Carolina Panthers Fire Ron Rivera

Carolina Panthers Fire Ron Rivera

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The 2019 NFL season is starting to wind down. Teams are jostling for playoff position or looking at the 2020 NFL Draft class in hopes of finding a savior. For the Carolina Panthers, they opted to make an even more radical move as they announced that they have fired head coach, Ron Rivera.

The move comes just a few days after the Panthers suffered a humiliating loss to the Washington Redskins at home on Sunday afternoon. In that game, Carolina jumped out to a 14-0 lead but were then outplayed the rest of the game.

After a hot start with Kyle Allen taking over for an injured Cam Newton, the Panthers have gone 1-5 since their bye week.

Carolina moves on from their most successful coach in franchise history, in nine seasons he’s made four playoff appearances—the same amount as the franchise has made in its 16 other seasons—and leaves with a 76-63-1 record.

The organization thanked the coach on Twitter:

Don’t expect Rivera to be out of a job for long, if he wanted to some teams looking to replace their current head coaches would gladly turn their teams over to him.

Meanwhile, Carolina will promote Perry Fewell to the interim position:

Dec 3, 2019 No Comments
Primetime Preview: Minnesota Vikings vs. Seattle Seahawks (MNF Week 13)

Primetime Preview: Minnesota Vikings vs. Seattle Seahawks (MNF Week 13)

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A memorable Week 13 comes to a close on Monday Night Football as the Minnesota Vikings travel to the Pacific Northwest to take on the Seattle Seahawks and the 12th Man. The teams enter tonight’s game separated by just one game. Both currently are in second place in their respective divisions. A win by the Vikings would bring them to 9-3 and a tie for first place in the NFC North with the Green Bay Packers. If Seattle manages to come away with the win they would go from wild card to the one seed in the conference. At 10-2, with a win over the San Francisco 49ers, they would jump to the top of the NFC West and the NFC in one swoop. We already saw first place switch hands in the AFC, could the same happen in the NFC tonight?

In order for that to happen, Seattle is going to need its MVP candidate in Russell Wilson to play at that level once again. Time and time again, Wilson has answered the call when the Seahawks needed him most. Whether it was the fourth quarter or overtime, if the team’s back was against the wall and time was dwindling down, they could always count on their quarterback to find a way to pull out a victory. Aided by wide receivers Tyler Lockett, D.K. Metcalf, and the recently added Josh Gordon, Wilson has one of the most talented sets of wideouts that he’s had in his career. However, despite that firepower and the league as a whole becoming pass-first oriented offensively, Seattle remains one of the few teams that actively seeks out to establish the run. Chris Carson is the team’s workhorse back, they will give him 20-30 carries on mos nights and live with the results. In Week 12, they rode the hot hand and let Rashaad Penny lead the way showing off the depth they possess in the backfield.

Speaking of backfields, Minnesota is led by one of the best running backs in the game today, Dalvin Cook. The Vikings made some coaching changes and with Gary Kubiak taking on a bigger role the team has rededicated itself to making sure the run game is their bread and butter. Cook entered Week 12 as one of the NFL’s leading rushers and is just 158 yards back of the current leader, Nick Chubb. It’s unlikely that he’ll get all those yards tonight, as he’ll likely be the primary focal point of Seattle’s defensive game plan but he is capable of breaking out a game-changing run on any play. In case he is bottled up, the Vikings can turn to Kirk Cousins and the passing game to try and make something happen. They’ll be without Adam Thielen again but they still have Stefon Diggs to test the Seahawks’ secondary. Diggs has had a couple of explosive games so far this season so i isn’t out of the ordinary to see him put together a one-man show. They’ll need their best from the run and passing game if they hope to pull off a road upset against a team as good as Seattle, especially when playing at home.

PREDICTION: Seahawks 24 , Vikings 14

Dec 2, 2019 No Comments
Primetime Preview: New England Patriots vs Houston Texans (SNF Week 13)

Primetime Preview: New England Patriots vs Houston Texans (SNF Week 13)

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As we get closer to the end of the season, each game takes on an even bigger meaning for teams. That is the case for tonight’s game between the New England Patriots and Houston Texans. Both enter tonight’s game in the first place of their respective divisions. The Texans just beat the Indianapolis Colts last week to secure first place in the AFC South. New England has been on top of the AFC East all year — and for the entire decade — but with the Buffalo Bills trailing close behind at 9-3, the Patriots can ill afford to suffer any setbacks.

