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The Detroit Lions continued their preparations for the Chicago Bears Thursday with another outdoor practice.
After a total of nine players sat out on Wednesday, several players were back in actions after a rest day. Among the returning players were Brian Branch, Kevin Zeitler, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Za'Darius Smith, DJ Reader and Taylor Decker.
Offensive linemen Graham Glasgow and Frank Ragnow remained out, along with running back David Montgomery.
Detroit also started Jalen Reeves-Maybin's return-to-practice clock on Thursday. The Lions will have 21 days to evaluate the veteran linebacker, who has been out since Week 9 with a neck injury. Reeves-Maybin is one of the team's top special teams players and provides valuable depth at linebacker.
The Lions have been forced to navigate a number of injuries to their defense, and as a result have had to bring in new faces to bolster the depth.
With a number of players on injured reserve, the Lions have relied on midseason additions such as Al-Quadin Muhammad and Kwon Alexander to start on defense.
Defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn has remained confident in the group's ability to handle the changes. Despite the losses of several significant players, Glenn's standard for production has remained the same throughout the year.
“We’ve said this from the beginning — the next guy’s got to come up and play. That’s the reason why they’re here. I’ve said this also, I’m not gonna disrespect any of the players we have here because they work their ass off just like everybody else," Glenn said. "And I hope you guys don’t do that also, because those guys deserve a chance to go out there and play whenever their time is to go play. Our personnel department does a really good job of finding guys who fit who we are, and we’re gonna put them on the field and we’re gonna play.”
More must-reads:
- Dolphins quickly become NFL's most hopeless situation
- Fantasy football Week 9: Five players who could flop
- The 'NFL passer rating leaders' quiz
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Packers’ Micah Parsons reveals why he’s not that interested in Aaron Rodgers’ offer
Green Bay Packers superstar pass rusher Micah Parsons has been among the players Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers had offered to sell his house in Green Bay to. During last Sunday’s game between the Packers and the Steelers, Rodgers tried to pitch his property to Parsons, but the newly minted NFC Defensive Player of the Month doesn’t see the need for him to have such a big house yet, particularly since he’s just on his own (h/t Rob Demovsky of ESPN). On the season, Parsons has 6.5 sacks, including one against Rodgers in Green Bay’s 35-25 win in Week 8. Micah Parsons thinks another Packers player would be interested in Rodgers’ crib While Parsons is unlikely to acquire Rodgers’ place in Green Bay, he thinks that another player would be interested in it. “Tuck said he might try and look at it,” Parsons said, referring to Green Bay star tight end Tucker Kraft. ”...It’s a nice house, but it’s just me right now. That’s why I’m not in an urge to buy anything.” With the way Kraft is playing this season, he could be closing in on a massive extension, so buying Rodgers’ house could be within his budget as well. Kraft’s current contract will expire after the 2026 NFL season. But if Parsons changes his tune, he also should have the money to purchase the house. After getting traded by the Dallas Cowboys to the NFC North franchise, Parsons inked a four-year, $186M contract extension with Green Bay.
Raiders’ Mark Davis Sends Message Every Fan Needed to Hear
The Las Vegas Raiders have the best defensive player in the National Football League, in Maxx Crosby. Crosby has been a force to deal with over the last few years. He has been all over the quarterbacks he has faced during that time. He loves to play the game and do it for the Silver and Black. That has been his team since day one, and the team that believed in him, when no one else gave him his opportunity. Crosby is the face of the Raiders franchise, and he wants to win as badly as anyone for this organization. He is having another good season in 2025 and is looking to get better and create more chaos in the backfield for the offense. He is one of a kind, and the Raiders need to do a better job of putting a good team around him to capitalize on what type of player Crosby is. Raiders Owner Mark Davis on Maxx Crosby "Asked about interest in Crosby and the team's decision not to trade him, Raiders owner Mark Davis told NFL.com he doesn't understand why people keep asking," said NFL Insider Ian Rapoport. "I don't know how many times I've got to say it," Davis said this past week following the Fall League Meeting in New York. "It's really hard to keep getting asked the same question every month or week or whatever when the answer's going to stay the same. I don't know why anybody would think I'd change my mind or the organization would." This past offseason, the Raiders signed Crosby to a three-year, $106.5 million extension through the 2029 campaign. Davis knows it's natural for teams to take a look around the league and covet what isn't theirs. However, he said "everything about Maxx is awesome" and he doesn't see him leaving. "Everybody wants to have your great players," Davis said. "It starts there, it doesn't start with us." Crosby has also made it very clear that he wants to stay with the Silver and Black and win in Las Vegas. But it is a question that is always asked because of the bad product the Raiders are putting on the field. The Raiders will get to soon if they made the right adjustments during their bye week, in Week 9 agiant the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Nationals set to hire MLB's youngest manager in over 50 years
