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Patriots

Report Confirms Severe Sprain for Jones

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FOXBORO – The day-after game day tests confirmed that New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones suffered a “pretty severe” high ankle sprain, multiple media outlets reported Monday. Jones is getting a second opinion but the hope is that the injury won’t require surgery.

Patriots head coach Bill Belichick had no update when he met with the media earlier Monday.

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“Just quickly on Mac, really no update on him. We’ll go through the process and see where things are this morning, but nothing definitive at this point,” Belichick told reporters. He added that he would not “speculate wildly” about the status of Jones ahead of Week 4.

After tossing an interception on the final play of the Pats’ 37-26 loss to the Baltimore Ravens, Jones was brought to the ground by Calais Campbell and his ankle got caught under Campbell’s leg. Jones hopped off the field on one foot and was seen grimacing in pain on the sideline.

Jones had to be carried into the locker room and was in visible pain in the Gillette Stadium tunnel. He had completed 22 of 32 passes for 321 yards and three interceptions against the Ravens. He also rushed for 31 yards and a touchdown.

Brian Hoyer is the Patriots’ backup quarterback and 2022 fourth-round pick Bailey Zappe is also on the 53-man roster. New England (1-2) plays at Green Bay (2-1) on Sunday.

Jones Hurts Ankle in Loss: X-Rays Neg

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FOXBORO – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Initial X-rays on New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones‘ left ankle were negative, the NFL Network reported.

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The team will continue to evaluate the injury sustained on the Patriots’ final offensive play of Sunday’s 37-26 loss to the visiting Baltimore Ravens.

After tossing an interception, Jones was brought to the ground by Calais Campbell and his ankle got caught under Campbell’s leg. Jones hopped off the field on one foot and was seen grimacing in pain on the sideline.

Patriots head coach Bill Belichick would not comment on Jones’ status after the game.

Jones completed 22 of 32 passes for 321 yards and three interceptions against the Ravens. He also rushed for 31 yards and a touchdown.

Brian Hoyer is the Patriots’ backup quarterback. New England (1-2) plays at Green Bay next Sunday.

–Field Level Media

NFL DESK: Patriots Downed by Ravens

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FOXBORO – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Lamar Jackson threw for four touchdowns and rushed for another as the Baltimore Ravens held off a late comeback attempt to defeat the New England Patriots 37-26 on Sunday at Foxboro.

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Jackson completed 18 of 29 passes for 218 yards and had 107 yards on the ground on just 11 carries. Mark Andrews had eight receptions for 89 yards and two touchdowns for Baltimore (2-1).

New England cut its deficit to 31-26 after Rhamondre Stevenson’s 1-yard rushing touchdown with 12:39 left to play but the Patriots failed to convert a two-point conversion.

New England (1-2) then turned the ball over on its next three possessions. After throwing an interception on the last drive of the game, Patriots quarterback Mac Jones limped off the field with an apparent left leg injury.

Jones threw for 321 yards and three interceptions on 22-of-32 passing. He rushed for one touchdown. DeVante Parker led all receivers with five catches for 156 yards for New England, while Stevenson and Damien Harris each rushed for one score.

The Patriots burst out of halftime, driving 75 yards in seven plays in just under three minutes to go up 20-14. Harris finished off the march with a 2-yard rushing TD.

Baltimore’s Justice Hill rushed 34 yards to the New England 6 on the ensuing drive, setting up Jackson’s 1-yard touchdown pass to Josh Oliver for a 21-20 Ravens lead. It was Oliver’s first career touchdown.

In the first half, Jonathan Jones intercepted Jackson’s pass intended for Rashod Bateman with 8:12 left in the second quarter and returned it to the Baltimore 32. The Patriots took advantage of the short field as Jones walked untouched into the end zone from 3 yards out for a 10-7 lead.

However, Jackson’s 16-yard scoring strike to Andrews with 30 seconds left in the first half put the Ravens back on top. The Patriots pulled within 14-13 before the break, on Nick Folk’s 50-yard field goal as time expired in the second quarter.

Jackson also connected with Andrews in the first quarter on a 5-yard shovel pass to get Baltimore on the board.

–Field Level Media

See You in September

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“I’ll be alone each and every night
While you’re away, don’t forget to write,

“Bye-bye, so long, farewell
Bye-bye, so long

“See you in September
See you when the summer’s through.”

– The Happenings but written by Sid Wayne and Sherman Edwards for The Tempos

By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – August, just like its namesake Caesar Augustus, is in the rearview mirror. We’ll See you in September.

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It will be a September without 2021 U.S. Open women’s tennis champion Emma Raducanu who lost her first round match to France’s Alize Cornet (6-3, 6-3) on the evening of August 30. It will be a September without two-time U.S. Open champions and multi-Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka who lost her first round match at Flushing Meadows to No. 19 seed Danielle Collins of America.

