The future of the Las Vegas Raiders may take shape in Miami early next week, The team’s brass, led by part owner Tom Brady and general manager John Spytek, will be traveling to South Florida to watch Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza in the National Championship game against Miami. It will kick start a process that […] The future of the Las Vegas Raiders may take shape in Miami early next week, The team’s brass, led by part owner Tom Brady and general manager John Spytek, will be traveling to South Florida to watch Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza in the National Championship game against Miami. It will kick start a process that is currently expected to end with Mendoza being the No. 1 overall draft pick by the Raiders in April. While in Miami, the Raiders will be working on their other major task this offseason — finding a new head coach. According to multiple reports the Raiders will interview former Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel for the opening. He was recently fired. He is getting other head-coaching interest and is also a hot offensive coordinator candidate. McDaniel is the 14th reported candidate for the job. He is the ninth offensive coach and fourth candidate with head-coaching experience. While the Raiders have cast a wide net in their search, there are signs it is moving along in the process. Several reports stated the Raiders will have a second interview with Carolina Panthers defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero in Florida. Monday is the first day teams can talk to NFL employees in person. Evero is the first known candidate to get a second interview with Las Vegas. See More: Las Vegas Raiders News
Las Vegas Raiders have big trip to South Florida coming up
Rams elevate 2 players before playoff game
The Rams activated two players from the practice squad ahead of Sunday’s divisional round matchup against the Chicago Baers, bringing back safety Tanner Ingle and linebacker Elias Neal for reinforcements. Ingle was called up before last week’s wild card game against the Panthers, drawing ire from many fans for his role in a blocked punt […] The Rams activated two players from the practice squad ahead of Sunday’s divisional round matchup against the Chicago Baers, bringing back safety Tanner Ingle and linebacker Elias Neal for reinforcements. Ingle was called up before last week’s wild card game against the Panthers, drawing ire from many fans for his role in a blocked punt against Ethan Evans. Ingle is a former undrafted free agent out of North Carolina State who has only appeared in four career games, including last week. He has stood out in preseason games for the Rams before. Neal is another former undrafted player who has made the practice squad, appearing in eight games since 2024, but only twice this season. The former Marshall linebacker has not made a career tackle yet. Ingle has made three tackles. The moves may not have a huge consequence on Sunday, but as Ingle proved last week you never know when a player is going to stand out. Or for what reason. See More: Los Angeles Rams Roster
In Divisional Round’s ‘Reacts’ poll, Chiefs’ fans are rooting for Bills
Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NFL. Each week, we send out questions to the most plugged-in Kansas City Chiefs fans. You can see all of the recent survey results here. And be sure to check out FanDuel Sportsbook, the official sportsbook partner of SB Nation. Which AFC team are Chiefs fans […] Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NFL. Each week, we send out questions to the most plugged-in Kansas City Chiefs fans. You can see all of the recent survey results here. And be sure to check out FanDuel Sportsbook, the official sportsbook partner of SB Nation. Which AFC team are Chiefs fans rooting for? It’s no surprise that Chiefs Kingdom will be on the side of Bills Mafia on Saturday, when the Denver Broncos host the Buffalo Bills to kick off the weekend of NFL Divisional Round matchups. However, most of the Chiefs fans polled are rooting for the Bills to win the Lamar Hunt trophy and represent the AFC in Super Bowl LX. The Houston Texans finished in a close second ahead of a battle with the No. 2 seed New England Patriots on Sunday. What running backs should the Chiefs be eyeing? Among the four unrestricted free agents listed, running back Breece Hall was the overwhelming pick for Chiefs fans’ wish list on the open market. The polled fans have good taste, because Hall is projected to be the highest-paid player of this group as well. Click here to see other recent survey results.
