Mac Jones returns after 49ers QB appears to hurt his left knee against Rams By DAN GREENSPAN Associated Press The Associated Press INGLEWOOD, Calif.
INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — San Francisco quarterback Mac Jones played with an obviously injured left knee against the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday night, persevering to pass for 342 yards and two touchdowns in the 49ers' 27-20 overtime victory.
After playing through his knee issue and subsequent cramping in his forearm, Jones received major praise from his teammates and coaches for his tenacity during the injury absence of Brock Purdy.
“Definitely a lot of things happened, but I feel good,” Jones said. “Just working through some stuff. I was able to play, so that’s all that matters. If I can protect myself, then it’s my job to be out there.”
Jones was making his third start of the season because of a turf toe injury to Purdy , San Francisco’s $265 million incumbent. Purdy is “week to week” because of the injury, coach Kyle Shanahan revealed after the game, indicating Purdy’s status for next weekend’s game at Tampa Bay is in question — and making Jones' toughness even more important for the 4-1 Niners.
“He’s an absolute warrior,” Christian McCaffrey said about Jones. “He’s a leader. He’s someone we can all get behind, for sure. It’s a testament to his attitude and the way he plays football.”
Jones went 33 of 49 without making a turnover despite his injuries.
He took a blind-side hit from Rams linebacker Byron Young on third-and-goal midway through the third quarter with the 49ers leading 17-7. He was already wearing a brace on the knee, and he grabbed at it while down on the turf.
The 49ers' medical team came out to evaluate Jones — the first time that's happened in his entire football career, the former Alabama quarterback said. But after appearing to be in significant pain, Jones — who had been limping earlier in the drive — eventually popped back up and jogged off the field.
“I was real impressed,” Shanahan said. “He played his (tail) off. Was unbelievable in the first half. Got banged up a little bit there in the second half and battled through it, protected the ball.”
Jones returned to the bench, where he reviewed video on a tablet while trainers attended to him. He tested his mobility on the sideline and came back in following a touchdown drive by the Rams that got them within 20-14.
Jones then had cramping in his forearm later in the game, according to Shanahan. Although the 49ers didn't score a touchdown after their opening two drives, Jones stayed in and drove them to field goals in the fourth quarter and in overtime.
If the 49ers were to lose both Purdy and Jones, their remaining option at quarterback would be Adrian Martinez, who spent last season on the New York Jets’ practice squad and has never thrown a pass in an NFL game. He played four seasons at Nebraska before finishing his college career at Kansas State in 2022.
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Short-handed 49ers stop Rams on downs in overtime, preserving a 26-23 victory By GREG BEACHAM AP Sports Writer The Associated Press INGLEWOOD, Calif.
INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Everything seemed to indicate the San Francisco 49ers were in for a long night when they traveled south on a short week without Brock Purdy, Nick Bosa, George Kittle and their top three wide receivers to face the surging Los Angeles Rams.
The Niners had a long Thursday night, all right — but after nearly 67 minutes featuring innumerable twists and turns, they headed home with an improbable victory that reasserted their dominance in their biggest NFC West rivalry.
“We talked about how tough we had to be for four quarters,” quarterback Mac Jones said. “It came down to who was going to be the toughest team, and I think it was us.”
Eddy Piñeiro hit a 41-yard field goal in overtime before San Francisco stopped Kyren Williams on fourth down with 3:36 to play, and the short-handed 49ers hung on for a thrilling 26-23 victory.
Jones passed for 342 yards and two touchdowns while playing through a leg injury for the 49ers (4-1), who scored on their first two drives and led 20-7 late in the third quarter.
Los Angeles finally mounted a rally, but with help from several glaring Rams mistakes, the Niners hung on to win their first OT game since losing Super Bowl 58 in February 2024.
The frantic fourth quarter featured Piñeiro's tiebreaking 59-yard field goal with 2:52 left, Williams' subsequent goal-line fumble and Joshua Karty's tying 48-yard field goal for the Rams (3-2) with 2 seconds to play.
“They were unbelievable,” 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said of his players. “We talked about how long this game was going to be, how focused we had to be, how competitive we had to be for the entire time. Started out great, but it’s a good team. They tightened it up. Got real tight, then lost a number of dudes. We had to overcome losing two D-linemen in that game, and the D-line is still stepping it up big. That was a huge character win.”
