Author: alaskaadmin

Is it time to take the Falcons seriously? It certainly looks like that now that Atlanta has its starting quarterback in the lineup. Michael Penix Jr. looked as good as anyone expected in his first game back from a major knee injury, and Bijan Robinson looked unstoppable on the ground in a surprisingly uncompetitive 35-14 win over the Packers in Green Bay. Meanwhile, the Packers look like a broken team with no clear fixes as they fall to 1-2. Here are my takeaways: Is it fair? Probably not. LaFleur is undoubtedly a good coach who revived Aaron Rodgers’ career and developed Jordan Love into a top-10 quarterback. He’s had Green Bay’s offense near the top of the league’s statistical charts throughout his coaching tenure. But you don’t get to hang banners for expected points added (EPA) or DVOA, and it feels like the Packers are further away from winning a Super Bowl than they’ve ever been in LaFleur’s eight years on the job, which has produced just three playoff wins. A 1-2 start isn’t impossible to climb out of, and Green Bay will eventually get Micah Parsons back; but this team’s problems may not be solvable. The offensive line is certainly beyond saving, and as we saw on Thursday night, it’s holding back the entire offense. The Packers came into the game with the league’s worst rushing game and that won’t change after a 17-yard performance. Pass protection has been an even bigger issue. Love’s been under fire all season, and the Falcons pressured him on 42% of his dropbacks with an average time-to-pressure of 2.28 seconds, per Next Gen Stats. The defense had been better than expected coming into the game — and former first-round pick Lukas Van Ness has been a bright spot — but Thursday’s performance will not inspire confidence. After an early interception of Michael Penix, Atlanta marched up and down the field with little resistance. This is a bad football team right now. If LaFleur can’t turn this season around, questions about his job security will persist. Whether or not the Packers actually move on from him is another matter. LaFleur just signed a contract extension in the offseason, and this is the one NFL team that doesn’t have a billionaire owner who can eat that kind of money. Even if the team wants to move on from the 46-year-old coach, it may not be able to afford it. With all due respect to Jahmyr Gibbs, there’s no better viewing experience than watching Robinson glide through defenses. He put on a show Thursday night in Green Bay, racking up 194 yards and two touchdowns on 29 carries. It was Robinson’s 11th game with at least 150 yards from scrimmage since he entered the league. Only Derrick Henry has more since 2022. The case for Robinson as the NFL’s best running back is strong. He has an OK offensive line and a passing game that doesn’t give him much protection, but the 2024 first-round pick keeps producing big plays for an offense that desperately needs them. On Thursday night, he forced eight missed tackles and produced 175 rushing yards after contact, per Next Gen Stats. Few running backs can carry an offense on their own, but Robinson is definitely on that short list. If Atlanta’s passing game can just be competent, this team should score enough points to stay in the NFC South race all season. The Falcons will be back in primetime the next two weeks. That looked like an error in judgment by the schedule makers coming into Thursday, but the Bijan Robinson Show is can’t-miss television. We had to wait until the third week of the regular season, but the Falcons quarterback competition has finally been settled. We’ll have to wait for confirmation from Kevin Stefanski, but Michael Penix Jr. should be the unquestioned starter after his performance in Green Bay. Penix shook off a shaky start that included an ugly interception, but was lights out the rest of the night, averaging over 10 yards per attempt. While he got rid of the ball in a hurry, it didn’t prevent him from pushing it downfield. He unlocked Drake London, who was off to a sleepy start to the season but broke out with a 194-yard performance, including two big gains of 68 and 40. The Falcons’ passing game was always going to improve with a legitimate starter replacing Cooper Rush, but few expected it to look this good in Penix’s first game since tearing his ACL last season. The third-year pro should get even better as he gets reacclimated to playing against live defenses after missing all of the preseason and most of training camp. Penix doesn’t have to be a world beater to thrive in this talented offense. Robinson will do most of the heavy lifting, and guys like London and Kyle Pitts will regularly turn routine throws into big plays. It was easy to forget how stacked this offense is when Rush was out there, but the sky’s the limit for the unit if Penix can replicate this performance. We’ll find out if the Falcons can compete for the division next week when they travel to New Orleans. That’s followed by a tough stretch of games against true NFC contenders, so Atlanta may need to win it to make a real playoff push. Green Bay goes on the road to take on a desperate Buccaneers team before their first matchup with the rival Bears. If the Packers fall to 1-3 going into that Chicago game, the chatter about LaFleur’s job will only get louder.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