We’ll start September’s college football schedule with St. Francis of Pennsylvania at Akron (6pm, ET) but progress to match-ups like Central Michigan at No. 12 Oklahoma State, West Virginia at No. 17 Pittsburgh, and a tough B1G Ten opener for Penn State at Purdue. That’s just Thursday’s schedule.

We’ve already witnessed a Week Zero of college football with Northwestern upsetting Nebraska, 31-28, in Ireland, Illinois spanking Wyoming in similar style to Liz Cheney‘s recent primary defeat, 38-6.

We’ll have a lot to look forward to this weekend when college football really begins. On the local scene, Boston College opens with a “must win” at home vs the B1G Ten’s usual doormat, Rutgers. No. 11 Oregon will travel to play No. 3 Georgia in Atlanta, not Athens and No. 5 Notre Dame is getting (+17) when they play No. 2 Ohio St. before 102,780 fans at Columbus (7:30pm ET, September 3)

We’ll have to wait until Thursday, September 8 for the NFL to begin, but thankfully the NFL preseason is in the books and the regular season Week 1 awaits, complete with the AFC’s Buffalo Bills heading west to SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles to face the defending Super Bowl champion Rams.

The NFL will start without Jon Gruden coaching in Las Vegas but with Jimmy Garrapolo quarterbacking in San Francisco (really Santa Clara). Gruden’s coaching career went up in flames when an NFL investigation into then-Washington football executive Bruce Allen unearthed a slew of racist, anti-gay and misogynistic language in emails which first came to light in a Wall Street Journal article last Oct. 8. Strangely, of the 650,000 emails collected in the NFL internal  investigation, the lawsuit contends, Gruden’s were the only ones made public. Go figure?

The New England Patriots leave training camp behind but face a tough September schedule that just might leave them 0-3, or maybe 1-2. Anything better than that and the team is improved over that of last season and might have a chance. Both the Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins stand in the way in the AFC East. The toughest thing many overlook, the Patriots close-out the regular season with games vs. Cincinnati and Miami and at Buffalo on a sure-to-be ice COLD January 8th. Those August days will be a long lost dream when the Bills and Pats tee-up the kick-off that day.

The Red Sox are happy to leave August (and July) in the past, but doubt the month of September will treat the club much better. In Rich Hill they trust.

With Rory McIlroy coming back from six strokes down to defeat Scottie Scheffler and company at the TOUR Championship last weekend, the 2021-22 PGA Tour season is behind us with only a few Fall tournaments, the President’s Cup and a few silly season events (think Skins Game) awaiting until the January 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions starts off the PGA Tour schedule. In the meantime, we have a LIV Golf on-going in Boston (Bolton, Mass) where dozens of former PGA Tour golfers have jumped ship in an attempt to earn fortunes of Saudi Arabian bucks to the tune of some $4 million for the tournament winner, plus team bonuses.

Golf will never be the same, as the two Tours duke it out for best players, key dates, qualification to the Majors and Ryder Cup teams and just about everything else worth fighting for … or should it be “fore?”

One thing is for sure as the days grow shorter and the sun sets earlier, come September 1 or, maybe on Labor Day in the USA, everyone seems to think the Season of Summer is over but like so much in the world these days, that is “misinformation.” Summer in the USA lasts until September 21, or the end of Week 2 for you NFL fans, Week 3 for NCAA football fans. In fact, in the northeastern USA, the weekend of October 1-2 is often one of the most beautiful of the entire year.

See you in October.

Musical Note: “See You in September” is a song written by Sid Wayne and Sherman Edwards. It was first recorded by the Pittsburgh vocal group The Tempos. This first version peaked at No. 23 in the summer of 1959. The most popular take on “See You In September,” by The Happenings in 1966, reached No. 3.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | July 31

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State of the Commonwealth Sports

By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – From June 19th to 27th, all was well in the Nation of Sox. After a very well documented — call it crummy (10-19) — start to the 2022 season, the Boston Red Sox battled back to the .500 mark by June 5th at Oakland. While still mired in 4th place in the American League East, Boston clawed their way to a (35-30) record when – on June 17th – Sox SP Michael Wacha out-dueled his former St. Louis Cardinals teammate, Adam Wainwright, 6-5, for Wacha’s fifth victory (5-1).

After dropping a game to the Cards the following day, Boston went on to win seven games in a row and climb to second place in the AL East, 11 games over the coveted .500 mark.

As the calendar turned to July, all hell broke loose.

As this is being written from Fenway Park on a gorgeous New England Saturday afternoon, Boston (50-52) dropped a game to Milwaukee, is 7-19 in the month of July, and that includes a 3-13 mark over their previous 16 games. The not so secret sauce is the fact that since Uncle Sam’s birthday, Boston is playing teams with records plus-.500 up until August 3 when they face AL Central cellar-dweller Kansas City.

