Burke Sports Talk

NFL Ravens 35, Giants 14 The NFL is a league of parity, but this matchup didn’t represent that. In a mismatch of great proportions, the Ravens had their way with the Giants, especially MVP candidate Lamar Jackson. Josh Allen is and should be the leader in the clubhouse for the award, but Baltimore’s quarterback is…

NCAAF New Mexico hires Jason Eck as head coach It’s hard to nitpick this hire. Eck has substantial ties out west and put together three strong seasons at Idaho. Bronco Mendenhall did a solid job in his first year in Albuquerque, but he bolted for Utah State, so the onus falls on Eck to continue…

NBA Heat receive: Second-round pick Pacers receive: C Thomas Bryant and second-round pick This transaction amounts to next to nothing, as Indiana receives an insurance policy at center in wake of multiple injuries at the position and Miami clears a roster spot. I suppose a trade like this works in favor of the aggressor —…

NFL Broncos sign OT Garett Bolles to four-year, $82 million contract extension Bolles is one of the better left tackles in the league, but at 32, I fear Denver is paying for past — not future — performance with this extension. Peaking in 2020 with a second-team All-Pro nod, Bolles is a standout pass blocker,…

NCAAF Tulane transfer QB Darian Mensah commits to Duke Out goes Maalik Murphy and in comes Mensah; quite an upgrade, I’d say. The former Green Wave signal-caller flashed immediately as a freshman, throwing for 2,723 yards, 22 touchdowns and six interceptions. It’s surprising that Mensah committed so quickly, but this is a massive addition for…

NFL Cowboys LB DeMarvion Overshown out for season with knee injury Overshown, a 2023 third-round pick, was starting to come along after missing his rookie season, but any further will progress will now have to wait. The Texas product recorded 90 tackles and five sacks on the year. Rookie Marist Liufau, who has struggled in…

NFL Panthers RB Jonathon Brooks out for season with torn right ACL What a bummer for Brooks. The rookie running back suffered the same injury in 2023 with Texas, and now he’ll face an even tougher road to recovery. The Panthers, too, obviously take a hit with this diagnosis. Brooks is on a four-year rookie…

NCAAF Florida International hires Willie Simmons as head coach Simmons most recently served as Duke’s running backs coach, but this is more of a bet by FIU on his tenure as Florida A&M’s head coach. With the Rattlers, Simmons went 45-13, and while that same level of success isn’t expected with the Panthers, a successful…

NCAAF Five-star DT Justus Terry commits to Texas Well, that was unexpected. Just about everyone predicted that Terry would commit to Georgia, adding an elite defensive lineman to yet another star-studded defensive class for Kirby Smart. In today’s recruiting climate, however, money talks, and Texas has plenty of it. As a result, the Longhorns add…

NFL Cowboys G Zack Martin out for season with ankle injury If this is it for the 34-year-old, it was an incredible run. Drafted in the first round of the 2014 draft, Martin was named first-team All-Pro seven times, anchoring multiple elite offensive lines for the Cowboys. Martin’s play regressed some this season, but he…

NCAAF Ball State hires Mike Uremovich as head coach It’s not always easy to peg whether a head coaching hire will work out or not — both Tom Herman to Texas and Scott Frost to Nebraska were considered no-brainer decisions — but I like Ball State’s process here. Uremovich has found success at both St.…

MLB Red Sox sign RP Aroldis Chapman to one-year, $10.75 million contract So teams are still doing the thing where they pay an aging Chapman too much money, eh? When his stuff is on, the 36-year-old can still be effective in the late innings, but Chapman has less room for error than he used to,…

NCAAF Appalachian State fires head coach Shawn Clark It’s jarring to see Appalachian State finish with a below .500 mark of 5-6, and apparently that was enough for the Mountaineers to let Clark go after six mostly successful seasons. The Appalachian State job is one of the better Sun Belt jobs, so the administration should…

NFL Bears fire head coach Matt Eberflus The Bears should’ve cleaned house — both front office and coaching staff — prior to last offseason, but better late than never. New quarterbacks, almost always, should initiate a regime change, and Chicago failed to adhere to that principle. Consequently, Caleb Williams and the franchise have undergone a…

NCAAF North Carolina fires head coach Mack Brown For North Carolina to move forward as a program, this had to happen. Brown did decent work in his second tenure with the Tar Heels, compiling a 44-32 mark, but progress wasn’t being made. This firing shouldn’t take away anything Brown accomplished, though, as the head coach…

NCAAF East Carolina names Blake Harrell head coach One of the most reactionary things a program can do is name an interim head coach the full-time head coach. It can be short sighted and impulsive, robbing a team of a thorough coaching search. East Carolina is doing just that in this situation, but it would’ve…

NCAAF Tulsa fires head coach Kevin Wilson Wilson, hired less than two years ago, didn’t last long with the Golden Hurricane. However, a change was needed, as 3-8 Tulsa is one of the worst teams in the FBS. Administration is touting a fresh start and a renewed financial commitment to the program, but I’ll believe…

NFL Chiefs sign OT D.J. Humphries to one-year, $4.5 million contract I’m surprised it took Humphries this long to sign. Perhaps he was waiting for the perfect landing spot. If so, the former Pro Bowler found it, as the Chiefs are a contender in need of an upgrade at left tackle. It’s somewhat of a…

NFL Browns 24, Steelers 19 A snow game! The 3-8 Browns are off track organizationally, but Cleveland is surely reveling in defeating a division rival. It didn’t come easy, though, as the Browns blew a fourth-quarter lead. Thankfully, Cleveland rosters one of the NFL’s top defenders in Myles Garrett. The edge rusher recorded three sacks…

NFL Jets fire general manager Joe Douglas A reset — a needed one — has commenced in Florham Park. Douglas was viewed as a virtual lock to lose this job after this season, but Woody Johnson is doing the prudent thing and moving on from the general manager early. There’s no question as to why.…