Player Notes

8/30/2023Eric Mangini learned it the hard way. So, apparently, has Peter King.If you cross Bill Belichick, the Patriots head coach is done with you.King, now a columnist for NBC Sports, told The Athletic that he hasn’t spoken to Belichick in 17 years.Why?Belichick didn’t like King’s coverage of Spygate.“That’s the cost of doing business sometimes,” King said. “He’s one of the greatest coaches of all ...

8/30/2023When Robert Saleh became the Jets coach in 2021, he talked a lot about the team needing to close the gap within the AFC East.Despite the offseason Gang Green has had, there’s still work to be done in that regard.Saleh and the Jets ended their 12-game losing stream to AFC East opponents last season. However, during his time as coach of the Jets, Saleh has a record of 2-10 within the division.With ...

After Tuesday’s flurry of 53-man roster cuts, only one player will report to the Patriots’ quarterbacks room Wednesday morning.Just two players will walk into the running backs meeting.And close to a dozen, in fact 11, hulking, giant, sweaty offensive linemen will rumble into their own sitdown with new coach Adrian Klemm.How did we get here? How did the Patriots get here?Go back to March. Armed with ...

The most difficult game to play in the NFL isn’t a road game, a Thursday night game on a short week, or even a Super Bowl. It’s the quarterback game. The most influential position in North American professional team sports is also the most enigmatic one to forecast correctly.NFL decision-makers play Alan Turing and try again and again to crack the QB code. Yet it still feels as unscientific as playing ...

FOXBOROUGH — After establishing their initial 53-man roster on Tuesday, the Patriots stayed busy on Wednesday.New England placed wide receiver Tyquan Thornton on injured reserve, according to a league source. Thornton, who has not played since landing hard on his shoulder during a joint practice in Green Bay, will miss at least four regular-season games.The 23-year-old Thornton also began last season ...

The AFC East is as competitive from top to bottom as it has likely ever been.In a year where the Miami Dolphins have hopes of winning a playoff game for the first time since the 2000 season and maybe making a deep postseason run — possibly to the Super Bowl — they’ll get all the challenges they can handle in the regular season, especially within the division.Following two decades of New England Patriots ...

MIAMI GARDENS — There’s one question you must ask yourself as the Miami Dolphins stand on the doorstep of the 2023 season: are they good enough to win a playoff game?The ultimate goal is winning the Super Bowl. But the basic goal, the thing the Dolphins must absolutely accomplish to keep the arrow pointing upward, is winning a playoff game.I don’t think they’re at that point yet.That doesn’t mean they ...

When the Raiders made the difficult decision to release linebacker Drake Thomas after a strong preseason, there was a hope he would clear waivers and be eligible to return.That didn’t happen.Thomas was claimed by the Seahawks and will continue his career on the active roster in Seattle.Essentially, the Raiders gambled and lost.“You take a chance obviously with every player that you release and try ...

The initial Chiefs roster stands at the required 53 players after Tuesday’s cuts, and even if today’s 53 might not be tomorrow’s 53 or next week’s 53, they did make some decisions that are less subject to change. Some decisions that reveal a little bit more about what lies ahead.There were a few mild surprises as they trimmed down the roster — Shane Buechele and Cam Jones among them, though for different ...

While the Miami Dolphins were getting the spotlight in the Jonathan Taylor sweepstakes, they weren't the only team interested in acquiring the All-Pro running back from the Colts.According to ESPN's Stephen Holder, the Green Bay Packers were in talks with the Colts and had "legitimate interest in trading for the star running back."Holder did not specify what Green Bay offered Indianapolis.Doyel:Colts ...