Combined with the tougher comp, a slew of devastating injuries crashed down on the Sox. In no particular order:

  • June 12 – SP Nathan Eovaldi – lower back pain
  • July 2 – SP Rich Hill – left knee sprain
  • July 5 – SP Michael Wacha – right shoulder inflammation
  • July 9 – INF Christian Arroyo – groin strain after bout with COVID+
  • July 14 – 2B Trevor Story – right hand contusion (hairline fracture)
  • July 19 – SP Chris Sale – left hand, finger fracture
  • July 19 – J.D. Martinez – back spasms
  • July 23 – 3B Rafael Devers – right hamstring inflammation
  • 13 Red Sox players were on the IL at one point

In their place, Boston was forced to call-up “F-Troop” from their Triple A Worcester WooSox farm team, and the Red Sox became the Red SAAAwx for much of the month. Starting pitching prospects, a la Brayan Bello (0-3), Josh Winckowski (3-5) and Kutter Crawford (3-3) were thrown into the deep end of the drowning pool.

With the cumulative effect, the ‘22 Red Sox started to resemble a memorable team from 60 years ago, with comparisons to the expansion New York Mets.

The Sox are a calamity, whether it be fly balls falling between three players in the infield, throwing, fielding and mental errors costing runs, pitchers failing to properly cover first base on routine ground balls to the right side of the infield, batted baseballs lost in the sun or twilight gleaming in both right and center field at Fenway. You name it, and it happened to the home team.

The lowlight was a July 22 inside the park home run by Toronto’s Ramiel Tapia during a 28-5 beat-down of the Red Sox by the Blue Jays, and a score falling two runs shy of the MLB record for most runs scored in a single game.

Overall, it seemed the Sox fell apart when the long-expected return of their ace – Chris Sale – went flat after an inning as a come-backer broke the fifth finger on his pitching hand. The injury sucked the life from the team, as Story, Martinez and Devers were all absent from the line-up.

Thus is the “State of the Red Sox,” as of July 30.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: If there’s one thing the New England fan base can do better than any other in the land, it’s turn the page and change with the seasons. Just as the aforementioned Sox fade to the bottom of the AL East, the footballs are out at Gillette Stadium as NFL training camps began this week. Ladies and gentlemen, we give you the 2022 New England Patriots.

On Day One of Patriots’ training camp, all eyes were on second-year QB Mac Jones who appeared to be all business, in great condition and prepared for the challenges ahead of the Patriots team in transition from its many waltzes to the Super Bowl. While coach Bill Belichick and the Pats are accustomed to being the favorites in the AFC East, this year, they’ll be fortunate to win 10 games (as they did a year ago) and finish second to the ‘21 division champion Buffalo Bills. In many circles, it is the Bills, not the Patriots, who are destined for AFC glory and a trip to the Super Bowl.

Belichick is beginning his 23rd season with the Patriots as the team avoids any sense of the word, “rebuilding,” but does face uncertainty at many key offensive positions. Meanwhile, a look to the south and AFC East rival, Miami, has stocked up with arguably the best wide-out in the NFL in former KC Chief Tyreek Hill to pair with second-year QB Tua Tagovailoa. The Dolphins won nine games a year ago and will fight it out with New England for a possible Wild Card berth, for sure.

Meanwhile, there’s a lot of news and speculation as the NBA off-season hits midstream. For the Boston Celtics, all eyes are on Nets F Kevin Durantwho has asked for a trade from Brooklyn and reports have the Celtics offering some unknown package of players (with one piece likely to be F Jaylen Brown).

Of course, the Celtics made the NBA Finals but simply saw the fatigue of prior match-ups vs. Brooklyn, Milwaukee and Miami finally take their toll against Jayson Tatum and the team. Boston made one major move to acquire a true point guard in former Rookie of the Year Malcolm Brogdan for Milwaukee who the Cs acquired from Indiana in a multi-player trade in July.

The allure of an offensive threat, like Durant to pair with Tatum, is attractive to the Celtics and their fan base, but the lack of defensive intensity shown by Durant in the playoffs makes one wonder if his Achilles’ injury is limiting his defensive mobility against quicker players.

The foundation of the Celtics is “Team Defense” and the questions is whether Durant can buy-in? Brown’s contributions to that defense might be too costly a loss, never mind if 2021-22 Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smartbecomes part of the deal.

On the ice, the Boston Bruins are another team, like the Patriots, in total transition. Gone is goalkeeper Tuukka Rask, while Brad Marchand injured his hip and out for six months since his late May surgery. Then, there’s the uncertain status of forwards Patrice Bergeron and un-signed David Pastrňák, the club’s two best players.

