Tag: Week 8

Jets injury report: Jabari Zuniga activated, Jamison Crowder misses practice

The Jets activated DE Jabari Zuniga and designated LB Patrick Onwuasor to return from injured reserve.

The Jets got a bit healthier this week.

New York made several roster moves ahead of its Week 8 matchup with the Chiefs, including bringing back a few injured players. New York activated rookie defensive end Jabari Zuniga, designated linebacker Patrick Onwuasor to return to practice and brought receiver Lawrence Cage back to the practice squad. Zuniga and Onwuasor haven’t played this season after sustaining injuries in training camp and being placed on injured reserve on Sept. 7.

Zuniga could make his Jets debut as early as this week against the Chiefs. The third-round rookie would be a welcome addition to the Jets defensive front-seven after Gang Green lost lineman Kyle Phillips to an ankle injury. Phillips was placed on season-ending injured reserve Wednesday.

The Jets have 21 days to activate Onwuasor after designating him to return following a knee injury he suffered in training camp. The inside linebacker would likely backup Neville Hewitt or Avery Williamson after signing with the Jets this offseason. Onwuasor tallied 48 tackles, five tackles for a loss, three sacks and six quarterback hits for the Ravens in 2019.

Cager returns to the practice squad after suffering a knee injury in Week 4 against the Broncos. He hasn’t played since but could be called up again if the Jets need more receiver help in the coming weeks. Cager, a 2020 undrafted free agent, caught two passes for 35 yards in his first NFL start after being called up from the practice squad early this season.

The Jets released quarterback David Fales from the practice squad to make room for Cager. Mike White will remain on the practice squad as the Jets third quarterback behind Sam Darnold and Joe Flacco.

As for the injury report at practice, WR Jamison Crowder (groin) didn’t participate but could Thursday. S Bradley McDougald (shoulder) is being evaluated and is not expected to practice this week. WR Breshad Perriman is still in concussion protocol. K Sam Ficken (groin) could return to practice this week.

Darnold (shoulder) was limited for precautionary measures.

Cowboys expect Martin, Awuzie back vs Eagles who should have Reagor

The Cowboys are getting some of their walking wounded back to practice ahead of the Eagles matchup.

The Dallas Cowboys still have a game to play, despite so many eyes no focusing on the exodus from the roster. With the trade of defensive end Everson Griffen and the pending departures of DT Dontari Poe and CB Daryl Worley, the Cowboys are down several players whom they planned to have fighting with them in 2020. While the season has been a disappointment exemplified by a 2-5 record, there are still games left to play and Dallas could use the return of several injured players.

Fortunately, at least for those eligible to return in 2020, it appears the time is coming. In his Wednesday press conference, head coach Mike McCarthy indicated the club is set to get All-Pro Zack Martin back for Sunday night’s battle with the first-place Philadelphia Eagles (2-4-1). Also due back, corner Chidobe Awuzie.

Awuzie’s return will be helpful in trying to defend the Eagles’ WR corps. They lost DeSean Jackson just a half into his return last week, but will be getting exciting TCU rookie Jalen Reagor back for the contest.

Martin was knocked out of Week 6’s loss against the Arizona Cardinals with a concussion and missed Week 7 against Washington. Awuzie has not played since Week 2, as a hamstring injury knocked him out. He’ll return to provide the Cowboys their full compliment of a top-four cornerback rotation finally. Worley’s snap counts increased with Awuzie’s departure which coincided with Anthony Brown missing time with a rib injury.

Now both are back to join rookie Trevon Diggs and young veteran Jourdan Lewis. The secondary play has been one of the biggest liabilities for the club all season. Awuzie has the team’s only interception in 2020.

As for Martin, he’ll return to a patchwork offensive line effort. With Tyron Smith and La’el Collins on the shelf for the year, Martin will play with Brandon Knight at left tackle, Tyler Biadasz at center and Terence Steele at right tackle. Connor Williams at left guard is the only intended starter along with Martin.

Joe Looney, who has been out with knee injury, and Sean Lee (core surgery) are working their way back into work but are longer shots to play against the Eagles.

Eagles Practice Report

 

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3 takeaways from Chargers’ 39-29 victory over Jaguars

Chargers Wire’s Gavino Borquez lays out what stood out in the team’s victory over the Jaguars.

