In a high-tempered Monday Night Football contest, plenty of scrums occurred during and after the game, including one with Los Angeles Rams DE Aaron Donald and Buffalo Bills OL O’Cyrus Torrence.

Fans are reacting to the second-quarter scrum, where Donald tried to rip off Torrence’s helmet by grabbing his facemask while shoving him. Some fans claim Donald should have just “stayed retired” and that he “isn’t that scary anymore.”

No personal fouls were issued for the incident, and nothing really came of it, as teammates on both sides tried to get in the middle.

The Rams have been disappointing this year after being one of the league’s best teams last year and bringing back a defensive legend with high hopes. This probably contributed to the fans’ reaction, as well as Donald’s performance.

The game’s ending also likely fueled the fans’ harsh reaction, with the Rams losing after missing the game-winning kick following a Buffalo block in overtime.

Other fights broke out after the game at midfield as tensions remained high. Alaric Jackson received a two-game suspension for punching Bradley Chubb after the game. Chubb said the arguments that prompted the incident weren’t just between the two of them and that tempers were flaring between the teams.

In three games, Donald, 35, only has two solo tackles and zero sacks. He came out of retirement after two years out of the league.

Head coach Sean McVay had hopes for Donald, saying he was impressed with the workout that led to signing the defensive end.

Donald isn’t making nearly the impact McVay hoped for with that signing, and the Rams are now third in the NFC West at 2-3.

Stephen A. Smith apologized after criticizing Philadelphia Eagles lineman Lane Johnson’s decision to retire. Smith suggested Johnson retired because of the team’s struggle this season rather than the “person and family priorities” and “mental health” reasons Johnson cited.

On First Take, after Johnson’s retirement, Smith said Johnson “called it quits” midseason.

“Now he calls it quits, not before the season. Not in the offseason… four games into the 2026 season, a dude that has been in the league forever, sits back and says I need to focus on my mental health,” Smith said. 

Smith said that people “misconstrued me making light of mental health; I would never do that.”

Smith apologized again on First Take, saying, “My intent was joking about the Eagles; it doesn’t matter how my intent was, it’s how it’s received.” 

“I was wrong to Lane Johnson; I was wrong to the Philadelphia Eagles. I messed up because I made light of the issue of mental health, and that was clearly not my intent,” Smith said.

Johnson said in his retirement post that he “deeply wanted to gut it out for one more year; to take the field with my brothers for one last season,” hence his decision not to retire before the season. However, he said that his priorities changed after a period of “reflection.”

In his first game back after the 2025 NBA Finals, Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton felt he was playing too fast in the Pacers’ preseason opener against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Iowa State.

Haliburton scored seven points on 3-of-8 shooting with six assists, one steal, and two blocks in 16 minutes. 

“It’s the first game, but it’s got to slow down,” Haliburton said. “There was just a lot of adrenaline. I was hyped to be out there, excited, but I just got to slow down a little bit.”

While being hard on himself, Haliburton noticed that although his body was moving fast, he felt like he could read the floor at his usual pace.

“It’ll happen with time,” he said. “The only way to really replicate that is game reps against other guys. And that’s what that was. So really excited about it.”

“There’s a ton of improvement that there is to be made on my end and our team’s end, but just excited to be back on the floor.”

Haliburton suited up for the Pacers over 400 days ago when he tore his right Achilles during Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals. Playing in his first game back, he struggled to sleep. He said it was mainly because of the anticipation of playing his first game back at Iowa State, where he played for two years from 2018 to 2020.

The Pacers planned to play this preseason game in 2025, but after Haliburton’s injury, they decided to push it back until the star was healthy.

To replicate a college atmosphere, Haliburton bought out the student section at both ends of the arena, so students could get seats on a first-come, first-served basis. As a result, lines wrapped around the arena for hours before tip-off.

“It’s the loudest preseason game I’ve ever been a part of,” Haliburton said. “But had a lot of fun, a lot of special memories I’ve made here, and that just adds to it.”

Chase Briscoe won Sunday’s Bank of America 400 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, beating Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Christopher Bell by 0.029 seconds in one of the closest finishes in the track’s history.

It was the second-closest finish ever at Charlotte and the closest NASCAR Cup Series finish of the 2026 season. The victory was Briscoe’s second in a row, following his win at Las Vegas the week before, and his third of the year.

