Tag: NFL

Oakland Raiders podcast with Joe Hawkes: Can Raiders break the losing spell as the enter LA with a four-game losing streak?

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On the Raiders podcast with J. Hawkes:

#1 Coming off the loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars and playing their final game in Oakland in franchise history going forward with just two games left on the road, can the Raiders regroup?

#2 Raiders quarterback Derek Carr was miserably booed after the game against Jacksonville last Sunday. Would you say the main reason being lack of effort or Raiders fans just expected a better effort considering it’s the last game of the season?

#3 Talk about the huge defensive let down by the Raiders in that four quarter allowing the Jaguars to score two touchdowns to clinch the game.

#4  Sunday’s Raiders game was that the Raiders didn’t get any offense going in the fourth quarter and Carr just couldn’t get the Raiders on the scoreboard.

#5 The Raiders will play the Chargers in Los Angeles Sunday at 1 pm. Just for pride’s sake, do the Raiders have a chance to snap this current four-game losing streak?

Joe Hawkes is a Raiders analyst, join Jeremy Kahn for exclusive coverage this Sunday. All on http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco 49ers podcast with Joe Lami: Will loss to the Falcons be something Niners can shake off?

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On the 49ers podcast with Joe:

#1 After a close loss to the Atlanta Falcons, will there be much recovery for the 49ers coming off the loss mentally and physically?

#2 Close contest as Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan had himself an afternoon throwing against the 49ers defense throwing 25 for 39 for 210 yards but the key play for Ryan was his five-yard pass to Julio Jones for the gamer.

#3 Injuries are insurmountable against the 49ers, but cornerback Richard Sherman (hamstring) and nickle corner K’Waun Williams (concussion) are both scheduled to return to practice after they sat on the sidelines last Sunday.

#4 With defensive end Dee Ford (hamstring) out for the rest of the season, the 49ers were trying to acquire pass rusher Terrell Suggs, a seven-time Pro Bowler. Suggs was snapped up by the Kansas City Chiefs.

#5 The 49ers have four players going to the Pro Bowl in edge rusher Nick Bosa, Sherman, tight end George Kittle, and fullback Kyle Juszczyk.

Joe Lami does the 49ers podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco 49ers preview: Rams Seek Revenge While Niners Need to Get On Track

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file photo from 49erswebzone.com: 49ers corner Richard Sherman (left) and tight end George Kittle (right) pose for a selfie with fans

By: Joe Lami

SANTA CLARA — The Niners stumbled in a trap game, yet still, control their own destiny to the NFC one-seed. If they win out, they take the top seed. A loss to the Rams before the NFC West winner-take-all matchup with the Seahawks would give home-field to either Green Bay or New Orleans. Even with a loss this week, San Francisco would win the NFC West with a win in Seattle, thanks to a tiebreaker.

The importance of retaining the #1 seed is crucial for San Francisco. Three of the five 49ers’ Super Bowl victories came when they were the top-seed in the conference.

The good news for San Francisco is they are beginning to get healthier. Both Richard Sherman and K’Waun Williams are set to return this Sunday after missing Sunday’s loss. The return of Sherman will be important to get him game time before next weekend’s gauntlet in Seattle. Guard, Mike Person is listed as questionable, fighting a neck injury. Jaquiski Tart (broken ribs) and Dee Ford (quad, hamstring) are listed as out.

The Niners will use this matchup against the Rams to get back on track. San Francisco’s won five of their last eight games against LA, including this year’s week four 20-7 win.

In that win, San Francisco’s defense completely shut down Jared Goff, allowing only 78 passing yards on 24 attempts. The Niners shutout the Rams on third-down, holding them to 0-for-9. The offense was just okay, as Garoppolo threw for 243 yards, 101 of them were caught by George Kittle, of course. Even though Jimmy didn’t throw a TD, he rushed one in San Francisco’s second touchdown of the afternoon.

The Rams have been Jekyll and Hyde this season, looking great at times, beating the Seahawks and Saints, but then getting boat raced by the Cowboys.