The Chargers snapped their losing streak Sunday, defeating the Jaguars by the score of 39-29.

The game saw a roller coaster of events, just like every other game Los Angeles has played, but this time the Bolts actually prevailed.

Before moving on to previewing next weekend’s matchup against the Broncos, let’s take a look at my three takeaways from the Chargers’ victory over Jacksonville.

A star in the making

In quarterback Justin Herbert’s first four starts, he put the nation on notice with his slew of strong performances against some stiff competition. In Sunday’s contest, the rookie made it evident that the Chargers really might have a future All-Pro quarterback on their hands.

Once again, Herbert put the team on his back, guiding the offense to 16 points in the first half. Once the Chargers lost their double-digit lead soon. after, he led them to 23 additional points, which was ultimately enough to close out the contest.

Herbert finished 27-of-43 passing for 347 yards and three touchdowns, as he picked up his first professional win. Herbert also had a team-high 66 rushing yards and a score on nine carries.

It’s clear that Herbert is way ahead of the curve. The 22-year old has been carved up defenses, both with his big arm and with his legs. But he’s sharpened his decision-making and instincts, especially under pressure, which was one of his knocks coming out of college.

The coaches and players have full trust in the young signal-caller and he is only scratching the surface.

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Vegas Watch: Lions open Week 8 as 2 1/2-point underdogs to the Colts

Examining the betting odds, vis BetMGM, of the Detroit Lions Week 8 game with the Indianapolis Colts.

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For the second week in a row,  the Detroit Lions (3-3) open up the week as 2 1/2 point underdogs, this time to the Indianapolis Colts (4-2), according to BetMGM. With a winning record and coming off a bye week, it’s no surprise the Colts get the early edge in this matchup.

The over/under is quite a bit lower than previous weeks, checking in at just 50.5 points combined. Although, when examing how both defenses have played recently, it’s probably a good starting point. On average, the Colts top-level defense is only giving up 19.2-points a game. And since returning from their bye week, the Lions have also, on average, only allowed 19 points per game in their previous two.

BetMGM has a lot of various bet lines to wager on in this game, but here’s a look at the basic concepts most would be interested in, including the Moneyline, points spread, and over/under.

Moneyline

Lions +140
Colts -167

Spread

Lions +2.5 -121
Colts -2.5 +100

Over/Under

Total points scored Over Under
50.5 -110 -110

Lions total points scored

Lions total points Over Under
15.5 -556 +375
18.5 -304 +225
21.5 -167 +130
24.5 100 -129
27.5 +155 -200
30.5 +240 -334
33.5 +360 -527

There will also a considerable amount of player prop bets added throughout the week, including touchdowns scorers, the first player to score, quarterback passing props (yards, touchdowns, interceptions, attempts, completions, longest completion), running back props (rushing yards, attempts, rushing + receiving yards), and receiver props (receiving yards, receptions, longest reception).

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

NFL Power Rankings Week 8: Lions rise up the rankings continues

Taking a look at where the Detroit Lions sit among the collection of Week 8 national power rankings.

Don’t look now, but the Detroit Lions have won three of their last four games and pulled to .500 on the season entering Week 8.

They needed some help to get an opportunity at the end of the game, but when Matthew Stafford gets the ball, down six, with a 1:04 left on the clock, Lions fans know good things can happen. Indeed, Stafford produced another clutch performance leading the Lions to a 23-22 victory over the Falcons.

Let’s take a closer look at what the national analysts thought of the Lions’ victory and what the experts are saying this week.

Touchdown Wire: 22 (Previous: 26)

“The Lions are a tough team to figure out, but if you look at the trendlines right now, things are moving in the right direction. After some tough losses to start the season the Lions have won three of their last four and face some winnable games coming up, including matchups with Washington, Minnesota and Carolina. Perhaps it is time to move Matt Patricia off the hot seat for a few weeks.” — Mark Schofield

USA Today: 18 (Previous 17)

“Rookie RB D’Andre Swift has four TDs over past three games. Just imagine if Detroit kept him on field more than 50% of the snaps just once.” — Nate Davis

NFL: 21 (Previous: 22)

