The NFL’s new year officially kicked off Wednesday, two days after teams began spending big money in free agency.

Quarterback Mac Jones will finally join the San Francisco 49ers four years after the team nearly drafted him third overall.

The NFL league year kicked off with two former Super Bowl MVPs hitting the open market.

Will Howard transferred to Ohio State to win a national championship, and he reached that goal by playing the best football of his career throughout the Buckeyes’ four games in the College Football Playoff.

Aidan O’Connell returned from an injury and passed for 257 yards, and the Las Vegas Raiders ended a 10-game losing streak with a 19-14 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Davante Adams caught nine passes for 198 yards and two touchdowns all in the second half and the New York Jets rallied to beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 32-25 to end a four-game skid.

Joe Mixon ran for 101 yards and a touchdown, Nico Collins caught eight passes for 119 yards and the Houston Texans beat Jacksonville 23-20 after knocking quarterback Trevor Lawrence out of the game with a concussion.

Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence was carted off the field after taking a violent elbow to the facemask from Houston linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair.

A person familiar with the decision says Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence will miss the second game of his NFL career.

The New England Patriots reportedly are planning to give first-round draft pick Drake Maye his first pro start in the hopes of ending a four-game losing streak under veteran journeyman quarterback Jacoby Brissett.

The days of NFL rookie quarterbacks waiting their turns before taking over teams is long gone.

Quarterbacks went off the draft board at a record-setting pace.

The Jacksonville Jaguars have agreed to acquire New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones for a sixth-round pick in next month’s NFL draft according to a person with knowledge of the decision.

Bo Nix threw for 363 yards and five touchdowns to cap a recording-breaking career, and No. 8 Oregon closed out a season that started with national title expectations by rolling over No. 18 Liberty 45-6 in the Fiesta Bowl.

Running back Jerick McKinnon threw for one touchdown and ran for another to help Kansas City beat the New England Patriots 27-17 in front of Chiefs superfan Taylor Swift.

Mitch Trubisky gets another chance to prove he can be a starting quarterback, stepping in for the injured Kenny Pickett to lead the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday night.

The New England Patriots dressed three quarterbacks for their game against the Los Angeles Chargers.

Xavier McKinney set up Randy Bullock’s go-ahead 42-yard field goal midway through the fourth quarter with New York’s third interception of New England’s woeful pair of quarterbacks, and the Giants won consecutive games for the first time this season, beating the Patriots 10-7.

Mac Jones kept his job as the New England Patriots starting quarterback on Sunday against the New York Giants.

Jonathan Taylor ran for a first-quarter touchdown and Mac Jones threw a crucial interception in the fourth quarter and the Indianapolis Colts held on for a 10-6 win over New England Patriots in Germany.

Josh McDaniels couldn’t make it past the midpoint of the season before the Las Vegas Raiders decided to make a change.

Mac Jones threw a 1-yard touchdown pass to Mike Gesicki with 12 seconds remaining to lift the New England Patriots to a 29-25 win over the Buffalo Bills.

The New England Patriots are making some big changes to try to improve their offense.

The New England Patriots are struggling like they never have since Bill Belichick took over in 2000.

Alvin Kamara rushed for a touchdown to become the Saints’ career TD leader, Derek Carr had two scoring passes and New Orleans routed the New England Patriots 34-0.

DaRon Bland returned one of his two interceptions for a touchdown, Leighton Vander Esch scooped up a fumble for a score and the Dallas Cowboys blew out the New England Patriots 38-3.

The New England Patriots have pulled third-year starting quarterback Mac Jones after two turnovers led directly to touchdowns for the Dallas Cowboys.

New York Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner accused Patriots quarterback Mac Jones of taking things a little too far by hitting him in his "private parts” during New England’s 15-10 victory.

Raheem Mostert had a pair of TD runs, including a 43-yard romp in the fourth quarter, and Tua Tagovailoa added a 2-yard touchdown pass to Tyreek Hill to help the Miami Dolphins hold off the New England Patriots 24-17.

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Joe Burrow threw three touchdown passes and the Cincinnati Bengals forced a late turnover in the red zone to preserve a 22-18 win over the New England Patriots.

For the second time ever Sunday, three NFL games ended with a winning touchdown on the final play on the same day.

