Deommodore Lenoir is staying in San Francisco for the long haul. The veteran cornerback has signed a five-year extension worth a reported $92 million contract with the 49ers, according to NFL Media. The team announced the deal on Thursday.
A 2021 fifth-round pick, Lenoir was in the final year of his rookie contract. He broke into the starting lineup in 2022 and has been a mainstay in the 49ers’ secondary ever since. Last year, Lenoir set career highs with three interceptions, 10 passes defensed and 84 tackles in 17 games. Through nine games this year, Lenoir has recorded his first career forced fumble in addition to two picks, six passes defended and 53 tackles.
Instead of hitting the open market next offseason, Lenoir will remain in San Francisco for the foreseeable future, much to the delight of 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan.
“Yeah, DMo’s been a stud,” Shanahan recently said of his young defensive back. “He is exactly what you want a 49er to play like. He came in his first rookie camp and stood out, got me fined for illegally jamming people too hard and putting it on the internet. So, I always mess with him for that.”
After concluding their final season as members of the AFL in 1969 with a 23-7 triumph over the Minnesota Vikings to win Super Bowl IV, the Kansas City Chiefs struggled to achieve similar success in the NFL for decades. They reached the AFC Championship Game just once in the first 48 years following the merger, but the emergence of Patrick Mahomes in 2018 drastically changed the team’s fortunes.
In Mahomes’ first season as its starting quarterback, Kansas City held a late lead against the New England Patriots in the conference title game but squandered it and lost 37-31 in overtime. The club has played in the AFC Championship Game every year since, winning four of its last five appearances and going to capture the Vince Lombardi Trophy three times.
The Chiefs edged the San Francisco 49ers 25-22 in overtime last February to become the ninth team to win back-to-back Super Bowls. They now are looking to accomplish a feat last achieved by the Green Bay Packers from 1929-31: win three consecutive NFL titles.
Before they are able to reach that level of dominance, another rare feat is in their sights. Kansas City enters its Week 11 matchup against the Buffalo Bills with a 9-0 record and are aiming to join the 1972 Miami Dolphins (14-0) and 2007 New England Patriots (16-0) as the only teams in the Super Bowl era to go undefeated during the regular season.
Miami went on to win its three playoff games in 1972, but after winning its first two postseason contests, New England suffered a 17-14 loss to the New York Giants in Super Bowl XLII, preventing it from achieving total perfection. The Chicago Bears went 13-0 in 1934 and 11-0 in 1942 but lost in the NFL Championship Game both years.
The Chiefs are the 34th team in league history and 22nd since the merger to win its first nine games. This is the third time the franchise has begun a season with a 9-0, as it also did so in both 2003 and 2013 – the latter being Andy Reid’s first campaign as its head coach.
Those two streaks both ended on the road, with Kansas City losing at Cincinnati in 2003 and Denver in 2013. That does not bode well for its chances of improving to 10-0 when it visits Buffalo on Sunday.
Since Week 17 of the 2023 season and including the playoffs, the Chiefs have posted a franchise-record 15 consecutive victories. While that is an amazing accomplishment, 12 of those wins were by eight points or fewer – including seven of their nine triumphs this campaign.
Kansas City has a plus-58 point differential in 2024, which is the worst mark for a 9-0 team in NFL history. According to the SportsLine Projection Model, it is the equivalent for a team with three losses at this point.
This is one of the reasons the model, which simulates every NFL game 10,000 times and is up well over $7,000 for $100 players on top-rated NFL picks since its inception, currently gives the Chiefs a 2% chance to go undefeated this season. That percentage increases with every additional victory Kansas City records, as a win in Buffalo raises it to 5.4%.
Should the Chiefs then defeat their following four opponents (Carolina Panthers, Las Vegas Raiders, Los Angeles Chargers, Cleveland Browns), the model’s simulations say they’ll go undefeated 19.9% of the time. A triumph over the Houston Texans in Week 16 has the outlook for a perfect regular season at 28.8%, and if the club pulls out a road victory against the Pittsburgh Steelers the following week, it will enter the finale at Denver with a 60% chance to finish with a 17-0 record.
