NFL News Updates

Author: nfltalk

  • Indiana football running back Trent Howland will stay, leaves transfer portal

    Indiana football running back Trent Howland will stay, leaves transfer portal

    BLOOMINGTON – IU got more good news on offense Sunday, when redshirt junior running back Trent Howland announced his intention to withdraw from the transfer portal and return to Bloomington.

    Howland, who has two years of eligibility remaining, rose through the running back rotation and landed the Hoosiers’ No. 1 spot late in the season. He finished the 2023 season with 75 carries for 354 yards (4.7 ypc), and a pair of touchdowns.

    Much of that production came in the second half of the season. Over Indiana’s last six games, Howland rushed for 283 yards and the TDs.

    From the portal: IU lands mammoth OL Trey Wedig from Wisconsin

    His return doubles coach Curt Cignetti’s fortune for the weekend, after honorable mention All-Big Ten wide receiver Donaven McCulley announced his intention to withdraw from the portal.

    Now, Cignetti has a running back with a rising ceiling to plug into his offense as well, as he rebuilds the roster he inherited from Tom Allen.

    Follow IndyStar reporter Zach Osterman on Twitter: @ZachOsterman.

    This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana football running back Trent Howland leaves transfer portal

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  • Falcons lead Panthers 7-3 at halftime

    Falcons lead Panthers 7-3 at halftime

    The Falcons and Panthers took a while to find the scoreboard, but both teams were able to get on it before the end of the first half.

    Falcons running back Cordarrelle Patterson caught a two-yard touchdown from Desmond Ridder to kick off the scoring in the second quarter and Panthers kicker Eddy Pineiro kicked a 34-yard field goal to cut their lead to 7-3 with 22 seconds left to play in the half.

    Patterson’s touchdown came a few plays after the biggest offensive play of the day for either team. Ridder and tight end Jonnu Smith hooked up for a 56-yard gain that moved them inside the 10-yard-line for the first time on the day.

    The Falcons had 86 yards of offense outside of the Smith play and the Panthers have 112 yards in a game that’s playing out in a heavy rainstorm in Charlotte.

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  • 2023-24 college football bowl games schedule, scores, TV channels, dates, kickoff times, locations

    2023-24 college football bowl games schedule, scores, TV channels, dates, kickoff times, locations

    Getty Images

    The full college football bowl game schedule following the 2023 season features 43 contests spanning three weeks in December and January. Action begins on Dec. 16 with seven exciting contests and runs through Jan. 8, when a College Football Playoff national champion will be crowned at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas. 

    The CFP semifinals return to New Year’s Day, with the Rose Bowl (No. 1 Michigan vs. No. 4 Alabama) and Sugar Bowl (No. 2 Washington vs. No. 3 Texas) appropriately playing semifinal hosts for the fourth time since the CFP’s implementation in 2014. The 2023-24 bowl season will also be the last featuring a four-team field for the CFP; an expanded, 12-team playoff arrives following the 2024 season. 

    As part of bowl season, CBS will continue its run broadcasting the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl between Notre Dame and Oregon State. Kick is set for 2 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 29 in El Paso, Texas.

    Below is a detailed look at the complete schedule for the 2023-24 college football season, including dates, locations and TV channels and scores. All times are Eastern. 

    2022-23 college football bowl schedule

    College Football Playoff

    Jan. 8

    National Championship
    Houston, Texas

    7:30 p.m. (ESPN)

    Semifinal winners

    Jan. 1

    Sugar
    New Orleans, La.

    8:30 p.m. (ESPN)

    (2) Washington vs. (3) Texas

    Jan. 1

    Rose
    Pasadena, Calif.

    5 p.m. (ESPN)

    (1) Michigan vs. (4) Alabama

    New Year’s Six bowl games

    Jan. 1

    Fiesta
    Glendale, Ariz. 

