2. Buffalo Bills

Sean McVay, Rams react to Aaron Donald skipping OTAs

Aaron Donald has made true to his promise to sit out organized team activities with the Rams until he got a new contract, which has prompted members of the team to speak out.

Coach Sean McVay took a diplomatic approach when asked about Donald’s contract, saying both sides are trying to reach a resolution.

“It is something that we want to get resolved,” McVay said, via ESPN.com. “As far as a timetable, don’t really have any dates on that.”

Donald also skipped OTAs last year, along with training camp in the summer as he pushed for a new contract. But McVay said he’s more optimistic about negotiations this year.

“He and I have had good dialogue,” McVay said. “I spoke with him last week. This feels a lot different than last year. Certainly, any time that you have something where the team comes together, to have a player that’s as important as he is here, you would prefer that. But it is voluntary. We understand that, and we have a lot of respect and understanding for what’s going on.”

The Colts drafted running backs Nyheim Hines and Jordan Wilkins but still could use depth.
ravens_119
West has 1,816 rushing yards and 11 rushing touchdowns in his career, having spent time with Cleveland, Tennessee and Baltimore.

The NFL has tolerated something less that absolute competence and performance by employing part-time officials, many of whom otherwise have full-time jobs. The NFL has done that because, quite frankly, it’s far cheaper this way. The cheaper route won’t be an option when millions of dollars will be legally changing hands every week based on the outcome of games.

In the past, a bad beat caused by officials would from time to time create a ruckus, like when former NFL referee Scott Green made a mistake at the end of a Chargers-Steelers game in 2008. With legalized gambling, that ruckus quickly could become a full-blown inquisition. And if enough of those happen, Congress could make the NFL’s worst nightmare come to fruition by creating a federal agency that oversees all American professional sports.

The Colts don’t have anyone close to that at the moment.

“How we have (the players) ranked might not be how the media has them ranked,” he said.

It’s no secret the Colts are alarmingly thin at the linebacker spot. While Ballard won’t draft based on position alone – he’s echoed this sentiment for more than a year now – he knows how essential a linchpin in the middle of the defense can be. He’s brought up Brian Urlacher’s name a handful of times this offseason, the former Bear he marveled at in Chicago for so many years. Brought up Derrick Johnson, whom he was with in Kansas City.

It’s Draft No. 2 for Ballard, and the first for the personnel team he pieced together late last spring. It’s also likely the most significant one for this franchise in six years, given the manner in which Ballard intends on building this team. He’s doing it from the ground up, cautiously, carefully.

Time is running out before he’s on the clock, very likely weighing his options at No. 6 with a trade offer from a QB-needy team desperate to slide up.

During Thursday’s Nevada-Loyola of Chicago on CBS, Loyola’s 6-foot-9, 260-pound Cameron Krutwig accidentally collided with Nevada’s 6-7, 205-pound Caleb Martin, the latter landing awkwardly on the floor. Krutwig reached down to help Martin up. Martin accepted then gave his opponent an appreciative slap on the fanny.

There have been several such scenes during the NCAA Tournament.

But with opportunities to show such acts of mutual respect — to send a good message, especially during CBS and Turner’s slow-motion replay fades to commercials — none have reappeared. Only the standard: scenes of players in post-play acts of immodest self-adulation.

Why does TV do that? Why would TV do that? The bosses believe that what they push is what younger audiences want, that they have no sense of better. And TV hasn’t the decency, dignity and moral obligation to promote better.

Thursday’s Nevada-Loyola was fantastic, even if ESPN on Monday asked if such upset-winners advancing in the NCAA Tournament are “good for the game?”

But its ending was troubling. With 6 seconds left Loyola hit a 3 to go up four. Then, without the ball — it was Nevada’s, out-of-bounds — Loyola called timeout.

That needs changing. You can’t call time if you don’t have the ball. Why not allow the defense to call time before an opponent scores a breakaway layup?

A late throw-in is a dead-ball situation thus doesn’t constitute possession? How so? Because the clock isn’t running?seahawks_062

Jackson is an incredible athlete with blinding speed

Kids Oscar Robertson Jersey
Adoree’ Jackson could potentially start for Houston in the slot as a rookie, which would fill a crucial role, seeing as how the Texans utilize sub-packages the majority of the time on defense. He would also provide a major upgrade as a return specialist for a special teams unit—one of the NFL’s worst for many years–in dire need of talent.
Kids Heath Miller Jersey
Jackson is an incredible athlete with blinding speed, confirmed by his 40-yard dash result of 4.42 seconds at the NFL Combine. He has the necessary foot quickness and fluid hips to overcome any mistakes in coverage, with catch-up speed to allow him to make the play. His ball-hawking skills could make an immediate impact, ensuring that the Texans’ defense continues to be one of the league’s best. The additional versatility of potentially becoming a top returner in the league makes this pick a no-brainer. Jackson has a first round grade from many analysts and was even compared to Johnathan Joseph in Lance Zierlien’s NFL.com draft profile. To get him this late in the second round is a steal.