More importantly for Kansas City is earning the No. 1 seed in the conference. Sure, the club proved it was able to win on the road in the playoffs last year by recording victories in Buffalo and Baltimore, but being able to host postseason games is what teams strive to do.
Sunday’s showdown between the Chiefs and Bills will go a long way toward determining who will have home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. Buffalo enters with an 8-2 record and would pull within one-half game of the Chiefs in the AFC standings with a win.
The model says Kansas City currently has a 65.4% chance of being the top seed in the conference, and it would increase to 91.6% with a triumph over the Bills. A loss would put the Chiefs’ prospects at 52.5%, but Buffalo’s only would improve from 25.2% currently to 37.1% with a victory on Sunday.
A loss by the Bills would see their chances plummet to 2.1%. Including their meeting in the divisional round last postseason, the Chiefs have won their last four trips to Buffalo, which also gives them confidence as they look to become the 19th team to get off to a 10-0 start in the Super Bowl era.
The model is calling for a close contest between the Chiefs and Bills on Sunday. And it is one of the five games with A-grade picks based on model simulations for the 11th week of the season. You can find those top-tier Week 11 NFL picks at SportsLine.
The Buffalo Bills have had to play the last two weeks without their marquee trade-deadline acquisition. Wide receiver Amari Cooper has been dealing with a wrist injury and he missed the Bills’ victories over the Miami Dolphins and Indianapolis Colts. Buffalo was able to weather his absence and score 30 points in both games, but it could certainly use him back in the mix this coming Sunday against the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs.
Lucky for them, then, that Cooper feels like he can get back on the field for that game.
“Definitely feeling better. Definitely more comfortable,” Cooper said, via the Batavia Daily News. “So, just ready to play football again.”
Cooper has been listed as limited in practices this week, and has been wearing a cast on his wrist that he would play with on Sunday, provided that he can give it a go. He spoke about how it felt to wear that cast while practicing.
“It felt good,” Cooper said. “Like I said, I don’t really feel pain or anything catching the ball. I’ve just got to get used to it — catching the ball with it.”
Cooper played just two games in Buffalo prior to his injury, catching five passes for 69 yards and a touchdown while playing limited snaps. With rookie wideout Keon Coleman still out with an injury of his own and tight end Dalton Kincaid missing Wednesday’s practice, the Bills could be forced to thrust Cooper into a significantly larger role than the one he had before he went down. Against a stingy Kansas City secondary, he’d have his work cut out for him either way.
Week 11 marks a historic moment for the NFL, especially among contending teams: For the first time ever, a regular-season slate will include three different games in which every team enters with at least seven wins. All three matchups — Washington Commanders vs. Philadelphia Eagles, Baltimore Ravens vs. Pittsburgh Steelers, Kansas City Chiefs vs. Buffalo Bills — profile as potential playoff previews.
Which of the six mightiest clubs squaring off in Week 11 is best-positioned to go the distance? Here, we’re ranking all of them by projected win totals and Super Bowl chances, plus offering the biggest reasons to believe — or doubt — their shot at lifting the ultimate trophy.
Note: Projected win totals are courtesy of SportsLine, then rounded up or down to an even record. Super Bowl chances are also courtesy of SportsLine simulations.
Kansas City Chiefs Record: 9-0 | Projected Wins: 14 | Super Bowl: 17.8%
Reason to be skeptical: They’re winning almost exclusively on the margins. Which is a testament to their clutch composure, but still makes sustained success rather difficult. We’ve now gone basically two years since Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce were consistently explosive rather than scrappy. Reason to believe: It’s the Chiefs. While Mahomes and Co. may not be blowing teams out, they almost never fold when it matters most. It’s why no one is even remotely surprised they’re in the running for a three-peat. Steve Spagnuolo’s defense also remains tenacious.
