Patrick Mahomes knows risk, feels safe in return to Chiefs facilityVideo
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was on every call involving the NFL Players Association and took a significant role in putting in place the return-to-play protocols for training camp. So while he acknowledges “some risk” in returning to the team facility Saturday, when Mahomes joined...
Chiefs’ Laurent Duvernay-Tardif first to opt out of 2020 NFL seasonVideo
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Offensive lineman Laurent Duvernay-Tardif of the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs became the first player to opt out of the upcoming NFL season because of the coronavirus pandemic Friday. Duvernay-Tardif earned a medical degree from McGill University in Canada and has been working to fulfill...
Sources: NFL players can opt-out; salary cap slashedVideo
NFL training camps are set to open after the league and the players’ union reached agreement on several issues, including future salary cap mechanisms and how players can opt out of the upcoming season because of the coronavirus. The NFL Players Association’s executive committee and 32 player representatives approved the...
Ex-Redskins become Washington Football Team for 2020 season
The NFL team formerly known as the Redskins will go by the Washington Football Team for the 2020 season, giving the organization time to choose a new, full-time name. The club announced the placeholder name Thursday, ahead of the start of training camp next week. “The decision to use ‘Washington...
Analysis: Behind health, stability a key to NFL successVideo
Chiefs, 49ers, Saints, Ravens. All powerhouses last season. All in excellent position to be so again if the NFL gets to play during the coronavirus pandemic. Anyone who believes continuity isn’t an essential part of pro football success will need to re-examine that philosophy. As NFL teams finally get together...
NFL planning to allow social justice decals on helmets
The NFL is planning to allow players to have decals on the back of their helmets bearing names or initials of victims of systemic racism and police violence. The league has been in talks with individual players and their union since June about somehow honoring such victims. The initiative will...
Report: NFL offers to scrap preseason games; players to be tested every day for 1st 2 weeks of campVideo
The NFL has offered to scrap all preseason games, a person familiar with the decision told the Associated Press. The players’ association had sought no preseason games, and the league had reduced the exhibition schedule to two games. But Monday evening, the NFL said it would eliminate those preseason contests...
Former Pine-Richland, Pitt QB Ben DiNucci agrees to terms with Dallas CowboysVideo
Former Pine-Richland and Pitt quarterback Ben DiNucci agreed to terms with the Dallas Cowboys to a four-year rookie contract. DiNucci, a seventh-round pick, led James Madison to the FCS national championship game last year. DiNucci was at Pitt from 2015-17, playing in 12 games and making six starts. Prior to...
Jets, Giants won’t have fans at games in New Jersey, at least initiallyVideo
The New York Jets and Giants announced they will not have fans at home games this season “until further notice” because of the coronavirus pandemic. The teams, who play at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ., and have separate training facilities in the state, released a joint statement Monday after...
What’s going on with Penguins’ Sidney Crosby? Mark Madden has sources telling him what’s up.
Based on the Penguins’ history when it comes to their players’ health, I’m sure we all had the same thought when the team returned to practice during the coronavirus pandemic. “Sid is going to get it. Mumps. Concussions. A broken jaw from a teammate’s slapshot. He’s gonna get the virus.”...
Players plead with NFL to address health, safety concernsVideo
NFL players are pleading publicly with the league to address several health and safety concerns on the eve of training camp. The league informed teams Saturday training camps will open on time even though discussions with the players’ union regarding testing for coronavirus and other health and safety protocols are...
Report: 15 former employees accuse Washington NFL team of sexual harassmentVideo
The Washington Post reported Thursday that 15 female former employees of the city’s NFL franchise said they were sexually harassed during their time with the team. In a statement, the team said it takes issues of employee conduct seriously and added, “While we do not speak to specific employee situations...
Texans WR Kenny Stills arrested during Breonna Taylor protestVideo
Houston Texans receiver Kenny Stills was among 87 protesters arrested outside Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron’s home in Louisville on Tuesday night as they advocated for the arrests of the police officers involved in the shooting death of Breonna Taylor in March. According to the Louisville Courier-Journal, Stills was charged...
