Cleveland (2-7) at New Orleans (3-7)
Sunday, 1 p.m. EST, Fox.
BetMGM NFL Odds: Saints by 1.
Against the spread: Browns 3-6; Saints 4-6.
Series record: Browns lead 13-6.
Last meeting: Saints won 17-10 at Cleveland on Dec. 24, 2022.
Last week: Browns were off; Saints beat Falcons 20-17.
Browns offense: overall (31), rush (28), pass (28), scoring (29).
Browns defense: overall (16), rush (14), pass (13), scoring (21).
Saints offense: overall (16), rush (13), pass (16), scoring (16).
Saints defense: overall (28), rush (27), pass (29), scoring (t23).
Turnover differential: Browns minus-7; Saints plus-4.
It's something of a homecoming for QB Jameis Winston, who spent four seasons with the Saints from 2020-23. Winston was popular among his teammates and the team's fan base, but didn't always see eye to eye with former coach Dennis Allen, who was recently fired. This will be Winston's third start for Cleveland since taking over when Deshaun Watson sustained a season-ending injury.
Versatile, 29-year-old RB Alvin Kamara, now in his eighth NFL season, became the Saints career leading rusher last week (6,544 yards), and has surpassed 100 yards from scrimmage in seven of 10 games this season, including his 109 yards from scrimmage last week.
Saints rookie LT Taliese Fuaga vs. Browns star DE Myles Garrett. The 22-year-old Fuaga faces the toughest test of his young career in Garrett, the reigning AP Defensive Player of the Year who is well rested, coming off a big performance and determined to get Cleveland's season turned around.
Browns: The bye week helped as the Browns are as healthy as they've been in weeks. ... LB Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah (neck) was placed on injured reserve and will miss at least three more games. ... LB Jordan Hicks (elbow) is back after missing four of the past five games. ... Saints C Erik McCoy is expected to play for the first time since his Week 3 groin injury. ... OL Lucas Patrick has continues to labor through an ankle injury... RB Jamaal Williams has been sidelined from practice by a groin injury. ... LB Pete Werner has a hand injury and it wasn't clear this week whether he'd be able to play through it.
The Browns won their first eight games against the Saints from 1967-81. ... Cleveland is 8-3 at New Orleans. ... The Browns lost their previous visit to the Superdome in 2018. ... Most of the matchups have been competitive with 12 games decided by seven points or fewer.
The Browns are looking to revive a sinking season that began with Super Bowl aspirations. ... Winston's two starts have been polar opposites — 334 yards, 3 TDs in a debut win over Baltimore; three interceptions in a loss to the Chargers. ... Cleveland's running game has been disappointing but could find some traction now that RB Nick Chubb is feeling more comfortable after being sidelined the first six weeks following knee surgery. Chubb's next TD run will be the 50th of his career. ...Second-year WR Cedric Tillman's development has been one of the few bright spots this season. Tillman leads the Browns with three receiving TDs — all in the past two games. ... Cleveland's defense has had just one interception, but CB Denzel Ward leads the NFL with 15 passes defensed, including one each of the past nine games. He's the only player in the league with 10 passes defensed in each of the past seven seasons. ... Garrett had three sacks — his fourth career game with at least that many — against the Chargers two weeks ago. ... Garrett's 95 1/2 sacks since 2017 are the league's second most behind Pittsburgh's T.J. Watt (103). ... The Browns have gone 20 straight games without allowing a quarterback to pass for 300 yards ... Cleveland's defense has done a good job getting off the field in the second half, limiting teams to a league-low 21.6% conversion rate on third down (11 of 51). ... Saints QB Derek Carr passed for 269 yards and two TDs for a 126.9 rating in Week 10. ... Carr is 4-1 with 1,426 pass yards in five career starts vs. Cleveland and has a TD pass in five straight games against the Browns. ... RB Alvin Kamara has 100-plus scrimmage yards in three straight games. ... Kamara became the first RB with five-plus catches in seven straight games since Christian McCaffrey in 2019 and Kamara is the fifth RB in NFL history with 400-plus yards receiving in eight seasons. ... WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling had a season-high 109 yards receiving and two TDs in Week 10, his second-career game with two TDs. ... TE Taysom Hill had 56 yards and a TD rushing in these clubs’ previous meeting. ... TE Foster Moreau had seven catches in his previous game vs. Cleveland (on Dec. 20, 2021 with the Raiders). ... DE Cameron Jordan had his first sack this season last week. ... DE Payton Turner had a forced fumble, a pass defensed and his fifth career sack last week. ... DL Chase Young had a sack and his first forced fumble of the season in Week 10. ... LB Demario Davis led the Saints with 10 tackles and has a tackle for loss in two of his past three games against the Browns, a team for which he played in 2016. ... LB Pete Werner had five tackles and his first pass defensed of the season last week. ... Werner has a tackle for loss in two of his past three games. ... S Tyrann Mathieu had an interception and three passes defensed last week. He has three interceptions in 2024, his sixth straight season with at least that many.
