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While his performance against the Bills did not help his cause in his position battle against Shedeur Sanders, Deshaun Watson likely hurt it even more during his postgame press conference while addressing being booed by Browns fans. 

Watson, after going 5 of 12 for 36 yards and an interception during Cleveland’s 31-7 loss to the Bills, decided to go on the offensive when asked about the boos. 

“I think the whole world knows it has nothing to do about the performance,” Watson said. “It’s a little bit more personal than that. So, I think it’s a disrespectful thing.”

To make his point, Watson noted that Saturday wasn’t the first time that he felt the ire of Browns fans. He added that he gets treated better by opposing fans. 

 “Last time I played on this field, I tore my Achilles. That same fan base, they cheered when I got hurt,” he said. “What does that have to do with anything about performance? When a person gets hurt, especially in your home stadium, and they cheer.”

Watson said that his experiences with Browns fans are usually only negative on either social media or during home games. He was hoping that the situation regarding the fans’ treatment of him would be better given his involvement in the city and after he worked to get himself back in position to compete to be the Browns’ starting quarterback. 

“I thought being away for two years and working myself back from two Achilles injuries and putting the time in and being around the facility, being around the city, doing charity work in the city, supporting the Cleveland Browns, hanging out with fans whenever I do see them, being honest, being the type of person that I know I am and the character would help,” he said. “And I guess it hasn’t. So that’s why I say it’s personal. So it is what it is. People have their own opinions. There’s only so much you can do to change that. So at the end of the day, I just have to continue to just work on it and strive to be better mentally moving forward.”  

Saturday was a continuation of the downward spiral that has been Watson’s career, especially since he arrived in Cleveland in 2022. A three-time Pro Bowler with the Texans, injuries and inconsistent play have plagued Watson throughout his time with the Browns. He is 9-10 as the Browns’ starting quarterback with just 19 touchdowns, 12 interceptions and a mediocre 61.2% completion percentage. 

Adding to the frustration that has been Watson’s story in Cleveland is the amount of capital the Browns spent to get him. They sent Houston six draft picks that included three consecutive first-round picks in addition to signing Watson to a record-setting, five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed contract. It’s undeniably one of — if not the — worst transactions in the history of sports.  

There’s also the fact that the Browns traded for Watson despite the fact that he had already been sued by over two dozen female massage therapists for sexual harassment and sexual assault (in 2022, it was announced that 20 of the 24 women who sued Watson had reached confidential settlements). Watson’s time in Cleveland began with him serving an 11-game suspension for violating the league’s personal conduct policy. 

In addition to Watson’s plight, the fact that he’s competing against the immensely popular Sanders doesn’t help his cause. Sanders, who made the Pro Bowl as a rookie, went 9 of 11 for 74 yards with a touchdown and an interception against the Bills. Sanders also shined during his postgame press conference when he was asked about the fans’ treatment of Watson. 

“I think we all need to understand that we’re all human,” he said. “I don’t really do things to humans I wouldn’t want done to me. … Just for our fans, I appreciate y’all showing up and everything. However y’all feel about the situation, about Deshaun, think it’s more about a bigger purpose than just respect. The respect thing that I feel like should be there. Because we’re out trying to do our best and trying to serve the franchise the best way possible. We’re going out there every game and doing everything we can do. I don’t really appreciate that.” 

As noted above, Watson didn’t do himself any favors both during and after Saturday’s game. And while it appears that his time in Cleveland is destined to be remembered as an epic disappointment, Watson remains optimistic that there is light at the end of the tunnel in terms of his playing career. 

“I don’t regret anything in my life,” he said. “I think the Lord puts you in situations for a reason. I don’t regret anything at all. I had different thoughts on how it was gonna be, but it is what it is. Sometimes, the tables turn, and I’m patient enough — because I’m a child of God — to wait for that change. So, I ain’t tripping.” 

The biggest highlight of the NFL preseason this year just came from a kicker and it happened on Saturday night when Harrison Butker drilled a 69-yard field goal just before halftime in the Chiefs‘ game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. 

And yes, you read that correctly: Butker hit from 69 YARDS. 

The NFL record for longest field goal is 68 yards and Butker actually topped that with his kick, but he won’t be getting his name etched into the NFL record book, because preseason kicks don’t officially count. Due to that rule, Cam Little’s 68-yard field goal from last season still stands as the longest kick in NFL history. 

Even though it won’t go down in the record book, Butker’s kick was still wildly impressive and that’s mostly because the ball easily cleared the crossbar. Butker absolutely smashed the kick — the ball hit the net behind the field goal posts — and his attempt likely would have been good from 75 yards or even further. 

You know what, let’s stop talking about the kick and just watch it. 