Briscoe looked in control after his pit crew put him in the lead on the final stop of the afternoon, and he built a more than two-second advantage. But his car’s handling faded in lapped traffic, and Bell closed the gap over the final laps.

On the last lap, Bell dove to the inside of Briscoe through the final corner, and the two cars made contact coming out of Turn 4. Both slid sideways as the drivers fought to keep control, then drag-raced to the checkered flag. Bell got loose in the scramble, giving Briscoe just enough room to hold on.

Ryan Blaney finished third and Josh Berry fourth.

The race was the Cup Series’ first fall event on Charlotte’s 1.5-mile oval since 2017, after several years on the track’s road course layout. All three of Briscoe’s 2026 wins have come on 1.5-mile tracks.

Wallace, Bowman walk away from hard hit

The day’s most frightening moment came on lap 77, when Bubba Wallace, Alex Bowman and William Byron were involved in a violent crash.

Bowman tried to pass Wallace for fifth when his car snapped around. He overcorrected up the track and slammed into Wallace’s No. 23 Toyota.

All the drivers climbed out on their own, though it took Wallace a couple of minutes to exit his car. Officials evaluated and released Wallace and Bowman from the infield care center.

Bowman took the blame afterward. “I overcorrected,” he said, adding bluntly that he had done a poor job.

More trouble followed the checkered flag when Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Michael McDowell got into a scuffle on track. The cause of the dispute was unclear at first.

Championship picture tightens

Points leader Kyle Larson finished sixth, his worst result of the 10-race Chase so far. He still extended his lead to 49 points over Denny Hamlin.

Bell sits third, 51 points back, while Briscoe’s back-to-back wins have moved him to within 65 points of Larson.

Larson has dominated the Chase, finishing no worse than sixth and winning twice.

Four races remain in the season, at Phoenix, Talladega, Martinsville and Homestead-Miami.

Sunday’s finish was a welcome burst of drama for a postseason that has produced few close finishes. According to OutKick, it was the tightest finish at Charlotte since Jimmie Johnson edged Bobby Labonte in the 2005 Coca-Cola 600.

Manny Machado struck the ball in what everyone in attendance thought would be a game-tying run, but Christian Yelich didn’t watch it fly.

He looked at Machado, who barely moved after the ball left his bat, signaling that it would sail over the fence and tie Game 4.

“He’s hit about 400 homers in this league,” Yelich said. “He kind of knows what it feels like when he gets one.” 

Brewers center fielder Garrett Mitchell fenced off a couple of fans and made a catch that helped Milwaukee win 3-1 and return to the NLCS for a rematch against the back-to-back defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers.

“I was just trying to get back to the ball,” Mitchell said. “The ball was hit really well. I don’t know, it just happened. Instinctually just do what I do, make a good jump and see what happens.” 

Mitchell’s catch on a ball that traveled 406 feet and 106.7 mph helped snap the Brewers’ 12-game postseason road losing streak, tied for the longest in major league history. Home run robberies have been tracked since 2004. According to ESPN Insights, Machado’s home run marked the first time a player had been robbed of a potential game-tying or go-ahead homer in the eighth inning or later of a playoff game.

“I was really worried,” Brewers president of baseball operations Matt Arnold said. “But like Garrett Mitchell just vanished into the crowd and pulled it out. It was awesome.” 

The Brewers won a major league best 103 regular-season games behind a dominant bullpen, an airtight defense, and an offense that excels at the little things. Still, the question remains whether this team is good enough to take down a Dodgers team that outscored them 15-4 in a four-game sweep in last year’s NLCS.

Mitchell, who drove in the game’s first run and scored the second, believes there’s a “different type of confidence and belief in ourselves” that will make the difference.

 “Coming into the postseason, you have a feeling that you’re gonna have to go through L.A.,” Yelich said. “They’re back-to-back champs, and they’re a great team. We have a lot of respect for those guys. But at the same time, we feel like we can play with everybody. And when we play our game and our brand of baseball, we’re a really hard team to beat.” 

“A lot of people have said we’re not built for the postseason because we’ve done so well in the regular season,” Brewers manager Pat Murphy said. “We just have a dearth of players, no stars, not many stars, where I think we’re proving that, no, we still can win in the postseason because good baseball is good baseball.” 

The Los Angeles Lakers revealed their new defensive identity in their preseason opener against the Sacramento Kings.

