FOOTBALL NFL ARTICLES

These teams will meet on Monday night in the regular season opener, so don’t expect many fireworks when the Oakland Raiders and Los Angeles Rams hook up in Week 2 of the preseason. It’s rare to see teams that play during the regular season have a preseason matchup, but that’s the case here. The Raiders will be playing their first game in the Coliseum since leaving Los Angeles and returning to the Bay Area following the 1994 campaign.... 

The Los Angeles Chargers might want to stop scheduling the Seattle Seahawks during the preseason. The teams have met 12 times for an exhibition game since 2002 and Seattle has won nine of those matchups, including the last six. We probably won’t see anything too exotic from these clubs when they meet in Week 2 of the preseason since they are scheduled to face each other in early November in the Pacific Northwest. We will get our first glimpse of Philip Rivers this year as he is set to make his s... 

Recent happenings in Columbus have shaken the college football world. But despite the uncertainty surrounding Urban Meyer, the Ohio State Buckeyes remain the favorite to capture another Big Ten title. The East Division is loaded with four of the five favorites playing on that side. Should the Buckeyes wilt under the pressure, Michigan, Penn State and Michigan State are all there to claim the division and reach the title game. ... 

Both teams showed they still have plenty of work to do if they want to enter the playoff conversation for the upcoming season. For the New York Giants it was much of the same for an offense that scored more points than only winless Cleveland last year. In a matchup with the Browns last week, the G-Men produced 10 points while dropping their preseason opener. After dropping a game in Oakland last week, rookie coach Matt Patricia will make his Detroit Lions home debut when his club entertains Big Blue in Week 2 preseason action. ... 

The Miami Dolphins are hoping the return of Ryan Tannehill and a remade roster can get them back to the postseason. Finally healthy and recovered from injuries, Tannehill played his first game since near the end of the 2016 season when he was behind center in the Fins preseason opener last week. He looked confident, mobile and excited to be back on the field. Now he needs to transfer those emotions to the rest of the team as they look to recover from a 6-win last season. Tannehill takes another step when the Fins visit the Carolina Panthers in Week 2 of the preseason. ... 

There have been plenty of issues with the Cleveland Browns over the years, but the biggest has to be their sad history with quarterbacks. However, it looks like they may have gotten one right for a change. After years of whiffs in the draft, the Brownies landed Baker Mayfield with the first overall pick in 2018. Making his NFL debut last week, Mayfield had a firm grasp of the offense, tossing a pair of touchdown passes in a Browns victory. Tyrod Taylor remains the team’s starter, according to Hue Jackson, but Mayfield will continue to get reps against the Buffalo Bills in Week 2 of the preseason. ... 

There is plenty of hype surrounding the New Orleans Saints entering the 2018 season. Several monster draft classes have restored the team to a version closely resembling the Super Bowl champs from several years ago rather than the club that won seven games in three consecutive years. One player who’s been around for it all is Drew Brees, but he’ll give way to a trio of players vying for the backup job when the Saints host the Arizona Cardinals in Week 2 of the preseason. ... 

It’s a rematch of the last Super Bowl in name only. Most of the players who made that a memorable contest will play very little if at all when the Philadelphia Eagles visit the New England Patriots in Week 2 of the preseason. Philly is being cautious with its quarterbacks having sat Carson Wentz and Nick Foles last week. Tom Brady has played sparingly in the preseason over the past several years, but could see his first action if his back is feeling better. And he’d love to get another crack at ... 

Dan Quinn knows what he has on his Atlanta Falcons roster, but he would certainly like to see more than what the group accomplished in its preseason opener. With Matt Ryan playing one series, and Julio Jones and Devonta Freeman not playing at all, the Falcons were shutout in a loss to the Jets. Quinn and Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid are more concerned with getting reps in specific situations rather than the outcome of the game, but the way both teams lost is unsettling. They will try to ge... 

If the Washington Redskins thought their injury woes from last season were behind them, they were sorely mistaken. It’s hard to say just how much they lost when Derrius Guice went down in last week’s game with an ACL injury since he hadn’t played a game. But a promising training camp was expected to translate into on-field production that would revamp the Skins running game. Now it’s back to the drawing board for Jay Gruden, who will search for answers beginning with the Skins Week 2 preseason g... 

If the Washington Redskins thought their injury woes from last season were behind them, they were sorely mistaken. It’s hard to say just how much they lost when Derrius Guice went down in last week’s game with an ACL injury since he hadn’t played a game. But a promising training camp was expected to translate into on-field production that would revamp the Skins running game. Now it’s back to the drawing board for Jay Gruden, who will search for answers beginning with the Skins Week 2 preseason game against the New York Jets. ... 

