Sports

Chargers, Jaguars meet for first time since wild-card classic

Of the various good games to be played on Sunday, one game is a rematch of one of the biggest playoff stunners ever.

The Chargers and Jaguars get together for the first time since the 2022 playoffs, when Jacksonville erased a 27-0 deficit to win the game, 31-30.

It was the fifth biggest comeback in NFL history, regular season or postseason.

The Chargers led that game at the half, 27-7. It was 30-14 in the third quarter. The Chargers reeled off 17 straight points to win the game with a 36-yard field goal as the clock hit zero.

This time around, both teams have different coaches. But the starting quarterbacks remain the same. Justin Herbert vs. Trevor Lawrence, who overcame four interceptions to engineer the playoff win..

Currently, the Chargers are 7-3, the Jaguars are 5-4. Both are, for now, on track for postseason appearances.

Herbert's odds at winning the MVP are 25-1; in the attached video, Chargers receiver Ladd McConkey makes the case for Herbert to win it. (Lawrence's odds are 400-1.)

And while some Chargers may have flashbacks to the collapse from the last time they played in Jacksonville, the Jaguars are battling demons of their own. They blew a 29-19 fourth-quarter lead in Week 10 against the Texans.

Broncos can become fourth team with 50 sacks in 11 games

The Denver defense is going to need a good nickname.

They could possibly dust off Orange Crush, the label given to the team's defense in 1977, when the Broncos led the league in yards allowed per game and carried a 12-2 record to the Super Bowl.

That year, the Broncos had 50 sacks in 14 games. This year, they're four sacks away from having 50 in 11.

Via NBC Sports research, the Broncos can join the 1967 Raiders (61), the 1989 Vikings (53), and the 1987 Bears (51) as the only teams with 50 or more sacks in the first eleven games of a season.

As MDS noted in the aftermath of Denver's six-sack showing against the Raiders in Week 10, the Broncos are on pace for 78 sacks. That would be six more than the current single-season record of 72, set by the Bears in 1984.

The Broncos' 46 sacks lead the league by 14 over the Steelers and Seahawks, both with 32. (Seattle and Pittsburgh have played nine games each.)

To get to 50, the Broncos will need to corral Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. At 17 sacks on the season, he's being sacked at a rate of fewer than two per game.

Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown fined $12,172 after taking first jab that ultimately led to Daron Payne's punch

The NFL fined Amon-Ra St. Brown $12,172 for unnecessary roughness after the Detroit Lions star wide receiver took the first jab that ultimately led to a punch from Washington Commanders defensive tackle Daron Payne last week, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero.

Payne was ejected for his retaliating hook after a Jahmyr Gibbs touchdown in the second quarter of the Lions' 44-22 win. The league issued Payne a one-game suspension the next day. While Payne appealed the suspension, it was upheld. He then posted footage Tuesday that provided more context than the broadcast showed last Sunday.

The video Payne shared on Instagram showed St. Brown taking a swipe at Payne's helmet a few plays before Payne threw the punch that got him in trouble with the league. 

St. Brown wasn't flagged despite the incident taking place in an official's line of vision.

After the game, Commanders defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw said he saw St. Brown hit Payne. He criticized NFL officials for the way the situation was handled, calling it "bulls***."

Kinlaw was fined $28,555 for unsportsmanlike conduct after he made contact with an official, per Pelissero, who additionally reported Saturday that Commanders rookie linebacker Ale Kaho was fined $46,371 for illegal use of the helmet. Kaho is out this week with a concussion.

As a result of Payne's suspension, he will miss the Commanders' Week 11 game against the Miami Dolphins and was ineligible to travel with the team to Madrid, Spain, for the international matchup.

Through nine games, St. Brown has hauled in 64 catches for 693 yards and 8 touchdowns. The wideout is well on his way toward posting his fourth-straight season with over 1,000 yards receiving and 100-plus catches. 

Since he was selected by the team in the fourth round of the 2021 NFL Draft, St. Brown has emerged as one of the game's best receivers and quarterback Jared Goff's favorite target. After a promising rookie season, in which he nearly gained 1,000 yards, thanks to a second-half breakout, St. Brown announced his presence on a national level in 2022, making his first of three straight Pro Bowl appearances.

He got even better the following season, exploding for 1,515 yards and his first of two straight All-Pro nods.

More Articles …

  1. Bills sign Mecole Hardman to 53-man roster, elevate Gabe Davis
  2. Lions place TE Sam LaPorta on IR with back injury ahead of NFC showdown with Eagles
  3. Dallas Turner draws more than $34,000 in fines for two infractions
Page 4 of 38