Category: Philadelphia Flyers

Philadelphia Flyers

Brice Butler out to prove he’s Cardinals No. 2 receiver

jets_065Cardinals head coach Steve Wilks said recently that it is hard to say who will be the team’s No. 2 wide receiver behind Larry Fitzgerald, but one of the competitors believes he will make it an easy call before the regular season gets underway.

My heart is broken. Today, I lost my little brother and one of my best friends. I cannot put into words how special Dwight was to me and to everyone his life touched. He was an amazing husband, father, grandfather, brother and a great friend and teammate. He showed tremendous courage and dignity in his battle with ALS and we hope there will soon be a cure for this horrendous disease.

I will always remember Dwight the way he was – larger than life, handsome, charismatic and the only one who could pull off wearing a fur coat at our Super Bowl parade. He was responsible for one of the most iconic plays in NFL history that began our run of Super Bowl championships, but to me, he will always be an extension of my family. I love him and will miss him terribly. Our hearts and prayers are with his wife Kelly, his children and the entire Clark family.

Vernon added that he hasn’t decided whether he’ll stay in the locker room during the anthem, in lieu of kneeling and risking a fine. It’s nevertheless clear that Vernon isn’t happy about the situation.

I mean, you never want to be told what to do, really, especially when it comes to your freedom of speech, Vernon said.

Vernon is wise to not kneel. Giants co-owner John Mara likely won’t be as charitable as Jets owner Christopher Johnson, who has said he won’t fine players for kneeling in violation of the new rule.

The promotion comes 13 months after a line drive struck Poncedeleon in the right temple, fracturing his skull during a game against the Iowa Cubs on May 9, 2017. Poncedeleon underwent an emergency craniotomy to fix an epidural hematoma, which is bleeding from his brain. He then went through weeks of rehab and endured three months of inactivity as he recovered.

When Poncedeleon returned to playing this spring, he wore a carbon fiber insert under his hat to prevent another injury. It’s a bit cumbersome but necessary.

You get used to it, he said.

Preakness Stakes 2018 weather: Will it rain for race? Latest forecast for Saturday at Pimlico

The Preakness Stakes, the second leg of the Triple Crown, will be run Saturday, May 19, 2018 (5/19/18) at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland.  Kentucky Derby winner Justify is the favorite, as expected, and drew the No. 7 post position.

They drafted the runner in the first round, [Rashaad] Penny, who’s a good back but still way too high for him. You can’t run the ball and play good defense any more. Bottom line,” Prisco said. “You’re talking about an offense that wasn’t great to begin with and you take Jimmy Graham and Paul Richardson off the offense. They should play fast and let Russell Wilson play fast. Play loose and fast. If you’re going to take Penny, use him, make him a guy who can help open up the passing game. Be a creative offense playing up-tempo.

Kroenke, who Forbes estimates to have an $8.3 billion net worth, said in January he lamented the Rams’ lack of home-field advantage in their temporary home, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

In two years we’ll be in a new stadium, and I think we can have a true home-field advantage like a lot of the teams do, Kroenke told Josh Peter of USA Today. “We don’t really have it now.”

The Rams finished 26th in the NFL in average attendance (63,392) in 2017, per ESPN.com. The Chargers, who are playing at the StubHub Center, ranked last (25,335).

The new stadium is going to feature a 70,240 capacity expandable to over 100,000 for major events.

Fuller accomplished that while primarily covering the slot with support from star corner Josh Norman outside. Now, after a blockbuster offseason trade, he finds himself in Kansas City. And with Marcus Peters no longer a Chief, he’s the top attraction on that cornerback depth chart.

While the Chiefs will continue to move Fuller inside when they’re in a nickel defense, NFL Network’s James Palmer reported in March that the team plans on using him to cover X and Z receivers outside in its base defense. cowboys_068

Willie Snead looking forward to “fresh start” with Ravens

The Ravens took their time deciding about making an offer to wide receiver Willie Snead before ultimately signing him to an offer sheet on the final day that restricted free agents were allowed to strike deals with new teams.

Snead’s fresh start comes as part of a fresh start for the entire receiving group in Baltimore. John Brown and Michael Crabtree came as free agents and the Ravens drafted two more in an attempt to fix a weakness that grew to be a lot more than frustrating by the time the 2017 season was over.

Atlanta also signed two players with college experience at quarterback. Kurt Benkert played at Virginia the last two years after opening his college career at East Carolina while Lamar Jordan also saw time at wide receiver for New Mexico.