Reason to be skeptical: Josh Allen can play superhero, but for how long? While the Bills have actually enjoyed a fair amount of complementary football this year, they’re now nursing injuries across their remade skill group, including to newcomers Amari Cooper and Keon Coleman. Reason to believe: For all the hubbub about Allen losing his top two pass targets during the offseason, the offense has been humming at a reasonable rate. Sean McDermott’s defense also registers as a top-10 scoring unit. The talent does, in fact, appear to be present for a deep run.
Reason to be skeptical: Forget Lamar Jackson’s underwhelming track record in the playoffs. His defensive support has been almost completely lacking this year sans coordinator Mike Macdonald. Only five teams are giving up more yards, and only seven are surrendering more points. Reason to believe: Lamar Jackson. Playoff record aside, the reigning MVP is well on track to repeat as the NFL’s top-awarded playmaker, combining his signature rushing electricity with career-best aerial accuracy. Throw in the bruising Derrick Henry, and their offense is a machine.
Washington Commanders Record: 7-3 | Projected Wins: 12 | Super Bowl: 6.5%
Reason to be skeptical: Even with rookie Jayden Daniels’ sterling debut, the Commanders have been fairly one-dimensional out wide, with Terry McLaurin serving as the only steady threat on the perimeter. Daniels has also yet to see the playoff stage, and Washington’s schedule has been quite favorable. Reason to believe: It’s hard to overstate Daniels’ magic, when he’s on his game. His dual-threat smoothness has instilled a confidence in this club not seen for years. Dan Quinn’s defense has also turned a corner, registering as borderline top 10 even with star acquisition Marshon Lattimore injured.
Philadelphia Eagles Record: 7-2 | Projected Wins: 12 | Super Bowl: 4.2%
Reason to be skeptical: Their five-game win streak has come mostly at the expense of battered, inferior opponents, allowing a once-derided pass rush to feast on replacement-level quarterbacks. Coach Nick Sirianni and quarterback Jalen Hurts have also shown some ill-timed decision-making. Reason to believe: Hurts and Sirianni have seemingly put the ugly offense of late 2023 and early 2024 behind them, feeding Saquon Barkley, A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith to the tune of four straight 28-point showings. That talent is nearly unmatched. And Vic Fangio’s defense has a legit physical edge.
Reason to be skeptical: We’re only three games into Russell Wilson’s ride as the new QB1, and while he’s opened up the passing game, his downfield success has largely stemmed from a “chuck-it-and-pray” approach. His skill group, meanwhile, has proven to be quite boom-or-bust in the past. Reason to believe: Maligned as he may have been after an ugly Denver Broncos tenure, Wilson seems to have rediscovered his old play-action form, giving the Steelers a big-play punch they’ve lacked for years. Mike Tomlin’s defense also remains feisty as ever, especially up front.
FRISCO, Texas — It’s safe to say the 2024 NFL season hasn’t gone as planned for the 3-6 Dallas Cowboys, losers of four games in a row.
Quarterback Dak Prescott, the 2023 NFL MVP runner-up, is out for the season after undergoing surgery on his injured hamstring in New York. Cornerback DaRon Bland, the 2023 NFL interceptions leader, has yet to play this season while recovering from a stress fracture in his foot. Dallas’ defensive end depth has been decimated by numerous injuries. The offensive line has been up and down while working in rookies at left tackle (first-round pick Tyler Guyton) and center (third-round pick Cooper Beebe).
Another element of the 2024 Cowboys that has failed to launch through the first half of the season is their ground game. Dallas is averaging the second-fewest rushing yards per game this season (83.7) while operating under the running back by committee approach. They have cycled through veteran undrafted free agent Rico Dowdle (83 carries), late-career Ezekiel Elliott (54 carries), late-career Dalvin Cook (eight carries) and have also sprinkled in wide receiver CeeDee Lamb (11 carries).
When asked Thursday about Dowdle’s importance, especially through the lens of slowing down the Houston Texans pass rush led by 2023 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Will Anderson Jr. and four-time Pro Bowler Danielle Hunter, Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy planted his flag on a true, RB1 for the first time in 2024. He’s chosen the 26-year-old Dowdle.