From tip-off, the Lakers pressed, switched, and pressured the Kings, forcing a shot-clock violation on the first possession. Luka Doncic raised his fist toward the Lakers’ bench with a grin, showing that the team is all in on this new defensive approach.

The Lakers kept that momentum from the first possession to win 127-103, showcasing their deep wing rotation to compensate for a small bench.

Walker Kessler and Austin Reaves were out for the Lakers with injuries; without his two supporting teammates, Doncic led the Lakers with 21 points before sitting out the second half.

“We all had fun out there,” Doncic said, relishing the chance to play in his first competitive game in six months, one of the longest breaks of his career. “Especially with Matisse Thybulle and Ziaire Williams, just that beginning of the game, the start, that’s contagious for everybody, and how they start the game, it was inspirational.” 

Doncic didn’t have his best shooting night, going three-for-nine from three-point range; his teammates combined for nine of their first 13 three-pointers. Williams shot a perfect three-for-three beyond the arc with 13 points and one steal, acting as the team’s top on-ball defender. Thybulle, who was another key defensive offseason addition, recorded two steals and made two threes.

“You don’t wanna be the only guy out there that’s not being physical, not picking up full, not being a pest,” Williams said. “Coming in, I knew that I saw that the team could use that, someone who could pick up full and could guard the main ballhandler and really set the tone on that end. I try to just focus on that every possession.”

Coach JJ Redick, in his third season with the Lakers, said it was the first time in his tenure he felt the team had multiple players capable of handling that defensive responsibility. The Lakers call it their “line of confrontation.” Williams, Thybulle, second-year forward Adou Thiero and guard Quentin Grimes were among the players who guarded the ball full court. The Lakers forced four steals in the first quarter and 15 in total. They averaged 8.5 per game last season.

The Oklahoma City Thunder dropped their first preseason game to the New Orleans Pelicans, 116-110, and the result was encouraging for Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who wasn’t even suited up.

Of course, wins and losses don’t matter in the preseason, which makes this an overall win for the team, because one of the Thunder’s biggest problems is that Gilgeous-Alexander’s impact is limited, even with the stats he puts up, because he’s always double-teamed.

The fix is to add good catch-and-shoot shooters off the ball to complement his game, so when he drives through the paint, someone has to be covered around the perimeter. This aspect of the new Thunder team was very encouraging against the Pelicans.

The Thunder shot 48.5% from three in the loss. Bennett Stirtz went 3-for-6, Kendrich Williams went 3-for-4, and Jared McCain went 4-for-8. If these shooters keep this up for the Thunder, Gilgeous-Alexander will become even more lethal, and defenses will have to address the perimeter threat.

The San Antonio Spurs and Thunder are both co-favorites to win the NBA Championship, with a rematch in the Western Conference Finals to be expected.

The pieces around Gilgeous-Alexander this year, compared to last year, could be the difference in whether they win or lose that matchup, their toughest opponent yet again on the way to another title.

The Green Bay Packers beat the New York Jets in overtime on Sunday, but the win will feel like a loss in some ways, especially if the injuries are as serious as head coach Matt LaFleur believes.

“That could be a season-ender potentially,” the head coach said about Zach Bako-Bewele’s injury.

The offensive lineman left the game with a right leg injury and was in a cast when the cart drove him off the field.

Bako-Bewele is the star of the Packers’ O-line and is making $88 million on a four-year deal, but is not the only hit the team took.

Another offensive lineman, Aaron Banks, left the game with a toe injury. There is no timetable for his return, but it is not being treated as seriously as the Bako-Bewele situation. The Packers will have to plan for the worst-case scenario with Bako-Bewele, which means looking to free agency.

Former All-American Taylor Decker has been linked to the team as a good fit. Decker was released by the Lions before the season and has also been briefly linked to the Saints as a good destination for his return.

That isn’t all for the Packers’ injury woes. Receiver Jayden Reed also left the game on a cart with a scary-looking neck injury. Reed was hit and fell motionless to the ground before he eventually was seen moving a few seconds later. The entire team gathered around him before he left the field. His head was stabilized.

Reed is returning to Green Bay for further evaluation, with no further updates on the exact details of the injury. LaFleur said he had full use of all extremities, but he stayed overnight before returning home soon.

The Packers take on the Falcons on Thursday Night Football this week.

Deshaun Watson, for the third consecutive game, has led a winning drive for the Cleveland Browns.

