Monday, December 4, 2023

Source: Titans RB Derrick Henry in concussion protocol

Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry is in concussion protocol, leaving his status for next Monday night's game at the Miami Dolphins in question, a source told ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Henry left the Titans' 31-28 overtime loss to the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday in the fourth quarter to be checked for a concussion and didn't return.

Before leaving Sunday's game, Henry rushed for 102 yards and two touchdowns.

Tyjae Spears would take over as the Titans' lead running back if Henry isn't cleared to play. On Sunday, Spears rushed for a career-best 75 yards on 16 carries.

Henry, a three-time Pro Bowl selection and the 2020 Offensive Player of the Year, is second in the NFL with 841 rushing yards. He also has eight rushing touchdowns.

Sunday's loss dropped the Titans to 4-8. Tennessee is in last place in the AFC South.

Jordan Love beats blitzes, Chiefs in masterful effort for Packers


GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Jordan Love waited more than two years -- 756 days to be exact -- and the Green Bay Packers quarterback wasn't about to let what happened back then at Arrowhead Stadium repeat itself Sunday night at Lambeau Field.

It was back on Nov. 7, 2021, when Love made his first NFL start against the Kansas City Chiefs. It was a one-time thing with Aaron Rodgers out because of COVID-19. And it was a disaster. Love crumbled in the face of blitz after blitz and walked away a 13-7 loser.

That Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo tried a similar strategy Sunday and Love masterfully sidestepped it showed how important this 27-19 victory on "Sunday Night Football" was, and just how far he has come 12 games into his first season as Green Bay's full-time starting quarterback.

"Yeah, it's huge," said Love, who finished 25-of-36 passing for 267 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. "For me personally, obviously I've had this game circled for a long time. My first start, obviously, didn't play how I wanted to the first game. So to be able to see these guys again and get the victory is huge. It's just a great team win tonight. Everybody just balled out, so it was an awesome win."

It was also huge for the Packers' playoff chances. A team that in late October was 2-5 now sits at 6-6 and -- for now -- in the final playoff spot in the NFC. Their playoff chances jumped all the way to 66%, according to ESPN Analytics, from 45% entering the game. A loss would have reduced the possibility to 37%.

Love didn't just beat the Chiefs on Sunday, he beat their blitzes. He completed 10 of 13 passes with three touchdowns when Spagnuolo sent five or more pass-rushers. It gave Love eight touchdown passes and zero interceptions this season against the blitz, according to ESPN Stats & Information. Only Miami's Tua Tagovailoa has more touchdown passes (10), with an interception, against the blitz this season.

Two years ago, Love managed just six completions in 17 pass attempts for a mere 30 yards against Kansas City's pressure packages.

The difference for Love: time and experience. He had plenty of time to watch that first Kansas City game. He said he watched it on repeat that offseason in part because it was the only significant game film he had to that point.

"I've gotten more reps, [and] I'm more comfortable understanding where I need to go with the ball," Love said. "I think the O-line is doing a great job to be able to pick this stuff up. It's not easy when they're bringing some of these all-out blitzes, stuff like that, but they've been doing a great job giving me time. And then the receivers, obviously, they're having awareness of when they need to be open and how long I've got and then just going out there and making plays.

"But it's definitely something we as a team, in practice, we know it's something teams are going to bring. And we've got to be able to execute and go out there and be able to make sure they don't do it again."

That's also where Christian Watson came in. Before he left because of a right hamstring injury in the fourth quarter, Watson caught seven passes for 71 yards and two touchdowns. Five of those -- and both touchdowns -- came against the blitz. It was Watson's first game with two touchdown catches this season. He has four touchdowns in his past three games and has caught 70% of his targets in that span after earlier this season having the lowest catch rate of any receiver with more than 30 targets.

The problem, however, might be that right hamstring. It's the same one that kept Watson out of the first three games of this season. He did not know the severity, but he limped out of the locker room after he spoke to reporters.