“Definitely, you have to get him the ball,” McCarthy said about Dowdle. “That’s my focus to continue to get him opportunities. He’s the lead back. I thought he had a really good first half [against the Eagles], and I think that’s really illustrated by the attempts. Rico needs to touch the ball.”
Dowdle appreciated the vote of confidence from his head coach.
“It means a lot coming from Coach McCarthy,” Dowdle said Thursday. “Showing that they got confidence, and they trusted me as the starting running back of the Dallas Cowboys. I take that with great pride. That’s a good accomplishment coming from my situation, undrafted and all the adversity I’ve been through. Definitely take pride and love hearing that from Coach McCarthy.”
Dowdle went undrafted out of the University of South Carolina in 2020, and he was buried on the depth chart for years behind both Elliott and Tony Pollard, who left this past offseason to sign with the Tennessee Titans in free agency. Dallas not drafting a running back high in the last two drafts also let Dowdle know that he had a legit chance to ascend the depth chart. In 2023, he had the No. 2 spot on the depth chart after a few years of being the No. 3. He also overcame a broken hip he suffered in 2021 and now leads the team in rushing yards (374) and carries (83) while also leading Cowboys running backs in yards per carry (4.5).
“Undrafted to now being the starting running back for America’s Team,” Dowdle said. “Definitely, I take great pride in that. … That [injuries] was one of my things that was hindering me I guess when I broke my hip two, three years ago. Definitely gratifying. I’ve always had confidence that I would be able to go out there and get the job done. I knew I could go out there and do it. It was just a matter of when and staying healthy throughout it all when I do get those opportunities.”
Dowdle is also one of three running backs in the entire NFL this season with three receiving touchdowns, along with Miami Dolphins speedster De’Von Achane (three) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Rachaad White (four). His three receiving touchdowns are the most for a Cowboys running back through the first nine games of a season since Pro Football Hall of Famer’s Emmitt Smith’s three back in the first nine games of the 1996 season.
Dowdle first got a taste of what it’s like to be a lead back in Week 5 on “Sunday Night Football” at the Pittsburgh Steelers. In Dallas’ 20-17 victory, Dallas totaled a career-high 87 rushing yards on a career-high 20 carries while also catching a 22-yard receiving touchdown. He feels confident his body can hold up with that type of workload on a regular basis.
“Yeah, for sure,” Dowdle said when asked if he can be a 20-carry back regularly. “In my past, it was all about the injuries and things like that, but now I feel that I’ve got my body in the best shape and best position possible for me. So I definitely think I can go out there and operate at a high level of consistency.”
There was a social media controversy among Cowboys fans that Dowdle wasn’t really sick in Week 6 at the San Francisco 49ers, a 30-24 loss, and that the reason he was inactive with Cook being active for the first time was so that Elliott didn’t have to be scratched. However, Dowdle debunked that theory by confirming he really had a fever and indicated that he knew the lead back role was coming his way even then.
“I knew before the game. We talk about the game plan and stuff throughout the week, and the past couple of weeks has been trending in that direction of me getting more carries and things like that,” Dowdle said. “I definitely knew and definitely didn’t want to miss that one. I think I could have helped out.
The last two weeks after Dowdle was inactive at the 49ers with a fever, he’s been efficient in defeats at the Atlanta Falcons and against the Philadelphia Eagles: He’s totaled 128 rushing yards on 24 carries for an effective 5.3 yards per carry.
“Yeah, Rico’s running hard. He’s running fast, running hard,” Cowboys fill-in starting quarterback Cooper Rush said on Thursday. “He broke a couple long ones there for us last week. He’s been doing that all year. He’s been consistent, and we look forward to every time he touches it.”
Now that he is THE guy in the back, Dowdle is thrilled about the opportunity to find more of a rhythm in the second half of the season with Dallas desperately needing to end their four-game losing streak to avoid falling further down the NFC standings. To do so, he’ll have to overcome Houston’s 11th-ranked run defense that allows 113.3 rushing yards per game and ranks ninth in defensive rushing expected points added (27.0).
