Atlanta Falcons All-Pro running back Bijan Robinson saw Zachariah Branch slam his helmet in frustration after his second fumble Sunday, pulled the rookie aside, offered encouraging words and prayed for him.
The moment was captured on video and posted all over social media.
“I know for a young guy, like a lot of that pressure gets to your head really quick,” Robinson said on the AP’s “ Football Unfiltered ” podcast. “I knew it was up to me to go over there and grab him and just walk him down on the sideline, like away from everybody, away from the coaches, the team, and just say: ‘Yo, you can’t worry about anything external going on right now. You’re an amazing player, a great addition to this team so you gotta follow your faith in this time right now and don’t let (anything) creep into your mind that you’re not good enough or anything like that.’”
Branch, a wide receiver who was a third-round pick in this year’s draft, lost both fumbles on special teams, one on a punt return and another on a kick return. They led to 10 points for the Bears as they beat the Falcons 31-23.
The 24-year-old Robinson is already in his fourth season in the NFL and has taken a leadership role in Atlanta’s locker room.
“I think the guys respect what I have to say because everything that I say is super positive,” Robinson said. “I try to like lead us into the right direction, no matter what the situation is.”
On the field, Robinson does his part. He has 641 yards rushing and four touchdowns plus 20 catches for 144 yards and one TD.
Zach Ertz returned to the Eagles earlier this season, rejoining the team he helped to win its first Super Bowl title nine years ago. Ertz is second on Philadelphia’s all-time list in receptions with 582. He trails Pro Football Hall of Famer Harold Carmichael, who caught 589 passes for the Eagles.
But Ertz has run out of elevations from the practice squad to the active roster and starter Dallas Goedert has returned from injury. So, Ertz’s status is uncertain.
“I’ve never been focused on the outcome. I’ve never been focused on certain goals per se,” Ertz said on “Football Unfiltered.” “For me, it’s all about the process and the journey. I just truly believe that the work will always win out at the end. It’s just going out there each and every day during practice, showing that I can still make a difference in this league. And, ultimately, it’s up to the coaches. I can’t control whether I’m up on Sunday or not up on Monday. All I can control is my attitude, my effort, and that’s never gonna change with me.”
Watch “Football Unfiltered with Rob Maaddi” here or listen here
See AP’s full NFL coverage here
Atlanta Falcons running back Bijan Robinson (7) runs from Baltimore Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton (14) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
Atlanta Falcons running back Bijan Robinson (7) runs from Baltimore Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey (44) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
MILAN (AP) — Soldiers spread out in Milan and luxury boutiques were boarded up in the Italian fashion and finance capital as protesters launched fresh demonstrations on Saturday, one week after looting and clashes with police.
Premier Giorgia Meloni announced a raft of measures, including sending an additional 500 soldiers to Milan and tougher penalties for minors, who police said made up a large part of the violent protesters last week.
While protests in France have claimed most international attention, large demonstrations are also rocking many European cities Saturday from Milan to Madrid, Lisbon and Tirana.
The protests encompass a broad range of issues from pensions and housing to anti-war movements, education and corruption.
The 500 soldiers deployed to Milan come in addition to hundreds already stationed there, and will support about 5,000 police and other law enforcement personnel. Authorities are using drone surveillance, checks at railway stations, rapid-response units and online monitoring for potential calls to violence. Milan Mayor Giuseppe Sala has said he is concerned about a repeat of violence this weekend and expressed support for the deployment of more soldiers.
Many stores, particularly luxury boutiques within Milan's fashion district including Omega, Tiffany and Gucci, boarded up their front windows.
Rioters last weekend smashed their way into stores, targeting sneakers, athletic wear and sporting goods on streets that run off the city’s central Duomo square.
Officials said security measures on Saturday would extend beyond the city center amid concerns protesters could move into other neighborhoods.
Valter Mazzetti, secretary-general of the Fsp police union, told The Associated Press that soldiers could provide immediate reinforcements but not resolve police staffing shortages.
Defense Minister Guido Crosetto said in a social media post that the soldiers were only recently allowed to use plastic restraint ties and only in areas around train stations, not throughout the city. They are not authorized to carry pepper spray or tasers, he said.
Milan police say last week's violence and looting involved about 2,000 very young protesters, a large number of whom were “naturalized, second-generation Italians,” alongside foreign nationals. Over two days, police arrested 45 people, including 34 minors.
Milan’s welfare councilor, Lamberto Bertolé, told the AP that more investigation is needed to understand the backgrounds and motives of the young people who joined the looting.
“Many young people increasingly lack a sense of belonging and prospects for the future. Part of our society feels excluded, amid social and economic inequalities,” said Bertolé, of the center-left Democratic Party.
