Vikings’ Sherels sidelined
Minnesota Vikings punt returner Marcus Sherels has been downgraded to out for the game against Jacksonville on Sunday.
Sherels was initially designated as questionable Friday with a rib injury. He has missed four games with injuries, taking one of the team’s biggest special teams threats away But the Vikings (6-6) announced Saturday that Sherels would not be able to play in Jacksonville.
Adam Thielen filled in for Sherels at punt returner against Dallas and had a costly fumble deep in Vikings territory that led to a Cowboys touchdown.
Falcons WR Sanu out against Rams: The Atlanta Falcons will be without receiver Mohamed Sanu for Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Rams because of a groin injury.
Sanu was hurt in last week’s loss to Kansas City. He’s second on Atlanta with 49 catches for 521 yards and three touchdowns.
Jaguars put Thomas, Odrick on IR: The Jaguars placed tight end Julius Thomas and defensive end Jared Odrick on injured reserve, ending their seasons.
Thomas missed the past two games with a back injury.
He finishes the season with 30 catches for 281 yards and four touchdowns.
Odrick was inactive the past two games with a shoulder injury. He also missed time with elbow, quadriceps and ankle injuries this season, the first games he’s missed since 2010.
Cowboys returner Whitehead out: Cowboys receiver and returner Lucky Whitehead won’t play against the New York Giants on Sunday night for an unspecified violation of team rules.
Whitehead has been the primary returner on punts and kickoffs, averaging 8.8 yards on 19 punt returns and 23.8 yards on 10 kickoff returns.
NORTHERN EXPOSURE
The Detroit express keeps rolling on and before the Lions (8-4) take on their obstacle-laden final three games, they get a chance to blow out the Chicago Bears and rest some starters. After Chicago, the Lions have the New York Giants (8-4), Dallas Cowboys (11-1) and Packers (6-6). As hot as the Lions are, this would be the perfect week to jump all over the Bears early and cruise into the fourth quarter with a huge lead. The last thing they need is a starter getting hurt in a meaningless quarter of football. The Lions have won six of the last seven meetings, but they laid a 17-14 egg in Chicago on Oct. 2, suffering their worst loss of the season. A year ago at Ford Field, the Lions squeaked out a 37-34 overtime victory. The Bears (3-9) are coming off a 26-6 victory over the San Francisco 49ers, which might not be saying a whole lot, but they did show some spunk on offense behind rookie Jordan Howard’s 117 yards rushing and three touchdowns. Howard is averaging 4.9 yards per carry. The Vikings (6-6) catch a break with a warm-weather game against a withering Jacksonville Jaguars team, losers of seven straight. The Vikings have scored 114 points over their last seven games (16.3), during which they’ve gone 1-6.
GAME OF THE WEEK
Dallas Cowboys (11-1) at New York Giants (8-4) When: Key injuries:
7:30 p.m. Sunday (NBC).
Cowboys — CB Morris Claiborne (groin), T Chaz Green (back) and S J.J. Wilcox (thigh) are out; S Barry Church (forearm), DE Jack Crawford (foot), LB Justin Durant (hamstring), DE Demarcus Lawrence (back), CB Orlando Scandrick (foot, not injury related) and T Tyron Smith (back) are questionable. Giants — S Nat Berhe (concussion), LB Mark Herzlich (concussion) and DE Jason Pierre-Paul (core muscle) are out; DT Johnathan Hankins (quadriceps), WR Dwayne Harris (ankle), DE Owamagbe Odighizuwa (knee), G Justin Pugh (knee) and CB Coty Sensabaugh (ribs) are questionable.
Rookie running back Ezekiel Elliott leads the NFL with 1,285 rushing yards and ranks second in the league with 12 rushing TDs.
The Giants have won the last two. Giants defensive end Olivier Vernon has at least one sack in five straight games and two or more in his last two games.
The Giants handed the Cowboys their only loss way back in Week 1. Dallas was still making the transition from Tony Romo to rookie Dak Prescott and is a better team now. Both teams are winning with offense, but the Cowboys are dominating teams with theirs. They’re averaging 395.7 yards per game and they haven’t even had receiver Dez Bryant for a full season. Cole Beasley leads them in receiving with 60 catches for 670 yards and five touchdowns. No one has been able to rattle Prescott. In his last five games he has not thrown an interception and has a 123.2 rating. The Giants are improved on defense. They rank fifth in rushing defense and third in rushing average. Their pass defense is suspect, but their best bet is to try to shut down Elliott with eight in the box. In the opener, they held him to 51 yards on 20 carries with a long run of 8. Giants quarterback Eli Manning is hot at home with nine touchdowns and one interception in his last five games at MetLife. But he also has thrown eight of his 12 interceptions this season there.
Player to watch:
Recent history: Key statistic:
Bottom line: BY THE NUMBERS Packers 26 0 14 7 46.7
NFC North 8 1 7-17 5
Turnovers the Detroit Lions have committed, tied for fewest in the NFL. 300-yard passing performances by Minnesota’s quarterbacks. Combined record on the road of the division’s four teams. Consecutive games the Vikings have played without WR Stefon Diggs catching a touchdown pass. Times Lions QB Matthew Stafford has fumbled. He had fumbled 24 times over the previous three seasons.
2
Offense’s 10-play drives, third-most in the NFL. Two-point conversions against the defense on four opponent tries. Consecutive December home games quarterback Aaron Rodgers has won. Consecutive games the team has gone without forcing a fumble. Percent the offense is converting fourth downs (7 of 15).
NFL 51.5 Minus-127 1 8
Jacksonville QB Blake Bortles’ third-down passer rating, lowest in the NFL. Net point differential of the four teams in the AFC South. Teams that are undefeated at home (Seattle). Field goals of 50 or more yards by Baltimore kicker Justin Tucker this season, tied for second-most in NFL history. Yards per carry Los Angeles Rams running back Todd Gurley is averaging.
3.2