The Rams gave the ball to San Francisco to begin overtime, and Jones drove to set up Piñeiro’s fourth field goal with 5:51 left.
Los Angeles marched down the field, and facing fourth-and-1 at the San Francisco 11, coach Sean McVay elected to go for it — only to call a running play that he regretted almost immediately.
“I’m pretty sick right now,” McVay said. “I’m sick of the spot that I put our group in to end the game, but these are the tough beats that you’ve got to be able to learn from and move forward.”
Marques Sigle and Deommodore Lenoir got credit for smothering Williams well short of the first down.
“It didn’t look like they had anywhere to go,” Shanahan said. “Looked like a brick wall, which is similar to what we ran into all game, but it was awesome for us to get it done.”
Kendrick Bourne had career highs of 10 catches for 142 yards for San Francisco, while Jones played impressively through an apparent leg injury. Christian McCaffrey had 139 total yards for the 49ers, who snapped their three-game losing streak in this rivalry despite the injury absences of Purdy — who is “week to week” with his toe injury, Shanahan revealed — and the majority of their most famous players.
San Francisco then lost starting defensive linemen Kalia Davis and Yetur Gross-Matos to injuries during the game, but rookie backup lineman Alfred Collins made the biggest play of the night when he forced and recovered Williams’ fumble at the goal line with 1:05 left in regulation.
“It was a must-have-it play, because if I didn’t do that, they would have scored,” Collins said. “When I saw the ball, I cocked it back and hit it.”
Collins punched the ball away and fell on it when Williams was inches from scoring a go-ahead TD. Williams lost the ball five days after Indianapolis’ Adonai Mitchell fumbled an instant before crossing the same goal line in the Rams’ 27-20 victory .
“I feel like I let the team down on the 1-yard line," said Williams, who caught two TD passes.
Matthew Stafford passed for 389 yards and three touchdowns for the Rams, who lost despite racking up 319 yards after halftime. Los Angeles missed a long field goal, had an extra point blocked and fumbled twice deep in 49ers territory.
Los Angeles still used its three timeouts to force a punt after Wiliams' fumble and drove to force OT.
Puka Nacua had 10 receptions for 85 yards and a touchdown, becoming the first receiver in NFL history with more than 50 catches in his team’s first five games.
“There were moments in the game where we fought back and gave ourselves opportunities to win, and we just didn't execute on them,” Nacua said.
Purdy sat out for the third time in four games with his toe injury. San Francisco also played without injured receivers Jauan Jennings, Ricky Pearsall and Brandon Aiyuk — but Jones, Bourne and a fired-up defense did just enough to reassert the Niners’ dominance in this matchup.
Injuries
49ers: Gross-Matos injured his hamstring in the second half and didn’t return. ... Davis broke his hand in the first half, Shanahan said. ... CB Upton Stout was sidelined late by an ankle injury.
Rams: RT Rob Havenstein and TE Tyler Higbee were inactive.
Up next
49ers: Visit the Buccaneers on Sunday, Oct. 12.
Rams: Visit the Ravens on Sunday, Oct. 12.
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Rams left feeling they beat themselves in frustrating overtime loss to 49ers By DAN GREENSPAN Associated Press The Associated Press INGLEWOOD, Calif.
INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — The Los Angeles Rams’ frustration was palpable after they did too much to give away a possible win.
Wide receiver Davante Adams loudly swore to himself in the locker room, no regard for the assembled throng of reporters there to witness it. More expletives were audible from the press conference room next door. It was evident on head coach Sean McVay’s face as he ripped apart his own fourth-down play call that ended the game.
Simply put, the Rams felt they beat themselves against the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday night, ultimately falling 26-23 in overtime .
“For us to even be in it, you know, is a real credit to the resilience of the group,” McVay said. “But that’s not winning football tonight. There was a lot of really good plays at different points that kept us competitive, gives us a chance to go into overtime, but we certainly did more to lose that game that we did win it tonight.”
