
Steelers' Cam Heyward delivered 'Welcome to the NFL' moment with massive hit on Giants RB
Cam Heyward's terrifying presence on defense served as another player's 'Welcome to the NFL' moment.'
According to Giants RB Tyrone Tracy Jr., Heyward's massive hit in Week 8 last season was an eye-opener as to how 'different' the NFL really is:
"It was Cam Heyward," Tracy said on NFL Network's Good Morning Football. "He's in the middle, obviously — he's a big dude, you can't miss him. I'm doing my inside zone and I'm thinking the gap is there. If you're a running back, you understand that like the hole is there, until it's not. And Cam Heyward, he's two-gapping, so he's making it look like it's there, and I try to hit in there. And this man hit me so hard. He hit me so hard to where I hit my head on the ground, and I just kind of had to lay there for a little bit. I needed a moment just to catch my breath, and to understand, 'Yeah, I'm in the NFL. They're just a little different.'"
A little over a month ago, Raiders center Jackson Powers-Johnson claimed Heyward was responsible for his 'Welcome to the NFL' moment as well, with Tracy's recent example only further proving just how dominant the Steelers veteran truly is.
Heyward's former Steelers teammate, QB Russell Wilson, is gearing up to lead the Tracy and the Giants' offense in 2025 — but the running back might not get to play with Mr. Unlimited for long, as one insider predicted that rookie Jaxson Dart could usurp the starting QB role in New York sooner rather than later.
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USA Today
9 minutes ago
- USA Today
Dolphins deal TE Jonnu Smith to Steelers in blockbuster trade
After an offseason marked by uncertainty, Miami made a blockbuster move on Monday. The Dolphins dealt away star cornerback Jalen Ramsey to the Pittsburgh Steelers. As part of the mega-deal, Miami also traded Pro Bowl tight end Jonnu Smith. Smith, 29, registered Dolphins single-season franchise bests by a tight end in receptions (88), receiving yards (884) and in touchdowns (8). The 6-foot-3, 248-pound tight end led all Dolphins players in receptions and also finished behind only Brock Bowers, Trey McBride and George Kittle league wide in receiving yards by a tight end. In his career, Smith has caught 307 passes for 3,307 yards and 28 scores. Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith was the tight ends coach in Tennessee when the Titans drafted Smith. Then, he later reunited with Smith in Atlanta after Jonnu Smith was dealt from New England to Atlanta. Arthur Smith was the Falcons' head coach at the time. Smith inked a two-year, $8.4 million contract with the Dolphins in March of 2024. But, after a record-setting season in Miami, reports this offseason heated up that Smith wanted to be paid more like some of the top tight ends in the league. Smith's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, said in early June that the Dolphins were still Smith's No. 1 choice. "Here's what I will say on behalf of my client: Jonnu would definitely like to stay in Miami," Smith's agent Drew Rosenhaus said on WSVN, via Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. "That's his first choice. This is where he lives in the offseason. He had a record breaking season last year. It was the best season ever for a Miami Dolphin tight end. His dream team is the Dolphins. Hopefully, everything works out where he can stay in Miami." Smith received a one-year, $12 million extension with Pittsburgh after being dealt to the Steelers. In all, Miami traded away Ramsey, Smith and a 2027 seventh-round pick for three-time All-Pro safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and a 2027 fifth-round pick. Fitzpatrick began his NFL career in Miami after being selected by the Dolphins with the No. 11 overall pick in the 2018 NFL draft. The five-time Pro Bowler played in 18 games with Miami, tallying 92 tackles, nine passes defensed and a pair of interceptions.