On defense, more injuries and surgeries. Charlie McAvoy and Matt Grzelcyk will be out until late November after shoulder surgeries. Mike Reillyis recovering from May ankle surgery.

In goal, Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark will share the netminding duties, trying to replace the talents of Vezina Trophy-worthy and former winner Rask has officially retired after some back-and-forth during the pandemic.

All the while, Boston is welcoming new coach, Jim Montgomery, to a team that is deep with talent but largely uncertain of its short term destiny.

If you take a step back and look at all four major pro sports, it’s a one for-four (.250) average for sure-fire success and that is only the Celtics.

DIAMOND DUST-UPs: Trade winds are blowing in Major League Baseball prior to Tuesday’s (August 2 – 6pm ET) trading deadline. Of course, the big fish in the MLB pond are Washington’s Juan Soto, who turned down a megabucks deal of 15-years and $440 million, and possibly Boston’s J.D. Martinez. The Seattle Mariners already acquired former Cincy ace Luis Castillo in a deal for a ton of top prospects. The terms “Buyers” and “Sellers” will be over-used this week.

Others MLB players reportedly on the block:

  • Josh Bell, 1B, Washington Nationals
  • Wilson Contreras, C, Chicago Cubs
  • Ian Happ, OF, Chicago Cubs
  • Tyler Mahle, SP, Cincinnati Reds
  • Frankie Montas, SP, Oakland Athletics
  • Noah Syndergaard, SP, Los Angeles Angels

That leads us to the extremely slim chance of the LA Angeles moving Shohei Ohtani before the deadline. The multi-talented Ohtani would be a game-changer as a starting pitcher and DH for any contender, but the question would be: “At what cost?”

 

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Brady Retires

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Tom and daughter, Vivian Brady: (Photo by Getty Images)

Bye-Bye Brady

By TERRY LYONS

Mid-afternoon Saturday, ESPN reported that all-time great NFL quarterback Tom Brady has decided to retire from playing pro football, effective immediately. He leaves with one year remaining on his NFL/Tampa Bay contract.

Brady, 44, is retiring with a record (624) touchdown passes, (84,250) passing yards in 22 seasons of NFL football, mostly with the New England Patriots but concluding with the Tampa Bay Bucs, the 2021 NFL Super Bowl champions. Brady also leaves the NFL with seven Super Bowl championships and a burgeoning business with his TB12 brand.

With the fact Brady’s children are in their formative years, the time for spending valuable days with his family is now. With his wealth, combined with the wealth and celebrity status of his super model wife, Giselle, the timing will allow them to settle in the place of their choosing, most likely New York City or Miami. They are building a home near Miami Beach, in an exclusive paradise called Indian Creek Island.

Late in the day Saturday, Brady’s agent (Don Yee) offered a vague non-denial, denial of the report and Brady’s father, Tom Sr. stated via the NFL Network, “This story Mike is total conjecture. Tommy has not made a final decision one way or the other and anybody else that says that he has is absolutely wrong.”

The take here? You’ve gotta be very happy for Tom Brady and his family. He gave his all to the NFL for 22 years and can retire healthy and at the perfect time to spend time with his wife and children. He deserves nothing but personal happiness and more professional success if he chooses to explore more entrepreneurial outlets like TB12. Otherwise, the links from Pebble Beach Ireland, Pro-Ams and celebrity golf tournaments await.

Side Note: With the announced and now highly expected retirement of Brady, the odds of TE Rob Gronkowski returning to the NFL football field fall to slim and none.

Side Note II: With the retirement of Brady, a Golden Age for Boston sports franchises comes to a full stop with Brady leaving the Patriots (lost to Tampa Bay Bucs), Paul Pierce gone from the Celtics (shipped out to Brooklyn with KG), Zdeno Chara for the Bruins (shipped to DC) and David “Big Papi” Ortiz retiring from the Red Sox and just this week voted as a first ballot National Baseball Hall of Famer. At least Big Papi remained on the Sox and retired as a winner in his Boston uniform, something Sox OF Mookie Bettsdecided against. It is the end of an amazing era in Boston sports history.

SNOWY and WIND-BLOWN BOSTON – The NFL Super Bowl participants will be determined today and the game date will be circled on everyone’s calendar – February 13, 2022 with a 6:30pm (ET) kick-off. Then, if all goes well with their negotiations (see note below), Spring Training for baseball will begin 48 hours later. Pitchers & Catchers reporting is always the first sign of spring.

