Heisman – Exxedera

Travis Etienne Looked Like Clemson’s Heisman Hopeful, Not Trevor Lawrence

The Clemson Tigers opened the season against Georgia Tech in a matchup that was supposed to be an opening day coming out party for sophomore QB Travis Lawrence. Instead he threw more interceptions than touchdowns (1 TD, 2 INT’s) along with less than 200 yards, although he did add a rushing touchdown to his stat line.

The true star of the night was running back Travis Etienne Jr. who continues to exalt his prowess in the rushing game. He first bursted out with a 90 yard touchdown in the first quarter that was not only a career high, but also a Clemson record. He finished with 205 and three touchdown while averaging 17 yards a carry. That impressive running alone can carry Clemson to another national championship but when Lawrence gets back rolling again, watch out.

Exxedera’s Top 10 FBS Running Backs For 2019

College football is filled with explosive running backs from the ACC to SEC all the way down to the Sun Belt conference. Last year we saw Wisconsin running back breakout for over 2,000 yards while national championship winning RB Travis Etienne averaged over 8 yards a carry. Will either one of them be able to replicate the same level of production? That’ll have to be answered after the season, now let’s see who the 10 best running backs in college are for the upcoming season.

#1. Travis Etienne, Clemson

#2. Jonathan Taylor, Wisconsin

#3. De’Andre Swift, Georgia

#4. J.K. Dobbs, Ohio State

#5. Ke’Shawn Vaughn, Vanderbilt

#6. CJ Verdell, Oregon

#7. AJ Dillon, Boston College

#8. Najee Harris, Alabama

#9. Eno Benjamin, Arizona State

#10. Kennedy Brooks, Oklahoma

The Miami Dolphins Are Finally Headed In The Right Direction

Goodbye Ryan Fitzpatrick. Goodbye Adam Gase.

Hello, the new and improved Miami Dolphins.

The draft day trade by the Dolphins to nab quarterback Josh Rosen from the Arizona Cardinals was by far the best move the Dolphins have made in the last decade. I know he hasn’t played a down in a Fins uniform however Rosen provides tremendous upside to a position (QB) where the Dolphins have been lacking since Dan Marino retired in 1999. Their list of starting QB mediocrity includes Jay Fielder, Gus Ferotte, Cleo Lemon, Chad Pennington, Matt Moore, Ryan Tannehill and their latest misfire, Jay Cutler. Following a lackadaisical 2018 season from Ryan Tannehill the organization finally decided it was time for a change.

Insert: Josh Rosen.

Rosen’s a well-rounded QB who has the potential to be great given he has the right personnel around him for most of his career. In Arizona that wasn’t the case, as he had some weapons in running back David Johnson and veteran wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald however those two were succumbed to a bad offensive line, below-average defense and a rookie head coach that didn’t even get the chance to prove himself (The Cardinals have a new rookie HC now). Now he’ll have a better variety of skill players to get the ball to, a better offensive line and an even more opportunistic defense (Miami forced 28 turnovers last season to Arizona’s 16) but he’ll still be working with a rookie head coach. The good news about his new coach however? He, Brian Flores, had been on the New England Patriots staff since 2004 so he knows a thing or two about being apart of a successful organization.

The Josh Rosen era has officially begun in Miami and the future surely does look brighter now in South Beach. As long as Rosen continues to improve and can grow as a leader in the locker room, the Dolphins should have no regret of this trade when they look back a decade from now.

AAF Power Rankings After Week 6: Iron Get Back To Their Winning Ways

The Birmingham Iron have gotten back to their winning ways after dropping two games in a row. QB Luis Perez threw for three touchdowns in a win against the San Diego Fleet to help boast his team victory.

Keep reading to see this week’s power rankings.

Rankings:

Orlando Apollos (2019 Record: 5-1)
San Antonio Commanders (2019 Record: 4-2)
Birmingham Iron (2019 Record: 4-2)
Arizona Hotshots (2019 Record: 4-2)
San Diego Fleet (2019 Record: 3-3)
Atlanta Legends (2019 Record: 2-4)
Salt Lake City Stallions (2019 Record:2-4)
Memphis Express (2019 Record: 1-5)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRWIhnGC0AI

Jason Witten Will Return To The Cowboys After Being Away For A Year

Cowboys Tight-End and future Hall Of Fame inductee, Jason Witten, announced Thursday that he would be returning to the Dallas Cowboys after sitting out for one year. The 36 year old veteran returns to the gridiron after spending his last year as a ESPN analyst. Witten will return to the Cowboys on a 3.5 million one-year contract. Witten holds the Dallas Cowboy’s franchise record for most receiving yards and receptions within a career. Take a look back at Jason Witten career so far with the Cowboys, down below.