Kyle Shanahan mentioned last week about preparing for Atlanta’s Super Bowl. His team didn’t answer, and they’ll face another desperate team this week. LA’s playoff hopes have pretty much gone up in smoke, as they need to win out and pray for a miracle that Minnesota doesn’t beat the Packers or Bears. They hold the final tiebreaker over the Vikings.

His team will need to be ready for everything that the Rams will bring. Todd Gurley has been much more active these last three weeks, nearly totaling 200 yards and three touchdowns. He was inactive when the Niners completely shut down the Rams in week six, expect him to get a lot of carries on Saturday.

Jared Goff is currently fourth in the NFL in passing yards, just shy of 4,000. His 17-15 TD to INT ratio is shocking, however, and can be taken advantage of a hungry 49ers’ defense.

The Niners offense fell back to earth last week, scoring just 22 points. After the best month of his career, Garoppolo finished with 200 yards and a touchdown for a 90.3 rating, the lowest in the last five games. It was also the second-lowest in the last eight weeks. TLDR, Garoppolo has been one of the best QBs in the second half of the season.

If the Niners can contain Gurley, and get to Goff, like they did four times already this year, they should be able to slow down LA’s offense. Meanwhile, their defense is susceptible to the run. Breida only had four carries last week, while Raheem Mostert had 14. Mostert’s been excellent these past few weeks, giving the Niners a multi-headed monster in the backfield.

Raiders head down south for final matchup with the Chargers this year

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Photo credit: @Raiders

By Joe Hawkes
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND — With their final regular-season home game of 2019 in their rear view mirror, the Raiders will travel south to Los Angeles to face the Chargers in an AFC West battle at ROKiT Field at Dignity Health Sports Park in Week 16. Sunday’s game marks the final game between the two clubs this season, with the Raiders winning the first meeting, 26-24, back in Week 10 at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. The win for the Raiders gave the Silver and Black a 63-54-2 advantage over the Chargers in the all-time series.

Kickoff for Sunday’s game is set for 1:05 p.m. PT with Greg Gumbel and Trent Green on the call, and Melanie Collins reporting from the sidelines.

In Week 15, the Raiders snatched defeat from the clutches of victory, losing to the hapless Jacksonville Jaguars 20-16 in the final home game for the Silver and Black in Oakland to fall to 6-8 on the year. The Raiders held a 16-6 lead in the fourth quarter, before the Jaguars scored 14 unanswered points thanks to two touchdowns from rookie quarterback Gardner Minshew to wide receiver Chris Conley to steal the victory from Oakland.

For Oakland, tight end Darren Waller became just the second tight end in franchise history with 1,000 receiving yards in a single season, joining TE Todd Christensen (1983-84, 1986). In the contest, Waller recorded eight catches for 122 yards, tying a club record among tight ends for most 100-yard receiving games (four).

Rookie running back Josh Jacobs rushed for 89 yards on 24 carries, giving him 1,150 rushing yards on the season. Jacobs has the sixth-best rushing season in franchise history, and is the only rookie in team history to rush for 1,000 yards in a single season.

Defensively, rookie defensive end Maxx Crosby continues be an anchor on the defensive line for Oakland, recording a sack giving him 8.5 for the season. Crosby, who ranks third among rookies in sacks behind 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa (9.0) and Jaguars defensive end Josh Allen (10.0), needs just three more sacks in the final two games to move past defensive end Greg Townsend’s club record 10.5 sacks established in 1983.

The Chargers are coming off a game that they would like to forget, a 39-10 beating at the hands of the Minnesota Vikings at home in Week 15 to fall to 5-9 on the year.

Los Angeles shot themselves in the foot, committing seven turnovers in the game, four coming from quarterback Philip Rivers. Rivers, who threw for 307 yards on 28-of-39 passing and one touchdown, also threw three interceptions and one lost fumble.

Not to be outdone by Rivers, running back Melvin Gordon had a turnover filled day against the Vikings, lost two fumbles after rushing for just 28 yards on seven carries.

Following Sunday’s game, the Raiders will finish their 2019 season in the Mile High City where they will take on the Denver Broncos.

