December 24, 2019 3:50 am
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – The NFC playoff situation is much clearer following the Green Bay Packers’ 23-10 victory at Minnesota. The outcome gives the Packers the NFC North title and makes Matt LeFleur the 10th rookie coach in league history to have a 12-win season. Aaron Jones carried Green Bay’s defense by rushing for 154 yards and two second-half touchdowns. Za’Darius Smith was the Packers’ defensive standout with five tackles for loss. The Packers fought through three first-half turnovers that left them trailing 10-9 at the break. Kirk Cousins threw an interception and was sacked five times, with a whopping 3 1/2 by Smith. Cousins is 0-9 in Monday night games. The outcome leaves the 10-5 Vikings with the sixth seed in the NFC playoffs.
December 23, 2019 3:49 am
Lamar Jackson and the Ravens will be home throughout the AFC playoffs. Baltimore secured home-field advantage in the postseason with its 11th straight win, 31-15 over the Browns. Cleveland could be on the verge of another coaching change. MVP favorite Jackson threw two of his three touchdown passes to tight end Mark Andrews as the Ravens shook off a sluggish start and avenged their last loss on Sept. 29. Cleveland’s disappointing season will end short of the postseason as the Browns were officially eliminated. The loss is another blow to coach Freddie Kitchens who could be fired.
December 22, 2019 8:08 am
LAS VEGAS (AP) – Cheikh Mbacke Diong and Donnie Tillman scored 17 points apiece as UNLV defeated Robert Morris 81-69. Marvin Coleman added 16 points for the Runnin’ Rebels on Saturday. Josh Williams led the Colonials with 17 points.
December 22, 2019 4:19 am
AP- Wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster and tight end Vance McDonald both practiced for the Steelers Friday, meaning they should be available to face the Jets on Sunday. Smith-Schuster has missed Pittsburgh’s last four games while dealing with a knee injury suffered in Cleveland on Nov. 11. The Steelers also cut reserve safety Kameron Kelly, hours after he was arrested during a dispute with police at a bar.
December 21, 2019 4:16 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Military investigations have concluded that hand gestures flashed by West Point cadets and Naval Academy midshipmen during the televised Army-Navy football game were not racist signals. A Navy probe of the event found that the students were participating in a “sophomoric game” on Saturday and had no racist intent. An Army statement Friday also rejected any racist overtones.
December 20, 2019 3:44 am
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) – Pittsburgh’s game against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium on Sunday has taken on a playoff feel. That’s because the Steelers can earn a postseason berth with wins in their last two games. Things would get a lot more difficult if Pittsburgh loses on the road at New York because it would end the regular season at AFC North champion Baltimore. The Steelers will see a familiar face on the other sideline in running back Le’Veon Bell. He was a three-time Pro Bowl pick with Pittsburgh but sat out last season in a contract dispute before signing with New York.
December 18, 2019 3:07 am
CALGARY, Alberta (AP) – Evgeni Malkin scored his 400th goal for the Pittsburgh Penguins in a 4-1 win over the Calgary Flames. The Russian joined Mario Lemieux, Sidney Crosby and Jaromir Jagr as the only players in franchise history to reach 400 goals. Malkin scored Pittsburgh’s first empty-net goal in the third period, and Kris Letang added another. Bryan Rust and John Marino also scored for the Penguins in a third straight win to open a three-game swing through Alberta and British Columbia. Johnny Gaudreau scored for the Flames, who have lost back-to-back games following a seven-game winning streak. Pittsburgh’s Tristan Jarry made 33 saves for his fifth win in six starts for Pittsburgh.
December 16, 2019 3:47 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Josh Allen threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Kroft with 7:55 to play and the Buffalo Bills clinched a playoff spot, beating the Pittsburgh Steelers 17-10. The Bills secured their second playoff berth in three seasons under coach Sean McDermott, a college teammate with Steelers coach Mike Tomlin at William & Mary. Buffalo trailed 10-7, but scored on two possessions in the fourth quarter, as Allen rallied the Bills for a comeback win for the fifth time this season. Needing the offense to win the game, the Steelers and quarterback Devlin Hodges misfired, as he was intercepted twice in the end zone in the final two minutes of the game. The Steelers hope the struggles can be a learning experience for a young and inexperienced group of skill position players. Hodges was intercepted four times in the game, tripling his career total and set a new career low with a 43.9 passer rating.
December 15, 2019 8:02 am
SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. (AP) – Nate Gunn ran for three touchdowns and Ryan Schlichte and JD Ekowa each threw for one and Minnesota State demolished Slippery Rock 58-15 in a Division II semifinal game. Minnesota advances to the championship to play West Florida. Gunn scored from 5 yards out, and the two-point conversion put the Mavericks up 8-0. Roland Rivers responded and thew a 19-yard touchdown pass to Henry Litwin, and The Rock’s two-point conversion tied it. From there it was all Minnesota State.
December 15, 2019 8:01 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Bryan Rust scored twice in regulation and got the lone goal in the shootout, and the Pittsburgh Penguins defeated the Los Angeles Kings 5-4. Rust faked a shot on the forehand and flipped a blocker-side backhander past Kings goaltender Jonathan Quick for the deciding goal. The Kings had a chance to continue the shootout, but the puck rolled off Adrian Kempe’s stick, giving the Penguins their fifth win in six games.
