The Detroit Lions will be without Jameson Williams for the next two weeks. The third-year receiver has been suspended two games for violating the NFL’s performance-enhancing substances policy, according to ESPN. 

Williams told ESPN that he had “no choice but to take it on the chin.” 

This is the second suspension for Williams in his career. The 23-year-old sat out four games last season for violating the NFL’s gambling policy.

The Lions drafted Williams with the No. 12 pick in 2022. He only played in six games as a rookie while he recovered from an ACL tear he suffered in the College Football Playoff. 

He emerged as a weapon for Detroit’s offense late in 2023 and already has career highs in receiving yards (361) and TD receptions (3) this season. He ranks second on the team in both categories, behind Amon-Ra St. Brown.

Lions beat Vikings 31-29, Are they the best team in the NFC? | The Herd

The 5-1 Lions are coming off a dramatic 31-29 win over the previously undefeated Minnesota Vikings. Next, Detroit will host the Tennessee Titans before traveling to Lambeau Field for a showdown with the Green Bay Packers. Both games will air on FOX. 

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DEAN HENDERSON dropped a clanger in front of watching England caretaker boss Lee Carsley – eight days after Thomas Tuchel’s stand-in awarded him his England return!

Former Forest loanee Hendo was on top of the world when he flew his family to Finland to see him end his long wait for a senior England cap in the Three Lions’ 3-1 win.

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But tonight his world fell apart here as he allowed Chris Wood‘s half-hit volley to squirm under him to cost Palace a crucial draw which kept Oliver Glasner’s strugglers in the drop zone. 

Wood couldn’t believe his luck as he bagged his fifth goal in eight games this season to become Forest’s third player to score 20 Premier League goals, alongside Bryan Roy and Stan Collymore.

And to rub salt in Henderson’s wounds, Forest keeper Matz Sels surpassed himself with a string of top saves, and denied sub Jeffrey Schlupp a late leveller with a brilliant one-handed save.

It was a positive end to a tough week for the Prem‘s current whipping boys. 

Forest’s naughty step was certainly groaning after the FA stepped in to punish their bad boys.

Boss Nuno Espirito Santo was banished to an executive box as he started a three-match ban for his misconduct in his side’s 2-2 draw with Brighton last month.

Morgan Gibbs-White was injured anyway but also served a further one-match ban following his red card against the Seagulls – as well as copping a £20,000 fine.

Meanwhile, James Ward-Prowse was suspended following his red card at Chelsea last time out.

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Even Forest’s larger-than-life owner Evangelos Marinakis was subject to a whopping five-match ban – which he is appealing – for “improper behaviour,” around the tunnel area at full-time against Fulham on September 28.

The Greek tycoon decided not to pour fuel on the fire by attending the game while the appeal process unfolds.

But it was a measure of Forest’s ongoing feud with the authorities that their fans loudly booed the pre-match handshakes between the players – as they protested totting up £825,000 worth of fines this month alone!

Unfortunately no-one was able to cash in at the end of an entertaining first 45 minutes when plenty of chances were created – but none taken.

Palace, refreshed from their 16 day break, started on the front foot and Eberechi Eze flashed a left footer just wide from 25 yards.

Daichi Kamada and Eddie Nketiah were next to try their luck but failed to trouble Matz Sels unduly, while Jefferson Lerma picked up an early booking for hauling down Ola Aina.

Incredibly it was his 40th top flight yellow card, making the midfielder the sixth baddest boy for bookings in Prem history.

Elliot Anderson then took centre stage in front of watching England caretaker boss Lee Carsley.

The £35million summer signing from Newcastle had the City Ground on its feet with a Messi-like run which saw him wriggle past three Palace defenders before Dean Henderson pawed away his shot for a corner.

Wood had a header cleared off the line by Lerma before Nketiah came even closer at the other end with a swerving shot on the run which clipped off the outside of Sels’ post.