The Chargers will travel to Kansas City to face the Chiefs to conclude their season.

San Francisco 49ers podcast with David Zizmor: Will the 49ers’ 7-point loss burn into their psyche going forward?

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On the 49ers podcast with David:

#1 The 49ers clinched a playoff spot Sunday but not before they lost to the Atlanta Falcons 29-22. Is this a loss that should concern the 49ers?

#2 There’s a breakdown in the game plan that allowed Atlanta to get back into the game and all the Falcons’ Julio Jones had to do was score on a five-yard pass to end it and give the 49ers their third loss of 2019.

David Zizmor does the 49ers podcasts each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco 49ers game report: Ryan’s five-yard pass to Jones gets Falcons by 49ers 29-22

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photo from sfgate.com: Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones (11) sits next to the goal line after scoring against the San Francisco 49ers during the second half of an NFL football game in Santa Clara, Calif., Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019.

By Barbara Mason

On Sunday afternoon, the San Francisco Forty Niners took on the Atlanta Falcons at Levi Stadium. While most looked at this game as a walkover, we do have to remember that midseason the Falcons beat the New Orleans Saints. This is a league of “any given Sundays” and no team can be taken for granted.

Jimmy Garoppolo has been exceptional as has been the San Francisco defense so signs point to their 14th win of the season. A win today will mean a playoff berth for the team. This Sunday will mark the first time in nearly three years that quarterback Matt Ryan and Coach Kyle Shanahan have been on the same field. Shanahan and Ryan had a dream season prior to the devastating loss to the Patriots in Super Bowl LI. Atlanta is a 10 1/2 point underdog

The first quarter was a defensive effort by both teams. Matt Ryan would finish the quarter with 15 yards and Garoppolo would finish with 26 yards. The quarter would end with neither team finding the end zone although San Francisco was threatening deep in Atlanta territory.

The 49ers would start the second quarter with a Mostert rush for two yards and the first touchdown of the game giving San Francisco a 7-0 lead.. When it looked like the 49ers were taking control of the game, Matt Ryan would find Julio Jones for 5 yards and the touchdown to tie up the game at 7.

The Falcons were not finished. On their next drive Atlanta settled for a 43 yard Younghoe Koo field goal and the 10-3 lead. San Francisco would go to work with two minutes left in the half. Although unable to score the touchdown, San Francisco kicker Robbie Gould would kick a 22 yards field goal to tie up the game at the half 10-10.

Midway through the third quarter the teams remained tied at 10. That’s when it appeared that San Francisco was finally making their move. Robbie Gould kicked a 46 yard field goal taking a 13-10 lead. It was the fourth quarter that proved to be their undoing.

San Francisco scored a Garoppolo to Juszczyk touchdown from two yards out and the 49ers had their second score in a row for a 19-10 lead. Gould would miss the extra point. Atlanta answered and scored a touchdown with 5 minutes left. This game became very tight in the closing minutes 19-17. Robbie Gould would kick a successful 43 yard field goal to extend the 49ers lead 22-17. There was only 1:48 left on the clock.

When it looked like another San Francisco win, Matt Ryan would drive downfield and finish with a 5 yard pass Julio Jones for the go ahead touchdown 23-22. Their two point conversion attempt would fail. With seconds left on the clock a fumble return by the Falcons to score a touchdown gave them the win 29-22.

San Francisco had lost their third game of the season and dropped into a Wild Card spot in a real shocker. As I said “any given Sunday”!

That’s Amaury News and Commentary: Thanks for the Memories (A Poem for the Raiders)

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photo from sfgate.com: Oakland Raiders wide receiver Tyrell Williams is mobbed by fans after scoring a touchdown during the first half of an NFL football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Oakland, Calif., Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019.

By Amaury Pi-González

OAKLAND — Sunday, December 15,2019. A date which will live in infamy for Oakland Raiders fans. Raiders lost their last ever game at the Oakland Coliseum 20-16 to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Legendary comedian Bob Hope theme song for decades on radio and television shows and many trips to USO war zones from WWII. to Korea, Vietnam to some of the recent middle-eastern wars was titled “Thanks for the Memory”. It is easy to apply the same melody, but with these lyrics that I have composed solely for the occasion. For those of you that might not know the song, I suggest you listen to it first.

