The NFL Draft Combine begins next week, the official start of a familiar process that concludes in late April with the actual selections. There is one thing missing this year, however. Collegiate underclassmen — at least in the numbers we’ve seen in past drafts. A player can petition the NFL for early entry — or “special eligibility” — once he …

Former UCLA special teams player Matthew Slater announced his retirement from the NFL on Tuesday after 16 seasons with the New England Patriots. (Adam Hunger / Associated Press) Matthew Slater was a game changer in the NFL. He could be one in retirement as well. The former Servite and UCLA standout announced his retirement Tuesday after 16 seasons, all with …

Feb. 20—With a majority of starters returning on both sides of the ball, Ohio State is expected to be good at football this fall. How good remains to be seen, but at least one advanced metric is high on the Buckeyes. Ohio State is No. 2 in the first release of SP+ rankings for 2024, trailing Georgia. Hosted by ESPN, …

Is Matthew Slater a Hall of Famer? Ex-Patriot has one powerful advocate originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston Matthew Slater retired Tuesday as arguably the greatest player ever at his position. Will that be enough to earn him a spot in the Pro Football Hall of Fame? The former New England Patriots special teamer boasts an impressive resume, with 10 …

Former Taft High School star Adolphus Washington Adolphus Washington, who starred at Taft High School and for the Ohio State Buckeyes before playing defensive line in the NFL for the Buffalo Bills and the Cincinnati Bengals, is the new defensive line coach at Colerain High School. Washington, 29, co-founded Trenches Academy. He is scheduled to be inducted later this year …

NFL expert views Patriots as ‘best team fit’ for these two free agents originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston NFL free agency is not far away. The legal tampering period begins March 11, with the free agent market officially opening two days later. The New England Patriots figure to be an active team in free agency thanks to their $69.5 …

The College Football Playoff ushered in another new era Tuesday, as the management committee voted to approve a new 5+7 model that decreases the number of automatic conference champion qualifiers by one and adds an extra at-large bid for the rest of the field. This change is in response to the Pac-12’s effective dissolution, which essentially decreased the number of …

AFC EAST New England Patriots – Remaking the offensive personnel New England may only have two starting-caliber players at the offensive fantasy positions under contract for the 2024 season: running back Rhamondre Stevenson and slot receiver DeMario “Pop” Douglas. I like both guys for what they are — Douglas impressed me as a man-coverage beater from the inside — but …

When it comes to the 2024 NFL draft, this is a group of very talented prospects. This group has an elite top tier and a massive second tier or prospects which means the difference between pick No. 25 and pick No. 50 isn’t going to be that different. The NFL scouting combine is almost upon us and that along with …

49ers won’t use franchise tag; Jennings RFA tender decision looms originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area Beginning on Tuesday until March 5, each NFL team is allowed to use its franchise tag to hold contractual control over their top free agent on a one-year deal. Again, the 49ers will sit this one out. They do not have anyone who …

The Colorado Buffaloes and head coach Deion Sanders are set to host top-ranked class of 2025 safety Faheem Delane on a recruiting visit this spring, per 247Sports. The five-star recruit from Olney, Maryland announced an offer from CU on Friday and has another spring visit scheduled with Texas. Listed at 6-foot-2 and 195 pounds, Delane is the No. 1 safety …

Joe Philbin is heading back to the NFL. The longtime offensive line coach and one-time Dolphins head coach is joining the Raiders as senior offensive assistant, according to NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport. Philbin, 62, spent the 2023 season as an offensive analyst with Ohio State. From 2020-2022, he was the Cowboys’ offensive line coach, once again working under Mike McCarthy. …

USATSI Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer has hired Nick Sheridan to serve as offensive coordinator and JaMarcus Shephard as assistant head coach and co-offensive coordinator, the school announced Tuesday. Both worked under DeBoer at Washington, helping the Huskies field one of the nation’s most prolific offenses over the past two seasons. Sheridan and Shephard were long expected to follow DeBoer to …

NFL mock draft: How experts predict 49ers will use No. 31 pick originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area The 49ers own a first-round pick for the first time since 2021, and opinions abound on how they should use their No. 31 overall selection in the upcoming 2024 NFL Draft. While San Francisco’s Super Bowl LVIII loss to the Kansas …

Tennessee football will pay new running backs coach De’Rail Sims a base salary of $350,000 plus bonuses depending on team success in the 2024 season to begin a two-year contract. On Tuesday, UT confirmed Sims’ hiring and released his salary details to Knox News in a memorandum of understanding. Sims also gets a $35,000 moving stipend and $600 in monthly …