Don’t feel guilty if you refrained from watching the NFL preseason. We’re sure you had better things to do than watch Dallas Cowboys backup quarterback Trey Lance get picked off five times on a Saturday afternoon. Lance had that dismal performance in Dallas’ preseason finale, a 26-19 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers that dropped the Cowboys to 1-2. Sure, the games didn’t matter, but Dallas’ performance during the preseason certainly didn’t inspire confidence for a team that now has a washed-up Ezekiel Elliott in its backfield and watched star wide receiver CeeDee Lamb miss all of camp due to a contract dispute.But plenty of teams did make headway this preseason, and here are three that may have made the most:Denver BroncosMaybe Denver really does have something special in quarterback Bo Nix.Time will tell, and strong performances in two preseason games don’t make Nix a Hall of Famer by any means.However, the No. 12 overall pick in this year’s draft completed 23 of his 30 passes for 205 yards and two touchdowns in those games. He was never intercepted, helping the Broncos put together a perfect 3-0 preseason.At the very least, Nix gives Denver some hope, something that an aging Russell Wilson sucked right out of the franchise.The Broncos aren’t going to go out and make the playoffs this season. If they do, we’d be stunned. But, as of right now, Denver does appear to be on the right track as it attempts to rebuild itself into the titan that it was in the mid-2010s, when it reached two Super Bowls in three years. Nix isn’t Peyton Manning, and the Broncos’ defense is far from what it once was, so hopefully Denver fans appreciated the stellar preseason because things won’t be nearly as smooth this fall.New York Jets Apr 26, 2023; Florham Park, NJ, USA; New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) (center) is introduced during the introductory press conference alongside general manager Joe Douglas (left) and head coach Robert Saleh (right) at Atlantic Health Jets Training Center. credits: Tom Horak-USA TODAY Sports No Aaron Rodgers, no problem.Despite Rodgers not suiting up this preseason, New York didn’t lose a game. And even if Rodgers did play, he probably wouldn’t have been able to steal the spotlight from the Jets’ defense.That unit held opponents to an average of 11.7 points across three games, and it smothered the rival New York Giants in a 10-6 victory to close the preseason. The Giants totaled just 199 yards of offense while going 3-for-14 on third down in the loss. Hopefully Rodgers’ highlight tape this season is longer than a 25-second clip of him running out of the tunnel with an American flag, but with or without the veteran signal-caller, the Jets are going to go far thanks to their defense. Chicago Bears Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams (18) throws a pass in the first quarter of the NFL Preseason Week 2 game between the Chicago Bears and the Cincinnati Bengals at Soldier Field in downtown Chicago on Saturday, Aug. 17, 2024. The Bears led 10-3 at halftime. We saved the best for last here.And you know what? We’re going to call our shot, too. Chicago is winning the NFC North this year.The Bears played the Houston Texans on Aug. 1 in the Hall of Fame game, so they had four preseason games on their ledger, and they won all four. These weren’t just cheap victories, either. Chicago was rolling through teams, posting a plus-68 point differential.Caleb Williams will be living a life of luxury in Year 1 with the weapons he has on this offense. All the defense needs to do is hold teams to 20-25 points per game, and Williams, DJ Moore, Keenan Allen, Rome Odunze and D’Andre Swift should be able to take care of the rest.Of course, a preseason like this means absolutely nothing if the success doesn’t translate over to the regular season, so let’s see just how much noise the Bears can make.
Related Posts
The pressure on Ronald Koeman intensified after his 10-man Barcelona side were held to a dire 0-0 draw by Cadiz at Estadio Nuevo Mirandilla on Thursday.
Speculation about the Dutchman s future has been rife following a slow start to the LaLiga campaign that had seen Barca drop points to Athletic Bilbao and Granada in their opening four games, while also losing 3-0 to Bayern Munich in the Champions League.
Things did not get much better for the Catalan giants in Andalusia as Cadiz comfortably kept them at bay, with their misery compounded midway through the second half when Frenkie de Jong saw red for two bookable offences.
Koeman was also dismissed in the closing seconds for his protests during a frantic finish.
A point did at least move Barcelona up …
Liverpool were denied victory by VAR as Andrew Robertson was penalised late on to allow Brighton and Hove Albion to rescue a 1-1 Premier League draw at the AMEX Stadium.
Diogo Jota s ninth Liverpool goal looked set to prove enough for the Reds to move three points clear of Tottenham at the top of the table, but the Reds work was undone in stoppage time.
Robertson swung out a foot and clipped Danny Welbeck and, though referee Stuart Attwell spotted no infringement, he changed his decision once he checked the pitch-side monitor.
Unlike Neal Maupay, who drilled wide from 12 yards to let Liverpool off the hook in the first half, Pascal Gross made no mistake.
It was a third VAR call of the game that went against Liverpool, with Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane…
Although Atletico Madrid might not have been able to end the weekend at the top of the La Liga table, Diego Simeone s men certainly laid down a real marker in the capital.
Picking up a 1-0 win against , some across Spain have billed them as an early-season contender and few would argue that Los Colchoneros don t have a golden opportunity ahead of them.
Priced at 2/1 with to clinch their first domestic crown since 2014, how have Atletico played themselves into a real title hunt?
