If you want proof that context matters in NFL Draft evaluation, look no further than Christen Miller’s career arc at Georgia. He arrived in Athens as a four-star recruit and spent his first two years buried behind first-round picks Jordan Davis, Devonte Wyatt, and Jalen Carter — three players who all heard their names called on Day 1.
Georgia
These states are increasing their consumer debt. Georgia ranked fifth
Survey finds millions of Americans racked up billions in medical debt
A West Health-Gallup Healthcare survey showed 31 million Americans accumulated $74 billion in medical debt in 2024.
As prices continue to rise across the country, Americans are tacking more and more money onto their consumer debt.
Americans have $1.3 trillion in credit card debt, $1.7 trillion in auto loan debt and billions of dollars in personal loans, collectively. Consumer debts also include mortgages, payday loans and student loans.
But, the residents of some states are increasing their debt faster than others.
A new report from WalletHub compared all 50 states for the change in average debt from the third quarter to the fourth quarter of 2025. Here’s what they found.
States with highest increase in consumer debt
“At a time when interest rates are very high, it’s especially important to minimize the accumulation of debt. Americans have added a staggering amount of new debt in the past decade, and it can be very easy for that debt to become unsustainable leading to future issues like default and major credit score damage,” John Kiernan, a WalletHub editor, said in the report.
Here are the states that increased their consumer debt the most in the second half of 2025.
- Maine
- Wyoming
- Hawaii
- Montana
- Georgia
- New Mexico
- North Dakota
- Florida
- Texas
- Vermont
“The average credit card balance in Maine increased by nearly 8% from Q3 2025 to Q4 2025, rising to nearly $8,000,” the report said. “For context, the vast majority of states saw increases of less than 5%”
Maine’s auto loans balances went up 2%, the third highest in the country, while personal loans increased 0.5%, one of only three states that had increases.
Wyoming was second with a 5.5% increase in credit card debt, and a 2.5% increase in auto loan debt, the largest in the country. The state’s personal loan debt, however, decreased by 2.4% during the time period.
States with lowest increase in consumer debt
Here are the states with the lowest increases, or even decreases in debt.
- Michigan
- Kentucky
- Ohio
- New Hampshire
- Connecticut
- Iowa
- Missouri
- Delaware
- Oregon
- West Virginia
How can you start to pay off your consumer debt?
WalletHub experts gave a few tips for paying down your debt — and then keeping it down.
You should start by creating a detailed repayment plan that lists all debts, their interest rates and minimum monthly payments to create a schedule to pay the debt down with extra funds. Experts also recommend cutting down unnecessary expenses so money can be redirected toward paying debt.
If possible, you can negotiate lower interest rates with creditors, or even find a temporary fix through a hardship plan. If needed, you can try and find additional income through a part-time job, freelancing or selling unwanted or unneeded items.
If you have debt but also good credit, you may be able to refinance your debt through a balance transfer or debt consolidation loan.
Irene Wright is the Atlanta Connect reporter with USA Today’s Deep South Connect team. Find her on X @IreneEWright or email her at ismith@usatodayco.com.
Georgia
Man accused in fatal Georgia shooting spree dies in jail, officials say
(WSAV) — The man accused of shooting and killing three people in Dekalb County April 13 was found dead in his jail cell, officials confirmed Monday night.
Olaolukitan Adon-Abel was found unresponsive in his jail cell at 6:48 p.m., a Dekalb County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson said. Life-saving measures were performed, according to officials.
He was pronounced dead at 7:17 p.m.
Adon-Abel was charged with malice murder, aggravated assault and firearms counts in connection to the shooting deaths of Prianna Weathers, Tony Mathews and Lauren Bullis.
In 2025, Adon-Abel plead guilty in Chatham County Recorder’s Court to multiple misdemeanor counts of sexual battery for groping women in Chatham County under the name Adon Olaolukitan.
According to court documents, he was banned from Savannah for four years and ordered to undergo a psychosexual evaluation.
The official cause will be determined by the DeKalb County Medical Examiner’s Office, and a standard internal review has been launched, according to officials.
At this time, the sheriff’s office said there are no indications of foul play. No additional details were released.
