Zak Keefer

Mark Davis thought it was a return to The Raider Way; in time, he would learn Gruden wasn't the football savant he played on TV.

Check out the latest news, rumors and information on the Football at RealGM.

Check out the latest news, rumors and information on the Football at RealGM.

PHILADELPHIA – After the drive that lasted somewhere between three and four days, and the one that came up four yards short, and the Hail Mary that wasn’t answered, they slumped on stools in the locker room and fumed.

In a league too often sanitized by coachspeak, facial expressions might be our last great truth serum.

He hadn't slept in three nights when he walked into Jim Irsay’s office that day, fueled by adrenaline and ambition, pausing for a moment, collecting himself, readying himself, reminding himself, “Be you – nothing more.” It wasn’t that long ago Chris Ballard was teaching a history class at Hitchcock Junior High, putting off law school as long as he could, coaching kids in Nowhereville, Texas, drilling them so hard he once busted his collarbone in the middle of a practice.

The NFL could open the 2026 season with replacement refs for the first time in 14 years. It can’t be worse than last time, right?

Toney Brasuell was sound asleep the night of Sept. 24, 2012, when his wife nudged him awake and told him to turn on the TV. "You're gonna wanna watch this," she said. "It doesn't look good."

That Vinatieri even sniffed pro football was a miracle unto itself. You could argue that no one scripted a more preposterous road to Canton.

Michael Blatt, one of the most feared agents in football, was on the verge of taking over an NFL team. Then a rival turned up dead.