owl Page 43 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

How Joe Burrow got his groove back
When the Seattle Seahawks defensive coaches go over the game tape of Cincinnati Bengals vs. Arizona Cardinals with players, the first play that they should show is Joe Burrow’s 10-yard scramble at the end of the third quarter. The second should be Burrow running in a literal circle to evade a rusher...

A lot of NFL teams tanking for Caleb Williams already have a QB
If you’ve found yourself noticing more bad football than usual in the NFL, you’re not wrong. After five weeks, there are seven teams with one win or fewer, and none of them are the New York Jets, Houston Texans, or Washington Commanders. The New York Giants, Minnesota Vikings, New England Patriots, ...

The San Francisco 49ers sure look like the next Super Bowl champs
I was tempted to turn the Sunday Night Football game off when Cris Collinsworth said that the San Francisco 49ers “throw slants to the fullback,” after Kyle Juszczyk caught a seven-yard pass off of a slant route. Collinsworth, forcing me to listen to what I just saw, snapped me out of my trance. I t...

Maybe we should just ban adults from all sporting events
Asking adults to conduct themselves in a mature manner, unfortunately, is a big ask. Decency and common sense do not automatically come with age. Adults act poorly in restaurants, department stores, airline flights, and pretty much any other public space. Sporting events from T-Ball to the Super Bow...

Even Bill Belichick can’t Geppetto New England’s wooden offense to life
Bill Belichick, or whatever is left of him, has had a nominal interest in opening up the New England offense for years now. His interest in the offensive side is merely a cursory obligation. The rules require Belichick to field a quarterback under center but since the day Tom Brady cut ties with him...

Buffalo really dropped the ball against the London-Jacksonville Jaguars
After putting a major league beatdown on the Miami Dolphins last week, it looked like the Buffalo Bills were taking a step toward separating themselves in a highly competitive AFC. One game after scoring 48 points against a hot Dolphins squad, the Bills couldn’t even muster up half of that in Week 5...

Cooper Kupp to make season debut for Rams alongside Puka Nacua
Los Angeles Rams All-Pro wide receiver Cooper Kupp makes his season debut in Week 5 after missing the second half of last year due to injury. Kupp’s return couldn’t come at a better time as LA hosts Philly. In his absence, a new and unlikely star in rookie WR Puka Nacua has emerged as another dynami...

The Miami Dolphins and San Francisco 49ers can afford to gamble
A couple of early season behemoths in the NFL rolled the dice with house money Friday as the San Francisco 49ers’ defense got scarier with the addition of edge rusher Randy Gregory, and the Miami Dolphins’ offense folded Chase Claypool into a ridiculously talented group of skill players. The two tra...

Colin Kaepernick should absolutely play in the XFL
That Colin Kaepernick will never take another NFL snap should surprise no one, not after a six-year absence, an eight-figure settlement over the league’s blatant collusion to keep him off the field and especially not at his advanced age of 35, when arguably all but the luckiest, elite QBs have begun...

Trade talk is the nadir of sports journalism
Imagine being a Chicago Bears fan — I know empathy is hard, but just try — and going through what they did Thursday only to open ESPN on Friday and see a bunch of misguided, braindead analysts talking about trading Justin Fields. Over his past two starts, the Chicago QB is 43-for-64 for 627 yards wi...

Never play the Bears on a day when a team legend dies. Everyone knows this
Let me take you back to Nov. 7, 1999. ...

Brock Purdy still lives like a backup quarterback
Brock Purdy appears to be a frugal man. As the final pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, I do not blame him. Careers for the player selected in that spot tend to not last long, and he had the expensive pleasure of being drafted by a team in California. The San Francisco 49ers play and practice in Santa Clar...

There's no truly dominant NFL team so far this season
Heading into Week 5 of the 2023 NFL season there still isn’t a team that’s jumped out ahead of the pack as the clear-cut favorite being head and shoulders above the rest. We always hear the word parity, and we see it even at the top with the best teams. Nobody looks like a world-beater who could ree...

Taylor Swift is the first woman the NFL has ever prioritized. And it's nothing worth celebrating
The NFL doesn’t care about Taylor Swift — or women. Like most men, the NFL only cares about what Taylor Swift — and women — can do for them. ...

It seems the only jab Aaron Rodgers will take is one at Travis Kelce
There is no antidote or vaccine available for Aaron Rodgers’ brain worm infestation. He’s always been a doofus of his own making. During an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, a humbled Rodgers used his opportunity to applaud the New York Jets defense to insert a dig at Travis Kelce by referring to h...

Baker Mayfield is doing his best Tom Brady (at 45) impression
A season ago, the Philadelphia Eagles eased into the playoffs, and the No. 1 seed, behind Jalen Hurts, a great defense, and a favorable schedule. Their out-of-division matchups were the NFC North, and the AFC South; a combo almost guaranteed to net solid returns for really any organization. I say th...

Do the Giants hate Daniel Jones that much?
I get it. Daniel Jones’ new contract guarantees him $82 million over the first two seasons. That is a lot of money for a player in his fifth year who has never averaged even seven yards per pass attempt for an entire season. After a surprise playoff appearance, and a Wild-Card Weekend victory, the N...

Here are all the 200+ Strikeout Seasons, by franchise, in MLB history
Immaculate Grid has been a hit with baseball stat geeks since its launch in April. While the stats puzzle has since expanded to basketball, football, hockey, and soccer, it’s still baseball that makes the game what it is. So if you need help filling out your daily grid, give these stats a look:...

The Commanders shouldn’t lose until they play the Eagles again
What is it about when Washington plays in Philadelphia? They have an even record at Lincoln Financial Field over the last four years and I get that’s not impressive by itself. The Eagles have been one of the NFL’s best teams over the last few seasons and dominant against the NFC. The public meeting ...

Dak Prescott is 'pissed' and he better stay that way against the 49ers
The Dallas Cowboys are flying high again after demolishing the New England Patriots, 38-3. This Week 4 matchup was a breeze compared to last week against the Arizona Cardinals. And now Dallas faces its biggest test of the season as they travel west to face San Francisco. ...