Mike Tomlin is not happy with the Pittsburgh Steelers' winless start to the season following Sunday's defeat to the Seattle Seahawks. The Steelers fell to 0-2 in the NFL after a 28-26 loss to the Seahawks at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh. It was a costly defeat for the struggling Steelers, who saw quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (elbow) and running back James Conner (knee) suffer injuries in the game.
Whether you're sitting pretty in your Week 2 matchup or trying to overcome a deficit, Liz Loza and Matt Harmon have you covered with some waiver wire suggestions who could strengthen your team going forward. Fantasy gamers aren't exactly big fans of Frank Gore, considering he has blocked younger, more hyped runners in recent seasons. Gore scored 15.30 half-PPR points against the Giants, totaling 83 yards and one touchdown.
PITTSBURGH (AP) — The faces around Russell Wilson have changed as the Seattle Seahawks rebuild themselves on the fly. One thing, however, has not. Seattle goes as its ever imaginative quarterback goes.
And in the second half in a place where the franchise hadn't scored let alone won in two decades, Wilson's resilience propelled the Seahawks to their best start in six years.
Wilson threw for 300 yards and three touchdowns to give the Seahawks the lead, then used his legs and smarts to protect it in a 28-26 victory that pushed Seattle to 2-0 for the first time since 2013, the year Wilson guided the franchise to its only Super Bowl victory.
Sure, it's early. Yet the Seahawks proved both opportunistic and aggressive, hallmarks of their dominant run behind Wilson and the "Legion of Doom" defense earlier in the decade.
"Really fired up about this start," Seattle coach Pete Carroll said after picking up his 100th victory with the Seahawks, including playoffs. "We have so much improvement. We have so many areas and ways we can get better."
Having Wilson certainly helps. His perfect 28-yard rainbow to rookie DK Metcalf midway through the fourth quarter put the Seahawks in front by nine, and three expertly timed scrambles on Seattle's final drive helped drain the final 5:34 off the clock.
"We were battle tested today and we found a way to win a great game," said Wilson, who completed 29 of 35 passes while becoming the fifth-fastest player in NFL history to reach 200 career touchdown tosses.
ROETHLISBERGER EXITS
The Steelers fell to 0-2 for just the second time in Mike Tomlin's 13-year tenure and could be without quarterback Ben Roethlisberger indefinitely. The 37-year-old watched the second half from the sideline in a baseball cap following a right elbow issue that popped up...
The Latest on NFL Week 2 (all times EDT):
5:50 p.m.
Aaron Donald has returned to the game for the Los Angeles Rams after briefly going to the locker room because of a back injury.
The reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year came back on the field late in the second quarter against the Saints. Los Angeles leads 6-3 at halftime.
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5:45 p.m.
Those Chicago Bears field-goal woes appear so last season.
Eddy Pineiro is now 3 for 3 this season. He hit two field goals against the Denver Broncos, including a 52-yarder as the Bears grabbed a 6-3 halftime lead. The Bears offense continues to struggle near the end zone. They've now gone six quarters without a TD.
Pineiro earned the place-kicking duties after being acquired in a trade with Oakland in May.
The Bears had been looking for a kicker since cutting Cody Parkey following his "double-doink" field goal miss of 43 yards in their 16-15 playoff loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
Pineiro, who turned 24 on Friday, was 38 of 43 on field-goal attempts at the University of Florida.
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5:25 p.m.
Reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald has left the Los Angeles Rams' game against the New Orleans Saints due to a back injury.
Donald appeared to be stiffening up during the Saints' two drives under Teddy Bridgewater, who replaced an injured Drew Brees during the first quarter. The All-Pro defensive tackle left the field gingerly at least twice, and he finally went to the locker room in the second quarter.
Donald was having a dominant game against the Saints before departing. He had a tackle for loss and a quarterback hit during the first 15 minutes.
Brees was injured during the first quarter when his throwing hand hit Donald's hand.
