Football

It's been said that history repeats itself.

Unfortunately, that includes dubious history.

That's where Matt Ryan enters the chat.

On Saturday night, Ryan found himself on the wrong end of the largest comeback in NFL history.

The Indianapolis Colts blew a 33-0 lead to the Minnesota Vikings, ultimately losing 39-36.

That kind of collapse is tough on its surface, but for Ryan, it's a bit of déjà vu because he was also the quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons when they fumbled a 28-3 lead over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LI and lost.

THE @VIKINGS CAP OFF THE LARGEST COMEBACK IN NFL HISTORY.

FROM 33-0 DOWN TO 39-36. #INDvsMIN pic.twitter.com/p4vtjhuPY7

— NFL (@NFL) December 17, 2022

Fast forward to Saturday night and Ryan witnessed another historic comeback by an opponent.

With that, the Colts fell further in the standings in the AFC South, where the Tennessee Titans rank No. 1.

Elsewhere, the Cleveland Browns beat the Baltimore Ravens 13-3, giving room for the Cincinnati Bengals to move to No. 1 in the AFC North, while the Buffalo Bills clinched the playoffs and the Vikings and San Francisco 49ers clinched the playoffs and their divisions.

Week 15, as it does most of the time, provided clarity for the NFL's playoff picture, so here's a look at how things stand in the AFC and NFC after Sunday's slate of games.

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AFC Standings

1. Buffalo Bills (11-3)

2. Kansas City Chiefs (11-3)

3. Cincinnati Bengals (10-4)

4. Tennessee Titans (7-7)

5. Baltimore Ravens (9-5)

6. Los Angeles Chargers (8-6)

7. Miami Dolphins (8-6)

8. New England Patriots (7-7)

9. New York Jets (7-7)

10. Jacksonville Jaguars (6-8)

11. Las Vegas Raiders (6-8)

12. Cleveland Browns (6-8)

13. Pittsburgh Steelers (6-8)

14. Indianapolis Colts (4-9-1)

15. Denver Broncos (4-10)*

16. Houston Texans (1-12-1)*

* denotes team that has been eliminated from playoff contention

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NFC Standings

1. Philadelphia Eagles (13-1)

2. Minnesota Vikings (11-3)

3. San Francisco 49ers (10-4)

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-8)

5. Dallas Cowboys (10-4)

6. New York Giants (9-5-1)

7. Washington Commanders (7-7-1)

8. Seattle Seahawks (7-7)

9. Detroit Lions (7-7)

10. Green Bay Packers (5-8)

11. Carolina Panthers (5-9)

12. New Orleans Saints (5-9)

13. Atlanta Falcons (5-9)

14. Los Angeles Rams (4-9)

15.Arizona Cardinals (4-9)*

16. Chicago Bears (3-10)*

* denotes team that has been eliminated from playoff contention

Guess who's back ... again 😤 For the 7th consecutive season, the @Chiefs are your AFC West Champs! #NFLPlayoffs@budlight | #CellyClinched pic.twitter.com/ZvZQF6UcPV

— NFL (@NFL) December 18, 2022

After the four big early games on Sunday's NFL schedule featuring the Philadelphia Eagles, Kansas City Chiefs, Dallas Cowboys and New York Jets, the playoffs are starting to take focus.

On the table before the action started Sunday was the opportunity for the Chiefs to clinch the AFC West and the Cowboys' chance to clinch a playoff berth.

The Chiefs were tested by the Houston Texans and had to go to overtime to get the 30-24 win, but that victory moved them to 11-3 and effectively clinched the AFC West.

That's seven straight AFC West titles for the Chiefs and eight consecutive playoff berths.

They are rolling just in time for the playoffs and look to be solid Super Bowl contenders, despite losing Tyreek Hill to the Miami Dolphins in the offseason.

Dallas, however, lost 40-34 to the Jacksonville Jaguars in OT.

Trevor Lawrence's performance (318 passing yards, four passing TDs) to overcome a 27-10 deficit kept the Jags alive in the AFC South race.

