nfl – The News Desk

Why Gaelic footballers have the NFL’s attention: ‘These lads can kick balls’

14Apr

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Why Gaelic footballers have the NFL’s attention: ‘These lads can kick balls’

TAMPA, Fla. — A tall lad with tousled brown hair and ruddy cheeks flipped through the pages of his light green leather notebook, looking at “wee reminders” to get his head right.Killer mindsetYOU ABSOLUTELY DESERVE THISTeams are watching me. Brilliant! The kicking workout was the grand finale of the NFL’s International Player Pathway pro day this Wednesday afternoon at the University of South Florida. The event featured the first kickers and punters in the IPP program, which since 2017 has sought to provide players outside of North America with opportunities to play in the league.Three of the kickers were plucked straight from Gaelic football, Ireland’s most popular sport. Charlie Smyth, 22, of Down, Mark Jackson, 25, of Wicklow, and Rory Beggan, 31, of Monaghan, each left their posts as ...

NFL Draft 2024 ‘The Beast’ Guide: Dane Brugler’s scouting reports and player rankings

14Apr

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NFL Draft 2024 ‘The Beast’ Guide: Dane Brugler’s scouting reports and player rankings

Finally! It’s here. I’m thrilled to share this year’s draft guide with everyone. I don’t remember who first referred to it as “The Beast,” but I use that moniker as motivation to make sure this annual primer lives up to the nickname — and I don’t think I’ve let you down this year.Every NFL prospect is a puzzle. And it is a scout’s job to find the puzzle pieces to create as clear a picture of each player as possible. Those puzzle pieces include everything from the player’s physical traits to his mental makeup to the details of his upbringing — and everything in between.That’s precisely how I attack this draft guide. Over the last 18 months, I’ve collected as many puzzle pieces as I could dig up, through countless hours of tape study and conversations with prospects, scouts and other source...

As a son and brother, Penn State’s Adisa Isaac ‘juggled a lot’ — now comes the NFL

9Apr

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As a son and brother, Penn State’s Adisa Isaac ‘juggled a lot’ — now comes the NFL

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — When Adisa Isaac was in third grade, he asked a lot of questions, as third graders do.There was one that needed thoughtful explanation: “Why are my brothers and my sister different?”His mother, Lisa Wiltshire-Isaac, expected this day would come. Of her four children, Adisa was the only one who spoke. She sat him down.His oldest brother, Kyle Wiltshire, she told him, was born with his umbilical cord wrapped around his neck. Being deprived of oxygen during his birth resulted in autism, intellectual delay, developmental disability and cerebral palsy.Y’ashua Isaac, Adisa’s next brother in line, didn’t hit some of the developmental markers as a toddler. Doctors told Lisa he had an intellectual disability and developmental delay.There had been a similar story with Adisa’s y...

NFL executives unfiltered on 2024 free agency: The best and worst from all 32 teams

3Apr

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NFL executives unfiltered on 2024 free agency: The best and worst from all 32 teams

NFL free agency continues, but with the major signings and trades complete, it’s time to check in with executives around the league for thoughts on all 32 teams’ moves to this point.There is so much to discuss, from Kirk Cousins’ Minnesota exit to the New York Jets’ desperation, the Green Bay Packers’ big additions and even what’s next for the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys as potentially tricky contract situations percolate.For each team, I’ve noted the average per-year salary (APY) of players who were added from other teams and players who left to sign with other teams, along with the differential between the two. Contract information was gathered from a variety of sources, including Over the Cap, Spotrac, media reports and league sources. Information for a few smaller contracts...

Broncos’ silence after Russell Wilson’s benching is deafening: Sando’s Pick Six

2Jan

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Broncos’ silence after Russell Wilson’s benching is deafening: Sando’s Pick Six

Cover 7 | Monday A daily NFL destination that provides in-depth analysis of football’s biggest stories. Each Monday, Mike Sando breaks down the six most impactful takeaways from the week.Deciphering the unfolding drama between the Denver Broncos’ coach and quarterback requires understanding the combatants. Coach Sean Payton and quarterback Russell Wilson are more than Super Bowl-winning NFL icons. They are also experienced in hardball tactics.Payton, one of the game’s great offensive minds, is the only head coach in league history to be suspended for a full season. When the ESPN analyst and retired NFL player Ryan Clark accused Payton of behaving as a “thug” during his Broncos tenure, the harsh commentary recalled the days when bounties were offered for injuring New Orleans Saints opponen...