New England coach Bill Belichick used the word “mistake” 10 times during his brief comments after the Patriots lost to the Las Vegas Raiders on a last-play stunner.

Defensive end Chandler Jones grabbed a bizarre, unnecessary lateral by New England’s Jakobi Meyers out of the air on the final play and returned it 48 yards for a touchdown, giving the Las Vegas Raiders a 30-24 victory over the Patriots.

Mac Jones threw for 235 yards, Raekwon McMillan had a crucial fumble return for a touchdown and the New England Patriots earned a 27-13 win on Monday night over the Arizona Cardinals, who lost starting quarterback Kyler Murray in the first quarter to a potentially serious knee injury.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick says Mac Jones will remain the starting quarterback when they visit the New York Jets.

Mac Jones says he wants to start this week against the Jets and believes he deserves to remain in the lineup despite struggling in his return to the field following three-game absence because of an ankle injury.

Justin Fields threw for 179 yards and a touchdown and ran for 82 yards and another score, and the Bears defense forced returning Patriots starter Mac Jones back to the bench to give Chicago a 33-14 victory over New England.

Patriots quarterback Brian Hoyer left New England’s game with the Green Bay Packers because of a head injury.

Patriots quarterback Mac Jones made a surprise return to the practice field on Friday, but was ruled out for this weekend's game at Green Bay.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick says veteran Brian Hoyer will start if Mac Jones is unable to play in their matchup with the Green Bay Packers.

Mac Jones hopped off the field after his third interception of the game against the Baltimore Ravens, unable to put any weight on his left leg.

The Patriots say quarterback Mac Jones sat out Thursday’s practice with an illness.

Tua Tagovailoa passed for 270 yards and a touchdown, and the Miami Dolphins provided an early look at their ability to contend in the AFC East as they beat Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots 20-7 Sunday.

Tua Tagovailoa didn’t seem to celebrate this stat.

Graham Gano hit a 24-yard field goal as time expired, Daniel Jones was solid in limited work and the New York Giants beat the New England Patriots 23-21 on Thursday night to open the preseason.

The performance didn’t come close to matching the hype for the 2021 quarterback class.

Whatever the Patriots offense looks like in the aftermath of former offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels’ departure, Bill Belichick says Mac Jones will have a role in molding it.

This year's quarterback class isn't as heralded as last year's or even next year's.

Josh Allen set a franchise record by throwing five touchdown passes and the Buffalo Bills showed who's king of the AFC East with a 47-17 throttling of the New England Patriots in a wild-card playoff game.

The Tennessee Titans are the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs for the first time since 2008.

Rookie quarterback Mac Jones threw three touchdown passes and Damien Harris and Rhamondre Stevenson rushed for two scores apiece to put the New England Patriots in the playoffs with their 50-10 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The national championship game quarterbacks are a former five-star recruit already with a Heisman Trophy and a former walk-on ending a long journey with his home state team.

Jonathan Taylor ran for 170 yards and scored on a 67-yarder with 2:01 left to help the Indianapolis Colts seal a 27-17 victory over the New England Patriots on Saturday night.

Damien Harris scored on a 64-yard run in blustery conditions in which Mac Jones attempted just three passes, and the New England Patriots shored up their familiar place atop the AFC with a 14-10 win over the Buffalo Bills.

Mac Jones had two touchdown passes, New England’s defense forced four turnovers and the Patriots earned their sixth straight win, rolling past the Tennessee Titans 36-13.

Tom Brady has moved on to win another title at Tampa Bay.

Aaron Rodgers’ return helped lift the Green Bay Packers four places to the top spot of the latest AP Pro32 poll.

Mac Jones threw three touchdown passes, rookie Rhamondre Stevenson rushed for a career-high 100 yards and two scores, and the New England Patriots rolled to a 45-7 victory over the Cleveland Browns.

Panthers quarterback Cam Newton made it clear in a 30-minute teleconference Friday that he doesn’t hold any grudges about the team releasing him prior to the 2020 season, calling it “irrelevant” to him now.

Mac Jones threw two touchdown passes, Damien Harris and J.

Jameis Winston threw two touchdown passes, Malcolm Jenkins returned an interception for a score and the New Orleans Saints beat the New England Patriots 28-13.