MADNESS IN JACKSONVILLE. WALKOFF PICK-6 FOR THE @JAGUARS. #DALvsJAX pic.twitter.com/ZQrhOLRuIW

— NFL (@NFL) December 18, 2022

For their part, the Cowboys were still able to secure a playoff berth, so it will be interesting to see how that could affect the desire or need to sign Odell Beckham Jr. in the very near future.

Philly took care of business in its 25-20 win over the Chicago Bears. The Eagles already clinched with their win over the New York Giants, but now it doesn't look like anyone's catching them for No. 1 in the NFC and there's a great chance that they finish with the best record in the league.

The Buffalo Bills beat the Miami Dolphins 32-29 on Saturday, but with the win, they clinched their fourth straight playoff berth.

Thursday Night Football saw the San Francisco 49ers beat the Seattle Seahawks 21-13 and clinch the NFC West title.

Minnesota clinched the NFC North title with their comeback win, improving to 11-3.

All told, the best teams extended their dominance, while the Cowboys faltered.

It remains to be seen if they can bounce back and get on a strong enough run to take them to the Super Bowl.

In "did you see that?" news, the Las Vegas Raiders had the wildest walk-off 30-24 win over the Patriots after a botched lateral by Jakobi Meyers to avoid overtime went to Chandler Jones, who ran it the other way back to the house.

It was one of the wildest finishes in recent memory.

The Detroit Lions beat the Jets 20-17, the Denver Broncos nabbed a 24-15 win over the Arizona Cardinals, the L.A. Chargers got the 17-14 victory over the Titans and the Bengals were down 14-3 to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at halftime, but rallied to finish 34-23 to move to 10-4.

As football fans get ready for Week 16, there are already four teams eliminated from the playoffs: Houston, Chicago, Arizona and Denver.

There are five teams in the AFC that would be in if the season ended today (Cincinnati, Tennessee, Baltimore, Los Angeles Chargers and Miami) and seven on the bubble (New England, New York Jets, Jacksonville, Las Vegas, Pittsburgh and Indianapolis).

For the NFC, there are three teams (Tampa Bay, Washington and New York Giants) that would get their ticket stamped based on Sunday and seven on the bubble (Seattle, Detroit, Green Bay, Carolina, New Orleans, Atlanta and L.A. Rams).

The Dallas Cowboys squandered the opportunity to clinch a playoff berth on Sunday with a 40-34 overtime loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, blowing a 21-7 halftime lead to drop to 10-4 on the season.

Quarterback Dak Prescott completed 23 of 30 passes for 256 yards and three touchdowns against two interceptions. His second pick was returned for a game-winning touchdown by Rayshawn Jenkins in overtime.

MADNESS IN JACKSONVILLE. WALKOFF PICK-6 FOR THE @JAGUARS. #DALvsJAX pic.twitter.com/ZQrhOLRuIW

— NFL (@NFL) December 18, 2022

While the offense could have been better, the Dallas defense turned in an abysmal performance against second-year quarterback Trevor Lawrence and the Jags offense, allowing 503 total yards.

Lawrence completed 27 of 42 passes for 318 yards, four touchdowns and one interception in addition to rushing for 21 yards on three carries.

Zay Jones led all Jags receivers with six catches for 109 yards and three scores, while Travis Etienne Jr. rushed for 103 yards on 19 carries.

After the game, NFL Twitter roasted the Cowboys for their second-half collapse:

Wow. Cowboys lose a game they had no business losing.

First the disastrous performance against the Texans last week. Now they cough up a 27-10 lead to a 5-8 Jaguars team, to lose in overtime.

An abhorrent way to go into their most important game of the season, against Philly.

— Mike Leslie (@MikeLeslieWFAA) December 18, 2022

The Jags are America’s team

— Lindsay Jones (@bylindsayhjones) December 18, 2022

The Dallas Cowboys. America’s Team.

— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) December 18, 2022

Holy. 💩. RayShawn Jenkins with the walk off house call. The Jags are in the hunt and the Cowboys are sick right now

— Steve Wyche (@wyche89) December 18, 2022

being a cowboys fan is a emotional rollercoaster holy shit

— timthetatman👑 (@timthetatman) December 18, 2022

LMFAOOOOOOOO pic.twitter.com/KQwLeL1Q8V

— Jack “CouRage” Dunlop (@CouRageJD) December 18, 2022

“These Cowboys are different!”

Been hearing that since college.

It’s never true.

— Kyle Brandt (@KyleBrandt) December 18, 2022

So looking forward to the @dallascowboys losing their first playoff game. Again.

— Jason Gough (@Jason_Weather) December 18, 2022

That's why we call them the Drama Dallas Choking Cowboys.

— Zach Gelb (@ZachGelb) December 18, 2022

Typical Cowboys

— Michael Fabiano (@Michael_Fabiano) December 18, 2022

Same Dallas Cowboy team every single season. Their fans know it too.

They could very well beat Philadelphia next week (will prob be favored) and it won’t matter.

Everyone knows who they are at their core. I saw this last year.

— Harrison Vapnek (@harrisonvapnek) December 18, 2022

Maybe the effin’ Dallas Cowboys are the frauds and the worst 10-4 team ever

— tim johnson (@timmyjo11) December 18, 2022

Not many things bring America together more then when the Cowboys lose

— Megan (@MeganMakinMoney) December 18, 2022

Cowboys loss is embarrassing and extremely predictable

— Clint Brakebill (@CBrakebill) December 18, 2022

The Cowboys will still likely make the playoffs, but they're essentially out of the NFC East title race as the Philadelphia Eagles sit atop the division with a 13-1 record following a win over the Chicago Bears on Sunday.

The Dallas offense and defense have a lot to figure out moving forward, especially if the Cowboys want to win a playoff game for the first time since the 2018 season.

The Cowboys wrap up the regular season with games against the Eagles and then road games at the Tennessee Titans and Washington Commanders.

Atlanta Falcons defensive coordinator Dean Pees was hospitalized after suffering an injury during an on-field collision ahead of Sunday's game against the New Orleans Saints, the team announced (h/t NFL Network's Ian Rapoport).

NFL analyst Cam Marino reported a Saints player ran into Pees during a kickoff drill.

It appears a member of Falcons staff was just carted off the field. Didn’t see what happened. The person was being attended to by medical staff for a few minutes.
Working to find out who it was. pic.twitter.com/hYmlxZHEWM

— Justin Felder (@Justin_FOX5) December 18, 2022

A cart and stretcher came out to take Pees off the field. Medical staff stabilized his neck before placing him on the cart and transporting him to the hospital, per ESPN's Michael Rothstein.

The Falcons said in their statement that Pees was "alert and responsive." He was released from the University Medical Center New Orleans after receiving treatment, the team later announced. He will fly back to Atlanta with the team.

Frank Bush took over as the team's interim defensive play caller Sunday.

Pees, 73, has been a defensive coordinator in the NFL for more than a decade. He entered the NFL as a linebackers coach for the New England Patriots in 2004 and became a defensive coordinator for the franchise in 2006.

After his stop in New England, Pees joined the Baltimore Ravens as an inside linebackers coach in 2010 and was promoted to defensive coordinator in 2012. He also served as defensive coordinator for the Tennessee Titans before coming out of retirement and joining the Falcons in 2021.

Pees is the oldest defensive coordinator in the NFL.

The Falcons could be in trouble without their defensive coordinator Sunday. They already entered the game with one of the NFL's worst defenses, allowing 380.6 yards per game (251.1 passing and 129.5 rushing).

Additionally, they are allowing 24.0 points per game.

The Falcons entered Sunday's game with a 5-8 record and still have a chance to win the NFC South.

The college football recruiting window is wide open, and the early signing period is set to begin on Wednesday, December 21.

Heading into that period, many of the nation's top five-star recruits have already committed and are expected to sign national letters of intent (NLI) either in the coming days or when the traditional signing period opens on February 1—a full list of NFI dates can be found here.