Georgia
2026 NFL Draft Scouting Report — Christen Miller, DT, Georgia
The defensive tackle assembly line at Georgia is nothing short of extraordinary, and Miller patiently waited his turn. By 2024, his turn had arrived, and what NFL scouts saw was a prototypically built interior defender who carries his 321-pound frame with impressive athleticism and natural leverage.

Miller’s greatest asset is his run defense. He is a solid anchor — quick to press his hands into blockers, disciplined about maintaining gap integrity, and stout enough to hold the point of attack against double teams that would cave lesser prospects — but he’s not dominant.
His lateral mobility is a genuine differentiator for a man his size; he can scrape down the line to close on outside runs or loop inside on stunts without losing his footing or pad level.
That combination of power and movement is why Georgia trusted him on the field for passing downs, and it’s why scouts project him as an immediate contributor against the run at the NFL level.
The legitimate questions surrounding Miller center on his pass-rush production and his still-developing anticipation skills. Over his entire collegiate career, he accumulated only four sacks — never cracking two in a single season.
Still, Miller’s athleticism stands out immediately — he carries his size well and shows the lateral quickness you don’t always find at his frame. His hands have some pop, and he’s flashed the ability to jolt interior linemen off their spot. But he’s a prospect defined more by his floor than his ceiling.

No single trait rises above average, which means his pass-rush production will hinge on technique and motor rather than any physical advantage. He also needs to improve as a finisher — getting close isn’t enough at the next level.
The traits for pass-rush development are present: he has good first-step quickness, flashes as a one-gap penetrator, and showed enough in stunt packages to keep offensive linemen honest. But he has yet to build a consistent, go-to counter move when his initial rush is neutralized. Against better competition, his reaction time to the snap can be late, and he can drift out of his gap assignment when he tries to freelance for a big play.
What Miller offers any franchise is a high floor with a realistic upside trajectory. He comes from one of college football’s most technically demanding defensive line programs, coached by coaches who regularly develop NFL talent.
He plays with a motor that never stops. He competed in SEC trenches for two-plus seasons and was named to the All-SEC First Team as a senior. The experience and winning culture he brings — two state championships in high school, a national championship at Georgia — will matter to coaches who value locker-room character.
The ceiling here isn’t flashy, but it’s tangible: a reliable, two-down starting defensive tackle who keeps blocks clean and lets linebackers run free. In a league that increasingly prizes versatile, multi-technique interior linemen, Miller’s ability to play the nose or the B-gap makes him a schematic asset for even-front and two-gap systems. Don’t sleep on him because his sack totals are modest — evaluating him solely by that metric would miss the forest for the trees.
Miller’s fit in Green Bay is an interesting one. The Packers are switching to a 3-4 base defense under new defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon, and they lack a proven run-stuffing nose tackle while being long overdue for a meaningful investment on the defensive interior — which is exactly the profile Miller fits.
The team brought him in for a pre-draft visit, signaling genuine interest, and his skill set maps cleanly onto what Green Bay needs. His calling card — an elite run defense grade that ranked second among all FBS defensive tackles — translates directly to what Gannon will ask of his interior linemen, and his versatility to play nose in an odd front or kick out to three-technique in sub packages only adds to the appeal.
Georgia
Democrats Are Ready to Reclaim Georgia. Is a Former Republican the Man for the Job?
NORCROSS, GEORGIA — Geoff Duncan, former Republican lieutenant governor of Georgia, won’t stop apologizing.
He’s sorry for supporting the state’s 2019 “heartbeat bill,” which bans abortion at around six weeks, after a fetal heartbeat is detected. He’s sorry for facilitating the passage of a “constitutional carry” bill in 2022, which allows most people to carry a concealed handgun with no license or background check. He’s also sorry for opposing Medicaid expansion, arguing at the time that it was not fiscally responsible.
“I’m sorry for those positions and any harm that they may have done,” Duncan told me.
Duncan first rose to prominence as one of the Republicans who resisted President Donald Trump’s attempt to overturn Joe Biden’s narrow 2020 win in Georgia. Duncan has been speaking out against what he calls Trump’s “toxic” and “dangerous” Republican Party since leaving office in 2023, and even endorsed Kamala Harris and spoke at the Democratic National Convention in 2024. After being excommunicated from the Georgia Republican Party in January 2025, Duncan switched parties in August. He is now running for governor as a Democrat in what will be one of the most closely watched races in the midterms.
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