Analysis: As the draft approaches, first round momentum has been building for Jackson. Many believe he won’t get past Dallas at No. 28, so to get him here is a nice move. Jackson doesn’t have the size of some corners in this year’s draft, and his technique is raw. His athleticism, though, is off the charts good.

Because of his strong play along the offensive line and his leadership skills, Morgan was a team captain in 2015 and 2016. He also won several awards last year, including the 2016 Gene Upshaw Award, which honors the best lineman in NCAA Division II football. He also became the first offensive lineman to ever win the 2016 PSAC East Offensive Athlete of the Year award.

Morgan’s dedication helped him land an invite to the NFL Combine and the 2017 Senior Bowl in Mobile.

Pro athletes voice their disgust at NCAA championship game refs

North Carolina vs. Gonzaga should have been the exciting culmination of a tournament’s worth of hard work. Instead, it became a whistle-fest from the refs where it felt like every single possession was tainted by foul calls, and the pace of the game was destroyed. Almost everyone was upset with what transpired, especially basketball players.

While the new law meets the minimal NCAA requirements, the board remains concerned that some may perceive North Carolina’s moratorium against affording opportunities for communities to extend basic civil rights as a signal that discriminatory behavior is permitted and acceptable, which is inconsistent with the NCAA Bylaws.
Womens D.J. Fluker Jersey The NCAA also added in its position that if there are future events in the state of North Carolina, some of its own non-discriminatory rules will be enacted.

Brandon Mashinter Womens Jersey We have been assured by the state that this new law allows the NCAA to enact its inclusive policies by contract with communities, universities, arenas, hotels, and other service providers that are doing business with us, our students, other participants, and fans. Further, outside of bathroom facilities, the new law allows our campuses to maintain their own policies against discrimination, including protecting LGBTQ rights, and allows cities’ existing nondiscrimination ordinances, including LBGTQ protections, to remain effective.

Who they added in free agency: Tackle Riley Reiff, formerly of the Detroit Lions, was a good pickup for the Vikings. Reiff ended up at right tackle for the Lions last season after rookie Taylor Decker won the starting left tackle role, but now will take over at left tackle for Kalil, who signed with the Carolina Panthers.

The Vikings also added right tackle Mike Remmers, who had been with the Panthers. Like Reiff, Remmers has the versatility to play either side. He filled in at left tackle in Carolina for most of last season with Michael Oher sidelined with a lingering concussion.

Everyone is offering to rub J.J. Watt’s groin after surgery

The life of a professional athlete isn’t always easy. You have to stay in peak physical condition, be prepared mentally to endure harsh criticism and deal with thousands of strangers asking to rub your groin. It’s this last thing that J.J. Watt is dealing with, even if he’s thankful for it.

Also appreciate all the “nurses” offering to help rehab my groin surgeries. Didn’t realize there were so many qualified pros out there! Haha

— JJ Watt (@JJWatt) January 30, 2016
It’s great to see a country rally around Watt in his time of need. Surely the Texans have some top-notch physical therapists who can do this job, but it’s always nice to have a backup.

Noah Spence, DE, Eastern Kentucky: What happened off the field this week was just as important as what he did on it. Spence needed to be forthcoming to teams about the drug issues that got him dismissed at Ohio State, and he was during a multitude of meetings with personnel members. If you couple that with what Spence showed this week, it’s easy to see him becoming a top-15 pick in April. All week, Spence was terrorizing offensive linemen with his speed and ability to bend around the edge. Star pass rushers like Spence don’t last long in the draft.

Nick Vannett, TE, Ohio State: At Ohio State, Vannett was underutilized in head coach Urban Meyer’s spread offense. Vannett said after practice on Thursday that he wanted to show he’s much more of a pass catcher and playmaker. After a good week of practice, Vannett’s mission was accomplished. Vannett has good size at 6’5 3/4 and 256 pounds, and used it to body defenders all week to create room to make catches. Vannett’s teammate Jeff Heuerman was a third-round pick at tight end last year. Vannett could go even higher.

Vernon Butler, DT, Louisiana Tech: It was a good, consistent week for Butler. At 325 pounds, he moved around much better than expected and is a naturally strong player against the run. Butler is working this offseason on his pass rush ability, and some of that flashed during one-on-one drills. In a loaded defensive tackle class, Butler justified his second-round status at the Senior Bowl.