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USA Today
4 hours ago
- Sport
- USA Today
New York Giants' Jon Runyan Jr. reveals he underwent ankle surgery in December
New York Giants left guard Jon Runyan Jr. is expected to reprise his role as the starter again, but he revealed an interesting tidbit about how his season ended last year. After starting the first 13 games for New York, Runyan suffered an ankle injury during the Week 13 game against the New Orleans Saints. It effectively ended his season, forcing him to miss the final four games of the campaign. In a recent appearance on the Giants Huddle podcast, Runyan revealed he underwent surgery in December to repair the injury. "Yep, had surgery back in mid-December," Runyan said. "Stayed up here the whole offseason. We have a great training staff, great doctors that helped me along the way." General manager Joe Schoen hinted at Runyan being ready to go for the spring earlier this offseason despite missing the final month of the season. Going into the second of a three-year deal worth $30 million, Runyan allowed 29 total pressures, including two sacks across 541 pass-blocking snaps, per Pro Football Focus. He was also given a modest 52.3 run-blocking grade before the injury. The Giants' offensive line will be under the microscope yet again, and Runyan will be a key piece of the unit for the upcoming campaign.
USA Today
6 hours ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Broncos' Courtland Sutton makes PFF's list of ‘Safety-Blanket WRs'
Pro Football Focus writer Lauren Gray recently compiled a unique list describing the NFL's best safety blanket wide receivers. Gray's safety blanket measure is for the WRs who were their quarterback's top targets when blitzed/under pressure. Wide receiver Drake London from the Atlanta Falcons led the way with the 21.1 percent threat rate, while Baltimore Ravens WR Zay Flowers ranked third with a 20 percent threat rate. Fourth on the list is the Denver Broncos' own Courtland Sutton with a 19.7 percent threat rate. 'Bo Nix targeted Sutton 34 times when he was pressured as a rookie, and Sutton caught 19 of those passes for 289 yards and 13 first downs," Gray wrote for PFF. "He secured four of eight contested targets, tallied nine gains of 15-plus yards (tied for ninth most) and recorded a seventh-ranked 81.0 PFF receiving grade on such plays. "Sutton ranks sixth in PFF receiving grade on targets when his quarterback was pressured over the past three seasons (83.8). That mark is fueled by 55 catches for 851 yards, six touchdowns, 42 first downs and 27 explosive gains.' Sutton being a safety blanket for then-rookie quarterback Bo Nix helped the QB's transition in Sean Payton's offense. Sutton tallied 81 catches for 1,081 yards and eight touchdowns in 2024. Hopefully, Sutton can build off his productive pairing with Nix for 2025 and continue to be his safety blanket Social: Follow Broncos Wire on Facebook and Twitter/X! Did you know: These 25 celebrities are Broncos fans.
USA Today
a day ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Who drafted former Bucs top pick Jameis Winston land in 2015 NFL re-draft?
The NFL Draft remains the second-largest event on the NFL calendar, behind the Super Bowl. Like it or not, it also remains one of the biggest things that fans and media enjoy going back and analyzing to see "what could have been." Pro Football Focus has done a good job this offseason by launching a re-draft series, which we have been tracking here on Bucs Wire. In their latest draft, they looked back on, it just so happens to be one of the more impactful ones in recent memory for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers franchise: The 2015 NFL Draft. In this draft, the Bucs had originally drafted quarterback Jameis Winston first overall in hopes he would be the franchise leader for years to come. That didn't pan out, so where does the former top overall pick land if he goes in the first round at all? Well, he didn't stay in Florida, but he didn't have far to travel. Sikkema has the Houston Texans selecting Winston with the 16th overall pick in the draft. He writes, "Houston desperately needed a franchise quarterback after Matt Schaub's decline and departure in 2013. Ryan Fitzpatrick provided a solid 2014 season but left for New York afterward. The best option in the 2015 draft was Jameis Winston, who posted a 74.1 passing grade and 112 big-time throws over five seasons as Tampa Bay's starter. Unfortunately, he also recorded the second-highest turnover-worthy play rate among quarterbacks with at least 1,500 dropbacks. Perhaps he could have fared better in a different environment." Perhaps Bill O'Brien would have been the coach to have Jameis Winston play his best football; we will never know. Also, Houston would have had a great defense to back up Winston, which also would have helped matters.