— Joe Reedy reporting in Los...
| Seattle |
0 |
7 |
14 |
7—28 |
| Pittsburgh |
0 |
10 |
3 |
13—26 |
| Second Quarter |
Pit_Conner 1 run (Boswell kick), 14:44.
Sea_Dissly 14 pass from Wilson (Myers kick), 8:40.
Pit_FG Boswell 41, 2:28.
Sea_Dissly 12 pass from Wilson (Myers kick), 9:49.
Pit_FG Boswell 33, 6:21.
Sea_Penny 37 run (Myers kick), 2:56.
Pit_McDonald 8 pass from Rudolph (pass failed), 11:16.
Sea_Metcalf 28 pass from Wilson (Myers kick), 7:15.
Pit_McDonald 3 pass from Rudolph (Boswell kick), 5:34.
A_65,063.
___
. . ...
| Sea |
Pit |
|
| First downs |
25 |
17 |
| Total Net Yards |
426 |
261 |
| Rushes-yards |
33-152 |
16-81 |
| Passing |
274 |
180 |
| Punt Returns |
2-10 |
2-12 |
Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll lost a challenge in the first half of Sunday's game in Pittsburgh when officials ruled that a defensive pass interference call on linebacker Mychal Kendricks would stand. Carroll had more luck on his second try of the day. After a Russell Wilson deep shot to wide receiver Tyler Lockett fell incomplete, Carroll threw the flag and argued that Steelers safety Terrell Edmunds interfered with Lockett.
New Orleans defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins will be inactive for a second straight week when the Saints face the Los Angeles Rams in a rematch of last year's NFC title game. Rankins is still trying to return from a torn Achilles tendon suffered last season during the playoffs. Saints right tackle Ryan Ramczyk is active despite a thigh injury.
New Orleans defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins will be inactive for a second straight week when the Saints face the Los Angeles Rams in a rematch of last year's NFC title game.
Rankins is still trying to return from a torn Achilles tendon suffered last season during the playoffs. Saints right tackle Ryan Ramczyk is active despite a thigh injury. The Rams have two inactives among the nine offensive linemen on their roster.
In Pittsburgh, the Seattle Seahawks are without three defensive starters as they try to win in Pittsburgh for the first time since 1999. Defensive end Ziggy Ansah (shoulder), safety Tedric Thompson (hamstring) and defensive tackle Poona Ford (calf) are all inactive for Sunday's game. The Seahawks edged Cincinnati last week despite giving up over 400 yards passing.
Pittsburgh center Maurkice Pouncey (ankle) and cornerback Joe Haden (shoulder) played after being limited in practice during the week.
In Miami, four-time All-Pro receiver Antonio Brown is active to make his New England Patriots debut against Dolphins.
Brown joined the Patriots on Monday after requesting and receiving his release from the Oakland Raiders. The next day, a lawsuit was filed in Florida accusing him of rape and sexual assault. Brown denied the allegations by his former trainer, and the NFL plans to meet with her Monday, according to a person familiar with the meeting, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the investigation.
With Brown joining Josh Gordon and Super Bowl MVP Julian Edelman, the Patriots could have one of the league's most talented receiver corps.
Dolphins defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick, unhappy with how he's being used and who has requested a trade, is active for the game.
In Nashville, the Titans added starting center Ben Jones to...
Seattle Seahawks fans have grown used to quarterback Russell Wilson doing whatever it takes to help the team win. Wilson took that to another level on Sunday by serving as a lead blocker on a monster touchdown run. After handing it off to running back Rashaad Penny, who then cut back to the outside, Wilson did his best impression of a fullback by running ahead of Penny and taking out two defenders in their path to bring down Penny. Wilson’s selfless attitude and willingness to put his body on the line could go a long way in potentially helping Seattle win. Penny’s score turned a one-point lead into an eight-score lead and gave the team added momentum in the fourth quarter.
