The List: Giants great retires, the NFL holds Pro Bowl festivities, & Players Tribute Kobe
The List: Giants great retires, the NFL holds Pro Bowl festivities, & Players Tribute Kobe
You would think that a week off from relevant NFL games would be boring, but that is not the case, thanks to Pro Bowl festivities, Eli Manning’s retirement, more coaching changes and the continued deterioration of Antonio Brown’s NFL career.
CHEERS
AFC holds on for win in Pro Bowl – Potential NFL Most Valuable Player Lamar Jackson threw for 185 yards and two touchdowns as the AFC defeated the NFC, 38-33, in the Pro Bowl. Sunday afternoon’s game in Orlando was overshadowed by the news of a helicopter crash in Southern California that killed nine people, including NBA great, Kobe Bryant.
The NFC went three-and-out on its first possession, but the AFC’s subsequent 10-play drive ended on a Jackson interception. Saints star Drew Brees, playing in what could be his final NFL game, drove his team 90 yards in five plays. A 59-yard pass to Lions receiver Kenny Golladay set up Brees hitting his favorite regular season target, Michael Thomas, for a 16-yard touchdown. Jackson brought the AFC right back, hitting Buffalo’s Andre Roberts with a 25-yard pass, followed by a 16-yarder to Colts tight end Jack Doyle. The possession ended with a five-yard pass from Jackson to Roberts that was initially ruled incomplete, but replay showed Roberts had full possession in the end zone before the ball came out of his hands.
Seattle’s MVP candidate Russell Wilson replaced Brees and led the NFC down the field, starting with a 20-yard pass to Thomas. On his own 44, Wilson fumbled a snap but recovered and found Saints tight end Jared Cook for a 45-yard gain deep into enemy territory. Wilson finished the drive with a six-yard pass to Dallas receiver Amari Cooper for a 14-7 NFC lead. Jackson led the AFC on a 12-play, 75-yard possession that took more than seven minutes off the clock. The Ravens quarterback hit Doyle with a 34-yard pass to the NFC side of the field, then found Denver receiver Courtland Sutton with back-to-back first-down strikes. The drive ended with Jackson hitting his Baltimore teammate, tight end Mark Andrews, for a three-yard score with 4:35 left in the half.
Wilson fumbled on the first play of the next NFC drive, but Packers receiver Davante Adams (who was the conference’s third quarterback in the Precision Passing event in the Skills Competition on Thursday) hit Golladay with a 34-yard pass. Wilson could not capitalize, though, and the NFC turned the ball over on downs four plays later. Houston’s Deshaun Watson took over for Jackson and led the AFC to its first lead on a short field. Watson hooked up with Andrews on a 29-yard pass and ended the drive with a 13-yard scoring pass to Doyle.
Another three-and-out gave the AFC the ball back with 21 seconds on the clock. Watson hit Baltimore running back Mark Ingram with a 17-yard pass, then hooked up with Cleveland wide receiver Jarvis Landry for 13 yards. Ravens kicker Justin Tucker hit a 50-yard field goal as time expired in the first half for a 24-14 AFC lead.
Watson led his squad on a 13-play drive that took nearly 7½ minutes off the clock but ended in disaster. His pass intended for Chargers receiver Keenan Allen was intercepted by Harrison Smith. The Vikings safety returned it 36 yards before throwing a lateral to Eagles defensive lineman Fletcher Cox, who brought it back the final 61 yards for an NFC touchdown to cut the deficit to 24-21.
After the AFC went three-and-out on its next possession, Minnesota’s Kirk Cousins took over at quarterback for the NFC. A 38-yard pass to Thomas was bookended by throws to Adams, including a 13-yard score that put the NFC back in front, 27-24 (thanks to an extra point that was blocked by Jacksonville rookie Josh Allen). The AFC retook the lead 1:20 later thanks to a 60-yard pass from Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill to Jaguars wide receiver D. J. Chark.
The NFC tried a little trickery on the next play, but it didn’t end well, as a pass from Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott ended up in the hands of Steelers cornerback Joe Haden for an interception. However, the AFC gave the ball right back. After Ingram’s 15-yard run, Tannehill’s next pass was picked by Packers star linebacker Za’Darius Smith. Cousins led the NFC on an eight-play drive deep into AFC territory, but he was sacked on fourth down and fumbled. The ball was picked up by Pittsburgh linebacker T. J. Watt, who raced 82 yards for a touchdown, giving his team a 38-27 advantage.
