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🏈 Football Five
- D chiefs 3-0 by the skin of their teeth, gets two late red-zone stops 22-17 win on Falcons. Nick BoltonWho was great, making a game-saving fourth-down stop with less than a minute left.
- D the crow racked up 274 yards rushing and held for one 28-25 win on the cowboy. Derrick Henry The total was 174 yards, and after the play, Jerry Jones Said the Cowboys can’t afford Henry This offseason. That is… less than inspiring. Dallas has real issues on both sides of the ball. As Will Brinson writes, “If you’re a cowboy, how can you not blip out?”
- Oh, so that why the eagle received Saquon Barkley. The superstar rushed for 147 yards and two touchdowns — both in the fourth quarter, including a 65-yarder — as Philadelphia. New Orleans tops 15-12 despite being without AJ Brown And lose both Lane Johnson And Devonta Smith during the game. D the saint managed just 219 yards at 4.0 yards per play; They entered the game averaging 406 and 6.9, respectively.
- In college football, Missouri just ran away Vanderbilt, 30-27, in double overtime.
- It was a wild one: James Madison the beat North Carolina 70-50 — yes, 70-50! — In what Will Backus calls “A Historic Low” For UNC under Mac Brown. After the game, Brown offers to resign (?!?!?!)But his players begged him not to. The Tar Heels were one of them Biggest loser of the week.
🏈 Good morning everyone, but especially…
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Justin Fields and the Pittsburgh Steelers…
They have defended for years. Now, they might as well have a quarterback. Justin Fields This was his best game Steeler Uniforms, and Pittsburgh Moved to 3-0 with the 20-10 win on the chargerwho entered the game undefeated.
Fields was good during Pittsburgh’s first two wins, in which he scored a touchdown. But against the Chargers, he stepped up with 245 yards passing, one through the air and one on the ground. He got off to a strong start — 10 straight finishes — and finished smartly, finding out Calvin Austin III for a 55-yard touchdown midway through the fourth quarter.
Fields’ sack rate — a major problem in his first three seasons — has dropped while his accuracy has skyrocketed as he relies more on short passes. He can still push it downfield effectively.
Defensively, Pittsburgh notched five sacks, one of which was a fumble Justin Herbertday of (ankle), and limited the Chargers’ rushing attack to 61 yards on 20 carries. TJ Watt Nice, and Nick Harbig There was a pair of sacks.
It may not always be pretty, but not until it is the ugly At quarterback, the Steelers can make it work.
… and Sam Darnold and the Minnesota Vikings
It’s no fluke. D vikingsWith their journeyman quarterback, their superstar wide receivers and their truly excellent coaching staff is legit. Minnesota beat Houston, 34-7A four-touchdown day for the back Sam Darnold and is complemented by another defensive masterpiece Brian Flores.
Darnold, it should be noted, will Get an MRI on his knee After an awkward fall; He missed just one play. However, beyond that, Kevin O’ConnellDarnold and the offense are absolutely cooked. Aaron Jones (148 total yards), Justin Jefferson, Jalen Naylor And Johnny Mund All caught touchdowns. Jeff Kerr called Darnold The best quarterback in the NFL this year.
Flores’ defense is as good, if not better. CJ Stroudmuch like Brock Purdy last weekwas flummoxed, and only the Ravens have allowed fewer rushing yards per game this season. Minnesota earned an “A+.” John Breach’s week 3 grade.
😁 Honorable mention
🏈 And not such a good morning …
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San Francisco 49ers and Miami Dolphins
D 49ers And the dolphin — both with sky-high expectations for 2024 — just aren’t close to meeting those expectations, and given the injuries, maybe we shouldn’t be surprised.
San Francisco ran out of steam A lousy 27-24 loss from AriesOne game the 49ers led by 10 midway through the fourth quarter and by seven with under two minutes remaining. Christian McCaffrey, Debo Samuel And George Kittle Missed the game, but the offense was fine. It wasn’t good enough to overcome special teams mistakes (missed field goal, fake punt conversion allowed) and penalties (seven for 111 yards). The 49ers were 50-0 when down by double digits in the second half Kyle Shanahan. It is no more.