Russell Wilson ‘disappointed’ Broncos planned to bench him for refusing contract change

1Jan

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Russell Wilson ‘disappointed’ Broncos planned to bench him for refusing contract change

Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson said he was “disappointed” and “surprised” when coach Sean Payton told him this week he would be benched for the season’s final two games.Wilson, speaking Friday for the first time since Payton announced Jarrett Stidham would be the team’s starting quarterback for the rest of the season, said the news took him aback in large part because the Broncos (7-8) remain in the playoff hunt entering Week 17’s matchup with the Los Angeles Chargers, a game in which Wilson will be the No. 2 quarterback.“I felt like we were doing something special and rolling,” Wilson said. “Obviously, we’ve had some tough games, some tough close ones, but we’ve still got a chance. At the end of the day, what God’s got for me, I’m going to keep trusting in him. I’m going to ke...

Joe Flacco is finding love again in Cleveland

31Dec

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Joe Flacco is finding love again in Cleveland

CLEVELAND — Before Joe Flacco ever threw his first pass in a Browns jersey, tight ends coach T.C. McCartney tried warning them. Nobody knew what to expect from a 38-year-old quarterback who looked like his best days in football were 10 years and three teams ago, but McCartney still believed. He spent the 2019 season as Flacco’s quarterbacks coach in Denver and knew the old man could still spin it. Then Flacco walked onto the practice field to run the scout team and quickly scored a touchdown against the Browns’ league-leading defense. Then he did it again. And again. And again. Depending on who you ask, Flacco tore up the defense for five or six touchdowns running the scout team. Or maybe it was seven or eight. Flacco’s brief time running the scout team is already legendary, just like the...

Ever wonder what NFL travel is like? Take a peek behind the scenes with the N.Y. Giants

31Dec

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Ever wonder what NFL travel is like? Take a peek behind the scenes with the N.Y. Giants

When Giants rookie running back Eric Gray took his first NFL road trip in August for joint practices and a preseason game in Detroit, he expected to have a roommate in the team hotel — like he had in college.“We stayed there for a week, and you had 90 guys on the squad then,” Gray said. “I’m thinking everybody’s not going to have their own room with 90 guys, but we did.”Gray experienced first-class travel accommodations while playing for college powerhouses Tennessee and Oklahoma. But having his own room on the road was a perk he didn’t experience until he reached the NFL.“That was pretty sweet,” Gray said.Every aspect of an NFL road trip is designed to maximize performance and eliminate any of the stresses of commercial travel. For players, the trips, which typically span about 36 hours ...

What now for Russell Wilson? Patriots, Raiders and other NFL team fits for 2024

30Dec

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What now for Russell Wilson? Patriots, Raiders and other NFL team fits for 2024

Russell Wilson’s ride with the Denver Broncos may be over.Multiple league sources confirmed Wednesday the Broncos will bench the quarterback for their final two games and start Jarrett Stidham. Denver (7-8) hosts the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday and visits the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 18. Wilson will be the No. 2 quarterback, a team source said.Wilson expects to be cut in March, per The Athletic’s Dianna Russini. That would be just two years after the Broncos traded two first-round picks, two second-round picks, three players and more to Seattle for the quarterback, a nine-time Pro Bowler with the Seahawks.GO DEEPERBroncos' trade for Russell Wilson was a disaster, but blame extends past QBWilson has thrown for 3,070 yards with 26 touchdowns and eight interceptions this season, his firs...

Joe Flacco is finally receiving his due. But he can’t return to Browns next year

29Dec

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Joe Flacco is finally receiving his due. But he can’t return to Browns next year

BEREA, Ohio — Nobody is going to feel sorry for Joe Flacco. He’s won a Super Bowl MVP and made more than $175 million in his career. He’s winning at life. And yet …There’s just something about Flacco’s 16 years in the NFL that has been gnawing at me while watching this incredible last-chapter renaissance. He was always good, always consistent in his prime, but never quite elite. He never received a single MVP vote but Carson Wentz, Derek Carr and Tony Romo did. He never even appeared in a Pro Bowl. He was invited once but passed because his wife was due with their third child.He was beloved — still is — by a large portion of the fan base in Baltimore, yet he was always overshadowed by Hall of Famers like Ray Lewis and Ed Reed. That Ravens defense still typically gets the bulk of the credi...