Butker only got the field goal attempt because the Chiefs’ defense made a fourth-down stop late in the first half. With under 10 seconds left to play in the second quarter, the Buccaneers were facing a fourth-and-5 from Kansas City’s 49-yard line and they decided to go for it. The Bucs ended up failing on the fourth down after Jake Browning threw an incomplete pass and that gave Kansas City the ball with just three seconds left. At that point, Andy Reid decided to sent out Butker. 

The 69-yarder was one of three that Butker hit against Tampa Bay to go along with a 58-yarder and 45-yarder, but he also missed a 43-yard kick in the fourth quarter of Kansas City’s 16-15 loss. 

Although Butker won’t be getting his name in the NFL record book, he will certainly have some bragging rights and that’s because 69-yarder is tied for the second-longest field goal made in an actual game in the history of football. 

The first American football game was played in 1869 and in the 157 years since then, only three kickers have hit a field goal of at least 69 yards in a game: 

1. Cam Little hit a 70-yarder for the Jaguars during the 2025 preseason. 

T-2. Harrison Butker hit a 69-yarder on Saturday night (The first clip we showed you at the top was from the Chiefs’ broadcast team, so now, let’s see what the Buccaneers’ broadcast team had to say about the kick)

T-2. Abilene Christian kicker Ove Johansson hit a 69-yarder in 1976. And in case you’re wonder, yes, there is footage of Johansson’s kick. 

College kickers were allowed to use a 1- to 2-inch kicking block until 1989 when they were banned. Before the ban, kickers were essentially kicking off a tee as long as the holder was able to get the ball in the right spot. The five longest field goals in college history, including Johansson’s, all came when the kicking block was legal.

With their field goals being kicked off the ground, Little and Butker are in a league of their own. 

Now that Butker has a 69-yarder under his belt, we might want to keep an eye on him this year, because he could go off like Little did last season for the Jaguars. Although Little’s 70-yard kick in the preseason didn’t count in the NFL record book, he ended up breaking the record anyway. The Jaguars kicker drilled a 68-yarder last November to break the record for longest field goal in NFL history. The mark had been held by Justin Tucker, who hit a 66-yarder in 2021. Little also hit a 67-yarder in Week 18, and thanks to those two kicks, Little now officially has the two longest field goals in NFL history. The 67-yarder also holds the mark for longest OUTDOOR field goal in NFL history (His 68-yarder came indoors in Las Vegas).  

Butker’s career long in a regular-season game is 62 yards, so he definitely has a big leg and it won’t be surprising if he tops that number this season. Maybe he’ll even break Little’s record, because at the rate things are going, it seems like it will only be a matter of time before an NFL kicker drills a 70-yarder in a regular-season game. 

Why all the booming kicks?

One reason we’re seeing more long kicks is thanks to a new K-ball rule that the NFL implemented last season. Under the new rule, each team is given 60 kicking footballs (K-Balls) at the beginning of the season. This allows each team to break the ball in before they use it. Since the ball can be used in practice, that generally softens it up. Teams are also allowed to use a brush to try and rub down the bumps (Every football is covered by thousands of tiny bumps). A football that’s broken in tends to fly better and a smoother ball allows the kicker to make better contact, which leads to better kicks. 

Under the old rule that existed from 1999 until 2024, teams were given three brand new footballs ON GAME DAY and they had roughly one hour to break them in. The new balls were stiff, which made them more difficult to kick. It was the difference between using a brand new baseball glove and a worn in glove. 

Last season, almost every kicker seemed to agree that the new rule was adding five to 10 yards to their kicks. Bengals special teams coordinator Darrin Simmons has been an NFL assistant since 1998, so he’s seen everything, and he thinks the new rule could lead to even longer kicks going forward. 

“I believe it makes a big difference and I think that’s why the distances on some of these long field goals went up and I think it will continue to just skyrocket as long as that rule stays in place the way it is,” Simmons told CBS Sports and several other outlets in late July. 

Records are made to be broken and thanks to the NFL’s new K-ball rule, it won’t be surprising at all if the record for longest field goal goes down for the second straight season. 

Wyndham Clark has a commanding lead at the BMW Championship, but he still has 18 more holes to go to hold everyone off. Here’s what you need to know for Sunday.

Clark holds 54-hole lead at BMW Championship

Clark, the two-time U.S. Open winner, is cruising at the BMW Championship. Clark already led to start the day and then pulled further away from the field, shooting 65 Saturday at Bellerive Country Club in St. Louis to get to 17 under and lead Rory McIlroy and Patrick Cantlay (12 under) by five.

Also in the mix are Chris Gotterup and Gary Woodland, both at 11 under, and Collin Morikawa, at 10 under. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, the runaway winner of last week’s St. Jude, is among a large group of pros tied for 15th at five under.

There’s also another battle to monitor at the BMW, which is around the top-30 cutoff. The top 30 in the FedEx Cup standings following Sunday’s conclusion of the BMW get a ticket to next week’s Tour Championship at East Lake in Atlanta, where the winner gets $10 million.

