Santa Clara, CA - September 12, 2016 - Levi's Stadium: Todd Gurley (30) of the Los Angeles Rams during a regular season Monday Night Football game (Photo by Scott Clarke / ESPN Images)
Two of the pleasant surprises of the NFL season are the Los Angeles Rams and Minnesota Vikings. Both teams sit at 7-2 and will meet up this weekend in what could be a playoff preview.
Led by quarterback Jared Goff and running back Todd Gurley, the Rams lead the league in scoring (32.9) and have the No. 3 offense (388.9 yards per game). The Vikings lost Sam Bradford for the season, but Case Keenum has filled in well, helping Minnesota to its current five-game winning streak.
The picks are getting close with Jason Romano and Jason Ackerman leading with seven wins, while Justin Adams is one-game behind.
Jason Romano: Minnesota Vikings 24 – Los Angeles Rams 20 – Both teams are playing great football, but I like the Vikings to win this simply because they’re playing at home. I expect a big game from the Vikings defense.
UPSET (PHI -4.5): Dallas Cowboys 30 – Philadelphia Eagles 27 – I’ve been terrible on my upset picks, but I’m going with Dallas at home to right the ship and hand Philadelphia just their second loss of the season. They’ll need Tyron Smith to play, and if he does, I think the Cowboys do enough to get the W.
Justin Adams: Los Angeles Rams 23 – Minnesota Vikings 20 – Jared Goff is on fire. He has thrown for seven touchdown passes in the last two games. Minnesota will be able to attack the Rams below-average rush defense, but Goff will be too much to handle and lead the Rams to another road victory.
UPSET (SEA -3): Atlanta Falcons 27 – Seattle Seahawks 24 – The loss of Richard Sherman will begin to show on Monday night against the Falcons. Matt Ryan will find Julio Jones several times in the end zone. Also, Falcons head coach Dan Quinn formerly coached the Seahawks famed cover 3 defense.
Jon Ackerman: Los Angeles Rams 24 – Minnesota Vikings 21 – The Rams boast the NFL’s No. 1 scoring offense (32.9 ppg), No. 3 scoring defense (18.0 ppg), lead the league in takeaways (19), and have yet to lose on the road. I think that carries them to a win in Minnesota.
UPSET (PHI -4.5): Dallas Cowboys 27 – Philadelphia Eagles 25 – The Cowboys shouldn’t win because they’ll be without Ezekiel Elliot, but logic can be ignored in divisional rivalries. I think they get the upset at home over an Eagles team not quite accustomed to being the best team in the NFL.
Last Week’s Game of the Week Pick Recap: New Orleans Saints vs Buffalo Bills
Jason Romano: Buffalo Bills 27 – New Orleans Saints 24
Justin Adams: Buffalo Bills 27 – New Orleans Saints 24
Jon Ackerman: New Orleans Saints 30 – Buffalo Bills 17
Actual Result: New Orleans Saints 47 – Buffalo Bills 10
Malik Willis warms up for the Packers before a game, Dec. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Day 1 of the NFL free-agent frenzy is in the books, and one of the more intriguing storylines is the Miami Dolphins’ signing of quarterback Malik Willis. The 26-year-old former third-round pick agreed to contract terms with the Dolphins on Monday, just hours after the team released former QB Tua Tagovailoa.
According to ESPN, Willis’ deal is worth $67.5 million over three years, with $45 million fully guaranteed.
Willis continued later, “I’m just trying to take advantage of every opportunity I can get. … I’m just trying to go [to Miami] and do what I can to help them do some special things. And that’s taking it one day at a time, putting the work in and seeing where the chips fall.”
Much love and respect to packer nation supporting us and me the past 2 years! It has been awesome upholding the standard for the green and gold 🧀. It has been more than a blessing and i will never forget my time here and the relationships I made! Fins Up 🐬 Matthew 6:33-34 But… pic.twitter.com/iybRtdRKCE
Willis was selected 86th overall by the Titans out of Liberty University in 2022 but struggled to adjust to the NFL, appearing in 11 games over two seasons (starting three games). He threw three interceptions with no touchdowns in 66 total attempts over that span, but did run for a score as a rookie.
Tennessee traded the 6-foot-1, 225-pounder to Green Bay just before the start of the 2024 season, and in the green and gold, Willis revived his career.
While still a backup and appearing in only 11 games over the past two seasons, Willis threw six touchdowns without an interception and completed 78.7% of his passes for 972 yards. He also rushed for three TDs on 42 attempts. In 2024, Willis started two games in place of QB1 Jordan Love and was impressive in leading the Packers to two wins. Willis relieved Love again in a game later that season and engineered a game-winning drive. Willis continued to impress in limited time last year (four games, one start), setting himself up for the big payday he just received with the Dolphins.
