FOOTBALL

In Monday Night Football action, the Philadelphia Eagles came to Indy to take on the Colts. Andrew Luck and the Colts came out to an early lead but you can never count out Philly’s dynamic duo of Foles and Sproles.  Philly QB Nick Foles remained poised and capitalized on two costly turnovers by the Colts in the second half. RB Sproles had 152 yards and a TD and set up a tie game with only minutes left in the game. As time expired, Cody Parker kicked the game winning field goal for the Phillies. Eagles 30, Colts 27.

Just hours after the Minnesota Vikings announced that Adrian Peterson would play next Sunday, news emerged that Peterson was accused in a separate incident of abusing another son. This second account allegedly occurred on June 23rd and child protective services came to investigate. Charges were not filed in this case but this new information definitely makes Peterson’s future with the team more uncertain.

In the other domestic abuse case, Ray Rice is expected to appeal his NFL suspension. Reporter Hannah Storm gave an impassioned editorial on the NFL and the relationship with the female fans. It’s worth hearing.

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Can news out of the NFL get any worse? As we’re still reeling over the Ray Rice domestic violence issue, more upsetting news was on it’s way. Over the weekend, the Minnesota Vikings’ RB Adrian Peterson was deactivated for Sunday’s game (and 30-7 loss to the New England Patriots). Peterson was released on $15,000 bail after turning himself in to the authorities in TX for child abuse. According to authorities, he used a switch to spank his son and has a “whooping” room. Many players and fans are defending Peterson for his parenting style claiming that spanking is an accepted form of punishment for children. It remains to be seen what the Vikings and League will do in this situation.

In other upsetting abuse news out of the NFL, the Carolina Panthers benched defensive end Greg Hardy. Hardy was convicted in July of assault on a female. The Team activated Hardy in game one saying that they were waiting for the appeals process to go through, but on Sunday, head coach Ron Rivera changed his mind and deactivated him in their matchup against the Detroit Lions.  He said, the “climate has changed” and the team “has to get this right.” No news on whether he’ll play this season.

Aside from domestic issues, the other major news out of the NFL was the onslaught of injuries on Sunday to star players.  To name just a few: Bengals wide receiver A.J. Green suffered a dislocated ankle in a 24-10 victory on Sunday versus the Atlanta Falcons and it remains to be seen how long he will be out. The Dolphins star running back RB Knowshon Moreno left the game with an arm injury and Redskins’ WR DeSean Jackson sprained his shoulder in the same game that Redskins’ QB Robert Griffin III hurt his ankle. Fortunately for the Redskins, their backup QB Kirk Cousins slid right in and led the team to a pounding of the Jacksonville Jaguars (41-10).

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Baltimore Ravens’ head coach, John Harbaugh, said that his team wasn’t involved in the media hype surrounding suspended player Ray Rice and it’s business as usual on the field. And, it was as the Ravens beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 26-6 on Thursday night. Ravens’ QB Joe Flacco threw for 166 yards and 2 TD’s and looked solid.

Roger Goodell is in more hot water as it’s been reported that Goodell was told on June 16th that Ray Rice did in fact admit that he hit his then fiancee. This is not what Goodell had previously reported and still begs the question why he initially only suspended Rice for 2 games.

Shockingly there were many Ray Rice fans (and many women) sporting his jersey at the game Thursday night and commenting that he was unfairly condemned. Who are these people? This is disturbing!

BASEBALL

Miami Marlins’ Giancarlo Stanton hit in face by a pitch from Milwaukee Brewers’ Mike Fiers.  It was obvious immediately after the 88 mph pitch that Stanton was in trouble. He was carted off the field and according to the coach, his season is likely over. He is suffering from facial lacerations, multiple facial fractures and dental surgery. Fiers took to twitter after the game and posted, “my thoughts and prayers are with you at this time. I feel horrible and hope for a speedy recovery.”  

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In big Rice news, it’s been reported that the NFL received the Ray Rice video back in April so now people are asking for NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell to be fired for not prosecuting earlier. The question is, did Goodell actually see the footage or did someone at the NFL mishandle what was in front of them.