One storyline that we won’t know more about until closer to kickoff is exactly who will be on the field for the Patriots tonight. Not only do they have wide receivers Mohammed Sanu and Phillip Dorsett recovering from injuries suffered in Week 11 but they also have an illness spreading throughout the team. In fact, it was so bad that the players who were sick were kept separate from the rest of the team when traveling down to Houston this week. Three very important defenders (Jamie Collins, Dont’a Hightower, and Kyle Van Noy) are among those who are currently listed as questionable. The boogeymen, as they call themselves, have been a critical part of New England’s historic defense. Without them, Deshaun Watson could have a much easier time dissecting Bill Belichick’s defense.

Someone who has firsthand experience dealing with the mad genius’ schemes is Texans head coach, Bill O’Brien. He spent five seasons there working as an offensive assistant (2007), wide receivers coach (2008), quarterbacks coach (2009, 2010), and offensive coordinator (2011) before leaving. Watson’s ability to make plays with his arm and his legs make him the perfect quarterback to test the limits of what Belichick’s unit can do on defense. Aiding Watson will be All-Pro wideout, DeAndre Hopkins. He’ll be shadowed most of the night by New England’s All-Pro cornerback, Stephon Gilmore — who is coming off holding Amari Cooper without a catch a week ago. The two have battled before with Hopkins having some success but not posting anything near his usual numbers. With Will Fuller and Kenny Stills also on the field, there’ll be even more pressure on Gilmore to try and contain Hopkins one-on-one.

Everyone can see that the Patriots offense isn’t business as usual for Tom Brady. They’ve gone from an embarrassment of riches for Brady to pass to, to relying on unproven rookies. Yet, Sanu and Dorsett seem on track to play and it feels like Julian Edelman was born wide-open. The main struggle has been their inability to get anything consistent out of the running game. Last week’s 101 total yards were the most since they put up 114 yards in Week 6 against the New York Giants. The offensive line has seen a lot of turnover due to injuries but at the end of the year, they are as healthy as they’ve been in a while. With J.J. Watt out and Jadeveon Clowney off in Seattle, the Texans defense isn’t as potent as it used to be. If they can’t create a pass rush to get Brady off his spots this could be the night that the offense starts clicking.

PREDICTION: Texans 31 , Patriots 20

Dec 1, 2019 No Comments
SR NFL Week 13 Preview and Predictions

SR NFL Week 13 Preview and Predictions

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1:00 PM EST

Tennessee Titans vs. Indianapolis Colts

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Once again, everyone is in the race for the AFC South division crown. After losing to the Houston Texans last week, the Indianapolis Colts saw their hold on first place slip away. Meanwhile, a resurgent Ryan Tannehill has kept the Tennessee Titans in the rearview mirror ever since the team benched Marcus Mariota. A lot is on the line in this meeting as a loss for either team would lessen their chance of getting past Houston and into the playoffs. For their part, the Colts enter this game nursing a fair amount of injuries. Starters Marlon Mack and Eric Ebron will both miss the game knocking out two useful weapons for Jacoby Brissett. The Titans defensive backs should be very familiar with the first-time starter, not just because of their divisional rivals but because Malcolm Butler and Logan Ryan we’re teammates with Brissett in New England. With the dome closed in Indianapolis look for the weather to not affect here — unlike elsewhere around the NFL today.

PREDICTION: Colts 28 , Titans 20

San Francisco 49ers vs. Baltimore Ravens

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Depending on who you talk to, or who you root for, this game presents a matchup of the two best teams in the league right now. The San Francisco 49ers are one of two teams with a 10-1 record and the Baltimore Ravens (9-2) beat the other one. For the 49ers, their defense has been the catalyst to their success this season. Their defensive line is as potent as any in the league and rookie defensive end Nick Bosa is playing like his hair is on fire to begin his NFL career. They’ll need their usual output and then some at the line of scrimmage as Baltimore relies heavily on a new age smash mouth run scheme to outmuscle their opponents. Yet, it’s not all inside power runs with this team. Lamar Jackson has firmly cemented himself in the MVP conversation and he can burn you with his legs and with his arm. Though, with adverse weather conditions expected in Maryland, it’ll be worth watching to see if either team can have success throwing the ball.