Thursday brought a mixed bag of injury news as teams wrapped up practice ahead of Week 3. In the NFC East, the Eagles and Cowboys both had a concerning injury report, while in the NFC West there was better news out of Seattle and a bit of uncertainty out of Los Angeles. Puka Nacua’s hip injury still isn’t trending in the right direction for the Rams, and the Cowboys will be down four defenders for their trip to Brazil, but Sam Darnold could be nearing a return for the Seahawks. In Philadelphia, Saquon Barkley and DeVonta Smith both landed on the injury report as the Eagles prepare for Monday night’s game against the Bears, who are dealing with their own injury issues under center. Here’s the latest from around the NFL on Thursday. Philadelphia’s injury situation is starting to pile up ahead of Monday night’s game against the Bears. Running back Saquon Barkley returned to practice Thursday in a limited capacity as he continues managing a stinger suffered in Week 2, while wideout DeVonta Smith didn’t participate at all due a hamstring issue. Smith was seen warming up with the team but didn’t have pads on or take part in drills. Barkley’s stinger dates back to Philadelphia’s comeback win over the Titans, an injury that limited him to just four carries for nine yards and two catches for 11 yards in the second half. The Eagles are already thin at the position with backups Tank Bigsby and Will Shipley limited at practice Wednesday, and now Smith’s absence adds another name to watch. Philadelphia will have two more practices to sort out the picture before Monday’s matchup at Soldier Field. Dallas will be down a few defenders for Sunday’s game against the Ravens in Rio de Janeiro. The Cowboys ruled out cornerback Cobie Durant, safeties Malik Hooker and P.J. Locke, and linebacker DeMarvion Overshown. None of the four will make the trip to Brazil. All four sat out practice again Thursday. Durant, who started the first two games and has played 87 defensive snaps, and Locke, who stepped into the starting lineup in Week 2, are both considered likely to miss multiple weeks. Shavon Revel Jr. and Markquese Bell are expected to fill in across the secondary. “I thought both guys having played and getting their experience was good but it’ll definitely be different,” Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer said of the pair of defensive backs. Hooker played just 12 snaps in the opener before his injury, while Overshown, who started in Week 1 for Dallas, has been given a “low probability” of returning earlier in the week. The biggest worry for the Cowboys is in the secondary, where they will be without three players who have played important roles this season. Puka Nacua’s Week 3 availability is looking increasingly unlikely. The Rams wide receiver missed practice for the second straight day Thursday, and head coach Sean McVay said Nacua is “not making great progress” in his recovery from a hip injury that’s kept him out in Week 2. “Usually time is the best thing that allows that thing to heal. And then once you get to a certain point, then I think you feel pretty good moving forward,” McVay told reporters earlier in the week. McVay has also described the issue as soreness in the groin area, though he’s said there’s no threat of a long-term absence and no hernia concern. Nacua will get one more chance to work in Friday before the Rams make a call on his status for Sunday night’s game at Denver. If he can’t go, Davante Adams has shown he’s comfortable operating as Matthew Stafford’s No. 1 target. Sam Darnold could be on pace to make his return for the Seahawks sooner than expected. Head coach Mike Macdonald said Thursday that the quarterback is “on a good track” to play Sunday against the Commanders after a glute injury suffered in the season opener. Darnold told reporters he was “feeling good,” in his return to practice. “For me, especially during this week, taking it day by day. Continuing to balance the reps and do everything I need to get ready,” Darnold added. Darnold was initially considered week-to-week with the soft-tissue injury, and while Seattle never placed him on injured reserve, his return had been viewed as more likely for Week 4 or later. Instead, he’s progressed faster than expected and is trending toward reclaiming the starting job from Drew Lock, who’s gone 2-0 in Darnold’s absence has shown he can hold down the offense if needed. A final call on Darnold’s status is expected as the week progresses.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

If you’re a fan of one of the eight 0-2 teams in the NFL, you’ve likely seen the stats by now that say your team is unlikely to make the postseason. We’ll still give you a reminder, though. In the last 10 years, only 12 of the 84 teams that have lost their first two games have gone on to make the postseason that year (14.3%). Last season, three of the 10 teams that started 0-2 made the postseason. So, yes, we are telling you that there’s a chance your 0-2 team can make the playoffs, but it’s pretty slim. So, which 0-2 team is the most likely to beat the odds? We each made our picks, and a common answer emerged. It pains me to say this, because I picked the Chargers to win the Super Bowl, but the Texans are the 0-2 team in the best shape to turn their season around. They’ve all but trademarked this, starting 0-2 in three of the last four years, even going 0-3 last year before turning things around in a big way. The Texans would do well to start that turnaround Sunday at the Colts, who they swept last year, and they have all three division road games in the first six