Author: Michael

With less than one month left until the 2023-24 NFL season kicks off, OutKick is unveiling its team-by-team preview series. We are going division-by-division, covering all 32 NFL teams. The series continues with the AFC and NFC West, now taking a look at final team in the NFC West, the defending division champion San Francisco 49ers.
San Francisco 49ers 2022-23 Record: 13-4

San Francisco 49ers 2023-24 Win Total Over/Under: 10.5

Offseason Moves
The San Francisco 49ers did not have the best offseason.

For a little while, you may have been fooled into thinking the Bears’ new general manager and coach had pulled it off—and were accomplishing two diametrically opposite things at once.
On one hand, the Bears were carrying, over the course of 2022, more than $90 million in dead cap charges, money allotted against the limit toward players no longer on the team. On the other hand, they were winning. They beat the Niners in the opener. They started 2–1. They climbed off the mat after a three-game losing streak to beat the Patriots on a Monday night in Foxborough to get back to 3–4.

For Chris Jones, it’s now $1 million and counting.
Jones didn’t show up to training camp on Kansas City’s veteran report date of July 21, and has now missed 21 days going into Friday morning’s practice.
Under Article 42, Section 1(b)(vi) of the 2020 CBA, Jones (as a player under his second contract with the Chiefs) faces a “mandatory fine of $50,000 per day.” And by “mandatory,” the NFL and NFL Players Association have agreed that it will be mandatory.

A sudden cardiac arrest took the life of a high school girl, remembered for her exuberance and hard work.
Callie Mitchell, the 16-year-old high schooler entering her junior year, suffered a fatal cardiac arrest at her cheerleading camp, which she attended as of July 24.
The popular Morton Ranch High School (Katy, TX.) cheerleader was at Texas A&M when the medical emergency occurred. Mitchell had to be airlifted to Texas Children’s Hospital.
Tragic Medical Emergency Kills Texas Cheerleader
Despite the coach’s CPR, Mitchell died from the sudden attack.

The best thing rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud did Thursday night in his first NFL game was survive. The best thing he did was avoid the New England Patriots pass rush and live to play another day.
That’s not exactly a gushing review. And it means the Houston Texans obviously have an issue.
The first problem with this game was with their backup offensive line. It was terrible
And the other problem was their inexperienced head coach and first-year offensive coordinator. They put Stroud behind that terrible backup offensive line to start the game.
Quarterback C.

Rory McIlroy hasn’t exactly shied away from taking shots at Phil Mickelson over the last couple of years since the lefty’s jump to LIV Golf and his many controversial comments that have followed. So, when major allegations were made about Mickelson’s gambling habits, McIlroy couldn’t resist throwing a jab in his direction.
An excerpt from a soon-to-be-released book written by American sports gambler Billy Walters was released on Thursday that alleged that Mickelson has lost close to $100 million over the years while wagering more than $1 billion during the past three decades.

Aidan Hutchinson and Kayvon Thibodeaux have many similarities.
Both are a few weeks away from their second seasons in the NFL after being top-five picks in 2022. Both were considered the best pure pass rushers in their rookie class by scores of pundits. Both played big parts in their team’s winning records a year ago.
And there’s another thing: Both spent their winters doing everything possible to avoid returning as the same player.

Seattle Seahawks receiver Cade Johnson suffered an incredibly scary moment Thursday night against the Vikings.
Johnson left Lumen Field on a stretcher after he was hit on a kickoff return during the preseason game against the Vikings. Medical personnel rushed to his aid, strapped him onto a stretch and transported him to Seattle’s Harborview Medical Center, according to ESPN.

A Seahawks player being taken off the field head and neck immobilized, strapped to a stretcher taking into the tunnel where an ambulance parks during games. Tyler Lockett and Noah Fant walking with him pic.twitter.

The trailer for season two of “Welcome to Wrexham” is out, and it looks like it’s going to be awesome.
The FX series about Ryan Reynold and Rob McElhenney’s ownership of Wrexham A.F.C. was a monster hit in 2022.
Even for people who aren’t huge soccer fans, the show was unbelievably addicting and captivating. Watching two American actors taking over a Welsh football club was incredible. The proud soccer team and its fans had been toiling in the lower levels of professional soccer in the U.K., and people craved a return to relevance.

The Texans and Patriots kicked off the preseason on Thursday night. Here were the key performances from opening night of Week 1.