Cousins led the NFC on an 11-play drive that included four first down passes and ended with a strike to Adams. Cousins was sacked on the two-point attempt to keep the deficit at five points. With 4:37 left, the NFC decided to take advantage of a new Pro Bowl rule. Instead of an onside kick, teams now get a 4th-and-15 play from their own 25. Convert and you keep going, fail and the other team takes over from the spot. Cousins threw a deep pass intended for Golladay that was intercepted by Ravens safety Earl Thomas, who returned it to the NFC 45. The running of Ingram and Derrick Henry allowed the AFC to take the final 4:12 off the clock and preserve the victory.
Jackson’s performance earned him Offensive MVP honors. Watson threw for 148 yards and a touchdown, and Andrews set a Pro Bowl record for tight ends with nine receptions (for 73 yards and a score). Chark (67 yards), Doyle (63) and Roberts (30) also recorded AFC touchdowns. Cousins led all NFC passers with 181 yards and two touchdowns. Golladay had a game-high 109 yards, and Thomas (92 yards and a score), Jared Cook (84 yards) and Adams (61 yards and two touchdowns) were the top receivers. Za’Darius Smith had two sacks and Cowboys linebacker Jaylon Smith had a game-high 12 tackles, but Jacksonville defensive end Calais Campbell was named the game’s Defensive MVP with one sack and one tackle.
Pro Bowl skills competition - Earlier this week, Browns wide receiver Jarvis Landry announced he had been playing all season with a hip injury. He showed no signs of any ailment in leading the AFC to victory in the Pro Bowl Skills Challenge on Thursday.
The event started with the NFC taking a point in the Precision Passing event. With moving targets ranging from 1 to 5 points, Seattle’s Russell Wilson put up 19 points and Minnesota’s Kirk Cousins added 18 in a 43-17 win.
Von Miller led the AFC to a win in the Gridiron Gauntlet that tied the score. After the Captain Push, in which players had to push blocking sleds with honorary captains Michael Vick and Terrell Davis on them came the Fumble Scramble. Each player had to corral four footballs dropped into their running lane. Miller fielded the balls cleanly while NFL sack leader Shaq Barrett had trouble with two, giving the AFC a big lead. Next came the Heavy Bag, in which players had to push three hanging bags down a runner before tagging their teammate for Over/Under. The star of the entire gauntlet was Pittsburgh safety, Minkah Fitzpatrick. He deftly hopped over the increasingly high walls and crawled under barriers to set up Cleveland running back Nick Chubb in the Dash and Smash. With a big lead already, Chubb ran the 40-yard dash and crashed through a fake brick wall to give his conference the win.
Landry paired with Houston quarterback Deshaun Watson to put the AFC in front with a win in the Best Hands event. Two sets of quarterbacks and receivers took turns completing different catches. Cousins and Cordarrelle Patterson started with a two-hand catch, followed by a one-hand catch, the leaning sideline reception, an over-the-shoulder catch, then another sideline and one-hand grab and a final throw that had to clear a barrier for a leaping catch. Wilson and Green Bay’s Davante Adams then had to clean the course in reverse, with one change. Instead of a two-hand catch at the end, the final throw had to be caught on a dive onto a mat. Cousins and Patterson had trouble with the over-the-shoulder station, opening the door for the AFC. Lamar Jackson was paired with his Ravens tight end Mark Andrews before Watson and Landry breezed through their half of the course for a 25-second AFC victory.
Thread the Needle was a new event that involved the defensive backs. Quarterbacks had two identical walls with holes in them of varying points (1, 3 and 5) based on size. Passers had to alternate between walls with a defender trying to intercept passes (which would be a loss of three points for the offense). Wilson (16 points) and Cousins (12) outdueled Jackson (12) and Watson (9).
With the score tied at two events each, the event was going to be settled in the best two-out-of-three Dodgeball game. The AFC took the first contest, but was trailing four players to two in the second. Landry dropped the ball he was carrying, then caught two quick NFC throws in succession to set up two Browns (Landry and Chubb) against Saints defensive end Cameron Jordan and Cowboys linebacker Jaylon Smith. After Chubb was eliminated, Landry knocked out Jordan and caught Smith’s next throw to win the game and the event.