There will be a February 4-20th time-out for the Beijing Winter Olympics, but with dozens of athletes testing positive for COVID+ and the time change challenges of an Asian Olympics for USA television viewing, the 2022 Winter Games are not generating much buzz or viewer enthusiasm. NBC and Peacock are now beginning 24/7 promotion of the Games, avoiding any connection to China and the obvious human rights protests on-going. NBC Sports is NOT sending broadcasters to call the Winter Olympics on site and, instead, will base much of the coverage out of their Stamford, CT studio. Blah.

That brings us to the “next” season for sports fans. With the NBA and NHL in their dog-days of winter, the focus will shift to NCAA basketball, the various conference tournaments as NCAA “March Madness” fast approaches. The bulk of the college tournaments begin March 9, but some, like the Southern Conference tip-off March 4. Here’s your pocket schedule for planning:

  • March 4: Some mid-major conference tournaments begin
  • March 9: Bulk of NCAA conference championships tip-off
  • March 13: NCAA Selection Sunday
  • First Four: March 15-16
  • First round: March 17-18
  • Second round: March 19-20
  • Sweet 16: March 24-25
  • Elite Eight: March 26-27
  • Final Four: April 2
  • NCAA championship game: April 4
  • MLB Regular Season: March 31

Each week, the Associated Press Top 25 and the NCAA Basketball Coaches Poll rank the best college hoops teams. There’s rarely a spot or two difference between the two polls. As of this week, there’s 99.9% agreement on the Top 10 programs in ‘22:

  • Auburn
  • Gonzaga
  • Arizona
  • Baylor
  • Kansas
  • Purdue
  • Duke
  • UCLA
  • Houston
  • Michigan State

In the Top 11-25 ranked range, these teams should be noted as contenders to go deep into the tournament:

  • Wisconsin
  • Villanova
  • Kentucky
  • Texas Tech

Of course, in the NCAA’s, you can always count on at least one or two teams to catch fire in late February and the first week of March, then become the Cinderella darlings of March Madness. Loyola (Chicago) certainly qualifies in that realm, as does a well-coached and scrappy Providence team from the Big East. UConn and Marquette are two clubs to keep an eye on throughout February.

Winning in-Conference road games by any margin is always the key indicator for this reporter. Don’t let those rankings, Quad-1-to-4 victories, RPI or NET rankings fool you.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: Saturday, January 29th, 2022 (yesterday – or tonight if you’re reading the bulldog edition) marks the first Saturday without “real” football since August 21, 2021. The NCAA football season began the following Saturday (August 28) and the nFL filled what might’ve been a dormant January 8 with two games of their final regular season weekend. (KS 28-24 over Denver) and Dallas 51-26 over Philadelphia). … The NCAA All-Star exhibitions don’t count.

POWER RANKINGS: Green Bay, Buffalo, Dallas, Tampa Bay and Tennessee all tapped-out last weekend, leaving the January 18 NFL Power Ranking in shambles. No. 7 LA Rams and No. 8 Cincinnati Bengals both advanced and the San Francisco 49ers surprised everyone but the Las Vegas bookies. That leaves us:

Cincy at KC, 3pm (ET) on CBS

SF at LA Rams, 6:30pm (ET) on FOX

Prediction: The home teams win and cover. … That said, Cincinnati is dangerous and will be a team to be reckoned with for at least five more years. KC and Buffalo both in that category, too. Anyone else? Let’s hear it.

PITCHERS & CATCHERS & LAWYERS: The MLB Spring Training countdown clock reads 14 days as of January 30th, with most teams asking pitchers & catchers to report on February 15th. This week, there was a Floridian-style ray of hope as consecutive meeting days (this past Monday-Tuesday) between MLB and the MLBPA concluded with reports of progress in their negotiations for a new Collective Bargaining Agreement. … The deadline for a deal is fast approaching so it is reasonable to think the two sides will continue to meet and chip away on the details for a new deal. … The good news, there has been surprisingly little said to media as the negotiations continue.

True Tales of Cowboys and Patriots

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By TERRY LYONS

FOXBOROUGH – These two true tales began with the announcement of the National Football League schedule back on April 17, 2019. The vaunted Dallas Cowboys were scheduled to visit Gillette Stadium to play Tom Brady and the New England Patriots on November 24, a day I would personally celebrate a benchmark birthday.

A good friend would be in town, too, and the fact he grew up in the land of Don Shula’s Miami Dolphins but was a lifelong fan of the Cowboys was cause for our plans to hatch that very April day, only to be fully concocted by mid-summer 2019. Tickets were purchased, and everything was set, only to await game day.

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When that November day came along, the Dallas Cowboys were (6-4) and mired in the NFC East division dog pile where someone would have to win the divisional title, almost by default. Dallas did pack a top-notch and league-leading offense, orchestrated by QB Dak Prescott, RB Ezekiel Elliott and a receiving corp of wide variety and game-breaking talent. The hometown Patriots were (9-1) with only a November 3 loss to the Baltimore Ravens as the blemish on their 2019 record.