Miami Herald
10 minutes ago
- Miami Herald
Cote: Dolphins trading Ramsey & Smith for Fitzpatrick a net loss for Miami
The Dolphins and Steelers' midday Monday trade splashed across the front of the ESPN website with one of those red-banner 'breaking news' alerts. That was partly because Jalen Ramsey for Minkah Fitzpatrick marked the NFL's first swap in 21 years in which two players changing uniform had each been named an All-Pro at his position. But what made it even bigger, what made it national news, is that the trade conveyed Pittsburgh's unmistakable win-now intentions in continuing to surround new-old quarterback Aaron Rodgers with what he needs to succeed in likely his one and only season in the black-and-gold. Miami's intentions for this season and path to achieve them are somewhat less clear less than one month from the start of training camp -- and thrown into even more question by this trade. The Dolphins get another go-round with the safety Fitzpatrick and a 2027 fifth-round draft pick. Pittsburgh gets the cornerback Ramsey, tight end Jonnu Smith, and a '27 seventh-round pick. Fast result: Steelers win, Dolphins lose. Here's why: By the simplest math Miami gives up two starters and gets one, a lopsidedness that the Fins' slight edge in the picks swap does not make up for. The 2-for-1 part favors the Steelers by my reckoning. Ramsey and Fitzpatrick both are quality players and the latter is two years younger at 28 -- but Ramsey is the better overall of the two. Pro Football Focus rated Ramsey a top-10 NFL corner last season, albeit 10th. He led all CBs with 12 QB pressures and with four passes batted at the line. PFF ranked Fitzpatrick the league's No. 16 safety last season, but with an overall grade of 65.2 that was his lowest since 2021 and ranked 44th. The player who was the Dolphins' first-round pick in 2018 has had only one interception and six pass breakups over the past two seasons. The positive to the deal for Miami is that reacquiring Fitzpatrick instead of trading Ramsey just for draft picks demonstrates the Fins are not diving head-first into rebuild mode. Ramsey had wanted out and Miami had agreed to trade him; at least they smartly targeted the secondary for his replacement. It was including Jonnu Smith in the deal is that swivels the trade more strongly in Pittsburgh's favor. Mike Tomlin wanted Smith as a quick-outlet security blanket for the 41-year-old Rodgers. Smart idea. Trouble is, what he'll be for Rodgers is exactly what Fins QB Tua Tagovailoa will be losing, and missing. Smith, out of FIU, is coming off his best NFL season, and the first in which he made the Pro Bowl. He had a career high 88 receptions on 111 targets, a high catch-rate of nearly 80 percent, for 884 yards and eight touchdowns. You could have made an argument he was the Dolphins' MVP in that 8-9 season. No wonder he wanted a raise. Maybe Miami should have given it. Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel may consider offense-minded tight ends as interchangeable; then again, McDaniel's offensive-genius card has tarnished a bit since 2023 and is up for renewal. Also a bit troubling the Miami's offseason thus far: Ramsey is now the fourth Dolphins team captain from last season now gone, following retired Terron Armstead, departed Calais Campbell and released David Long Jr. Smith also is a veteran, a lockerroom presence. That's a curious trend for a team actively trying to change its overall culture in a positive way. Former Fins running back Raheem Mostert (now with the Raiders) took an unsubtle swipe at Miami when the trade news broke, writing on X: 'Hot take: Be a Pro-bowler on the Dolphins, get treated like s---.' I have written and said the Dolphins in 2025 must make the postseason and likely win their first playoff game since 2000 (an NFL-long drought) or major changes are in store -- including owner Stephen Ross quite probably moving on from McDaniel and general manager Chris Grier. Just this week, Mike Florio, host of NBC Sports' Pro Football Talk Live show, had McDaniel No. 1 on his coaching 'hot seat' list entering this coming season. 'It feels like the window has closed for a Dolphins team that could end up flying straight into the glass in 2025,' he wrote. That's a tad pessimistic for me, but it's true the pressure is on, and it's squarely on McDaniel and Grier. Monday's major trade, if only by the math of a negative 2-for-1 swap of key starters, did nothing to ease that pressure, that heat, as the calendar turns to July.


USA Today
18 minutes ago
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David Bakhtiari took a subtle jab at Aaron Rodgers in celebrating Jordan Love's wedding
David Bakhtiari spent 10 seasons protecting Aaron Rodgers on the Packers' offensive line. It's the kind of bond and respect that usually earns an offensive lineman a wedding invite from his quarterback. But hey, at least Bakhtiari is 1 for 2 in that regard. Packers quarterback Jordan Love celebrated his wedding with longtime partner and volleyball player Ronika Stone over the weekend. Plenty of Packers players were in attendance, and Bakhtiari was more than happy to celebrate Love's marriage. Yet, he still managed to voice how disappointed he was to be excluded from celebrating Rodgers' mysterious marriage with an unknown partner. Bakhtiari took to Twitter/X and shared a video from the reception, adding that at least one of his quarterbacks invited him to a wedding — a subtle swipe at Rodgers. When Rodgers arrived at Steelers practice, reporters noticed he was wearing a wedding ring. And since then, there have been some doubts that Rodgers is even married at all. The quarterback's estranged family voiced skepticism about the marriage, and none of Rodgers' closest friends appeared to score an invite. In an appearance on the Pat McAfee Show, Rodgers went on a rant about how his wife wants a life out of the public eye despite marrying an attention-seeking public figure. But, like, shouldn't Rodgers' friends at least get an opportunity to meet this person? Bakhtiari clearly felt snubbed.