NFL auctions game items for Australia - Wildfires have ravaged every province throughout the Australian continent, and the NFL is doing its best to raise money for the worthy cause. The NFL Auction website has more than 100 items up for bid, including the game ball from the opening kickoff of last week’s NFC Championship Game, as well as jerseys signed by 49ers punter Mitch Wishnowsky, tight end George Kittle and cornerback Richard Sherman. The site also has jerseys, footballs, and helmets signed by other players, as well as commemorative items such as game-used pylons and Super Bowl programs.
Events set for NFL Draft in Las Vegas - On Wednesday, Raiders owner Mark Davis made it official, he was moving the team his father owned since 1966 to Las Vegas. The franchise will keep the Raiders name and hope to join the 1982 team, which is the only one in league history that made the playoffs in the season after a move.
While the Raiders are now in town, the first NFL-related event Las Vegas will host is the 85th NFL Draft, which will take place from April 23-25. This past week, the league announced some of the events associated with the Draft, which will take place next to Caesars Forum, since Allegiant Stadium is not expected to be completed until July.
In addition to the Draft (Round 1 on Thursday, Rounds 2 and 3 on Friday and Rounds 4 through 7 on Saturday), the NFL Draft Experience will include interactive games, a viewing of the Vince Lombardi Trophy, player and legend autograph sessions, giveaways, the NFL Shop and concerts and performances throughout the weekend.
Watt to host Saturday Night Live the day before the Super Bowl - Texans star J. J. Watt had four sacks in 2019, despite missing eight games with a torn pectoral muscle. However, Watt is one of the game’s more charismatic stars, so it is no surprise that he has been selected as the 27th athlete to host Saturday Night Live, which he will do on Saturday, February 1, the night before the Super Bowl. The show’s other guest will be country music star Luke Combs. The three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year joins NFL stars Tom Brady and Peyton and Eli Manning as SNL hosts, and Watt also cohosted the CMT Music Awards in 2016 with FOX NFL sideline reporter Erin Andrews.
Sideline Moves: Vikings name Kubiak as offensive coordinator - Last week, Kevin Stefanski, who was Minnesota’s offensive coordinator in 2019, was named the head coach of the Cleveland Browns. This week, the Vikings named his replacement from within the organization. Gary Kubiak was promoted after one season as an assistant head coach and offensive advisor. Kubiak led the 2015 Broncos to a Super Bowl 50 title after a 12-4 record. He had a 21-11 mark in two seasons with Denver and an 82-75 record in eight years with the Texans (2006-13). Kubiak started his professional coaching career as quarterbacks coach with San Francisco in the 1994 season that ended with the 49ers winning Super Bowl XXIX. He was offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach in Denver from 1995-2005 and was also Baltimore’s offensive coordinator in 2014.
Jay Gruden was fired in early October, but the Jaguars still believe he has something to offer. On Wednesday, Jacksonville hired the former Redskins head coach as their new offensive coordinator. He held the same position in several stops in the Arena Football League and also with the Bengals from 2011-13. Gruden won a title in Super Bowl XXXVII as an offensive assistant with the Buccaneers under his brother, Jon, and he also won two Arena League championships (1998 and 2000) as head coach of the Orlando Predators. He went 35-49-1 as Washington’s head coach from 2014-19.
Joe Judge continues to fill out his coaching staff with the Giants. Bret Bielema, a former college head coach who spent the past two seasons with Judge in New England, was named linebackers coach and senior assistant. Bielema had a combined 97-58 record at Wisconsin (68-24) and Arkansas (29-34) from 2006-17. He will be responsible for continuing the development of young Giants linebackers Lorenzo Carter and Oshane Ximines. Judge also continues adding former Cowboys coaches to the staff, bringing in Marc Colombo as offensive line coach, a position he held for two years in Dallas under Jason Garrett, who is New York’s new offensive coordinator. Colombo was a tackle who played 111 games over 10 seasons with the Bears, Cowboys, and Dolphins.
Coaches were not the only ones being hired this week, as the Browns filled their general manager and executive vice president position with a familiar face. Andrew Berry, who was Cleveland’s vice president of player personnel from 2016-18, returns to the team after spending last year as the Eagles’ vice president of football operations. The 32-year-old Berry is now the youngest general manager in NFL history.
Former Chiefs star Berry looking to return - Eric Berry, a five-time Pro Bowler, and three-time All-Pro safety, has announced he will try to make a comeback after taking the 2019 season off. Berry ruptured his Achilles in the first game in 2017 and missed 14 more games the following year after learning he had a bone spur that was digging into the tendon causing extreme pain. Kansas City released him in March, and he decided to take a year off to make sure he was injury-free. Berry has 14 career interceptions, with five returned for touchdowns over nine seasons with the Chiefs. He was named Comeback Player of the Year in 2015 after being diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma the previous season.