Five-star quarterback Arch Manning, for example, has committed to Texas for the 2023 season. Fellow five-star signal-caller Nicholaus Iamaleava has committed to Tennessee.

While we know where most of the top 2023 recruits are headed, there remains plenty of intrigue ahead of Wednesday. Decommitments do occur, and a few top recruits have been quiet about their college plans.

We're here to examine the latter group and dive into some of the top prospects who remain uncommitted heading into early signing day.

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Nyckoles Harbor, Athlete, Archbishop Carroll

Nyckoles Harbor, an all-around athletic prospect out of Archbishop Carroll in Washington D.C., is ranked 16th among 247Sports' list of top recruits.

With an impressive 6'5", 225-pound frame and elite athleticism, Harbor is widely projected to play either tight end or edge-rusher at the collegiate level. His next role could depend heavily on where Harbor lands.

Also recruited by Maryland, Georgia, Michigan and LSU, Harbor is predicted by 247Sports' Crystal Ball to land with the South Carolina Gamecocks. However, a recent visit with Maryland could throw a wrench in South Carolina's plans.

"Official visit to Maryland blows away five-star ATH Nyckoles Harbor and his family, a trip that included time spent with the university president, AD and one of the top orthopedic surgeons in the country," Steve Wiltfong of 247Sports tweeted.

Expect Harbor to be on the fence about his decision until at least mid-week.

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Matayo Uiagalelei, Edge, St. John Bosco

Pass-rusher Matayo Uiagalelei from St. John Bosco in Bellflower, California, is another five-star recruit who remains uncommitted.

According to the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine, Ohio State now holds a "slight lead" over USC to land Uiagalelei. However, Oregon, Alabama and Arizona are also in the mix for the 6'5", 265-pound prospect.

According to Garrick Hodge of Eleven Warriors, the Buckeyes have recently put the proverbial full-court press on the Uiagalelei.

"OSU visited Uiagalelei this week and the Buckeyes are doing everything they can to secure the five-star California target," Hodge wrote. "But it will be a close battle between Ohio State, Oregon and USC for his commitment."

One potential factor to consider is that Uiagalelei's brother, former Clemson quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei, is in the transfer portal and looking for a new home. If the two are looking to play together, D.J.'s decision could impact that of his younger brother.

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Jordan Hall, DL, Westside

Defensive lineman Jordan Hall from Westside High School in Jacksonville, Florida, is a very intriguing prospect. At 6'4.5" and 300 pounds, he has the build of an interior defender. However, the four-star recruit also possesses a tremendous amount of athleticism.

Hall has the combination of size and quickness needed to play on the inside or at defensive end.

Strong night for major #FSU DT target @bigjay77 in Westside win. Here are a few clips. pic.twitter.com/Wgqs0mLqnU

— Warchant.com (@Warchant) September 10, 2022

While Hall might not be ready to make an immediate impact, he should develop into a star at the college level.

"Likely going to need a few years of coaching before he's ready to go on Saturdays and must keep evolving as a player, but should be viewed as an interior lineman with pass rushing upside that can provide a spark at the Power 5 level," Andrew Ivins of 247Sports wrote.

Hall has taken official visits with Georgia, Florida, Florida State, LSU and Alabama. According to his Twitter account, Hall plans to make an official announcement on December 22.

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Rodrick Pleasant, CB, Junipero Serra

For now, Junipero Serra (Gardena, CA) cornerback Rodrick Pleasant is focused on playing in next month's Under Armour High School All-America Game in Orlando. His college decision may not come during the early signing period.

"I'm not in a rush right now," Pleasant said, per Damian Calhoun of the Daily Breeze.

The four-star defensive prospect, however, is drawing serious interest from schools like Cal, UCLA, Oregon and Miami—and it's not hard to see why.

"Pleasant has tremendous speed and is arguably the fastest player in the '23 class," Greg Biggins of 247Sports wrote. "His speed shows up on the football field, and he's a dangerous player in all three phases of the game."

Pleasant recently agreed to an official visit with UCLA, and there's a chance that he does commit this month.