PREDICTION: Ravens 24 , 49ers 10

New York Jets vs. Cincinnati Bengals

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After an inexplicable benching, Andy Dalton is back in as the Cincinnati Bengals starting quarterback. It seems the team is desperately hoping to avoid an 0-16 season. While they get one quality veteran back on the field, wide receiver (and potential free-agent-to-be) A.J. Green will miss his 12th straight game this season. First-year head coach Zac Taylor has struggled to put his stamp on this offense but with injuries and head-scratching roster decisions it’s hard to blame him. The New York Jets have seemingly turned a corner now that their franchise quarterback, Sam Darnold has recovered from his bout with mononucleosis. The offense of late has been humming in a way that should cool the seat of Adam Gase for the rest of the season. On defense, they’ve been a lot more inconsistent but after a 34-3 drubbing of the Oakland Raiders a week ago they should enter this game feeling good about themselves. Well, at least until they’ve played 60 minutes and become the team that surrendered first wins to Miami and Cincinnati.

PREDICTION: Bengals 27 , Jets 21

Cleveland Browns vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

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THIS GAME WILL BE A FIGHT. TWO SIDES THAT DON’T LIKE EACH OTHER THROWING PUNCH AFTER PUNCH, HOPING TO LAND A HAYMAKER AND LAY THEIR OPPONENT FLAT. THERE’S NO LOVE LOST BETWEEN THESE TWO AND THE GAME SHOULD BE AN ALL-OUT BRAWL! With that said, and the situation from a few weeks ago alluded to and successfully talked around, it’s hard to envision anything of note happening in this game. Sure there’s still some ill-will leftover and these teams never liked each other to begin with but both teams have to know every eye in the NFL offices will be watching to see if anyone acts up again. Plus, Larry Ogunjobi and Mason Rudolph are the only two people from the scuffle that will take the field today. With Pittsburgh not having Juju Smith-Schuster and James Connor nursing injuries it just seems like the Steelers won’t have enough offensive firepower to take advantage of Myles Garrett’s absence.

PREDICTION: Browns 23 , Steelers 20

Philadelphia Eagles vs. Miami Dolphins

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Once considered the worst team to ever set foot on a football field, the Miami Dolphins gritted out two wins and have since passed that title onto the Cincinnati Bengals. However, just because their not the worse team in 100 seasons doesn’t mean that they’re good either. Brian Flores should be commended for making sure this team didn’t go down in the history books but hopefully the front office uses their draft capital to help retool and rebuild this roster. For the Philadelphia Eagles, their season was given new life on Thanksgiving when the Buffalo Bills went and handled the Dallas Cowboys, dropping them to 6-6. A road win of their own would bring them even with Dallas at the top of the NFC East and make for one hell of a close to the season in that division as the two teams are scheduled to face off one more time in Week 16. Look for Carson Wentz to get his groove back attacking the Dolphins defense today.

PREDICTION: Eagles 24 , Dolphins 12

Washington Redskins vs. Carolina Panthers

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The Washington Redskins have turned the page and given the keys to rookie quarterback Dwayne Haskins. He’s played pretty poorly but last week he was able to lead his team to victory over the Detroit Lions. Second-year running back Derrius Guice is back from injury and rookie wide receiver — and former Ohio State Buckeye teammate of Haskins — Terry McLaurin form the trio of the future for this franchise. However, in the present, Washington hasn’t done much for their fans to cheer about this season. That is likely to continue as the Carolina Panthers are the superior team. Christian McCaffrey is putting together an all-time great season at the running back position and looking over the Redskins depth chart they don’t have anyone who seems capable of slowing down McCaffrey. Kyle Allen has come back down to Earth after his initial hot start replacing Cam Newton but this game should give him a chance to pad his stats some more. If Carolina hopes to remain in the playoff race these are the types of games that become must-win scenarios for them.

PREDICTION: Panthers 33 , Redskins 10

Green Bay Packers vs. New York Giants

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The Green Bay Packers were just embarrassed on national television last week, losing 37-8 to the NFC-leading San Francisco 49ers. As the season had progressed many believed that this group had the potential to be the most complete Packers team since they won the Super Bowl in 2011. Yet, in their three loses the offense or defense (and sometimes both) have not been able to hold up their end of the bargain. A trip to the Meadowlands should help one of those units get back on track. Aaron Rodgers could use another big performance as he had in Oakland to get himself back in the MVP conversation. The Giants’ defense has not exactly been world beaters this season and I would not choose any of their cornerbacks as my first option to defend Davante Adams. On the other hand, the Achilles heel of Green Bay’s defense has been defending the run and New York just so happens to have one of the best backs in the league. Saquon Barkley’s follow up to his outstanding rookie season has been a disappointment but if he were to explode for a huge game against any team it would likely be the Packers. Weather will likely be an issue but I still foresee this game becoming a shootout.