Ex-NFL quarterback marries Miss Universe - The past month has been pretty good for Tim Tebow. The former Denver Broncos quarterback was given another invitation to New York Mets spring training in St. Lucie, Florida, in December, and last weekend, he got married. His bride was Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters, a South African model and the winner of the 2017 Miss Universe pageant. Tebow, the 2007 Heisman Trophy winner, and ESPN college football analyst is known for his Pro-Life stance (including a Focus on the Family ad with his mother that aired during Super Bowl XLIV).
JEERS
Giants quarterback Manning retires after 16 seasons - Eli Manning, the author of two of the greatest plays in Super Bowl history, announced his retirement on Friday after 16 seasons in the NFL. The two-time champion and four-time Pro Bowler spent his entire career in New York, and he holds Giants records with 57,073 yards, 366 touchdowns, and 244 interceptions. He was originally the first pick in the 2004 NFL Draft by the Chargers, but was traded to the Giants for Phillip Rivers and three other picks about an hour later.
Manning led New York to 27 comeback victories and had 37 career game-winning drives. Included in those lists are two Super Bowl wins over New England. He threw for 255 yards and two touchdowns in Super Bowl XLII, with his 13-yard scoring pass to Plaxico Burress with 39 seconds left keeping the Patriots from a perfect season. However, the indelible moment from that game might be the greatest in Super Bowl history. On 3rd-and-5, Manning scrambled and escaped three potential sacks before launching a pass that was grabbed by a leaping David Tyree, who pinned it to his helmet as he went to the ground.
Four years later, the teams met again in Super Bowl XLVI. Manning threw for 296 yards in the game, but it was one play that defined his performance again. Trailing 17-14, Manning threw another deep pass over two defenders to the underused receiver, Mario Manningham, who somehow kept his feet in bounds for a 38-yard completion (which was upheld by replay). Two more passes to Manningham and a pair to Hakeem Nicks set up Ahmad Bradshaw’s one-yard run with 1:04 left, and the Giants held on for a 21-17 win.
The opposing quarterback in both those games, New England’s Tom Brady, took to Twitter to congratulate Manning on his career, but still lamented what could have been. “Congratulations on your retirement, and a great career Eli!,” he said. “Not going to lie though, I wish you hadn’t won any Super Bowls.”
Although the final few years of his career were not as successful, Manning wanted to stay with the Giants and try to make things work. “I think it's important, the fans, the organization, this family with the Giants has been so remarkable,” he said. “I think it was the right thing to call it a career and to end it instead of trying to uproot my family and leave and try somewhere else.”
More trouble for former star receiver – Antonio Brown is spiraling out of control. The former Steelers All-Pro was arrested and charged with felony burglary with battery, burglary of an unoccupied conveyance and criminal mischief in a dispute with a moving truck driver outside his home in Hollywood, Florida, last Tuesday.
According to reports, Brown and his trainer, Glenn Holt, got into a payment dispute with the driver over a $4,000 moving truck bill, then Brown threw a rock at the moving truck and forced his way into the driver’s side of the cabin and began striking the driver. Holt then took the driver’s keys and began unloading Brown’s belongings while also damaging other items inside the truck that did not belong to Brown. Police arrested Holt when they arrived on the scene, but Brown locked himself inside his home and wouldn’t cooperate until he turned himself in Thursday night.
Brown still faces separate investigations stemming from allegations that he sexually assaulted both his former trainer and another woman. Last Wednesday, Chelsea Kyriss, Brown’s ex-girlfriend and the mother of his three children, posted a message on Instagram imploring Brown to seek help while also stating that she is keeping the kids away from “any impulsive, reckless and unhealthy behaviors.”
At the court hearing on Friday morning, the judge set Brown’s bond at $110,000. He also ordered that the receiver be monitored by GPS, turn over his guns and passport, undergo drug and alcohol testing and get a mental health evaluation. Brown was not present in the courtroom, but participated in the proceedings via video link while in a Florida jail wearing a suicide vest. Holt posted a $20,000 bond and was released on Wednesday night.