Those hoping to see Ziggy Ansah in Week 2 will be sadly disappointed. The Seattle Seahawks have opted to give Ansah another week as the team continues to exercise extreme patience. Ansah was a full participant in Friday's practice, but clearly Seattle thinks he needs to get an additional week of practice under his belt.
Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and his wife Ciara visit Brazil in this edition of "Going Global."
Seattle's starting lineup is expected to have changes on both sides of the football. That's where we'll put our focus in this week's five players to watch. S Lano Hill The writing has been on the wall for Hill to start since Monday when Pete Carroll said the third-year safety "deserved to play."
Throw that flag.
For those who have short memories — very short — the last time the Rams and Saints met was in the NFC championship game in the Big Easy. New Orleans was victimized by a blatant officiating non-call that led to a rules change allowing pass interference to be part of the video review system.
The echoes of "We was robbed!" still reverberate in the Superdome.
So the Saints won't need any extra motivation when they visit Los Angeles in a stellar early season matchup. Even if they are trying to downplay the unforgettably painful memories.
"Still haven't, never will. When you say forgotten about, you have to find a way to compartmentalize it to where you can move on in a positive way, so I found a way to do that," Drew Brees said. "But as far as just the events, you live and learn and sometimes things don't go your way, and you've got to find a way to come out better on the other side."
Saints coach Sean Payton stressed these teams are not the same.
"It feels like it was a long time ago," he said. "It's part of our game. These are two different teams now, a lot of roster moves from last year to this year. We're playing each other early in the season, so it doesn't feel like that many games ago relative to the distance between when we played. You're looking at two different teams."
Both teams opened with tight victories, New Orleans rallying to beat Houston in the final seconds on Wil Lutz's 58-yard field goal, the Rams winning at Carolina.
While it's far too early to call this a game for NFC supremacy, the Saints and Rams should be among the conference elite.
"I think our players, our coaches know the level of urgency that's going to be needed for us to be at our best in order to give ourselves a chance to compete and hopefully come out of this thing...
Let us begin with the newest, greatest USC quarterback of all time (no overreactions here), an 18-year-old three-star recruit with a name drawn straight from a Thomas Pynchon novel. If you believed all USC needed to rediscover its place in college football’s firmament was to suffer a season-ending injury to its starting quarterback, JT Daniels, then score 35 consecutive points against Stanford behind a backup named Kedon Slovis, and then accept the resignation of its A-list celebrity athletic director a couple of days later ... well, you are clearly an oracle. And yet here we are. Two weeks into a six-game gauntlet that was built to destroy the tattered remains of USC coach Clay Helton’s career, the Trojans are 2-0 and ranked No. 24. Teammates are saying things about Slovis that make him sound like The Chosen One -- ”He’s the guy for sure,” one told the Los Angeles Times’ Bill Plaschke -- and the students’ section at the Los Angeles Coliseum is already chanting his name. USC has long been a program driven
There were some downright brilliant quarterback performances in Week 1. Dak Prescott and Lamar Jackson put up perfect passer ratings in career-best outings. Tom Brady did his thing against an overwhelmed Pittsburgh Steelers defense. On the other end of the spectrum, multiple quarterbacks stunk it up in a big way. Jameis Winston continues to turn it over with three interceptions against the 49ers. Ryan Fitzpatrick and his Dolphins were an absolute mess in a blowout loss to the Ravens. It’s in this that we rank the top-10 quarterbacks and the bottom-five signal callers in the NFL heading into Week 2. 1. Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs This reigning NFL MVP got off to a rip-roaring start against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 1. Mahomes completed 25-of-33 passes for 378 yards with three touchdowns and zero interceptions in a blowout win. That included dominating Jacksonville when targeting Sammy Watkins. Mahomes is now set to take on a Raiders team that Kansas City torched to the tune of 37.5 points per