“What a relief it must have been for the Lions to be on the winning end of a dramatic finish for once. Todd Gurley’s inability to stop his momentum gave the Lions life, and Matthew Stafford potentially saved Detroit’s season with a 75-yard touchdown drive that spanned 64 seconds. That the Lions did it without the aid of a timeout made their comeback all the more unlikely. Stafford’s winning touchdown pass was completed to T.J. Hockenson, who now has three scores in his last three games and is starting to tap into the promise that made him a first-round pick a year ago. The Lions get the Colts at home before the schedule lightens up. This is their chance to make a move.” — Dan Hanzus

ESPN: 22 (Previous: 23)

“Who needs to step up: RB Adrian Peterson. While the Lions are seeing better play from rookie D’Andre Swift, they need to get more from Peterson. The future Hall of Famer’s numbers might not look too bad, but his production is trending down. He has gone from 6.64 yards per carry in Week 1 to 2.64 yards per carry in Week 7. If Detroit is going to give Peterson 10 or 11 carries a contest instead of, say, going to Kerryon Johnson or using Swift more, Peterson needs to be doing more with those opportunities. It’s not all his fault: The playcalling hasn’t always been advantageous to him, often resulting in runs in fairly predictable situations. Some playcall diversification from offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell might help.” — Michael Rothstein

CBS Sports: 16 (Previous 23)

“At 3-3, they have righted their season. The defense has made strides the past two weeks, which is key to their turnaround. Now they face a good Indianapolis team that will tell a better story of where they are as a team.” — Pete Prisco

Sports Illustrated: 20 (Previous: 24)

“At 3–3, Detroit is on pace to be confounding for another 10 weeks. Matt Stafford seems to be turning the corner, and the Lions have a very weak portion of their schedule coming up with games against Minnesota and Washington looming in the not so distant future.” — Connor Orr

Sporting News: 18 (Previous: 22)

“The Lions are doing their best to play better for Matt Patricia. They’ve hit the right note in their offense with Matthew Stafford and D’Andre Swift — just in time for a comeback win back in Georgia. The defense is showing signs of responding, too, for two straight weeks.” — Vinnie Iyer

Seahawks won’t know if Jamal Adams will be available until later in week

The Seattle Seahawks won’t know if safety Jamal Adams is healthy enough to face the San Francisco 49ers until later in Week 8.

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Seattle Seahawks safety Jamal Adams has yet to return to the practice field as he continues to battle a lingering groin injury. Adams has missed the last three contests and could sit out this week as well.

Coach Pete Carroll was not able to confirm his availability for the near future.

“I don’t know that yet,” Carroll said Monday. “I talked to him on Saturday before we left, and his workouts are going great and all that. He really wants to get back, but he’s going to have to show it that he’s capable of doing all the stuff that we need to do football-wise. Because he’s so close to being back, I think this will carry into the late in the week and we’ll see if it works out.

“But I can’t tell you, conclusively right now.”

Adams does have a few more days before the Seahawks host the 49ers on Sunday, but he’ll need to sneak in at least a few days of practice before he’s ready for a game-day appearance.

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Why the Rams’ Week 7 victory is good news for the Dolphins

Why the Rams’ Week 7 victory is good news for the Dolphins

The Miami Dolphins will welcome Sean McVay, Jared Goff, Aaron Donald, Jalen Ramsey and the rest of the Los Angeles Rams to Hard Rock Stadium for a November showdown this upcoming Sunday, ushering in the Tua Tagovailoa era and hoping to continue Miami’s postseason push. But the Dolphins surely spent Monday night glued to their televisions and watching the Rams sufficiently dominate the previously 5-1 Chicago Bears en route to a 24-10 victory.

That 24-10 win? It’s good news for the Dolphins. You never want to have to face a good football team coming off of a loss, given that losses typically seem to rebalance a team and recalibrate their focus on the task at hand. For the Rams, defeat has almost always led to victory the following week under McVay. The Rams are now 12-5 under their head coach following a loss the week prior, so a defeat at the hands of the Chicago Bears on Monday Night Football would have put the Dolphins tough spot.

