Patriots Reportedly Placing A.J. Brown On Injured Reserve With Ankle …

The New England Patriots will be without their No. 1 wide receiver for the foreseeable future. New England is placing star wide receiver A.J. Brown on injured reserve with a high-ankle sprain, ESPN reported on Friday afternoon. Brown, who will now miss at least four weeks, suffered the ankle injury in the third quarter of the Patriots' Wednesday night loss on the road to the defending Super Bowl-champion Seattle Seahawks in what was a rematch of Super Bowl LX. Brown will miss home games against the Pittsburgh Steelers and Las Vegas Raiders and road tilts against the Jacksonville Jaguars and Buffalo Bills. Prior to the injury, Brown had reeled in three receptions for 26 yards. With Brown sidelined, New England's wide receiver room includes fellow offseason pickup Romeo Doubs (the Patriots signed the former Green Bay Packers wide receiver to a four-year, $68 million deal), Mack Hollins, DeMario Douglas and second-year receivers Kyle Williams and Efton Chism III. The Patriots acquired Brown, a three-time Pro Bowler, from the Philadelphia Eagles in June for a 2028 first-round pick and a 2027 fifth-rounder. Last season (2025), Brown totaled 78 receptions for 1,003 yards (12.9 yards per reception) and seven touchdowns across 15 regular-season games. Over his four years with the Eagles (2022-25), highlighted by helping them win Super Bowl LIX, Brown averaged 84.8 receptions for 1,258.5 yards and eight touchdowns per year. The 29-year-old Brown begins a three-year, $96 million extension in 2027. ipl-cricket.in

Despite meeting on Thursday as planned, the Southeastern Conference did not vote on whether to expel LSU from the league, and no punishments were levied against the Tigers, either. Thursday's meeting — which was held by video conference — was not open to the public, but the SEC released a statement on the matter following its conclusion. "The presidents and chancellors of the Southeastern Conference met Thursday by videoconference to discuss recent matters involving conference expectations and responsibilities," the statement read. "Those discussions will continue as the conference and its member universities work toward an appropriate resolution." A federal court filing on Tuesday had highlighted the league's intent to vote on LSU's membership. The dispute between the conference and LSU stems largely from first-year Tigers coach Lane Kiffin's now-abandoned bid to field two players who had signed NFL contracts as undrafted rookies this past offseason. A hearing scheduled Wednesday in a federal lawsuit the SEC filed against LSU was postponed by a judge in Birmingham, Alabama. Meanwhile, LSU President Wade Rousse sent a one-page letter, obtained by the AP, to SEC commissioner Greg Sankey stating that the league's claims in its lawsuit against LSU are now moot because Kiffin had complied with a conference ban on rostering players who had previously signed contracts with NFL teams. Rousse noted that he called Sankey last Friday afternoon and notified him personally that LSU would not be placing tight end Dae'Quan Wright or defensive tackle Zxavian Harris on the Tigers' roster. Wright had spent part of the past offseason with the Philadelphia Eagles and Cleveland Browns. Harris has spent part of the offseason with the New Orleans Saints. Both also had played for Mississippi when Kiffin was the Rebels' coach. LSU on Tuesday filled remaining vacancies on its roster with eligible players. "The roster is now locked for the season," Rousse's letter stated. "LSU complied with SEC rules. This issue is moot." Rousse also noted that LSU "will not challenge, disrupt or seek to cancel or postpone" Thursday's scheduled meeting — a concern Sankey had raised Tuesday in the SEC's amended federal complaint against LSU. LSU is a founding member of the SEC, which was formed in 1933. LSU has a host of powerhouse athletics programs and has won three of the SEC’s 25 AP national championships in football alone. Still, the language in the federal lawsuit left little ambiguity about the extent to which the leaders of most SEC universities had become frustrated with LSU — not only because of efforts to recruit former pros to both its football and men's basketball teams. They also were unhappy about the related court drama that ensued — including a marathon court hearing last week in which Sankey took the stand to insist the league has the right to enforce its own rules. Sankey said there was consensus among conference leaders that "LSU’s continued membership in the conference would be inconsistent with the publicly stated values and principles of the conference and its remaining member institutions," even if LSU doesn’t put the former NFL players on its roster. The SEC has a long-established rule forbidding teams from bringing players with major professional experience onto their rosters. In recent weeks, the conference announced updated enforcement provisions to that rule, stating that the commissioner had the power to suspend coaches, fine universities up to half of a sport’s budget and restrict a member university’s voting privileges on conference matters. But last Thursday, a judge in Baton Rouge barred the league from enforcing any rules regarding former pros — a decision celebrated heartily by Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry and the state attorney general, Liz Murrill, who’d filed a brief in the case on behalf of the athletes. Murrill called the SEC’s lawsuit "legal garbage" shortly after it was filed last week; the SEC has since listed Murrill as a defendant. Sankey has stated that SEC presidents are concerned that Rousse and athletic director Verge Ausberry have no "meaningful control" over Kiffin or the football program. Sankey also stated that "serious harm" had been caused "by the statements and conduct of LSU," and suggested that harm would not be undone simply by LSU renouncing "its intention to roster and play professional players on its football team." Kiffin’s hiring was one of two notable coaching changes at LSU involving the highest revenue-generating college sports: LSU also has brought back Will Wade to coach men’s basketball. Wade was fired by previous athletic director Scott Woodward in the wake of an NCAA investigation into improper inducement payments to recruits when such payments were forbidden. Wade served a suspension from coaching in college before returning in the 2023-24 season with McNeese State. He spent two seasons with the Cowboys and one with North Carolina State before he was brought back to LSU — a move favored by Landry, as well as Rousse, a Landry ally who was McNeese’s president when Wade was there. Wade has sought to sign RJ Luis Jr., a former Big East player of the year with St. John’s who spent parts of the 2025 NBA offseason and preseason with the Utah Jazz and Boston Celtics, but never played in a regular-season NBA game. Luis also has been fighting the NCAA in court in Baton Rouge, where a judge on Aug. 24 issued a preliminary injunction that temporarily blocks the NCAA from punishing LSU if the Tigers play Luis — something that also would violate the SEC rules at the center of the conference’s federal lawsuit against LSU. LSU’s football team is now ranked eighth in the Top 25 AP Poll following Saturday’s 51-10, season-opening victory over Clemson. The Tigers host Louisiana Tech on Saturday, followed by a much anticipated visit to No. 9 Ole Miss, where Kiffin will face the team he coached a year ago. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