You can watch Sunday’s final round from 12-2 p.m. ET on Golf Channel and 2-6 p.m. ET on CBS. Clark and McIlroy tee off in the final pairing at 1:50 p.m. ET on Sunday. You can see complete tee times below.

2026 BMW Championship tee times for Sunday: Round 4 (ET)

9:06 a.m. – Jake Knapp, Nico Echavarria
9:17 a.m. – Ryan Fox, Tommy Fleetwood
9:28 a.m. – Sahith Theegala, Min Woo Lee
9:39 a.m. – Bud Cauley, Hideki Matsuyama
9:50 a.m. – Alex Fitzpatrick, Justin Rose
10:06 a.m. – Rickie Fowler, Si Woo Kim
10:17 a.m. – Tom Kim, J.T. Poston
10:28 a.m. – Nicolai Hojgaard, Ben Griffin
10:39 a.m. – Kurt Kitayama, Kristoffer Reitan
10:50 a.m. – Xander Schauffle, Michael Thorbjornsen
11:06 a.m. – Matt McCarty, Adam Scott
11:17 a.m. – Viktor Hovland, Alex Smalley
11:28 a.m. – Sam Burns, Matt Fitzpatrick
11:39 a.m. – Sepp Straka, Aaron Rai
11:50 a.m. – Akshay Bhatia, Justin Thomas
12:06 p.m. – Ludvig Aberg, Ryan Gerard
12:17 p.m. – Scottie Scheffler, Cameron Young
12:28 p.m. – Alex Noren, Robert MacIntyre
12:39 p.m. – Russell Henley, Jacob Bridgeman
12:50 p.m. – J.J. Spaun, Michael Brennan
1:06 p.m. – Ryo Hisatsune, Maverick McNealy
1:17 p.m. – Sungjae Im, Eric Cole
1:28 p.m. – Gary Woodland, Collin Morikawa
1:39 p.m. – Patrick Cantlay, Chris Gotterup
1:50 p.m. – Wyndham Clark, Rory McIlroy

Rory McIlroy pulled himself back into contention at the BMW Championship with a strong finish for a five-under-par third round in St Louis, leaving him five behind leader Wyndham Clark.

McIlroy has been looking for a response after labouring to an eight-over finish at last week’s St Jude Championship, and shot a fine six-under opening round for a share of the lead, before following that up with a 69 on Friday.

The back-to-back Masters champion again appeared in steady form during the front nine on Saturday, turning at one under after a birdie on the par-three second before another on 11.

World number two McIlroy then stepped things up with a run of four birdies from the 13th, sandwiched by a bogey at the 14th.

The Northern Irishman found both bunkers with his opening two shots on the 18th, but then almost chipped in with a fine recovery effort before saving par.

McIlroy finished the day at 12 under, looking to keep pace with Clark, who dropped his first shots of the tournament with a double bogey on the opening hole before an eagle at the eighth and a strong back nine saw him finish with a 65, having failed to save par on the last.

“I think I needed to be patient the last three days, because my game has been good in parts, but then it has been a struggle in other ways,” McIlroy told reporters.

“I didn’t hit my first fairway today until the 10th hole, playing this golf course from the rough isn’t fun, but I hung in there, my short game saved me a couple of times and I got some momentum coming in.

“I am in a good spot going into tomorrow in terms of where I am at on the leaderboard, but it’s going to take a heroic effort from one of us to catch Wyndham.”

Patrick Cantlay is alongside McIlroy at 12 under, with Chris Gotterup a shot further back alongside Gary Woodland, who dropped back after a 70.

JJ Spaun also saw his challenge fade after a two-over round.

World number one Scottie Scheffler – who had coasted to an impressive victory at last week’s St Jude Championship, but was two over after a first-round 72 – sits in a group on five under after his 68.

Lately, Carson Wentz has been earning praise. The wily veteran is second-to-none in his toughness even if he’s not the athlete he once was.

After practice yesterday, Vikings Territory got a chance to chat with Mr. Wentz for a few minutes. Doing so gave us a chance to discuss how joint practices went, what he has seen in J.J. McCarthy, and how he understands his job with the Vikings going into 2026.

Carson Wentz Says Much in a Few Minutes

“You never know what tomorrow brings for anybody.” That was a key sentiment coming from the chat with Carson Wentz.

I wanted to know about what he has observed in J.J. McCarthy getting bumped down to QB2. “I think he’s handled it well,” the veteran began. “It’s a tough business. It’s a tough league, tough business, tough with media, the pressure, all the things that come with it.” Wentz then hastened to add that “the story is far from written for him, for Kyler, for myself.”

“I think he’s gotten better since I got here, I’ve seen it firsthand,” Wentz explained. Partnering improvement with a player’s readiness and the NFL’s unpredictability means that the young lad shouldn’t be discounted.