At the end of last season, Willis expressed gratitude to God in an Instagram post, and he again included the Bible passage Matthew 6:33-34.
It appears Willis may get another opportunity to be a full-time starter in Miami in 2026. Expectations are certainly high for him, but it’s nothing he hasn’t experienced before. He received similar praise entering his senior year at Liberty in 2021, and he sought to stay humble at that time by rooting himself in the Lord.
“I choose to always give the glory to Him,” Willis said in the Fall 2021 edition of Sports Spectrum Magazine. “People say I’m humble, but I don’t really know if it’s humble. It’s just very, very obedient, knowing that it’s not me at all. … You’re using the abilities that God gives you and go out there and glorify His name and try to spread the Gospel.”
Willis has been seen praying on the field on numerous occasions, and he often wears eye black in the shape of a cross during games. Many of his posts on Instagram and X reference his faith as well.
“No matter how long we live, we will never know what God has going on for our lives, so we’ve just got to lean on Him — ask for wisdom and the strength to get through it,” Willis told Sports Spectrum. “That’s what I ask for the most: wisdom and strength to get through it.
“Wisdom to try to not fully understand because we’ll never fully understand what He has for us, but just understand what I need to be doing at the moment, what I need to be doing to prepare myself. And the strength to get through it mentally and physically.”
Trusting fully in God’s good plan for his life, Willis may make a much-anticipated return to Green Bay’s famed Lambeau Field this fall. Times and dates are not yet available for the 2026 NFL schedule, but the Dolphins are slated to play a road game against the Packers.
Arkansas QB Taylen Green runs the 40-yard dash, Feb. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
Records continued to fall on Saturday as quarterback Taylen Green made his way through the drills at the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. The former Arkansas Razorback, who measured in at 6-foot-5⅞ and 227 pounds, set quarterback records in the 40-yard dash, the vertical jump and the broad jump.
ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. listed Green as the No. 8 quarterback prospect in his latest position rankings released on Feb. 23, but that may change after Saturday’s performance.
The long-strided 23-year-old blistered his way to a 4.36-second 40-yard dash, the first quarterback to run under 4.4 seconds in the drill since at least 2003. Robert Griffin III set the previous record (4.41) in 2012.
Green’s explosiveness was also on display in his jumps, recording a 43.5-inch vertical and an 11-foot-2 broad jump, both combine records for quarterbacks since at least 2003. Current Indianapolis Colt Anthony Richardson Sr. set both records (40.5-inch vertical, 10-foot-9 broad jump) in 2023.
.@RazorbackFB QB Taylen Green just shattered the QB vertical jump record.
On Green’s left wrist as he competed was a red bracelet with the words “He Must Increase” and “John 3:30,” a Bible verse that says, “He must increase, but I must decrease” (ESV).
After his record-setting day wrapped up, Green was interviewed on the field by NFL Network and was asked a question about his fiancée, Analisse Batista, a track and field athlete at Arkansas. The interviewer described her as the most important person in Green’s life, but he responded with a slight correction.
“First, the most important Person in my life is Jesus Christ,” Green said with a smile, then listed his parents as second. “… [Batista is] gonna be second once we get the ring on.”
He went on to explain that she was competing that day as well, at the SEC Indoor Track and Field Championships, and he was eager to get off the field to watch her. And as it turns out, she may have had an even better day than him; she set a personal best on the way to a victory in the 800-meter final, and she was part of the Razorback quartet that won the 4×400-meter relay.
Green and Batista got to know each other as student-athletes at Arkansas, where Green quarterbacked the Razorbacks in 2024 and 2025 after transferring from Boise State. He led Arkansas to a Liberty Bowl victory against Texas Tech in December 2024. Arkansas struggled to a 2-10 campaign in 2025, but the Lewisville, Texas, native threw for 2,714 yards and a career-best 19 touchdowns with 11 interceptions. He also ran for a career-high 777 yards and eight touchdowns.
In January, Green was invited to the Senior Bowl, where he completed two of his four passes. He also sat down with Sports Spectrum at the event to talk about faithfully handling the disappointments of a 2-10 season, as well as the benefits of prayer.
“That’s really a big thing,” he said, “just giving it to God. Any worries, anxieties, things that I’m going through.”
Green appeared as a guest on the Sports Spectrum Podcast in August 2024, during the lead-up to his first season with Arkansas.
“[Jesus is] everything to me,” Green said to begin the conversation. “I start my day with Him and end my day with Him. I’m just blessed to have a family that taught me to always keep Him first when I was just even a little kid.”
He explained that his father held him accountable for his prayer life, and his sister influenced him to spend more time studying God’s Word. It was in college that God drew Green into a deeper relationship with Himself.
“Without Jesus, I’m nothing,” he said on the podcast. “Without His love and His care and His guidance just going through my whole life — the ups and downs that I’ve been through — He’s the only Truth and the Way to help me through.”