Matt Ryan has watched Joe Montana, Peyton Manning and Tom Brady switch teams, so he knows there’s a possibility he won’t finish his career with the Atlanta Falcons.

Mac Jones was smart and efficient, Damien Harris and James White had touchdown runs and the New England Patriots took advantage of a nightmarish outing by Zach Wilson in a 25-6 victory over the New York Jets.

Some Southeastern Conference defenses are flexing their muscles after 2020 being a defensive coordinator’s nightmare.

Former Patriots quarterback Cam Newton says he was caught by surprise by his release by New England and believes his weeklong absence near the end of training camp due to a mishap related to COVID-19 testing protocols contributed to coach Bill Belichick’s decision.

Top-ranked Alabama looks very much like a team capable of making another run at a national title.

They were once at the top of the NFL.

Cam Newton followed Mac Jones along the sideline, holding his right hand up, waiting for the rookie quarterback to slap it after the No. 15 overall pick threw a touchdown in a preseason game Sunday night.

The New England Patriots have released quarterback Cam Newton.

The Patriots say quarterback Cam Newton will miss at least three days of practice this week after traveling to a team-approved, out of town medical appointment over the weekend.

Cam Newton passed for 103 yards and a touchdown, Mac Jones threw for 146 yards and the New England Patriots routed the Philadelphia Eagles 35-0 on Thursday night.

Alabama quarterback Bryce Young has made lucrative deals before starting his first college game, but he doesn’t think that or the preseason hype surrounding him will be a distraction.

Alabama is No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 preseason college football poll for fourth time in the past six seasons.

Mac Jones had probably his best day so far during Day 9 of Patriots training camp.

Six NFL teams used the draft to reunite college teammates.

History dictates that it’s likely at least a couple of the five first-round quarterbacks won’t fulfill the hopes of the teams that drafted them.

Not much changed on the second night of the NFL draft.

Following the highest-scoring season in league history, the NFL draft proved its clubs are more committed than ever to keep lighting up the scoreboard.

Thirteen prospects will attend next week’s NFL draft in person.

Heisman Trophy winner DeVonta Smith of Alabama is scheduled to appear in person in Cleveland at the NFL draft later this month.

Patrick Surtain II and Mac Jones had the spotlight at Alabama's Pro Day, Tuesday, March 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara, File)DeVonta Smith was there for quarterback Mac Jones once again, this time it was at Alabama's latest pro day. “He didn't have to do that,” Jones told the SEC Network, which aired the pro day. '”Jones showcased his arm strength a week after participating in the Crimson Tide's first pro day. “Mac was just on me like, ‘Bro, come catch, come catch, come catch,’” Smith told the network.

Saban and Alabama opened spring practice Friday, March 19, 2021l with an immediate goal. For now, they need to find replacements for three of college football's top offensive weapons. Patterson, File)Nick Saban and Alabama opened spring practice Friday with an immediate goal. He also didn't get a spring practice last year because of the pandemic. The Crimson Tide holds its spring game on April 17 and opens the regular season against Miami on Sept. 4 in Atlanta.

The last NFL event not impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic was the 2020 combine in Indianapolis. A year later, with the 2021 combine canceled, the league has released a list of players who would have merited invitations. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, File)The last NFL event not impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic was the 2020 combine in Indianapolis. A year later, with the 2021 combine canceled, the league has released a list of players who would have merited invitations. Cornerbacks got the most invitations with 44, including all-Americans Shaun Wade of Ohio State, and Patrick Surtain of national champion Alabama.

The recruiting class that Alabama finalized Wednesday has the highest rating in the history of the 247Sports Composite team rankings, which go back to 2010. Steve Wilfong, the director of recruiting for 247Sports, notes this celebrated Alabama class arrives as most of the Tide’s decorated 2017 class departs. Ad“You’re replacing one of the best recruiting classes ever for what they accomplished with maybe the best recruiting class on paper coming in,” Wiltfong said. While plenty of SEC teams joined Alabama in signing impressive classes, Ohio State stood out from its Big Ten foes. All three were quarterbacks, with Bryce Young enrolling at Alabama, DJ Uiagalelei selecting Clemson and CJ Stroud selecting Ohio State.

American Team quarterback Kellen Mond of Texas A&M (12) has his throw tipped by National Team offensive lineman Osa Odighizuwa of UCLA (92) during the first half of the NCAA Senior Bowl college football game in Mobile, Ala., Saturday, Jan. 30, 2021. (AP Photo/Matthew Hinton)MOBILE, Ala. – Texas A&M's Kellen Mond was the Senior Bowl Most Valuable Player but two fellow Southeastern Conference Western Division products made the decisive big play. Fitzpatrick had six catches for 90 yards in the showcase game for senior and graduate NFL prospects, earning offensive player of the game honors. Obviously, kind of shaky at the beginning but it definitely shows a lot of poise to be able to bounce back.”North Carolina running back Michael Carter also had a big game. Jamie Newman completed a 10-yard touchdown pass to Trevon Grimes with 49 seconds left for the American team after Franks and Yeboah made it a two-score game.

The next game he plays is for his NFL draft stock, provided the Alabama quarterback’s gimpy left ankle is good to go. Senior Bowl executive director Jim Nagy said the plan is for Jones to dress out and see how his ankle feels. “Just being in that room, I already learned so much about NFL football,” he said. Mond started 44 games for the Aggies, Ehlinger logged 43 starts for the Longhorns,Mond led the Aggies into College Football Playoffs contention in his final season. I just wanted to come and kind of learn more about NFL football and learn a new playbook, which I thought I did a good job with.

National champion Alabama has five players leaving early after beating Ohio State in the CFP title game on Jan. 11, with All-America quarterback Jones and linebacker Dylan Moses both early graduates. The 30 players with college eligibility remaining after completing their degree requirements had to notify the NFL of their intentions for the draft. Players less than four years removed from high school who have not completed a degree need to be granted special entry to the draft by the NFL. Southern California has the most players leaving early for NFL draft eligibility with six. Stanford and Ohio State matched Alabama with five each.

FILE - In this Aug. 21, 2020, file photo, Houston Texans coach Bill O'Brien watches during an NFL football training camp in Houston. Alabama has hired former Texans coach O'Brien as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – National champion Alabama has hired former Houston Texans head coach Bill O’Brien as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. O'Brien also served as offensive coordinator for the Nittany Lions and won national coach of the year honors after going 8-4 in 2012. A 28-year coaching veteran and former Brown defensive player, O'Brien was also offensive coordinator at Duke.

(AP Photo/Vasha Hunt, File)AUSTIN, Texas – Fresh off a national title with Alabama, Steve Sarkisian plans big changes to Texas' football program. Sarkisian said that while discussion about "The Eyes of Texas "and other issues are welcome, “'The Eyes of Texas' is our school song. Texas, without a conference championship since 2009, is itching to see if Sarkisian can produce similar results in Austin. Texas expects quick results from Sarkisian, recent winner of the Broyles Award given to college football’s top assistant coach. Asked about scheduling A&M again, Sarkisian said “I would love to play that game.”Sarkisian is Texas’ fourth head coach since 2009.

(AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)Nick Saban wasn’t ready to contemplate his legacy moments after capturing a record seventh national championship “because you’re always looking forward.”It was time to start chasing No. "It’s an ongoing process, building a team," Saban said. Only Florida in the SEC championship game came closer than 15 points. “There’s no team that will ever play an SEC schedule like that.”The 2009 Alabama team that went 14-0 is Saban's only other undefeated group. “I came back to get a degree and to win a national championship,” Smith said.

(AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – Alabama finished the season No. 1 in the AP Top 25 for the 12th time, extending its record by completing the program’s first perfect season since 2009. With 12 AP titles overall — Paul “Bear” Bryant was coach for five and Gene Stallings for one — Alabama has four more than Notre Dame, in second place with eight. The Big 12 finished with a perfect record in five bowl games. ___Follow Ralph D. Russo at https://twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP and listen at https://westwoodonepodcasts.com/pods/ap-top-25-college-football-podcast/___More AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25___This story has been updated to correct the number of national titles for Alabama to 12, not.

