Analysis: Joe Burrow’s calf injury hovers over Bengals amid 0-2 startVideo
CINCINNATI — The Cincinnati Bengals dropped their first two games last season and then made it all the way to the AFC championship game. This time feels a little different. The biggest concern is the health of Joe Burrow, who threw two touchdown passes in the second half of Sunday’s...
Chiefs, Patrick Mahomes agree to restructured deal to include big pay raise
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Chiefs and reigning NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes agreed to a restructure of his 10-year, $450 million contract that gives him a substantial boost in pay over the next four seasons, two people familiar with the deal told The Associated Press on Monday. The people spoke...
Mostert runs for 2 TDs, Tagovailoa throws for another as Dolphins hold off Patriots 24-17
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Tua Tagovailoa has heard a lot during his NFL career about his shortcomings. Beating the New England Patriots continues not to be one of them. Raheem Mostert had a pair of TD runs, including a 43-yard romp in the fourth quarter, and Tagovailoa added a 2-yard touchdown...
Ravens WR Odell Beckham Jr. leaves Bengals game with an ankle injury
CINCINNATI — Baltimore Ravens receiver Odell Beckham Jr. suffered an ankle injury and was ruled out of the game against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday. Beckham had been targeted four times with three catches for 29 yards when he was ruled out in the third quarter. Afterward, coach John Harbaugh...
Joe Burrow’s calf is sore again, an ominous sign for 0-2 Bengals
CINCINNATI — Joe Burrow’s calf is sore again, and that means this year’s 0-2 start may not be like last year’s for the Cincinnati Bengals. They lost their first two games in 2022 but rallied behind Burrow to finish 12-4 and win the AFC North. This year has been even...
NFL Week 2: Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs get past early mistakes to beat Jaguars, avoid 0-2 startVideo
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Patrick Mahomes threw two touchdown passes, including one to returning star Travis Kelce, and the Kansas City Chiefs overcame three early turnovers to beat Jacksonville 17-9 on Sunday for their third victory against the Jaguars in 10 months. The Chiefs (1-1) won their eighth straight in the...
Lamar Jackson, Ravens hold on to make Bengals 0-2
CINCINNATI — Lamar Jackson did more than enough to beat the Cincinnati Bengals, even without injured running back J.K. Dobbins. The Baltimore Ravens’ explosive quarterback threw two touchdown passes and extended drives with his legs as Baltimore outlasted slow-starting Cincinnati, 27-24, on Sunday. The AFC North champion Bengals fell to...
Ravens rule out Marlon Humphrey, Tyler Linderbaum, Ronnie Stanley, Marcus Williams
OWINGS MILLS, Md. — The Baltimore Ravens ruled out four key players for their game Sunday at Cincinnati. Cornerback Marlon Humphrey (foot), center Tyler Linderbaum (ankle), tackle Ronnie Stanley (knee) and safety Marcus Williams (pectoral) will miss the game. Humphrey also missed the season opener last weekend against Houston, and...
Detroit high schools produced most NFL players; Texas top state
Sauce Gardner’s hometown is practically an NFL factory. There were 19 players from Detroit high schools on NFL rosters for opening week, the most of any city. Bradenton, Fla., had the second-most players (17), followed by Houston with 16 players. “Detroit football is tough. It’s real gritty and grimy there....
Bears coordinator to miss game; coach Matt Eberflus to call defense
LAKE FOREST, Ill. — Chicago Bears defensive coordinator Alan Williams will miss Sunday’s game at Tampa Bay for personal reasons, coach Matt Eberflus said Friday. Eberflus, a former defensive coordinator with the Indianapolis Colts, will call the plays on defense. “I’ve done it for 12 years total,” Eberflus said. “Really...
Sources: Eagles’ Avonte Maddox has torn pec, likely out for rest of the seasonVideo
PHILADELPHIA — Avonte Maddox has what is believed to be a torn pectoral muscle, which likely would sideline the Eagles cornerback for the rest of the season, NFL sources said. Maddox, a Pitt product, underwent an MRI Friday morning and is expected to seek a second opinion, one source said....
Vikings’ Alexander Mattison calls out racial slurs after loss to Eagles
MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota Vikings running back Alexander Mattison received more than 60 “disgustingly disrespectful messages” through social media that included racial slurs and encouraged suicide, the fifth-year player said Friday in the aftermath of the team’s most recent loss. Mattison, who is Black, revealed on an Instagram Story post that...