Black History Athlete Of The Day: Wilma Rudolph

Late sprinter Wilma Rudolph was one of the most transcendent athletes of her generation as she ran through the record books during the 1960s.

Wilma Rudolph first competed in the Olympics in 1956 when she was only 16 years old. Rudolph went on to claim the Bronze model in the 4 x 100m relay at that Olympics which was held in Melbourne (Victoria, Australia).

Rudolph then went on to light the world on fire at the 1960 Olympic games held in Rome, Italy when she struck three gold metals. She won the 100m relay, 200m relay and 4 x 100m relay races that year all while being a sophomore at Tennessee State University. Her accomplishments helped her to become one of the most well known African-American women of the 1960s due to her status as the fastest woman in the world during the decade despite only competing in the aforementioned 1960 Olympic games.

Ms. Rudolph went on to retire before the 1964 Olympic games as she stated that she wanted to retire while still at her peak rather than during her decline. There is no doubt that she is one of the most influential African-American athletes of all-time as she paved the way for African-Ameican women who ran track for many years to come.

Stellar Defenses Headline The Patriots Super Bowl 53 Victory

Super Bowl LIII was supposed to be one of the most high scoring affairs ever. After last season’s high flying Super Bowl that featured the Philadelphia Eagles instead of the Los Angeles Rams there was no reason to believe this one wouldn’t be more potent offensively. Wrong. The Rams and New England Patriots combined for just a measly 16 points in the Patriots 13-3 victory.

The first half of this year’s Super Bowl only featured three points between the Rams and New England Patriots. Neither team took a snap in the other team’s red zone while the Pats committed the only turnover on Tom Brady’s first pass attempt of the game. The Rams were only able to muster 52 total yards and two first downs in the half and Todd Gurley was again shunned as he only received three touches (He only had four all of last week). Both team played worse than usual and it led to the 3-0 stalemate that fans were left with at halftime.

New England Patriots WR Julian Edelman finished Super Bowl LIII with 10 receptions for 143 yards.

The second half began almost no different than the first half as both teams continued to struggle offensively. The Rams added on to a streak they began in the first half as they wound up punting on eight straight possessions through midway of the third quarter. The Patriots ended up with a few first downs in the third quarter but after the quarter the score was just 3-3 as Greg Zuerlein connected on a 53 yard attempt near the end of the third.

It all came down to the fourth quarter in this Super Bowl of defenses as neither team was able to create separation through three quarters. The Patriots were able to finally break through offensively with a one-yard Sony Michel touchdown to make the score 10-3. They coupled that with a Stephon Gilmore interception on the following Rams possession with under five minutes to play in regulation. That interception proved to be the biggest play of the game as Tom Brady and the rest of the offense ran the time down to under two minutes before Stephen Gostkowski put the game away at 13-3.

Super Bowl LIII was Tom Brady’s sixth NFL championship and it was also the Patriots’ 11th appearance in the big game (Third in a row). Their defense held the Rams usually superb offense to just 3 points, 12 first downs and 205 total yards in addition to the 4 sacks they got on Rams QB Jared Goff.

In a season where the Patriots were doubted repeatedly they persevered and showed everyone around the league why they are still the gold standard around the league.

Black History Athlete Of The Day: Bo Jackson

Former football and baseball superstar Bo Jackson has widely been considered one of the greatest athletes to ever live.

His legend began to grow the second he began attending Auburn University and started playing football, amassing 829 rushing yards and nine touchdowns in his freshman year. He then went on to add baseball to his aresenal the following year and he didn’t look back. In 1985, his final season of college football, Bo ran for 1,786 yards and 17 touchdowns en route to the Heisman trophy. He matched that same total of touchdowns in home runs that year om the diamond.