The quarterback led a game-winning drive in Cleveland’s Week 3 win over the Carolina Panthers, setting up a field goal for Andre Szmyt. On Thursday Night Football, Watson again led the Browns downfield to set up a winning kick against rivals the Pittsburgh Steelers.

According to ESPN Research, Watson is the second Browns quarterback since the 1970 merger to lead a winning drive in the fourth quarter or overtime in three straight games.

“It was electric. It was amazing,” Watson said. “From the time we came out pregame, it was super dope to be called out, hear the crowd and feel the energy. From start to finish, the crowd was in it; we fed off the stadium’s energy. To get a big victory against a divisional rival on primetime, this is what you dream about. This is what you work for. These are the things you grind for during the summertime and training camp, for nights like this. It was amazing.” 

After a 24-point loss in Week 1, the Browns have won three straight for the first time since 2021 and moved into first in the AFC North for the first time since November 2024.

Watson had one of his best halves for the Browns, throwing for 181 yards, his most in a first half in Cleveland. The offense scored touchdowns on three consecutive second-quarter drives. The Browns led 21-10 at halftime; their 21 second-quarter points were the most in any quarter since the 2020 wild-card round against the Steelers.

The intermission didn’t carry over their electrifying offense; after a pair of turnovers, the Browns’ lead fell to 5 with 10:10 remaining.

The Steelers eventually tied it at 24-24 with 1:42 remaining. Watson quickly drove the Browns downfield with four straight completions, setting up Szmyt in range to drill a 56-yard game-winning field goal.

“That was money,” Watson said of Szmyt’s kick. “I just knew, I knew it was money. He told me the landmark, which was like the 42-yard line. He was like, ‘Man, you got me a little extra,’ so he would just line it up, and we see it all the time. He’s just going to be money.” 

The Browns have won their fifth consecutive home game against the Steelers since 2022 and extended their winning streak to eight games on Thursday night, the longest active streak in the NFL.

“That was a complete, maybe disaster is a little bit strong, but that’s a tough opening game in every phase, other than maybe kickoff return, maybe other than that. But the guys trusted the process,” coach Todd Monken said. “We got stung a little bit, and our guys responded to that. And, man, that locker room is fun, right there celebrating those guys. Big, big, big divisional win.” 

Watson has won over the Cleveland crowd after home fans booed him when he struggled in the second half of a preseason game and later lashed out at them.

Through four games, Watson has completed 69.6% of his passes, his best single-season mark with the Browns. He has thrown for 855 yards with six touchdowns and two interceptions.

QB Bryce Young led the Carolina Panthers past the Detroit Lions on Sunday Night Football 32-26. In a game that lacked defense on both sides, Young led the Panthers to a win.

The Lions’ defense has struggled mightily to start the year and has yet to hold a team to under 24 points this regular season, despite being 2-2.

Young, who has shown signs of big-game potential, has also had poor starts that have cost the team games. Last night was one of the games where he took control, passing for 329 yards and two touchdowns.

The Panthers have shown signs of offensive explosiveness so far this season, which is encouraging for Panthers fans. They have scored over 30 points in three of their four games, and their only real concern comes defensively, when they allowed 59 points in the season opener to the Chicago Bears.

The two teams play similar styles of football, aggressive and high-scoring. The problem for the Lions, similar to how the Panthers felt after Week 1, is that QB Jared Goff had a 412-yard night and the team still didn’t win.

Certain blame is being put on the Lions’ performance since the departure of former offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, but the offense has not been the struggle, even though coach Dan Campbell has a below .500 record without the offensive mind.

Campbell has already declined to discuss dismissing the current defensive coordinator, Kelvin Sheppard.

These two teams have the same problem, and Young’s performance is why the Panthers aren’t being discussed the way the Lions are. However, the underlying issue remains with both teams. The offensive explosiveness is there, but it will be difficult to make the playoffs in a competitive NFC without cleaning up the defense for both squads.

With a struggling batting lineup, Boston Red Sox rookie manager Chad Tracy decision to take players out of the game has led to another early postseason exit.

Starting pitcher Sonny Gray wasn’t happy about being relieved of his duties after only 70 pitches.

“I think I’m the best pitcher in the American League going through the order a third time. I think that’s a fact,” Gray said. “I would have liked to have been trusted in that moment.” 

Boston was outscored 18-2 during the series and exited their rollercoaster of a season on a low note, including Tracy taking over the manager role after Alex Cora was fired in April.

