Bo Nix’s late TD pass helps finish off win over Chiefs as Broncos move closer to division title
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Bo Nix ran for a score before throwing a go-ahead touchdown pass to R.J. Harvey with 1:45 left in the game, and the Denver Broncos held on in the closing seconds for a 20-13 victory over the banged-up Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday night. Nix finished...
Vikings eliminate Lions from playoff contention by forcing 6 turnovers, racking up 5 sacks
MINNEAPOLIS — Jordan Addison took a jet sweep handoff 65 yards for the game-sealing touchdown with 3 minutes, 43 seconds left after the Minnesota Vikings forced six turnovers and eliminated the Detroit Lions from contention for the playoffs with a 23-10 victory Thursday. Harrison Smith, the 14th-year veteran safety, had...
Raves’ Lamar Jackson doubtful, Packers’ Jordan Love questionable for matchup Saturday
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Lamar Jackson is listed as doubtful for Baltimore’s game against the Green Bay Packers on Saturday night as he continues to deal with a back injury that knocked him out of the game against the New England Patriots last weekend. The two-time MVP quarterback hasn’t practiced...
Steelers CB Jalen Ramsey doesn’t practice because of illness; OLB T.J. Watt remains limited
T.J. Watt remained a limited practice participant Thursday for the second day in a row as he works his way back from a partially collapsed lung. Since resuming practice Wednesday after missing two games following a dry needling treatment that punctured his lung, Watt has worked strictly on a limited...
Dak Prescott throws for 307 yards and 2 TDs to lead Cowboys past skidding Commanders
LANDOVER, Md. — Dak Prescott threw for 307 yards and two touchdowns, and the Dallas Cowboys blew most of an 18-point lead before squeezing past the Washington Commanders, 30-23, on Thursday. Dallas (7-8-1) scored touchdowns on its first three possessions to go up 21-3. Although the Commanders (4-12) cut the...
As Myles Garrett chases history, Steelers’ Dylan Cook bracing for lockdown performances
Dylan Cook will be in an unenviable position Sunday when he makes his anticipated third NFL start for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Lining up across from Cook at left tackle will be Cleveland Browns star Myles Garrett, who is having an historic season as a pass rusher. Garrett will enter the...
Jaguars CB Jourdan Lewis to have season-ending foot surgery, AP source says
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback Jourdan Lewis will have season-ending foot surgery, a person familiar with the injury told The Associated Press on Thursday. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because neither the player nor the team has confirmed Lewis’ status. Lewis injured his foot in a 34-20...
With rash of injuries at CB, Steelers add veteran Tre Flowers to 53-man roster
Tre Flowers received quite the Christmas gift Thursday when he was signed to the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 53-man roster. With the Steelers dealing with injuries throughout the secondary, they added Flowers for depth heading into their game Sunday at the Cleveland Browns. Flowers, 30, was a fifth-round pick of the Seattle...
This Christmas, David Overstreet II is ‘where he needed to be’ to honor father’s legacy
FRISCO, Texas — David Overstreet II has faint memories of his father, but he was told stories about the type of man he was. The Cowboys’ cornerbacks coach was just 13 months old when David Overstreet I died in 1984 in a car crash in Winona, Texas. His father was...
Minnesota looks to stretch bowl winning streak to 9 when it faces New Mexico in Rate Bowl
PHOENIX — Opting out has become the in thing to do. Every year, players regularly choose not to play in bowl games, some wary of injuries affecting their pro prospects, others leaving for another school, or sitting out after a coaching change. Entire teams even opt out. Minnesota still finds...
Penn State has 4 opt-outs for Pinstripe Bowl; other veterans will be limited
Perhaps surprisingly, Penn State hasn’t had all that many “opt-outs” in the lead-up to Saturday’s Pinstripe Bowl tilt with Clemson. Defensive tackle Zane Durant, safety Zakee Wheatley, offensive lineman Vega Ioane and running back Nick Singleton are the lone veterans who have declared for the NFL Draft and decided not...
Mikaela Shiffrin is perfect in slalom. She’s got big post-Christmas plans with Olympics approaching
Mikaela Shiffrin has plenty to celebrate this Christmas. The American skiing standout is off to a perfect start in slalom during the Olympic season — with four wins in four World Cup races. And she’s regaining her form in other disciplines, too, following the two biggest crashes of her career....
John Robertson, two-time European Cup winner with Nottingham Forest, dies at 72
NOTTINGHAM, England — John Robertson, a former Scotland winger who won the European Cup twice with Nottingham Forest and scored the only goal in the 1980 final, has died. He was 72. The Premier League club said in a statement Thursday that it was “heartbroken to announce the passing of...
