Free Republic

New England Patriots defensive end Michael Bennett invoked the Marvel Cinematic Universe movie “Black Panther” during his player intro on “Sunday Night Football.” During the introduction of the Patriots defensive starters, where players typically state their name and the college they went to, Bennett opted for a different idea. “Michael Bennett, Wakanda Forever!” Bennett shouted, crossing his arms to emulate the salute given by characters in the movie.

Lamar Jackson tied a franchise record with five touchdown passes as his Baltimore Ravens routed the host Miami Dolphins 59-10 in Sunday’s season opener for both teams. ....Several Miami mistakes led to Baltimore’s first-half assault, including a Fitzpatrick interception and a fumbled punt return by Jakeem Grant. In addition, the Ravens — leading 35-10 at the time — faked a punt with a direct snap to safety Anthony Levine, who rumbled 60 yards on a fourth-and-1 play for a first down to Miami’s 10 late in the second quarter.

Brennan responded by talking up the alleged strength of pro-gay sentiments among sports fans: It sure should have changed, Ana, and if the National Football League wants to be viable and wants to retain its spot as the number one pro-league in our country well into this century, it has to accept this and it has to encourage this because those fans who are maybe in their sixties, seventies, eighties who maybe are a little bit more reluctant on this topic, well, they're not going to be around in 20 or 30 years.

DAMN You guys called it

Jim Langer died late last month at the age of 71. Langer was the center for the great Miami Dolphins teams of the 1970s, including the unbeaten 1972 team. Langer played defense at South Dakota State. He was not selected in the 1970 draft, which lasted 17 rounds, but he signed with the Cleveland Browns as a free agent. They promptly cut Langer, but Don Shula picked him up and by 1972 he was Miami’s starting center. Langer went on to become an all-pro four times. He played in six pro-bowls. In 1975, he was named Miami’s most valuable player,...

Antonio Brown’s various antics have all come to a head on the day the regular season begins. After everything that happened, the Oakland Raiders fined Brown and subsequently voided all of his $30 million in guarantees. Brown asked for his release via Instagram, and has gotten his wish. Brown’s talent is clear. But at this point, teams must consider when the talent no longer outweighs the headache. The Raiders traded a third and a fifth-round-pick for Brown over the offseason, and handed him a new contract extension as well. It’s all over now. Someone will be interested in kicking the...

The Antonio Brown saga with the Oakland Raiders continued on Saturday, with the star wide receiver asking the team to release him on his Instagram page. “Release me Raiders,” he wrote, adding the hashtag #NOMore.

Raiders wide receiver Antonio Brown returned to practice on Friday and will play in Oakland's Week 1 game against the Broncos, head coach Jon Gruden announced. Gruden addressed reporters on Friday and said that he was happy to see Brown back after he missed Thursday's practice. "Antonio's back today. We're really excited about that and ready to move on," Gruden said. "He's had a lot of time obviously to think about things and we're happy to have him back."

We know a little more about the dust-up between Antonio Brown and Oakland Raiders general manager Mike Mayock and, not surprisingly, the details aren’t pretty. Brown saw Mayock, who sent Brown a letter informing him he’d be fined for missing a workout before the Raiders’ preseason game in Canada, watching practice on Wednesday. So during practice he initiated an argument with Mayock, according to ESPN’s Josina Anderson. During that argument, he called Mayock a “cracker,” Anderson reported. A day later the Raiders leaked a report that they were considering suspending Brown, who wasn’t at practice Thursday. The Raiders listed him...

1st NFL game of the season. What was that opening?

According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the argument between Raiders wide receiver Antonio Brown and General Manager Mike Mayock didn’t get physical, but it included the threat. Rapoport said that after screaming at each other Brown told Mayock that he’d hit him in the face, then punted a nearby football and said “Fine me for that.”