Louisville running back Malik Williams, Arizona State running back Demario Richard, West Virginia running back Justin Crawford, Tennessee Tech wide receiver Dontez Byrd, Northern Illinois wide receiver Christian Blake, Colorado State wide receiver Detrich Clark, Cincinnati wide receiver Devin Gray, Boise State tight end Jake Roh, Ohio tight end Troy Mangen, Alabama offensive lineman J.C. Hassenauer, Wesley College offensive lineman Matt Gono, and Utah offensive lineman Salesi Uhatafe round out the offensive additions.

On defense, the Falcons signed UCLA defensive lineman Jacob Tuioti-Mariner, Kent State defensive lineman Jontey Byrd, Georgia State defensive lineman Mackendy Cheridor, Vanderbilt linebacker Emmanuel Smith, Ball State linebacker Anthony Winbush, Rice linebacker Emmanuel Ellerbe, Brown linebacker Richard Jarvis, Florida cornerback Joseph Putu, South Carolina safety Chris Lammons, and Louisiana Tech safety Secdrick Cooper.broncos_039_047ef31ea22ebdf6-180x180

Pick Six Podcast: How Eagles gameday analytics could be copied by the rest of the NFL

The Philadelphia Eagles are having a pretty good run of things. They won the Super Bowl and look like they could set up shop in the NFC playoffs for a pretty long stretch of time thanks to the depth built into their roster by GM Howie Roseman. But maybe their biggest advantage is the willingness of the entire organization towards analytics, particularly on game day.

As he noted, owner Jeffery Lurie was adamant about wanting a coach who would really embrace the analytics and to maybe do things that aren’t traditionally accepted in the NFL.

And this is something I’m sure the NFL is going to start to copy, big time, because I don’t think a lot of teams have this approach. But this guy Ryan Paganetti is really a smart guy. He doubles as an assistant linebackers coach actually. But he’s up there in the booth and he’s going through all the analytics of going for it… and he’s just going for it with Doug and ultimately Doug makes sort of a Doug call based on the information he’s getting from above. There’s much more to the podcast than just the analytics, but this is absolutely something you’re going to see other teams start to use more and more.

There’s a lot on the head coach’s plate and giving him assistance via someone who is running scenarios makes a ton of sense. (My guess is it might be even more prevalent than we think across both college and professional football.)

What does this mean for the Saints?

Alvin Kamara was the Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2017 and progressively stole snaps from Ingram as the year went on.

With Ingram sidelined, the Saints will move Kamara into a full-time role for the beginning of the year. That could be revealing about the young star’s long-term future with the franchise and viability as a workhorse back.

After Kamara, there’s sixth-round pick Boston Scott, and a few inexperienced backs who could step into the spotlight, including second-year back Trey Edmunds. Don’t be surprised if the Saints parse through the remaining free agents to add some depth at running back. sharks-024

Lamar Jackson’s NFL evolution is a process with a big payoff in mind

Lamar Jackson’s NFL evolution is a process with a big payoff in mind More SportsPulse: Now that the dust has settled from the NFL draft, Trysta Krick looks at the biggest questions facing AFC teams as training camps approach.

Lamar Jackson needed just a few minutes during his second NFL practice to show why the Baltimore Ravens – a team already possessing a Super Bowl-winning quarterback – just had to have him. With a flick of the wrist, the 6-2, 216-pound Heisman Trophy quarterback delivered tight spirals. With sprinter’s speed – as defenders overwhelmed the offensive line and crashed in on Jackson during one play – he darted up the middle of the line untouched, slipped through traffic and into the open field.

Some records from the interrogation program, including documents that haven’t been made public, show that Haspel was an enthusiastic supporter of what the CIA was doing, according to officials familiar with the matter. But others have disputed any characterization of Haspel as some kind of cheerleader of the harsh treatment of detainees and noted that the program was authorized by the president, deemed legal by administration lawyers and briefed to members of Congress.

Sara Blackwell, representing former Saints cheerleader Bailey Davis and former Miami Dolphins cheerleader Kristan Ware, said on Friday evening that she would suspend the two complaints for now, in hopes that the N.F.L. was genuine in its offer to listen to suggestions for improving workplace conditions for all cheerleaders.

I’m grateful for this letter, and I do believe that this is a good-faith effort by the N.F.L., Ms. Blackwell said, declining to provide a copy of the letter for publication. There could be good things that come from it.

The N.F.L. confirmed that a letter had been sent to Ms. Blackwell from a lawyer representing the league.tigers_051-115x115