Local Sports

Bears, Packers Open Season On Road; Broncos Win Opener in Super Bowl Rematch

>>Bears Open Season At Houston
 
The Houston Texans will open the season as a home favorite against the Chicago Bears, who are looking to improve in their second season under coach John Fox.
 
If any opposing coach knows what to expect from Brock Osweiler, it is Fox. He coached the 6-foot-8, 235-pound quarterback for two seasons with the Broncos before joining the Bears before the 2015 season.
 
The Bears went 6-10 in their first season with Fox, who led two-year turnarounds during his previous coaching stints in Carolina and Denver each ending in Super Bowl experiences in Fox's second season. Quarterback Jay Cutler returns for his ninth season in Chicago, where wide receivers Alshon Jeffery and Kevin White offer his top targets downfield.
 
White will make his NFL debut on Sunday after missing all of his rookie season because of a stress fracture in his lower left shin. The 6-foot-3, 216-pound receiver was the Bears' first-round selection (No. 7 overall) out of West Virginia in the 2015 draft.
 
Bears running back Jeremy Langford also expects to take on a more prominent role in the offense. Langford is first in line to replace two-time Pro Bowl running back Matt Forte, who signed with the New York Jets during the offseason after the Bears elected not to bring him back.
 
Houston's hard-nosed defense presents a tough test for Langford, White and the rest of the Bears. The Texans set a franchise record in 2015 with 45 sacks, including a 17 1/2 sacks from J.J. Watt and 12 sacks from Whitney Mercilus.
 
>>Packers Open 2016 At Jacksonville
 
For the Green Bay Packers, it's the start of another attempt to reach the top of the NFL mountain.
 
For the Jacksonville Jaguars, it's the start of a long journey toward respectability.
 
With two-time MVP Aaron Rodgers at quarterback and Mike McCarthy as coach, the Packers enter their season-opening game at Jacksonville with a seven-year postseason streak -- tied with New England for the longest current run in the NFL. While they are considered Super Bowl contenders, they are surrounded by some nagging questions.
 
First, can Rodgers rebound after the worst season of his career? The man who owns the best passer rating in NFL history ranked just 15th in that category last season. Rather than rounding into form throughout the preseason, Rodgers played two series and threw nine passes.
 
Second, can receiver Jordy Nelson rebound after missing all of last season? In 2014, Rodgers won his second MVP on the strength of Nelson's stellar season of 98 receptions for 1,519 yards and 13 touchdowns. Nelson, however, tore an ACL during the 2015 preseason. Without him, the Packers' offense went from leading the NFL in scoring in 2014 to ranking 15th in 2015. Nelson is back, but he didn't play a single snap in the preseason.
 
Third, how will the offensive line fare without two-time All-Pro guard Josh Sitton, who surprisingly was released on Saturday? He'll be replaced by fourth-year pro Lane Taylor, who has two career starts.
Put it together, and this offense could be a work in progress to start the season.
 
>>Broncos Edge Panthers Thursday Night
 
Denver's dominant defense came up big against Newton again and the Broncos escaped with a 21-20 victory over the Carolina Panthers Thursday night when Graham Gano missed a 50-yard field goal with 4 seconds remaining.
 
The Broncos collected three sacks and hit Newton eight more times, not counting the abuse he took on his 11 runs.
 
Three of the hits were of the helmet-to-helmet variety but none resulted in any penalty yardage.
 
Newton, the NFL's reigning MVP, was 18 of 33 for 194 yards, with one TD and one interception.
 
Just as he did over and over in the Super Bowl, Miller made a big play late, sweeping past right tackle Mike Remmers and sacking Newton at the 2-minute warning.
 
The Panthers took a 17-7 led into the fourth quarter of the first Super Bowl rematch to start a season since 1970, but Siemian hit running back C.J. Anderson for a 25-yard touchdown on the next snap.
 
Newton's next pass was intercepted by Harris at the Carolina 23. Ten plays later, Anderson bulled his way in from the 1 to give Denver its first lead at 21-17 with 9:26 remaining.
 
After Gano's 36-yard field goal brought the Panthers to 21-20, Carolina forced a three-and-out and got the ball back at its 40 with 3:06 remaining.

Townhall Top of the Hour News

Local Weather - Sponsored By:

CLINTON WEATHER

Local News

DeWittDN on Facebook