McAdoo grateful for strength riding with torn ACL
Cameron McAdoo is "making the best" of his ACL injury and is grateful for the "strength" to battle through and come home third in the 250 East opener at Tampa.
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USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
Christian Watson analysis: Electric upside, but injuries cloud future in Green Bay
Christian Watson analysis: Electric upside, but injuries cloud future in Green Bay Christian Watson is in an interesting and difficult situation entering the final year of his rookie deal in Green Bay, as he rehabs from an ACL injury which is expected to cost him at least part of the 2025 season, despite reportedly being ahead of schedule in his recovery. This leaves his future with the Packers somewhat up in the air. Finding a compromise on a contract to keep him on the team in 2026 and beyond projects to be difficult, and depends greatly on how quickly and effectively he can return to his pre-injury form. In terms of what Watson has brought to Green Bay in his three years so far, here is what the numbers say about his overall profile as a wide receiver: Strengths Watson's primary usage in his NFL career to date has been as a deep threat, where he is a constant threat to create an explosive play due to his electric speed and unique size. Among qualified NFL receivers, he ranks in the 92nd percentile in average depth of target (ADOT) since entering the league, and the 85th percentile for yards per reception (Y/REC), evidencing his ability to hurt teams deep. Whenever he has been on the field, Watson has been a very valuable receiver, ranking in the 72nd percentile for yards per route run (Y/RR), one of the more reliable statistics for analyzing the quality of receivers. His speed has also allowed him to be one of the better receivers in the league in creating yards after the catch, ranking in the 74th percentile in yards after catch per reception (YAC/REC). If Watson gets the ball in space, it is hard to run him down. Watson's stature has helped him to be strong in contested catch situations, not just deep, but in all areas of the field, as he is able to box out defenders. He ranks in the 72nd percentile in contested catch percentage (CTC%). With 14 touchdowns in three years, Watson has a knack for finding the end zone. This number may not seem overly impressive, but when taking account of how much time he has missed, it becomes more notable. Watson ranks in the 74th percentile for touchdowns per target. The intermediate part of the field is the portion where Watson has been the most efficient, ranking in the 70th percentile for both Y/REC and Y/RR. The lowest percentage of his dropped passes came in the 10-19 yard area, as he ranks in the 66th percentile for drop rate in this range. A particularly important element of Watson's game for this Packers team has been his ability to beat man coverage, an aspect many of his teammates have struggled with. Watson has been excellent against man, ranking in the 82nd percentile for Y/RR and the 68th for Y/REC. He has often been Green Bay's answer when presented with man coverage, and his absence was certainly felt when he missed time in 2024 in that regard. He is still effective against zone, ranking in the 86th percentile for Y/REC and the 61st for Y/REC, although his drop rate is much worse, ranking in the 27th percentile compared to 65th percentile versus man. Weaknesses The flashes are so bright with Watson, and the impact he can have on a game on just a few targets is special, but arguably the biggest problem is that he has simply not been able to have that impact regularly enough. A huge part of that is availability. Watson has missed a lot of time with injuries in his first three seasons. Combine that with the competitive receiver group he plays in, and Watson ranks in just the 28th percentile for targets since his rookie year. It feels a bit harsh to call this a weakness, but for one reason or another, Watson has not been able to become a high volume receiver, and his role has settled in as something of a boom/bust rather than a true "number one" receiver. Watson has battled drops throughout his NFL career so far, like many of his teammates, ranking in the 32nd percentile in drop rate since 2022. Despite his elite speed which helps him get yards after the catch, Watson is not elusive with the ball in his hands, ranking in the 35th percentile for missed tackles forced per reception. He is not a shifty, agile player in that sense. There are not many true weaknesses with Watson, with the injuries, which are not his fault, the biggest issue which have caused his NFL career to feel very stop/start. Trending up After an extremely tough rookie year in terms of drops, ranking in just the 3rd percentile, Watson has actually improved quite significantly since then, ranking in the 45th percentile in 2023 and the 46th last season. These numbers are still slightly below average, but nothing to worry about. Despite his size/speed profile, Watson was not an especially efficient deep target as a rookie, ranking in the 32nd percentile for Y/RR. Part of that may have been a lack of chemistry with Aaron Rodgers, and he has become a much more effective deep threat since Jordan Love took over, ranking in the 42nd percentile for Y/RR in 2023 and the 72nd in 2024. His Y/REC has also improved each year. Trending down Watson showed some ability to make defenders miss as a rookie, ranking in the 60th percentile in missed tackles forced per reception, but he dropped to the 30th percentile in 2023 and the 15th in 2024. It is likely at least partially due to his usage and not being put in positions to make things happen after the catch as often. Touchdown totals can be volatile and are somewhat circumstantial, and Watson ran colder in that regard in 2024, ranking in the 33rd percentile compared to the 98th and 91st in his first two years. While Watson has become a crucial part of Green Bay's ability to overcome man coverage, he has been a much lesser part of their offense against zone coverage, which makes sense given the Packers have plenty of other receivers who excel versus zone. After ranking in the 66th percentile in target percentage against zone as a rookie, he only ranked in the 32nd and 22nd percentile in the last two years respectively. Overall, Watson has a unique skill set and explosive potential, and on a snap to snap basis has arguably been Green Bay's best receiver in his three years with the team, but his regular impact has unfortunately been consistently hampered by injuries. The ACL tear has thrown another wrench into the equation on whether the Packers keep Watson long term, but if he can return earlier than expected and quickly regain his full abilities, he has a chance to show enough to convince Green Bay he is worth handing an extension to. Given how difficult it could be to find a number both sides are happy with though, and the depth the Packers now have at receiver, it seems it will be harder to thread the needle on the timeline that would have to occur in order for Watson to be a Packer in 2026.