That conflict will be avoided this week thanks to Chicago’s punchless effort on offense, a development that perhaps Miami can take cues from regarding how to combat the two stars on the Rams’ defense. Between Jalen Ramsey and Aaron Donald, the Rams have two game-breaking defenders at their disposal. It will be up to Chan Gailey, Tagovailoa and the rest of the offense to solve the riddle of scoring points against that group: an unenviable task. But at the very least we will know coming in that the Rams will not have the motivations of a prior loss burning at them all week long.

Miami, amid their run towards a potential playoff berth, will need every bounce of the ball they can get. This absolutely, positively counts — now we’ll need to see Miami take advantage of the opportunity at home.

Despite start of Big Ten play, Gators move up in USA TODAY’s re-rank

The Florida Gators football team was inactive for the second straight week but made up some ground in one of the latest looks at the ranks.

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Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in USA TODAY Sports and has been republished in its entirety below. 

After losing to Indiana in overtime to open the Big Ten season, Penn State nearly falls out of the Top 25 in this week’s USA TODAY Sports NCAA Re-Rank 1-127.

The No. 25 Nittany Lions are down 19 spots and have fallen from second in the conference power rankings behind No. 3 Ohio State to fifth, trailing the Buckeyes, No. 8 Michigan, No. 13 Wisconsin and No. 24 Indiana.

The Hoosiers are up 38, the largest single-week leap in this week’s 1-127. Several Big Ten teams made similar jumps, including No. 44 Purdue (up 34) and No. 83 Rutgers (up 26). On the other end of the spectrum, No. 53 Iowa (down 29) and No. 107 Michigan (down 28) stumbled after starting 0-1.

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While Ohio State opened as expected with an easy win against Nebraska, the Buckeyes are not able to leap ahead of No. 1 Clemson and No. 2 Alabama. After one week of Big Ten play, it seems obvious that OSU is set to join that pair as the unquestioned class of the Bowl Subdivision.

It was also a great week for the Group of Five. Seven teams from these conferences landed in the Top 25, led by No. 7 Cincinnati. Following the Bearcats are No. 15 Brigham Young, No. 18 Marshall, No. 19 Boise State, No. 20 Louisiana, No. 21 SMU and No. 22 Coastal Carolina.

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Florida football holds steady in AP Top 25 for Week 8

Despite sitting out for the second week in a row UF’s football team managed to stand pat in AP Top 25 update for Week 8 of college football.

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After another week of inaction due to the COVID-19 outbreak on the team that began following its loss to Texas A&M on Oct. 10, Florida’s position in the AP Top 25 held firm.

The Gators are once again ranked No. 10, one spot below their ranking in the Amway Coaches Poll. They are the fourth-highest ranked squad in the SEC behind No. 2 Alabama, No. 5 Georgia and No. 8 Texas A&M. No other conference team ranks in the top 25.

With the Big Ten in action for the first time this weekend, Ohio State jumped both Notre Dame and Georgia to move up to No. 3 after a dominating 52-17 win over Nebraska.

Here’s the full top 25.

RANK TEAM PRV CONF POINTS
1 Clemson (6-0) 1 ACC 1,539 (52)
2 Alabama (5-0) 2 SEC 1,494 (10)
3 Ohio State (1-0) 5 Big Ten 1,402
4 Notre Dame (5-0) 3 ACC 1,353
5 Georgia (3-1) 4 SEC 1,292
6 Oklahoma State (4-0) 6 Big 12 1,201
7 Cincinnati (3-0) 9 AAC 1,100
8 Texas A&M (3-1) 7 SEC 1,094
9 Wisconsin (1-0) 14 Big Ten 950
10 Florida (2-1) 10 SEC 933
11 Brigham Young (5-0) 12 Independent 906
12 Miami (FL) (4-1) 11 ACC 888
13 Michigan (0-0) 18 Big Ten 839
14 Oregon (0-0) 13 Pac-12 784
15 North Carolina (4-1) 14 ACC 758
16 Kansas State (4-1) 20 Big 12 562
17 Indiana (1-0) – Big Ten 466
18 Penn State (0-1) 8 Big Ten 443
19 Marshall (5-0) 22 C-USA 379
20 Coastal Carolina (5-0) 25 Sun Belt 282
21 USC (0-0) 24 Pac-12 243
22 SMU (5-0) 16 AAC 208
23 Iowa State (3-2) 17 Big 12 205
24 Oklahoma (3-2) – Big 12 155
25 Boise State (1-0) – Mountain West 113
Others receiving votes:

Memphis 105, Liberty 85, Tulsa 80, Louisiana-Lafayette 50, Army 44, Auburn 41, Minnesota 40, Utah 36, Northwestern 20, Washington 15, Arkansas 15, Purdue 8, Arizona State 7, Appalachian State 6, California 4, Boston College 2, Texas 2, San Diego State 1

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College football winners and losers from Week 8 include Rutgers, Alabama and Indiana

USA TODAY Sports takes a look at the winners and losers from Week 8 of college football action this past Saturday.

