NFL

6:00 AM ET Lindsey ThiryESPN Close Covered Rams for two years for Los Angeles Times Previously covered the Falcons Has covered the NBA and college football and basketball THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — With the promise of an improved offense, the Los Angeles Rams‘ defense is preparing for an encore performance. Last season, three-time Defensive Player

12:34 PM ET Matt Ryan isn’t going to play forever. The Atlanta Falcons quarterback, entering his 14th season with the franchise, understands he’s closer to the end of his career than the start of it. He has been around the NFL long enough, seen enough players come and go, to get that. And Ryan didn’t

2:07 PM ET Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, who underwent reconstructive left knee surgery in December, is “all systems go” for the Sept. 12 regular-season opener against the Minnesota Vikings, according to Dr. Neal ElAttrache of Kerlan-Jobe in Los Angeles. “He’s on track for full go for start of the season,” ElAttrache, who operated on

6:10 AM ET NFL NationESPN With the 2021 NFL draft in the rear view, it’s time to take inventory with another version of the NFL Power Rankings. While this draft was unprecedented due to the lack of a combine, visits to team facilities and in-person pro days, the decisions made in constructing this draft class

9:28 PM ET FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Veteran quarterback Brian Hoyer is set to re-sign with the New England Patriots, a league source confirmed to ESPN on Monday. He joins a crowded position headlined by Cam Newton, 2021 first-round draft choice Mac Jones and third-year veteran Jarrett Stidham. Hoyer, who had taken a free-agent visit with

9:30 AM ET FRISCO, Texas — As he stepped toward the blocking sled Friday, the sound of metal on metal made a screeching noise Micah Parsons has been used to hearing ever since he started playing football, but it had been a long time since he heard it. “Last time I hit a sled?” the

6:00 AM ET FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — A look at what’s happening around the New York Jets: 1. Wilson vs. Darnold: Zach Wilson‘s NFL debut will be off-Broadway in location only. In terms of theater, his Week 1 road showdown against predecessor Sam Darnold is worth a neon marquee. While Jets-Carolina Panthers is being billed

5:34 PM ET Juantarius Bryant thought he was heading to Georgia this weekend to try out for the Atlanta Falcons during the team’s rookie minicamp. When he arrived in Flowery Branch, though, he learned he had been the victim of a hoax instead. Bryant, a defensive back from Austin Peay, was never actually contacted by

10:23 AM ET EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — The New York Giants have signed former Carolina Panthers first-round pick Kelvin Benjamin, the team announced Sunday. Benjamin and former Philadelphia Eagles running back and Super Bowl hero Corey Clement impressed over the weekend during tryouts at rookie minicamp and received one-year deals. A wide receiver who had

6:05 AM ET COSTA MESA, Calif. — For all the hard work that comes with becoming a college football player in a Division I power conference, and then being drafted by the Los Angeles Chargers in the second round of the 2021 NFL draft, there is one series of moments that Asante Samuel Jr. points

4:38 PM ET HOUSTON — In his first news conference since 23 lawsuits were filed against Deshaun Watson, Texans coach David Culley declined to answer whether he expects the quarterback to attend the team’s offseason workouts. The Texans’ organized team activities begin May 24, but attendance is voluntary until the team’s mandatory minicamp starting June

7:06 AM ET METAIRIE, La. — It was Nolan Cooney‘s passion for sports that motivated him most when he was diagnosed with testicular cancer that had spread to his lungs during his junior year of high school. The New Orleans Saints‘ rookie punter was a three-sport standout at East Greenwich High in Rhode Island. He

3:08 PM ET GREEN BAY, Wis. — Nothing has changed in Aaron Rodgers‘ standoff with the Packers, and nothing has changed in the way the team feels about its quarterback either. In fact, Matt LaFleur doubled down on his desire to continue coaching the reigning NFL MVP. “I’ve got nothing new to update, and we

5:31 PM ET HOUSTON — A member of the team representing the women suing Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson recently reached out to Watson’s legal team to discuss the case, according to text messages and a recording reviewed by ESPN. In a statement released Thursday afternoon, Watson’s attorney, Rusty Hardin, suggested Tony Buzbee, the attorney for

11:54 AM ET Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Antonio Brown has been sued for his role in an altercation with a moving-truck driver in January 2020. The lawsuit was filed Wednesday in Broward County, Florida, by the driver, Anton Tumanov. Brown pleaded no contest in June to one felony burglary with battery charge and two

2:36 PM ET Tony Buzbee, the attorney for the 22 women suing Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson, expressed concern to a Houston television station on Wednesday over how the National Football League is handling its investigation. Buzbee, in speaking to Fox 26 in Houston, said “some of the women did not feel like they were

7:15 AM ET GREEN BAY, Wis. — The date was Aug. 30, 2018 — one day after Aaron Rodgers signed a record contract extension worth $134 million with the Green Bay Packers that ran through the 2023 season. That day was largely celebratory on the part of the quarterback and the team, except for one

12:55 PM ET Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady couldn’t contain his excitement with the NFL schedule release, posting on Instagram, “9/9 can’t come soon enough” when it was announced the Bucs would play the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL Kickoff Game. His father, Tom Brady Sr., is eyeing a different game though — Week