It is an all-too-familiar position for the Rams (3-2), who have shown a troubling knack for making things tough on themselves in the past 12 days. Numerous self-inflicted errors fueled a second-half meltdown against the defending champion Philadelphia Eagles. They responded last Sunday for a bounce-back win over Indianapolis, but needed to score two touchdowns in the final 3:20 while being helped out by the Colts’ own litany of gaffes .
The laundry list of mistakes against their Bay Area rivals in all three phases was enormous. The defense couldn’t stop a short-handed 49ers offense in the first half, allowing backup quarterback Mac Jones and a crew of reserve receivers to go up and down the field to build a 14-0 lead. When the offense finally awakened, running back Blake Corum lost a fumble deep in San Francisco territory.
Joshua Karty then missed a field goal in the third quarter and had an extra point blocked that would have given Los Angeles the lead early in the fourth quarter.
The secondary’s soft coverage allowed the 49ers to respond with a 59-yard field goal to go back up 23-20, before running back Kyren Williams fumbled on the 1 with a chance to put the Rams ahead.
The defense forced a three-and-out, allowing quarterback Matthew Stafford to drive the offense back down the field for Karty’s 48-yard field goal with two seconds remaining in regulation.
Following a 41-yard field goal by the Niners to start overtime, the Rams bypassed a chance to tie it up and instead handed the ball to Williams on fourth-and-short at the 11. He was stood up short of the line to gain, allowing the 49ers and their large contingent of red-clad fans to celebrate.
While McVay second-guessed himself about the decision not to extend the game, Stafford was fully onboard with the decision to go for it.
“I love we went for it,” Stafford said. “I mean, I’m not playing for a tie. Let’s go. Just wish we did, you know, kept the drive alive and found a way to score.”
Williams seemed more bothered by his earlier poor ball security, allowing rookie defensive lineman Alfred Collins to punch it loose inches from the goal line, than his inability to pick up the yard needed in the extra period.
“We wouldn’t even have got there if I just held onto the ball,” Williams said.
“We all, I guess, made mistakes, but I feel like mine was the one that let the team down,” he added later.
Linebacker Nate Landman is confident they will be able to regroup once again.
“I think we responded last time really well, the next game, so I know we’re capable of it now,” Landman said. “It’s just making sure we don’t have this feeling again, so I think we get back to work. We get couple days off here to learn from what we did wrong, take the lessons that we did well, and then move on to the Ravens.”
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Brian Schottenheimer leads Cowboys against Jets long after coming of age in New York By SCHUYLER DIXON AP Pro Football Writer The Associated Press FRISCO, Texas
FRISCO, Texas (AP) — Brian Schottenheimer figured his chance to be a head coach in the NFL had come and gone long before the Dallas Cowboys promoted him a quarter-century into his career as an assistant.
Star quarterback Dak Prescott wasn't even thinking about Schottenheimer taking over the Cowboys when owner Jerry Jones and the rest of the front office sought his opinion following the departure of former coach Mike McCarthy .
Until they clarified that they were talking about the son of the late Marty Schottenheimer, a 200-game winner as an NFL coach, replacing McCarthy after serving as his offensive coordinator for two years.
“And I’m like, ‘Oh, yeah, if I’m promoting him so much as the OC, I’m not going to take away everything I just said because you said head coach,’” Prescott said.
Schottenheimer was the offensive coordinator for the New York Jets when he was a hot head coaching prospect nearly 20 years ago. He returns Sunday, all these years later, when the Cowboys (1-2-1) visit the Jets (0-4).
“I learned a lot back then thinking that I had all the answers,” Schottenheimer said. “Here I was a hotshot, 32-year-old coordinator that after one year is getting head coaching opportunities. This is a very humbling business. I think as I look back, those were some great memories and some great experiences. But I never stopped learning.”
He was a 34-year-old calling plays for 39-year-old Brett Favre in 2008, then went to consecutive AFC championship games with Mark Sanchez at quarterback the next two years. Rex Ryan was a first-time head coach for those Jets.
Back then, Schottenheimer didn't think he was ready to be a head coach, even after having a front row seat for most of his dad's 21 years in that position.
Schottenheimer went to the St. Louis Rams before returning to the college ranks at Georgia for a year. His next shot as an offensive coordinator came in Seattle, and the Seahawks had a top-10 offense his second year.