Saints caught up in Catholic Church issues – Over the past few years, the Catholic Church has been faced with a scandal involving sexual abuse by its priests. The New Orleans Saints, named for the city’s ties with the Catholic Church, and owned by Gayle Benson, who has donated to many Catholic causes, have become embroiled in the controversy recently. While the Church in New Orleans faces a lawsuit from nearly two dozen men claiming abuse by the clergy, the group’s attorneys allege that the team sent emails offering to aid in covering up the crimes.
In 2018, New Orleans Archbishop Gregory Aymond released the names of 57 clergy members who had credibly been accused of sexually abusing minors across multiple decades through work in churches and local high schools. Attorneys claim several high-ranking Saints officials, especially Senior Vice President of communications Greg Bensel, used team email accounts to advise the archdiocese on how to handle the situation. The lawyers, as well as the Associated Press, are fighting to get any emails between the Saints and the Church released publicly.
The situation is a delicate one, but the team is standing by its assertion that it did not support the Church concealing crimes, and instead, tried to get the archdiocese to come clean. In an email exchange revealed by the AP in October 2018, Bensel asked the Church to say they “support a victim’s right to pursue a remedy through the courts,” to which archdiocese communications director Sarah McDonald responded:
I don’t think we want to say we ‘support’ victims going to the courts, but we certainly encourage them to come forward.”
The organization released a statement talking about team correspondence with the archdiocese on Friday, stating in part, “The advice was simple and never wavering. Be direct, open and fully transparent, while making sure that all law enforcement agencies were alerted. … We remain steadfast in support of the victims who have suffered and pray for their continued healing.”
The Saints, along with the archdiocese, are looking to keep the email correspondence private unless the information is revealed during a trial. Friday’s statement goes on to say: “Until the documents are admitted into evidence at a public trial or hearing in the context of relevant testimony by persons having knowledge of the documents and the events to which they pertain, the use of the documents should be limited to the parties to the case and their attorneys.”
Injury bug: Edelman, Beckham have surgeries – Although Julian Edelman’s injuries did not prevent him from getting arrested for allegedly jumping on the hood of someone else’s car in Beverly Hills a few weeks ago, they were bad enough that that needed to be addressed. The Patriots wide receiver had shoulder surgery last week, but he should be ready for New England’s offseason program. The three-time champion played through a torn AC joint, plus knee and rib injuries, to post a career-high 1,117 yards, to go along with 100 catches and six touchdowns.
Odell Beckham Jr. had a few issues in his first season with the Browns, and his offseason began with core muscle surgery in Philadelphia last week. The receiver was dealing with the injury since August, but did not miss a game. He had 74 catches for 1,035 yards and four touchdowns, but the Browns only mustered six wins, despite experts predicting a playoff run before the season. A full recovery is expected, and Beckham should be back to full health for his first season under new Cleveland coach Kevin Stefanski.
Texans second-year safety Justin Reid sustained a torn labrum before the season, but he played a key role in Houston’s run to the Division round. Reid played 15 games, posting two interceptions, 78 tackles and five passes defended. He made seven tackles in a win over the Bills in the Wild Card Game and had three more against the Chiefs the following week. The surgery usually carries a recovery time of between three and six months.
Finally, on Monday, 49ers All-Pro tight end George Kittle told the hosts of the Barstool Sports Pardon My Take podcast that, not only has he been playing with a torn labrum for the past two seasons, but also there is “no chance” he gets surgery to fix his shoulder. Kittle suffered the injury in a 2018 preseason game and went on to set a record for tight ends with 1,377 receiving yards that year. He had 1,053 yards in 14 games in 2019.
Browns’ Hunt found with drugs during traffic stop – Apparently, getting cut from a team that is now playing in the Super Bowl after you are shown on video kicking a woman, and then lying about the incident to your boss, then receiving an eight-game suspension by the league is not enough legal drama for Kareem Hunt. The Browns running back was cited for speeding Tuesday afternoon on Interstate 90 in Rocky River, Ohio, and he also had a small amount of marijuana in three different places in a backpack, which he had on the backseat of his car. The officers took the backpack for evidence.
In a video recently released by TMZ, Hunt tells the officer he’s “been through a lot” and also stated that he would not have passed an NFL drug test (I’m sure the league will be thrilled to hear that). In addition to the marijuana, the officer found an open bottle of vodka in a bag. Somehow, Hunt only faces the speeding charge so far. A Browns spokesman said the team is aware of the incident and is looking into things further.
-By: Kevin Rakas