The Washington Nationals were one of a handful of teams heading into the offseason needing a new manager. The Nats fired former manager Dave Martinez, who helped lead them to their first World Series title in 2019, ahead of the All-Star break. They then had to decide if they wanted to keep interim manager Miguel Cairo or head in another direction. The Nationals decided to go in a different direction, announcing on Thursday that they are set to hire the youngest MLB manager in over 50 years. Nationals will hire Blake Butera to be their next manager After going 29-43 after taking over for Martinez, the Nationals decided that Cairo wasn't the man to lead them forward. Washington is hiring 33-year-old Blake Butera to be its next manager, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan. Butera will be a new voice to pair with the new president of baseball operations, Paul Toboni, who took over for former executive Mike Rizzo. According to Passan, Butera will be the youngest manager in more than 50 years. Butera joins Oliver Marmol (39) of the St. Louis Cardinals as the only managers in baseball under 40 years old. In his four-year career as a minor league manager in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, Butera accumulated a 258-144 record. That should bode well for him going to Washington, especially after six straight losing seasons. A former 35th-round draft pick of the Rays, Butera is also a former two-time minor league Manager of the Year in the Rays organization and was the bench coach for Team Italy in the 2023 World Baseball Classic. Nationals need to give Blake Butera everything he needs to be successful Being so young and "inexperienced," Toboni and the Nationals organization will need to surround Butera with a veteran coaching staff. In particular, an experienced bench coach to help guide him through being a big league manager. Someone like former Los Angeles Angels manager Ron Washington would be a good hire to help guide Butera, given his managerial experience and longtime coaching. Coming from the Rays organization, Butera can bring over things he's learned there to help the Nationals improve as an organization. The Rays are consistently at the forefront of analytics and new, innovative ways to build a successful baseball team. Having a young roster and only two players with a decade in the big leagues (Josh Bell and Trevor Williams), Butera should find it easy to connect with some of his younger players, given his age. However, veterans may find it hard to listen to someone as inexperienced as Butera, which he’ll need to work on if the Nationals add any more to help mentor their young core.
Do NFL executives believe Patriots can topple Bills in AFC East?
While the Buffalo Bills have won the AFC East division title for the past five seasons, the 6-2 New England Patriots will enter Week 9 holding a slight lead over 5-2 Buffalo in the standings. Under first-year Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, second-year quarterback Drake Maye has emerged as a strong MVP candidate. In an article published on Friday, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler talked with several NFL executives about whether they believe the Patriots are a "real" contender this fall. One executive "not quite ready to pass the torch" regarding Patriots-Bills fight "I think the quarterback is real," one unnamed AFC executive said while referencing Maye. "He keeps getting better. He has an excellent OC who will get every drop out of that offense. And Vrabes has them playing good team football. I'm not quite ready to pass the torch now." Such an opinion is understandable given that Bills quarterback Josh Allen is the reigning MVP and has made 13 career playoff starts. Of course, Maye has not yet played in a playoff game, but he did lead New England to a 23-20 upset victory in Buffalo on Oct. 5. According to Pro Football Reference stats, Maye ended October ranked fifth in the NFL among qualified players with a 76.0 adjusted QBR, second with a 118.7 passer rating and first with a 75.2 percent completion percentage for the season. Per StatMuse, he's tied for fourth in the league with 17 combined passing and rushing touchdowns, and he's third with 2,276 combined passing and rushing yards. What concerns one executive about Patriots' attempt to topple Bills? The Patriots are reportedly among the teams seeking a pass-rusher before the Nov. 4 trade deadline. Trey Hendrickson of the Cincinnati Bengals and Kayvon Thibodeaux of the New York Giants are two players previously connected with New England who reportedly won't be traded this fall. "I think they are a year away from being really good," a different AFC executive added about the Patriots. "The defense isn't all the way there yet. But the offensive line is showing promise, and the quarterback is picking things up really fast. He's not close to his ceiling." If Maye gets closer to that ceiling in the next two months, the Patriots might secure the AFC's top overall seed for the playoffs.
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