John Madden, a legendary figure known to one generation as a Hall of Fame coach, another generation as the sport’s greatest announcer, and yet another generation for the video game that bears his name, has died at the age of 85. The NFL announced Madden’s passing today. Madden’s influence on the sport of football is impossible to overstate. He was the youngest head coach in pro football when Al Davis hired him to coach the Oakland Raiders, and he led them to a Super Bowl title while having so much success that he still has the all-time highest winning percentage among all coaches who won at least 100 games. But as great a coach as he was, he did more for the sport after he retired from coaching. In the broadcasting booth, Madden became a sensation, not just the best broadcaster in football but one of the most popular figures in America, as famous as any movie star but as down-to-earth as any guy you’d talk about sports with at the barbershop. Everyone loved him. And then Madden had his video game, which he didn’t just lend his name to but took an active role in developing, always insisting that it needed to be as realistic as possible. The youngest generation of football fans that can’t even remember him as a broadcaster, let alone as a coach, is still influenced by Madden’s giant presence in the sport. Even in the final years of his life, Madden had an important role in the NFL, advising the league and advocating for rule changes that would protect players from brain injuries. John Madden may have been the single most influential person in the history of the sport of football.
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With COVID-19 hitting some NFL teams hard, Saturday's scheduled game between the Las Vegas Raiders and Cleveland Browns has been moved to Monday.
The game will be played at 5 p.m. ET, with the regularly scheduled Monday Night Football game between the Minnesota Vikings and Chicago Bears to be played at its usual time of 8:20 p.m. ET on ESPN. Games scheduled for Sunday between Washington and Philadelphia, as well as Seattle at the Los Angeles Rams, have both been moved to Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET. As of Friday, the Browns have had a total of 24 players -- 12 starters, including the punter -- who either tested positive for COVID-19 this week or were still on the reserve/COVID-19 list from last week. The Rams have 29 players on the reserve/COVID-19 list, including receiver Odell Beckham Jr., cornerback Jalen Ramsey, outside linebacker Von Miller and four other starters. Los Angeles' list includes tight end Tyler Higbee, who missed Monday night's game with what was deemed a false positive, but was added again Friday. The Seahawks also placed leading receiver Tyler Lockett and running back Alex Collins on the COVID list on Thursday. Washington has 23 players on the reserve/COVID-19 list including quarterback Taylor Heinicke and backup Kyle Allen. The Raiders fought their scheduling change, believing the protocols over the summer were clear that outbreaks would result in forfeiture, a source told ESPN's Jeremy Fowler. However, NFL policy agreed to in July states that a forfeiture would happen only if all the following instances occur: (1) a game is postponed by requirement of government authorities or at the discretion of the commissioner; (2) the league can't find a suitable makeup date within the framework of the season; and (3) the original postponement was caused by an outbreak among unvaccinated players of one team. Las Vegas owner Mark Davis told ESPN's Paul Gutierrez that moving the team's game against the Browns to Monday put the Raiders at a "competitive disadvantage." "Health and safety is No. 1, but it's tough," Davis told ESPN. "Maybe Cleveland should travel here. That would make it more fair." Eagles safety Rodney McLeod took to Twitter to vent about his team's schedule change. A source told ESPN's Brady Henderson the Seahawks were also unhappy over their game being postponed and would have preferred to play the game on Sunday as scheduled. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell issued a memo on Friday afternoon to all 32 teams concerning COVID protocols and playing schedule. "We will make every effort, consistent with underlying health and safety principles, to play our full schedule within the current 18 weeks," Goodell said in the memo, adding that, "Each club is obligated to have its team ready to play at the scheduled time and place. There is no right to postpone a game, and games will not be postponed or rescheduled because of roster issues affecting a particular position group or particular number of players." That the NFLPA President is a player on the Browns has added more fuel to the fire as it looks like he sold out the other teams for his own teams advantage. Other News: - New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton tested positive for COVID-19. He will not coach this weekend against the Bucs. It is often said that it is better to flameout then to fade away and you need to give credit to Urban on flaming out spectacularly. He has finally been fired as head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars after just 13 games with the franchise and about half a billion stories.
