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  • Training Camp Position Preview: Special Teams

    Training Camp Position Preview: Special Teams

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    PhiladelphiaEagles.com

    The Eagles’ special teams return many familiar faces, with the additions of some new potential punt and kick returners that bring a boast of speed and versatility. With draftees Cooper DeJean, Will Shipley, and Ainias Smith bringing college return experience to the roster, how will they be used in a year with brand new kickoff rules beginning?

    Jake Elliott will enter Year 8 after agreeing to a four-year contract extension in March. An All-Pro in 2023, Elliott is coming off of a career year in which he set a franchise record of a 93.8 field goal percentage, including a 61-yarder against Minnesota in Week 2.

    Punter Braden Mann set a career-high and franchise-record gross punting average of 49.8, along with a net average of 43.9 in his first year with the Eagles. Mann signed a two-year extension in March as well. Long snapper Rick Lovato was also extended on a one-year deal.

    The Eagles now have a great deal of options at the return position after relying heavily on Britain Covey last season. Covey will have some competition this year, but put himself in a solid spot by holding his own as the main guy in 2023. Covey ranks third in the NFL in punt return average since 2022 with 11.7 yards per return. The speedy receiver returned 29 punts for 417 yards in 2023, averaging 14.4 yards per return.

    The Eagles return guys from a top unit in 2023 such as cornerback Josh Jobe, safety Sydney Brown, and linebacker Ben VanSumeren while adding playmaking linebackers Zach Baun and Oren Burks in free agency.

    New to the Nest: Cooper DeJean was named the Big Ten Return Specialist at Iowa as a cornerback. Will Shipley led Clemson’s kick return team with 904 yards in three seasons. Ainias Smith racked up 836 punt return yards along with 360 yards on kickoffs during his time at Texas A&M.

    Bird Talk: “(WR Britain) Covey is a great option to have as a punt returner. We brought in some guys that do have some punt return abilities. As we move forward, competition usually breeds greatness. Having other guys out there, and also we get to see these guys.

    “Britain Covey, what he’s done the last couple years as an undrafted free agent and a second-year guy to lead the league in yards and be up there in average, kudos to him. He just keeps getting better and better. His mindset as a returner is something that you rarely see outside of those explosive guys. Covey, I’m very happy to have Britain Covey on my punt returners.”

    “I think they all excel in different phases. Cooper (DeJean), he’s just a heck of an athlete. You guys have seen his basketball highlight tape surface around. This guy is a really good football player. Hard to find good football players in general. He’s a smooth runner. Able to track the ball as a punt returner. You saw he has the ability to take it all the way. Ainias (Smith), he’s splashy, explosive. When he gets the ball in his hands, it’s really dynamic in terms of that.

    “Then with Will (Shipley), Will, you see from a running back perspective then to a kickoff returner’s perspective, he’s downhill. He’s one cut. He’s still got enough wiggle to make you miss. That was evident in the rookie mini-camp, just seeing those guys kind of move around for the first time live in person outside of the film. It’s just something exciting to look forward to when they get back here and mingle in with the veterans.”

    Notable Stat: Britian Covey has produced the most punt returns (62) and punt yards (725) in the NFL since 2022. He also has the most returns of at least 15 yards (20), 20+ yards (10), 25+ yards (7) and 50+ yards (2) during that same stretch.

    Under the Microscope: The new kickoff rules are going to be an adjustment for every team in the league, but who will stick out as the lead kickoff returner when the season opens? As far as the punt returns go, the question may be if it’s Covey’s job to lose, or if any of the new additions in DeJean or Smith will overtake him or split time. The Eagles special teams are in a lot better shape heading into this year’s camp compared to last, so the competition will be plenty come Training Camp. – Written by Liam Wichser

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  • Prince Harry and drugs: Cocaine, marijuana, ayahuasca, and alcohol – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

    Prince Harry and drugs: Cocaine, marijuana, ayahuasca, and alcohol – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

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    Prince Harry has held a live session with Dr. Gabor Mate, a specialist in addictions treatment, and didn’t hesitate to speak openly about drug use.

    The Duke of Sussex has confessed that marijuana helped him a lot mentally. However, his experience with cocaine wasn’t that great, as he claims that it didn’t offer him anything beyond having a social component.

    “[Cocaine] didn’t do anything for me, it was more a social thing,” Harry noted.

    “It gave me a sense of belonging and probably also made me feel different to the way I was feeling.

    “Marijuana is different, that actually did really help me.”

    Ayahuasca also helped Prince Harry

    On the other hand, the son of King Charles III also discussed about his experience with ayahuasca, a potent hallucinogen.

    “It was the cleaning of the windshield, removal of life’s filters,” he added.

    “It removed it all for me and brought me a sense of relaxation, release, comfort, a lightness that I managed to hold onto for a period of time.

    “For me I started doing it recreationally and then started to realise how good it was for me. I would say it is one of the fundamental parts of my life that changed me and helped me deal with the traumas and the pains of the past.”

    Talking about alcohol, Harry indicated it was also “more of a social thing”, complaining about peer pressure around drinking.

    Gabor Mate’s diagnosis: Harry may have ADD

    The conversation with Prince Harry has led addiction specialist Gabor Mate to the conclusion that the Duke of Sussex may have…

    Original Author Link click here to read complete story..