Tracy’s decision-making came under fire after both games against the Yankees. In game one, they were defeated 9-0, Tracy pulled starter Payton Tolle after 4 innings and 83 pitches in a 1-0 game.

“To have it end here two times in a row is tough,” shortstop Trevor Story said. 

Facing a New York lineup missing key hitter Aaron Judge, the Red Sox gave up 26 hits despite strong starting pitching. Boston recorded seven hits and snapped a 26-inning postseason scoring drought that dated to last year’s series against the Yankees.

“It’s obviously been an eventful year. In the moment right now you can’t think much more than anything but the fact that we just lost a playoff series,” Tracy said. 

Needing a win to extend their season, the Red Sox sent Gray to the mound for a chance. Trailing 1-0 in the fifth, Gray allowed a two-out single to Ben Rice that put runners at the corners. Leading to Tracy pulling Gray out of the game.

“I felt good. I felt crisp. I felt sharp. I think I got clipped for a solo home run and then some singles, but I felt like I stayed on the attack throughout,” Gray said. “I’m frustrated, for sure. You know, not ready for it to end. A lot of emotions.” 

Tracy felt a change needed to be made while trailing, wanting to keep the game close to give a struggling team a chance to win.

“We’re struggling to score runs,” Tracy said. “And when you get in spots where you’re struggling to score runs, and you’re already trailing, you feel like you’ve got to be aggressive and go.” 

The Red Sox went on a 15-game winning streak in July, matching a franchise record and then went on a 32-5 stretch to climb back into contention. They became the fourth team in major league history to reach the postseason after falling 14 games under .500 and the first to qualify after losing as many as 44 of its first 75.

“I’m proud of what we accomplished,” Gray said. “We were left for dead there for a while.”

The Minnesota Lynx breakout star, Olivia Miles, won the WNBA Rookie of the Year Award unanimously, as expected.

The second overall pick in last year’s draft averaged 19.8 points, 6.0 assists and 4.7 rebounds this season.

Miles’ standout performance led the Lynx to a WNBA-best 33-11 record, and she broke Caitlin Clark’s record for most points averaged by a rookie.

Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve also took home Coach of the Year honors, her fifth time doing so in the WNBA.

The awards were the only bright spot for the Lynx, who were upset by the New York Liberty in the first round of the playoffs. The eight-seed took down the league’s top seed in a 2-0 sweep, upsetting them as around three-to-one underdogs on most sportsbooks and prediction markets.

The disappointing end to the season for the Lynx comes with a bright future, as Miles is inked to a 4-year contract that started just this year in her rookie season.

Indiana Fever star Sophie Cunningham described Miles as someone who “plays like a man,” a controversial compliment that made headlines a few weeks ago. She doubled down on the comments, praising how good Miles is. Many other prominent players, coaches, and analysts have offered similar praise.

Miles had a disappointing postseason on the scoresheet, even though she led the team in rebounds with eight in game one. Miles scored only 16 points in the two games, with just five in game two facing elimination. Her lack of playoff experience shows, but it doesn’t take away from her unbelievable season; Lynx fans should expect to contend at the top of the league for a long while if she chooses to stay in Minnesota long term.

Tyreek Hill has remained unsigned since the Miami Dolphins released him at the end of last season after he tore his ACL and missed nearly all of the 2025 season.

The harsh parting of ways with the Dolphins was part of the start of a full rebuild and mass layoff for Miami, which saw them part ways with their former head coach Mike McDaniel and the entire identity of his offensive scheme that was built around Hill, former QB Tua Tagovailoa, and former WR Jaylen Waddle. All of them are no longer with the team.

When Miami released Hill, 32, to free up over $22 million in cap space, rumors suggested that might be the last time we saw the speedy receiver. The road to his injury recovery was more complicated than just a regular ACL tear, as other ligaments and issues came with it.

The recovery time and injury were really the only reasons for the retirement speculation, since Hill had been a high performer in the years before his injury. He’s had over 850 receiving yards every year since his first, except the last season, when he played only four games before he went down.

The question was more of whether Hill wanted to return than whether someone would give him a chance.

Hill made it clear over the offseason that he was interested in returning to the league, and now hints it could come sooner than we thought. He posted on X that he is ready to “get off the couch and get to work.”