Tillman's role expanded the moment the Browns traded No. 1 receiver Amari Cooper to Buffalo last month, and the second-year WR has embraced the opportunity. He's got 21 catches in his past three games and could be in line for another big performance against a Saints defense that ranks near the bottom of the NFL against the pass.
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
Cleveland Browns quarterback Jameis Winston (5) celebrates after a win against the Baltimore Ravens in an NFL football game in Cleveland, Sunday, Oct. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/David Richard)
Cleveland Browns quarterback Jameis Winston passes against the Los Angeles Chargers in the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara (41) runs against the Atlanta Falcons during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
President-elect Donald Trump says he will nominate anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the Department of Health and Human Services.
Trump’s pick of conservative loyalist Matt Gaetz to serve as attorney general has Democrats sounding the alarm with Sen. Dick Durbin saying Gaetz “would be a disaster” in part because of Trump’s threat to use the Justice Department “to seek revenge on his political enemies.”
Republicans have won enough seats to control the U.S. House, completing the party’s sweep into power and securing their hold on U.S. government alongside President-elect Donald Trump.
Follow the AP’s Election 2024 coverage at: https://apnews.com/hub/election-2024.
Here’s the latest:
Trump would have Kennedy lead a massive Cabinet agency that oversees everything from drug, vaccine and food safety to medical research and the social safety net programs Medicare and Medicaid. He said before the election he would give Kennedy free rein over health policy.
Here’s a look at Kennedy and the agency he’ll be tasked with leading:
Read more about Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Kennedy stuck a deal with Trump to give the now president-elect his endorsement in exchange for a role in health policy in the administration. Here are some of his positions on the subject:
President-elect Donald Trump is expected to nominate anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr to serve as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, according to two people familiar with the discussions who spoke on condition of anonymity.
HHS is a massive Cabinet agency that oversees everything from drug, vaccine and food safety to medical research and the social safety net programs Medicare and Medicaid.
Kennedy, a former Democrat who ran as an independent in this year’s presidential race, abandoned his bid after striking a deal to give Trump his endorsement with a promise to have a role in health policy in the administration.
He and Trump have since become good friends, with Kennedy frequently receiving loud applause at Trump’s rallies.
— Jill Colvin
Though it’s not clear if Dimon was interested in a role. The announcement came as Trump has not yet named a Treasury Secretary for his incoming administration or others to fill economic and banking related roles.
Dimon had no plans to join Trump’s administration, according to news reports in recent weeks.
Trump, in a post on his social media network Truth Social on Thursday, said he respects Dimon “greatly” but “he will not be invited to be a part of the Trump Administration.”
“I thank Jamie for his outstanding service to our Country!” Trump added.
In a July interview with Bloomberg, Trump said Dimon was someone he was considering for Treasury Secretary. A few weeks later, he reversed himself, saying in a post on Truth Social that he didn’t know “who said it, or where it came from, perhaps the Radical Left, but I never discussed, or thought of, Jamie Dimon” for Treasury Secretary.
Republicans went to court in Pennsylvania on Thursday amid vote counting in the U.S. Senate election between Democratic Sen. Bob Casey and Republican David McCormick, as the campaigns prepare for a recount and press counties for favorable ballot-counting decisions.
The lawsuits ask courts not to allow counties to count mail-in ballots where the voter didn’t write a date on the return envelope or wrote an incorrect date. The two GOP suits could be among many before the last vote in the Senate race is counted, especially with the contest headed toward a state-mandated recount.
The Associated Press called the race for McCormick last week, concluding that not enough ballots remained to be counted in areas Casey was winning for him to take the lead.
After losing the White House and both houses of Congress, Democrats are grappling with how to handle transgender politics and policy following a campaign that featured withering and often misleading GOP attacks on the issue.
There's plenty of second-guessing after President-elect Donald Trump anchored his victory over Vice President Kamala Harris with sweeping promises on the economy and immigration. But Democrats also won't soon forget the punchline in anti-transgender Trump ads that became ubiquitous by Election Day: “Kamala is for they/them; President Trump is for you.”