The phone calls didn't come, and then-coach Pete Carroll fired him a year later after a wild-card loss followed a 12-4 record in the pandemic-altered 2020 season, when the Seattle offense faltered late in the season.
“I thought my window had passed me by,” said Schottenheimer, who joined the Cowboys as a consultant in 2022. “Winning divisions in Seattle and you are not getting interviews. The phone is not ringing when you are having success.”
The Cowboys were working on a plan to have McCarthy return as coach despite a crushing wild-card loss that ended the 2023 season, followed by a 7-10 record last year when Prescott missed the final nine games with a torn hamstring.
Schottenheimer wanted to call plays, and was prepared to go elsewhere to do it when the Cowboys and McCarthy decided to part ways. Conversations with Schottenheimer progressed from there.
“I always felt like he was a head coach,” said special teams coach Nick Sorensen, who joined Schottenheimer after working with him in Seattle and Jacksonville. “I thought that way with him in Seattle. I thought that way in Jacksonville. And when he called, I was even more fired up to work with him. You just know. He’s a head coach.”
A reporter jokingly asked how his trip back to New York compared to Micah Parsons' return to Dallas last weekend, exactly a month after the blockbuster trade that sent the star pass rusher to Green Bay.
“Little different,” a smiling Schottenheimer said. “Wasn't as big of a story when I left the Jets.”
It became a big story for him personally, though, considering that the further removed he got from that six-year stint, the more remote it seemed to him that he would follow in his father's footsteps.
Now, he sometimes looks skyward while saying he knows his dad is watching, and he has no regrets over not pursuing a head coaching job just a few years after Marty Schottenheimer last coached in 2006.
Schottenheimer was on his dad's staff with the San Diego Chargers from 2002-05.
“I remember sitting in San Diego and Cam Cameron was our coordinator, and thinking, ‘I’d do it this way or I’d do it that way,’” Brian Schottenheimer said. “And then you get in that seat and you’re sitting there and something comes across your desk and you’re like, ‘I don’t know what I’m supposed to do right now.’ You’re literally learning on the job.”
Plenty of lessons later, Schottenheimer is about to be back at the home of the Jets, finally having upgraded from the title of offensive coordinator.
“It’s truly been no different with him as the head coach,” Prescott said. “It’s easy to say that when me and him have such great communication. He’s the play-caller. But just watching him throughout practice with other players and positions, a guy that’s true to himself and loves the game and gives it everything he has daily.”
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Mac Jones is the latest quarterback to thrive with a new team By ROB MAADDI AP Pro Football Writer The Associated Press
Mac Jones is becoming the latest quarterback to prove he was dumped too soon.
Playing for his third team in three years, the 2021 first-round pick has thrived with the San Francisco 49ers in coach Kyle Shanahan’s system. Jones is 3-0 filling in for Brock Purdy following a tough, gritty performance in a 26-23 overtime victory over the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday night.
Jones threw for 342 yards and two touchdowns to help the injury-depleted 49ers pull off an improbable upset with Purdy, two-time All-Pro tight end George Kittle, left guard Ben Bartch and wide receivers Brandon Aiyuk, Ricky Pearsall and Jauan Jennings all sidelined. Star edge rusher Nick Bosa also is out for the season for San Francisco.
“Kyle came up to me before the game and he was (ticked) how we were underdogs and he was like: ‘Let it fly.’ I’m like: ‘Coach, you don’t have to tell me twice,‘” Jones said on the Amazon Prime Video broadcast. “We made it happen. I’m happy for the guys. What a great team win.”
Jones was selected 15th overall by the New England Patriots, a year after Tom Brady departed for Tampa Bay. He had an impressive rookie season and led the Patriots to the playoffs but struggled after offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels left New England. Jones went 8-17 over the next two seasons and was traded to Jacksonville. He started seven games as a backup for the Jaguars last year, going 2-5.
The 49ers signed Jones to back up Purdy, who received a five-year, $265 million contract extension that included $181 million guaranteed.
A toe injury forced Purdy to miss two games and Jones led the 49ers to a pair of victories. Purdy returned last week but was out again.
With he 49ers missing more than half the offensive starters, Jones’ performance against the Rams was even more impressive.
