Month: November 2017

Ben Roethlisberger is taking notice of critics who think he doesn’t care anymore in light of his flirtation with retirement in the offseason.

Roethlisberger said his teammates, coaches and those in his inner circle know how he deals with the game day-to-day. After a slow start to the season, Roethlisberger’s passer rating has climbed to 87.8 after he threw for 1,076 yards, nine touchdowns and two interceptions over his past four games.

Said Roethlisberger, who is in his 14th season, “I’ve done this long enough, too, that I can let [criticism] roll off my back.”

Rather than just hand out turkeys or give the children a Thanksgiving meal, Allen gave the children $70 apiece and a Thanksgiving grocery list so he could teach them about shopping on a budget.

Allen stopped by the Jackson Heights neighborhood of Queens, New York, on Monday to work with 25 middle schoolers from Elmcor Youth and Adult Activities Inc., according to Nets Daily. The kids were thrilled to meet Allen, so he got to know some of them and gave out Nets hats to his young fans before they hit the aisles.

One might think that offering an awesome budgeting activity to children would come from someone well versed in managing expenses over many years. Allen is just 19 years old. Even that fact came as a shock to the kids.

The Rockies have a real shot at building on last season’s improvement with the right additions this winter. There are a lot of spots GM Jeff Bridich might target, though. There is a clear need to build the bullpen back up with Greg Holland, Jake McGee and Pat Neshek on the free-agent market. But the Rockies also need to address the catcher position and make a key determination on whether they can hold steady on the outfield corners by going young with David Dahl and Raimel Tapia.

49ers coach Kyle Shanahan on getting his first victory as a head coach: “I’ve gotten that monkey off my back now. Now I have to get a second one, and that will be another monkey.”

“When you’re in this situation… things are going to get written that way. That’s wholly untrue,” Brown said in a press conference Monday. “I think we were all in there together — Hue, myself and a couple of other staff members that work on these things at the time we were trying to get the trade done — so I’m not worried about that internally.

Anton Khudobin made 40 saves as Boston improved to 9-7-4 with its third straight win-all with Khudobin in goal.

Jake DeBrusk and Patrice Bergeron scored first period goals for the Bruins.

Jesper Bratt and Brian Gibbons scored for the Devils, and Cory Schneider made 27 saves.

The shootout opened with Hall and David Pastrnak trading goals. And it stayed that way until McAvoy’s game-winner

Prior to the extra period, the first of three regular season meetings between the longtime Eastern Conference rivals was essentially a special teams affair.

A few folks nabbed Marcus Mariota as a dark-horse MVP candidate coming into his third NFL season, but he’s been nothing close to that. An early-season hamstring injury and inconsistent accuracy — most notably in his four-interception performance at Pittsburgh on Thursday — have been big reasons why Mariota has not progressed or performed in the way many expected. Mariota, who has 12 total touchdowns to 10 interceptions, led the Titans to three comebacks in the fourth quarter or overtime this season, and his dual-threat capabilities continue to make him one of the more difficult QBs to devise a game plan for, but he hasn’t played like the Titans expected so far this season. — Cameron Wolfe

The injury situation in the Seattle Seahawks’ secondary went from bad to worse at the start of Monday night’s 34-31 loss to the Atlanta Falcons.

Starting cornerback Shaquill Griffin left after two plays with what coach Pete Carroll said afterward was a concussion. He didn’t return, pressing Byron Maxwell into action on the right side less than a week after the Seahawks brought him back to reinforce their cornerback depth with Richard Sherman out for the remainder of the season with an Achilles injury.

Carroll called the injury a strain. Davis, who was claimed by Seattle in the offseason after being waived by the San Francisco 49ers, vowed to do everything he can to play against his former team next Sunday.

“I’ll be rehabbing like crazy to get back,” he said.

Aboushi left in the fourth quarter and didn’t return. Carroll said he “banged his shoulder pretty good,” but didn’t know the extent of the injury. Mark Glowinski replaced Aboushi at right guard.

The ankle injury kept Fournette out of Jacksonville’s Oct. 22 game at the Colts. At home last week against the Chargers, he limped to a season-low 33 yards on 17 carries and didn’t play for much of the fourth quarter.

“I hate the cold period,” Fournette said, per Jacksonville.com. “I sleep in the heat. That’s just how I grew up. Mentally, I’m just trying to get my mind ready — that’s all.”

Fournette said he’s played in only one cold-weather game in his life – LSU at Arkansas in 2014, when he was a freshman for the Tigers. He rushed for 9 yards on five carries as LSU was shut out, 17-0.

So, the ankle, the weather — anything else Fournette’s fantasy owners should be concerned about?

Two minutes and 31 seconds in—goal. Tomas Nosek, who’d played only 17 career NHL games before becoming a Golden Knight.

The craziness will end if Verlander can vanquish the Dodgers in Game 6, or things will reach a boiling point if Los Angeles wins to set up a Yu Darvish-Lance McCullers Jr. matchup in Game 7 on Wednesday.