PREDICTION: Packers 35 , Giants 27

 

Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Jacksonville Jaguars

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The battle for Florida will likely be one to forget. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have a pair of 1,000-yard receivers (Chris Godwin and Mike Evans) but Jameis Winston remains a walking turnover. The Bucs also have no consistent run game to rely on making their offense one-dimensional and forcing them to rely on the hit or miss accuracy of Winston more than they would like to. On defense, Shaq Barrett has been awesome and a great find but as a group, they often come up just short of making the big plays when they’re needed most. Jacksonville has gone back to Nick Foles but he has not made it back to Super Bowl MVP level yet — he hasn’t made it back to 2019 Week 1 level yet. Leonard Fournette has been impressive and the breakout season from D.J. Chark has been awesome to watch. Yet, with Jalen Ramsey now playing across the country the defense and this team have lost some of its swagger. They no longer look anything like the team that dominated the AFC en route to the conference championship game a year ago. With that said, there’s still a fair amount of talent and going up against Winston could be just what the doctor ordered for this group.

PREDICTION: Jaguars 17 , Buccaneers 9

4:05 PM EST

Los Angeles Rams vs. Arizona Cardinals

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Things have not been going according to plan for the Los Angeles Rams this season. They have been overtaken in their division by the San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks. Jared Goff has regressed after receiving a new wealthy contract. Limiting Todd Gurley hasn’t done the offense any good. Sean McVay’s genius status is now being called into question. The Super Bowl hangover has been a real thing for this team. The Arizona Cardinals have stuck with the rookie pairing of coach Kliff Kingsbury and quarterback Kyler Murray and rode their roller coaster of a season to three wins so far. While the wins haven’t shown up in droves to date there are some good things to take away from this year. First, Murray looks good. Second, besides the Seahawks, Arizona has given San Francisco their two toughest games of the year. Third, Kingsbury’s offense hasn’t been a complete disaster. In the end, I think the talent disparity proves too much for Arizona to overcome.

PREDICTION: Rams 31 , Cardinals 21

4:25 PM EST

Oakland Raiders vs. Kansas City Chiefs

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Just a few weeks ago this matchup loomed as a potential division deciding meeting between the upstart Oakland Raiders and the underachieving Kansas City Chiefs. However, with the Raiders seemingly overlooking the New York Jets last week, the game no longer has that same feeling of importance. A win by Oakland puts them right back into serious contention for the AFC West but ultimately it might be too little too late for Jon Gruden’s team. The Chiefs will tell you that injuries have put a damper on what was expected to be a big year for this group. One of those injuries was suffered by reigning MVP, Patrick Mahomes. His dislocated kneecap scared most initially but he returned to action quicker than originally expected and for the most part, he’s looked like himself. In their previous meeting, Kansas City used an explosive second quarter to put the Raiders away and Mahomes finished with 443 yards and four touchdowns. Another big game is likely in store for him this time as the teams meet at Arrowhead.

PREDICTION: Chiefs 38 , Raiders 24

Los Angeles Chargers vs. Denver Broncos

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This game will likely serve as the start to the Drew Lock era in Denver and if we’ve learned anything about John Elway’s eye for quarterback talent one thing should be crystal clear, Lock might not be that great. The list of quarterbacks who’ve faltered after being handpicked by Elway is as long as the heights of those same players. Brandon Allen looked capable in his time stepping in for the injured Joe Flacco, however, Lock was taken in the 2019 NFL Draft with the intention of him taking over for Flacco down the line. Now he will likely get a chance to show what he can do. Unluckily for him, it’ll come on the same day that the Los Angeles Chargers get both of their starting safeties back from IR. Derwin James and Adrian Phillips were part of the reason why the Chargers amassed a 12-4 record last year. Though head coach Anthony Lynn said both will have their snap counts monitored, it’s easy to envision them making impact plays during their time on the field. Some word has come out that if Philip Rivers continues to struggle — seven interceptions in the last two games — the team could look to make a switch at quarterback. That won’t happen today as the team can get back on track with a win in the Mile High City.

