ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Damar Hamlin released a video Saturday in which he says he’s thankful for the outpouring of support and vows to pay it back, marking the first time the Buffalo Bills safety has spoken publicly since he went into cardiac arrest and needed to be resuscitated on the field in Cincinnati on Jan.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs activated tight end Jody Fortson from injured reserve and elevated wide receivers Marcus Kemp and Ihmir Smith-Marsette from the practice squad for Sunday night's AFC title game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
CINCINNATI (AP) — Joe Burrow says the Cincinnati Bengals' championship window should stay open for years.
“The window is my whole career,” the franchise quarterback said matter-of-factly after the Bengals clinched their second straight AFC North title.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — DeMeco Ryans' influence on the NFC championship runs through both locker rooms.
Ryans finished his playing career as a linebacker for Philadelphia, earning the nickname “Mufasa” (from “The Lion King”) for the leadership skills that he taught the handful of teammates still on the Eagles that have been carried forward to today.
If Vegas oddsmakers are correct — and there's a reason those casinos are huge and luxurious — then football fans are in for a treat this weekend.
The NFL's conference championship weekend is here: The Philadelphia Eagles will host the San Francisco 49ers for the NFC title while the Kansas City Chiefs host the Cincinnati Bengals in the AFC.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Jalen Hurts and Brock Purdy could be primed for a shootout in the NFC championship game.
It's the first time Hurts — the league MVP finalist for the Philadelphia Eagles — and Purdy, the “ Mr.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Rams hired former New York Jets offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur on Friday to join Sean McVay's quest to fix one of the least productive offenses in the league.
FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. (AP) — The Atlanta Falcons found their new defensive coordinator from an NFC South rival’s coaching staff on Friday by hiring Ryan Nielsen, the former New Orleans Saints co-defensive coordinator.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Former Carolina Panthers interim coach Steve Wilks is “disappointed, but not defeated” that he didn’t land the team’s full-time head coaching position.
The Panthers announced on Thursday they've agreed to hire Frank Reich as their coach.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The San Francisco 49ers got a jolt offensively when they made the bold decision in October to trade four draft picks to add Christian McCaffrey to an already deep group of playmakers.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Mike Rallis had his younger brother draped over his shoulders and was set to dump him to the turf — as a roughhousing brother might do — when he took an abrupt blow to his ribs.
Let's play Six Degrees of Steve Wilks, a quick and easy way to connect the dots of racism in the NFL head coaching ranks.
— We'll start with Kliff Kingsbury, a white coach who was fired by Texas Tech in 2018 and somehow wound up as head man of the Arizona Cardinals the very next season.
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa remains in the NFL’s concussion protocol and will not participate in the 2023 Pro Bowl, a person with knowledge of the matter told The Associated Press.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes finished a full week of practice on his ailing right ankle Friday, and Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid pronounced his All-Pro quarterback ready to go for the AFC championship game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — When Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes headed up the tunnel inside Arrowhead Stadium to have X-rays taken on his sprained right ankle, and Chad Henne trotted onto the field in the second quarter of their divisional playoff game against Jacksonville, it was obvious who the backup quarterback was going to target.
Nick Sirianni is getting his flowers figuratively instead of thrown at his face.
The chest-bumping, sideline-prancing, expletive-tossing head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles has won over a tough city that questioned his credentials and mocked his introductory news conference when he was hired two years ago.
FRISCO, Texas (AP) — A shuffling of the coaching staff for the Dallas Cowboys won't include defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, who is returning after another year of receiving interest from teams seeking head coaches.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The late-game meltdowns stick in San Francisco.
Take the Super Bowl against Kansas City following the 2019 season. The 49ers became the third team in Super Bowl history to cough up a 10-point lead in the second half and lost to the Chiefs.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Frank Reich is returning to the Carolina Panthers as their coach, more than 27 years after starting the franchise's first game at quarterback in 1995.
The Panthers announced Thursday they've agreed to terms with Reich to become the sixth head coach in franchise history.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs have lost three straight games to the Cincinnati Bengals, including last year’s AFC title game, when they blew an early 21-3 lead in an overtime defeat before a sea of stunned fans inside Arrowhead Stadium.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Chris Foerster had spent nearly two decades as an assistant in the NFL when he first crossed paths with Kyle Shanahan long before he became one of the NFL's most-accomplished play-callers.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — San Francisco 49ers star running back Christian McCaffrey missed his second straight practice with a calf injury but said he will be available for the NFC title game.
McCaffrey played through the calf injury during a divisional-round win over Dallas but hasn't practiced this week.
The New York Jets have their new offensive play caller. Next up: finding their quarterback.
Former Denver Broncos coach Nathaniel Hackett was hired Thursday as the Jets' offensive coordinator to replace Mike LaFleur after coach Robert Saleh interviewed more than 15 candidates for the vacancy during the last two weeks.
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Art Rooney II wants the Pittsburgh Steelers to score more points. He's confident the partnership between offensive coordinator Matt Canada and quarterback Kenny Pickett can make it happen.