Rodrick Pleasant of Gardena Serra is taking official visit to UCLA. The future season tickets of his head coach, Scott Altenberg, are at stake. lol.

— eric sondheimer (@latsondheimer) December 17, 2022

However, it feels likely that Pleasant will remain one of the top uncommitted recruits when the early signing period ends.

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*Recruiting information via 247Sports.

NFL teams have spent $800 million on fired coaches and front-office executives over the past five years alone, the league said in a message to owners last week, per ESPN's Adam Schefter.

League officials distributed spreadsheets at the owners' meetings in Dallas noting how much each team was spending on former employees, hoping to send a message before the end of the season.

"The league wanted each team to see the exact costs of instability," Schefter noted.

Two coaches have already been fired in 2022—Carolina Panthers' Matt Rhule and Indianapolis Colts' Frank Reich—both having four years remaining on their contracts at more than $8 million per season.

Rhule has already gotten a new job at the University of Nebraska, which helps offset a majority of his salary with the Panthers, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. The risk is still high with the constant stream of hiring and firing coaches.

The New York Giants are paying three different coaches at the same time. Former coaches Pat Shurmur and Joe Judge were both fired with significant time left on their contracts, while current coach Brian Daboll is in his first year with the team.

The Houston Texans fired David Culley after just one season, and they now must make a decision on first-year coach Lovie Smith following a 1-11-1 start to the year.

First-year coaches Nathaniel Hackett and Josh McDaniels have also been on the hot seat this season after disappointing seasons for the Denver Broncos and Las Vegas Raiders, respectively.

With the NFL pointing out the high costs to each team, the league clearly wants to reduce the amount of yearly turnover among coaches and executives.

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones continues his push to sign Odell Beckham Jr., even calling the receiver personally after the team signed T.Y. Hilton, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.

The signing of Hilton seemingly indicated the Cowboys were out on Beckham, who reportedly hasn't progressed well enough from his torn ACL and might not be available until mid-January, according to ESPN's Ed Werder.

Jones still continues to speak to Beckham "almost exclusively" with the attempt to sign the star wideout.

Jones was confident the team would sign Beckham when speaking about the situation on Thursday.

"Odell's going to join us," Jones told Jarrett Bell of USA Today. "There's a good chance he will, with the complete goal of getting ready for a playoff game or two, and then I'll look to the future. But most of it being about now."

The Cowboys have put on a significant recruiting effort to land Beckham, who sat courtside at the Dallas Mavericks game alongside Micah Parsons and Trevon Diggs earlier this month.

The Buffalo Bills and New York Giants are considered his other top suitors.

According to Rapoport, Beckham wants guaranteed money this year and next season but could be as much as six weeks away from playing.

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler previously reported another option for the veteran could be sitting out all this season before signing as a true free agent in March, where he would be arguably the top option available.

Beckham can be a difference-maker whenever he does play, as he showed last year with the Los Angeles Rams. He totaled five touchdowns in eight regular-season games with the team before adding two more in the playoffs on the way to a Super Bowl title.

The Cowboys also have Super Bowl aspirations this year after improving to 10-3 with a four-game winning streak.

Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray is expected to be ready for the start of the 2023 NFL season despite a torn ACL, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.

The recovery is expected to take six to eight months, which should put him back on the field by the end of August.

According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Murray suffered a "clean ACL tear, with no damage to other ligaments in his knee."

Murray suffered the season-ending knee injury during his team's Dec. 12 matchup against the New England Patriots on a non-contact play during a first-quarter rush.

The loss of the 25-year-old was a major blow to the Cardinals. He's the long-term face of the franchise after signing a five-year, $230.5 million extension through the 2028 season.

Murray earned that contract after leading Arizona to an 11-win campaign and a playoff appearance last year, its first since 2015. He earned his second straight Pro Bowl honor as well.

This season was not as successful, but the 2019 Offensive Rookie of the Year still completed 66.4 percent of his passes for 14 touchdowns (seven interceptions) and 2,368 yards (6.1 per attempt). He added 418 rushing yards and three touchdowns.