“Week by week when that ad hit and stuck and we didn’t respond, I think that was the beginning of the end,” former Democratic Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell said of the 30-second spot that was part of $215 million in anti-transgender advertising by Trump and Republicans, according to tracking firm AdImpact.
Kentucky U.S. Sen. Rand Paul said Thursday that he'll lead the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, where he intends to immediately take up President-elect Donald Trump’s plan to reinstate a policy requiring asylum-seekers to wait in Mexico for hearings in U.S. immigration court.
Paul said he'll be the committee’s new chair after Republicans won control of the Senate in this month’s elections. The new role will put Paul — a limited-government advocate and longtime skeptic of surveillance programs — in charge of a committee with broad jurisdiction over government operations, including the Department of Homeland Security. Paul has been the committee’s ranking Republican during Democratic control of the Senate.
Democrat Janelle Bynum won election to a U.S. House seat representing Oregon on Thursday, defeating Republican Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer.
The district, which includes the Portland suburbs and stretches through Bend, was a top target for Democrats. Democrats lost this seat in 2022, when Jamie McLeod-Skinner defeated seven-term Democratic Rep. Kurt Schrader in the primary but lost the general election. The district took in parts of more conservative central Oregon after 2022 redistricting.
Bynum represents Happy Valley and North Clackamas in the state Legislature. The Associated Press declared Bynum the winner at 12:47 p.m. EST.
Republican and Democratic senators alike on the Judiciary Committee that would review Matt Gaetz’s attorney general nomination are calling for a House Ethics Committee investigation into Gaetz to be made available to them.
“I think it’s going to be material in the proceedings,” said Sen. Thomas Tillis, a North Carolina Republican.
Sen. John Cornyn, a Texas Republican, said, “I think there should not be any limitation on the Senate Judiciary Committee’s investigation, including whatever the House Ethics Committee has generated.”
Sen. Dick Durbin, the Democrat who currently chairs the Judiciary Committee, earlier Thursday said in a statement, “We cannot allow this valuable information from a bipartisan investigation to be hidden from the American people.”
Thune did not mention Matt Gaetz, Tulsi Gabbard or other Trump picks that have raised deep concerns among several senators.
But he said senators should expect “an aggressive schedule until his nominees are confirmed.”
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., is calling on the House Ethics Committee to preserve information it's gathered on former Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz, President-elect Donald Trump’s intended nominee for attorney general, and also share it with the Senate.
Trump announced Gaetz as his pick for the post Wednesday and Gaetz immediately resigned from Congress, ending the investigation against him. The ethics panel said several months ago that its review included whether Gaetz engaged in sexual misconduct and illicit drug use, accepted improper gifts and sought to obstruct government investigations of his conduct. Gaetz has categorically denied all the allegations before the committee.
“The sequence and timing of Mr. Gaetz’s resignation from the House raises serious questions about the contents of the House Ethics Committee report,” Durbin said Thursday. “We cannot allow this valuable information from a bipartisan investigation to be hidden from the American people.”
The Democrat looking to unseat an incumbent Republican in a close Iowa congressional race, one of a handful yet to be called after Republicans won control of the U.S. House, has asked for a recount.
Democrat Christina Bohannan’s campaign on Thursday requested the recount in her bid against Republican incumbent Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks to represent Iowa’s 1st District. The initial tally puts Bohannan fewer than 1,000 votes — less than a percentage point — behind Miller-Meeks.
The contest is a much tighter rematch of 2022, when Miller-Meeks won by 7 percentage points. Miller-Meeks earned a first term in Congress representing Iowa’s 2nd District when she defeated Democrat Rita Hart by just six votes in 2020.
FILE - The speaker's dais is seen in the House of Representatives of the Capitol in Washington, Feb. 28, 2022. In the 2024 elections, Republicans have won enough seats to control the U.S. House, completing the party's sweep into power and securing their hold on U.S. government alongside President-elect Donald Trump. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
FILE - Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., speaks during the Conservative Political Action Conference, CPAC 2024, at the National Harbor, in Oxon Hill, Md., Feb. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
President-elect Donald Trump speaks at meeting of the House GOP conference, Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
FILE - The chamber of the House of Representatives is seen at the Capitol in Washington, Feb. 28, 2022. In the 2024 elections, Republicans have won enough seats to control the U.S. House, completing the party's sweep into power and securing their hold on U.S. government alongside President-elect Donald Trump. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