“I can’t say enough good things about Mac,” 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey said. “He’s a warrior. ... He’s so poised throughout the entire game. His toughness and his overall grit helps us win these football games.”
Jones has clearly benefited from working with coach Shanahan, who turned Purdy from Mr. Irrelevant into a franchise quarterback and also went to a Super Bowl with Jimmy Garoppolo.
Coaching makes a difference.
Baker Mayfield and Sam Darnold are prime examples. They’ll face each other Sunday when Mayfield leads the Tampa Bay Buccaneers against Darnold and the Seattle Seahawks.
Mayfield was drafted No. 1 overall by Cleveland in 2018 and two years later led them to 11 wins and the franchise’s only playoff victory since the Browns returned to the NFL in 1999. But he was released after one more season when the team made a blockbuster trade for Deshaun Watson.
Mayfield went to Carolina in 2022 where he played with Darnold. He was cut during the season, signed with the Rams and went to Tampa Bay to replace Brady in 2023.
He’s become a top-tier quarterback and leads the NFL with 77 touchdown passes since joining the Buccaneers.
Darnold was the No. 3 overall pick by the New York Jets in 2018. He was 13-25 in three seasons with two coaches and two offensive coordinators before getting traded to Carolina. He was 8-9 in two seasons with the Panthers and spent 2023 backing up Purdy and learning from Shanahan.
Darnold got another chance to start when J.J. McCarthy was injured last year in Minnesota and flourished under coach Kevin O’Connell. He led the Vikings to a 14-3 record, made the Pro Bowl and signed a three-year, $100.5 million contract with Seattle.
“I don’t know if it’s as much about that next opportunity as it is finding that right fit, the right fit in a coach-player relationship, the right fit in scheme, the right fit with the right weapons around them,” two-time national champion quarterback Tim Tebow said. “You just see so many of these quarterbacks go to certain teams and. ... it doesn’t look like a fit, doesn’t look like they’re developing and then they’re at a different team and all of a sudden they come alive because not everybody has the same skill set, not everybody can do the same thing and you need to find the right fit to bring it out.”
Seahawks wide receiver Cooper Kupp played with Mayfield briefly in Los Angeles in 2022 and now catches pass from Darnold. He believes quarterbacks aren’t getting enough time to develop before teams get rid of them.
“You’ve got to give guys the ability to learn, make mistakes and truly give guys the freedom to make mistakes,” Kupp said. “Guys across the league, rookies come in here, make huge mistakes. I know I’ve made my fair share. And as a quarterback, you are put in a position where you have to make these decisions. And you’re put in a position to make a mistake out of 10, 20, 30 times what most other guys are. So, there’s going to be more mistakes, there’s going to be more errors. But we’re so critical of those guys because they have the ball all the time. Give the guys a chance to learn, figure it out, and don’t put the pressure on and if you make a mistake, just let it rip. Go do it again. It’s fine.
“These are part of growing in this league. It’s a natural process that’s going to happen. I think the best quarterbacks in this league have been in positions early on where they can grow into that and make those mistakes behind the scenes or they’re given a position to go out there and learn and let it fly. And coaches have said: ‘It doesn’t matter. I’m secure in myself. We’re secure enough to trust that you’re going to be able to figure these things out.’ I think those guys flourish if you just let them get to that place.”
Mayfield and Darnold have done that. So have Jared Goff, Geno Smith and Daniel Jones. Now, Jones is showing that some quarterbacks just need to find the right fit for them.
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Panthers RB Chuba Hubbard out vs. Miami with calf injury, Rico Dowdle to start By STEVE REED AP Sports Writer The Associated Press CHARLOTTE, N.C.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Carolina Panthers running back Chuba Hubbard will miss Sunday’s game against the Miami Dolphins because of a nagging calf injury, coach Dave Canales confirmed.
Rico Dowdle will start in Hubbard's place with Trevor Etienne and DeeJay Dallas serving as backups.
Hubbard played through the injury last week at New England but saw his regular heavy workload reduced. Canales said Hubbard didn’t come out the Week 4 game as well as he had the previous week and needed some rest to recover.
Canales called Hubbard day to day.