The Arizona Cardinals have only been under .500 once in the past five seasons but the oddsmakers believe a rebuilding year is on the horizon. The team’s coach, Bruce Arians, and its quarterback, Carson Palmer, both retired in January which has ushered in a new era. ... 

The Los Angeles Rams sneaked up on the NFL a year ago, making the playoffs despite low expectations. That won’t be the case this year as they are among the projected contenders in the NFC and have an over-under win total set in the double digits. ... 

The Seattle Seahawks have been one of the best teams in the NFL for several years but had a rough offseason, losing many key players either through injury or free agency. Star quarterback Russell Wilson is still around to lead the way but expectations are much lower this season than in the past. ... 

The San Francisco 49ers have been rebuilding for a few years but believe this season will show the fruits of that labor. Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo was fantastic down the stretch of 2017 after being acquired via trade and is a big reason why there is so much optimism in San Francisco. ... 

No team was struck with the injury stick more than the Washington Redskins last season, and that played a major part in them winning just seven games. Still, the fact that they won that many games with a decimated roster is promising as they look to eclipse that total in 2018. The team didn’t make many roster moves this offseason, but the big one involves the most important position on the field. After years of roster haggling with Kirk Cousins, the two parted ways and the Skins will look to Alex Smith to lead them back to the postseason. ... 

The Philadelphia Eagles snuck up on everybody last season to post a NFL-high 13 regular season victories, claim the NFC East title and win the ultimate prize, their first Super Bowl title. Repeating that glorious run will be difficult now that the target is on their back. Coming off a 7-win season and last place division finish in 2016, expectations weren’t exactly high. But the Eagles started to piece together a talented roster led by Carson Wentz. The QB wasn’t on the field during Philly’s memorable playoff run and that should make him hungry to win his own Lombardi Trophy. ... 

There’s always optimism when a team brings in a new coach and addresses one if its most crucial needs with a top draft pick. And that’s exactly the case with the New York Giants. But can Pat Shurmur clean up the mess left by former coach Ben McAdoo, and is Eli Manning still an elite quarterback at his advanced age? The G-Men are coming off a franchise record 13 losses last season and winning eight games might be too much to ask in 2018. ... 

There is good news and there is bad news for the Dallas Cowboys as they look to get back to the postseason after sitting out the festivities last year. The good news is that Ezekiel Elliott should be around for a full season, and that makes the offense much better. The bad news is that the passing game took a big hit with the retirement of Jason Witten and the release of Dez Bryant. The Boys won nine games last season, and if they get the 2016 Dak Prescott instead of the 2017 version, that number is well within reach this year. ... 

It’s easy to see why Dallas’ Ezekiel Elliott is the favorite to lead the NFL in rushing in 2018. As a rookie two years ago, Zeke exploded on the scene and topped the circuit with a Cowboys rookie record 1,631 yards, a total that was more than 300 yards better than what second place Jordan Howard amassed.... 

The evolution of the passing game in the NFL has led to some massive numbers. Last season six players had over 1,200 receiving yards and 15 topped the 1K plateau. More of the same is expected in 2018 and there are a number of talented pass-catchers who have the ability and play in a system that will allow them to record a league-high number.... 

The Arizona Cardinals didn’t go through a rebuild, but they will look a lot different than what we saw last season. The retirement of Bruce Arians and Carson Palmer reshaped the franchise and expectations have plummeted. But it’s not like the Cards were world beaters the past two years, failing to produce a winning record. In steps Steve Wilks as one of seven new head coaches this season, and Sam Bradford is the expected starter, though top pick Josh Rosen will push for playing time. The new-loo... 

Phase II of the New York Jets rebuild was complete when the team got its quarterback of the future in the recent draft. Many thought Sam Darnold would be the No. 1 overall pick back in April, but the Jets had their sights on the USC slinger and got him at third. Darnold is competing to be the Jets quarterback of the present and will get plenty of opportunities to show he’s the guy when the Jets take on the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the preseason.... 

The Oakland Raiders dipped into their past to guide them into the future. The most successful coach the team has had since they returned to the Bay Area in 1995, Jon Gruden is back on the sideline after a nine-year stint in the broadcast booth. During his four seasons from 1998 to 2001, the Raiders never had a losing record and twice won the AFC West. In the 16 years in between stints, the Raiders have two winning seasons and one division title. Some fear Gruden’s old-school coaching tactics won... 

Talk about irony, Saturday’s preseason opener between the Minnesota Vikings and Denver Broncos is lathered in it. After taking the Vikes to the NFC Championship last season, Case Keenum was allowed to walk as the team looked to upgrade the position by signing Kirk Cousins. Keenum agreed to terms with Denver and will be facing his former team in his first game in a Broncos uniform. Keenum resurrected his career to become a starter for the first time and will be looked on by the Broncos to help th...