Editor’s note: This article was originally published by USA TODAY Sports and has been republished in its entirety below. 

Ohio State helped usher the Big Ten into the regular season with a 52-17 victory against Nebraska, which hung around for much of the first half but proved unable to slow down quarterback Justin Fields and the Buckeyes offense.

Already one of three teams receiving first-place votes in this week’s Amway Coaches Poll, the Buckeyes showed little signs of the sluggishness that has hobbled even the nation’s best teams after a unique offseason.

Fields completed 20 of his 21 attempts for 276 yards and had a team-high 54 rushing yards with three combined touchdowns as OSU racked up nearly 500 yards of offense.

Stressed early by Nebraska’s tempo — the Cornhuskers have improved depth and overall talent up front, which bodes well for the offense in Scott Frost’s third season — the Buckeyes’ performance from late in the second quarter through the final whistle painted the picture of a team capable of running the table and reaching the College Football Playoff.

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And Penn State?

The Big Ten’s second playoff contender lost 36-35 in overtime to Indiana, dealing a tough blow to the Nittany Lions’ playoff hopes. Ahead 28-20 with over a minute left in the fourth quarter, Penn State allowed the Hoosiers to score and convert the two-point conversion to force overtime. Indiana quarterback Michael Penix Jr. completed the two-point try in the bottom of the extra frame for one of the best wins in program history.

The loss removes much of the luster from next weekend’s prime-time matchup with the Buckeyes. It also seems to remove much of the intrigue: Ohio State will be the significant favorite on the road.

Finally, the loss opens up room for Michigan, Minnesota or Wisconsin to stake claim for second place in the conference, which dictates where teams fall in the postseason pecking order. But only second place seems up for debate after one week — Ohio State might be too good to unseat from atop the Big Ten.

SEC Roundup Week 5: Auburn slips by Ole Miss, LSU bounces back big

Here are the rest of Saturday’s winners and losers:

Winners

Oklahoma State

Quietly one of the few remaining unbeaten teams in the Bowl Subdivision heading into the weekend, Oklahoma State bolstered its credibility and took a step toward claiming the top spot in the Big 12 with a 24-21 victory against Iowa State. This could be the Cowboys’ year: Oklahoma, Texas and TCU have struggled and Baylor has taken a step back, almost paving a path for OSU to win the Big 12 and build a case for a spot in the national semifinals.

Michigan

For Michigan, the best development to come out of a 49-24 win at Minnesota was the play of first-year starting quarterback Joe Milton, who provided an immediate spark for an offense that has produced less-than-optimal results for much of Jim Harbaugh’s tenure. Milton finished with 277 yards of total offense and two touchdowns as the Wolverines made a case for slotting in behind Ohio State in the Big Ten power rankings.

Rutgers

It feels like the late 2000s again at Rutgers, which snapped a 21-game Big Ten losing streak in beating Michigan State 38-27 to kick off the Greg Schiano reunion in grand style. After leading Rutgers to the greatest heights in program history before leaving after the 2011 season, Schiano has quickly breathed life back into the perennial conference pushover since being hired in December.

North Carolina

UNC rebounded from last week’s ugly loss to Florida State with a 48-21 victory against rival N.C. State. After a strong start, the Wolfpack struggled with turnovers and in getting stops against the Tar Heels’ balanced offense: 252 yards passing, 326 yards rushing. Barring another inexplicably bad performance, UNC will beat Virginia, Duke and Wake Forest to have just one loss heading into games against Notre Dame and Miami.

