5 paths Bears can take with the No. 9 pick in the 2024 NFL draft originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago The NFL draft is just over three weeks away and the team’s decision with the No. 1 overall pick seems like a foregone conclusion already. That’s not the case with the team’s No. 9 pick, however. The Bears have …

The Oregon Ducks are seeing a drastic change in their coaching staff just as the spring football season gets set to resume, with running backs coach Carlos Locklyn leaving Eugene for another job. Locklyn will be accepting a position with the Ohio State Buckeyes to become the new running backs coach, according to a source with knowledge of the situation. …

How NFL experts predict 49ers will use No. 31 draft pick originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area With the 2024 NFL Draft now just weeks away, the 49ers have a flurry of important decisions to make to bolster their roster for the upcoming season. San Francisco owns 10 total picks in this month’s draft, which includes a fourth-round pick …

The Big 12-bound Colorado Buffaloes aren’t done yet with the Pac-12 Network. As announced Monday, CU’s spring football game on April 27 will be televised on the Pac-12 Network, an entity that could very well cease to exist this summer. The Buffs, guided by head coach Deion Sanders, landed ESPN last year. This year, however, ESPN is focusing its resources …

Minnesota Wild forward Ryan Hartman was suspended for three games for throwing his stick toward officials after Saturday’s 2-1 overtime loss to the visiting Vegas Golden Knights. The NHL’s Department of Player Safety revealed the ruling Monday after a phone hearing with Hartman to discuss his unsportsmanlike conduct. Hartman, 29, apparently was upset that Vegas defenseman Noah Hanifin was not …

Former NFL player Vontae Davis found dead in Florida home originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area Former Miami Dolphin and NFL star Vontae Davis was found dead inside a Southwest Ranches mansion on Monday, authorities said. Davie Police, which handles calls in Southwest Ranches, confirmed the body of the 35-year-old former NFL star was found in a home in …

In this April 30, 2016, file photo, then Oregon Ducks offensive coordinator Matt Lubick watches before the start of the game at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Oregon. Mandatory Credit: Scott Olmos-USA TODAY Sports Matt Lubick started his cancer fight with a marathon. The longtime football coach walked the full 26 miles of a marathon in the hospital on the first …

Jerry Rice didn’t have to think too hard when asked about which defensive back presented the toughest matchup for him during his Hall of Fame career. “Deion Sanders,” Rice said promptly after Keyshawn Johnson posed the question on his podcast “All Facts No Brakes.” “The battles that we had back in the day, even when he was with Atlanta and …

The Philadelphia Eagles weren’t going to let Reed Blankenship enter the final year of his contract with an uncertain future, announcing a one-year contract extension with the starting safety that will keep him with the team until the 2025 season.  Blankenship will make $3.935 million in fully guaranteed money over the next two years, per NFL Network, a massive pay …

Ohio State is expected to hire Oregon assistant Carlos Locklyn as its next running backs coach, The Dispatch has learned. Locklyn will replace Tony Alford, a longtime assistant who left for the same role at Michigan last month. As the running backs coach at Oregon for the last two seasons, Locklyn was involved with some of the most efficient rushing …

The Falcons cut receiver Jared Bernhardt from reserve/retired on Monday. They previously had placed him on the list May 22. Bernhardt, a former lacrosse player, made the team after a strong preseason. He caught five passes for 102 yards, including a game-winning touchdown against the Lions. He played nine snaps in two regular-season games but had no stats. The Falcons …

Riley Wormley is a 5-foot-9, 170-pound running back from Southlake Carroll High School in Texas. He committed to USC football over the weekend. He held scholarship offers from over 20 schools, including Texas, Purdue, Oregon, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Arkansas, Baylor, SMU, Texas Tech, Arizona State, Ole Miss, and TCU. It was at TCU where Wormley had established a relationship with …

Two-time Pro Bowl cornerback Vontae Davis has died aged 35. Davis, who played for Miami Dolphins, Indianapolis Colts and Buffalo Bills, was found dead at his grandmother’s house in Southwest Ranches, Florida. The police report confirmed no foul play was involved and the investigation was still open. Davis, who played in back-to-back Pro Bowls in 2014 and 2015, retired mid-match …

Ohio State football has a new running backs coach. Sources tell The Dispatch that former Oregon running backs coach Carlos Locklyn is expected to replace Tony Alford on Ryan Day’s staff. Locklyn spent his past two seasons with the Ducks after one season at Western Kentucky in 2021 in the same role. Alford left Ohio State to take the running …

Devin McCourty reveals how he wants Patriots to approach 2024 NFL Draft originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston The New England Patriots used their first-, second- and third-round picks in the 2023 NFL Draft on defensive players. Former Patriots safety and three-time Super Bowl champion Devin McCourty hopes the franchise takes the opposite approach to the 2024 NFL Draft later …