Watson said he could tell in the days leading up to this game that it meant something to Love, and he said in pregame warmups that Love was "locked in and ready to go."

"Honestly, the way that he's just been attacking the process and coming to work every day, it seems like every single game has been circled on his calendar, to be honest, these past couple weeks," Watson said. "So I mean, it's really tough to tell, but I mean, yeah, the way he approaches every single day in practice, especially this week, you could tell he was about his business."

But Love wasn't just locked in on Watson on Sunday night. There was Romeo Doubs and his improbable 33-yard catch on fourth-and-1 in the third quarter to set up Watson's second touchdown. And there were rookies Jayden ReedDontayvion WicksTucker KraftMalik Heath and Ben Sims who combined for nearly half (12) of Love's 25 completions on the night.

Love also continued a remarkable streak that Rodgers and coach Matt LaFleur started in 2019. It was the Packers' 16th straight win in the month of December, the second-longest streak in NFL history.

"When I got here last year, I was saying watch [Rodgers], learn from [No.] 12," said cornerback Keisean Nixon, who picked off Mahomes in the fourth quarter. "And 12 gave him the key. And s---, he's driving the Porsche now."

Eagles can't mount another comeback, fall to 49ers


PHILADELPHIA -- After weeks of living on the edge, the Eagles' uneven play finally got the better of them in a lopsided 42-19 loss to the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.

"We're not good enough right now," Eagles veteran center Jason Kelce said. "Obviously, disappointed in the way we performed, didn't get it done today. But we've still got some games left, a lot of football to learn from. I still have the utmost confidence in everybody in this locker room on both sides of the ball. This game doesn't do anything to sway that."

The Eagles had trailed at halftime in each of their previous four games but managed to rally and win all of them, tying an NFL record.

That string came to a halt Sunday, as San Francisco built a 14-6 halftime lead then kicked it into high gear after intermission, handing Philadelphia its second-largest loss under coach Nick Sirianni. (Its worst loss was by 25 points to the Dallas Cowboys in Week 18 of the 2021 season with the Eagles resting many of their starters for the playoffs.)

"We didn't coach good enough, didn't play good enough. Simple as that. And why do you not do that? Well, you have to give credit to them too. That's a really good football team. If you don't come out and play your best game against the guys that they have and the coaches that they have, it's going to look like that," Sirianni said. "So, we have to coach better. Have to play better. We have a lot to clean up."

Philadelphia struggled in the red zone early in the season but had turned things around of late, going 10-for-10 on scoring touchdowns in the red zone over its past three games. The issue resurfaced Sunday, however, with the Eagles failing to score TDs on their first two trips inside the 20-yard line and settling for field goals in each case.

"I feel like we started with good rhythm, good tempo, good execution for the most part. We just kind of weren't able to connect and execute like we wanted to in the red zone," said Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts, who finished 26-of-45 passing for 298 yards with two touchdowns (one rushing). "When you're playing a good team like that, every little thing matters."

The Philly defense, which was on the field for 92 plays against the Buffalo Bills last week and was operating without starting linebackers Nakobe Dean and Zach Cunningham due to injury, faltered after a strong start, yielding 456 yards of offense.

Niners wide receiver Deebo Samuel scored three touchdowns on the day. According to Next Gen stats, 115 of his 116 receiving yards came after the catch.

"We didn't do a lot of things right," said Eagles defensive tackle Fletcher Cox. "We didn't tackle. We didn't cover. We missed a bunch of plays."

The Eagles (10-2) now turn their attention to another big matchup at the rival Dallas Cowboys (9-3) next week. Suddenly, the race for the top seed in the NFC has gotten tighter, with the 49ers (9-3) and Detroit Lions (9-3) also in the mix.

There was some chatter among Philadelphia players as they exited the field about seeing this San Francisco team again. That's a very real possibility: Eagles-49ers was the most likely NFC Championship Game matchup heading into the week at 38%, according to ESPN Analytics.