Notre Dame

The situation seemed ripe for an upset: Notre Dame had looked listless and underwhelming in last week’s win against Louisville while Pittsburgh had lost three games in a row, the first two by a single point. Instead of salvaging their season, the Panthers were blown out by the Fighting Irish, who took a 28-3 halftime lead and cruised to a 45-3 victory. Now 5-0, the Irish take on Georgia Tech on Halloween before a crucial date with Clemson to open November.

Clemson

Speaking of the top-ranked Tigers, Clemson sleepwalked through a good portion of a 47-21 victory against Syracuse, which pulled within six points in the third quarter, before waking up to pull away and notch a pair of firsts: the first time winning its first six games of the year by 18 or more points and the first time opening a season by scoring 37 or more points in six straight games.

Indiana

Even had Penix not dove and caught just the barest whisper of the left pylon to secure the 36-35 victory, Indiana would’ve landed in this category just for having the guts to go for the win instead of safely kicking the extra point to force a second overtime. Is the victory itself that surprising? It really shouldn’t be. Indiana has played PSU tough the last few times out, narrowly losing last season, and has turned a corner under Tom Allen, one of the league’s more underrated head coaches. Still, Indiana had lost 43 games in a row against opponents in the top 10.

LSU

On the ropes after losing two of three to open the season, LSU rebounded to beat South Carolina 52-24 behind an offense led by freshman quarterback TJ Finley. As the replacement for an injured Myles Brennan, Finley threw for 265 yards and had three touchdowns (one rushing) as the Tigers gained 541 yards of offense. For one Saturday, at least, the Tigers resembled the team that dominated in 2019. With Auburn, Alabama, Arkansas and Texas A&M up next, this was a must-win game for LSU.

Cincinnati

The Bearcats whipped SMU 42-13 in the biggest game of the season in the Group of Five. The win makes Cincinnati the unquestioned leader in the American, if that wasn’t settled already, and gives it the inside track to claiming the access-bowl bid to the New Year’s Six given to the best team from outside the Power Five leagues. And given the issues in the Big 12 and the Pac-12’s late start, is it too much to consider a path for the Bearcats to crack the top four and reach the national semifinals?

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Losers

Tennessee

The losing streak against Alabama sits at 5,117 days and counting after the Crimson Tide’s 48-17 victory, the latest blowout in a series that was once competitive — seriously, Tennessee used to beat Alabama — but is now an annual reminder of how far the Volunteers lag behind the best teams in the SEC. Alabama quarterback Mac Jones continued to build his Heisman Trophy case with 387 yards passing. In good news, relatively speaking, Tennessee cracked 300 yards of offense against the Tide for the first time since 2015. (The Volunteers gained 302.)

Alabama

The bad news: Alabama will be without wide receiver Jaylen Waddle for the rest of the season after he broke his ankle on the opening kickoff, Nick Saban said at halftime. Losing Waddle, a projected first-round draft pick, removes the most important piece from Alabama’s three-headed receiver corps and weakens the return game. He entered Saturday averaging 139.3 yards per game and 22.2 yards per catch. With Waddle out, the passing game will focus even more heavily on senior DeVonta Smith and sophomore James Metchie III while Alabama searches for a third option.

Michigan State

The Spartans lost to Rutgers. Along the way, coach Mel Tucker’s debut included seven turnovers, the program’s most in a game since 1981. Maybe this can be interpreted as a good sign: Rutgers’ 38 points were the most allowed by a Michigan State coach in his debut since Nick Saban lost 50-10 to Nebraska in 1995.

Kentucky

As seen in a 20-10 loss to Missouri, the inability to do anything on offense will end up keeping Kentucky outside the top three of the SEC East. The Wildcats completed 4 of 13 pass attempts for just 47 yards to go with 98 yards rushing on 23 carries as Missouri ran almost three times as many plays and had possession for more than 43 minutes. After wins against Mississippi State and Tennessee to even its record at 2-2, this is a major step back for Kentucky.

Minnesota

The Wolverines’ convincing win was also a flop by Minnesota, which broke through in 2019 under P.J. Fleck but is headed for a season more in line with program history — middle of the pack in the Big Ten, give or take a spot in the conference power rankings — unless answers can be found on defense. While a decline was expected given the losses off last year’s roster, the Golden Gophers’ room for error is small.

Dan Mullen, defense among five things Florida football fans should be thinking about

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