Analysis: History suggests 0-2 start is too difficult to overcome in the NFLVideo
PHILADELPHIA — Two losses in five days already puts the Minnesota Vikings in a big hole that’s been difficult for NFL teams to overcome. Since 1990, only 31 of the 270 clubs (11.5%) that began a season 0-2 advanced to the playoffs. The Cincinnati Bengals recovered from losing their first...
Browns safety Juan Thornhill back at practice, could face Steelers
BEREA, Ohio — Cleveland Browns starting safety Juan Thornhill returned to practice, a promising sign for the defense going into Monday night’s game at the Pittsburgh Steelers. Thornhill, one of the Browns’ key offseason acquisitions, sat out the 24-3 win in the season opener against Cincinnati with a calf injury....
Jalen Hurts, D’Andre Swift lift Eagles past Vikings
PHILADELPHIA — Jalen Hurts ran for a pair of 1-yard touchdowns and threw a 63-yard TD pass to DeVonta Smith, D’Andre Swift ran for 175 yards and a score, and the NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles held off the turnover-prone Minnesota Vikings, 34-28, on Thursday night. Hurts, the MVP runner-up, shook...
Jets’ Zach Wilson stepping in for Aaron Rodgers with renewed confidence, swagger
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Zach Wilson was in the middle of the locker room Thursday talking about taking over for the injured Aaron Rodgers when a teammate shouted and made the New York Jets quarterback grin. “Zach, we love you, bro!” It was a light moment, but one that was...
Ravens’ Lamar Jackson is healthy this time and gets his shot to face the Bengals in CincinnatiVideo
BALTIMORE — When the Baltimore Ravens’ season came down to two big games at Cincinnati eight months ago, Lamar Jackson was absent with a knee injury. “Very tough,” the star quarterback said this week. “One, I was injured. Two, I wasn’t able to travel with my guys and support them....
Extra-large Browns rookie Dawand Jones set for colossal MNF matchup against Steelers star T.J. WattVideo
BEREA, Ohio — Cleveland Browns rookie Dawand Jones does everything extra large, so it’s no surprise his first NFL start will be on a colossal stage. Monday night. In Pittsburgh. Against Steelers star T.J. Watt. Are you ready for some football? “Can’t wait,” Cleveland’s unassuming 6-foot-8, 375-pound right tackle said...
Bills’ Josh Allen wants to put turnover woes behind him through actions, not words
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Josh Allen was short on apologies and promises on Wednesday in attempting to put behind lingering frustrations of his four-turnover dud that cost the Bills in a season-opening loss at the New York Jets two days earlier. The only way the quarterback can prove he’s better...
49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk, coming off big game vs. Steelers, earning respectVideo
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Defenses preparing to face the San Francisco 49ers have plenty to worry about with three playmakers who have been All-Pros in recent seasons. There’s running back Christian McCaffrey, who once topped 1,000 yards rushing and receiving in the same season. Then there’s Deebo Samuel, who had...
Panthers coach Frank Reich encouraged by Bryce Young’s Week 1 outingVideo
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — It’s going to take more than a season-opening loss to the Atlanta Falcons to change coach Frank Reich’s mind about Carolina Panthers rookie quarterback Bryce Young. Although Young was intercepted twice in Carolina’s 24-10 defeat on Sunday, Reich said he was encouraged by the play of the...
‘Thursday Night Football’ will use AI to help viewers better understand the action on the field
Amazon Prime Video took a different approach during the offseason as it looked to improve its coverage of “Thursday Night Football.” While most networks review the film, go to college, or seek input from teams on different ways to broadcast games, Prime Video’s production, tech, and engineering teams visited Tel...
NFLPA renews call for natural grass to help prevent injuries after Rodgers gets hurt
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The NFL Players Association wants the league to switch all its fields to natural grass, calling it “the easiest decision the NFL can make.” Executive director Lloyd Howell issued a statement Wednesday morning saying NFL players “overwhelmingly prefer it and the data is clear that grass is...
Jets’ loss of Aaron Rodgers is reminiscent of other QB injuries for Super Bowl contenders
Longtime New York Jets fans are all too familiar with the pain that comes from having a promising season derailed as soon as it started by a quarterback injury. Twenty-four years to the day from when Vinny Testaverde’s ruptured Achilles tendon in the season opener ruined the 1999 season for...
Ex-NFL receiver Mike Williams dies 2 weeks after being injured in construction accident
TAMPA, Fla. — Former NFL receiver Mike Williams, who was injured in a construction accident two weeks ago and later put on a ventilator, died Tuesday, his agent said. He was 36. Williams, who played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Buffalo Bills from 2010-14, died at St. Joseph’s Hospital...