The NFL is back, and in a few days from now, every team will have played a game. Before the other 28 teams get into action, let’s take one final look at how the MVP odds stack up and figure out where the value is. First, a little history to put in context and provide some clues as to who this award might go to. It’s a quarterback award. Since 2008, there have been 18 winners and only running back Adrian Peterson, who nearly broke Walter Payton’s rushing record, won the award as a non-quarterback in 2011. Inevitability, there will be a running back midseason who's having a great year. Think Christian McCaffrey in 2023 and Saquon Barkley in 2024. And there will be people asking if this will be the year a running back once again wins MVP. The answer is most likely no. Stick to quarterbacks when betting this market. This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports. While it is a quarterback award, it is also an individual award, since there is a major team component to winning MVP. Nobody is winning this award on a 9-8 team. Of the last 18 MVPs, 17 have been QBs, and 15 of those 17 played on a team that got a first-round bye in the playoffs. Peyton Manning in 2008 and Matthew Stafford in 2025 were the only two MVPs that did not get a bye in the playoffs, but even their teams went 12-4 and 12-5, respectively. When this award is announced in February, the trophy will be handed to a quarterback on a team with an outstanding record. Which brings me to Patrick Mahomes at 15-1 (FanDuel). Sure, there are questions surrounding Mahomes as he returns from a torn ACL in a 2025 season that saw him and his team miss the playoffs for the first time in his illustrious career. There are also questions about the offensive line and his receiving weapons. Yet, this is still Mahomes, and at 15-1, the price is too tempting to pass up. Just two years ago, he led his team to a 15-2 record and was one win away from a third consecutive Super Bowl title and the fourth in six years. Mahomes has been to five Super Bowls, and he’s also lost at home in overtime in two other AFC title games. Last year, the Chiefs went 6-11, but a lot of that poor record was due to them being just 1-9 in one-score games. I expect Mahomes and the Chiefs to bounce back, have some better luck in close games and be right near the top of the AFC standings. What also helps Mahomes’ hopes for MVP is that he hasn’t won this award since 2022, so there is no voter fatigue with him winning. There could also be a positive narrative surrounding him as he comes off the ACL injury.

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