Security was also heightened in Rome, where authorities locked down luxury shopping streets and stepped up controls around the Circus Maximus and Piazza del Popolo.
Several hundred students demonstrated peacefully to stress they were not rioters.
“I think the images from last week were truly something terrible, especially for the young people, for the students, for the vast majority of the younger generations who want to study, want to make proposals, and do not accept being represented by those who use issues and needs to devastate entire cities,” said Riccardo Ponzio, national president of an Italian far-right student association.
A separate anti-war march took off in central Rome, and there are concerns over possible infiltration by violent groups.
Organizers sought to distance themselves from potential unrest, urging participants to keep their faces uncovered and hands visible.
Aside from Rome and Milan, demonstrations have been called in at least seven other cities. The newly formed “Oct. 17 Movement” has been the main driver alongside student federations, grassroots trade unions, and anti-war coalitions.
In Albania's capital Tirana, riot police used water cannons on large groups of protesters, some of whom threw projectiles at police. Authorities said 2,500 police officers are patrolling the streets Saturday.
For over a week, protesters have hurled rocks, flares, firebombs and fireworks at police who have used batons and tear gas in clashes in the city center.
High school and university students are demanding lower tuition fees, greater state investment in education and protesting corruption in the education system. Some have joined a broader anti-government movement calling for the resignation of Socialist Prime Minister Edi Rama.
A separate protest organized by the opposition outside the prime minister's office turned violent earlier, with some activists lighting fires on the street.
Rama said Saturday his government was preparing a response to the students' demands and called them to a dialogue. He warned that violent protesters will face penalties.
Thousands of retirees and others marched in Spain's capital Saturday to demand public pensions aren’t meddled with.
Large crowds marched peacefully down streets in central Madrid, waving colorful flags and banners reading “protect pensions” and “decent pensions for today and the future."
“They are threatening us with privatizing pensions. It’s just another thing they want to profit from," said Maria José Benito, 68.
The protests came ahead of next month’s snap election as Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s Socialist Party criticized the conservative opposition Popular Party for making overtures about privatizing public pensions.
Spain has been roiled by protests this fall around the issue of housing, as rental and home costs have risen in recent years beyond what many Spaniards can afford.
In Spanish cities, a housing supply shortage has worsened thanks to population growth driven by immigration and a proliferation of short-term rentals. The September eviction of an 87-year-old woman from her rented apartment in Madrid triggered huge street protests.
A tent camp protest has remained in the capital’s Puerta del Sol square for almost a month.
Taking their cue from Spaniards, protesters in Lisbon who have been gathering to demand affordable housing are expected to march across the city on Saturday.
They have also targeted recent measures announced by the government of Prime Minister Luis Montenegro that include easing the cap on yearly rent increases and facilitating the eviction of tenants who fail to pay rent.
Montenegro defends the measures saying that it aims at reinforcing trust between tenants and landlords and boosting the rentals market. Protesters claim that the measures are not balanced and put tenants in a more vulnerable position.
Associated Press writers Sylvia Hui in London, Demetris Nellas in Athens, Suman Naishadham in Madrid, Giada Zampano in Rome; and videojournalists Niccolò Lupone in Milan, Veronica Sauchelli in Rome, Alicia León in Madrid and Helena Alves in Lisbon contributed to this report.
Italian army paratroopers patrol the area around Milan's Duomo Cathedral, Italy, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, ahead of expected protests against the rising cost of living and deteriorating public services during one of several protests in Italy organized by groups across the political spectrum. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)
Protesters gather outside the Prime Minister's office during an anti-government rally, in Tirana, Albania, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Hameraldi Agolli)
Shop windows are boarded up in Milan, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, ahead of a protest against the rising cost of living and deteriorating public services, one of several demonstrations organized across Italy by groups spanning the political spectrum. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)
Members of right-wing student groups march through the streets of Rome, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, during a demonstration called "Unlock Everything," organized in opposition to recent left-wing student protests and one of several demonstrations held by groups across the political spectrum. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Members of right-wing student groups march through the streets of Rome during a demonstration called "Unlock Everything," organized in opposition to recent left-wing student protests and one of several demonstrations held by groups across the political spectrum, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Members of right-wing student groups march through the streets of Rome during a demonstration called "Unlock Everything," organized in opposition to recent left-wing student protests and one of several demonstrations held by groups across the political spectrum, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Members of right-wing student groups march through the streets of Rome, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, during a demonstration called "Unlock Everything," organized in opposition to recent left-wing student protests and one of several demonstrations held by groups across the political spectrum. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Members of right-wing student groups march through the streets of Rome, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, during a demonstration called "Unlock Everything," organized in opposition to recent left-wing student protests and one of several demonstrations held by groups across the political spectrum. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