"It's a possible rematch," Eagles left tackle Jordan Mailata said. "But today, you've got to look yourself in the mirror and say they were the better team. We didn't execute. We failed to execute and didn't capitalize on the opportunities that we had, especially in the red zone. Against a team like that who's well-coached and well-disciplined, you can't afford ... those missed opportunities."

Kansas City Chiefs bemoan final moments of loss in Green Bay


GREEN BAY, Wis. -- The Kansas City Chiefs saw the end of Sunday night's game devolve into chaos, with the final 1:09 featuring an unnecessary roughness penalty, a fumble recovery that was overturned, an ejection and a controversial pass interference non-call.

When it was all said and done, Kansas City -- needing a touchdown and a 2-point conversion to force overtime -- instead saw Patrick Mahomes' pass into the end zone on the final play knocked away, as the Green Bay Packers held on for a 27-19 win.

The Chiefs, hoping to tie the Baltimore Ravens and Miami Dolphins for the best record in the AFC, instead fell to 8-4 following their third loss in five outings.

In what was a talking point in the Chiefs locker room afterward, officials elected not to throw a flag for interference as Packers defensive back Carrington Valentine appeared to be draped over Chiefs wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling on a deep pass from Mahomes on a first-and-10 from the 50-yard line. Had the penalty been called, it would have put the Chiefs inside the Green Bay 10-yard line with 44 seconds remaining.

Valdes-Scantling said after the game he asked the official why there was no penalty.

"He didn't even acknowledge me," Valdes-Scantling said.

Asked whether it was a penalty, Valdes-Scantling replied, "I was trying to get the ball and ended up on the ground. I don't know what they saw, but I tried to catch it and didn't have an opportunity."

Mahomes would eventually get his team into Packers territory, but the Chiefs stalled out at the Green Bay 33, with Mahomes' final four pass attempts all landing incomplete.

"Obviously, the guy was probably a little early, but at the end of the game, they're letting guys play," Mahomes said about no penalty being called on the pass to Valdes-Scantling. "I'm kind of about that. I rather you let the guys play and let the guys win on the field, but it's hard.

"I can't be wanting a flag. I have to try to go out there and win the game myself and with the rest of my teammates."

Referee Brad Allen, asked about the play after the game, said in a pool report that "on every play where there may or may not be pass interference, either offensive or defensive, the covering official has to rule whether contact materially restricts the receiver. And in this case, the covering officials were in good position and ruled that there was no material restriction that rose to the level of defensive pass interference."

Earlier on the drive, Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco was ejected from the game and penalized 15 valuable yards for taking a swing at a Packers player.

"You can't do that," Chiefs coach Andy Reid said afterward. "You have to stay composed."

Mahomes acknowledged the penalty hurt the Chiefs but said he appreciated Pacheco's energy.

"I love the fire from [Pacheco]," Mahomes said. "That gets us going as an offense. Obviously, you got a flag in this situation, but I mean we were already in a bad situation, so I mean I never want to take the passion away from a guy. He'll learn from it. I'm sure he won't make that mistake again, but that's the stuff that we need on this team in order to have the success that we want to have."

The Chiefs' chaotic final drive began with Green Bay defensive back Jonathan Owens being penalized for hitting Mahomes as he was going out of bounds on a 10-yard run, a personal foul that put the ball at Green Bay's 45-yard line.

"In my mind, I just wanted to hit him before he went out of bounds to try and knock him back to keep the clock rolling," Owens said. "It was under a minute, I believe, so just keep the clock running, just try to make a team play. If you can get a legal hit on a quarterback, take it every chance you get.

"I knew it was legal."

Kansas City wideout Rashee Rice then appeared to fumble, with Green Bay's Corey Ballentine returning it 68 yards for what would have been a game-sealing touchdown. But replay showed that Rice was down before the ball came loose, so the Chiefs retained possession.

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