Last week’s success was likely determined by the number of Lions you had stacked in your lineup and if you played Taysom Hill.

Playing Hill (and his 46.52 DraftKings points) alone was probably enough to cash in most daily tournaments. I included The Human Swiss Army Knife in this space the previous two weeks to mixed results, and missed out ...Read more

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Brock Purdy pulled off his gray 49ers sweatshirt Friday and, as he headed for the locker room showers, his sore right shoulder was exposed.

There was no noticeable swelling or lump, aside from minor marks via treatment he received since last Sunday’s once-subtle injury. His muscular 24-year-old build appeared stout as ...Read more

MIAMI — If you built your fantasy football team around the Miami Dolphins, odds are you’re not that happy.

It wasn’t a necessarily a bad idea. The 2023 Dolphins offense put up record-setting numbers. Tyreek Hill was on pace for 2,000 yards at one point. Raheem Mostert scored a league-high 21 touchdowns. De’Von Achane ran for more than ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — After the Rams hired Sean McVay in 2017, general manager Les Snead was eager to see the 30-year-old's head-coaching process at work.

During McVay's first seven seasons, Snead often observed McVay in the coach's office, busily scheming plays. Reading motivational books. Meeting with coaches, players and team executives.

So Snead...Read more

ATLANTA — It seemed once as if the Falcons finally had a good defense. That turned out to be a fleeting moment. The group now ranks bottom 10 in the NFL in nearly every statistical category. The Falcons could use help from one of the draft prospects they passed over with the No. 8 pick in favor of one who hasn’t played a meaningful snap this...Read more

BOSTON — Patriots safety Jabrill Peppers, who pleaded not guilty in October on charges of assault, strangulation and drug possession, is scheduled to go to trial on Jan. 22.

Peppers’ attorney Marc Brofsky said in court Friday that the woman accusing his client of assault demanded $10.5 million from Peppers.

“It technically may not be ...Read more

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Chiefs’ defense remains a top-five unit in fewest total yards and rushing yards allowed. It’s top 10 in fewest points and first downs surrendered.

So why does it feel like the Chiefs are slumping?

Last weekend the Buffalo Bills became the first team to hang 30 on the Chiefs since the Philadelphia Eagles in Super ...Read more

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — No Brock Purdy. No Nick Bosa. No chance for the 49ers on Sunday in Green Bay?

“We’re missing two good players definitely but we’ll have a lot of good players out there,” 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan countered. “By no means do we not have a chance to win. We’ll fight our tails off. We’ll expect a real good game...Read more

CLEVELAND — Here's hoping Mike Tomlin didn't spend too much time working on that NFL Coach of the Year speech.

The feel-good vibes that have surrounded the Steelers' season — all of those correct buttons pushed and sticky situations navigated — backfired on Tomlin on Thursday night during what has become an all-too-common theme of his ...Read more

PITTSBURGH — Maybe the most deflating aspect of the Steelers' last-minute loss in Cleveland was the second-stingiest defense in the NFL failing to protect another lead against one of the worst offenses in the league.

And it wasn't the first time.

Not only did the Steelers allow the Browns, the lowest-scoring team in the AFC, to top 18 points...Read more

TAMPA, Fla. — Baker Mayfield rubbed both arms with his hands as the story was being related, the one where his timely donation turned around the fortunes of a high school football team that lacked the necessary equipment to start the season.

It’s the nearly made-for-Hollywood script of how Space Coast High in Cocoa went from 1-8 a year ago ...Read more

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — An MRI exam on Brock Purdy’s throwing shoulder has the 49ers “feeling good,” but his status is still “tenuous” to play in Sunday’s game at Green Bay, according to general manager John Lynch.

Injured at an undetermined point in Sunday’s 20-17 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, Purdy did not throw at Wednesday’s...Read more

NEW YORK — Daniel Jones asked for his release and was granted his freedom by the Giants on Friday, four days after GM Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll shut him down for the season and humiliatingly demoted him to No. 4 on their depth chart behind Tommy DeVito, Drew Lock and Tim Boyle.

Jones went directly to co-owner John Mara to make it happen.

�...Read more

LOS ANGELES — With both teams fighting for playoff position, the Chargers' Week 16 game against their AFC West rival Denver Broncos was moved into a prime-time TV slot, the NFL announced Friday, shifting a game to "Thursday Night Football" for the first time.

The Chargers (7-3) will host the Broncos (6-5) at SoFi Stadium on Dec. 19 at 5:15 p....Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Heeerrreee’s Kelce!

Jason Kelce, the retired Eagles center turned multimedia star, is taking his talents to late-night television as the host of "They Call It Late Night," a new weekly ESPN show filmed in Philadelphia with a limited run leading up to the Super Bowl.

Emphasis on late. The show will debut at 1 a.m. on Saturday...Read more

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — On third-and-goal from the Las Vegas Raiders’ 8-yard line last week, Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa showed how far he’s come in a short amount of time this season.

I’m excited about what I saw.

In fact, I think I’m finally ready to buy my ticket for the Tua bandwagon (although my admission might be denied)....Read more

LOS ANGELES — You win some, you lose some. At USC, that's the recipe for a terrible football season.

The 5-5 Trojans, who play UCLA at the Rose Bowl on Saturday night, have blown fourth-quarter leads in all five of their losses. It's a dramatic departure from the promise of two years ago, when head coach Lincoln Riley went 11-3 in his debut ...Read more

FRISCO, Texas — An offseason in which the Washington Commanders hired former Cowboys assistant Dan Quinn to be their head coach, coupled with the arrival of an elite quarterback, means one of Jerry Jones’ favorite places to sit is now a sofa of spikes.

For the first time since the early 1990s, when Jack Kent Cooke was the team owner and Joe...Read more

PITTSBURGH — I have some bad news for the five wide receivers standing in line, nervously shuffling their feet, hoping their name gets called for the Pro Football Hall of Fame: If they don't get called this year, Larry Fitzgerald is about to cut in front of them.

Fitzgerald has a great chance, one would think, to be a first-ballot selection ...Read more

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Patrick Mahomes had stood inside the tight quarters of a room inside Highmark Stadium, recapping the Chiefs’ first loss of the year in generic, big-picture terms.

After a few minutes, I inquired about a specific play.

Can you walk us through the interception?

“Uh, the first one or the second one?” he responded.

...Read more