Everything was in place. Plenty of week-long hype. Plenty of Brady vs Prescott comparisons. Plenty of network promotion for the 4:25pm late day, featured game on CBS Sports. One thing went awry.

Sunday, November 24, 2019 was a day even the toughest, weather-beaten New Englanders dread. The day-long storm strengthened as the clock ticked and by 4pm, Gillette Stadium was storm center central for a combination of rain, sleet, snow and wind gusts pushing 50 mph. When the rain wasn’t pelting the players, the wind was applying a deep freeze. A football, inflated/deflated/whatever, tossed up in the air would end up landing 10 yards behind and rolling in the opposite direction.

What could be worse?

Although layers and layers of clothing and rain gear were packed and in place, our dynamic duo faced another combination of our very well, advance-planned and now weather-related consequence. Our tickets were the best football tickets money could buy. Upper level, first row, dead center, 50-yard line. Perfect sight lines and no chance of anyone blocking the view. On a beautiful, wind-free fall day, it would’ve been heaven.

Instead, as the National Anthem was being played and we turned a corner from the ramps that led up to our seats, a stadium security attendant warned us to be careful as we advanced to our position, just past a concrete wall. It was good and much-needed advice, as upon another step or two, those wind gusts kicked in and we had to hold onto the railings for dear life. The rain was falling sideways and the winds were howling directly in our faces. A Nor’easter to be reckoned with for the entire game. And the game was a good one, thank God.

After a Dallas “three-and-out” and a New England “six-and-out” pair of punts, Dallas regained the ball and somehow drove 53 yards in seven plays but were forced to attempt a 46-yard field goal when faced with a 4th Down and six yards to go from the New England 28 yard line. The reliable PK Brett Maher bopped it off the left upright.

New England scored first after Matthew Slater blocked a Dallas punt and Tom Brady hit N’Keal Harry two plays later to give the Patriots a 7-0 lead after the freezing first quarter. New England veteran PK Nick Folk made it 10-0 with an impressive 44-yarder (with the wind). Dallas countered with two second quarter field goals as Maher got back on track while Folk went on to miss a pair of place-kicks (46 and 48 yard attempts).

Halftime brought more rain and wind and the third quarter would grind to a weather beaten, alternating punt-fest, as the first six possessions resulted in each team volleying the ball back and forth, via punts. In the fourth quarter, each team traded field goals to close out the scoring and the Patriots had their 13-9 win in a hard-fought and intense game.

We sprinted to the car to jack-up the heater, tear off soaked weather gear which was damp and heavy  despite the use of two large Hefty garbage bags per half as the outer protection against Mother Nature.  Once dry clothing was in place and the car warmed up, we marveled at the players’ and coaches’ ability to perform in such a raging storm. Death, Taxes, Father Time and Mother Nature remain undefeated.

Fast-forward to today, October 17, 2021 when the NFL schedule-makers again placed the Dallas Cowboys at Patriot Place in Foxborough. Although that same good friend was, again, in town, the glaring differences in the two days were otherwise plentiful.

First, the most noticeable, Tom Brady was NOT in the building. Secondly, instead of a large Hefty Bag, my bud had the guts to wear his favorite Dallas Cowboys sweatshirt in the land of Bill Belichick‘s dirty, dingy, sleeves cut-off sweats. And, lastly, instead of a combination Hurricane-Monsoon-Nor’easter, your intrepid pair of spectators enjoyed a bright sunshiny Autumn afternoon with no meaningful wind and warm temperatures in the high 60s.

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The game was highly entertaining with peaks and valleys, ebbs and flows, perfect execution and woeful play – all at the same time. Dallas was penalized 12 times for 115-yards while Prescott threw for 445 yards on 36-of-51 with three TDs. New England jumped out to a 14-7 lead as RB Damien Harris and QB Mac Jones showed some true grit against the Cowboys who ended up leading 17-14 as the fourth quarter began,

At that point, a very good football game became a crazy and unbelievable back-and-forth game. The Patriots scored twice, the latter on a 75-yard break-away pass play from Big Mac to Kendrick Bourne that, along with a two-point conversion, gave New England a 29-26 lead with 2:11 to play in regulation.

With only :20 seconds remaining, Dallas PK Greg Zuerlein hit his third of four FG attempts to tie the game, but that came after combinations of interception returns, a Zuerlein must-make FG that missed and assorted blown opportunities and officiating calls. Nevertheless, the resulting electro-cardiogram for everyone in attendance was that the game went into overtime.

Dallas prevailed when Prescott hit wide-out CeeDee Lamb for a 35-yard, game-winning touchdown just 3:52 into overtime. But, while Dallas rejoiced with the victory which brought their record to (5-1) and a commanding lead in the otherwise weak NFC East division, the Cowboys’ star QB suffered a right calf strain on the final play of the game.