As a boy attending Washington Redskins games with his family at RFK Stadium, a short distance from his home in Maryland’s Montgomery County, Dan Snyder would gaze across the field and peer into the owner’s box. Other kids daydreamed about playing on an NFL field. Snyder envisioned himself lording over one. “I’d just watch,” Snyder once said, “and imagine what was happening in there.” Since 1999, when he was 34 years old, Daniel M. Snyder has watched the Washington Redskins from the seat of power he once fantasized about. The desired trappings of NFL ownership have remained elusive, barely any...

NFL Live Thread: Week 1 Thursday, September 5, 2019 (All Times Eastern) Green Bay at Chicago 8:20 pm NBC Soldier Field Sunday, September 8, 2019 Buffalo at N.Y. Jets 1:00 pm CBS MetLife Stadium Baltimore at Miami 1:00 pm CBS Hard Rock Stadium Kansas City at Jacksonville 1:00 pm CBS TIAA Bank Field Tennessee at Cleveland 1:00 pm CBS FirstEnergy Stadium Washington at Philadelphia 1:00 pm FOX Lincoln Financial Field Atlanta at Minnesota 1:00 pm FOX U.S. Bank Stadium L.A. Rams at Carolina 1:00 pm FOX Bank of America Stadium Indianapolis at L.A. Chargers 4:05 pm CBS Dignity Health Sports...

Former NFL star Larry Johnson sounded off on social media about a supposed “effeminate agenda” in the NFL and NBA — and he says high-ranking Freemasons are involved. Johnson, who was the premier running back for the Kansas City Chiefs from 2003 to 2009, fired off the series of tweets seemingly out of nowhere. “There is an Effeminate Agenda going on amongst the NBA & NFL elite, peddled by high ranking Masons/handlers to indoctrinate the heterosexual sports world without them knowing, for the buying power of the LGBTQ community,” he started. “….But we not ready to have that conversation yet.”

IN EARLY AUGUST, I met with an NFL team that was interested in signing me as a free agent for the upcoming season. This was a big moment for me because, other than the love for my family, playing football again in the NFL is my dream. The team invited me to meet with their front office and members of their coaching staff because, even though I missed all of the 2018 season after suffering a shoulder injury in 2017, I feel the organization believes I have the skills and character to contribute to their success. What they know about...

An NFL team has offered women’s soccer star Carli Lloyd the chance to become the first woman to kick in an NFL preseason game, after she drilled a 55-yard field goal at the Eagle’s training camp. Why the NFL would put a woman in a position of being injured is anyone’s guess. Lloyd uncorked her kick after being invited to the Philadelphia Eagles training session last week, and video of the kick went viral, Fox Sports reported.This week, Lloyd’s trainer, James Galanis, noted that the soccer star had been approached by several other NFL teams to play for them in...

Retired NFL player Le’Ron McClain took to Twitter to ask for help with injuries he said he suffered since his football career, pleading with the league to help him get his “head checked.” McClain left the league after seven seasons, having played for the Baltimore Ravens, San Diego Chargers and Kansas City Chiefs before retiring in 2013. However, he wrote on Saturday that he is still dealing with the physical effects of playing football for so long. "Playing fullback since high school. Its takes too f---ing much to do anything. My brain is f---ing tired," McClain wrote. "@NFL i need...

The Colts' odds of winning the Super Bowl this season plummeted at sportsbooks after quarterback Andrew Luck announced his retirement on Saturday night. PointsBet moved Indianapolis's Super Bowl odds from 12/1 to 50/1, while the Colts' win total shifted from 10 to six. Additionally, PointsBet moved the Colts from favorites to win the AFC South to the worst odds to finish first in the division. The Colts' +600 division odds are behind the Texans at +140, Jaguars at +225 and Titans at +325.

In the most shocking development of the NFL offseason, Indianapolis Colts star quarterback Andrew Luck will reportedly retire from the NFL. ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that there will be a press conference on Sunday where Luck will announce his decision.

New England Patriots safety Patrick Chung was indicted on a charge of cocaine possession, the Belknap County (NH) Attorney’s Office told the Boston Herald’s Kevin Duffy on Thursday morning. News first broke of Chung’s indictment in the Laconia Daily Sun, that reported: “Patrick C. Chung, 32, of Meredith, was indicted on a charge of possession of cocaine.”