At least the 49ers had a chance. D Tua Tagovailoa-less dolphins never did 24-3 loss from Seahawks. Skylar Thompson Was inactive before suffering a rib injury. Tim Boylewho joined the practice squad just a few weeks ago, took over. But Miami has non-quarterback issues — offensive line, wide receiver depth — as well.
This leads me to one of my favorite anecdotes. Once, the former Colts Offensive coordinator Tom Moore Why was asked? Peyton ManningIts backups didn’t get many practice reps. Moore responded: “Fellas, if the age drops to 18, we’re clean. And we don’t practice.”
Dolphins can be… well, you fill in the blanks.
Finally, Sean McVay And Mike McDonald Huge props are deserved.
😞 Not so honorable mention
🏈 Tennessee beat Oklahoma in Josh Heupel’s homecoming; Michigan tops USC; Hail Mary, escaped Colorado after OT
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This weekend of college football was full of statements. Let’s run through some:
first, Tennessee Ready for big time football, and OklahomaWelcomed and said, big time football was in the SEC rude awakening. The Volunteers have shown they are more than a high-flying offense 25-15 road winSo a thorough win that they are Gives the Sooners a quarterback conundrum after Jackson Arnoldof Benching.
Speaking of the Sooners quarterback, the Tennessee coach Josh Heupel Used to be one he won a title as one. He later coaches his alma mater… and gets fired by it. The return was an emotional one, however This game was about the future, not the pastWritten by Brandon Marcelo.
next, Michigan Delivering a blast from the past in one 27-24 win Over USC. The Wolverines turned around Alex Orgy at quarterback and he carried the ball 46 times for 290 yards, 159 of which came Kalel Mullings. Quarterback switch Helped Michigan rediscover its identity And USC has shown the Big Ten the hard way. Also, to shout record breaking cornerback Will Johnson. what a player
Last but certainly not least, Colorado It has more resilience than some may give them credit for. Shedure Sanders A Hail Mary done from La johante wester To force overtime against BaylorAnd Travis Hunter Forced a push into overtime to seal the win. A 14-point comeback is the biggest Deion Sanders‘ Coaching Career, and Coach Prime Apologized to Bears And Dave Arandawho had to pass through the students running in the field. Shehan Zeyarajah Takes us back inside.
Here’s more:
⚾ The MLB playoff race is coming down to the wire
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We’re one week into the MLB season, and it’s going to be a wild next six days. Let’s start with the teams already in the playoffs: The guardian (A.League Central) joined in, clinching their division over the weekend brewer (NL Central) as division winners. D Yankees, Dodgers And Phyllis There are also clinch postseason spots.
OK, now for the playoff race. In Awami League’s wild-card picture, the tiger there is The party crashed. They were 8.5 games behind twins In early August. Now, they are tied for the second AL wild-card spot. Here are the standings:
- Orioles (+4 games)
- Royals (–)
- tiger (–)
- Twin (1 GB)
- Mariner (2 GB)
- Ray (4 GB)
- Red Sox (4 GB)
D Diamondbacks The NL also helped tighten the wild-card race a bit, but not in a good way: Arizona blew an eight-run lead — the largest in franchise history — And things look like this now…
- Padres (+3.5 games)
- Mets (–)
- Diamondbacks (–)
- Brave (2 GB)
here Matt Snyder’s Power Rankings.
🏀 A’ja Wilson wins MVP as WNBA playoffs begin; Caitlin Clark is struggling
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WNBA Playoffs Launched on Sunday. Here are the full results:
- The day he was announced Consensus MVP, Aja Wilson As overcome a slow start Aces assembly for a 78-67 win on the storm. Seattle scored two points in the fourth quarter.
- D the sun off Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clarke (11 points, 4-for-17 shooting) in his playoff debut. Connecticut scored a team-high 27 points Marina Mabrey Off the bench in the Suns’ 93-69 win.
- Top-seeded freedom cruise past the dream, 83-69. Leonie FibichJack Maloney identified as an X-factorHad 21 points.
- D Lynx beyond Wednesday, 102–9538(!) points behind Nafisa Collier.
📺 What we’re seeing on Monday
🏈 Bill Jaguar7:30 pm on ESPN
🏈 Commanders of Bengal8:15 pm on ABC
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