Ultimately, it felt like the Cardinals were running uphill all season, which started with a 44-21 home loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. They fell to 4-9 after the Pats game.

Being without key players for large swaths of time was partially the cause of the team's demise. DeAndre Hopkins missed six games after violating the NFL's performance-enhancing drug policy. Zach Ertz suffered a season-ending knee injury in Week 10. Marquise Brown suffered a non-surgical foot fracture. Injuries hit the offensive line as well.

Losing Murray was the biggest blow of them all in a lost season, though. Colt McCoy took over down the stretch, with Trace McSorley serving as backup.

The positive update still gives the Cardinals plenty of upside heading into the 2023 campaign.

The bloom is coming off the rose for Mike McDaniel in the wake of the Miami Dolphins' 32-29 loss to the Buffalo Bills on Saturday night.

Tyler Bass made the game-winning field goal as time expired after the Bills put together a drive that took the final 5:56 off the clock.

Josh Allen torched the Miami defense with 304 passing yards, 77 rushing yards and four touchdowns.

There's certainly no shame in losing to the Bills, who own the AFC's best record. But this was a game of missed opportunities for the Dolphins.

Tua Tagovailoa had a solid bounce-back effort, going 17-of-30 for 234 yards and two touchdowns after disappointing performances in the past two games. His stat line should have been better, but his receivers dropped multiple passes in the first half.

Trent Sherfield dropped a touchdown on third down early in the second quarter, forcing the Dolphins to settle for a field goal.

Dolphins can’t handle the cold. Two drops in a row.

— Steve Bermel (@SteveBermel) December 18, 2022

2 drops kill a promising drive..

— Tom Ernisse (@DolphinsTalkTom) December 18, 2022

A pair of uncharacteristic drops from Dolphins WRs. If Tua is gonna play better, he'll need his supporting cast to ... not mess up.

— Henry McKenna (@henrycmckenna) December 18, 2022

In addition to the receivers having bad hands early in the game, McDaniel seemed to outsmart himself. Raheem Mostert had almost 150 all-purpose yards in the first quarter alone.

Raheem Mostert has 101 rushing yards, 20 receiving yards and 28 kickoff return yards. Pretty good first quarter.

— Michael David Smith (@MichaelDavSmith) December 18, 2022

After having 11 carries in the first half, Mostert was limited to just six in the second half. McDaniel elected to throw the ball on 3rd-and-3 or shorter three times in the second half. They failed to convert all three times, including a 3rd-and-1 early in the fourth quarter that lost two yards.

Jason Sanders subsequently kicked a field goal that gave the Dolphins a 29-21 lead. Buffalo tied the score on its next offensive possession.

Josh Allen was borderline unstoppable. Credit to him.

Mike McDaniel had some questionable decisions not running 3rd & short multiple times & chasing points early in 2nd half, among them.

Tua was good, running game excellent and defense stronger after halftime. This one hurts.

— Will Manso (@WillManso) December 18, 2022

We stopped running the ball Mcdaniel is to blame

— Pyro🐬🔥 (@Pyro_mancer305) December 18, 2022

https://twitter.com/LouieDelRio4/status/1604340791563935744

Competitive game. Rough way to end for the #Dolphins. A few calls I’m sure McDaniel wishes he had back, particularly not running the ball more over the final two drives.

8 days to prepare for a critical home game against the Packers.

— Justin Hier (@HierJustin) December 18, 2022

Mike McDaniel beat himself.

The Dolphins beat themselves, plain and simple.

Correctable, but McDaniel needs to stop outsmarting himself.

— Alejandro 🇨🇴 (@MiamiAlejandro) December 18, 2022

Raheem had a total of 6 carries in the second half and not a single one came on 3rd down. In fact the Dolphins didn’t call a single run on 3rd down in the second half.

McDaniel lost this game.

— I Hate Mike McDaniel (@TheRealKody) December 18, 2022

McDaniel got cute and out coached. Bro has a lot of soul searching to do. See y’all next week. #finsup.