    1 p.m. (ESPN)

    (8) Oregon vs. (23) Liberty

    Dec. 30…

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  • Josh Allen could make a late run at MVP

    Josh Allen could make a late run at MVP

    Last year, Bills quarterback Josh Allen spent much of the season as the favorite to win the NFL MVP award. This year, Allen is more of a long shot, at 20-1 as of Friday.

    By Monday, those odds could change.

    If the Bills beat the Cowboys on Sunday to move to 8-6, Allen’s eleventh-hour case will be strengthened. The Bills lean on him heavily. If he carries them to the AFC East title, which remains very possible, why wouldn’t he be the MVP?

    It won’t be easy. The Cowboys are balanced and dangerous. But the Bills just went to Kansas City and beat the Chiefs. And the Bills need to pick up only one game in the standings over the next three weeks to turn the Week 18 game at Miami into an AFC East championship.

    If the Bills steal the division from the Dolphins, why not Josh Allen? He’s one of the best players in the league, and it’s mainly just him making things happen.

    How is that not valuable? How does that not make the most valuable player in Buffalo also the most valuable player in the league?

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  • David Pollack crowns best TE in CFB history

    David Pollack crowns best TE in CFB history

    Georgia football legend David Pollack is one of three Bulldogs to to be named first-team All-American three times. Heisman-winning running back Herschel Walker is one of the other two.

    The third is tight end Brock Bowers, who earned his third first-team All-American honor this month, capping off a generational career in Athens and cementing his name in UGA lore forever.

    “Best college football tight end of all time. CONGRATS, Captain America!!” Pollack wrote on X.

    Bowers is also the only player in college football history to win the Mackey Award, given to the nation’s top tight end, twice.

    He’s expected to enter the 2024 NFL draft and is widely considered a top-10 pick and for good reason.

    Bowers established UGA tight end records for single-season receptions (56), receiving yards (882) and touchdowns (13) in his freshman season of 2021. His 13 touchdown catches are also a single-season UGA record by any pass catcher.

    The Napa, Calif., native eclipsed his own tight end receiving records in 2022 with 63 catches for 942 yards.

    Despite missing two games in 2023 due to injury, Bowers totaled 56 receptions for 714 yards and seven total touchdowns.

    No. 19 will hold a special place in Georgia faithful’s hearts for years to come.

     

    Story originally appeared on UGA Wire

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  • Brandon Staley fired: Ranking seven top candidates for Chargers head coach vacancy, including Bill Belichick

    Brandon Staley fired: Ranking seven top candidates for Chargers head coach vacancy, including Bill Belichick

    The Los Angeles Chargers finally moved on from head coach Brandon Staley on Friday, just hours after his team gave up 63 points to the Las Vegas Raiders and lost by 42. Staley was 24-24 in his three seasons as an NFL head coach, failing to win a playoff game with Justin Herbert as his quarterback. 

    Despite going to the Chargers with a defensive background, Staley’s L.A. defenses weren’t impressive. The defense never ranked higher than 20th in yards allowed per game and 27th in points allowed per game in his three years. The Chargers ranked 31st in points per game allowed (24.8) and 29th in yards allowed per game (359.6) in Staley’s three seasons.

    The Chargers will need a long-term fix with Staley and general manager Tom Telesco fired. Los Angeles is projected to be $42,186,936 over the salary cap heading into the offseason (per Over The Cap), having a roster full of overpaid players and massive holes that need to be addressed in the draft. Basically, the Chargers won’t be spending this offseason to fix this roster for 2024 and beyond. 

    Who are ideal candidates for the Chargers job given the situation? Los Angeles still has Herbert at quarterback, two great wide receivers in Keenan Allen and Mike Williams, and a franchise left tackle in Rashawn Slater. There are pieces to build around on this team. 

    Here are the top candidates based on the Chargers’ situation.

