QB Marcel Reed to drop back more than his lack of passing development could handle.

Texas A&M will now play in a meaningless bowl game with a chance to earn nine wins on the year. At the same time, the Longhorns are headed to the SEC Championship game amid their first season in the conference, so credit to head coach Steve Sarkisian and his team for accomplishing something the Aggies couldn’t in 12 seasons.

With all the conference games set, here are the latest AP Top 25 rankings, as Texas A&M has officially dropped out of the rankings:

AP Top 25 Rankings after Week 14:

  1. Oregon (12-0)
  2. Texas (11-1)
  3. Penn State (11-1)
  4. Notre Dame (11-1)
  5. Georgia (10-2)
  6. Tennessee (10-2)
  7. Ohio State (10-2)
  8. SMU (11-1)
  9. Indiana (11-1)
  10. Boise State (11-1)
  11. Alabama (9-3)
  12. Arizona State (10-2)
  13. South Carolina (9-3)
  14. Miami (FL) (10-2)
  15. Ole Miss (9-3)
  16. Iowa State (10-2)
  17. BYU (10-2)
  18. Clemson (9-3)
  19. UNLV (10-2)
  20. Colorado (9-3)
  21. Illinois (9-3)
  22. Missouri (9-3)
  23. Syracuse (9-3)
  24. Army (10-1)
  25. Memphis (10-2)

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Cameron on X: @CameronOhnysty.

Watch: Texans RB Joe Mixon continues Pro Bowl season with TD vs. Jaguars

Houston Texans running back Joe Mixon is unstoppable against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday at EverBank Stadium.

Don’t look now, but the Houston Texans have scored a second-half offensive touchdown.

While not a notable achievement for many, Joe Mixon’s 7-yard touchdown run against the Jacksonville Jaguars was just the second touchdown in the second half since Week 6 for Houston’s offense.

Houston’s drive spanned five plays and 70 yards. Mixon ran on back-to-back plays to finish the possession in the end zone. He gained 37 yards on the two carries. Before the drive, Mixon had nine carries for 22 yards.

Mixon’s score is his 11th touchdown of the season, marking a career-best since his Pro Bowl season in 2021 with the Cincinnati Bengals.

Houston opened the drive with three consecutive passes, picking up a pair of double-digit gains from Nico Collins and Dalton Schultz.

Both of the pass catchers were shaken up after their receptions.

With a win, the Texans will improve to 4-1 in the AFC South enter next week’s bye.

Chargers highlight: Tarheeb Still’s second interception gives Los Angeles the lead

Tarheeb Still is on a tear.

Tarheeb Still is on a tear.

After intercepting Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins in the second quarter to give the Chargers some much-needed momentum, Still mostly watched Atlanta throw it to the other side of the field or run the ball.

That was a good strategy for the Falcons, who have continued to move the ball effectively against Jesse Minter’s defense. Atlanta put together another long drive late in the third quarter, driving with a 10-9 lead while converting a fourth down to take the ball over midfield.

The Chargers, meanwhile, had asked Ladd McConkey to be the entire offense. A normally dormant Falcons pass rush has sacked Justin Herbert four times, making things hard for LA all day.

Los Angeles needed a spark.

Still provided it when the Falcons went for a second fourth down of the drive, dropping back to pass on 4th-and-5 from the Chargers’ 40-yard line. Still and safety Marcus Maye confused Cousins on the coverage, giving the rookie a prime opportunity to jump a curl route and nearly walk into the end zone from 61 yards away.

The Chargers went for two after that. Justin Herbert fired a strike over the middle to Joshua Palmer, making it 17-10 Chargers with 1:39 left in the third quarter.

Mike Tomlin almost makes same mistake as recently fired Matt Eberflus

Mike Tomlin’s questionable timeout management in Week 13 eerily mirrored the mistake that cost Matt Eberflus his job in Chicago.

Fans of the Pittsburgh Steelers were on a seemingly never-ending emotional rollercoaster in the first half of the team’s Week 13 contest against the Cincinnati Bengals. After an awful missed call by the officials gifted Cincinnati a pick-six, fans were able to witness an impressive Steelers’ offensive resurgence, which put Pittsburgh up 27-21 at halftime.

However, a similar mistake that cost HC Matt Eberflus his job in Chicago almost repeated itself with poor time management to end the first half by none other than HC Mike Tomlin.

QB Russell Wilson led an impressive drive with less than two minutes in the first half, but poor usage of timeouts not only prevented the offense from scoring a TD, Tomlin’s last-second timeout call had fans thinking they’d see shades of Eberflus.

Some could argue that Tomlin’s poor time management skills cost the Pittsburgh Steelers their Week 12 matchup against the Cleveland Browns. However, the Black and Gold were fortunate to walk away with a Chris Boswell field goal to end the first half in Week 13.

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Texas A&M drops out of the newest US LBM Coaches Poll after losing to Texas

Here is the latest US LBM Coaches Poll after Texas A&M’s 17-7 loss to the Texas Longhorns on Saturday night

Texas A&M (8-4, 5-3 SEC) ended the 2024 season with a disappointing loss to the Texas Longhorns (11-1, 7-1 SEC), who are now headed to the SEC Championship game amid the program’s first season in the conference.