Pivoting off that, I asked Wentz about how he understands his own role on the team.

His answer in full: “Great question. It’s help the team however I can. Stay ready, whatever that looks like. Yeah, at the end of the day it’s why I signed here is to, if my number gets called, I’m confident in what I can do and what I can bring to the table within this system especially. So we’ll see how it all shakes out.”

In 2025, Carson Wentz went 2-3 as the Vikings’ starter. He completed a very healthy 65.1% of his passes for 1,216 yards, 6 touchdowns, and 5 interceptions. Part of the reason for not seeing more promising production was due to injury.

Wentz could have signed somewhere else. He liked the chance to do good things with the Vikings. “It’s just somewhere I thought if my number did get called,” Wentz explained, “I’d feel that I have success.” Shortly thereafter, Wentz lamented his injury, calling it a “bummer” while wondering aloud where things would have gone without getting hurt.

As it relates to joint practices, Wentz indicated that mixing things up in practice was refreshing. Essentially every player says as much but that’s likely because it’s true. Going against different players who play within a different scheme is refreshing.

The Minnesota Vikings want to proceed through the 2026 season with Carson Wentz as the QB3. Seeing that become a reality will mean that some key things have happened.

First, Kyler Murray and/or J.J. McCarthy have been healthy enough to shoulder the burden of starting. Neither could be described as being the NFL’s version of Cal Ripken. Fingers crossed that both remain healthy but that’s far from a guarantee.

Second, Kyler Murray and/or J.J. McCarthy played well enough to remain as the starting QB. Minnesota is desperate for a franchise passer. The current plan is to let Murray prove he’s that guy but McCarthy would be the next man up.

Having Wentz on the roster means boasting a passer with great size and better athleticism than a lot of mid-30s QBs. He has demonstrated a good connection with Justin Jefferson and will inspire belief in his teammates. The Vikings could win with him.

In the 2016 NFL Draft, Carson Wentz was chosen at No. 2 by the Philadelphia Eagles. He has since played for the Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Commanders, Indianapolis Colts, Los Angeles Rams, Kansas City Chiefs, and Minnesota Vikings.

The passer is 33.

Senior Editor for Vikings Territory & PurplePTSD . Twitter & Bluesky: @VikingsGazette. Email: k.joudry[at]vikingsterritory[dot]com. Canadian. Jude 1:24-25.

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The Cleveland Browns got a poor performance out of Deshaun Watson on Saturday, and a former player is blunt about what it should mean.

Against the Buffalo Bills, the three-time Pro Bowl quarterback had a putrid performance in relief of Shedeur Sanders in the second half, covering only 36 yards on 5-of-12 passing and being intercepted once by Te’Cory Couch en route to a 7-31 loss:

In the aftermath of that game, Robert Griffin III, who played with the Browns in 2016, gave this blunt takeaway for head coach Todd Monken:

“The Browns should start Shedeur Sanders.”

He then added shortly after:

“The Browns absolutely screwed their QB competition up.”

Sharing his sentiment was Ben Axelrod, writer for Front Office Sports:

Watson was also the subject of heavy boos during the game, but he insinuated that they were not related to his play during the post-game press conference:

“I didn’t have no reaction. I think the whole world knows it has nothing to do about the performance. It’s a little bit [more] personal than that. I think that’s a disrespectful thing. I’m gonna keep whatever I feel with me and my family internally with how I feel about that and move on.”

ALSO READ: “Zero reason you would start Deshaun Watson over Shedeur Sanders”: NFL analyst serves reality check to Todd Monken after Browns’ preseason game

ALSO READ: Deshaun Watson’s wife Jilly Anais shows off game day outfit during Q3 as Browns QB gets booed by Cleveland fans

Shedeur Sanders rues Browns fans booing Deshaun Watson during rout vs. Bills

Speaking of the boos Deshaun Watson received from Browns fans, he received a defense from a surprising source.

Shedeur Sanders, who started the game against the Bills, finished with nine completions for 74 yards and a touchdown to Luke Floriea against an interception to Damar Hamlin. After the game, he expressed disappointment in how the fans reacted to the game from the stands:

“Regardless of competition, we’re all human beings. I think we all need to understand that. In this room too, we’re all humans. I don’t do things to humans that I wouldn’t want done to me. I don’t like making people feel uncomfortable in different spaces, and that’s why, even in daily things I do, I try to make sure everybody’s comfortable.”

He continued:

“However you feel about the situation with Deshaun and everything, I think it’s more about a bigger purpose and it’s respect. It’s a respect thing that I feel should be there, because we’re all out there trying to do our best and serve the franchise the best way possible. We’re going out there to win games, doing everything we can.”

The Browns end their preseason this coming Thursday against the New England Patriots. Kickoff is at 8 p.m. ET.