LAS VEGAS — Be it Tom Brady or John Spytek — whichever dials the most important numbers for the Las Vegas Raiders nowadays — one should put a call into Curt Cignetti.

You know, just to check in.

You know, just to take the temperature of the room.

The Las Vegas Raiders need a coach, and Cignetti has proved to be, well, a terrific one. ...Read more

SEATTLE — The Seattle Seahawks' 60-minute stifling of San Francisco two Saturdays ago would suggest this next game is a wrap. An Achilles tear from Niners tight end George Kittle could lull Seattle fans straight into NFC Championship Game talk.

The minus-7.5 point spread you see in the sportsbooks isn't insignificant. Seattle's dominance and ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — “Keep your eyes on Stan Kroenke,” the colorful Cowboys owner said in his familiar Arkansas twang, easing back in his desk chair.

The exchange comes to mind as the Rams celebrate their 10th anniversary Monday of their return to Los Angeles, their audacious relocation closing the book on the weirdest chapter in this city’s ...Read more

CHICAGO — The signs have been there since Chicago Bears coach Ben Johnson’s introductory news conference nearly a year ago, when he fired the verbal shot heard ‘round the NFL.

“I kind of enjoyed beating Matt LaFleur twice a year,” the former Detroit Lions assistant coach said, referring to the Green Bay Packers coach.

Every new Bears...Read more

PITTSBURGH — In recent years, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ defense has struggled to perform in the postseason. That wasn’t the case Monday night, but it didn’t matter. A dreadful showing from the offense was too much to overcome, ultimately resulting in a 30-6 loss to the Houston Texans at Acrisure Stadium.

The defeat in the wild-card ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — A dramatic end to the Philadelphia Eagles’ campaign for a Super Bowl repeat could bring some dramatic changes to the team in the coming days, weeks and months.

But less than 24 hours after the 23-19 wild-card loss to the San Francisco 49ers, Jalen Hurts said he wasn’t ready to declare whether he hoped to see offensive ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — The play that encapsulated everything the Philadelphia Eagles offense wasn’t this season was a play that they themselves didn’t even run. First snap of the fourth quarter Sunday night for the San Francisco 49ers, first-and-10 from the Eagles’ 29-yard line, and there was Kyle Shanahan, calling a double-wing reverse pass ...Read more

NEW YORK — The John Harbaugh sweepstakes is officially underway.

Harbaugh interviewed with the Atlanta Falcons Monday for their head-coach job, the team announced.

It’s the first confirmed interview for Harbaugh since he was fired by the Baltimore Ravens after 18 seasons.

Monday’s interview with Atlanta was not in person, The Athletic ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Matthew Stafford suffered a sprained right index finger in the Los Angeles Rams' wild-card victory over the Carolina Panthers, but he will be ready for Sunday's divisional-round game against the Bears in Chicago, coach Sean McVay said Monday.

"He's as tough as it gets and will be good to go," McVay said during a videoconference ...Read more

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Christian Elliss walked out of the New England Patriots‘ locker room in a light-colored sweatsuit with a worn football tucked under his right arm.

The ball was bound for a wall inside his house, where Elliss keeps others on display as mementos from games gone by. This one he recovered with 8:08 left Sunday night, a ...Read more

CHICAGO — Apparently, Colston Loveland is that “dude.”

After the rookie tight end led the Chicago Bears in Saturday’s 31-27 win over the Green Bay Packers with eight receptions for 137 yards, former Bears tight end and current Fox Sports analyst Greg Olsen exclaimed on social media, “Colston Loveland is a dude!!!”

“The dude is a ...Read more

MIAMI — There are names we know — John Harbaugh, Kevin Stefanski and Robert Saleh — because of what they have accomplished, or haven’t as NFL head coaches.

Names we know because of whose bloodlines they have in Chris Shula, the grandson of Hall of Fame coach Don Shula, and Klint Kubiak, the son of Gary Kubiak, the former head coach of ...Read more

LAS VEGAS — The Las Vegas Raiders don’t just hold the keys to the NFL draft. They have a chance to solve the quarterback riddle that has befuddled them for decades.

With the No. 1 pick, they can draft a quarterback capable of changing the trajectory of their franchise in Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza.

They are not beholden to any other team...Read more

On a field loaded with playoff history, the Los Angeles Chargers couldn't outrun their familiar postseason pattern.

Another one-and-done exit.

This time it was a 16-3 dismissal by the New England Patriots, who had so much success here with Tom Brady and Bill Belichick.

The new hero is second-year quarterback Drake Maye, who was far from ...Read more

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Countless MVP chants reigned down on quarterback Drake Maye in Sunday night’s 16-3 playoff win over the Los Angeles Chargers, so that must make the New England Patriots’ defense the MVU.

Because the defense, not the offense, was the most valuable unit in the wild-card round win.

The defense put Justin Herbert in a ...Read more

By all rights, the San Francisco 49ers’ season should have ended in October. That’s when superstar linebacker Fred Warner’s ankle snapped early in the team’s Week 6 game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Or maybe the funeral should have been held in September, when superstar pass rusher Nick Bosa’s knee buckled in Week 3.

Or perhaps ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — The Rams will play the Chicago Bears in an NFC divisional round game at Soldier Field in Chicago next weekend.

The NFL is expected to announce the day and time of the game Sunday night. It’ll be the first playoff meeting between the teams since the NFC title game at the end of the 1985 season.

The No. 5-seeded Rams’ victory...Read more

Josh Allen came into this Super Bowl tournament as the most capable quarterback in the 14-team field. He showed it Sunday.

Allen made top-tier plays as a passer, rusher and thinker — none better than on a late-game touchdown drive for the lead, and the Buffalo Bills held for a 27-24 win against the Jaguars in Jacksonville, Fla.

The NFL is ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — The overachieving and understaffed San Francisco 49ers are on to the NFC playoffs’ divisional round, just without George Kittle.

After losing Kittle to a first-half Achilles tear, the sixth-seeded 49ers rallied Sunday night to dethrone the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles 23-19 in a back-and-forth, wild-card ...Read more