The Bengals and Chiefs have become familiar foes.
When the teams face off Sunday in Kansas City to determine the AFC champion, it’ll be their fourth meeting in 393 days and a rematch of last year’s conference title game.
Nasty defenses. Strong rushing offenses. Physical in the trenches.
This 49ers-Eagles matchup in the NFC championship game Sunday has all the elements of old-school football.
But don’t overlook all the playmakers at the skill positions on both teams.
DETROIT (AP) — Outside linebacker Jessie Lemonier, who appeared in seven games for the Detroit Lions in 2021 in a brief NFL career highlighted by a sack of Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers, has died.
SAN FRANCISCO (15-4) at PHILADELPHIA (15-3)
Sunday, 3 p.m., FOX
FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK NFL LINE: Eagles by 2 1/2
CINCINNATI (14-4) at KANSAS CITY (15-3)
Sunday, 6:30 p.m. EST, CBS
FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK NFL LINE: Bengals by 1 1/2.
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — Bill O’Brien is back with the New England Patriots.
The team announced Thursday that O'Brien was hired as its offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.
The move comes 12 days after the Patriots said they were searching for a new leader of their offense following a disappointing season that saw second-year quarterback Mac Jones struggle under an offense largely directed by play caller Matt Patricia and quarterbacks coach Joe Judge.
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — The Buffalo Bills have fired safeties coach Jim Salgado, a person with direct knowledge of the decision told The Associated Press on Thursday.
The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the Bills have not announced the move.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The caricatures on Nick Sirianni’s T-shirt depicted A.J. Brown making a one-handed grab and DeVonta Smith holding the ball as he struck a Heisman Trophy pose.
CLEVELAND (AP) — Joe Thomas didn't have much to celebrate during 11 seasons playing left tackle for the Cleveland Browns. It was mostly misery.
Numerous coaching changes. An ownership switch. One winning season.
EAGAN, Minn. (AP) — The Minnesota Vikings interviewed internal candidate Mike Pettine on Wednesday for their defensive coordinator vacancy.
Pettine served as assistant head coach this season under rookie coach Kevin O'Connell.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — San Francisco defensive lineman Charles Omenihu will be available to play in the NFC title game despite his arrest on a misdemeanor domestic violence allegation.
Coach Kyle Shanahan said Wednesday that the team will wait for the legal process to resolve after Omenihu was accused of pushing his girlfriend to the ground during an argument on Monday.
It’s been 25 years since both NFL conference championship games were this evenly matched from an oddsmakers standpoint.
The San Francisco 49ers are 2 1/2-point underdogs against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday in the NFC championship game, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Brock Purdy's NFL career started with the moniker of “Mr. Irrelevant” and the weeklong trip to Newport Beach to celebrate the player picked last in the draft.
With one more win, Purdy's rookie season in the NFL will end on the brightest stage of all as a starting quarterback in the Super Bowl for the San Francisco 49ers.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Asked about being an NFL Most Valuable Player finalist, Jalen Hurts revealed, “I didn’t know.” Nick Sirianni pounded his fist on a table in mock disgust and cracked “Oh man!” when queried about his finalist snub for Coach of the Year.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes walked through Arrowhead Stadium as if nothing was amiss Wednesday, his sprained right ankle hardly hampering the All-Pro quarterback as he began preparing for the AFC title game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Maryland officials on Wednesday voted to formally begin the process of issuing up to $400 million in bonds for developing an area around FedEx Field in Prince George's County.
NEW YORK (AP) — Cincinnati tight end Hayden Hurst, San Francisco tight end George Kittle and Washington head coach Ron Rivera are the three finalists for the NFL's Salute to Service Award.
The league on Wednesday announced the finalists for the 12th annual award.
Jalen Hurts, Justin Jefferson and Patrick Mahomes are finalists for The Associated Press 2022 NFL Most Valuable Player and Offensive Player of the Year awards.
The winners will be announced at NFL Honors on Feb.
Patrick Mahomes will be the old man among the starting quarterbacks in the conference title games.
The 27-year-old All-Pro for Kansas City is the oldest member of one of the youngest groups of starting quarterbacks to make it to this round.
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Projecting the Buffalo Bills’ payroll to already be over the salary cap, general manager Brandon Beane on Tuesday said he won't be making any big splashes in free agency this offseason.
Since the NFL implemented its diverse rewards policy in 2020, the San Francisco 49ers have been front-runners.
The Niners were awarded five compensation draft picks in the third round for developing Martin Mayhew, Robert Saleh and Mike McDaniel.
The Indianapolis Colts still want to interview 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans for their head coach vacancy, and are planning to give Jeff Saturday a second interview along with six or seven other candidates, a person familiar with the team’s plans told The Associated Press.
CINCINNATI (AP) — Coach Zac Taylor says he never doubted the toughness of the Bengals offensive line, no matter how many backups had to be pushed into service to replace the injured starters.
“We’ve had confidence throughout,” Taylor insisted Monday, a day after Cincinnati dominated Buffalo to advance to the AFC championship game.