Not to be undone, Forest skipper Ryan Yates steered a header beyond Henderson but, frustratingly, the ball bounced back off the far post as Wood failed to apply the finishing touch.

Five of the last six league games between this pair have finished as draws and the game desperately needed a goal to breathe fresh life into it.

However Matz Sels refused to play ball as he pulled off a stunning double save to deny Eze then Kamada, who he somehow blocked from four yards.

Fortunately the flag was up for offside to save Kamada’s blushes.

Anderson was then booked for bundling over Nketiah and from the resulting free kick Palace brought out the best in Sels again.

Will Hughes touched the ball to one side and Eberechi Eze unleashed a screamer which Forest’s Belgian keeper sensationally tipped over.

However it was a goalkeeping howler at the other end which finally broke the deadlock just after the hour.

Alex Moreo’s long ball forward was nodded out by Trevoh Chalobah and Wood pounced to fire in a harmless looking volley which lacked power.

But Henderson got it all wrong, allowing the ball to squirm under his outstretched arm and the ball squeezed in at his near post.

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Ask any regular watcher of the Gallagher Premiership to espouse its qualities, and the word “competitive” will almost certainly come up.

Last season’s final table illustrated this: Leicester Tigers finished eighth, and only lost two fewer games than runners-up Bath. Fifth-placed Bristol scored more points, and conceded fewer, than champions Northampton. Going into the final round of the regular season, seven teams all had a chance of winning the title.

A salary cap system, designed to ensure equity across the board, means anyone should be able to beat anyone on their day.

However, for much of the past two years, Newcastle’s 25-game losing streak threatened to undermine the Premiership’s USP.

How can a league boast of being fiercely fought and uber-competitive if one club are just making up the numbers?

In a 10-team league, with only five matches per weekend, can the Premiership afford for one of those games to be a foregone conclusion?

With this in mind, Newcastle’s stirring 24-18 victory over Exeter was not only huge for the club and rugby union in the north-east of England, but for the very essence of the league itself.

Newcastle’s win was as popular as it was long-awaited, widely welcomed by fans and pundits alike. Even our colleagues from BBC Radio Devon – who could have understandably focused on the Chiefs’ worrying start to the season – paid tribute to Newcastle first and foremost at the final whistle.

With the smallest budget in the division, Falcons boss Steve Diamond needs his team to be confrontational and canny.

Sammy Arnold’s try-making first-half tackle and Ethan Grayson’s late drop-goal were great examples of this.

“We’re trying to build something – it’s taking time, but the job in hand is to put on performances like that at home,” said Diamond, who provided one of the images of the weekend as he chatted casually to an Exeter fan during the nervous final stages.

With Diamond declaring the “monkey is off the back”, the challenge now is for the Falcons to take some more scalps.

But with the league shutting down over November for the autumn internationals, they will have to wait a full six weeks to have another crack at Kingston Park.

AT Real Sociedad, Mikel Merino saw himself as a giant of a man.

But after joining Arsenal in the summer, the 6ft 2in Spanish midfielder feels like one of the smallest members of Mikel Arteta’s elite group of NBA-sized man mountains.

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Merino, 28, laughed: “It is crazy. I am in the corridors of the training ground just walking, and back at my old club I used to be one of the tallest, so everyone was smaller than me.

“Now, I look around and everyone is taller than me. We look like a basketball team.”

In their 2-0 defeat at Bournemouth on Saturday, the Gunners’ starting XI had NINE players above six foot — with just 5ft 8in duo Raheem Sterling and Leandro Trossard below that mark.

Heading that lofty line-up was the 6ft 4in duo of William Saliba and Kai Havertz, along with fellow giants Merino, David Raya, Riccardo Calafiori, Gabriel, Ben White, Declan Rice and Thomas Partey.

Since taking charge nearly five years ago, boss Arteta has made it his mission to assemble a squad not only with technical ability but powerful physiques to match, in their quest for Premier League three-pointers.

