Matt Rhule was the first NFL head coach to receive a pink slip in 2022, as the Panthers’ 1-4 start doomed the Carolina Panthers’ head coach. Overall, his record was 11-27, and his team went 1-27 when permitting at least 17 points, including 25 straight losses. Rhule had been given a seven-year, $62 million deal, but he didn’t even last three years into the deal, so the team still owes him more than $40 million. Defensive pass game coordinator Steve Wilks, who coached the Arizona Cardinals to a 3-13 record back in 2018 in his only season as an NFL head coach, will take the head job on an interim basis. The real problem for Rhule had to do with a lack of offensive execution. Teddy Bridgewater, Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield all have taken the field as the starting quarterback, but the team has failed to score on a consistent basis with any of them. Check out other news items from the NFL that could influence your sports betting for the coming weekend.
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Speaking of Mayfield, the star-crossed quarterback suffered another setback in the team’s Week 5 loss to San Francisco, as he will miss at least a couple of weeks with a high ankle sprain. He injured his ankle late in the first half but played for the majority of the second half. After the game, though, he had a walking boot on his left foot for his press conference. P.J. Walker is set to start on Sunday against the Los Angeles Rams. Mayfield’s time may have been running out anyway, though, as Mayfield’s 16.5 Total QBR from the loss to the 49ers is the second lowest for any quarterback this season. Walker is the only healthy signal-caller on the Carolina roster, with Sam Darnold still on injured reserve after spraining his ankle in late August.
If you were watching the fourth quarter of the Tampa Bay-Atlanta game on Sunday, then you saw the Falcons start to engineer another comeback, turning a 21-0 deficit after three quarters into a 21-15 nailbiter. Falcons defensive lineman Grady Jarrett appeared to have sacked Tom Brady on third down to force a punt and put the ball back in the hands of Marcus Mariota and the offense. However, referee Jerome Boger threw a flag on the play, saying that Jarrett had “unnecessarily” thrown Brady to the ground, and the call was roughing the passer. Jarrett did not make himself available to the press for the first time in his career, and coach Arthur Smith would not address the topic in a postgame interview either. However, a look at the tape seems to show Jarrett grabbing Brady around the waist and hips, turning to bring him to the ground and even avoiding placing his entire weight on the Buccaneers’ quarterback. In the wake of the injuries to Tua Tagovailoa, it appears clear that NFL officials are tightening up on contact, but it is difficult for defensive linemen to know how they are supposed to sack opposing quarterbacks with this sort of enforcement going on.
Are you wondering what sparked the New York Jets to roll to a 40-17 spanking of the Miami Dolphins on Sunday. Part of the motivation appeared when Jets defensive tackle Quinnen Williams sent Miami wide receiver Tyreek Hill to the ground hard with a big stiff-arm during a fumble return. During the off-season, the Jets had attempted to get Hill in a trade from the Kansas City Chiefs, but Hill had made some comments about the team that several players found “disrespectful.” The Jets held Hill to just 47 receiving yards on seven catches, although the fact that the Dolphins had to turn to third-string quarterback Skylar Thompson after Teddy Bridgewater was injured on the first play of the game more than likely played at least as significant a role as the Jets’ secondary. Zach Wilson had a big day leading the Jets’ offense, so it looks like the AFC East has four competitive teams this year after all.
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