Sunrise, sunset, stormy days, windy days, perfect days, each with sweet victories, disappointing losses.

On October 17, 2021, 65,878 fans were entertained. Two thirds of them went home devastated with the Patriots’ loss and their (2-4, 0-4 at home) record while one third, most pop them in their Cowboys’ jerseys enjoyed the important OT victory.

“We went toe-to-toe with them for 60 minutes,” New England Coach Belichick said after the game. “They just made a few more plays than we did.”

 

 

 

 

 

Boston Needs to Make Texas Toast

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By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – In a recent Digital Sports Desk column which had a general theme, “When they go low, we go high,” the finer points of the City of Tampa were underlined and applauded as opposed to the B.S. that the New York Post threw at the City of Boston when the New York Yankees were the guests at America’s Most Beloved Ballpark, Fenway Park. While the Post proclaimed, “Boston Sucks,” Digital Sports Desk took the high road and pointed out that Tampa had a title-town winning streak ongoing with the reigning Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the NFL and the defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning of the NHL. Tampa also claimed direct connections with the likes of hometown heroes such as musicians Ray Charles, Cannonball Adderley, Stephen Stills, David Sanborn and the model and actress Lauren Hutton.

The obvious question as the weekend of October 15-16-17 approaches and the fans of Houston wonder “What Say You?”

Houston is NOT a “HELL HOLE,” as the New York Post’s Wallace Matthews once wrote when the Knicks faced the Rockets in the 1994 NBA Finals. It is the most populous city in the State of Texas and the fourth most populous city in the United States with 2.3 million people and growing.

Certainly, Houston’s most famous claim to fame is the Johnson Space Center and “Mission Control” for the many NASA missions exploring outer space. Houston is called “Space City” and “H-Town.” The Houston Astros, once the “Colt 45s,” won the World Series in 2017 but not without controversy of sign stealing and drum-banging that cost GM Jeff Luhnow and Manager A.J. Hinch their jobs, along with Boston Red Sox Manager Alex Cora (who was then a bench coach for the ‘Stros before taking the reins in Boston for the 2018 World Series title season).

Houston was home to the then “mod” Astrodome, then known as the “Eighth Wonder of the World.” The indoor baseball venue was the very first “dome,” built beginning in 1962 and opened in 1965. It hosted rock shows (Elvis, The Stones, Pink Floyd), heavyweight title fights (Ali) and the college basketball game of the century which featured 52,963 fans watching Elvin Hayes (39 points) and the University of Houston defeat the UCLA Bruins of Coach John Wooden and center Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) 71-69 on January 20, 1968.

Houston was the home of United States Presidents George H.W. Bush and his son, George W. Bush. It claims a wide variety of famous singers, songwriters, actresses and models, from Kenny Rogers to Lyle Lovett to Kelly Emberg (model) or Charlies’ Angels star Jaclyn Smith. Boxing great George Foreman hails from Houston, as does the greatest gymnast of all-time, Simone Biles.

Houston has active arts and theatre, the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, and is widely known as a tech and medical center of the world, especially fighting every dreaded form of cancer.

How could Matthews ever call Houston a hell hole when it is the hometown of Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter and Destiny’s Child and two-time Academy Award winner Renée Zellweger is from nearby Katy, Texas?

The Red Sox will have their hands filled with the Astros this weekend, as the American League Championship Series (ALCS) opens up in Texas. The Astros went 95-67 this season and took the American League West title. This year will be the ‘Stros fifth consecutive appearance in the ALCS. The Astros lost the likes of outfielder George Springer (Toronto) and pitcher Gerrit Cole (NY Yankees) to free agency and are still great.

As MLB’s version of a “Final Four” has arrived, the sports world of Boston is not focused solely on baseball. Out in Foxboro, another Texas team, the vaunted Dallas Cowboys, will pay a visit to play the New England Patriots this Sunday (4:25pm). NFC East leader Dallas arrives with a 4-1 record and as winners of four straight, while the hometown Patriots are 2-3 and will need to compete mightily in order to gain a wild card berth in the NFL Playoffs. Nevertheless, the Cowboys vs Patriots will have “big game” status and higher TV ratings than the other three major sports combined.

Speaking of other major sports, the Boston Bruins will open their 2021-22 NHL season with a home game against another Texas team, the Dallas Stars, on Saturday night. The Bruins’ season begins with high hopes for another trip to the Stanley Cup Playoffs and maybe even another appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals, largely dependent on the backline defense and goaltending sans the great, but injured, free agent Tuukka Rask (hip surgery).