In the tunnel before kick-off, this net-busting Arsenal team are a frightening prospect for rivals, even more so from set-pieces with their slam-dunk corner routines striking fear into defenders.

But these big guys sure can shift, much like the Harlem Globetrotters covering the pitch with a stunning combination of bulk, brains and beauty.

SunSport even understands Arteta shows basketball clips to members of his team to encourage them to use their size more efficiently, creating space with clever movement.

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Merino continued: “Football now has changed and you need a strong team. Physicality is key and we need to be the most complete team possible.

“You need the physical aspect, technical aspect, the tactical one, you need to be a total team to achieve big things as we want to do.

“It is not only about being tall and big, you need mentality. If you are tall and big but don’t go with the 100 per cent intention to win the ball, it’s just nothing.

“Set-pieces are a big part of the game and you can win or lose a lot because of that.

“We train a lot and have the physical advantage. But the main thing is the mentality and we have that.”

Merino arrived in North London for £27.4million from Sociedad with a reputation for dominating duels, winning 326 last term — the most in Europe’s top five leagues.

But after making his first Prem start against the Cherries — having recovered from a freak shoulder injury suffered in his first training session back in August — Merino says he is much more than just a midfield bruiser.

He said: “That is one of the reasons I am here, because I can be a threat in the opposite box. That is something I need to work on to get better at. I have a high ceiling.

“Of course, goals are not the main thing for a midfielder but if you can provide them it is going to be a whole different thing for you as a player.

“I have admired a lot of players — Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard, Cesc Fabregas, Patrick Vieira — all-round midfielders that are box-to-box, can score, can defend, win duels.

“Of course, in Spain we had Xavi, Andres Iniesta and that mentality of keeping the ball, dominating through short passes.”

Merino is coming off the back of what he describes as “the best summer”, one that “changed my life”, having won the Euros with Spain before earning a career-defining Arsenal switch.

The Osasuna academy star scored an extra-time winner in the quarter- finals to dump hosts Germany out and played his part in the final to break English hearts.

Add that to a German Cup win with Borussia Dortmund, a Copa del Rey title with Sociedad and European triumphs with Spain’s Under-19s and Under-21s, it is clear Merino brings a winning mentality to a talented Arsenal group that are young and hungry — but lacking  silverware.

It seems then there is no better man to have on your side when it comes to ending a 20-year Prem drought, as well as trying to win the Champions League for the first time.

Ahead of their league-phase clash with Shakhtar Donetsk at the Emirates, Merino explained: “I’ve been lucky enough to win a lot of trophies in my career, I know the feeling.

“You cannot compare it with anything else. Knowing what this club is about and how  big the Champions League is and winning  trophies, winning the competition here would be amazing.

“The squad may not have the experience yet, it is a really young team, but luckily I have experiences of winning, when you have the moment of truth in the semis or final and to be able to keep that calmness.

“There is still a long way to go to achieve that but I think we have the basics, the players, the mentality, and that has to be the ultimate goal.”

Arsenal player ratings vs Bournemouth

By Alex Crook

TEN-MAN Arsenal suffered their first defeat of the season as brilliant Bournemouth dealt them a South Coast setback.

The Gunners travelled to face Andoni Iraola’s men having won five and drawn three of their opening eight matches this term.

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But their task was made a tricky one when William Saliba was shown a red card on the half-hour.

Ryan Christie brilliantly fired the hosts into a deserved lead following a well-worked set piece routine 20 minutes from time.

Justin Kluivert then sealed his side’s incredible 2-0 victory from the penalty spot on 79 minutes.

Here’s how SunSport rated each Gunners performer on the day.

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DAVID RAYA – 5
Was lucky to get away with one poor pass out from the back early on. Made amends for another error by saving smartly with the legs to deny Marcus Tavernier after initially spilling a Semenyo cross-cum-shot before clumsily conceding the penalty.

