Month: October 2016

‘Undrafted’ star Mariel Cooper awaits next NFL call

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By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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Throughout his life, Mariel Cooper has frequently had to call an audible.

When his father became ill and his mother had to pick up the slack, Cooper had to grow up quicker than most. When he was cut from his high school football team as a sophomore, he had to instead spend the season as a team manager, because it was as close to the game as he could get. When he was injured and his test scores didn’t qualify to get him into Clemson, the school to which he committed, he had to change his choice to Division I-FCS South Carolina State.

That’s enough major adjustments for anyone’s first 25 to 30 years of life. Cooper faced another after he wasn’t selected by an NFL team in the 2016 draft, a journey chronicled in NFL Network’s Undrafted, airing on Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET. Continue reading →

Brady returns to greatness on road to lead Pats over Browns

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By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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For the second week in a row, Week 5 was one that called for some credit for road squads. Of the first 13 games of the week, six were won by teams away from home. The visitors brought home a few statement wins, including a game that saw the return of one future Hall of Fame quarterback. These are your best performers in unfriendly confines.

Greatest on the Road …

Tom Brady, New England Patriots

It was just a typical lost Sunday in Cleveland for the Browns. Nothing to write about here. Oh wait, that’s right, a certain quarterback, wildly popular in the New England region and one of the best to ever play the position, was set to take the field for the first time this season. Seems notable enough for a little extra attention. Continue reading →

Thirty-six things we learned from Week 5

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By Around The NFL staff
NFL.com
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Welcome to Week 5! Tom Brady returned with a vengeance in Cleveland, while the Browns lost their third quarterback due to injury. The Battle for the Beltway came down to the last minute. Marcus Mariota and the Titans got back on track in South Beach. The Vikings are still undefeated. Here’s what we’ve learned so far:

Tennessee Titans 30, Miami Dolphins 17

1. The exotic smashmouth was fun to talk about in the preseason. Who doesn’t enjoy exotic things? But when Tennessee’s offensive line is creating holes wide enough for dump trucks to barrel through, that’s when it truly flourishes. That was Sunday for the Titans, who rushed for 235 yards and rarely saw a running play end without of a gain of at least five yards. DeMarco Murray ran with authority finishing with 121 yards on 27 carries. Tennessee mixed up traditional power runs with zone read plays, leading to a 60-yard rushing day for Marcus Mariota. Derrick Henry deserves credit for his 54 yards on seven carries, too. Continue reading →

Bold predictions: Broncos hold Ryan under 250 yards

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By Around The NFL staff
NFL.com
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Week 5 of the NFL season is upon us, and that means it’s time for another round of bold predictions. As always, this week’s edition of fearless prognostications includes a macho helping of audaciousness and abandon as we head into Sunday and Monday’s contests. Warning: these predictions are not for the faint of heart.

Denver holds Matt Ryan to under 250 yards

Matt Ryan — yes, that Matt Ryan — leads the NFL in passing yards after four weeks, thanks in part to a 503-yard performance in a Week 4 win over Carolina. The Falcons have won three straight and look to be red-hot offensively, but they run into a steel trap of a defense in the Broncos. Denver is the second-best unit in the league against the pass, allowing just 169.5 yards per game through the air. Using a mix of 3-4 base defense and the six-defensive-back Dime package (Denver has used one of the two personnel groupings 95.2 percent of defensive downs, per Next Gen Stats), a Broncos secondary featuring Aqib Talib and Chris Harris Jr. shuts down Matty Ice and takes it one step further by blanketing Julio Jones, who exploded for 300 yards last week. Ryan records just his second game under 250 yards this season and Atlanta falls back to Earth, seeing its winning streak snapped after a frustrating afternoon in the Mile High City.

— Nick Shook

To read the full Week 5 bold predictions from the Around the NFL writers, click here.

Next Gen Stats: Variety helps Julio Jones, Falcons carve up Panthers

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By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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We’ve all taken a look at the box score from Atlanta’s surprising win over Carolina. Was it a changing of the guard? It’s too soon to tell. But it was a day to remember for Matt Ryan and Julio Jones.

Ryan exceeded 500 yards passing and connected on four passing touchdowns in a high-scoring affair. Three-hundred of Ryan’s 503 yards belonged to Jones. Numbers like that command attention and explanation, and it grabbed ours. Continue reading →

Oklahoma Drill: Jeremiah Allison

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Interview by Nick Shook
Sept. 27, 2016
NFL.com
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The former Washington State linebacker is one of the featured players in Season 3 of NFL Network’s “Undrafted”, which airs every Tuesday through Nov. 1 at 8 p.m. ET on NFL Network. Allison discusses the eight-episode series, his late mother’s influence and his experience at the Minneapolis regional combine.

NFL Media’s Oklahoma Drill series presents exclusive, quick-hitting one-on-one interviews with players and coaches from around the league. No nonsense — just football experiences directly from the source.

I’ve been playing chess since I was 3. My goal is always to be three moves ahead, and I have to know when I move this pawn or I move this knight. What are the consequences that can happen when I move this piece? Because my whole thing is, you can apply the game of chess to life. You have to be very strategic in what you do, because that can determine the entire fate of the game.

My first offer came from UCLA. It felt really good when I knew that my mom wouldn’t have to pay for me to go to college. And that I knew I was going to college and [scholarship offers] just start coming in. It feels good, but you’re put in another category, because you can’t do certain things that your friends can do [because of NCAA rules] who aren’t getting recruited because you have a lot riding on what you’re doing.

My biggest fear already happened to me, and that was losing my mom. I was scared to death. But when that happened, it kind of opened things up for me a bit. It relaxed me a little bit. Continue reading →

Injuries: Jones wouldn’t rule Dez Bryant out Sunday

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By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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Dez Bryant‘s hairline knee fracture kept him out of the Cowboys‘ Week 4 win over the San Francisco 49ers, and NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Sunday the injury could keep him out one to two weeks.

Jerry Jones is taking the optimist’s route.

“I wouldn’t rule him out against Cincinnati,” Jones said Tuesday, per 105.3 FM The Fan. Continue reading →

John Fox hints Brian Hoyer could remain Bears’ starter

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By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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For the first time all season, Bears fans have something to smile about Monday, and much of that is thanks to Brian Hoyer.

No, you didn’t read that wrong. Hoyer, who was last notable for his playoff meltdown with the Houston Texans in a shutout loss to the Kansas City Chiefs last season, balled out (relatively speaking) Sunday in the Bears’ 17-14 win, completing 28 of 36 passes for 302 yards and two touchdowns. Continue reading →

Drew Brees gets wild win, sweet revenge in San Diego

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By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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What a week for road teams. Seven of the week’s first 14 games ended with wins for the visitors, included a surprising shutout win on the part of Buffalo over New England, and two stunning comebacks for Oakland and New Orleans. Those late-game heroics, plus a great pass in a close finish in Arizona gave us our candidates for this week’s Greatest on the Road.

Greatest on the Road …

Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints

Much has been made over the years when looking in hindsight at the San Diego Chargers right around the year 2005. Drew Brees, 32nd-overall selection of the Chargers out of Purdue, was on the way out. A shoulder injury to Brees in 2005 hastened the process of the Chargers hitting reset by turning to second-year quarterback Philip Rivers and offering Brees a contract he rebuffed, leading him to sign with New Orleans. Sunday was Brees’ first trip back to Qualcomm Stadium since the divorce, and he made it one to remember. Continue reading →