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  • Prince Harry’s memoir ‘Spare’ sells over 3.2 million copies worldwide in 1st week – National | Globalnews.ca

    Prince Harry’s memoir ‘Spare’ sells over 3.2 million copies worldwide in 1st week – National | Globalnews.ca

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    By Hillel Italie

    The Associated Press

    Posted January 19, 2023 9:33 pm

    Updated January 19, 2023 9:34 pm

    Prince Harry‘s “Spare” sold more than 3.2 million copies worldwide after just one week of publication and will likely rank among the bestselling memoirs of all time.

    Penguin Random House announced Thursday that Prince Harry’s headline-making memoir sold 1.6 million copies in the U.S. alone. It’s a number comparable to first week sales for blockbusters such as former President Barack Obama’s “A Promised Land” and former first lady Michelle Obama’s “Becoming,” which has sold more than 17 million copies since coming out in 2018.

    Read more:

    Prince William’s popularity drops in U.K. as Harry becomes favourite royal in U.S.

    Read next:

    Prince William’s popularity drops in U.K. as Harry becomes favourite royal in U.S.

    The British publisher announced last week that “Spare” sold 400,000 copies in the United Kingdom in all formats — hardback, e-book and audio — on its first day.

    The total sales announced for “Spare” are for print, audio and digital editions in the major English-language markets: the U.S., U.K., Canada and Australia. The book has come out in 15 other languages, and editions in 10 additional languages are expected.

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    Click to play video: 'Key takeaways from Prince Harry’s explosive memoir ‘Spare’'


    Key takeaways from Prince Harry’s explosive memoir ‘Spare’


    “Spare” may set records for nonfiction, but no book in memory approaches the pace of the final Harry Potter novel, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” which in 2007 sold more than 10 million copies in its first 24 hours.

    Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, worked on his book with American novelist J.R. Moehringer, who also helped write Andre Agassi’s acclaimed “Open” and is the author of “The Tender Bar,” a memoir adapted by George Clooney into a movie starring Ben Affleck.

    &copy 2023 The Canadian Press

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  • UK Scraps Tax Cut For Wealthy That Sparked Market Turmoil

    UK Scraps Tax Cut For Wealthy That Sparked Market Turmoil

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    BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) — The British government on Monday dropped plans to cut income tax for top earners, part of a package of unfunded cuts unveiled only days ago that sparked turmoil on financial markets and sent the pound to record lows.

    In a dramatic about-face, Treasury chief Kwasi Kwarteng abandoned plans to scrap the top 45% rate of income tax paid on earnings above 150,000 pounds ($167,000) a year.

    He and Prime Minister Liz Truss have spent the last 10 days defending the cut in the face of market mayhem and increasing alarm among the governing Conservative Party.

    “We get it, and we have listened,” Kwarteng said in a statement. He said “it is clear that the abolition of the 45p tax rate has become a distraction from our overriding mission to tackle the challenges facing our country.”

    The pound rose after Kwarteng’s announcement to around $1.12 — about the value it held before the Sept. 23 budget announcements.

    The U-turn came after a growing number of Conservative lawmakers, including former ministers with broad influence, turned on the government’s tax plans.

    “I can’t support the 45p tax removal when nurses are struggling to pay their bills,” Tory lawmaker Maria Caulfield said.

    It also came hours after the Conservatives released advance extracts of a speech Kwarteng is due to give later Monday at the party’s annual conference in the central England city of Birmingham. He had been due to say: “We must stay the course. I am confident our plan is the right one.”

    Truss defended the measures Sunday but said she could have “done a better job laying the ground” for the announcements.

    Truss took office less than a month ago, promising to radically reshape Britain’s economy to end years of sluggish growth. But the government’s announcement of a stimulus package that includes 45 billion pounds ($50 billion) in tax cuts, to be paid for by government borrowing, sent the pound tumbling to a record low against the dollar.

    The Bank of England was forced to intervene to prop up the bond market, and fears that the bank will soon hike interest rates caused mortgage lenders to withdraw their cheapest deals, causing turmoil for homebuyers.

    The package proved unpopular, even among Conservatives. Reducing taxes for top earners and scrapping a cap on bankers’ bonuses while millions face a cost-of-living crisis driven by soaring energy bills was widely seen as politically toxic.

    Truss and Kwarteng insist that their plan will deliver a growing economy and eventually bring in more tax revenue, offsetting the cost of borrowing to fund the current cuts. But they also have signaled that public spending will need to be slashed to keep government debt under control.

    Kwarteng has promised to set out a medium-term fiscal plan on Nov. 23, alongside an economic forecast from the independent Office for Budget Responsibility.

    Axing the top-earners tax rate would have cost about 2 billion pounds, a small share of the government’s overall tax-cutting plan. Kwarteng said Monday that the government was sticking to its other tax policies, including a cut next year in the basic rate of income tax and a reversal of a corporation tax hike planned by the previous government.

    Tony Danker, who heads business group the Confederation of British Industry, said he hoped the government U-turn would bring stability to the markets.

    “None of this growth plan will work unless we have stability. Let’s hope this is the beginning of it,” he told broadcaster LBC.

    Opposition parties said the government should scrap its whole economic plan.

    “UK gov U-turns on top tax rate abolition because it’s a ‘distraction,’” Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon of the Scottish National Party wrote on Twitter. “Morally wrong and hugely costly for millions is a better description. Utter ineptitude.”

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