Finding a clinical edge
While Atletico Madrid might have built their reputation under for their rugged displays at the back, they have gained a string of plaudits this season for what has been a new-found clinical edge in the final third.
Shocking many and managing to bring the…
Inter secured Champions League qualification in their penultimate game of the Serie A season, dealing a fatal blow to Atalanta s own top-four hopes with a 3-2 win at San Siro.
The Nerazzurri – finalists in Europe s premier club competition this term – stormed into a two-goal lead within just two minutes and 49 seconds after Romelu Lukaku and Nicolo Barella were on target.
Atalanta needed a result to keep their slim hopes of a top-four finish alive, and they were handed a lifeline by Mario Pasalic before the interval on Saturday.
Yet Inter added a deserved third through Lautaro Martinez after the break, making Andre Onana s late own goal a mere Atalanta consolation, as the Nerazzurri moved eight points clear of their fifth-placed visitors.
Lu-La photo…
Sassuolo 0-2 Napoli: Kvaratskhelia and Osimhen decisive yet again as Spalletti´s juggernaut powers o
Napoli s relentless charge to the Scudetto continued with a straightforward 2-0 win at Sassuolo on Friday, their key men at the fore yet again.
Victory at Mapei Stadium made it seven Serie A wins in a row since a 1-0 defeat to Inter in their first game back after the World Cup, extending the Partenopei s lead at the summit to 18 points.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia put Napoli in front early on with a wonderful solo effort, before their other talisman, Victor Osimhen, made it 2-0 just after the half-hour mark to become the club s first player to net in seven successive top-flight games in the three-points-for-a-win era.
Sassuolo somewhat contentiously had a goal chalked off late in the first half, but thereafter Napoli s game management was exceptional, with the only sha…
Chelsea have announced that club legend John Terry is to return to Stamford Bridge to take up a coaching consultancy role at the Academy.
Terry has been out of work since leaving his role as assistant head coach of Aston Villa under then boss Dean Smith in July.
The 41-year-old played for the Blues for almost 19 years before leaving for Villa Park in 2017 and will now begin a part-time role at Chelsea s Cobham training ground, which according to an announcement on the club s official website will include delivering on-field coaching, contributing to coaching discussions with colleagues, mentoring Academy players and supporting parent dialogue.
Terry will begin his new position at the start of January, and head of youth development at Chelsea, Neil Bath, said of…
According to Italian outlet , a swap deal between Chelsea and Juventus, involving strikers Dusan Vlahovic and Romelu Lukaku, could take place in 2024.
Chelsea have been struggling to score goals this season. Obviously lacking satisfactory input from summer signing Nicolas Jackson, their lack of another option in the centre-forward position has become notoriously clear. Lukaku is still on their books, but he simply hasn t been able to play at his best at Stamford Bridge and is currently on loan at AS Roma, with the Serie A clearly better suited for his qualities. This term, he has scored 13 goals in 20 matches across all competitions.
On the other hand, Vlahovic is Juventus top goalscorer this season, with six goals in 15 appearances in the Italian top flight. At the age…
Drey Wright and Chris Kane were both on target as St Johnstone signed off on their cinch Premiership season with a 2-0 win over Livingston to end the visitors’ hopes of a seventh-placed finish.
Saints, who confirmed on Saturday that Steven MacLean will continue as manager on a permanent basis after a successful interim spell, had little to play for with safety guaranteed, but put in a stellar performance on the day Steve Brown emotionally stepped down as chairman after 11 years at the helm.
Wright opened the scoring after 17 minutes when he capitalised on some slack Livingston defending to score, before fit-again forward Kane climbed off the St Johnstone bench to net his first goal since December 26, 2021 from the penalty spot.
Boss MacLean made just one change…
Prediction: PSG to win and both teams to score
Odds:
Bookmaker:
Reigning European giants Bayern Munich need a stunning turnaround against Paris Saint Germain on Tuesday evening at the Parc des Princes.
The French giants won the first leg of the two club s UEFA Champions League quarter-final meeting 3-2 in what was a thrilling clash at the Allianz Arena. An equally fantastic match should be in store in Paris.
Paris Saint Germain
The first leg in Bavaria really did show how far PSG had come since their final defeat to Bayern in August. It was a thoroughly emphatic performance from Mauricio Pochettino s men, with Kylian Mbappe once again starring. The victory in Germany also made it six victories in PSG s last seven away matches in the UEFA Champi…
Former Real Madrid and Spain goalkeeper Miguel Angel Gonzalez has died at the age of 76.
Miguel Angel played for Madrid for 18 seasons between 1968 and 1986, winning two UEFA Cups, eight Spanish league titles, five Spanish Cups and one League Cup.
He was also capped 18 times by Spain, and played in both the 1978 and 1982 World Cups.
Comunicado Oficial: fallecimiento de Miguel Ángel.
— Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadrid)
Following his playing career Miguel Angel held various roles at Real Madrid, including working as goalkeeper coach and director of the former training complex Ciudad Deportiva.
Miguel Angel was diagnosed with ALS, a form of motor neurone disease, in December 2022.
In a statement on Tuesday morning, the club said: “…