DeVonta Smith was uncoverable, Najee Harris unstoppable and Mac Jones impeccable as the top-ranked Tide won the College Football Playoff national championship game 52-24 against No. 7 overall, breaking a tie with Alabama great Paul “Bear” Bryant for the most by a major college coach. "To me this is the ultimate team,” Saban said. “To me this team accomplished more than almost any team," Saban said. “Heaven knows what he would have done if he played the whole game,” Saban said.

Now the question is will he be able to play in the title game Monday night against Ohio State? “I think you absolutely have to prepare as if he's going to play,” Ohio State defensive coordinator Kerry Coombs said. Ohio State President Kristina M. Johnson posted photos on Twitter showing her visiting with coach Ryan Day and the team in the school's indoor practice facility. WEST COAST EXPORTSThe West Coast will be well represented in the national championship game among the players, if not the football programs themselves. Alabama All-America tailback Najee Harris, Ohio State wide receiver Chris Olave and Buckeyes All-America guard Wyatt Davis are all from California.

Smith became the first wide receiver to win the Heisman Trophy in 29 seasons Tuesday night, breaking the monopoly quarterbacks have had on the award by beating out three of them. “Just to be one of the very few that played receiver to win the Heisman, it means a lot to me,” Smith said. Smith is the third Alabama player to win the Heisman, all since 2009. 1 receiver, Smith shined. ___Follow Ralph D. Russo at https://twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP and listen at https://westwoodonepodcasts.com/pods/ap-top-25-college-football-podcast/___More AP college football: https://apnews.com/Collegefootball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

Ohio State won 49-28. “This team, this program, we persevered through so much,” Ohio State running back Trey Sermon said Monday. In addition to Sarkisian's imminent departure, Alabama has to take care of some Heisman Trophy business while preparing for the matchup with Ohio State. Ohio State (7-0) won that meeting en route to the national title. OHIO STATEOverview: Like many teams, Ohio State faced major obstacles during the pandemic.

Six years later, Ohio State and Alabama meet again, the Tide still rolling and the Buckeyes again looking for an upset. How Fields is feeling will be the main story line heading into the title game. Alabama was the top seed in the first four-team playoff after the 2014 season, but Ohio State beat the Tide 42-35 in the semifinal Sugar Bowl behind Meyer, Ezekiel Elliott and Cardale Jones. That Ohio State even got to play at all was surprising after the Big Ten canceled its fall season in August only to reverse course in September,"With everything this team has been through this last 10 months or so, I’m just so happy for this group of guys,” Ohio State linebacker Tuf Borland said. Alabama opened as a touchdown favorite over Ohio State, riding a prolific offense that features two Heisman Trophy finalists.

And with that, Lawrence’s bid to finish an extraordinary college football career with his second national championship in three seasons slipped away. 2 Clemson in the College Football Playoff semifinal at the Sugar Bowl on Friday night. “Obviously they kicked our butt tonight," Lawrence said. Lawrence is one of four finalists, along with Alabama QB Mac Jones, Crimson Tide receiver Davonta Smith and Florida QB Kyle Trask. Still, he'll be remembered as one of the faces of college football — on the field and off — during a tumultuous junior year.

(AP Photo/Michael Ainsworth)ARLINGTON, Texas – A truly untraditional Rose Bowl setting, a very common result for Alabama in the College Football Playoff. 4 Notre Dame in a CFP semifinal Rose Bowl played inside about 1,400 miles from Pasadena, California. “I don't think there’s anything quite like the Rose Bowl, the tradition, the setting, the mountains. 3 Ohio State, which beat Clemson 49-28 in the other CFP semifinal at the Sugar Bowl on Friday night. PERFECT AT COWS HOMEAlabama is 5-0 at AT&T Stadium, with a pair of convincing CFP semifinal wins there.

DeVonta Smith is The Associated Press college football player of the year, becoming the first wide receiver to win the award since it was established in 1998, Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2020. Jones received nine first-place votes and 67 points as he and Smith became the first teammates to finish 1-2 in the voting for AP player of the year. Smith is also the first Alabama player to win the award. Derrick Henry won the 2015 Heisman for the Tide, but Stanford's Christian McCaffrey was AP player of the year. ___Follow Ralph D. Russo at https://twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP and listen at https://westwoodonepodcasts.com/pods/ap-top-25-college-football-podcast/___More AP college football: https://apnews.com/Collegefootball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25