PITTSBURGH — Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers did not shed much light into the decision that kept him from playing against Chicago, nor the chances of him returning in time to face Buffalo on Sunday afternoon at Acrisure Stadium.

But Rodgers had plenty to say about why the Steelers find themselves on the outside looking in at the AFC ...Read more

It’s hard not to be thankful for the three games the NFL has bestowed upon us this Thanksgiving.

All three have playoff implications. All three have high game totals, and mostly tight spreads. Plus, there’s the return of Joe Burrow if you can outlast the tryptophan, and stay awake for the nightcap.

The most common way the field will ...Read more

Weird week, a lot of it fabulous. Our 13-1 straight-up was our best of the season. And we continued our hot hand on outright upset picks, going 3 for 3 last week with bull’s-eyes on Browns winning in Vegas (”Aawwk!”), Cowboys beating Philly, and Falcons’ win in N’awlins. Also had ‘dog Texans with the points over Bills, our only ...Read more

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — New England Patriots outside linebacker Harold Landry, left tackle Will Campbell, left guard Jared Wilson, special teamer Brenden Schooler, linebacker Jahlani Tavai and right tackle Morgan Moses were all missing at the start of Wednesday’s practice.

It’s possible a few starters, including Landry and Moses, received ...Read more

Happy Thanksgiving and happy anniversary, NFL fans! This marks the 20th year of the holiday tripleheader, meaning football and food will again be competing for your attention pretty much from noon Thursday to midnight. King Sport added the third game in 2006, and the latest Bird Day troika should not disappoint. The menu:

— Packers at Lions ...Read more

TAMPA, Fla. — The first injuries of his football career and the solitude that comes with being away from the huddle shook unflappable Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Bucky Irving.

But Irving said Wednesday that his faith and his Bucs support system prevented him from having to face his hardest stretch as an NFL player alone.

“I want to ...Read more

TAMPA, Fla. — It wasn’t exactly a creed or even a motto. More like a safety net.

If the running game wasn’t working? Pass. If the defense collapsed? Pass. If the end of the game was near and the wrong team was winning? Pass, pass, pass.

For more than five seasons, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have been the most pass-happy team in the NFL. ...Read more

MIAMI — This Miami Dolphins’ 2025 season has been a disaster, but there are still reasons to be thankful.

Despite a 4-7 record, the Dolphins aren’t eliminated from playoff consideration, and the schedule sets up wonderfully for Miami, which could qualify for the postseason if it wins all six remaining games.

While that feat seems ...Read more

PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Steelers lost to the Chicago Bears on Sunday and their defense again looked incompetent and powerless to stop a fairly pedestrian offense.

This came one week after they played maybe their best game of the season in a whipping of the Cincinnati Bengals.

The game before that, the Steelers looked like a JV team as ...Read more

DENVER — The Broncos have locked up another key member of one of the best-performing offensive lines in football.

On Tuesday night, Denver agreed to a four-year extension with center Luke Wattenberg, sources confirmed to The Denver Post. It’s a four-year, $48 million extension for Wattenberg, a source confirmed, with $27 million guaranteed....Read more

SEATTLE — The Seahawks appear close to a reunion with safety Quandre Diggs to help shore up an injury-riddled position, a source confirmed to The Seattle Times.

If Diggs signs, it is expected that it will be to the practice squad.

Diggs foreshadowed the move Tuesday morning with a post on the social media platform X with a picture of ...Read more

CHICAGO — On first-and-10 with 10:30 left in the third quarter Sunday, Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams faked a handoff to Kyle Monangai, whipped around and planted the ball in Rome Odunze’s belly for a 14-yard gain with Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr. draped all over Odunze.

Set up at Pittsburgh’s 29-yard line, ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Training camp began with a nebulous but optimistically sounding concept. General Manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah noted the organization devoted its offseason to “building the idea of the 2025 Vikings.”

What has become clear is that the brain trust miscalculated the pairing of an unproven quarterback with an expensive, veteran ...Read more

Each week I’ll list the best widely available free agents for fantasy football — I define “widely available” as being owned in around half of all ESPN or Yahoo leagues — and some guys who are probably better off in the free-agent pool than collecting dust on your roster.

Follow me on X (formerly known as Twitter) @UTEddieBrown if you ...Read more

NEW YORK — Eli Manning is a semifinalist for the Hall of Fame once again.

The former Giants quarterback is among the 26 candidates for the class of 2026 who advanced to the semifinalist portion of the voting in the modern-era players category, the Hall announced Tuesday.

Manning, a two-time Super Bowl MVP, is in his second year on the ballot...Read more

CHICAGO — It’s still hard to believe a team was audacious enough to record a rap video revealing their plans to go to the Super Bowl, but the “Super Bowl Shuffle” remains one of the more endearing stories of the 1985 Chicago Bears, whose legendary swagger never seems to grow old.

In Chicago, we’ve relived the ’85 Bears over and over...Read more