Yardbarker's Sam Robinson and Michael Nania go deep inside NFL games each week, focusing on key numbers and roster issues. SCROLL DOWN OR GO TO YOUR GAME: T.B.-Carolina | Ariz.-Balt. | Dallas-Wash. | Indy-Tenn. | Seattle-Pitt.| Buff.-NYG | SF-Cinc. | LAC-Detroit | Minn.-G.B. | J'ville-Houston | N.E.-Miami | KC-Oak. | N.O.-LA Rams | Chicago-Den. | Phila.-Atlanta | Cleveland-NYJ THURSDAY Tampa Bay at Carolina, 8:20 P.M. ET Inside Buccaneers numbers: Tampa Bay had a rough time moving the ball through the air against the 49ers in Week 1. Jameis Winston accumulated only 194 yards across 36 attempts and 20 completions, averaging 5.4 yards per attempt and 9.7 yards per completion. Carolina does not seem to be any easier. In Week 1, the Panthers allowed Jared Goff to throw for only 4.8 yards per attempt. Inside Buccaneers roster: Highlighted by a slick third-and-17 sequence, Ronald Jones showed signs of life with 93 yards from scrimmage Sunday. A 2018 second-round pick, Jones had just 18 carries last season –- the
To celebrate the first week of the season, fans were treated to a “Monday Night Football” doubleheader that featured plenty of fireworks. Early, it was the Houston Texans visiting the New Orleans Saints. This one proved to be an entertaining, see-saw battle all game long. It wasn’t until the last second ticked off the clock that we knew which team would win, as New Orleans eked out a 30-28 victory. Late in the evening, the AFC West was on display with a rivalry game featuring the Denver Broncos visiting the famed Black Hole and the Oakland Raiders. To the delight of the home crowd, the Raiders dominated, winning 24-16. These were the biggest winners and losers from the season-opening “Monday Night Football” doubleheader. Winner: The Hyde/Johnson duo is pretty dynamic When the Texans lost Lamar Miller for the season with an ACL injury, it was easy to panic about their ability to run the ball consistently. Then, Houston pulled off a trade for Carlos Hyde. That proved to be a savvy move, as the power back was h
After releasing him on cut-down Saturday, the Seahawks are bringing back Jamar Taylor. The cornerback intends to re-sign with Seattle on Monday, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL.com. The Seahawks initially signed the well-traveled corner in May but opted to go into Week 1 without him. Taylor has played for the Dolphins, Browns, Cardinals and Broncos in a six-year career. Seattle cornerback Neiko Thorpe left the Seahawks-Bengals game on Sunday and this move may be related to that. By being off the Seahawks’ Week 1 roster, Taylor will not have his full salary guaranteed. This may have been the plan all along, with Garafolo adding Taylor enjoyed a strong camp and was viewed as a post-Week 1 option anyway. The former Dolphins draft choice struggled last season during 305 snaps. Taylor, 28, has enjoyed better seasons, however, and will supply veteran depth for a young secondary.
There was at least a two-team market for Antonio Brown after he was released by the Oakland Raiders on Saturday morning. Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said on 710 ESPN Seattle on Monday that the team inquired about Brown after his release. Something was not there as Brown signed with the New England Patriots about five hours after his release. This note from Carroll tells us two things: One, the Seahawks are looking to upgrade their receivers. They have DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett but are missing Doug Baldwin, who retired due to injuries. Two, the market means that despite Brown’s behavior in Oakland, teams were still willing to sign him. That tells us any hopes of getting Brown on a discount probably would have been negated, though we don’t know how much the Seahawks were willing to pay. Brown ended up signing for a $1 million base salary, $9 million signing bonus (broken up into two parts: $5 million now and $4 million later) and three incentive markers worth $1.5 million apiece. He apparently wanted to jo
The Seahawks dropped quarterback Geno Smith before the 53-man roster deadline, only to re-sign him two days later. For the Seahawks, it was a clever way to shuffle the roster – for one reason or another, they did not fear losing Smith to another team in free agency. But, according to the one-time Jets starter, he drew more lucrative offers than what the Seahawks were willing to give him after his brief break from Seattle. “I had some teams call me, actually offering me more money,” Smith said, via Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times. “But, I decided to stay. . . . It’s always tempting when you get offered more money, right? But I didn’t want to move.” Smith’s 2019 salary is believed to be $805,000, the same as his original contract with the Seahawks. We have yet to hear of specific clubs that were interested in signing Smith during his 48-hour stint on the market.