weeks of the season. Go 2-1 in those, beat the Dallas Cowboys next week, and they’ll be back on track with one of the league’s best defenses as a foundation. If they can get the run game to click (David Montgomery is averaging 2.7 yards per carry), that will make life easier for C.J. Stroud as well. I must admit: I don’t believe in any of these teams. Back in May, I picked the Chargers to make the playoffs — but after seeing L.A.’s disastrous offense (and the Chiefs’ resurgence), I can’t see the Chargers turning things around. The AFC West is much more competitive than anyone could have imagined. So it’s basically a toss-up between the Buccaneers and the Texans, and I’ll give the edge to Houston — in part because of the history that Greg pointed out and in part because I think the AFC South is worse than the NFC South. It would be one thing if the Bucs could stroll through their division, but I think the Saints and Panthers are going to be tough to beat — at least for Tampa. The Texans can stroll through their division, with the Titans and Colts looking messy. Maybe C.J. Stroud and the Texans’ highly touted coaching staff can figure this thing out. (Maybe.) I’m torn between the 0-2 Texans and the 0-2 Colts, and their game in Indianapolis on Sunday will probably tell the tale. It’s a tough call because both teams ran into buzzsaws early in the season. The Texans lost to the Bills and Bengals. The Colts lost to the Ravens and Chiefs. Those are four possible Super Bowl contenders that the two teams play. But I’m going to go with the Colts for this reason: I have way more faith in their offense. Indy quarterback Daniel Jones right now is just better than quarterback C.J. Stroud. And even without wide receiver Alec Pierce, who just went on injured reserve, they have plenty of weapons. That includes running back Jonathan Taylor, one of the best in the league, who gives them the running game that the Texans just don’t have. Their defense obviously needs to be a lot better. They’ve given up a ridiculous 1,029 yards through two games — an insane pace that could doom them in the long run. But I think they’ll settle in over the next few weeks against some offensively challenged teams (the Texans, Commanders, Steelers, Titans and Vikings are up next). Once they settle down, they’re good enough to stay in the playoff race, as long as Jones and Taylor stay healthy all year long. We’ve already seen this movie before. Last year, the Texans got off to a miserable 0-3 start and then lost two games the rest of the way. I expect a similar turnaround this season. This defense is way too good — the Week 1 performance notwithstanding — and C.J. Stroud is playing solid ball despite what the numbers say. The next few weeks will tell us whether the run game is as useless as it looked against Cincinnati, but many teams will struggle to run the ball against that front. Even if the running game doesn’t improve, Houston has worked around that issue for the last few years. I don’t see why this season will be any different. The schedule should also help spark a turnaround. Houston will be favored in nearly every game it plays for the next two months, with a trip to Jacksonville as the only difficult matchup between now and an early-December game against the Ravens. I still think this team is good enough to make an AFC title game run, but even if it isn’t, they should rack up enough low-quality wins to stick around the playoff race all season. I tried to be different from my colleagues here. I kept coming back to the Texans. When you’ve been in this spot before, it helps (Houston started the 2023 and ‘25 seasons 0-2 and 0-3, respectively, and finished a game away from the AFC Championship Game both years). But the Texans’ defense, which finished second in points allowed last season, is too good to not return to elite form. Quarterback C.J. Stroud, who has regressed over the last two years, has been encouraging through two games — he’s third in passing yards entering Week 3 (627). Houston is 0-2, but it faced two of the NFL’s best teams in the early season in the Bills and Bengals. Star receiver Nico Collins didn’t play against Cincinnati, either. And if you look at the next five weeks, there’s a great opportunity for the Texans to get back on track — they face the Colts, who they swept last year, and also have meetings with the lowly Titans and Giants, who just lost Jaxson Dart for the season. If Houston wins all three of those games and splits matchups with the Cowboys (Week 4) and Jaguars (Week 6), they’ll be at .500 entering their Week 8 bye.  And then they have the Chargers, who’ve been imploding, right out of that break. In just a month and a half, Houston’s season could be in great shape. Now that the Bolts have disappointed national prognosticators who tagged them as the chic, trendy pick to win the Super Bowl (again), get ready for the Chargers to do Chargers things on the road against the best team in the NFL in the Buffalo Bills, right? Nope, when everyone expects them to fall on their face, these are the moments the Chargers rise up and hit teams over their heads. In their first year in Los Angeles under first-year head coach Anthony Lynn, the Chargers started a nightmarish 0-4, with opposing teams regularly taking over their cozy temporary home in Carson. However, the Bolts rallied and finished the year 9-7. I expect a similar resuscitation effort from Jim Harbaugh here.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports