Courtesy of Footballguys.com
CLE - Kevin Stefanski officially hired
Source: The Cleveland Plain Dealer - Mary Kay Cabot
Updating a previous report, Minnesota Vikings offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski has been hired as the Cleveland Browns new head coach.
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This is the final coaching vacancy that was out there. Stefanski was a runner up to Freddie Kitchens last year but this time gets the gig. We'll see the Browns run the ball a ton ...just like the Vikings did under Stefanski's guidance.
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GB - Green Bay moves on to NFC Championship
Source: ESPN.com
Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers finished 16-of-27 for 243 yards and two touchdowns as the team raced out to a 21-3 lead before holding on for a 28-23 victory in Sunday's NFC Divisional Round playoff game. RB Aaron Jones ran for 62 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries, while Rodgers added 14 more yards on the ground. WR Davante Adams hauled in eight catches for 160 yards and two touchdowns, while TE Jimmy Graham was the only other Packer with more than one catch, tallying three receptions for 49 yards. LBs Preston Smith and Za'Darius Smith each recorded two of Green Bay's five sacks, while LB Blake Martinez led all tacklers with 10 stops (seven solo).
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Rodgers and the Packers did what they needed to do including some clutch plays at the end. They'll face a tough 49er team in San Francisco.
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KC - Kansas City advances to AFC Championship Game
Source: ESPN
Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes completed 23-of-35 passes for 321 yards, five touchdowns and no interceptions in Sunday's AFC Divisional Round win over the Houston Texans. He also led the team with 53 rushing yards on seven attempts. RB Damien Williams ran 12 times for 47 yards with two touchdowns, while adding two grabs for 21 yards and a third score. TE Travis Kelce had a monster game with 10 grabs, 134 yards and three touchdowns. WR Sammy Watkins had two grabs for 76 yards and he added 14 rushing yards. WR Tyreek Hill ran three times for 41 yards with a four-yard run and one lost fumble. WR Mecole Hardman was good for two receptions and 19 yards, while WR Demarcus Robinson ended his day with one catch for four yards on four targets.
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Kansas City struggled early but eventually roared to a dominating win.
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HOU - Houston blows big lead, falls in Kansas City
Source: ESPN
Houston Astros QB Deshaun Watson completed 31-of-52 passes for 388 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions in Sunday's 51-31 AFC Divisional Round playoff game loss against the Kansas City Chiefs, as the team blew a 24-0 lead. RB Carlos Hyde rushed 13 times for 44 yards, while Watson also added 37 yards and a score. WR DeAndre Hopkins ended up with nine grabs for 118 yards on a game-high 14 targets. WR Will Fuller was a nice secondary option with 89 yards on five catches, while WR Kenny Stills posted three receptions for 80 yards and a touchdown. TE Darren Fells also had three catches for 22 yards and a touchdown on seven targets. RB Duke Johnson also chipped in with 11 rushing yards and five grabs for 23 yards. CB Lonnie Johnson also had a blocked kick return for touchdown in the first quarter while totaling four solo tackles.
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The Texans seemed like they couldn't do anything wrong. Until it seemed they couldn't do anything right. It was a wild swing back and forth but eventually Kansas City showed they were clearly the better team.
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DEN - Rich Scangarello let go
Source: NFL Network - Tom Pelissero
Denver Broncos offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello was fired Sunday, Jan. 12, according to a source.
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The timing of this is a bit off as the Broncos season wrapped up a couple of weeks ago. Scangarello was a first-year OC who failed to make a consistent game plan for the Broncos as they went through three quarterback changes. The team was 4-1 with rookie QB Drew Lock at the end of the season, but that was not enough to save Scangarello's job. Early speculation has the Broncos interested in former Giants head coach Pat Shurmur.
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NE - WR Julian Edelman played injured most of 2019
Source: ESPN - Adam Schefter
New England Patriots WR Julian Edelman (rib) played most of 2019 season with a partially torn rib cartilage, according to sources. Edelman suffered the injury during the Week 3 game but did not miss any time.
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Edelman is certainly tough as rib injuries often come down to how much pain one can tolerate. He is slated to have offseason knee surgery after dealing with a banged up knee in 2019 too.
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NO - Coach expects QB Drew Brees back in 2020
Source: NFL.com - Grant Gordon
New Orleans Saints impending free-agent QB Drew Brees is expected to talk with head coach Sean Payton Monday, Jan. 13, and Payton said he expects Brees to be the Saints quarterback next season.
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The Saints have some big decisions this offseason. Brees is a free agent and so are backups Teddy Bridgewater and Taysom Hill. After the loss to the Vikings in the Wild Card Round, Brees declined to comment on whether or not he would continue playing football. Over 40-years old Brees is clearly not the same player he used to be.
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NE - WR Julian Edelman arrested Saturday
Source: USA TODAY Sports - Steve Gardner
New England Patriots WR Julian Edelman was arrested in California Saturday, Jan. 11, and has been charged with misdemeanor vandalism. He allegedly jumped on the hood of a car and caused damage.
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Edelman was out and about with former teammate Danny Amendola and former NBA superstar Paul Pierce. He'll likely have to pay a fine and pay for the damages but we don't see the NFL taking any sort of disciplinary action.
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BAL - TE Mark Andrews plans to play in Pro Bowl
Source: ESPN.com - Jamison Hensley
Baltimore Ravens TE Mark Andrews (ankle) said he plans to play in the Pro Bowl even though he has been dealing with an ankle injury.
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Andrews, a third-round pick out of Oklahoma in the 2018 NFL draft, is one of the beset in the league at his position. In 2019, Andrews led all tight ends with 10 receiving touchdowns even though he only played in 15 games. This is his first Pro Bowl nomination.
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MIN - RB Dalvin Cook could receive extension
Source: NFL Network - Ian Rapoport
The Minnesota Vikings are interested in beginning discussions with RB Dalvin Cook on a contract extension during the offseason.
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The Vikings need to wrap up their superstar running back. A second-round pick in the 2017 NFL draft, Cook had the first 1,000-yard season of his career. He finished 2019 with 1,135 rushing yards with 13 rushing touchdowns to go along with 53 catches for 519 yards. He made just $1 million during the 2019 season and will be entering the final year of his rookie contract.
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NO - TE Jared Cook headed to Pro Bowl
Source: NOLA.com - Amie Just
New Orleans Saints TE Jared Cook has been added to the NFC Pro Bowl roster as an injury replacement for Philadelphia Eagles TE Zach Ertz (back, ribs).
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Cook had a career-high nine touchdowns in 2019. He's a favorite target of Drew Brees and should continue to be a TE1 for Fantasy GMs in 2020.
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Source: footballguys.com