Credit to Texas for keeping A&M’s offense out of the end zone, as the only touchdown came off of cornerback Will Lee’s pick-six, while Aggies OC Collin Klein came up short on several head-scratching play calls that led to two fourth-down stops in the red zone.

Head coach Mike Elko’s season will end at 8-4, which was predicted by many of us before the season began. However, the injury to star running back Le’Veon Moss completely changed the Aggies’ offensive gameplan, forcing QB Marcel Reed to drop back more than his lack of passing development could handle.

With a somewhat meaningless bowl game ahead, Elko enters the week focused on signing and flipping a long list of 2025 prospects during early signing day on Dec. 4.

Every conference championship game is set around the rest of the country, including Texas vs. Georgia in the SEC Title game and Iowa State vs. Arizona State in the Big 12 Championship game.

After the loss, the Aggies have fallen out of the newest US LBM Coaches Poll Top 25. Here is the rest of the Top 25:

Rank Team Record Points
1 Oregon Ducks 12-0 1,325 (53)
2 Texas Longhorns 11-1 1,272
3 Penn State Nittany Lions 11-1 1,192
4 Notre Dame Fighting Irish 11-1 1,165
5 Georgia Bulldogs 10-2 1,104
6 Tennessee Volunteers 10-2 1,025
7 SMU Mustangs 11-1 977
8 Ohio State Buckeyes 10-2 976
9 Indiana Hoosiers 11-1 895
10 Boise State Broncos 11-1 840
11 Alabama Crimson Tide 9-3 733
12 South Carolina Gamecocks 9-3 700
13 Arizona State Sun Devils 10-2 665
14 Miami Hurricanes 10-2 646
15 Ole Miss Rebels 9-3 638
16 Iowa State Cyclones 10-2 565
17 Clemson Tigers 9-3 457
18 BYU Cougars 10-2 419
19 UNLV Rebels 10-2 255
20 Missouri Tigers 9-3 229
21 Illinois Fighting Illini 9-3 225
22 Colorado Buffaloes 9-3 215
23 Army Black Knights 10-1 196
24 Memphis Tigers 10-2 187
25 Syracuse Orange 9-3 108

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Cameron on X: @CameronOhnysty.

Jackson Arnold not ready to make decision on future at Oklahoma

Jackson Arnold still sees a future at Oklahoma.

Jackson Arnold’s first swim through a college football season as a starter wasn’t set up for success. Down his top four, then top five, then top six wide receivers throughout the 2024 season didn’t help an inexperienced quarterback playing behind an inconsistent offensive line that battled injuries of their own all season long.

Not a recipe for growth and development for a young quarterback. And yet Arnold did show growth over the second half of the season. It wasn’t perfect or even clean, as Arnold fumbled the ball in the late stages of the loss to Missouri. However, it was improved from the player who was benched for turning the ball over three times in the first half against Tennessee.

So, as many ponder Oklahoma’s future on the offensive side of the ball, Arnold isn’t ready to make any decisions yet. He’s simply going to get back to work.

“I’m going to take a break this week,” Arnold said postgame via The Oklahoman, “and just chill out and stay in the weight room, watch film over this past year and just improve on getting myself better.”

As Oklahoma begins preparation for their bowl destination and attempts to stay ready, Arnold will let the chips fall where they may. But as things stand right now, he foresees a scenario where he’s at the University of Oklahoma.

“Only God knows what’ll happen in the future,” Arnold said. “And I’m just, this next week, just meet the OC. See who we hire and take it day by day. But there’s nothing making me want to leave or nothing making me waver from being here.”

As Brent Venables indicated in his postgame press conference, the Sooners will make an offensive coordinator hire in short order. It’s just a matter of time at this point. And from there, we’ll find out the future of Oklahoma’s starting quarterback.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow John on X @john9williams.

Georgia DB entering transfer portal ahead of SEC championship

Georgia defensive back to enter transfer portal, who has started several games this year, days before SEC championship vs. Texas

Georgia Bulldogs redshirt sophomore defensive back Julian Humphrey intends to enter the transfer portal. Humphrey announced his intentions to enter the portal via social media. The transfer portal officially opens on Dec. 9.

Humphrey announced his plans just six days before Georgia plays against Texas in the 2024 SEC championship game.

Humphrey has played and started in several games for Georgia this season. In recent week, Daniel Harris has taken over as the primary cornerback alongside Daylen Everette, signaling a shift in Georgia’s lineup. It now appears that Humphrey has made a decision about his future. Humphrey has 10 tackles and four pass break ups in 10 games this season.

After briefly entering the transfer portal following last season and announcing his departure after the Orange Bowl, Humphrey ultimately chose to return to Georgia. However, based on the timing it now seems like he will transfer to another program. It is unclear if Humphrey will continue practicing with the team.

A member of Georgia’s 2022 recruiting class, Humphrey was a highly regarded four-star prospect and ranked among the top 100 players in the nation. Originally from Texas, he initially committed to Florida during his recruitment but later decommitted and pledged to the Bulldogs. During his time in Athens, he contributed as both a starting and reserve defensive back.

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Humphrey’s decision to enter the transfer portal is a blow to UGA’s outside cornerback depth. The Bulldogs would likely have to turn to Ellis Robinson