NBC Sports
3 hours ago
- NBC Sports
Chris Godwin's new contract has no exceptions for his ankle injury
After the Buccaneers selected Ohio State receiver Emeka Egbuka with the 19th pick in the 2025 draft, some assumed that the Bucs were concerned about veteran receiver Chris Godwin's availability for the start of the season. If the team has such concerns, those concerns didn't make their way into the three-year, $66 million contract Godwin signed with the Buccaneers in March. PFT has obtained and reviewed the contract. There's no language regarding the injury. Nothing that, for example, conditions any of the $20.745 million 2025 roster bonus on passing a physical. (The second and final installment is due in six days.) Nothing that creates an exception for any aggravation of the injury or related condition. Maybe the Bucs had no choice, given that Godwin had a better financial offer on the table from the Patriots. And while the Patriots ultimately signed receiver Stefon Diggs to a deal containing protections for the team against his torn ACL, Diggs didn't have many (or maybe any) other options. Godwin possibly was able to leverage the interest of the Patriots and Buccaneers into a deal that didn't protect the team against the injury that predated the contract. Still, the contract becomes an important piece of tangible evidence to counter the notion that the Bucs drafted Egbuka because they're concerned about Godwin's health. If they were sufficiently concerned to use a first-round pick on his short-term replacement, why would they have committed $44 million in guarantees to Godwin? So why Egbuka? Well, Mike Evans is entering his 12th season, and he'll be 32 in August. They'll need to have a replacement ready to go, at some point. Besides, the Bucs don't exactly have many pressing roster needs. They were able to take the best available player when they were on the clock. Which they did.
Chicago Tribune
4 hours ago
- Chicago Tribune
Naperville North's Brooke Welch wears No. 3 like older brother Bryce. But she can accomplish what he didn't.
Naperville North junior forward Brooke Welch's high school career was interrupted shortly after it began. When she was a freshman, Welch suffered a torn ACL just five minutes into the season opener against Barrington. Two other freshmen, Michelle Ruan and Claire DeCook, suffered the same season-ending injuries that year. All three returned the following season, when Welch switched from defender to forward and endeared herself to teammates and coaches. 'Brooke is such a special player,' Naperville North senior defender Emily Buescher said. 'When she comes onto the field, you know that she's going to do exactly what she's asked and she's going to be exactly where we need her to be.' That was the case again during the Class 3A state semifinals at North Central College in Naperville on Friday. Welch won the ball on the right wing and sent a perfect cross to the Tennessee-bound DeCook, who scored with 24:18 left in the first half. That was the first of DeCook's two goals in the Huskies' 2-1 win against Lane. 'It was a great goal,' Welch said. 'I trust my teammates to get in the box anytime anyone gets end line, so I knew someone would be there. 'I just took a quick glance, and I saw that Claire was there. She's proved that she can score, so it was great to be able to play that to her and her finish it. It was nice to see it hit the back of the net, especially in a game as big as this.' Welch's stats don't stand out. She has two goals and one assist for Naperville North (17-5-3), which advanced to play O'Fallon (22-1-1) in the state championship game at 7 p.m. Saturday. But one of her goals was the difference in the Huskies' 1-0 win over Oswego in a regional final. 'She's a kid who will do a 5-yard sprint into the fence, so I think for her to get that (assist) is everything,' Buescher said. 'It was her fulfilling her role. In the sense of our team, she's never been an overlooked player because she is so incredibly special in doing what she's supposed to do.' That's exactly what Welch did to set up DeCook's first goal. 'The defender had the ball at first, and she had to battle to get it back,' DeCook said. 'A lot of people would be just be like, 'Oh, I lost the ball,' and they give up there. But you can always expect Brooke to work hard. It's just that continuous fight throughout the game.' Naperville North coach Steve Goletz loves that. 'Brooke is an incredible kid who gives us such a spark,' Goletz said. 'She's an absolutely selfless kid. 'She gives everything to her teammates, and we're not playing in this game if she doesn't score the goal against Oswego. We're so lucky to have so many kids like Brooke.' Welch said she's lucky to have support from people like her brother Bryce, a former point guard for Naperville North who just completed his freshman year at Iowa Central. He was a fixture at his sister's games last year and was in attendance Friday. 'It was so great to have my brother here to watch me,' Brooke Welch said. 'I picked No. 3 because he was No. 3, so it was nice in a semifinal game to be able to wear his number. He's my best friend and biggest fan.' Bryce Welch was beaming with pride Friday. 'She played great today,' he said. 'It means a lot to be able to see her go out there and do her thing, do what she likes to do.' Bryce Welch never played soccer, but he often served as goalkeeper for his sister's practice sessions and always was ready to give sound advice. 'It was mostly just don't compare yourself to other people when you're trying to get better, especially at a younger age, because she was always younger than me,' he said. 'For her, I always wanted to make it about taking it one day at a time.' Brooke Welch played basketball until she got to high school. There were many days she would play against her brother. 'Bryce and I have always been super competitive,' she said. 'Having an older brother and all his friends around, I feel like I was bound to play a sport, 'It was nice to be able to play with him and learn from him. So I feel like my competitive side definitely comes from competing with my brother.' Now Brooke Welch has a chance to do something her brother didn't — win a state title. 'She battled back so hard from her injury,' Bryce Welch said. 'So to see her with a chance to win a championship is huge.'