NFC playoff picture: Rams know what’s ahead if they win
If the Los Angeles Rams beat the Chicago Bears on Sunday, they will be heading to Seattle to face the Seahawks in the NFC Championship game. There was a chance that L.A. could host the NFC Championship if the 49ers pulled the upset, but that was not the case and it wasn’t close. The Seahawks […] If the Los Angeles Rams beat the Chicago Bears on Sunday, they will be heading to Seattle to face the Seahawks in the NFC Championship game. There was a chance that L.A. could host the NFC Championship if the 49ers pulled the upset, but that was not the case and it wasn’t close. The Seahawks beat the 49ers 41-6. So now the Rams know what’s ahead if they can do what the Niners and Bills couldn’t on Saturday and win a road divisional playoff game. At least the Bears seem to be a lot worse than the Broncos and Seahawks. Seattle held the 49ers to two field goals and forced three turnovers, including two by former Rams linebacker Ernest Jones. Traded to the Titans for almost nothing in 2024, Jones has been a stalwart on defense for Mike Macdonald’s defense since the Seahawks acquired him at the trade deadline last year. Jones had a forced fumble on Niners tight end Jake Tonges, then picked off Brock Purdy in the second half. Jones was a second-team All-Pro this season. Former Rams receiver Cooper Kupp, trying to win his second career Super Bowl, had 5 catches for 60 yards. A slow season all year, the 32-year-old had probably his best game as a Seahawks player. Running back Kenneth Walker III had three touchdowns and 119 yards on the ground. In the early game, the Broncos beat the Bills 33-30 in overtime but quarterback Bo Nix broke his ankle at the very end of the game and will miss the rest of the postseason. The Rams now face the Bears and look to advance to the NFC Championship. If they do, it’ll be a rematch of arguably the season’s most exciting game which happened in the same stadium barely a month ago. See More:
Colts center Tanor Bortolini was PFF’s most improved player at position after ‘breakout’ 2025
According to PFF, Indianapolis Colts center Tanor Bortolini was their most improved player at his position league-wide during the 2025 campaign: Center: Tanor Bortolini, Indianapolis Colts The Colts are the NFL’s offensive lineman factory. Their ability to churn out NFL starters at every position across the offensive line is unparalleled. Lost a key starter? Not a problem, it […] According to PFF, Indianapolis Colts center Tanor Bortolini was their most improved player at his position league-wide during the 2025 campaign: The Colts are the NFL’s offensive lineman factory. Their ability to churn out NFL starters at every position across the offensive line is unparalleled. Lost a key starter? Not a problem, it steps the next man up to play sound football. The player to fill that role for the Colts in 2025 was Tanor Bortolini (82.6 grade; 3rd), the team’s fourth-round pick in 2024. Bortolini spot-started in place of the oft-injured Ryan Kelly in 2024, generating a 65.1 overall PFF grade while playing steady football. Bortolini didn’t look like a star, but showed he could be serviceable, and a potential option if Kelly moved on. With Kelly leaving in free agency, the Colts showed faith in Bortolini, and their confidence has been justly rewarded. Bortolini had a breakout season and anchored one of the best offensive lines in football in 2025. The Colts finished the year with the second-best PFF pass-blocking grade and fourth-best PFF run-blocking grade in football. Bortolini allowed just 17 pressures and zero sacks, and ended the campaign as one of the NFL’s rising stars in the trenches. Additionally, per PFF, he was also among their six ‘breakout’ offensive lineman from this past 2025 regular season: The Wisconsin product appeared in eight games as a rookie in 2024, logging 351 snaps. He finished that season with a 66.8 PFF overall grade and graded below 66.0 in both pass blocking and run blocking. In 2025, however, Bortolini took a significant step forward, clearing that threshold in both areas and establishing himself as one of the NFL’s top run-blocking centers. His PFF run-blocking grade of 88.2 ranked third at the position, trailing only Miami’s Aaron Brewer and Kansas City’s Creed Humphrey. He also ranked third among centers in positively graded run-play rate, earning a positive PFF grade on 19.4% of run plays. Per PFF, the 2nd-year Bortolini, and first-time full-time starting center, earned a +82.6 overall grade, which was the 3rd highest grade at his position—just ahead of the Colts’ longtime veteran Pro Bowl center he replaced, Ryan Kelly (+82.2), who had been Indy’s long-term starter since 2016. Given that the Minnesota Vikings’ 32-year-old Kelly was limited to 8 starts this past season because of reoccurring concussions (suffering at least two), compared to the 23-year-old Bortolini’s 16 starts in 2025, and the Colts ultimately made the tough, but right move for the franchise going forward. It was in run blocking where Bortolini particularly shined per PFF, with a +88.2 run blocking grade. During 566 total pass blocking snaps, Bortolini allowed 0 sacks, 5 QB hits, and 17 total QB pressures this past regular season. If he can continue to make strides as a pass blocker, he could become a top NFL center in time. While it was another disappointing season in Indianapolis collectively, given the team’s late season collapse, Bort’s emergence was one of the few lasting bright spots—as the Colts appear to have found an interior fixture manning the center of their offensive line for the foreseeable future. See More: Indianapolis Colts News
Saturday Division Round Playoffs open threads
The Denver Broncos host the Buffalo Bills at 1:30 p.m. PT. Then, the San Francisco 49ers visit the Seattle Seahawks at 5 p.m. Discuss it all here. The Denver Broncos host the Buffalo Bills at 1:30 p.m. PT. Then, the San Francisco 49ers visit the Seattle Seahawks at 5 p.m. Discuss it all here. Join the conversation! Sign up for a user account and get: Fewer ads Create community posts Comment on articles, community posts Rec comments, community posts New, improved notifications system!
