🐺 Wolf Sports Weekly

👀 This Sunday features a Super Bowl rematch, with the 49ers hosting the Chiefs at 4:25 PM ET on FOX. Now let’s get to news from the past week.

✈️ Jets fire Robert Saleh

A week ago today, the Jets fired head coach Robert Saleh after three-plus seasons as the team’s head coach. Saleh, who was 20-36 during his tenure (2-3 this season), was reportedly “blindsided” by the decision from team owner Woody Johnson to walk into his office and fire him on Tuesday morning.

• A report from Jordan Schultz says that Saleh was escorted out of the building by team security.

• However, Saleh released a statement stating that he’s “grateful” for the opportunity to coach the Jets.

• Defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich has taken over as the interim head coach, and one of his first decisions—with approval from Aaron Rodgers—was to demote offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett from play-calling duties, with Todd Downing now calling the plays.

Bottom line: It’s clear that Woody Johnson made this decision, hoping to give his squad—which did not look like a championship team despite preseason Super Bowl aspirations—a spark. And GM Joe Douglas, who has a 29-60 record at the helm, is undoubtedly on a scorching hot seat.

🦁 Lions dominate but lose Hutchinson

The highlight of Week 6 was the Lions totally dominating the Cowboys at AT&T Stadium, 47-9, in a game that included the offense basically doing whatever it wanted along with a third straight game with a trick play touchdown. However, the overwhelming four-sack, three-interception performance by the defense was sadly somewhat overshadowed by a devastating leg injury to star pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson. The former No. 2 overall pick suffered a fractured tibia and is fortunately expected to make a full recovery, according to the team—which is great news given how bad it looked.

Back to the positive news for Detroit, RB David Montgomery signed a two-year extension with the club ahead of his two touchdowns in the win at Dallas.

“We might as well play Sarcastaball if we’re going to call those things.” The Jets’ first game without Saleh was overlooked by 22 accepted penalties and 204 penalty yards in a 23-20 win by Buffalo. After the game, Aaron Rodgers called the officiating “ridiculous” (for both sides, noting that the roughing-the-passer call against him was clearly not roughing the passer).

To kick off the week on TNF, the 49ers got back on track with a 36-24 road win versus the Seahawks. Led by a balanced offensive attack, San Francisco put up 255 passing yards (including a 76-yard deep touchdown to Deebo Samuel) and 228 rushing yards—even with RB Jordan Mason (shoulder) playing just one snap in the second half. Deebo’s score made him the first receiver in NFL history to have 20+ rushing and 20+ receiving touchdowns in a career.

The Bears improved to 4-2 with an awesome game in London, beating the Jaguars by 19 points as rookie QB Caleb Williams threw four touchdowns (two to TE Cole Kmet, two to WR Keenan Allen). Williams is the first rookie quarterback No. 1 pick in the common-draft era to win four of his first six career starts, speaking to both his play and the uncommon situation he’s landed in with Chicago. Dating back to last season, the Bears defense has not allowed more than 21 points in 12 consecutive games. Meanwhile, the struggling Jaguars are in a rough spot at 1-5—and RB Travis Etienne Jr. (hamstring) is now week-to-week.

“2-0 with arrhythmias.” Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh had to leave the start of the Week 6 win at Denver because of an atrial flutter (heart issue), but he was able to return. Harbaugh’s Chargers built a 23-0 lead and ultimately held off the Broncos’ 16 fourth-quarter points for a big divisional win coming off their bye week. This was the second time Harbaugh had an atrial flutter during a game, as it also occurred back in 2012 when he was the head coach of the 49ers.

Other Week 6 results:

• Ravens 20, Commanders 23: Derrick Henry became the first player since LaDainian Tomlinson in 2005 to rush for a touchdown in each of his team’s first six games in a season, and Baltimore’s 1,232 rushing yards through six games are the most for a team since the Falcons in 2006.

• Buccaneers 51, Saints 27: Rookie QB Spencer Rattler (one touchdown, two interceptions) made some plays in his first career start, but the Bucs separated late sparked by a 55-yard catch-and-run score by WR Chris Godwin. Tampa Bay became just the fifth team in NFL history with 300+ passing yards and 275+ rushing yards in a game. Second-year RB Sean Tucker had a breakout performance with 192 total yards and two touchdowns.

• Packers 34, Cardinals 13: Jordan Love threw four touchdowns (including two to disgruntled WR Romeo Doubs in his return from a one-game suspension), and the Packers defense became the first unit since 2002 with multiple takeaways in each of their first six games.

• Texans 41, Patriots 21: Rookie QB Drake Maye was able to throw three touchdowns in his first career start, but the Houston defense sacked him four times and forced four turnovers on the road to improve to 5-1. Texans RB Joe Mixon starred in his return, with 132 total yards and two touchdowns.

• Eagles 20, Browns 16: Getting WRs A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith (one touchdown each) and RT Lane Johnson back in the lineup, Philadelphia was able to hold on for a tougher-than-expected win against the Browns. But head coach Nick Sirianni curiously had some words for the home crowd after the tight victory.

• Colts 20, Titans 17: QB Joe Flacco started again for Anthony Richardson (oblique), hitting WR Michael Pittman Jr. for the game-winning touchdown in middle of the fourth quarter. Indy is back up to .500 after the gritty road win, while Tennessee drops to 1-4.