College Football Playoff ratings drop 7% as NFL competition impacts viewership
Last weekend’s first round of the College Football Playoff averaged 9.9 million viewers on ABC, ESPN, TNT, TBS and truTV, according to ESPN and Nielson. That is a 7% drop from last year. A big reason for the drop was that the final game, James Madison versus Oregon, was on...
Hawaii stuns Cal in Hawaii Bowl on backup QB’s last-minute TD pass
HONOLULU — Backup quarterback Luke Weaver threw a 22-yard touchdown pass to Nick Cenacle with 10 seconds left, and Hawaii rallied for a 35-31 comeback victory over California in a thrilling Hawaii Bowl on Wednesday night. Weaver entered the game after Micah Alejado took a hard hit on the previous...
‘They try to get in your head’: Steelers players grow accustomed to opposing fans’ taunts
A credo of the Seattle Seahawks’ fan base is they are known as “The 12th Man.” It’s meant as a rallying cry to implore those on hand at Lumen Field for Seahawks home games to be loud at the appropriate times when the situation calls for it. As far as...
Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers wouldn’t mind some ‘payback’ from Packers in game vs. Ravens
Forty-eight years ago, the Pittsburgh Steelers took the unprecedented step of rewarding another NFL team for helping them reach the NFL playoffs. When Houston beat Cincinnati, 21-16, a week before Christmas in 1977, it sent the Bengals home for the playoffs and secured a spot for the Steelers. The Steelers...
T.J. Watt returns to practice for Steelers 2 weeks after lung partially collapsed
For the first time since having his lung punctured two weeks ago in a dry needling treatment, Pittsburgh Steelers outside linebacker T.J. Watt returned to practice Wednesday on a limited basis. It was Watt’s first on-field activity since the Steelers’ win on Dec. 7 at Baltimore. “T.J. is one our...
Hometown playoff hero Robbie Mertz staying with Riverhounds
The hometown hero of the Pittsburgh Riverhounds’ run to their first USL Championship title will be back in black and gold. Upper St. Clair’s Robbie Mertz signed a two-year deal with a club option for a third year, the Riverhounds announced Wednesday. Mertz, a 29-year-old midfielder, has spent parts of...
As NFL confirms Lions fan from altercation ‘remains under review,’ Steelers support DK Metcalf
Riding a three-game winning streak, on the verge of clinching a division title and with Christmas morning beckoning just hours away, spirits should have been high in the Pittsburgh Steelers locker room Wednesday. Its longest-tenured member, though, noted regret that there was a significant absence from the UPMC Rooney Sports...
Mark Madden: DK Metcalf has only himself to blame
Only one person is to blame in the DK Metcalf imbroglio. It’s DK Metcalf. Sure, the blue-haired dipstick in the stands at Ford Field was looking to ensnare the Pittsburgh Steelers wideout in a web of stupidity. Shame on Metcalf for letting him. That dope had nothing to lose. Metcalf...
U mad, bro?: Readers not in the Christmas spirit thanks to DK Metcalf’s suspension, NFL refs and Penguins’ struggles
The last thing in the world I want to be is a “Bad Santa.” With that in mind, I’m off on Christmas Day. So I’m making sure to get “U mad, bro?” posted a day earlier than normal because the holiday falls on a Thursday this year. And I know...
On Sports: Lions fans feel ‘robbed’ after loss to Steelers; Marc-Andre Fleury’s retirement might be cut shortVideo
It’s been a rough couple of days in Detroit after the Pittsburgh Steelers took the Lions’ playoff chances from possible to extremely unlikely. A former Penguins goalie could be considering a return to the ice, and Duquesne men’s basketball gets a marquee moment on “SportsCenter” in Wednesday’s “On Sports,” pinch-hitting...
Tim Benz’s Steelers stocking stuffers: DK Metcalf ‘whataboutism,’ T.J. Watt’s murky status, resting if Ravens lose
“Breakfast With Benz” is taking a long winter’s nap for Christmas on Thursday morning and the day after. As a result, there will be no “Football Footnotes” on Friday. Instead, we’re offering up a Christmas cornucopia of Pittsburgh Steelers stocking stuffers to ease you into the holiday following Mike Tomlin’s...
Ohio beats UNLV in Frisco Bowl to run bowl winning streak to 7
FRISCO, Texas — Sieh Bangura rushed for 149 yards and a touchdown and Ohio beat UNLV, 17-10, on Tuesday night to win the Frisco Bowl. The Bobcats (9-4) have won their last seven bowl games — dating to 2017 — after losing eight of their first 10. Defensive coordinator and...