    7. Matt Campbell

    Age: 43Current role: Iowa State HC

    Campbell changed the culture at Iowa State in his eight years with the Cyclones, running an NFL-style program and building it from the ground up. He’s coached Brock Purdy and Breece Hall, paving the way for those two to have NFL success. 

    Campbell has been courted by NFL teams, but hasn’t made the jump. He’s never coached in the NFL, but is credited for using a spread passing game with a balanced running game. The main factor that makes Campbell desirable is the culture he’s…

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  • Will Rogers commits to Washington: Prolific ex-Mississippi State QB in line to replace Michael Penix Jr.

    Will Rogers commits to Washington: Prolific ex-Mississippi State QB in line to replace Michael Penix Jr.

    Former Mississippi State quarterback Will Rogers committed to Washington Friday, giving the Huskies a clear successor to star quarterback Michael Penix Jr. for the 2024 season. Rogers is one of the most accomplished quarterbacks in SEC history and will spend his final season on the West Coast to help aid UW’s transition to the Big Ten.

    Rogers signed with Mississippi State in 2020. He owns the SEC career completions record. His 12,315 passing yards and 94 passing touchdowns rank second and fourth in conference history. Rogers ranked as the No. 53 overall player available and the No. 11 quarterback available in the 247Sports portal rankings.

    The veteran signal caller had a chance to chance to break the SEC’s all-time passing record held by former Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray, but a shoulder injury suffered in an Oct. 7 win over Western Michigan forced him to miss some time. In his final game at Mississippi State against Ole Miss, Rogers completed 25 of his 39 passes for 207 yards in a 17-7 loss. 

    Washington coach Kalen DeBoer used the transfer portal to land Penix from Indiana when he took the job in 2021. Penix revived his career with the Huskies and led the program to a 13-0 record and a spot in the College Football Playoff, earning an invitation to New York City as a Heisman finalist along the way. 

    Using the transfer portal to get a veteran 

    In the new era of college football, it has become more and more common for a program to get a proven signal caller through the transfer portal over a highly-touted quarterback out of the high school ranks. Washington signed Sam Huard — the No. 3 quarterback in the 2021 recruiting cycle — and elected to instead start Penix last season. The Indiana transfer ranked as the No. 23…

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  • What to watch for in Week 15

    What to watch for in Week 15

    Game environment is the foundational starting point in making fantasy decisions. As such, I’m going to break down each game on the slate into three categories: Binge, Stream and Skip.

    Games you want to “binge” are like the show you can’t miss; you’re watching as soon as it goes live and might just crush all the episodes in one weekend. These are the start-all-your-guys fantasy games and ones with season-defining storylines.

    Games you want to “stream” are like the shows you certainly watch start to finish, but perhaps you’re finishing it over time instead of one shot. While these games might not feature a ton of “must-starts,” we can pick and choose our spots, and the teams are likely to matter in the NFL playoff picture.

    Lastly, the games you want to “skip” are like the shows you’re leaning toward passing on, but you might catch an episode here and there (or might stick to reading recaps online to stay up with the culture). There will be a non-obvious player or two who stands out in these games, but overall, they aren’t the best environment for fantasy football.

    Let’s dive into my Week 15 Fantasy Football Viewer’s Guide.

    BINGE

    DALLAS COWBOYS at BUFFALO BILLS

    The stakes couldn’t be higher on both sides. The Buffalo Bills need every win they can get down the stretch to make the playoffs after stumbling at the mid-point of the season. Their margin for error is at a stone zero.

    The Cowboys are in a race with the Eagles to win the NFC East and gained some ground after wiping the floor with their division rival last week. Not to mention, a quality win over Josh Allen and co. would go a long way toward cementing Dak Prescott’s MVP legacy.

    The name of the game for the Cowboys quarterback in this one will be to continue to elevate the non-CeeDee Lamb pass catchers. Prescott has hit Jake Ferguson in stride perfectly over the last month to set the aggressive tight end up for YAC chances. He pinned the ball perfectly on Michael Gallup for a…

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