Assuming his recovery is going well based on his comments, it will be interesting to see whether Hill gets picked up mid-year by a team that needs a piece like him. It’s been about a year since the injury against the New York Jets, and he’s always had his mind set on an in-season return rather than signing with a team in the offseason.

Everything clicked for the New York Yankees on Tuesday in the 9-0 trouncing of their archrivals, the Boston Red Sox, to take the first game of the AL Wild Card series.

This included a piece of history for rookie George Lombard Jr., who had an outstanding three-hit performance to help lead the team to a game one victory. Lombard, 21, is the youngest player in Yankees history to record a hit in his postseason debut.

The hit was a bloop single that he fought off over second baseman Nick Sogard’s head and led to the first run on the board for the Yankees, thanks to Austin Wells, who brought him in on a two-out RBI hit.

The bloop single wasn’t the prettiest contact Lombard has made in his career, but it did the job just as well as a home run in the end, especially given the situation. Expectations for a rookie to perform in the playoffs are typically lower, and experience is key to success in the sport, so any form of contact in that spot was all the Yankees could have asked for.

This isn’t the only history Lombard has created on the Yankees, as he also hit a home run in his MLB debut to become the third-youngest Yankee to do so.

His night wasn’t over, as he also found two more singles in the fourth and eighth innings.

His final stat line would show three hits with two runs scored, an impeccable rookie debut in the playoffs, especially at a place like Yankee Stadium against the Red Sox.

Unfortunately for Lombard, his stat line would be overshadowed by Ben Rice’s four-hit, two-home-run, six-RBI performance, which included a grand slam, but I don’t think Lombard would complain if he heard that before the game.

Game two is tonight in New York, with game three (if necessary) also being played at Yankee Stadium in the best-of-three series.

Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson had a confrontation with a fan courtside on Tuesday night in the Aces’ 99-89 loss to the Indiana Fever, which evened the playoff series at one game apiece.

The interaction came in the fourth quarter when a Fever star, Sophie Cunningham, fouled Wilson. Cunningham wasn’t happy with the call and protested with her hands straight up, which led to a fan standing up and pointing at the Aces center.

Wilson took out her mouthguard and approached the fan, yelling, “You don’t point at me, you don’t point at me.” Her teammates had to pull her away from the fan who pointed at her.

She would receive a technical foul for the incident.

The fan was removed from her seat originally before being allowed back when the team deemed that there was no violation of fan conduct that led to the incident with Wilson.

Wilson was furious after the game in her press conference, defending her technical by saying, “It’s just certain things that I’m not going to allow anymore.” She was furious that the fan was allowed back in his seat. She claimed it was disrespectful that a man would have the audacity to point at her. “That’s just unacceptable,” she said.

“You don’t step toward me… You can hate me with all your heart. But I guarantee you will respect me,” were some of her other comments in the press conference regarding the incident.

The best-of-three series between the two rivals now has heightened tension as it goes to a decider.

Las Vegas will return home for game three as the decider will be back on the same court that Wilson dropped 38 points in game one.

The game will take place Thursday. Wilson is the top scorer for the Aces in the series so far.

In the second half at home, the Green Bay Packers were hounded by boos as the team could not get the offense going in their home opener.

The Falcons won 35-14 in Lambeau, with quarterback Michael Penix Jr. completing 18 of 25 passes for 256 yards and a touchdown. The two biggest stars of the game were wide receiver Drake London, who recorded 9 catches for 194 yards, and running back Bijian Robinson, who recorded 213 total yards and 2 touchdowns.

The Packers struggled for most of the game with key players missing, like running back Josh Jacobs and edge rusher Micah Parsons.

With an inexperienced offensive line, they struggled to give quarterback Jordan Love time to throw or to create running room for the running backs.

“I think we’ve got to continue to work with these guys and try to figure out what we do well,” head coach Matt LaFleur said. “Because right now I don’t know what we’re doing well offensively.” 

The Packers rushed for 17 yards the entire game, 225 yards fewer than the Falcons. The offense attempted to run the ball nine times throughout the game, with running backs MarShawn Lloyd and Kaleb Johnson getting four each and one scramble by Love. This performance was tied for the third-fewest by the Packers in more than 90 years.

“I do believe we can run the ball well,” Lloyd said. “But I can’t say that because we’re not doing it.” 