Minnesota Vikings News and Links: Big Games Today!
Big games today not featuring our Vikings which really stinks! I guess I like the Bills, Seahawks, Texans, and Rams this weekend. Who do you like? Minnesota Vikings News and Links Are we sure Kevin O’Connell deserves the ‘offensive guru’ label? Kevin O’Connell arrived in Minnesota in February 2022, fresh off a Super Bowl victory […] Big games today not featuring our Vikings which really stinks! I guess I like the Bills, Seahawks, Texans, and Rams this weekend. Who do you like? Minnesota Vikings News and Links Kevin O’Connell arrived in Minnesota in February 2022, fresh off a Super Bowl victory with the Rams, with a reputation as a Sean McVay-trained offensive guru. A savant, a whiz on that side of the ball. Those aren’t labels he ever gave himself, by any means, but that was the perception, and that remains the perception four years later. The generally-held belief is still that the Vikings have a mastermind leading their offense. Are we sure he deserves those (very unofficial) labels? Four years is a pretty big sample size, and although the Vikings have won plenty of regular season games during O’Connell’s tenure, their overall offensive metrics are extremely underwhelming. Just look at where they’ve ranked in two prominent all-encompassing metrics over the past four years (hat tip to Nick Olson, who pointed this out). 2022: 18th in EPA* per play, 20th in DVOA* 2023: 18th in EPA per play, 23rd in DVOA 2024: 14th in EPA per play, 15th in DVOA 2025: 28th in EPA per play, 29th in DVOA *Expected Points Added *Defense-Adjusted Value Over Average Only once in four years have the Vikings had an above-average offense, according to those two useful efficiency metrics. And even then, it was barely in the top half. They’ve never cracked the top 13 in either statistic, and the 2025 team — which had another awesome defense under Brian Flores — was doomed by having one of the worst offenses in the NFL. If you’re curious about who (arguably) deserves more credit for the Vikings’ success, here are their ranks on defense during the O’Connell era. 2022: 16th in EPA per play, 25th in DVOA (Ed Donatell was DC) 2023: 17th in EPA per play, 11th in DVOA (Flores takes over) 2024: 2nd in EPA per play, 2nd in DVOA 2025: 3rd in EPA per play, 3rd in DVOA A major issue is that O’Connell’s Vikings have never figured out how to build an efficient running game. In 2022, they were 10th in EPA per dropback and 29th in EPA per rush. In 2023, they were 18th (11th before Cousins got hurt) and 22nd. In 2024, they were 12th in EPA per dropback and 25th in EPA per rush. This past year, they were 26th and 30th. They’ve been good (not elite) in the pass game when they’ve gotten capable quarterback play, but not once in the last four years have the Vikings ranked higher than 22nd in EPA per rush, which reflects pretty poorly on O’Connell. Insider can’t find anyone willing to say Vikings won’t chase a superstar QB What are the odds that the Vikings trade for a bona fide star quarterback like Lamar Jackson or Joe Burrow this offseason? While the chances might be slim, there are at least two Vikings insiders who aren’t ruling out a blockbuster move. “I could not find anyone and haven’t found anyone to tell me that they definitely don’t want to pursue a Joe Burrow or Lamar Jackson or whoever else might shake loose in terms of just a guy that would absolutely, positively come in here as the unquestioned starter,” ESPN’s Kevin Seifert said in an interview with Dan Barreiro on KFAN-FM 100.3 on Wednesday. That said, Seifert thinks it’s more likely that they run it back with J.J. McCarthy, while bringing in a quarterback to serve as a more reliable backup or perhaps push McCarthy for the starting job. “I mean, as best as I can tell and know at this point, I feel like they’re going to run back the 2025 offseason plan, which is to try to pair the guy they drafted No. 10 overall with somebody who is good enough to start if he’s not,” Seifert said. Seifert isn’t the only reputable insider thinking the Vikings might shock the world and go after a star. Alec Lewis, in his mailbag column via The Athletic, reiterated that “nothing is off the table with regard to how aggressive the Vikings may be to build what the team’s leadership has described as a ‘deep and talented’ quarterback room.” Vikings Trade Pitch Nets $230 Million QB to Replace McCarthy After Latest Report That is according to Alec Lewis of The Athletic, who authored his latest report on the Vikings QB room on Friday, January 16. “As I’ve written in recent weeks, nothing is off the table with regard