CHICAGO — There’s a gravitational force in the NFL that tends to pull the 32 teams toward the middle of the pack.

That’s why the idea of parity is constantly bandied about. The salary cap and a draft based on the reverse order of standings fuel competitive balance. Well-stocked rosters for well-run organizations can be outliers for a good...Read more

The Patriots placed starting wide receiver Mack Hollins on injured reserve, knocking him out for at least four games.

That means, at minimum, Hollins, who’s dealing with an abdomen injury, will miss the Patriots’ final two regular-season games against the Jets and Dolphins, plus at least two potential playoff games.

The earliest he could ...Read more

LAS VEGAS — Star defensive end Maxx Crosby’s season appeared likely over when the Raiders informed him he wouldn’t play in the team’s final two games on Friday.

The team made it official Saturday, placing Crosby on injured reserve.

Crosby is likely to require surgery this offseason on a left knee injury that has been lingering ...Read more

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Travis Kelce drove into work this week, a couple of days shy of the Chiefs’ final home game of the season, and that’s when he says the question we’ve been asking him is the question that popped into his mind.

Is this it?

It wasn’t unprompted. On Christmas night, shortly after the Chiefs’ 20-13 loss to the Broncos...Read more

MIAMI — Bradly Chubb suggests every Miami Dolphins player struggling to find their motivation for the final two games, searching for their reason to not mail it in for the final two meaningless games of 2025 to look his way.

Keeping his eight-year career, his struggles, his injuries, his resurgence, and most importantly, his paycheck in mind ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Rams players enjoyed the day off they got for Christmas, perhaps no one more than Puka Nacua.

The previous week, the star receiver was fined $25,000 by the NFL after he made critical comments about officials during a livestream and then again in a social media post immediately after the Rams' crushing 38-37 overtime defeat by ...Read more

The Kansas City Chiefs raised eyebrows after their Christmas Day loss when a staffer turned cameras away from following Travis Kelce, after what may have been his last home game, in an awkward moment making the rounds on social media.

The camera was zooming in on the tight end, 36, walking off through the halls of Arrowhead Stadium when a man ...Read more

FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. — The Lions' playoff hopes are over.

But a Lions fan's potential legal battle in the wake of an altercation with Pittsburgh Steelers receiver DK Metcalf last week at Ford Field might just be getting started.

A lawyer for Lions fan Ryan Kennedy said they are "evaluating all of our options," speaking during a press ...Read more

While the swirl of chatter around Travis Kelce on Christmas Day was on whether he plans to retire at the end of the season, the 11-time Pro Bowl tight end quietly moved up to No. 9 on the NFL all-time receiving list.

Kelce's fifth and last catch in the Kansas City Chiefs' 20-13 loss to the Denver Broncos was No. 1,077, pushing him past Anquan ...Read more

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Nearing kickoff on Christmas night, thick fog hovered over and around GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. And it made for an appropriately murky backdrop for a franchise abruptly at a crossroads — and in more ways than just the franchise’s planned move to Kansas in 2031.

Because after a dynastic run forged with remarkable ...Read more

CHICAGO — Chicago Bears wide receiver Rome Odunze will miss his fourth consecutive game after he was ruled out Friday afternoon ahead of Sunday night’s matchup with the San Francisco 49ers.

Odunze sat out the entire week of practice with a foot injury that has been nagging him for several weeks. The 2024 first-round draft pick hasn’t ...Read more

PITTSBURGH — Steelers outside linebacker T.J. Watt won’t play Sunday in Cleveland, but he’ll still be very much involved in the proceedings.

Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett is chasing history — and Watt — in the form of the NFL’s single-season sack record. With 22 on the year, Garrett is a half-sack from tying Watt and ...Read more

FOXBORO, Mass. — The Patriots have already ruled out seven starters for Sunday’s game against the Jets.

Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel announced Friday afternoon that wide receivers Kayshon Boutte (concussion) and Mack Hollins (abdomen), left guard Jared Wilson (concussion), defensive tackle Khyiris Tonga (foot), linebacker Robert Spillane...Read more

RENTON, Wash. — Along with winning four letters for football at Drake University, Seahawks tight end Eric Saubert earned a degree in actuarial sciences.

What can one do with an actuarial sciences degree?

As Drake’s website defines it, the degree would allow someone a career assessing “how much should a company charge an individual for ...Read more

MIAMI — Everything about the Miami Dolphins franchise is on unstable footing.

Miami is currently run by an interim general manager (Champ Kelly), the head coach (Mike McDaniel) and his staff are on the hot seat, and the team just changed starting quarterbacks (switching from Tua Tagovailoa to rookie Quinn Ewers) last week.

So projecting what...Read more

BALTIMORE — The Ravens were still breathing Sunday night. Not quite comfortably, but alive enough to imagine a comeback that could’ve salvaged their season and dwindling playoff hopes.

After Zay Flowers hauled in a pass from backup Tyler Huntley, the team’s top wideout attempted a juke move, the ball subsequently drifting away from his ...Read more

PITTSBURGH — There are 544 games in an NFL season, but Sunday's classic between the Steelers and Detroit Lions at Ford Field stands out among the rest. The game had big plays, drama, controversy and an ending worthy of a Hollywood production.

"The result of the play is a touchdown. However ..."

The Steelers' season brightened while the Lions...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — The Lions were hoping to show who they really are, to recapture their identity and rekindle their playoff hopes. Instead, they showed up and confirmed what they’ve become, a battered, broken team, beaten soundly in all the areas they used to control.

The Lions couldn’t block anyone, couldn’t hold onto the ball, could ...Read more

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — All eyes (and television cameras) were on Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce on Christmas night.

Kelce’s future was on everyone’s mind Thursday because his contract with the Chiefs expires at the end of the regular season. Kelce has remained mum about his future plans, but it’s no stretch to think he’ll hang up the ...Read more