— TagovA1oha 🌺🐬 (@perfctszn) December 18, 2022

We deserve to lose that game. Maybe McDaniel will learn he’s allowed to run the ball on 3rd and short

— The Lagway Foundation™ (@JusGettinBetter) December 18, 2022

This is the first major test of McDaniel's tenure with the Dolphins. The vibes were positive for so long, but things have taken a turn since a Week 13 loss to the San Francisco 49ers.

Tagovailoa's performance against the Bills defense in inclement weather is an encouraging sign going forward. But McDaniel has to prove he can adjust to situations within games.

Next week will likely be a good test to see where McDaniel is at with his development as a coach. The Dolphins return home to play a Green Bay Packers defense that allows the fifth-fewest passing yards per game (192.9) but ranks 30th in run defense (154.8 yards per game).

Former New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman said during an appearance on 98.5 The Sports Hub in Boston that he has been approached by three teams about returning to the NFL this season, per Phil Perry of NBC Sports Boston.

"There's been some calls, and I've turned them down," Edelman said.

He added: "The situation would have to be in New England with a New England team that's a contender."

Edelman has been retired for nearly two years. He hung up the cleats after he failed his physical before the 2021 season and had his contract terminated by the Patriots.

The 36-year-old spent his entire 12-year career in New England, helping the Patriots win three Super Bowls—he also earned the Super Bowl LIII MVP award—alongside legendary quarterback Tom Brady.

Edelman caught 620 passes for 6,822 yards and 36 touchdowns in 137 career games. In 19 playoff games, he caught 118 passes for 1,442 yards and five scores.

If the Patriots were one of the teams to contact Edelman about a potential NFL return, it's not necessarily surprising that he turned them down. Bill Belichick's squad enters Sunday's game against the Las Vegas Raiders third in the AFC East with a 7-6 record, though they do hold the seventh and final seed in the conference for the postseason.

Additionally, it's unclear how Edelman would perform after being away from the NFL for almost two years.

Of course, it's possible he could return and be a serviceable player for any franchise in need of some depth out wide.

For example, former Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski retired after the 2018 season only to return in 2020 to play alongside Brady with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In 28 games across the 2020 and 2021 season, he caught 100 passes for 1,425 yards and 13 touchdowns. He also caught 17 passes for 226 yards and three scores in six postseason games.

While Edelman doesn't plan on returning this season, it's hard to completely rule out his potential return to the NFL in 2023, especially considering teams are still interested in him.

The Cleveland Browns will be without defensive end Jadeveon Clowney for the rest of their game against the Baltimore Ravens.

Clowney was ruled out with a concussion after being evaluated on the sideline. He suffered the injury in the first half of Saturday's contest.

The 29-year-old recorded one tackle against the Ravens prior to being removed from the game.

Clowney sustained a right ankle injury in Cleveland's 31-30 loss to the New York Jets that caused him to miss the team's next two games before returning in Week 5 against the Los Angeles Chargers. However, he was ruled out the following week against the New England Patriots after dealing with ankle, knee and elbow injuries.

The No. 1 pick in 2014, Clowney is one of the most respected pass-rushers in the NFL. Through 10 games entering Saturday, he has 22 combined tackles and two sacks. The nine-year veteran posted 37 total tackles, nine sacks and two forced fumbles in 14 games in 2021.

Clowney spent the first five seasons of his career with the Houston Texans before playing one season each for the Seattle Seahawks and Tennessee Titans. He signed a one-year deal with the Browns in 2021 and the team re-signed for the 2022 season on a one-year contract worth $10 million.

While paired alongside edge-rusher Myles Garrett, Clowney is a member of one of the best pass-rushing tandems in the NFL. Garrett is one of the favorites for NFL Defensive Player of the Year and has 39 combined tackles and 12 sacks through 12 games before Saturday.

During Clowney's absence, rookie defensive end Alex Wright will be thrust into a bigger role. The 2022 third-round pick racked up 11.5 sacks in three seasons at UAB. Veteran pass-rusher Isaac Rochell is also likely to see more time on the field. He has 9.5 career sacks in his six NFL seasons.