Players on both sides can feel free to collapse once it’s over. Fans who’ve had the privilege of watching this classic World Series on TV or in person probably wish it could go on forever.

“Nothing I say now can turn back the clock, but it’s a life lesson, and hope no kids out there who aspire to race thinks that’s the way you should do it,” he added. “It’s becoming normal in our sport now, and I hate that I’m now in the discussion as a guilty party, but I’ll move on and hope Chase, his team and fans accept my apology.”

“There is, and was, something that is an issue,” said a league source who was not on the conference call and didn’t learn about it until Saturday night. “I’d be very surprised about wanting to change Roger. I’d be shocked about that.”

Yet for all the prominent people who do support Goodell, a contract that was expected to be completed in September has not been finalized as November approaches.

“Maybe Arthur [Blank, the head of the compensation committee] and that committee think they’re on track,” an owner said about Goodell’s extension talks. “But they have a lot more resistance than they counted on — and maybe they don’t know how the resistance is growing as we speak.”

The Seahawks have acquired Pro Bowl left tackle Duane Brown in a trade with the Texans, sources told ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

Seattle is sending cornerback Jeremy Lane to Houston along with a 2018 fifth-round pick and a 2019 second-round pick, sources told Schefter.

Alfred Morris, RB, Dallas Cowboys (30.0 percent): Over the next six weeks, the Cowboys are almost assuredly going to be without Ezekiel Elliott, opening the door to someone stepping in to fill his prominent role. Choosing between Morris and Darren McFadden is a projection: It’s perhaps most likely that they split this job. But I’ll give the slimmest of edges to Morris, who has served as Elliott’s backup so far this season.

Bregman paused, with a smile creeping across his face. Sure, the Astros overcame 4-0, 7-4 and 8-7 deficits in an unforgettable 13-12 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 5 of the World Series. Yes, they are one win away from clinching the first world championship in the history of a franchise that was born in 1962 as the Houston Colt .45s.

Nearly nine months after his surgery, the Colts finally began the process of working Luck back into the swing of practice.

“We’ll slowly start working him back into practice this week,” Ballard said on a radio show Oct. 2, via ESPN. “We’ll see how much he gets. But we’ve got a plan in place to where we want him to start getting him reps, and then in time, as we can get him incorporated back into team work and all that, we’ll get him back on the field.”

Cichy told me Saturday that his rehab is coming along very well and he expects to begin running again very soon. He says he hasn’t made a decision yet on whether he will apply for a sixth season of eligibility.

Stephen Curry believes the Warriors are close to being their old, dominant selves again, even if so much seems to be going wrong so far.

One night, it’s offensive rebounds surrendered. Another, it’s turnovers. Or, an all-out foul fest.

The defending champions are showing some serious flaws — and coach Steve Kerr is calling out his team to be far more composed.

“My service is to all of those student-athletes who compete at whatever school they’re at,” Smith said. “I’m blessed to have benefited from the sport personally and professionally. It gave me my career path. I never would have gotten out of Cleveland had it not been for football. That personal connection to it makes me want to do my best for the kids.”

Warriors coach Steve Kerr didn’t agree with the penalties, either.

“I don’t know how you get fined $25,000 for being attacked,” he said. “So, I don’t know. It seemed like maybe there’s some prior reputation to it.

“There’s some curious stuff in there. It looked to me like Oubre came out there and went into the crowd and caused a lot more. Draymond, he was the one who was attacked in the first place. It seemed like those fines could have been reversed.”

Should a similar situation occur and Green find himself wrapped up by another player in the future, how might he handle it?

“I would say defend myself, but I really didn’t defend myself. So, I would say I probably can’t protect myself,” he said.

The Swedish-born Dansk was a second-round pick (31st overall) of the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2012. After not being tendered a qualifying offer by Columbus last summer, he signed a one-year contract with Vegas on July 3.

Ezekiel Elliott’s six-game suspension was reinstated by a judge in the Southern District Court of New York on Monday night. A 24-hour stay was issued to give the NFLPA time to decide on next steps. The NFLPA has appealed, and the NFL may decide to let Elliott take the field on Sunday against the Chiefs.

It’s not practical with so little time to prepare for this week’s game to ask teams to prepare for both contingencies.

Why is it Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET? That’s the NFL’s deadline for rosters to be set for the week.

So will Elliott play? It depends on what the NFLPA does and their timing. But it also depends on the league. This isn’t a hard-and-fast rule, but is simply more of a guideline. While it makes sense from the perspective of giving both teams adequate time to prepare and they’ve done it in the past, the league isn’t under any obligation to let Elliott play.

There’s been bad blood between the NFL and NFLPA regarding this case since the moment Elliott’s six-game suspension was announced. That may factor into the league’s decision.