Seattle Seahawks defensive lineman Jadeveon Clowney is expected to hit the ground running after being acquired by his new team. Seahawks defensive line coach Clint Hurtt was full of praise for Clowney, who is expected to play in Sunday’s season opener against the Cincinnati Bengals. How much he plays will ultimately be determined by how things go during the game. The Seahawks got Clowney for a relatively discounted price, and they’ll want to use him. The 26-year-old, who had nine sacks for the Houston Texans last year, is expected to be a key part of the Seattle defense. They will want him on the field as much as possible as quickly as possible.
When Jadeveon Clowney missed most of his rookie season due to injuries, many were quick to wonder if he was injury prone. Though, since the start of the 2015 season, Clowney has been pretty darn reliable and healthy, appearing in all but six games the past four years. On Monday after practicing with his new team, the Seattle Seahawks, Clowney had a perfect retort to the notion he is injury prone Being the No. 1 overall pick of the 2014 NFL Draft was a big reason why he drew that kind of scrutiny to begin with — fair or not. But at this point in his career, it seems safe to say the “injury prone” label needs to be thrown out the window.
The roster manipulation employed by NFL teams is pretty comical at times, and a prime example is Geno Smith being cut by Seattle on Saturday. One day later, he told ESPN’s Josina Anderson that he is going to re-sign with Seattle. This was a likely scenario, as Seattle was down to just starting quarterback Russell Wilson after Smith was let go on Saturday. The former second-round pick out of West Virginia had a strong preseason for the Seahawks, going 15-of-25 for 224 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions in his final two games.
Remember that time the Seahawks were without Geno Smith on their roster? After 24 long hours, the quarterback is back in Seattle, as Smith told Josina Anderson of ESPN.com he will re-sign with the Seahawks. The Seahawks surprised many in the football world when they released Smith on Saturday en route to a 53-man roster. Releasing Smith, in and of itself, wouldn’t have been a big deal, but the transaction left Russell Wilson as the club’s only QB following Paxton Lynch‘s release. As it turns out, it was all part of some clever roster maneuvering by Seattle. The Seahawks — perhaps with a wink/nod deal — were willing to risk losing Smith to another team before bringing him back on.
After waiving quarterback Paxton Lynch and releasing QB Geno Smith over the past couple of days, the Seahawks do not presently have any quarterbacks on their roster behind starter Russell Wilson. It had been reported that the Seahawks could look to re-sign Smith, and Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times says that is Seattle’s plan (Twitter link). And as veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer tweets, now that the Seahawks have traded two players in exchange for defensive end Jadeveon Clowney, the team has an open roster spot it can use on Smith. The Clowney trade wasn’t finalized prior to Saturday’s cut-down deadline, so Seattle was compelled to release Smith to the open market. As a vested veteran, Smith is a free agent and can sign with any team he chooses. But he would be a backup wherever he signs, and being Wilson’s clipboard holder isn’t a bad gig. Smith, 28, served as the QB2 for the Chargers last year and for the Giants in 2017, and at this point, the former Jets starter and second-round pick looks destined
Another key name from the 2018 Seahawks’ receiving corps will no longer be part of the current roster. Shortly after acquiring Jadeveon Clowney (and a $15.9M salary-cap number), Seattle will release Jaron Brown, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. The 2018 UFA signing was expected to play a role for the Seahawks’ post-Doug Baldwin receiving corps, but the team will now clear $2.75M off its cap to help fit Clowney’s tag salary on the payroll. Brown caught just 16 passes for 166 yards last season, though he did add five touchdown receptions. The former Cardinals target signed a two-year, $5.5M deal in 2018. The Seahawks, however, drafted three wideouts — including D.K. Metcalf — and are set to supplement Tyler Lockett with rookie contracts.
