Events

PRO FOOTBALL

HOUSTON (AP) Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson sustained a season-ending knee injury in practice Cheap Clive Walford Jersey , two people familiar with the situation told The Associated Press.

The rookie suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in one of his knees and will go on injured reserve. The people spoke on the condition of anonymity because the team hadn’t announced the injury.

His injury is the latest blow to a team that lost three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year J.J. Watt and linebacker Whitney Mercilus to season-ending injuries on Oct. 8.

The former Clemson standout had been a bright spot in a challenging season for the Texans (3-4). The 12th overall pick in this year’s draft was the AFC offensive player of the month after throwing for 1,171 yards with 16 touchdowns and running for 145 yards and another score.

NEW YORK (AP) – Midway through a season remembered for its protests by some players during the national anthem as much as bone-crunching hits, viewership for NFL football games is down 5 percent from last year.

The NFL has slowed a decline that was more pronounced in 2016, and the erosion is actually less than it is for other forms of television programming. Yet Wall Street analysts have noticed the trend and sports programmers are searching for reasons. The NFL’s aura of invincibility as an entertainment product has taken a hit.

”It’s certainly not cause for panic,” said Rick Gentile, a former CBS Sports executive and now a Seton Hall University professor, ”but they like to keep going up.”

The average NFL game this season has attracted 14.8 million viewers Cheap Patrick Omameh Jersey , down from 15.6 million at the same point last year, the Nielsen company said. The decline was 14 percent between the 2015 and 2016 mid-seasons, although more people returned when election year politicking left the airwaves.

NEW YORK (AP) – The CEO of Papa John’s slammed the NFL’s leadership and blamed protests by football players for pizza sales going cold. A day later, rival Pizza Hut said it saw no such impact. So what’s going on?

Papa John’s is closely associated with the NFL, due to its sponsorship of the league. But experts say it is also facing more competition as other fast-food chains start to deliver burgers and fried chicken, taking a bite out of pizza sales. And there may be other issues in play: More people are cooking at home, and Papa John’s may have been too dependent on TV ads at a time when more people are spending time online.

The NFL also has fewer viewers than it used to. The average game this season has attracted 14.8 million viewers Cheap Donte Jackson Jersey , down from 15.6 million at the same point last year.

Asked if it meant he supported Putin’s political beliefs, Ovechkin said Cheap Frank Ragnow Jersey , ”It’s not about political stuff” and that he doesn’t try to be a political person. The Russian presidential election is scheduled for March 18.