Mohamed Sanu is working to make sure the club doesn’t lose four straight, and plays like these help their chances.

b. I have never heard what CBS analyst Nate Burleson said about rookie running back Kareem Hunt of the Chiefs: “He’s the carpet that brings the room together.” How did I miss that?

The Pacific Northwest Seismic Network, which usually monitors earthquake and volcanic activity, used their technology to measure how much the fans were shaking CenturyLink stadium after the Seahawks scored a huge touchdown in the last 25 seconds of the game.

Russell Wilson connected with Jimmy Graham for an 18-yard touchdown giving the Seahawks a 41-38 win over the Texans, and the fans in Seattle erupted.

After two great games in Los Angeles, the World Series arrived in Houston, where the championship-starved fans could taste victory (and beef brisket, of course). The Astros players and fans made their case for best in the world. …

“The execution just wasn’t there,” Hurricanes coach Bill Peters said. “We were just sloppy with the puck. Our `D’ got the puck off the stick a lot better in the second and allowed us to play fast.”

Kizer’s struggles aren’t entirely his fault. The rookie was considered a raw prospect coming into the league, and he was expected to need time to develop into a viable starter. Kizer would benefit from having a veteran quarterback to learn behind. Now he knows exactly what the team really thinks of his ability.

So the Browns whiff on yet another quarterback, and in the process of doing so, further undermine Kizer.

McCain still got to share some time with the kid, and as you can tell by the last photo, the Chargers player gave the youngster his jersey. He expressed more frustration on Twitter after the game.

Cutler left the Oct. 22 matchup against the New York Jets with a rib injury. Matt Moore replaced Cutler and led the Dolphins to a comeback win against the Jets, but he was 25-of-44 for 176 yards against the Ravens with two interceptions that were returned for touchdowns.

The team is also without a rushing touchdown this season. In fact, Miami hasn’t had a rushing touchdown in eight straight games, the longest streak in franchise history, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

The Dolphins have been outscored by 60 points, the worst point differential by a team with a winning record after its first seven games of a season in NFL history, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

Joe Girardi said he is “surprised” and “disappointed” that he will not return as the New York Yankees’ manager next season, telling The Athletic that he “wanted to finish what we had started this year.”

Girardi, in his first interview since the announcement Thursday that he wouldn’t be back with the Yankees, discussed a wide range of topics with The Athletic, including his relationship with New York’s front office and his plans for the future.

The Yankees came within one game of playing in the World Series for the second time during Girardi’s 10-year stint with the club, losing to the Houston Astros in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series.

Girardi, whose four-year contract expired at the end of this season, also confirmed that he “absolutely” wanted to return to the Yankees.

Bears coach John Fox said following the game that Miller dislocated his knee and will spend the night in the hospital.

Replays indicated the Bears tight end completed the process of the catch for a TD, but amid a more aggressive approach to reviews, the call was reversed.
Sensing the serious nature of the injury, the Bears’ medical personnel rushed onto the field to assist Miller, who stayed down for several minutes until the cart came out.

To add insult to injury, it was later ruled that he did not maintain possession of the ball, negating the touchdown.

“Obviously we are all familiar with the process of a catch at this point. So we ruled that he was going to the ground as part of the process of the catch. So when he goes to the ground, he has to survive the ground,” official Carl Cheffers explained. “He went to the ground, he temporarily lost control of the ball. The ball hit the ground, therefore it’s incomplete.

“I am grateful to everyone in the Arizona Diamondbacks organization for the opportunity to complete my baseball education,” La Russa said in a statement released by the team. “The challenges facing baseball operations, player development and scouting are unique, as it’s a 24-7, 12-month job and more demanding than I ever realized. The success in 2017 was a complete team effort throughout the organization — including great support from our fans — and with the current leadership in place, we can expect it to be the foundation for many winning years to come.”

Managing general partner Ken Kendrick, president and CEO Derrick Hall and general manager Mike Hazen all praised La Russa for his tenure in Arizona.

Right tackle Lane Johnson has cleared concussion protocol and is on track to play Monday night against the Redskins. That’s good news for Carson Wentz, as all three Panthers sacks last Thursday came off the right side in Johnson’s absence. Running back Wendell Smallwood is hoping to play after missing the past two games, but the swelling in his knee will have to stay down as he tests it this week in practice. — Tim McManus

Starting corners Josh Norman and Bashaud Breeland will be closely watched heading into Monday night’s game in Philadelphia. Norman, who has already missed one game with a fractured rib, had just started lifting weights with his lower body and jogging lightly last week.

The goal was to increase his exercise and running this week and be re-evaluated. There’s a chance he’ll play against the Eagles, but it’s still a little early to express any level of optimism.

So far in his career, neither has been true. Lewis is playing on the outside and Scandrick is manning the slot in most three corner formations for the Cowboys. Matching up against the big boys on the outside hasn’t been an issue. And even more surprising is his tackling ability. As PFF notes, he hasn’t missed a tackle yet.