The Houston Texans finally traded disgruntled defensive end Jadeveon Clowney, according to a report, moving him to the Seattle Seahawks for a third-round draft pick and two players. As pointed out by NFL insider Benjamin Allbright, the two players Houston got in return for Clowney — who is considered a top-50 player in the NFL — were likely not going to survive Seattle’s final cuts on Saturday. This appears to be a fantastic deal for the Seahawks. For Houston? Not so much. Fans and analysts reacted on social media on Saturday. For what it’s worth, the Texans don’t have a general manager, which Stephen Cohen knew — hence the tongue-in-cheek comment. They did have a general manager, Brian Gaine, who had done a pretty solid job last year outside of the team’s offensive line woes.
The Jadeveon Clowney era in Houston has come to an end. The Texans and Seahawks have agreed to a trade that will send the star edge-rusher to Seattle. Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com reports that the Texans will receive a 2020 third-rounder, defensive end Barkevious Mingo and linebacker Jacob Martin. While the deal is all but “done,” according to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero, there are a few formalities that need to be taken care of. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that Clowney is currently in Seattle to sign his franchise tender, which would enable Houston to trade him. Clowney, Mingo and Martin will also need to pass physicals before the deal’s completed. We learned earlier that the two sides had been progressing toward a deal. The move makes plenty of sense for the Seahawks. They don't have to commit to a new Clowney deal until the offseason, allowing them to evaluate his fit on the team. Further, if the edge-rusher ends up leaving in free agency, they’re likely land a 2021 third-round compensatory draft pick. While
Former Denver Broncos first-round pick Paxton Lynch reportedly has been cut by the Seattle Seahawks, who will have Geno Smith stay on as Russell Wilson’s backup. Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times reported on this development Friday, noting the “Seahawks may try to keep Lynch on the practice squad.” Lynch has struggled to make it at the NFL level ever since being selected No. 26 overall by Denver in 2016. He appeared in five games as a member of the Broncos from 2016-17, completing 61.7% of his passes for 792 yards with four touchdowns and four interceptions. During the summer of 2018, Lynch was demoted to third string behind Case Keenum and Chad Kelly and ultimately was released just before the season began in favor of veteran Kevin Hogan. Lynch signed a deal with the Seahawks this past January, but he couldn’t distinguish himself in a positive way, completing well under 50% of his passes during the preseason. Still just 25, Lynch has time to potentially mold himself into an NFL backup quarterback. But at th
Seahawks cornerback Kalan Reed may be forced to retire after suffering a serious neck injury, agent Harold Lewis tells NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter). The Seahawks already placed Reed on injured reserve, but it sounds like this will be a career-ender as well. Reed went down in the Seahawks’ preseason game against the Vikings earlier this month and injured his third and fourth vertebrae in the process. Doctors have since advised him that attempting to play again would put him in serious jeopardy, especially since he experienced numbness afterwards. Reed entered the league in 2016 as a seventh-round pick of the Titans. He appeared in seven games over two seasons in Tennessee before hooking on with Seattle’s practice squad last year. Last year, he earned a promotion to the varsity squad, but did not see the field. This year, he was hoping to make the 53-man cut, but he’ll have to focus on other endeavors from here on out. We wish Reed the best in his recovery.
Seattle Seahawks cornerback and former Mr. Irrelevant in the 2016 NFL Draft Kalan Reed might never play another football game. The news comes to us via NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport and indicates that Reed has suffered a neck injury that could very well end his career. That’s the harsh reality of such a violent sport. Mr. Reed will obviously have to do what’s best for him. But it does not look like football is in the cards. Reed, 25, was the final pick of the 2016 NFL Draft by the Tennessee Titans. He suited up for seven games with the team in two seasons. He spent last summer with the Seahawks before reaching an injury settlement after suffering a fractured foot.