Thanks for the memories of hot dogs and tailgates, Cliff Branch, and the Raiderettes, we went from Oakland to LA, but we never forgot you yet. We thank you so much. Thanks for the memories of three great Super Bowls, two in Oakland and one down the road, we thank you so much. Gone are the Black and Silver at Oakland, pregame barbecue, beer, ribs and some dessert, now it is all in the desert so there they go no more film at 10 all. We thank you so much. Thanks for the memories of 1981, New Orleans and the Bowl, Raymond Chester and Jim Plunkett, we truly loved it all. We thank you so much. Gone is 880 and BART, and now they play in Vegas with Darts. Maybe the faithful will fly, an hour-and-a-half to just say “Hi.” We Thank you so much. Thank you for the memories, we finally said goodbye to Mount Davis and alike, we thank you so much.

Composer: Yours Truly.

Adios, Au Revoir, Sayonara, Auf Wiedersehen, Zay Gezunt, Goodbye Raiders.

Good riddance!

Amaury Pi-Gonzalez is the Spanish radio voice of Oakland A’s baseball and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Jaguars leave sour taste in Raiders’ mouth, close out the Coliseum with 20-16 win

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Photo credit: @Raiders

By Joe Hawkes
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND — After their offense was nonexistent for the first three quarters of the game and trailing 16-6 heading into the final frame, the Jacksonville Jaguars woke up in the fourth quarter, behind two touchdown passes from rookie quarterback Gardner Minshew to wide receiver Chris Conley to slip past the Raiders, 20-16 on Sunday afternoon in the final game at the Oakland-Alameda Coliseum for the Silver and Black.

With the win, the Jaguars (5-9) snapped their five-game losing streak and extended the Raiders’ losing streak to four games, dropping the Silver and Black’s record to 6-8. The Raiders entered the game on a three-game losing streak, in which they lost by an average of 21 points.

The Raiders are moving into a brand new home, Allegiant Stadium, in Las Vegas starting in the 2020 season. The Silver and Black’s $2 billion home is located right off the Vegas Strip and is expected to be one of the finest facilities in all of the NFL.

The Raiders weren’t able to give their loyal fans one more victory at their long-time home at 7000 Coliseum Way, a place that has seen some great football from 1966-1981 before moving to Los Angeles in 1982-1994, then returning to Oakland in 1995 until today, Dec. 15, 2019.

Oakland jumped on the Jaguars early, thanks to a 40-yard touchdown throw from Derek Carr to wide receiver Tyrell Williams that capped off a 7-play, 75-yard drive that to gave the Raiders a 7-0 lead in the first quarter. On their opening drive to start the game, Carr completed 3-of-3 passes for 59 yards and the touchdown.

The Raiders jumped out to a 16-3 lead and looked comfortable for most of the game, but saw its defense fall completely apart in the fourth quarter allowing Jacksonville to score 14 unanswered points in the final minutes to snatch the game.

Minshew, who completed 17-of-29 passes for 201 yards on the day, drove the Jaguars 79 yards to cut Oakland’s lead, 16-13, behind a 6-yard touchdown throw to Conley with 5:15 left in the fourth quarter.

Oakland tried to run the clock out and got a pair of first-downs on runs by running back Josh Jacobs and quarterback Derek Carr. But Carr was ruled out of bounds with 2:05 left in the fourth quarter as he tried to slide down inbound, sparing Jacksonville from using their final timeout.

Oakland then got a delay of game in the confusion and wide receiver Tyrell Williams dropped a third-down pass. Kicker Daniel Carlson then missed a 50-yard field goal only to get another chance after Parry Nickerson was called for running into the kicker.

Carlson missed again from 45 yards and the Jaguars took over at the 35 with 1:44 to go. Minshew moved them down the field and connected with Conley on the 4-yard score with 31 seconds left giving Jacksonville their first and only lead of the game, 20-16.

