NFL category, Page 137

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Stay clean. Avoid the critical mistakes. That’s a mantra both the Cincinnati Bengals and Los Angeles Rams should have adopted as they head to Sunday’s Super Bowl. Limit the turnovers and costly penalties. Don’t waste timeouts, particularly in the second half. Get physical rather than fancy. Being...

LOS ANGELES — Ja’Marr Chase gets most of the attention at receiver for Cincinnati with his big-play ability helping the Bengals reach the Super Bowl. The addition of Chase this season wouldn’t have been nearly as consequential for the Bengals if not for the standout play from the two returning...

LOS ANGELES — Ja’Marr Chase has turned in quite the debut season, rewriting Cincinnati rookie records, earning a Pro Bowl nod and now scratching off another goal to earn the AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award. “I put it on my wall … got that accomplishment, and that’s...

Odell Beckham Jr.’s 2,000-mile trip on short notice allowed him to escape all the negative energy. Injury concerns? Hurt feelings? Off-the-field angst? On-the-field disappointment? They’re long gone, left behind with all those No. 13 Cleveland Browns jerseys. Beckham sounds and looks like a different person in Los Angeles, where the...

LOS ANGELES — The long wait to be voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame is finally over for several deserving candidates. In a year with no sure-fire first-ballot candidates, the panel of voters opted to choose five players who have waited years — or even decades — for...

LOS ANGELES — Three-time AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald. Three-time All-Pro cornerback Jalen Ramsey. Wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. with his pass-catching flair. And the NFL’s best receiver this year in Cooper Kupp. Those are only some of the big names on the Los Angeles Rams....

Zac Taylor texted Sean McVay after the Los Angeles Rams acquired Von Miller from the Denver Broncos in a midseason trade. Not to congratulate him. To thank him. The Bengals had a trip to Denver coming up in December, and Cincinnati’s coach was grateful he wouldn’t have to worry about...

Cam Akers was not supposed to be here. Not now. Not after tearing his right Achilles tendon in July, an injury that normally takes at least nine months and as much as a year from which to recover. But the Los Angeles Rams running back has proven he’s far from...

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Under a baking California sun, Roger Goodell knew the heat was coming. At his annual Super Bowl news conference Wednesday, the NFL commissioner was grilled on two hot topics that have put the league under heavy scrutiny: racism and discrimination in hiring. There were other issues that...

Nearly every time the Kansas City Chiefs got pressure on Joe Burrow in the AFC championship game, he managed to pull off a surprising escape. That ability to get out of trouble with his legs is one of Burrow’s best traits and a big reason why he has the Cincinnati...

Trey Hendrickson was once a touchdown-catching tight end in high school, a big-bodied target who was tough to take down. Demolishing quarterbacks, though, just always felt better than spiking footballs. You see, pass rushing is a passion for the Cincinnati Bengals defensive end. And opposing offenses are the unfortunate recipients...

CINCINNATI — Joe Mixon’s foot injury in 2020 was one of many unfortunate events in another train wreck of a season for the Cincinnati Bengals. Cincinnati had shown promise early that year, but suddenly its premier running back, coming off two consecutive 1,000-yard seasons, was done after six games. Injuries...

LAS VEGAS — New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara is accused of punching and badly injuring a man in an attack also involving at least three men who were with Kamara last weekend at a Las Vegas Strip nightclub, according to a police arrest report. The alleged victim told...

LOS ANGELES — Aaron Donald has won just about every award available to a defensive lineman during his spectacular eight-year career with the Los Angeles Rams. As the Penn Hills graduate and former Pitt star points out, the only trophy he lacks has Vince Lombardi’s name on it. “This is...

Six seasons and two teams into an often-turbulent NFL career, Jalen Ramsey finally is on the stage where he starts every season expecting to play. The Super Bowl. Ramsey said it feels good. Really good. “It means a lot to be in this position with this team and with these...

NEW ORLEANS — The New Orleans Saints have promoted defensive coordinator Dennis Allen to head coach, two people familiar with the decision said Monday. The people spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the Saints have not announced their chosen replacement for Sean Payton, who resigned nearly...