“We couldn't get Chuba around quickly enough to feel confident enough to get him out there," Canales said. “We thought this would be a good week to get him back to strength, back to health. We will keep looking at him through the weekend and take a look at him early next week."
Hubbard ran for nearly 1,200 yards and 10 touchdowns last season, but has been limited to 217 yards this season and hasn't scored a touchdown on the ground. He does have two TD receptions.
Dowdle eclipsed 1,000 yards rushing last season with the Dallas Cowboys before signing with the Panthers as an unrestricted free agent. Dowdle is averaging only 3 yards per carry this season but has scored one rushing touchdown for Carolina.
Also ruled out for Sunday were cornerback Chau Smith-Wade (chest), tight end JT Sanders (ankle), and defensive lineman Turk Wharton (toe). Among those listed as questionable include defensive linemen Cam Jackson (knee) and LaBryan Ray (ankle) and outside linebacker DJ Wonnum (hip).
The Panthers plan to open the 21-day window on wide receiver Jalen Coker next week. Coker has been on injured reserve since the start of the season.
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Browns QB Dillon Gabriel is confident for his 1st NFL start and jokes that his dad needs a passport By KEN MAGUIRE AP Sports Writer The Associated Press WATFORD, England
WATFORD, England (AP) — Cleveland Browns rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel seems to take everything in stride, like not stressing about his parents being unable to attend his first NFL start.
They're in his native Hawaii. The game is in London.
“So, fun fact — need to get my dad a passport,” Gabriel said Friday.
Gabriel was selected midweek as the starter for Sunday's game against the Minnesota Vikings, taking over from Joe Flacco with coach Kevin Stefanski hoping the 24-year-old quarterback can spark what's been an anemic offense.
During kickoff at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, it will be 3:30 a.m. in Hawaii.
“I’ve always been used to it, when I was in Florida to Hawaii, a six-hour difference. Texting family is a little different,” said Gabriel, an “808” — Hawaii's area code — tattoo visible on his right thigh as he spoke to local and international reporters at the team's hotel north of London.
While traveling internationally for your first NFL start might seem daunting, Gabriel said “there’s comfort there” because he was reminded of long flights from Hawaii to various games.
The 5-foot-11 Gabriel will be the fifth different starting quarterback in 10 games, joining Jameis Winston, Dorian Thompson-Robinson, Bailey Zappe and Flacco. Cleveland is ranked next-to-last in scoring, averaging 14 points per game. The team fell to 1-3 with a 34-10 loss to Detroit last week.
“Preparation allows you to be confident on game day,” said Gabriel, wearing slide sandals over white socks as he spoke. “I even had four weeks prior to this to master how we go through a week.”
Gabriel played in three systems in college — UCF, Oklahoma and Oregon — and was a Heisman Trophy finalist as he led Oregon to a Big Ten title.
“With Dillon, he's unique and he's very mature but also his college career was like no other in terms of experience,” Stefanski said. “He can lean on that experience in this situation.”
Stefanski reiterated that Flacco will be Gabriel’s backup Sunday ahead of Shedeur Sanders, the high-profile rookie who slipped to the fifth round in this year's NFL draft.
Gabriel has played in two games this season — Week 2 at Baltimore and last week at Detroit — and has completed three of four passes for 19 yards and a touchdown.
Garrett weighs-in on Gabriel, Wentz
Four-time All-Pro Myles Garrett participated in practice after having been limited earlier in the week with an ankle problem. He popped right up after slipping on the wet grass Friday in the rain.
He was asked questions about Sunday's signal callers, and he noted Gabriel's poise.
“He runs the offense like this is his offense. He comes out smile on his face, chest out, gives the call. It looks like he’s been doing for years, the way he manages the offense,” he said.
Meanwhile, Vikings quarterback Carson Wentz will make his third start in relief of the injured J.J. McCarthy.
The veteran took six sacks in the 24-21 loss to Pittsburgh in Dublin last week as the Vikings dropped to 2-2.
“He holds onto the ball,” Garrett said. "He wants to make that big play. It’s not a bad thing. He does take sacks because he holds onto the ball."
Wentz is crafty enough to avoid pressure, he added.
