Special Edition: Touchdown call the amateurs

Fluff those couch cushions and stock up on your fave snacks — the NFL regular season runs from tonight’s kickoff through January 5th.

In terms of league setup, the NFL’s 32 teams are divided into two conferences: the National Football Conference (NFC) and the American Football Conference (AFC), which are further split into four divisions each — North, South, East, and West.

• Those 32 teams play 17 regular-season games over 18 action-packed weeks (every squad has one bye week), squaring off against each divisional rival twice.

• And these rivalries run deep, especially considering each division winner automatically qualifies for the postseason, along with the next three best teams in each conference, making up the 14-team playoff field.

The reason for the season? The Super Bowl, of course. Super Bowl LIX (aka 59) is slated for Sunday, February 9th, and will be hosted at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, home of the New Orleans Saints. Consider this your sign to ask for February 10th off work now.

The season setup might be the same, but this year’s teams look pretty different after an offseason chock full of movement. Here are four impact players who’ll be rocking new threads this fall:

Derrick Henry, running back (RB), Baltimore Ravens: Among the plethora of RBs who found a new home this offseason, King Henry’s arguably the biggest name. At 30 years old, the four-time Pro Bowler hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down, amassing a league-best 3K yards over the last two seasons combined.

Saquon Barkley, RB, Philadelphia Eagles: After spending six seasons riddled by injury behind a mediocre-at-best NY Giants offensive line, Barkley turned heads when he signed with the Giants’ division rival. Now, Barkley is poised to put together a monster season with the loaded Birds…if he can stay healthy.

Stefon Diggs, wide receiver (WR), Houston Texans: A blockbuster trade to the Lone Star State ended Diggs’ four-year tenure with the Buffalo Bills, a stretch that finished on a slightly sour note. Now alongside 2023’s offensive rookie of the year, quarterback (QB) C.J. Stroud, Diggs has the talent to push the ascending Texans over the top.

Russell Wilson, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers: It’s been a difficult couple of seasons for Ciara’s hubby as there wasn’t much cooking happening during Wilson’s two years with the Denver Broncos. Now in Steel City, the nine-time Pro Bowler’s secured the starting job — beating out fellow Pittsburgh newbie, Justin Fields — for now…

And the mayhem continued with eight teams hiring new head coaches over the summer. From the rebuilding New England Patriots’ first-time bench boss Jerod Mayo to the new-era Washington Commanders wiley veteran Dan Quinn, there will be lots of new faces helming the sideline in Week 1.

Kansas City Chiefs, AFC West: With three titles in the last five seasons, football’s newest dynasty is on the hunt for the league’s first-ever three-peat. Born in 1989, tight end (TE) Travis Kelce’s inching closer to the dreaded cliff, but so long as QB Patrick Mahomes is slinging behind-the-back passes, KC’s the one to beat.

Baltimore Ravens, AFC North: The Ravens were considered the AFC’s best for most of last season but couldn’t upend Kansas City in the conference championship. Can two-time league MVP QB Lamar Jackson finally lead the Ravens back to the promised land? Adding the aforementioned King Henry to the lineup should certainly help.

San Francisco 49ers, NFC West: The perennial bridesmaid Niners have advanced to the conference championship four times in the last five seasons but haven’t managed to bring the Vince Lombardi trophy back to the Bay, even with the likes of superstar RB Christian McCaffrey and WR Deebo Samuel gracing the lineup.

• With the same core running it back this year, anything short of winning the franchise’s elusive sixth Super Bowl will be a disappointment — hey, at least they’ll never go out of style.

Detroit Lions, NFC North: After winning just three games three seasons ago, the Lions’ glow-up has been nothing short of spectacular since head coach Dan Campbell and QB Jared Goff took the reins in 2021, leading them to the conference championship last season.

• Now, buoyed by the best offensive line in football, RB Jahmyr Gibbs and TE Sam LaPorta are poised to build on stellar rookie campaigns alongside All-Pro WR Amon-Ra St. Brown.

Joe Burrow, QB, Cincinnati Bengals: From starting last season with a calf strain to tearing ligaments in his wrist weeks later, 2023 was not kind to the Bengals signal-caller. That said, when the real Slim Shady Burrow is at his best, he’s exceptional — calm, cool, and collected under pressure with pinpoint accuracy. The perfect QB combo.

• Other QBs to watch: Tua Tagovailoa (pronounced TUNG-oh-vy-low-ah — Miami Dolphins), Josh Allen (Buffalo Bills), Jordan Love (Green Bay Packers)

Bijan Robinson, RB, Atlanta Falcons: Robinson was electric in his first season in Atlanta, finishing with 1,463 yards from scrimmage and easily putting himself in the league’s top-10 RBs as a rookie. With a new offensive coordinator, a better QB in Kirk Cousins, and a year of experience under his belt, expect Robinson to put some extra mustard on his stats this year.

• Other RBs to watch: Breece Hall (NY Jets), Kyren Williams (LA Rams), Jonathan Taylor (Indianapolis Colts)

CeeDee Lamb, WR, Dallas Cowboys: After a month-long hold out, Lamb secured the bag, inking a four-year, $136M extension. And it’s money well spent: Lamb snagged a league-best 135 receptions last year, only dropping six passes all season. A good sign for the ’Boys, who need reliability above all else if they want to make their first Super Bowl appearance in nearly three decades.

• Other WRs to watch: Justin Jefferson (Minnesota Vikings), Puka Nacua (LA Rams), Jaylen Waddle (Miami Dolphins)

George Kittle, TE, San Francisco 49ers: All four teams in the conference championships last season had top-tier TEs, but Kittle might be the best among them. Not only does he reel in impressive grabs on the regular, he’s also an exceptional blocker — his ability to do both is what makes him the best in the biz.

• Other TEs to watch: Mark Andrews (Baltimore Ravens), Dallas Goedert (Philadelphia Eagles), Trey McBride (Arizona Cardinals)

As mentioned, the gridiron gauntlet begins in Kansas City tonight at 8:20 p.m. ET with the reigning champs kicking off their pursuit of a three-peat against the Ravens on NBC in the U.S. and DAZN and TSN in Canada.

• The action continues on Friday with the first-ever NFL game in Brazil, followed by a full slate of games on Sunday.

• Week 1 action wraps up with the first Monday Night Football showdown of the year as QB Aaron Rodgers makes his return from last season’s Achilles tear when the NY Jets take on the 49ers at 8:15 p.m. ET. Are you ready for some football?

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