It doesn’t end there, as the 75th Anniversary season of the NBA is soon to begin and the Boston Celtics will open on the road against longtime rival New York Knickerbockers with a Wednesday, October 20 appointment at Madison Square Garden. That game will be up against a possible Game 5 of the ALCS, as the series will move to Fenway Park for Game 3, 4, 5, scheduled October 18-19-20, with seasonal weather forecasts to delight the faithful fans at The Fens.

Lastly, the Boston College Eagles (4-1, 0-1 in ACC) will play a make it or break it ACC matchup in Chestnut Hill this Saturday night when the N.C. State Wolfpack (4-1, 1-0 in ACC) visits The Heights. Although it’s still relatively early in the college football season, the outcome of the game for the Eagles — especially at home — will determine their ability to compete for the upper echelons of the ACC. Believe it or not, this game is likely to determine Bowl eligibility and/or destinations for B.C.

The week of Boston sports festivities begins tonight in Houston when Red Sox ace Chris Sale (5-1) takes to the mound against Framber Valdez (11-6) of the Astros. Sale was shelled his last time out against the Tampa Bay Rays but has worked his mechanics ever since the October 8 debacle when he threw only one inning but let up five earned runs in a game the Red Sox managed to win 14-6. Boston exploded with five home runs in that game, which turned their series around and helped the Sox advance to the ALCS with a 3-1 series upset over Tampa.

Mac Defeats Zach with Patriots’ Attack

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EAST RUTHERFORD – (Staff and Wire Services Reporting) – New England’s rookie quarterback Mac Jones and the Patriots prevailed in a battle of rookie quarterbacks as New England earned a 25-6 win over New York quarterback Zach Wilson and the Jets on Sunday afternoon. Jones, the No. 15 overall pick by New England in the 2021 draft, completed 22-of-30 passes for 186 yards en route to his first NFL victory. Damien Harris rushed for 62 yards and a touchdown and James White also had a rushing TD for New England (1-1), which bounced back from a season-opening 17-16 home loss to Miami.

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No. 2 overall pick Wilson was intercepted four times and threw for 210 yards on 19-of-33 passing for the Jets. Wilson has thrown five interceptions in his first two NFL games after tossing just a lone interception in the Jets’ 19-14 loss at Carolina last Sunday. New York (0-2) suffered its 11th consecutive loss to New England over a six-year span.

Nick Folk made all four of his field goal attempts for New England, eclipsing Stephen Gostkowski’s franchise record with his 32nd consecutive made field goal from 32 yards on his third of four attempts to make it 22-3 late in the third quarter. His final kick in the closing moments of the fourth quarter, from 26 yards out, made it 33 in a row.

Two plays after Wilson’s fourth pick of the game early in the third quarter, Harris carried four Jets defenders on his back while powering in for a 26-yard touchdown to put the Patriots ahead 19-3.

Patriots Lose to Miami in NFL Opener

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FOXBORO – (Staff and Wire Services Reports) – Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa passed for 202 yards and a go-ahead three-yard touchdown to rookie Jaylen Waddle as the Dolphins spoiled New England’s rookie quarterback Mac Jones’ NFL debut with a 17-16 win over the Patriots in the season opener on Sunday afternoon.

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Waddle, the No. 6 overall pick in this year’s draft, grabbed his first career touchdown catch with 10:51 remaining in the third quarter to put Miami on top for good at 17-10. Nick Folk‘s 42-yard field goal with 2:50 left in the third and another from 33 yards out at 10:36 of the fourth pulled New England within 17-16.

Tagovailoa, who also had a rushing touchdown, finished 16-for-27 passing and was also intercepted by New England defensive back Jonathan Jones with 8:07 to play in the fourth. Mac Jones and the Patriots drove 41 yards before running back Damien Harris lost a fumble at the Dolphins’ 11-yard line.

Waddle finished with four catches for 61 yards and the score and DeVante Parker had four catches for a team-high 81 yards for Miami (1-0).

Mac Jones, the No. 15 overall pick in this year’s draft, completed 29 of 39 passes for 281 yards and a touchdown in his pro debut. Harris rushed for 100 yards on 23 carries and Nelson Agholor made five catches for 72 yards and a score for New England (0-1).

Miami and New England were tied 10-10 at halftime.

Tagovailoa capped a 10-play, 80-yard opening drive with a three-yard TD run off the right tackle to put the Dolphins up 7-0 with 5:29 to play in the first quarter. Folk kicked a 27-yard field goal to put the Patriots on the board at 10:17 of the second.

Jones connected with Agholor for his first career touchdown pass with 2:30 left in the half to put New England ahead 10-7. The rookie faked a handoff to Harris before firing a seven-yard strike to Agholor.

Jones and Tagovailoa were teammates at the University of Alabama. Tagovailoa led the Crimson Tide to a national championship in the 2017 season and Jones guided the program to its 18th title last season.

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