to how aggressive the Vikings may be to build what the team’s leadership has described as a ‘deep and talented’ quarterback room,” Lewis wrote. “It’s one thing to say that [Kevin] O’Connell and general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah haven’t won a playoff game in their four seasons here. It’s another to note that this ownership group has only gotten past the wild-card round twice in the last 15 years.” … But the home run option is to pursue a trade for a player like Kyler Murray, whom the Arizona Cardinals are prepping to deal this offseason as he heads into his age-29 campaign. But the home run option is to pursue a trade for a player like Kyler Murray, whom the Arizona Cardinals are prepping to deal this offseason as he heads into his age-29 campaign. Jeremy Fowler of ESPN on December 17 floated the Vikings as a potential landing spot for Murray, a two-time Pro Bowler (2020, 2021). The quarterback trade market is worth watching, particularly with supply failing to meet the demand once again. This leads to a conversation on Kyler Murray, whom
NFL Divisional Round Recap: Denver Broncos 33, Buffalo Bills 30
Will Lutz drilled a 23-yard field goal in overtime to send the Denver Broncos to the AFC Championship with a 33-30 win over the Buffalo Bills in a game defined by late drama and turnovers. After Josh Allen forced overtime with a last-minute field goal drive, his fourth turnover of the night — an overtime interception — set up Lutz’s winner and ended Buffalo’s season.
NFL divisional round playoffs: Discussion for Rams fans
The Los Angeles Rams don’t play until Sunday’s game against the Chicago Bears, but there are 2 games on Saturday that you can talk about, including one with two NFC West division rivals. First, the Buffalo Bills take on the Denver Broncos at 1:30. Then, the Seahawks host the 49ers at 5 something. Talk about […] The Los Angeles Rams don’t play until Sunday’s game against the Chicago Bears, but there are 2 games on Saturday that you can talk about, including one with two NFC West division rivals. First, the Buffalo Bills take on the Denver Broncos at 1:30. Then, the Seahawks host the 49ers at 5 something. Talk about the games with your fellow Rams fans in the comment thread below!
Vikings Not Bringing Back OL Coach Chris Kuper
We have officially gotten word of the first change to Kevin O’Connell’s coaching staff for the 2026 offseason, and while it’s one that a lot of folks may have expected, it gives us something to look at as far as what may come next for the Minnesota Vikings. The team has announced that they will […] We have officially gotten word of the first change to Kevin O’Connell’s coaching staff for the 2026 offseason, and while it’s one that a lot of folks may have expected, it gives us something to look at as far as what may come next for the Minnesota Vikings. The team has announced that they will not be retaining offensive line coach Chris Kuper, whose contract expires at the end of the season. Kuper was an original member of O’Connell’s staff, joining the team shortly after O’Connell was hired in February of 2022. He played eight seasons in the NFL, spending his entire career with the Denver Broncos. He then coached with the Miami Dolphins for several seasons before becoming an assistant offensive line coach with the Broncos in 2019, holding that job for three seasons before joining the Vikings. The Minnesota offensive line was in a constant state of flux this season, to put it lightly. The team invested heavily in the interior of the offensive line in terms of draft capital and free agent spending. However, due to injuries across all of the positions along the offensive line, the starting five they envisioned when the season started (Christian Darrisaw, Donovan Jackson, Ryan Kelly, Will Fries, and Brian O’Neill) played just 84 snaps together this season, and the Vikings had more different offensive line combinations on the field this season than any other team in the NFL. I’m not sure how much that contributed to Kuper losing his job, given that the team had plenty of struggles at the position during all four seasons of Kuper’s tenure as the offensive line coach, but I’m sure that didn’t help things. I’m not well-versed on who could, potentially, be in line to be Kuper’s replacement, or whether the team will look to promote from within the current coaching staff or bring someone in from the outside, but I’m sure we’ll be hearing plenty of news about that over the next few days. What do you make of the news of the Vikings not bringing back Chris Kuper, folks? Let us know in the comments section!