Jackson was selected first overall in the 1986 NFL draft by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers however he refused to sign his contract due to a previous dispute with the team. Instead, he signed with the Los Angeles Raiders after they drafted him the following season in the 1987 NFL draft. He only played in seven games his rookie year but he managed to rush for 554 yards

Aaron Donald Is The NFL’s Most Dominant Player

One word: Dominant.

That’s the only way to describe Los Angeles Rams defensive end Aaron Donald. The multi talented DE is on his way to winning the NFL’s defensive player of the year award for the second year in a row while playing for a Rams team that is now 10-1 on the season. It is to be noted that the Rams were just a 4-12 team a few years ago with the lone bright spot being Donald.

In 2018 Donald has racked up a league high 14.5 sacks through the first 11 games of the season while also adding 38 tackles, three forced fumbles and one fumble recovery on his current-year resume. What the numbers don’t show is the amount of double teams that he faces on play-to-play basis or the amount of plays that he helps create for his teammates. It’s amazing the amount of ability that a DE of Donald’s smaller stature has especially the amount of strength that he has for a player his size going up against NFL offensive linemen on every play. It just seems sort of unfair for a player to be quicker than Khalil Mack and just as strong if not stronger than J.J. Watt.

The Los Angeles Rams are loaded with talented players with Todd Gurley, Jared Goff, Marcus Peters, Ndamukong Suh, Brandin Cooks and many others making plays on a consistent basis. However the teams most valuable player is arguably Donald because without him their defense would probably have prevented them from winning some of the shootouts that the team has been in this year (Vikings, Chiefs). The timelines of his plays alone are noteworthy and if he continues his dominant streak look for him to end up in some people’s MVP voting talks. It’s not as farfetched as it seems either as he’s on pace for 20+ sacks in a season where his team could possibly end up with the #1 seed after being NFC West Doormats for over 10 seasons with their prized DE being a consistent bright.

So again, one word: Dominant.

What will happen to Jameis Winston next?

The biggest question going around the NFL right now is what will happen to Jameis Winston next? First, we need to take you back to why this is even a question.

Sometime in March 2016, a female Uber driver responded to a request by Jameis Winston in Scottdale, Arizona. At the time Jameis Winston was said to be intoxicated and called the driver to make sure he made it home safely. Winston sat in the front seat with the Uber Driver as she took him on his route. During the trip, Winston and the driver stopped by a fast food restaurant. While both Winston and the driver were sitting in the drive-thru, Winston allegedly touched the female driver between her legs.

The female Uber driver then reported to Uber soon after the alleged situation happened. Uber quickly went into action by suspending Jameis Winston’s Uber account. However, Arizona Police claim that the female driver did not report the situation to them at the time that it happened.

The NFL sent a letter to the Uber driver in November of 2017, stating that they would begin to investigate the situation. The NFL also claims that since the Uber Driver reported the situation the night of, that it was credible and was enough to suspend Jameis Winston.

Fast forward to now, Jameis Winston has not touched a snap for the 2018 season. However a Quarterback has stepped up to fill-in the role as the starting quarterback. RYAN FITZPATRICK.

Ryan Fitzpatrick has started off the season with back to back 300+ yard games, as well as leading the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a 2-0 record. Under the play of Ryan Fitzpatrick, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are in 1st place in the NFC South division.

With Ryan Fitzpatrick coming into the season with the hot hand and teammates like Desean Jackson making remarks like “He’s been playing on fire right now. With the way the team is rallying behind him and just playing lights-out football, you have to kind of honor it. You know what I’m saying? You can’t take the hot man out. You got the hot fire right now. It’s like ‘NBA Jam’ – whoever’s got that hot fire shot, you got to keep shooting, man”, this makes it very hard for a suspended Winston to come back in as a starter.

With Desean Jackson having already the same amount of touchdowns as last season as well as having already 1/3 the amount of his total receiving yards last year, in only two games thus far. The Fitz-Magic and Jackson combination seems to be working very well.

So with Fitzpatrick hot and Jameis Winston suspended, what will the future hold for Winston?

Winston is in his last year of his contract, Tampa Bay however has place a $20,922,000 fifth year contract option on Jameis Winston for the 2019 season. From the looks of things however, it can be believed that Winston may not be returning in which he will become a free agent by 2020.

Ryan Fitzpatrick highlights Vs Philadelphia Eagles (9/16/18)

https://youtu.be/z8mBuMIl_bI