The boos were a mixture of frustration, not just from that game but an accumulation of the games ranging back to last season. During Week 1, the team blew a 12-point lead against the Minnesota Vikings, where they would allow 29 unanswered points, along with the 18-point lead they blew during the 2026 Wild Card against the Chicago Bears.

“We’re very frustrated tonight with the performance,” said Love, who was 28-for-53 passing for 312 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. “But I think the positive is knowing that there’s still a lot of ball out there for us, and I think as a unit, we’ve all got to stick together. I think we always look back to the 2023 season, my first year starting, it didn’t start well that season as well. And we started figuring stuff out, started getting rolling, and we got hot. So there’s still a lot of ball out there in front of us. No one’s throwing in the towel at all. It’s just, we’ve got a lot of work to do to get better as a team and as an offense. So, it’s just about continuing to find the positives of what we’re doing.” 

This was the worst loss in the LaFleur era, and many players, like tight end Tucker Kraft, did not expect the boos.

“Yeah, that’s pretty tough,” said Kraft, who had four receptions for 26 yards. “Like everyone pictures Lambeau Field and not boos. I don’t picture boos. I picture my home stadium. That’s tough. It’s pretty disappointing. Especially for a home opener. It’s pretty disappointing. It’s not going to help us win. Like, I don’t know what people think that’s going to rally us or something like that. But that’s — we’re grown men. We’re mentally strong enough, capable enough to get back on the field and play ball. But it’d probably be much easier with the 70,000 people behind us rather than opposing us.” 

Other players understood the reaction, like wide receiver Christian Watson, who had seven receptions for 96 yards and a touchdown.

“It’s tough, but at the end of the day, it’s an entertainment business, so we have to put a better product out on the field if we want to have the fans have our back. Obviously, we like to think that the fans will be there through the ups and downs, but we’ve got to put out a better performance than that.” 

The Packers’ disappointing slump dates back to last season, when Parsons suffered a torn ACL and meniscus tear; the team lost all of their remaining games, going 0-5 and 1-2 this season. 

With Parsons still inactive and Jacobs on the commissioner’s exempt list, the Packers will need to shake off the cobwebs and return to the same team that reached the postseason for the past 3 seasons.

Michael Penix Jr. returned to the Falcons’ starting lineup and excelled as the team’s offense soared past the Green Bay Packers in Week 3.

Penix’s return didn’t start how he imagined, as he threw an interception on the fourth offensive play. What could have been a long night turned into a breath of fresh air. Penix missed the first two games after recovering from a torn ACL he suffered during Week 11 of the 2025 season. With Cooper Rush starting at quarterback, the Falcons scored only 16 points and lost both games. 

The Falcons would win their Thursday Night Football game 35-14 in Lambeau, with Penix completing 18 of 25 passes for 256 yards and a touchdown. The two biggest stars were wide receiver Drake London, who recorded nine catches for 194 yards, and running back Bijan Robinson, who recorded 213 total yards and two touchdowns.

 “I knew we had a long game ahead of us, so I just continue to keep my head down, continue to keep working and doing what I can to help this team win a football game,” Penix said of his response to the interception. 

Penix-London duo brings the best of both players. In games played together, London averages 104.3 receiving yards per game, and in his last seven games with Penix, London has been targeted 11 times per game and averaged 120.7 receiving yards.

“He’s the definition of resiliency,” London said. 

Penix added that it is a “long season” and that the Falcons were “far from perfect” after their victory. While the Falcons are 1-2, the offense seems to have opened up and is currently tied for first place in the NFC South, the Falcons hope to carry this momentum and finish with a winning record for the first time since 2017.

The New England Patriots QB Drake Maye has had a disappointing start to the 2026 campaign after what was a breakout season last year, leading them to the Super Bowl and a 14-3 record.

Maye has yet to have over 210 yards passing in three games this season, and has seven turnovers to accompany just one passing touchdown so far. One of his turnovers was a lost fumble in the 35-6 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars this weekend, and he blamed it on having slipped because of blood on the ball.

Patriots center Jared Wilson apparently was bleeding on his hand, according to Maye, and when the QB went back to pass, the ball slipped out of Maye’s hand, which gifted the Jaguars a fumble recovery.

Since the start of last year’s postseason, Maye has been a turnover machine. He has called the Patriots and his own performance unacceptable and was seen crying on the sideline in the blowout loss while having a conversation with head coach Mike Vrabel.

