NFL
T.J. Watt returned a fumble 17 yards for the go-ahead touchdown midway through the fourth quarter as the Pittsburgh Steelers edged the Cleveland Browns 26-22. The game was overshadowed by a gruesome left knee injury to Browns running back Nick Chubb. The four-time Pro Bowler left on a cart after getting hit low by Pittsburgh safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. The Steelers improved to 1-1, beating Cleveland at home during the regular season for the 20th straight time. The Browns fell to 1-1 and likely will be without one of their best players for a while.
Tony Jones Jr. ran for two touchdowns, rookie Blake Grupe kicked two field goals and the New Orleans Saints defeated the Carolina Panthers 20-17 last night to improve to 2-0 for the first time since 2013. Jones, a practice squad elevation, replaced the injured Jamaal Williams late in the first half and ran for 34 yards on 12 carries. The Saints defense did the rest, holding the Panthers rookie quarterback Bryce Young to 153 yards passing in his Monday Night Football debut. The New Orleans defense limited Carolina to just 239 yards and sacked Young four times. The Saints nearly made it two full games without allowing a touchdown.
New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley has a sprained right ankle and his status for Thursday night’s game against the San Francisco 49ers is uncertain. That's according to a person familiar with the injury who spoke on condition of anonymity because coach Brian Daboll did not detail Barkley's injury status. Barkley was hurt with 1:08 to play in Sunday's come-from-behind win over the Arizona Cardinals. He was bothered by ankle injuries during the 2019 season and missed three games. Barkley suffered a torn ACL the following year.
Cleveland Browns star running back Nick Chubb was carted off the field with a serious left knee injury against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Pittsburgh safety Minkah Fitzpatrick came in low for a tackle at the end of a 5-yard run early in the second quarter and delivered a hit to Chubb’s legs. Chubb’s knee buckled underneath him. After the play, a teammate grabbed Chubb’s hand to try to help him to his feet, and Chubb shook his head while clutching his left knee. He undid his chinstrap and rolled over onto his side. Chubb suffered a major injury to the same knee in 2015 while in college at Georgia — a dislocation with three torn ligaments.
Two people familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press on Monday that the Chiefs and NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes had agreed to a restructured contract. The people spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the contract. Mahomes was signed to a 10-year, $450 million deal that would have kept him under contract through the 2031 season. At the time, Mahomes set the market for quarterback pay, but he has been passed over several times as the market inflated. Joe Burrow of the Bengals recently set the standard with a five-year deal averaging $55 million per year.
The NFL says leaders of the players' union have advised running backs to fake injuries. The league made the allegation in a grievance it filed last week against the NFL Players Association. The grievance says President JC Tretter and other union leaders suggested that running backs “consider feigning or exaggerating injuries” to increase their leverage in contract negotiations. The grievance was detailed in a league memo obtained by The Associated Press. The league said the union made the suggestion to running backs during a Zoom meeting before the season. The league argues that anyone who fakes an injury would be violating the collective bargaining agreement.
Phil Mickelson says he won't be betting on football this year. Lefty has posted a message on social media that details his gambling addiction. He says he crossed the line from moderate wagering to addiction and it hurt those he cares about. The post comes as Mickelson returns to competition this week at LIV Golf. It also comes a month after gambler Billy Walters' book was released. Walters says Mickelson wagered more than $1 billion over the last three decades and once wanted to place a bet on the Ryder Cup. Mickelson says he never bet on the Ryder Cup.
MLB
Jeff McNeil hit a tiebreaking homer leading off the ninth inning and the New York Mets knocked the Miami Marlins out of playoff position with a 2-1 victory. Mark Vientos had an RBI single and José Butto pitched six stingy innings to help the fourth-place Mets play spoiler again with their second consecutive win over a postseason contender. New York also beat the Cincinnati Reds at home on Sunday. Miami fell a half-game behind the idle Chicago Cubs for the third and final National League wild card. Cincinnati is also a half-game in front of the Marlins after defeating Minnesota on Monday night. McNeil pulled a slider from closer Tanner Scott over the right-field wall for his 10th homer.
Rob Refsnyder hit a go-ahead two-run single in the eighth inning and the Boston Red Sox snapped a four-game losing streak with a 4-2 win over playoff-chasing Texas. The Rangers lost their fourth in a row even after getting two All-Star players back in their lineup. Boston rallied against reliever Will Smith, who walked the No. 8 batter and allowed a double to the No. 9 batter to set up Refsnyder’s one-out hit that made it 3-2. Marcus Semien, the only Rangers player to start all 150 of their games, hit another leadoff homer and had an RBI single.
Kyle Schwarber hit a 483-foot two-run homer, and the Philadelphia Phillies went deep four other times to back Zack Wheeler in a 7-1 win over the Atlanta Braves. Schwarber’s 45th long ball of the season gave the Phillies a six-run lead in the sixth inning, a drive that cleared the top of the Chop House restaurant in right field at Truist Park. Philadelphia opened a 3 1/2-game lead over Arizona for the top NL wild card. Atlanta lost its fourth straight but was assured a bye in the playoffs and home-field advantage in the Division Series when Milwaukee lost.
The Yankees were off last night, they’ll start a three-game set against the Blue Jays at 7:05 tonight in the Bronx.
Adam Wainwright earned his 200th win, pitching seven innings of four-hit ball in a vintage performance as the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Milwaukee Brewers 1-0. It was the longest outing this season for the 42-year-old Wainwright, who struck out three and walked two. He has won consecutive starts — both against first-place teams — after going 0-10 with a 10.72 ERA over his previous 11 games. The right-hander became the 38th pitcher in NL history to reach 200 wins, and the 24th major leaguer to achieve the milestone since 2000. Willson Contreras homered off Freddy Peralta in the fourth. Milwaukee lost its second straight and its magic number to clinch the NL Central remained at seven.
Cedric Mullins hit a three-run homer in the ninth inning to rally the Baltimore Orioles past the Houston Astros 8-7 in a matchup of American League division leaders. Houston led 7-5 entering the ninth before Ryan Pressly allowed consecutive singles to Ryan O’Hearn and Austin Hays with one out. Mullins then hit his 15th homer into the seats in right field to put the Orioles on top. Yennier Cano struck out Chas McCormick with a runner on third for his seventh save. Gunnar Henderson got three hits and O’Hearn had a career-high five hits with two RBIs for the AL East-leading Orioles a day after they clinched their first postseason berth since 2016. Houston has lost three of four but maintained a 1 1/2-game lead in the AL West.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Michigan State athletic director Alan Haller has informed suspended football coach Mel Tucker he is being fired for cause without compensation for his conduct with activist and rape survivor Brenda Tracy. Haller says Monday the notice provides Tucker with seven calendar days to respond and present reasons to me and the interim president as to why he should not be terminated for cause. Tucker is in the third year of a $95 million, 10-year contract. Haller says the decision does not affect the ongoing investigation into Tracy’s allegations of sexual harassment.
WNBA PLAYOFFS
Washington is at New York tonight at 7, and Atlanta is Dallas at 9 p.m.
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