“We have to continue rushing, not assume that the play is over,” Garrett said. “He does have the legs to get out of some tackles and he will duck under a lot of guys who come in just flying through, so just have to contain him and be intelligent in how we rush.”
Injury updates
Stefanski wasn't definitive about the status of several players. He said “we'll see” about cornerback Greg Newsome (hamstring). On offensive tackle Jack Conklin (elbow), he said: “I’m hopeful but we’ve got to get through the next few days.” Newly acquired tackle Cam Robinson is “coming along,” the coach added.
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Vikings QB J.J. McCarthy will miss 3rd straight game because of ankle injury The Associated Press WARE, England
WARE, England (AP) — Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy will miss his third straight game because of a right ankle sprain.
The second-year quarterback, who missed his entire rookie season after knee surgery, was ruled out Friday ahead of Minnesota's game against the Cleveland Browns at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday.
McCarthy injured his ankle in the third quarter of Minnesota’s 22-6 loss to Atlanta in Week 2 and hasn't returned to practice.
Coach Kevin O'Connell said this week that the goal was to ease McCarthy back into practice going into the bye week. He had cautioned: “We want to be really smart and make sure we let that high ankle (sprain) fully heal.”
Carson Wentz will make his third start as the Vikings try to avoid losing both ends of their historic road trip . They are the first NFL team to play consecutive international games in different countries.
Minnesota lost 24-21 to Pittsburgh in Dublin last week, when Wentz threw for 350 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. He was also sacked six times.
The Vikings will be missing three starters from the offensive line. Right tackle Brian O’Neill (knee), center Ryan Kelly (concussion), and left guard Donovan Jackson (wrist) were all ruled out Friday. Michael Jurgens (hamstring), who had filled in for Kelly against the Steelers, was also ruled out.
As expected, linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel (neck) will also miss Sunday's game.
The Vikings have their bye week next week before they host the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 7.
The Vikings were in England all week after playing the Steelers in Ireland. The Vikings are 4-0 all time in London , where they’ll play for a third time in four years.
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Jets running back Braelon Allen likely out 8 to 12 weeks with knee injury By DENNIS WASZAK Jr. AP Pro Football Writer The Associated Press FLORHAM PARK, N.J.
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — New York Jets running back Braelon Allen will likely be out between eight and 12 weeks with a knee injury that landed him on injured reserve this week, coach Aaron Glenn said Friday.
Allen was hurt while returning a kickoff last Monday night in the Jets' 27-21 loss to the Dolphins in Miami. The team hasn't specified the exact nature of the injury, but it's believed to be to the MCL in his left knee.
Glenn said Allen, in his second season with the Jets, was still contemplating his next step in his recovery.
“There’s two different ways he can go about it,” Glenn said. “He could actually rehab this. It'll be the same time frame or he could have surgery and get it cleaned up. But the rehab time will be exactly the same. So, that will be a decision him and his agent will have to make. I’m not making that decision for him.”
With an 8-to-12 week timetable, that would keep Allen sidelined until at least December.
“So, we know it's going to be a significant amount of time,” Glenn said. “But again, that'll be his decision on how he wants to go about that and I know he'll make the right decision for himself.”
The 21-year-old Allen, a fourth-rounder last year out of Wisconsin, rushed for 334 yards and two touchdowns as a rookie and caught 19 passes for 148 yards and a score. This season, he has 76 yards and a TD on 18 carries, along with two catches for 17 yards.
Breece Hall remains the Jets' No. 1 running back, but Isaiah Davis will move up into Allen's backup spot for the game Sunday against Dallas . The Jets also signed veteran Khalil Herbert off Seattle’s practice squad on Thursday to add depth and experience.
“I remember him and D-Mo — David Montgomery, who the Lions have right now — and going against both of those guys,” Glenn recalled of the running backs' time in Chicago when he was Detroit's defensive coordinator. “It's funny because I just told him this today that we thought he was just as good as David was.”
The 27-year-old Herbert has rushed for 1,905 yards and nine touchdowns and caught 53 passes for 312 yards and two scores in his career that also has included stops with Cincinnati and Indianapolis.
“I'm happy we got this player,” Glenn said. “He still has a lot of meat on the bone left. And with the injuries we've had, to get a player like this was critical for us.”