The Raiders drove the ball to the Jacksonville 40 yard line, but Carr’s desperation heave to the end zone in the closing seconds fall to the Coliseum turf.

Carr completed 22-of-36 passes for 267 yards and one touchdown, but was sacked three times by the Jaguars. Tight end Darren Waller finished with eight catches for 122 yards, but 109 yards came in the first half.

Oakland was dominant on offense, racking up 364 yards total, 27 first-downs, and controlled the game for 34 minutes. Defensively, Oakland limited Jacksonville to just 262 yards of total offense, 17 first-downs and limited the Jaguars to 26 minutes of ball control.

After the game, several Raiders, including Carr, walked to the Black Hole to thank the fans, many of whom booed Carr and the Raiders as the team exited the field for the final time.

It wasn’t the way that Raider Nation wanted to send out the Coliseum, on a day that was very emotional for many diehard Raiders fans. The sour taste that this loss leaves in the mouths of Raider Nation will take quite a while to wash out.

Up next for the Raiders: a trip to Carson to take on the Los Angeles Chargers next Sunday in Week 16.

For the Jaguars: a visit to Atlanta to face the Falcons.

San Francisco 49ers podcast with Joe Lami: 49ers looking to replace DJ Jones with Day as injuries pile up

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On the 49ers podcast with Joe:

#1 For the 49ers, injuries are a big part of life. Their latest is with nose tackle DJ Jones, who has an ankle injury that most likely will end his season.

#2 Defensive tackle Forest Buckner said that Jones is “irreplaceable”.

#3 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week. Garoppolo’s the first 49er to get the award in six seasons.

#4 The 49ers’ Sheldon Day, who has 228 snaps this season, could be the most likely choice to replace Jones.

#5 The 49ers host the Atlanta Falcons, who are in last place in the NFC South at 4-9.

Join Joe Lami each Friday for the 49ers podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

 

Could Niners Fall in Trap Game?

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Photo credit: 49ers.com

By Joe Lami

The Niners are coming out of a prizefight, and they’re beaten up like it too after last Sunday’s shootout with the Saints. The Niners’ defense will be without Richard Sherman (hamstring), D.J. Jones (ankle), Dee Ford (quad, hamstring), Jaquiski Tartt (ribs), and K’Waun Williams (concussion). Controlling their own destiny for the NFC one-seed, the banged-up Niners can’t afford to overlook the 4-8 Atlanta Falcons this Sunday.

And they shouldn’t, Kyle Shanahan will have the Niners prepared to face his old squad.

The Falcons might be 4-8, but they bring the seventh-best passing offense into Levi’s this Sunday.

Matt Ryan has been good, but not great this year, nothing like he was under Shanahan. He’s completing 66.7% of his passes for 22 TDs and 12 INTs for a 93.4 passer rating on the year. Meanwhile, Garoppolo’s completed 69.5% of his passes for 25 TDs and 11 INTs for a 103.9 rating.

Ryan has one of the most dangerous targets, with Julio Jones on the field. Jones was limited in practice earlier in the week, but returned to full practice on Friday, indicating he’s ready to go.

Jones enters Sunday seventh in the NFL with 1,016 receiving yards, and he becomes extra dangerous with how short-handed the secondary will be. Last week the 49ers surrendered 134 yards and a touchdown to Michael Thomas, Jones will attempt to do the same.

While the Falcons offense has been decent this year, much better than their 4-8 record indicates, their downfall has been their defense. The Falcons have the 26th scoring defense, the 21st total defense, and the 25th 3rd down defense.

All of this mediocrity should add up to a field day for the Niners offense. After putting up 48 on another elite defense last week, they should be eager to go. Expect Matt Breida to return to more carries after last week’s six carry 54-yard performance.

This game could smell a little bit of a trap game, especially with the injuries the Niners have on defense. As long as the defense plays alright, the offense should have no problem putting up points on the Falcons. If the defense struggles without half it’s starting rotation, they could be in for a shootout.