“The committee approach was something that wasn’t working for us, so I stood firm on wanting to find that rhythm since the beginning,” Dowdle said. “You want to be able able to get out there and get the bulk of the carries and find that rhythm. … It’s all about finding that rhythm. A lot of times when you’re going in and only getting a handful [of carries], you find yourself trying to make that big play. Chase that big play all the time because you might not be getting as many reps. It’s about finding that rhythm, and I think that helps a guy like me. I think I get stronger as the game goes.”
A big-time NFC East showdown on Thursday Night Football features the Philadelphia Eagles (7-2) hosting the Washington Commanders (7-3). The Eagles are one of the hottest teams in the league right now, winning five straight games. Last week, Philadelphia crushed the Dallas Cowboys, 34-6. Meanwhile, Washington had its three-game win streak come to an end. Last Sunday, the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Commanders, 28-27.
Kickoff from Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia is set for 8:15 p.m. ET. Philadelphia is a four-point favorite in the latest Commanders vs. Eagles odds from the SportsLine Consensus, while the over/under for total points scored is 49.5. The Eagles are -216 money-line favorites (risk $216 to win $100), while the Commanders are +179 underdogs (risk $100 to win $179). Before locking in any Eagles vs. Commanders picks, make sure to check out the NFL predictions and betting advice from the SportsLine expert Larry Hartstein, considering his mastery of picks involving Washington.
A former lead writer for Covers and The Linemakers, Hartstein combines a vast network of Vegas sources with an analytical approach he honed working for Pro Football Focus. He tied for 52nd place (out of 1,598 entries) in the 2022 Westgate Las Vegas SuperContest, going 53-34-3 ATS. Hartstein’s weekly Vegas contest selections form the basis of his NFL best bets column, which is 79-48-2 (62.2%, +25.95 units) since its inception in 2022. He’s also 33-15-1 (+1626) on his last 49 ATS NFL picks involving the Commanders. Anyone following at sportsbooks and on betting apps has seen strong returns.
Now, Hartstein has locked in on Commanders vs. Eagles and just revealed his coveted NFL picks and predictions. You can head to SportsLine now to see his picks. Here are several NFL odds and NFL betting lines for Eagles vs. Commanders:
Commanders vs. Eagles spread: Philadelphia -4 Commanders vs. Eagles over/under: 49.5 points Commanders vs. Eagles money line: Philadelphia -216, Washington +179 WAS: Commanders ate 7-2 against the spread this season PHI: Eagles are 5-4 against the spread this season Commanders vs. Eagles picks: See picks at SportsLine Why the Eagles can cover Philadelphia heads into this game ranked sixth in the league in total offense (373.9) and scoring offense (25.9) but second in rushing offense (176.1). Running back Saquon Barkley has paid major dividends for the offense. Barkley is dynamic as both a ball-carrier and receiver. He’s second in the NFL in carries (171) and rushing yards (991) and is tied for eighth in rushing touchdowns (6). Barkley also has 21 receptions for 158 receiving yards. He has surpassed 100 rushing yards in four of his last five games.
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Why the Commanders can cover Washington is fourth in total offense (377) and rushing offense (153.5) and third in scoring offense (29.0). Rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels has a quick release and owns a strong touch on his downfield passes. The LSU product is 11th in the league in passing yards (2,147) with nine passing touchdowns and completing 68% of his throws. Additionally, he has 464 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns. Daniels has thrown for at least 200 yards and rushed for 25 yards in six games.
Receiver Terry McLaurin is the main weapon in the passing attack. McLaurin has deep speed and body control. The 29-year-old is third in the NFL in receiving yards (711) and tied for fourth in receiving touchdowns (6). He has finished with at least 100 receiving yards in four outings. See who to back at SportsLine.
How to make Commanders vs. Eagles picks Hartstein has analyzed Commanders vs. Eagles from every possible angle, and while we can tell you he’s leaning Under the total, he has also discovered a critical X-factor that has him jumping all over one side of the spread. Find out what it is, and which team to back, at SportsLine.