Dak Prescott set for franchise tag after no long-term deal with CowboysVideo
Dak Prescott will play whatever becomes of the 2020 season under the one-year franchise tag after the Dallas Cowboys and their star quarterback couldn’t agree on a long-term contract. Clubs had until Wednesday afternoon to reach multiyear deals with players given the franchise tag. Of the 14 tagged in March,...
Titans, Derrick Henry reach agreement on contract, avoid franchise tagVideo
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Tennessee Titans agreed to a new contract with Derrick Henry, keeping the NFL rushing leader around and not playing under the franchise tag before the league deadline for an extension. The team announced the deal, saying only it was a “multi-year extension.” Henry reportedly received a...
Philadelphia cancels large events through February; Eagles’ games to have no fans
Large-scale events won’t be happening for the rest of the year in Philadelphia, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. On Tuesday, officials announced that big public events would not be permitted through February. Philadelphia health commissioner Thomas Farley said the decision and time frame came because a coronavirus vaccine would not...
NFL, Oakley come up with face shields to protect players
NEW YORK — With NFL training camps set to start at the end of the month, the league believes it is closer to one answer when it comes to player safety amid the coronavirus pandemic: face shields for the players’ helmets. The NFL and the players’ union agreed to several...
Washington NFL team dropping ‘Redskins’ name after 87 yearsVideo
WASHINGTON — The Washington NFL franchise announced Monday it will drop the “Redskins” name and Indian head logo immediately, bowing to decades of criticism that they are offensive to Native Americans. A new name must still be selected for one of the oldest and most storied teams in the National...
Report: Washington NFL team expected to change name in next 24 hours
There’s going to be a new name in the National Football League this season. Yahoo Sports reported late Sunday that the NFL’s Washington franchise has committed itself to a new name, the league has asked partners to begin scrubbing “Redskins” from their platforms in anticipation of a change that could...
Fantasy Sports: Pirates pitching sleepers, sneaky saves, home run totals, NFL signings and trades
This week’s Fantasy Sports podcast takes a look at potential Pirates surprises in a shortened season. Jeff Erickson of RotoWire has a few. He says Joe Musgrove and Mitch Keller have a chance to pop in the pitching rotation. Musgrove may outperform his average draft ranking. And if Keller can...
NFL players banned from exchanging jerseys after gamesVideo
NFL teams will be prohibited from post-game interactions within 6 feet of each other, so players won’t be allowed to exchange jerseys after games as part of the guidelines to help limit the spread of the coronavirus. The restrictions are outlined in the game-day protocols finalized by the league and...
Browns give season-ticket holders opt-out optionVideo
Planning for a season they acknowledge will be “very different,” the Cleveland Browns told their season-ticket holders they can opt out of the 2020 season without penalty and described other plans related to the covid-19 virus and its impact on the NFL. The Browns sent a letter to their fans...
First Call: Gerrit Cole’s pandemic problem, NHL TV schedule, robot fans, no Cleveland for Clowney
Thursday’s “First Call” features a pandemic problem for Gerrit Cole. Might we see robot fans at games? The potential rebooted NHL television schedule is interesting. And the Cleveland Browns appear to be out when it comes to Jadeveon Clowney. Covid conundrum for Cole Former Pirate Gerrit Cole made a simulated...
Running back Raheem Mostert to 49ers: Trade me or pay meVideo
Raheem Mostert wants a new contract. Again. And he deserves one. Again, only this time after emerging as much more than a special-teams ace. Mostert broke out last season as the 49ers’ leading and most explosive rusher, after agreeing to a three-year, $9 million contract in the 2019 offseason. Mostert’s...
Maryland governor on Redskins: Probably time to change nameVideo
ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said Wednesday he believes the name of Washington’s professional football team “probably should be changed,” though he supported the team’s name when he ran for governor in 2014. Hogan, a moderate Republican and a critic of President Donald Trump, was asked on NBC’s...