• Steelers 32, Raiders 13: Riding 183 yards on the ground (including a powerful touchdown run by RB Najee Harris) and a playmaking defense, the Steelers took care of Vegas on the road and sit at 4-2 ahead of an intriguing AFC matchup with the Jets.

• Falcons 38, Panthers 20: Carolina hung around for a while, but Atlanta was ultimately too much and pulled away in the fourth. The Falcons got 200 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns combined from RBs Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier.

• Bengals 17, Giants 7: A late 30-yard touchdown run by RB Chase Brown made this score look more uneven than it showed on the field, with both the Bengals and Giants defenses playing very well in a down-to-the-wire defensive battle on Sunday night.

🔥 Top fantasy performers in Week 6

• Buccaneers RB Sean Tucker: 32.7 points

• Buccaneers WR Chris Godwin: 30.0 points

• Bears QB Caleb Williams: 28.64 points

• Texans RB Joe Mixon: 26.2 points

• Buccaneers QB Baker Mayfield: 25.9 points

(point totals are for half PPR scoring)

👀 Nick Chubb set to return?

Browns superstar RB Nick Chubb appears poised to make his season debut this Sunday against the Bengals, capping a lengthy return from his very bad September 2023 knee injury. He’s been practicing for the past couple of weeks and will reportedly be activated for Week 7. While the one-win Browns will almost certainly gradually work him back into full form, it’ll still be great to see one of the NFL’s best players back on the field.

Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel confirmed that QB Tua Tagovailoa is indeed expected to play again in 2024. McDaniel told reporters yesterday that they don’t know about the timeline. But Tua hasn’t had any concussion symptoms, and he’s eligible to return in Week 8.

And 49ers rookie WR Ricky Pearsall has returned to practice after he was shot over the summer.

As for the negative injury news, there’s a lot more to track from the past week:

• The Commanders lost DT Jonathan Allen and the Lions lost DT Kyle Peko for the year due to pectoral injuries.

• The Texans officially placed WR Nico Collins (hamstring) on IR ahead of Week 6, so he’s out until at least November 10.

• Saints QB Derek Carr, who missed the Week 6 loss to the Bucs, is expected to miss two or three more weeks with his oblique injury.

• Raiders star DT Christian Wilkins (foot) is out indefinitely after surgery.

• The Giants placed LB Kayvon Thibodeaux on IR ahead of Week 6 due to wrist surgery.

• Eagles LT Jordan Mailata (hamstring) is out for a couple of weeks.

• 49ers S Talanoa Hufanga is expected to miss about a month due to torn wrist ligaments.

• Running backs that are week-to-week: Jaguars RB Travis Etienne (hamstring), Vikings RB Aaron Jones (hip, though he might push to play Sunday), Titans RB Tyjae Spears (hamstring).

• The Chargers placed RB Gus Edwards (ankle) and CB Asante Samuel Jr. (shoulder) on IR, keeping them out until at least Week 10.

📰 More NFL news and notes

Rest in Peace: Abdul Salaam, a member of the “New York Sack Exchange” defense, passed away at 71. Pat Fischer, a 17-year cornerback and former All-Pro as a 17th round pick, died at 84.

Fired and hired. The holdout continues for Jets DE Haason Reddick, who was let go by his former agency CAA before hiring Drew Rosenhaus with the hope of coming to an agreement with New York.

The Seahawks acquired DL Roy Robertson-Harris from the Jaguars for a late 2026 draft pick.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell says there’s a possibility that a future Super Bowl is held outside of the United States.

The Eagles released veteran LB Devin White, who did not play a snap for the team after signing this summer.

Patriots S Jabrill Peppers has been placed on the Commissioner’s Exempt List following his recent arrest.

Texans DL Mario Edwards Jr. has been suspended four games for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy.

The Raiders placed TE Michael Mayer (personal) on the NFI list. He’s out until at least Week 11.

Vikings QB Sam Darnold is ineligble for Comeback Player of the Year due to the Associated Press clarifying the criteria for the award.

The Ravens brought on longtime former defensive coordinator Dean Pees in a senior advisory role.

Broncos Passing Game Specialist Zack Grossi began treatment for a recent cancer diagnosis and is getting strong support from the team.

Other Sports Updates

💔 North Carolina WR Tylee Craft passed away after a lengthy battle with cancer.

🏈 College football highlights:

• No. 3 Oregon defeated No. 2 Ohio State in a classic, 32-31.

• No. 4 Penn State came back to win at USC in overtime behind TE Tyler Warren’s 17 receptions for 224 yards and a touchdown on a trick play where he snapped the ball in an unbalanced line.

• No. 13 LSU beat No. 9 Ole Miss in overtime.

• Florida lost to No. 8 Tennessee in overtime, and they unfortunately lost QB Graham Mertz to a torn ACL.

🎾 Tennis legend Rafael Nadal is retiring from the sport at the end of the year. He won 22 Grand Slams including a record 14 French Opens in his career.

⚾️ MLB postseason: The Dodgers and Mets are tied after two games in the NLDS; the Yankees took Game 1 from the Guardians in the ALCS.

😕 Hurricane Milton destroyed the roof of Tropicana Field, the Tampa Bay Rays’ stadium.

🐺 Found on wolfsports.com

• Week 6 fantasy awards

• Fantasy ROS rankings (🔒)

• Week 7 waiver wire rankings (🔒)

• Latest college football power rankings