POSTCRESCENT.COM FRIDAY, MAY 10, 2024 5B Smarter. Faster. More Colorful. WEATHER OPINION TRAVEL TECH LIFE MONEY SPORTS NEWS When it comes to the game, award-winning sports columnist Christine Brennan pulls no punches. Get beyond the stats and scores and get to the heart of the matter.
usatoday.com/christinebrennan YOU CAN COUNT ON HER TO TELL IT LIKE IT IS. 3-4. 2023 championship game re- matches. While hosting their AFC title game in January, the Ravens came up short against the eventual champion Chiefs. Beating them at Arrowhead this year make players whole though it might be a little sweeter if they get their shot in Week 1.
Meanwhile, the Lions are returning to the scene of the 2023 NFC champion- ship game crime meaning Sta- dium, where Detroit coughed up a 17-point second-half lead to the Niners. 5. Bills at Houston Tex- ans, can you Diggs it? The trade of Pro Bowl WR Stefon Diggs from to Houston was the most notable of the Certainly would have been more interesting if Diggs, who typically seemed to be trail- ing a degree of smoke in Western New York, was slated to return to Orchard Park and face Bills But no matter where staged, nothing wrong with an added layer of intrigue to a potential AFC title-round preview. 6. Houston Texans at Dallas Cow- boys.
Could be second best in 2024? possi- ble, even if the Cowboys have won the Lone Star battle in four of its previous iterations. But this could be quite an opportunity for Houston and QB C.J. Stroud to make their case, particularly given the likelihood this will be decided in front of a national television audi- ence. Sidebar: It should also mark the head-to-head meeting between Diggs and his brother, Cowboys Pro Bowl CB Trevon Diggs, whose torn ACL prevented them from lining up in lo last December. 7.
Las Vegas Raiders at New Or- leans Saints, Carr collision. Though the regime that unceremoni- ously kicked the Silver and all- time leading passer to the curb at the end of the 2022 season has largely been swept out, you know this going to have meaning for Saints QB Derek Carr. In 2021, he pledged, am a Raider for my entire and said quit playing football rather than play for another NFL franchise. Funny how quickly things can change in this league. 8.
Denver Broncos at New York Jets, Hackett Bowl II. You might (or might not) recall the NYJ beat the Broncos 31-21 in Denver last season, getting a small measure re- venge for ex-Broncs HC Nathaniel Hack- ett, currently New coor- dinator. You might (or might not) recall that Jets QB Aaron Rodgers clapped back at current Denver HC Sean Payton after he panned the tenure of his prede- cessor, Hackett, in an exclusive to USA TODAY Sports in 2023. thought it was way out of line, inappropriate, and I think (Payton) needs to keep my name out of his Rodgers said during a training camp interview with NFL Network last year. Injured Rodgers obviously missed last date with Denver, so should be interesting to see how much still holding on to that bile.
8a. Denver Broncos at New Or- leans Saints, Payton comes dome. acknowledge this without over- hyping it. But it will be game at the Superdome since he as coach of the Saints more than two years ago. Hard to believe that the greatest coach in New Orleans history will receive anything other than a warm welcome even if neither the Saints nor Broncos have yet to much since he switched sidelines after being last year.
9. Los Angeles Rams at Detroit Li- ons, Bowl III. Yes, LA QB Matthew has now returned to Motown the Rams unexpectedly encountering the team he led for a dozen seasons in January and losing a 24-23 wild-card round thriller to the Lions. Maybe this season, Staf- ford he beat Detroit in Hollywood in 2021 can enjoy a more laid-back visit to Ford Field in the rubber game given his service to the Lions, possession of his own Super Bowl ring and likelihood his team will again be the underdog against the reigning NFC North champs, who seem closer than ever to their ever Lombardi Trophy. 10.
Philadelphia Eagles at New York Giants, return. Pro Bowl RB Saquon Barkley not only bolted Big Blue after six turbulent years, he took the short trip down Inter- state-95 to join the most bitter rivals. His return to MetLife Stadium should be one of the more highly antici- pated ones this fall, especially since Barkley averaged nearly 100 yards and a TD in his nine regular-season games against Philly. 11. Minnesota Vikings at Green Bay Packers, return (the oth- er one).
Sorry, TV networks, but the second-half surge in 2023 precluded a 2024 visit from Rodgers. However free agency precipitated perhaps the next- best thing after a March whirlwind of roughly 24 hours when Green Bay signed RB Josh Jacobs, then cut ties with Aaron Jones, a beloved mainstay for seven seasons, before he turned around and joined the NFC North rival Vikings for the 2024 campaign. be a surprise to see more than a few sombreros and wraparound shades at Lambeau Field Jones likely to sport his signature garb in purple and gold, too whenever he comes back. 12. Atlanta Falcons at Minnesota Vikings, Captain return? A month ago, this projected as one of the better homecoming sub- plots QB Kirk Cousins, after a half- dozen years as the starter, head- ing back to U.S.
Bank Stadium with his Falcons in tow. It will likely still play out that way, though shocking de- cision to draft QB Michael Penix Jr. eighth overall could drastically alter the look of his new team at any point a reality Minnesota is already embracing as veteran QB Sam Darnold and rounder J.J. McCarthy vie to replace Cousins themselves. 13.
Pittsburgh Steelers at Denver Broncos, return? No guarantee that Russell Wilson will still be in QB1 to use HC Mike metaphor, whenever these teams meet. But whether he or Justin Fields is be- hind center, you know Wilson will have this matchup circled given his abortive stint in the Rocky Mountains, which may ultimately represent lasting dam- age to his legacy especially after he was benched and brusquely cast aside by Payton in March. 14. Washington Commanders at Dallas Cowboys, Quinn comes back. The NFC East could be extra spicy in 2024.
These once bitter enemies have a chance to revive a fairly dormant rivalry after former Dallas DC Dan Quinn took the head job in D.C. then proceeded to poach a good chunk of the roster DE Dorance Armstrong, Tyler Biadasz, DE Dante Fowler CB Noah Igbinoghene and DC Joe Whitt Jr. all fol- lowing him east from North Texas. The currently cap-strapped division cham- pions still seem to have recovered from the defections. 14a.
Washington Commanders at Arizona Cardinals, comes back. new coordinator, Kingsbury, gets to go home, too well, not to that sweet desert bachelor pad he had and face a Cards organiza- tion that him in 2023 less than a year after signing him to a contract ex- tension through the 2027 campaign. 15. Chicago Bears at Washington Commanders, Caleb vs. Jayden.
The top two picks of the 2024 draft, Bears QB Caleb Williams and Com- manders QB Jayden Daniels, respec- tively, never met on a college But they will almost certainly gear up this season, neither likely to wait to enter the starting lineup nor wait long to stake an early claim as the best rookie passer to enter the league this year. And re- member, though Stroud was the nitely superior player in 2023, he lost his one vs. two matchup with the Carolina Bryce Young, the No. 1 selec- tion a year ago. 15a.
Caleb Williams vs. the next-gen QBs. Daniels is far from the only fellow up- and-comer Williams will see as a rookie. set to meet fellow No. 1 picks Young, Kyler Murray (2019), and Trevor Lawrence (2021); see Daniels and po- tentially other 2024 Round 1 QBs Drake Maye and McCarthy; play 2023 round QBs Stroud and Anthony Rich- ardson; and, tangle with blos- soming Packers star Jordan Love, who might have a major hand in shaping Wil- legacy in the Windy City for good bad.
NFL Continued from Page 1B Eagles running back Saquon Barkley talks with reporters after signing with the team. KYLE TODAY SPORTS FILE.