Green and hundreds of other NFL hopefuls are working hard to position themselves for the 2026 NFL Draft, which will take place in Pittsburgh from April 23-25.
Benjamin Watson with Matt Forte at Super Bowl Media Row in February 2026. (Photo by Sports Spectrum)
THIS IS THE SPORTS SPECTRUM PODCAST WITH MATT FORTE, FEATURING BENJAMIN WATSON
Benjamin Watson played 16 seasons in the NFL (2004-19) with the New England Patriots, Cleveland Browns, New Orleans Saints and Baltimore Ravens. He won a Super Bowl in 2004-05 with the Patriots and played in another with New England in 2007-08.
He is also the author of three books and a college football analyst with the SEC Network.
Today on the podcast, Benjamin joins Matt Forte from Super Bowl Media Row in San Francisco to talk about overseas mission trips, Biblical justice and raising kids to follow Jesus.
Bills safety Damar Hamlin gets baptized by team chaplain Len Vanden Bos (right) and teammate Christian Benford. (Photo courtesy Len Vanden Bos)
The night of Jan. 2, 2023, changed Damar Hamlin’s life forever. A little more than three years later, the Buffalo Bills safety experienced another life-changing moment — in a very different way — when he decided to get baptized.
On Jan. 9, surrounded by family and members of the Bills organization, Hamlin was baptized by team chaplain Len Vanden Bos and teammate Christian Benford. It was a step Hamlin had been considering for more than a year and one he didn’t want to rush.
“It was important for it to be the right time,” Hamlin told Sports Spectrum last week at Super Bowl Media Row. “I wanted my family to be able to make it up to Buffalo to be there. I don’t want to say that I’m a completely new person, but my sense of direction and purpose and alignment with who I feel like I’m supposed to be has been on point. It brings me peace.”
For many, Hamlin’s name remains tied to the cardiac arrest he suffered during a “Monday Night Football” game against the Cincinnati Bengals in January 2023. The game was suspended as medical personnel worked to revive him on the field, and what followed was an outpouring of prayer that stretched far beyond football.
When he looks back on his life, he can see how God was forming him to endure that experience and use it to point people toward Him.
“My faith was very strong — always,” he said. “I always had an internal connection to the Lord. It feels like my faith before wasn’t built up for everything. It truly feels like every experience that I live, everything that I’ve been through as a kid growing up, it was moments to prepare me for what God was going to bless me with.
“I feel like all the work I was doing, God truly just hand-picked me and said, ‘I’m going to choose you for this.'”
Hamlin believes the experience positioned him to witness something larger than football. It allowed him “to be at the center of so much love, so much prayer, bringing people together,” and it also brought a bigger spotlight to his foundation, the Chasing M’s Foundation. Designed to support youth and community initiatives such as toy drives, educational scholarships and promoting health safety, the foundation expanded its mission after Hamlin’s cardiac arrest to include automated external defibrillator distribution and CPR training.
“I have people who were never believers — ever — dropping to their knees and talking to God and finding God through caring for me,” he said. “That’s a blessed position to be in.”
Hamlin remained in the hospital for almost two weeks following the incident, and there were questions about whether it was safe for him to return to football, if his body even got strong enough for him to be able to. It was a trying time and a season that left him with a new perspective.
“To have that perspective, to know that God chose me for a higher purpose — even beyond the game — it truly makes me feel like a chosen one,” he said.
Hamlin said his faith journey has remained active since that night in Cincinnati. He grew up in a Christian home and later attended a Catholic high school, where he studied the Catholic faith closely. That experience led him to focus even more on his personal relationship with God.
“That’s why I always feel like I’ve been tied to the Lord — even before,” he said. “I really learned the most through the phase of injury I had this season. I tore my pec, like, Week 7 or 8 and I was down for a few weeks.”
But recently, his relationship with both Benford and Vanden Bos has helped him grow even deeper.
“Len truly has just been pushing me and helping me grow within my faith,” Hamlin said. “We meet once a week and continue to grow.”
Following the cardiac arrest, Hamlin returned to the field and played in five games during the 2023 season, then started 14 games in 2024. He was limited to only five in 2025 but described this season as the happiest and most focused he’s felt in his life.
The time away from the field proved formative. He said he felt like he learned more about himself and his faith through that injury than anything else he’s experienced.
“That process really taught me so much about myself,” Hamlin said. “I didn’t have the season I wanted, I had the season I needed. I slowed myself down. I got right with God. I had to listen. I had to sit myself down and listen. The isolation away from the team gave me time. I truly think this period of time that I missed this season will prolong my career for however long that I want to play.
“And it ultimately led to me getting baptized. It was exactly what I needed, so I’m not looking back.”
