Category: Sports

The circumstances behind the tragic death of Baltimore Ravens linebacker Jaylon Ferguson have been revealed by the medical examiner.

Ravens linebacker Jaylon Ferguson passed away in June at the age of 26, leaving behind three children and a fiancée. Sadly, we now know the cause of his death was a drug overdose.

An autopsy determined that the combined effects of fentanyl and cocaine were responsible for Ferguson’s death.

According to the Baltimore Banner, Ferguson had been battling depression while dealing with the death of his grandmother and a fire at his home.

His death was investigated as “questionable” by police. It has now been classified as an accident.

Ravens linebacker Jaylon Ferguson’s cause of death was drug-related

Fentanyl has been at the root of many high-profile overdoses in recent years as it is increasingly cut into cocaine. The results of mixing the two together can be deadly given the high overdose risk the drug exhibits when combined with others.

Ferguson, who was nicknamed “sack daddy,” was drafted by the Ravens out of Louisiana Tech in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft. He started nine games as a rookie in 2019, then took on more of a rotational and special teams role in 2020 and 2021. He had 67 tackles, 4.5 sacks, two pass deflections and two fumble recoveries in his career.

He was set to enter the fourth and final year of his rookie contract this year.

Before making it to the NFL, Ferguson was the Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year. He had 17.5 sacks as a senior in college.

Over the weekend, friends and family gathered in Louisiana for a celebration of his life, which ended far too soon.

Ferguson’s death was followed by the passing of former Ravens defensive lineman Tony Siragusa, making for a sad stretch for the Baltimore community.

If Najee Harris is like Hines Ward, then that is only a good thing for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Vince Williams expects running back Najee Harris to take on a bigger leadership role in his second year with the team to become somewhat of a Hines Ward.

Williams appeared on The Arthur Moats Experience with Deke, touching on Harris being an ideal fit for the Steelers to build their team around “not only athletically, but also culturally”. Harris was a former first-round pick by the Steelers for a reason, as he took home the Doak Walker in his final season at Alabama. Harris has long been a team-first type of player, so this is not really a surprise.

This is Williams’ quote of comparing Harris to Ward, a Steelers legend who belongs in Canton.

“He gives me a lot of that Hines Ward-type vibe,” said Williams. “He’s smiling, he’s kissing the babies, but then he keeps it real in the interviews. He speaks true, he works hard, he’s dedicated to his craft, he’s no-nonsense. I think that’s gonna be big. I think that’s what the Steelers from that offensive side of the ball.”

Here is the episode of The Arthur Moats Experience with Deke in which Williams appeared.

Vince Williams compares Najee Harris to Pittsburgh Steelers legendary WR

From his days at the University of Georgia, Ward built a reputation on being able to do whatever it took to help his team win games. His versatility and willingness to put the team ahead of his own accolades is why Ward is beloved in Pittsburgh and at his alma mater. As far as Harris becoming the next Ward, he can emerge as the leader on the offensive side of the football the Steelers need.

Williams did mention the Steelers no longer have stars on offense the caliber of Maurkice Pouncey at center and Ben Roethlisberger at the quarterback position. Surely, rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett will fill the leadership void in due time, but 2022 is a perfect opportunity for Harris to take what is his and then some. One would expect Harris to be a focal point of the offense this season.

Regardless of when Pickett overtakes Mitch Trubisky as the Steelers’ starting quarterback, the offense will only be as good as Harris allows it to be. If he has a breakout season like many people expect for him to, Pittsburgh might be able to hang in the AFC North to stay in the playoff mix. More importantly, how Harris grows as a leader could pay out in future dividends for this team.

If Harris plays up to his potential, he could be as celebrated in Pittsburgh as Ward is to this day.

A “new team” has emerged to thwart a Baker Mayfield to the Seattle Seahawks deal for the Cleveland Browns.

The Seattle Seahawks have long been a potential trade destination for Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield, but not so fast, my friend…

If it was not going to be the Seahawks, then the next likeliest team for Mayfield had to be the Carolina Panthers. Outside of that duo, you would be really grasping at straws to find an ideal landing spot for the former No. 1 overall pick. Trading him in-conference has never seemed likely, but what if teams like the New Orleans Saints or Tampa Bay Buccaneers were interested in him?

Michael Balko reported on Sunday morning, “the Seahawks and the Browns are still in discussions regarding quarterback Baker Mayfield. A deal was close to done, but a new team has reportedly entered the Mayfield sweepstakes as well. Stay tuned.”

How much validity is there to this, or are the Browns just making up a “new team” for leverage?

Baker Mayfield trade rumors: “New team” emerges for Cleveland Browns QB

There are three primary holdups in Mayfield getting dealt: How much of his salary will the team trading for him have to take on? Will this team need to release a player or two to get under the salary cap to acquire him? And above all else, how long will Deshaun Watson be suspended for? If Watson is not suspended for the entire season, then it makes moving Mayfield all the more likely.

Mayfield is playing on his fifth-year option in 2022 worth $18.5 million, which is fully guaranteed. He will be a free agent after this season, so this fall would essentially be a trial run for him to see if he is a potential long-term solution for his new team. Interestingly, Cleveland has the most cap space in the NFL at $41.2 million. Carolina could take on all his salary with $24.3 million in space.

Admittedly, New Orleans and Tampa Bay are interesting potential landing spots for him. Mayfield is arguably better than Saints starter Jameis Winston, but New Orleans already has guys like Andy Dalton, Ian Book and the ultimate gadget guy in Taysom Hill on their roster. As for the Buccaneers, this is probably Tom Brady’s last year. Mayfield is way better than Blaine Gabbert and Kyle Trask.

And if we want to have some fun, what about the Detroit Lions? Cleveland could in theory swap Mayfield out for Jared Goff just to get him out of the building. The problem is Goff is under contract for the next three seasons and carries a $41.5 million dead cap hit for Detroit in 2022. The Lions also cannot afford Mayfield presently, as they do not even have $10 million in available cap space.

Ultimately, this feels like the Browns are doing their best to drive up the price on the Seahawks for them to take on more of Mayfield’s guaranteed salary. However, if Watson is suspended for the entire season, it serves Cleveland and Mayfield to mend fences and stay together for the kids for one more year. Otherwise, it will be The Jacoby Brissett Show for the laughable Browns franchise.

If the Browns do trade Mayfield, it may indicate Watson is not going to be suspended indefinitely.