Meyer’s tenure with the Jaguars was a rocky one from start to finish with the number of off-field headlines about Meyer’s decisions and conduct far exceeding the team’s number of wins. His firing comes hours after a story came out from the Tampa Bay Times with former Jaguars kicker Josh Lambo saying Meyer kicked him in a practice in August. Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell will take over as interim head coach. Bevell served as interim head coach for the Detroit Lions last season. “After deliberation over many weeks and a thorough analysis of the entirety of Urban’s tenure with our team, I am bitterly disappointed to arrive at the conclusion that an immediate change is imperative for everyone,” owner Shad Khan said in a statement. “I informed Urban of the change this evening. As I stated in October, regaining our trust and respect was essential. Regrettably, it did not happen.” “Trent Baalke continues as our general manager and will work with Darrell [Bevell] to ensure that our team will be inspired and competitive while representing Jacksonville proudly over our final four games of the season.” Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence said Wednesday, prior to the Lambo story being released, that the drama around the team had to change. Meyer had been the cause of almost all of the drama surrounding the team this year. And now the change the team needed has happened. Additional Thoughts: - Long overdue. Nothing went right during his time there. - This is going to cause some teams from shying away from college only coaches. The lights are much bigger and no one goes out of their way to cover for their odd behavior. - The Jaguars seem to alternate between players and coaches having serious issues. They may not like it, but they probably need some disciplinarian to help keep control of things but that has caused issues within the organization in the past. - I wouldn't be surprised to see Meyer take a college job as a reclamation job for his reputation but he may want to take some time to assess whether he really needs to work anymore or does he just want to fade away. Former NFL wide receiver Demaryius Thomas, a four-time Pro Bowler with the Denver Broncos, has died at the age of 33.
Thomas was found deceased in his home on Thursday night, the Roswell (Georgia) Police Department confirmed in a statement to NFL Media. Preliminary information is that Thomas' death stems from a medical issue, and Roswell PD investigators currently have no reason to believe otherwise. "We are devastated and completely heartbroken," a statement from the Broncos read, in part. "Demaryius' humility, warmth, kindness and infectious smile will always be remembered by those who knew him and loved him." Thomas was a standout with the Broncos over a 10-year NFL career that finished with brief stints with the Houston Texans and New York Jets. He announced his retirement in June. "It was a tough decision, a real tough decision," Thomas said at the time. "Always as a kid or always when I did something, it was always [giving] my best to go and go and go. And football was my go. Every year I tried to get better and better, and I knew I was aging, of course. It was something tough, but I'm grateful I did 10, 11 years. I'm so grateful for that and now I can move on. I'm happy, I'm healthy. And now I can try to find my next itch." Thomas posted five consecutive 1,000-yard seasons in Denver from 2012-2016. He was a key receiver during Peyton Manning's years with the Broncos, and was on the winning side of Super Bowl 50 when the Broncos defeated the Carolina Panthers. In 2014, he posted career highs of 111 catches and 1,694 receiving yards. For his career, Thomas caught 724 passes for 9,763 yards and 63 touchdowns. A Georgia native, Thomas was a multi-sport athlete at Dexter West Laurens High. Thomas played collegiately at Georgia Tech. Over his last two seasons there, in coach Paul Johnson's triple-option offense, he saw few passes but was targeted for deep balls behind run-focused defenses. As a senior in that role, he averaged a whopping 25.1 yards per catch (46 for 1,154) with eight touchdowns. The Broncos selected him with the 22nd overall pick of the 2010 NFL Draft and, at 6-foot-3, 225 pounds, he developed into one of the NFL's most dangerous big targets at the position. "You could always count on D.T. He belongs among the greatest players in Broncos history for what he's meant to this organization on the field and out in the community," Broncos vice president of football operations John Elway said of Thomas upon his retirement. Born Christmas Day, 1987, Thomas was found dead just 16 days short of his 34th birthday. |
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