Miami Herald
a day ago
- Sport
- Miami Herald
Raiders Have a Fearless QB in Geno Smith
The Las Vegas Raiders added their quarterback of the immediate future this offseason by trading for Geno Smith. Las Vegas sent the Seattle Seahawks a third-round pick to reunite Smith with Pete Carroll. The two enjoyed moderate success together for two seasons, reaching the playoffs in 2022. The Raiders have dealt with poor quarterback play since Derek Carr left in 2023, cycling through signal-callers and never finding an answer. General Manager John Spytek immediately found an answer to the team's most pressing need. Not only did the Raiders experience bad QB play last season, but Aidan O'Connell, Gardner Minshew II, and Desmond Ridder failed to create explosive plays. Smith will rectify that in 2025. The Raiders' previous quarterbacks were afraid to take risks and push the ball downfield. And when they did, bad things happened. Smith has a strong arm and confidence in his talent. He will be unafraid to take big risks if they lead to rewards. Pro Football Focus has a metric called 'big time throws,' graded as 'high-difficulty, high-value' passes. For example, if a quarterback is under pressure and he avoids that pressure and completes a pass into a tight window, that's a big-time throw. Smith made 28 big-time throws in 2024. Minshew, O'Connell, and Ridder combined for 21. Raiders fans will have to live with turnovers, as with risks come consequences. Smith led the NFL in red zone interceptions with five last season. However, with the bad comes lots of good. Smith is one of the best pure passers in the NFL, a much better processor and precision thrower than any of Minshew, O'Connell, or Ridder. There will be offensive heights with Smith that the Raiders never reached with their previous three quarterbacks. Smith raises the offense's floor, but he also elevates its ceiling. It is unknown just how many wins Smith will add to this Raiders team, but Las Vegas is unquestionably better because he is the starting quarterback. His fearlessness and ability to make difficult throws will endear him to fans quickly. The Raiders will be fun to watch this season, and Smith will be a large reason for that. Fans should be excited about what Smith will bring when it comes to explosive plays. Please remember to follow us on X @HondoCarpenter and IG @HondoSr and stay up to date on our coverage of the Las Vegas Raiders and Geno Smith. Please let us know your thoughts and anything else on the Silver and Black and give us your thoughts on the offense when you like our Facebook page, WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE. This article was originally published on as Raiders Have a Fearless QB in Geno Smith. Copyright ABG-SI LLC. SPORTS ILLUSTRATED is a registered trademark of ABG-SI LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Falcons' Chris Lindstrom voted top interior offensive lineman by AP
Chris Lindstrom has spent much of his six-year career under the radar playing for an Atlanta team that hasn't made the postseason since 2017. But Lindstrom's play deserves much more attention as his ability to create holes in the run game and protect the passer is a key part to Atlanta's offensive production. Lindstrom has been the top-graded guard by Pro Football Focus for three straight seasons and has won the honor of being voted the top interior offensive lineman in the league by The Associated Press. A panel of eight AP Pro Football Writers ranked the top five players among guards and centers, basing selections on current status entering the 2025 season. First-place votes were worth 10 points. Second through fifth-place votes were worth 5, 3, 2 and 1 points. Lindstrom got three first place-votes, two seconds and one third to beat out Joe Thuney for the top spot. Thuney, who was traded from Kansas City to Chicago this offseason, got two first-place votes, one second, three thirds and one fourth to finish second. Kansas City center Creed Humphrey got two first-place votes and finished third and Denver's Quinn Meinerz got the other first-place vote and came in fourth. Indianapolis' Quenton Nelson rounded out the top five. Baltimore Tyler Linderbaum, Philadelphia's Landon Dickerson and Cam Jurgens, Baltimore's Daniel Faalele and recently retired former Detroit center Frank Ragnow also received votes. 1. CHRIS LINDSTROM, Atlanta Falcons Lindstrom has allowed just three sacks and 37 pressures on true pass sets the past three seasons, according to PFF, and has been a steady presence on Atlanta's offense. But Lindstrom really shines at run blocking when his ability to get in space on zone runs has helped fuel Bijan Robinson's success. 2. JOE THUNEY, Chicago Bears Thuney has been one of the top guards in the league ever since being drafted by New England in 2016. He has been a first-team All-Pro the past two seasons in Kansas City and helped the Chiefs and Patriots reach the Super Bowl six times in his nine seasons. Thuney was forced to move out to tackle late last season for Kansas City, but will be back at guard as a key piece in Chicago following on offseason trade. 3. CREED HUMPHREY, Kansas City Chiefs The Chiefs were willing to part with Thuney in part because they were strong at the other interior spots led by Humphrey at center. Humphrey has taken the mantle from Jason Kelce as the top center in the league and made first-team All-Pro for the first time last season. Humphrey hasn't missed a game in four seasons and excels at both run and pass blocking. 4. QUINN MEINERZ, Denver Broncos After being drafted in the third round from Division III Wisconsin-Whitewater in 2021, Meinerz has made steady progress each season and earned first-team All-Pro honors in 2024 to get on this list. Meinerz allowed just 12 pressures last season, according to PFF, and is a violent blocker in the run game. 5. QUENTON NELSON, Indianapolis Colts Nelson's play has dropped a little in recent years but the 29-year-old is still one of the top guards in the league. He was an All-Pro his first three seasons after being drafted sixth overall in 2018 and earned second-team All-Pro honors for the second time in his career last season. Nelson has made the Pro Bowl all seven seasons. ___ AP NFL: Josh Dubow, The Associated Press
