POSITIVE COVID TESTS PUT RAVENS GAME IN JEOPARDY
Baltimore squad down at least five players, four staffers ahead of Thursday's contest
The marquee game on U.S. Thanksgiving Thursday is still a go, at least for now, but one of the teams is definitely going to be playing short-handed.
One day after running backs Mark Ingram and J.K. Dobbins tested positive for COVID-19 and lineman Brandon Williams joined them on the reserve list as a close contact, the Baltimore Ravens had two more players (including outside linebacker Pernell Mcphee) and four staffers reportedly contract the virus.
ESPN'S Adam Schefter was told by a source that further positive tests could force a postponement of Thursday's game against the undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers.
That would leave audiences stuck with two real turkeys: the Houston Texans (3-7) at Detroit Lions (4-6) and the Washington Football Team (3-7) at the Dallas Cowboys (3-7).
Even if the Ravens don't lose any more players, the recent rash of positive tests forced them to cancel practice Tuesday, affecting a valuable preparation day for a game 48 hours away.
So it appears the path to a perfect season for the Steelers won't have as formidable an object on it as was originally expected.
RAM TOUGH, AGAIN: It's starting to look like last season was just a hiccup for the Los Angeles Rams.
Once again they are a force to be reckoned with in the NFC.
“We can be as good as we want to be, honestly,” quarterback Jared Goff said after Monday night's 27-24 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers improved the Rams to 7-3 and kept them deadlocked with the Seattle Seahawks atop the conference's West division. “We've got it all in front of us. Everything is there for us to take.”
The numbers back Goff's claim. The only NFC team with a better record than the Rams is the New Orleans Saints, who have won seven in a row and sit 8-2, one more win and a game in hand on the division-rival Buccaneers.
Like the Rams and Seahawks, the Green Bay Packers are also 7-3.
The Rams' defence is the team's strength. It ranks first in the NFL in average yards allowed per game, second in passing yards allowed, fifth in rushing yards allowed and second in points allowed (19.2).
The offence is fifth in average yards per game, ninth in passing yards, ninth in rushing yards (124.5) and 17th in points per game.
But in an air show Monday might, it outperformed the vaunted Tampa attack.
BUCKING THE TREND: Tom Brady is building a reputation as a sore loser after failing to shake Goff's hand following Monday's game, much the same way as he avoided Nick Foles after the Bucs were defeated by the Chicago Bears earlier this season. He did congratulate Drew Brees following the two losses to the Saints, but that could be just one hall of famer paying his respects to another … Brady has thrown nine interceptions in 11 games, which means that aside from the 11 he threw in 2018, he's now been picked off as many times as he has been in a season since 2013. “Other than the deep ball, I think he's getting confused a few
We can be as good as we want to be, honestly. We've got it all in front of us. Everything is there for us to take.
times with coverage that might be causing some inaccurate balls,” said coach Bruce Arians. “We're not missing the deep ball at all in practice, that's for sure. It's just a matter on Sundays of hitting them.” … Tampa has lost two of its last three heading into next Sunday's game against the Kansas City Chiefs. In other words, the Bucs are headed in the wrong direction with a third of the season left. The pressure is mounting for a team that's built to win — now. “I think it's just a matter of preaching every week that every game is a must-win at this point in time,” Arians said Tuesday. “We put ourselves in a really good position to make the playoffs, and each and every week now, they just get ramped up more and more.”
HALL OF A LIST: Among the 25 semifinalists, from an original list of 130 nominees, for the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Class of 2021 are four first-year eligible players: DE Jared Allen, WR Calvin Johnson, QB Peyton Manning and CB/S Charles Woodson. The Class of 2021 will be announced during Super Bowl week in Tampa.
IN OTHER NEWS: The Dallas Cowboys cancelled practice Tuesday after strength and conditioning co-ordinator Markus Paul experienced a “NON-COVID related emergency” at the team facility. The 54-year old Paul was taken to hospital for further tests. A former Syracuse Orangemen who played 70 games for the Bears and one for the Bucs between 1989-93, Paul joined the Cowboys organization in 2018 … According to official data released Tuesday by Nielsen, Sunday night's Chiefs-raiders game had a total audience delivery of 20.2 million viewers, making it the most-watched prime time show since the NFL kickoff game on Sept. 10
EXTRA POINTS: The Browns placed DE Joe Jackson on the reserve/covid-19 list, while DE Myles Garrett will also miss his second consecutive game when Cleveland faces the Jaguars on Sunday … Cowboys LB Luke Gifford has been suspended two games for testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs.