NFL:
Tom Brady’s 300th career NFL regular-season start ended in much the same manner as his previous 299.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers began their Super Bowl title defense by defeating the Dallas Cowboys, 31-29 on Ryan Succop’s 36-yard field goal with two seconds remaining. Brady set it up with a last-minute drive directed on the field where the Bucs became the first team to play and win a Super Bowl in its home stadium seven months ago.
Brady passed for 366 yards and four touchdowns, but Dak Prescott kept the Cowboys in contention by throwing for 403 yards and three scores.
Chris Godwin, Rob Gronkowski and Antonio Brown caught first-half touchdown passes for the Bucs, who extended their winning streak to nine games dating to last December. Brady’s second TD pass of the night to Gronkowski put the champs up 28-19.
Tampa Bay’s final drive game after Greg Zuerlein put the Cowboys ahead by nailing a 48-yarder with 1:24 to go.
The Pittsburgh Steelers have made outside linebacker T.J. Watt the highest-paid defensive player in the league.
A person with knowledge of the agreement tells The Associated Press that Watt has signed a four-year extension worth $112 million. Watt was set to enter the final season of the rookie deal he signed in 2017.
The 26-year-old has become one of the best pass rushers in the league. His 49 1/2 sacks over his first four seasons rank sixth all time by a player over that span.
Elsewhere in the NFL:
The Ravens listed running back Gus Edwards and cornerback Marcus Peters as limited in practice after ESPN reported the team feared each player has a torn ACL. Losing Edwards would be another major blow to Baltimore’s backfield after the Ravens lost running back J.K. Dobbins to a season-ending knee injury in their final preseason game.
MLB:
The San Francisco Giants have added to their division lead without having to take the field this afternoon.
The Giants now top the NL West by 2 1/2 games over Los Angeles following the Dodgers’ 2-1 loss at St. Louis.
Tyler O’Neill hit a tiebreaking homer in the fifth inning, and four relievers combined for five shutout innings as the Cardinals pulled within three games of the Padres for the second NL wild card.
Redbirds starter Jake Woodford threw 66 pitches over four innings of his first start since being recalled last week. He allowed an RBI single by Trea Turner, who extended his career-best hitting streak to 16 games.
The Dodgers had to settle for a split of the four-game series. They have scored more than five runs just once since Aug. 19.
In other major league action:
The Braves pulled out a 7-6 win over the Nationals on Joc Pederson’s walk-off single in the 10th inning. Stephen Vogt hit two solo homers for Atlanta, which took two of three in the series. Freddie Freeman, Adam Duvall and Jorge Soler also went deep as the Braves extended their division lead.
Pinch-hitter Ryan McMahon and Sam Hilliard hit back-to-back home runs with two out in the ninth inning, sending the Phillies to a demoralizing 4-3 loss to the Rockies. Ian Kennedy retired his first two batters in the ninth and was one strike away from the save until Colton Welker singled and scored on McMahon’s go-ahead home run. Bryce Harper hit his 30th home run for the Phillies, who trail the NL East-leading Braves by 3 1/2 games.
Jazz Chisolm belted a tiebreaking, solo homer off Jeurys Familia with two out in the eighth inning to give the Marlins the rubber match of their three-game set with the fading Mets, 3-2. New York wasted a 2-0 lead and managed just four hits in losing for the fourth time in six games against the two worst teams in the NL East. Javier Báez homered and doubled for the Mets, who fell five games behind NL East leader Atlanta.
The Blue Jays have an eight-game winning streak after Bo Bichette crushed a leadoff homer in the first inning and singled in the tiebreaking run in the seventh of Toronto’s 6-4 win over the Yankees. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit his 42nd homer and Randal Grichuk added a solo shot as the Jays completed their first four-game sweep in the Bronx since 2003. Anthony Rizzo, Gary Sánchez and Luke Voit went deep for the Yankees, who have dropped six straight and are just a half-game ahead of the Blue Jays for the second AL wild card.
The Athletics earned a 3-1 win over the White Sox behind Sean Manaea, who struck out nine while allowing one run and five hits over seven innings. Manaea had been 0-3 with an 8.00 ERA in his previous six starts since a victory on July 28. Tony Kemp and Matt Chapman each drove in a run for Oakland, which took two of three in the series to pull within two games of the Yankees for the second AL wild-card slot.
The Indians bounced back from consecutive shutout losses as Franmil Reyes, Oscar Mercado and José Ramirez homered in a 4-1 victory against the Twins. Reyes’ two-run shot in the third inning against Andrew Albers snapped the Indians’ 25-inning scoreless streak. Winning pitcher Cal Quantrill pitched a career-high 7 2/3 innings, allowing one run on Miguel Sanó’s homer in the second.
Carlos Hernandez combined with two relivers on a three-hitter as the Royals blanked the Orioles, 6-0. Hernandez allowed the three hits over six innings to improve to 6-1. Nick Lopez hit a solo homer and an RBI single for Kansas City, which also received a two-run homer by Hunter Dozier.
New York Yankees starter Jameson Taillon was added to the 10-day injured list with a partial tear of a tendon in his right ankle.
The reeling Yankees are feeling more optimistic about ace Gerrit Cole, who left a start Tuesday with left hamstring tightness. Cole played catch Thursday and plans to throw a bullpen Friday or Saturday with an eye toward a return to game action Monday or Tuesday.
Also in the Bronx, manager Aaron Boone also said reliever Zack Britton had season-ending Tommy John surgery Wednesday.
TENNIS-US OPEN:
Has there ever been a more improbable women’s final in U.S. Open history? The championship has come down to a pair of unseeded teenagers, neither of whom were ranked among the top 70 when the tournament began.
Emma Radacanu became the first qualifier to reach a Grand Slam final in the professional era by overwhelming 17th-seeded Maria Sakkari 6-1, 6-4. Appearing in just her second major tournament, Raducanu has won all 18 sets she has played during three matches in qualifying rounds and six in the main draw.
Raducanu made just 17 unforced errors to Sakkari’s 33 and now is the youngest Slam finalist since Maria Sharapova won Wimbledon at age 17 in 2004.
The 18-year-old Raducanu next faces Leylah Fernandez, who stumbled from the start, dropped her second set and still managed to advance.
The unseeded Fernandez edged second seed Aryna Sabalenka, 7-6, 4-6, 6-4 to earn the right to play for a Grand Slam title.
Sabalenka appeared as if she would overpower Fernandez early, winning 12 of the first 14 points and racing to a 3-0 lead in just eight minutes. Sabalenka broke Fernandez’s serve for a 5-4 lead in the second set and then served out the set.
The 73rd-ranked Fernandez has earned four consecutive three-set victories over a seeded opponent.
Saturday’s match will be the first pitting two teens in a major final since 1999, when a 17-year-old Serena Williams defeated 18-year-old Martina Hingis.
NBA:
Lakers add longtime Clippers big man DeAndre Jordan
Center DeAndre Jordan has signed with the Los Angeles Lakers, adding another seasoned NBA veteran to their experienced roster.
The 13-year NBA veteran spent his first 10 seasons down the Staples Center hallway with the Clippers. He led the league in field goal percentage five times and won two rebounding titles during his decade with the Clippers, who reversed the franchise’s image as longtime losers during his partnership with Chris Paul and Blake Griffin.
The 33-year-old Jordan has played for the Mavericks, Knicks and Nets since leaving LA in 2018.
The University of Massachusetts is honoring four key figures from its basketball program Saturday night. Statues of former coach John Calipari, calaperry 1996 national player of the year Marcus Camby, the late former coach Jack Leaman LEEMAN and Basketball Hall of Famer Julius Erving will be unveiled outside the Mullins Center. It comes as the 1995-’96 Final Four team is inducted into the UMass Hall of Fame.
FBC-CONFERENCE REALIGHNMENT:
The Big 12 Conference is moving quickly to add new schools.
Trustees at Central Florida and Cincinnati have called special meetings for Friday related to conference membership. Both of those schools have been identified as potential Big 12 members along with BYU and Houston. The Big 12 is losing Texas and Oklahoma to the Southeastern Conference no later than 2025. A person familiar with the Big 12′s expansion plans tells The Associated Press that conference presidents are scheduled to vote on applications for entry into the league at a meeting Friday.
GONZAGA-FEW-DUI:
Newly released legal documents say Gonzaga basketball coach Mark Few’s breath smelled of alcohol and he had bloodshot eyes on the night he was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, though he initially told a police officer he had not been drinking.
The document says the officer questioned him further and Few eventually said he had two beers that day, with his last beer coming about four hours before he was pulled over. Few was arrested after a breath test showed blood-alcohol concentrations of .119 and .120, which is above the legal limit of .08. He was eventually cited and released.
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