New York also signed former Falcons and Eagles running back and kick returner Avery Williams to the practice squad. The Jets are hoping to get running back Kene Nwangwu, their primary kick returner, back from an injured hamstring but Williams gives them some depth.
Glenn ruled out nickel cornerback Michael Carter II, who remained in the concussion protocol after getting injured in Miami. Recently acquired Jarvis Brownlee Jr. could make his debut for New York and fill in for Carter.
A decision on edge rusher Jermaine Johnson's return from a calf injury could “come down to the wire,” Glenn said. Johnson, who has missed the last two games, posted an optimistic update on X: “I feel great.”
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Raiders' 2025 draft class struggles to make impact thus far By MARK ANDERSON AP Sports Writer The Associated Press HENDERSON, Nev.
HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — Tom Telesco's lone draft class as the Raiders' general manager produced starters in the first three rounds last season that included a history-making tight end in Brock Bowers and offensive linemen Jackson Powers-Johnson and DJ Glaze.
Even Las Vegas' fourth-round pick, cornerback Decamerion Richardson, started seven games.
It was generally considered a successful draft, but it wasn't enough to erase the stink of a 4-13 record, resulting in the firings of Telesco and coach Antonio Pierce .
Under the new regime of coach Pete Carroll and GM John Spytek , the Raiders received positive reviews for their draft this year. But the draft class, thus far at least, has failed to live up to those initial reviews or last year's standards.
Running back Ashton Jeanty, taken sixth overall , is the only player to make a significant impact to this point, and it took him four starts to produce the kind of game long expected. He rushed for 138 yards and scored three touchdowns on the ground and through the air Sunday in a 25-24 loss to Chicago.
“I don’t have any expectation for the draft class,” Carroll said. “When you have a kid like Ashton that’s picked up high like that, and we were slotting him into a starting spot really from the beginning, that’s different than the rest of the guys.
"We just want to keep growing with these guys and make the right decisions along the way. We don’t do it because you think we should start guys because they’ve been drafted. That’s not how we think. But I love playing young guys and I love developing them, and we’re in the process.”
There are signs other 2025 draft picks will begin making contributions, perhaps on Sunday when the Raiders play at Indianapolis.
Wide receiver Jack Bech, selected in the second round, has been targeted twice this season, catching both passes for 33 yards.
“We just need to get him out there more,” Carroll said. "He’s in rotations that just didn’t get him enough snaps. So he’s capable of playing more snaps and should.”
Bech — as well as fourth-rounder Dont'e Thornton Jr. — are part of a Raiders receiving group that includes Jakobi Meyers and Tre Tucker as well as Bowers who often plays more like a wideout than a tight end. So there are only so many passing opportunities to go around.
“The whole receiving room has been great,” Bech said. “Everybody's in there helping each other out. We're obviously out there competing. We're all just trying to get better.”
Cornerback Darien Porter, taken in the third round, appeared early in training camp as if he would start as a rookie, but eventually lost that spot to Kyu Blu Kelly. Porter has received most of his playing time on special teams at 64% compared to 13% on defense.
He's also fairly new to the position, switching from wide receiver as a junior at Iowa State, but last season started seven games in the secondary and was honorable mention All-Big 12 Conference.
Now he's trying to excel at cornerback at the sport's highest level.
“It's been a learning process, but I think every week I pick up on the defense,” Porter said. “I learn technique a little better. You get more sound all around. I think I've been progressing well.”
Carroll said he's encouraged by what he's seen from Porter.
“I’m hoping that we get a chance to get him in the game a little bit more than we did last week,” Carroll said.
The Raiders used two third-round picks on offensive linemen — Caleb Rogers and Charles Grant. Neither has played, but Grant will need to be ready now that he's second-team left tackle with Kolton Miller on injured reserve with a high ankle sprain. Stone Forsythe will start against the Colts.
“On the offensive line in particular, we’d like to hold off as much as we can till these guys really can prove that they’re ready, but you don’t always have that opportunity,” Carroll said. “So Charles, he’s working like crazy with a real concern for, ‘Now, I may have to play right now.’ So we’re going to try to get that prepared, and if he does have to go in there and we need him, he’ll go.”
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