A lot of critics called out Maye and the team last year for not having a hard schedule, and looking a lot better than they actually were on paper. The trip to the Super Bowl shut down some of those remarks, but they did avoid the Denver Broncos’ starting QB Bo Nix in the AFC Championship Game, which raised eyebrows.

The start of this season is brewing those shouts all over again, as their loss last week looked miserable.

If things couldn’t get worse, they head up to Buffalo in an interdivision rivalry next week. The Bills are not a team the Patriots can afford to play worse than their best against, so the team will have to shape up quickly.

Maye is still the man in New England, and he did take accountability along with his fumble excuse, but Boston fans are not easily forgiving, and Maye will need to turn it around quickly if the Patriots want to avoid a disaster backup season to their Super Bowl appearance.

Aaron Judge is expected to miss the Wild Card series for the New York Yankees after suffering a calf strain earlier this month.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone told the media about whether Judge would be back for the Wild Card “We’re planning on him not being a part of that.”

The Yankees clinched a wild card spot as the 4-seed in the AL playoffs, where they will play the Boston Red Sox. Recovering from an injury in the summer, Judge would rejoin a hot Yankees team that had hopes of knocking off the Tampa Bay Rays to secure the division. 

Only a few games behind before what could have been a division-deciding series, Judge would be placed on the injured list with a right calf strain following his exit against the Minnesota Twins. Boone labeled it a “moderate grade” strain and said Judge received a PPP injection and will avoid physical activity over the “next couple days.”

“You hear all the time with injuries, we get ranges,” Boone said. “Two to four weeks, four to six, all these things. There are ranges for a reason, and we’re at a point in the year where obviously we push it a little bit if that was in play. But that’s a week away so I’m not expecting it, but I’m not ruling it out either.” 

Judge sustained the injury in his seventh game back after he missed over 3 months with a fractured rib. With Judge, the Yankees are 41-25, while they are 52-43 without Judge.

“We have a lot of talent in this locker room and we have a lot of depth. I think a lot of different guys have stepped up, whether it’s their first year in the big leagues or getting traded or whoever. We’ve had a lot of guys come in, step up, and continue playing winning baseball,”  said Yankees left fielder Cody Bellinger. 

The Yankees have had the upper hand over their rivals this season with a 7-6 record, but now those wins are irrelevant as the next 3 games decide who gets to advance to the ALDS.

Two of the greatest UFC fighters in history, Jon Jones and Islam Makhachev, have been trading shots.

Makhachev (29-1) broke the UFC’s official win-streak record in August when he defended his welterweight championship against Ian Garry for his 17th consecutive win. Former middleweight champion Anderson Silva held the previous record of 16. Jones, a former light heavyweight and heavyweight champion, won 20 bouts in a row from 2010 to 2024, but a no-contest against Daniel Cormier in 2017 interrupted his streak. 

Makhachev recently gave an interview to a Russian news outlet in which he said Jones’s no-contest resulted from a failed drug test by the United States Anti-Doping Agency and that it invalidates his win streak.

“I’m not denying that Jon Jones is one of the greatest athletes in history, but he was caught doping twice,” Makhachev told Ushatayka. “I think that’s why his win streak isn’t considered valid. Because he went into a fight while on PEDs and won, that’s where a new count should have started.”

In 2017, Jones was fined and suspended for 15 months for testing positive for an extreme amount of steroid metabolites. Jones defeated Cormier in their fight, but it was later changed to a no-contest.

An independent arbitrator later stated he believed Jones unknowingly ingested the substance, and it was not performance-enhancing. Jones used this finding to argue for his innocence. He would do this again after responding to Makhachev’s comments.

Jones said on X, “If you believe USADA for finding a picogram in my system, then you must believe USADA when they say ‘It was not found to be PERFORMANCE ENHANCING or INTENTIONAL. You can’t have it both ways. Last I checked, my hand got raised every time I was in the Octagon, as far as any of you can remember. Your own coach said I was a ‘gift from God.’ Let’s not forget you’ve been KO’d, flatlined and gone night-night.

Makhachev’s only loss came by knockout to Adriano Martins in his second UFC fight in 2015. He would respond to Jones the following day, taking shots at Jones’ troubled legal history, both in and out of competition.

“Jon, I’m not trying to diminish your achievements in any way,” Makhachev wrote on X. “But your whole life seems to be tied to breaking the rules one way or another, and somehow, you’re never the one to be blamed.”