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🏈 Five things to know Friday
- The Commanders opened up the NFC East race. The Giants had an opportunity to distance themselves from the pack, but the division is up for grabs following Washington's 24-21 win. Jayden Daniels bounced back from a pair of fourth-quarter interceptions to throw the game-winning touchdown with 57 seconds to play in the NFL's Week 10 opener. That strike to Stefon Diggs threw a wrench in the division race. The Giants are still in control at 5-3-1, but the Cowboys loom at 4-5 and the Commanders themselves are now locked into a three-team race just two games back of New York.
- Yordan Alvarez and Pete Crow-Armstrong are MLB MVPs. In fact, they are unanimous MVPs. Alvarez received every first-place vote in the American League after he nearly won the Triple Crown, and Crow-Armstrong left no doubt in his battle with Shohei Ohtani for the National League crown. PCA's breakthrough season at age 24 was legendary and put him in rare company among baseball's top young players of all time. There are a few different ways his career could go from here, and some of them involve him developing into a no-doubt Hall of Famer.
- Three big-name NBA players will miss time. None are more significant than Stephen Curry. Tests revealed that the injury he sustained on Wednesday was an oblique tear. The best-case outcome is a two-week absence, and anything beyond that could be devastating for the Warriors. An even more serious injury is set to knock Caleb Wilson out for at least a month, which throws a big early-season wrench in the Rookie of the Year race and eliminates the only reason to watch the Bulls. Another player will miss three games for disciplinary reasons. The NBA suspended Marcus Smart for punching Charles Bassey in the Rockets' Wednesday night win over Curry's Warriors.
- Manchester United's managerial change has serious USMNT implications. It was a foregone conclusion that the Red Devils would sack Michael Carrick, and they made the move official. Mauricio Pochettino will be their next coach, pulling him away from his post with the USMNT after the two upcoming Concacaf Nations League matches vs. Haiti. The top national team stars addressed their coach's looming exit and how he elevated the standard for American soccer. There are a few directions the USMNT could go from here, and one of them would be a home run; Pep Guardiola is reportedly the top target. Other European clubs will also be in search of new managers in the months to come, and the list of premier candidates just got one name shorter.
- UFC 334 brings championship fights to Madison Square Garden this weekend. The men's heavyweight title will be on the line when Ciryl Gane opens his championship defense against Josh Hokit. The latter is on a remarkable rise to title challenger status and has a chance to enter superstar territory if he pulls off a win over Gane, but he is the underdog, and our pick for the fight suggests he is not quite ready to reach the next level. Saturday's co-main event is one of the most highly anticipated women's fights in MMA history and features Amanda Nunes in her return from retirement. The greatest female fighter of all time seeks the bantamweight championship against Kayla Harrison. You can watch it exclusively on Paramount+.
🏆 Do not miss this: NFL midseason awards, grades, predictions
Nine of the NFL's 18 weeks are in the books. The halfway point is still far too soon to tell the whole story of the season, but we do have a good idea as to which teams will make the strongest Super Bowl pushes and which players will define the campaign. Our NFL staff took everything that unfolded in the first half of the season to issue team report cards and also to look forward to the award races and championship picture. Picks are in for MVP, Coach of the Year, the Super Bowl and more.
The biggest landslide among our panel of voters came in the Protector of the Year deliberations. Of the 15 voters, 12 selected Lions tackle Penei Sewell as the top offensive lineman. Our Zach Pereles explained why he is the runaway favorite.
- Pereles: "Sewell has made the transition from right tackle to left tackle almost seamlessly. In 298 pass-blocking snaps, he has allowed just one sack and three quarterback hits, and he remains a mauler in the run game. Pro Football Focus has him as the No. 1-graded tackle both overall and in run blocking; he is fourth in pass blocking."
Rookie of the Year is a dead heat on both sides of the ball. Defensively, there are only two real candidates: Arvell Reese and David Bailey. But on offense, it's still a much more open race. Each of these players received votes:
1. Browns WR Denzel Boston (7 votes)
2. Broncos RB Jonah Coleman (3)
T3. Titans WR Carnell Tate, Raiders QB Fernando Mendoza (2)
5. Browns WR KC Concepcion (1)
As for the Super Bowl picture, the Jaguars are the staff's favorites while the Bears and 49ers are the strongest contenders. Our John Breech has his eyes on someone else, though. Take a look at his full playoff projections and his championship pick. And beyond these, Beech makes some bold predictions for the second half that will bring the NFC West down a peg or two.
☑️ College football Week 11 picks
One of two Big Ten teams will effectively be eliminated from College Football Playoff contention in a massive Week 11 game at 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS. The clash between No. 9 Indiana and No. 18 USC is easily one of the biggest games in the conference thus far and headlines college football's Saturday slate.
Both sides are still alive in the Big Ten title race. Indiana maintains control of its own destiny, but this is a must-win for USC, which has just a 9% chance of reaching the final conference championship game. Our David Cobb picked the Trojans to cover the 7.5-point spread, but can they win outright? It would be a potentially pivotal victory for Lincoln Riley in his underwhelming tenure if so.
Another Big Ten matchup is the source of Tom Fornelli's Lock of the Week.
- Fornelli: "Dan Lanning is no fool. He knows that the rest of Oregon's schedule isn't great from a resume perspective. Simply winning games won't be enough. Oregon has to win and look really good doing it. So even if the Ducks build a good lead and the Michigan offense continues to struggle, Oregon won't look to stop putting points on the board. The Pick: Oregon Team Total Over 24.5 (-108) at FanDuel"
Meanwhile, in the SEC, No. 6 Texas heads to Death Valley, where it is always difficult to win at night. No. 21 LSU is a four-point favorite at home. A road favorite elsewhere in the conference is on upset alert. No. 8 Tennessee (-2.5 at Texas A&M) is one team we're keeping an eye on in a possible letdown spot.
Here are our picks for the other biggest games of the week:
👍👎 The best (and not-so-best) of the rest
- The Daiyan Henley trade is off. The Broncos raised concerns following his physical, which led Jim Harbaugh to implore the NFL to investigate a "loophole" in the trade rules.
- The first domino of MLB free agency fell when the No. 34-ranked player signed a three-year, $35 million contract.
- An All-Star outfielder is reportedly on the trade block.
- Amid a four-game losing streak, Zion Williamson says the Pelicans need to do some soul searching.
- TCU is set to pull off an in-season transfer portal blockbuster.
- Jake Dickert is off the coaching carousel thanks to a contract extension, and Bob Chesney might be the next hot name to stay at his current school.
- The Hornets might already be done with Naz Reid. Here are four possible landing spots if he is traded for the second time this year.
- With Kewan Lacy out for the year, the star Ole Miss running back faces a big offseason decision.
- UConn will have to navigate a difficult stretch without Nik Khamenia, who could be out for two months or longer.
- Here are some hits, misses and grades from college basketball's most intriguing teams thus far.
- Our Dave Richard weighed in on the toughest fantasy football start/sit calls for Week 10.
- Here is why and how Gotham FC are about to host an NWSL semifinal at a 5,000-seat stadium instead of their 25,000-seat home venue.
- A D-I basketball game was postponed when one team lacked enough healthy players.
- Barcelona's win streak came to an end in the UEFA Women's Champions League. As a result, Arsenal inched closer to them in the top tier of our UWCL Power Rankings.
- The entire sports world mourns the tragic loss of legendary broadcaster Dan Hicks.
📺 What we're watching this weekend
Friday
⚽ UEFA Nations League: Greece at Netherlands, 2:45 p.m. on FS1
🏈 Florida State at Pittsburgh, 7 p.m. on ESPN
🏀 NBA Cup: Knicks at Pacers, 7 p.m. on Prime Video
🏀 (M) Merrimack at No. 1 Florida, 7 p.m. on SEC Network
🏀 (M) Northern Iowa at No. 5 Michigan, 7 p.m. on FS1
🏀 (M) Sam Houston at No. 3 Illinois, 7 p.m. on B1G+
🏀 (W) Denver at No. 9 LSU, 7 p.m. on SEC Network+
🏀 (M) Ohio State at No. 4 UConn, 7:30 p.m. on TNT
🤼 WWE SmackDown, 8 p.m. on USA Network
🏀 (M) SIU Edwardsville at No. 2 Duke, 8 p.m. on The CW
🏀 (M) No. 6 Virginia at Maryland, 8 p.m. on NBC Sports Network
🏈 Illinois at No. 4 UCLA, 9 p.m. on Fox
🏀 NBA Cup: Warriors at Spurs, 9:30 p.m. on Prime Video
🏈 No. 14 Houston at Colorado, 10:15 p.m. on ESPN
Saturday
🥊 Zuffa Boxing 13: Adames vs. Warburton, 8 a.m. on Paramount+
🏈 Duke at No. 7 Miami, noon on ABC
🏈 No. 13 Wake Forest at SMU, noon on ESPN
🏈 Northwestern at No. 20 Ohio State, noon on Fox
⚽ NWSL semifinals: Spirit at Royals, noon on CBS/Paramount+
⚽ UEFA Nations League: Wales at Norway, noon on FS2
🏒 Kraken at Hurricanes (in Helsinki), 1 p.m. on NHL Network
🏀 (W) Tarleton State at No. 6 Texas, 1 p.m. on SEC Network+
🏈 No. 3 Alabama at Vanderbilt, 12:45 p.m. on SEC Network
⚽ UEFA Nations League: Denmark at Portugal, 2:45 p.m. on FS2
🏈 No. 8 Tennessee at Texas A&M, 3 p.m. on ESPN
🏈 No. 22 Missouri at No. 1 Georgia, 3:30 p.m. on ABC
🏈 Boston College at No. 5 Notre Dame, 3:30 p.m. on NBC
🏈 No. 18 USC at No. 9 Indiana, 3:30 p.m. on CBS/Paramount+
🏈 Baylor at No. 10 BYU, 3:30 p.m. on Fox
🏈 Michigan at No. 16 Oregon, 3:30 p.m. on FS1
🏈 No. 19 Ole Miss at Oklahoma, 4:15 p.m. on SEC Network
⚽ CONCACAF Nations League: Haiti at United States, 4:30 p.m. on TBS
👊 UFC 334: Gane vs. Hokit, 5 p.m. on Paramount+
🏈 Oregon State at No. 24 Boise State, 6 p.m. on USA Network
🏈 Florida at No. 11 Kentucky, 6:15 p.m. on ESPN
🏈 No. 2 Utah at No. 23 Arizona, 7:30 p.m. on Fox
🏈 No. 6 Texas at No. 21 LSU, 7:30 p.m. on ABC
🏈 Purdue at No. 15 Iowa, 7:30 p.m. on NBC
🏈 No. 17 South Carolina at Arkansas, 7:45 p.m. on SEC Network
🥊 Pacheco vs. Fulghum, 8 p.m. on TNT
🏀 Pistons at Heat, 8 p.m. on NBA TV
🏈 No. 12 Texas Tech at No. 25 Oklahoma State, 9:30 p.m. on ESPN
Sunday
🏈 Patriots at Lions (in Munich), 9:30 a.m. on NFL Network
🏈 Chiefs at Falcons, 1 p.m. on CBS/Paramount+
🏈 Vikings at Packers, 1 p.m. on Fox
🏀 (M) Louisville at Memphis, 1 p.m. on ESPN
🏀 (W) No. 3 USC at No. 1 South Carolina, 1 p.m. on ABC
🏀 (W) No. 8 Vanderbilt vs. No. 10 Iowa, 1 p.m. on FS1
⚽ UEFA Nations League: Türkiye at France, 2:45 p.m. on FS2
🏀 (M) Baylor vs. Texas, 3 p.m. on ESPN
🏀 (W) Marshall at No. 5 Duke, 3 p.m. on ACC Network
⚽ NWSL semifinals: Gotham at Current, 3 p.m. on ABC
🏈 Seahawks at Raiders, 4:05 p.m. on CBS/Paramount+
🏈 49ers at Cowboys, 4:25 p.m. on Fox
🏀 (W) No. 4 UConn at No. 7 Louisville, 5:30 p.m. on ESPN
🏀 (W) Princeton at No. 10 UCLA, 6 p.m. on Big Ten Network
🏀 WNBA Draft Lottery, 7:30 p.m. on ESPN
🏈 Steelers at Bengals, 8:20 p.m. on NBC