PREDICTION: Chargers 28 , Broncos 17

Dec 1, 2019 No Comments
Thanksgiving Football Preview (Week 13)

Thanksgiving Football Preview (Week 13)

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Hello and happy Thanksgiving football fans! Usually, Thursday nights provide us with one game to start off the impending weekend of football. However, this holiday is different for the NFL. Instead of just one Thursday game, we get a triple header, Let’s preview all three games that are on today’s menu.

12:30 PM EST

Chicago Bears vs. Detroit Lions

To date, the 2019 season has been a disappointment for both of these teams. The Chicago Bears we’re attempting to build off of the double-digit wins they produced a year ago and returned a lot of parts from what had been the best defense in football last season. However, with just four games left, Khalil Mack and co. are barely hanging on in the chase for a Wild Card spot. For the Lions, they came out of the gate on fire winning two of their first three games—the other being a Week 1 tie. Now, with just three wins for the season and starting quarterback Matthew Stafford missing another game with an ailing back their focus should be squarely on 2020.

David Blough, an undrafted rookie, will get the start for Detroit as Jeff Driskel is banged up as well. Putting the Purdue graduate across the line of scrimmage from the defense this talented spells doom for the Lions. Yet, all hope may not be lost. In his second season as a head coach, Matt Nagy has seen his Andy Reid-lite offense grind down to an unrecognizable unit. Mitchell Trubisky has been a shell of what he brought in 2018. For as well as the Bears defense has played at times, their offense has done them no favors most weeks.

PREDICTION: BEARS 24 , LIONS 9

4:30 PM EST

Buffalo Bills vs. Dallas Cowboys

If we expand the Thanksgiving connection to these slate of games than this one would be the main course for the day. The Buffalo Bills have quietly put together a very good case to be taken seriously as a threat in the AFC. On the back of the stellar defense, Josh Allen’s arm and legs, and the newly minted third all-time rushing yards leader (Frank Gore) this team have piled up wins. When looking at their schedule though, the New England Patriots are the only elite team they’ve played to date. The Dallas Cowboys want to be perceived as elite but at 6-5–and barely hanging onto the lead in the NFC East—they have failed to separate themselves from the pack. Dak Prescott, Ezekiel Elliott, and Amari Cooper have all been great throughout the season but wins keep slipping away from this team.

Following Sunday’s 13-9 loss in Foxboro, Dallas owner Jerry Jones didn’t hold his tongue as he called out the coaching staff for what was in his opinion an unsatisfactory performance. Rumors are rampant that Cowboys’ head coach is on the Super Bowl or bust plan this season and back-to-back losses will only heighten that noise around the franchise. Meanwhile, Buffalo is likely to face four consecutive teams with winning records. To bring in a tried and true food analogy, they hit the meat and potatoes portion of their season. A few bad plays and poor decisions could easily see this team drop from a sure thing in the postseason standings to dropping back towards the middle of the pack. With both teams needing a win and the game is on national television we will see who handles the pressure best.

PREDICTION: COWBOYS 27 , BILLS 24

8:20 PM EST

New Orleans Saints vs. Atlanta Falcons

These teams just faced each other 18 days ago. At that time, the New Orleans Saints looked like a juggernaut on their way to Super Bowl contention and the Atlanta Falcons looked like a team in dire need of changes on the coaching staff. This also would be the first game Drew Brees, Alvin Kamara, and Michael Thomas would share the field for since Week 2. A blowout was expected and a blowout we got. The Falcons manhandled the Saints on their way to winning 26-9 and likely saving Dan Quinn’s job. Even sweeter for Atlanta was that they were able to thoroughly dominate their opponent on their home field. At times, the Superdome has been kryptonite to the Falcons but it wasn’t on that day.

Once again the teams meet and the narratives aren’t too different. After securing consecutive wins against New Orleans and the Carolina Panthers, the Falcons we’re embarrassed at home by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers ending any talk about possibly sneaking into the playoff hunt. New Orleans has won two straight and once again looks like the cream of the crop within the NFL. Sean Payton’s team is out for revenge as they are one poorly played game back of sitting atop the NFC standings alongside the San Francisco 49ers. Like most desserts, revenge is a dish best served cold.

PREDICTION: Saints 30 , Falcons 17

Nov 28, 2019 No Comments