BEN WHITE – 4
England outcast was back in the team after four games out, but did not look 100 per cent fit and found it tough going containing the lively Antoine Semenyo down the Bournemouth left in the first half and Dango Ouattara in the second.

WILLIAM SALIBA – 3
Usually calm and collected under pressure but paid the price for a rare moment of panic when he hauled down Bournemouth striker Evanilson to get himself sent off and will miss next weekend’s crunch clash at home to title rivals Liverpool as a result.

GABRIEL – 5
Given the captain’s armband in the absence of the stricken Bukayo Saka, but not at his commanding best, especially after losing centre-back partner Saliba. Did not really step up to the leadership plate.

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RICCARDO CALAFIORI – 6
Did a better job containing Semenyo when Bournemouth’s dangerman switched wings at half-time than White did in the first half, but unable to have his usual influence going forward.

THOMAS PARTEY – 5
Back in his traditional central midfield berth after being used as an emergency right back in the 3-1 win over Southampton. Was second best up against Bournemouth’s impressive Lewis Cook.

DECLAN RICE – 5
Another of Arsenal’s international contingent who looked sluggish after the break from domestic duty. Struggled to impose himself on the game in midfield and unable to get forward as much as he usually does. Did his bit dropping into the back-line after Saliba’s dismissal.

RAHEEM STERLING – 4
Former England man was deployed on the right wing in place of the injured Bukayo Saka and gave the ball away a few times when in promising positions before being sacrificed after the Saliba red card.

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MIKEL MERINO – 5
Finally able to make his full Premier League debut after an injury-affected start to his Arsenal career and showed some nice touches. Also fired into the side-netting with the visitors’ best first half opening.

LEANDRO TROSSARD – 4
Started the game well but sold Saliba short with a poor back pass that led to the red card and disappeared from the action after that before being subbed shortly after the half-hour mark.

KAI HAVERTZ – 5
The German cut an isolated figure up front, especially after Arsenal were reduced to ten men, but worked tirelessly for the team without ever looking like adding to his run of scoring in the previous four games in all competitions.

SUBSTITUTES
Jakub Kiwior (for Sterling, 37) – 4

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Gabriel Martinelli (for Trossard, 64) – 5

Gabriel Jesus (for Kiwior, 81) – N/A

Ethan Nwaneri (for Merino, 81) – N/A

Leeds will have their sights on taking over top spot in the Championship on Tuesday when they entertain Watford.

Daniel Farke’s side have won their past two games at Elland Road without conceding and outclassed Yorkshire rivals Sheffield United on Friday.

Tom Cleverley’s Hornets have lost four straight on the road, scoring only one goal and conceding 11, with three of those coming in a tame derby defeat by Luton on Saturday.

On paper there looks to be only one outcome – but since when was the Championship ever that predictable?

At the other end of the table there are two huge games on Tuesday as Cardiff host Portsmouth while Queens Park Rangers welcome Coventry.

Cardiff have taken seven points from their past three and, inspired by Rubin Colwill, thumped Plymouth 5-0 on Saturday to move off the bottom, while Portsmouth picked up their first win at QPR to leave the Rs bottom of the pile.

Rangers are still only a point behind the fourth-bottom Sky Blues who have lost four of their past five games and taken just three points from a possible 21 on the road dating back to the start of April.

The away team have, however, won three of the past four encounters between the sides, with City winning 3-0 and 3-1 on their last two visits to west London.

After a timid defeat at Preston at the weekend, what under-pressure Coventry boss Mark Robins would give for a repeat of those trips to Loftus Road on Tuesday.

Oxford and Derby came up from League One together last season and are level on points in the top half of the Championship as they prepare to face each other at the Kassam on Tuesday.

Paul Warne’s side did end their four-match losing streak on their travels with a point at Millwall on Saturday, but Oxford maintained their unbeaten start at home with a last-gasp point against West Bromwich Albion.