Most athletes are tweeting their disappointment with Rice although Boxer Floyd Mayweather, who is set to fight Marcos Maidana in Las Vegas on Saturday,  is disturbingly supporting his friend Ray. Mayweather has had his own bouts with domestic violence and in 2012 served 2 months in jail for domestic battery. Even though he pleaded guilty to these charges, he still claims that he’s a victim:

According to ESPN, he said, “Like I’ve said in the past, no bumps, no bruises, no nothing.  With O.J. and Nicole (Simpson), you seen pictures. With Chris Brown and Rihanna, you seen pictures. With (Chad) Ochocinco and Evelyn, you seen pictures. You guys have yet to see any pictures of a battered woman, a woman who says she was kicked and beaten (by Mayweather). So I just live my life and try to stay positive, and try to become a better person each and every day.”

These comments are clearly incredibly disturbing and as expected the Rice story is not going away any time soon. In fact, Rice’s former team, the Baltimore Ravens will be taking on their perennial rivals, the Pittsburgh Steelers Thursday evening. The Ravens lost their first game of the season while the Steelers won their first.

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 story in the football world was new footage of running back Ray Rice punching his then-fiancee (now wife). The video was released by TMZ and what made everyone scratch their head is how did the NFL not see this video when the case came up.  When the Rice situation exploded this summer, the NFL only suspended Rice for 2 games (for first time domestic offense) but now after seeing the video, he’s been cut by the Ravens and indefinitely suspended from the NFL. Modells and Dicks Sporting Goods has even pulled Rice jerseys from their store. Warning, this video is disturbing to watch.

In Monday night football action, the first game of the night featured the New York Giants taking on the Detroit Lions. The Lions completely destroyed the Giants. The Lions’ WR Calvin Johnson (knows as Megatron) lived up to his name. He ended the night with 164 yards and 2 TD’s. And, Lions’ QB Matthew Stafford looked solid in his debut under new coach Jim Caldwell.  Lions 35, Giants 14.

In the late game Monday night between the San Diego Chargers and the Arizona Cardinals, there wasn’t much action for the first three quarters, but in the 4th the game started to get exciting.  San Diego was winning by 11 points in the 4th but then with 7 1/2 minutes late, the mistakes started to pile up and with 2 1/2 minutes left, the Cardinals’ rookie wide receiver John Brown caught his first TD and lifted Arizona to a win. Cardinals 18, Chargers 17.

TENNIS

Two huge upsets in the tennis world this weekend. We were all expecting to see Novak Djokovic vs. Roger Federer in the U.S. Open final, but in a day that shocked the fans, both favorites lost in the semi’s on Saturday. We will now see first time finalists Kei Nishikori (ranked #10) and Marin Cilic (#14) in the championship on Monday. This will be the first time in nearly 10 years that neither Federer, Djokovic or Nadal (who couldn’t play the Open because of injury) will not be in the finals match of a major tournament.  Maybe this is the sign of a new generation of superstars. 

Football

It was an exciting weekend of NFL football with some surprising wins. In overtime the Buffalo Bills knocked off the Chicago Bulls. The Bulls simply had too many turnovers and the Bills are serious about ending their 14 year playoff draught. Bills 23, Bulls 20.

The Miami Dolphins had a huge win over the New England Patriots on Sunday. The Dolphins were missing a lot of key guys and still came out strong. The Dolphins put pressure on Patriots’ QB Tom Brady throughout the game. The Dolphins’ QB Ryan Tannehill threw for 2 touchdowns and RB Knowshon Moreno rushed for 134 yards and a big 4th quarter TD.  Dolphins 33, Patriots 20.

In another big game, the San Francisco 49ers rolled over the sloppy play of the Dallas Cowboys. Everyone counted the 49ers out for the season as they’ve had injuries and suspensions, but QB Colin Kaepernick looked solid and capitalized on Dallas’ QB Tony Romo’s turnovers. 49ers 28, Cowboys 17.

In the anticipated Sunday night showdown between the Denver Broncos and Indianapolis Colts, Peyton Maning and the Broncos gave us a good show. Manning threw three touchdown passes in the first half to tight end Julius Thomas. The second half wasn’t so easy for the Broncos. They are clearly missing Wes Welker (who is missing 4 games for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy). Colts’ QB Andrew Luck struggled in the first half but came back strong in the second to give the Broncos a scare. Unfortunately it wasn’t enough as the Broncos won 31-24.

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In the NFL, it was the day everyone has been waiting for — opening day.  This has become a tradition in the NFL in which the defending Super Bowl champions play in their home stadium against a formidable opponent on Thursday night.  This year, we got to see the Seattle Seahawks take on Aaron Rodgers and the Packers.  Many people expected a close contest, but they forgot just how dominant the Seahawks defense can be.  Seattle pretty much locked down Aaron Rodgers, allowing him to only throw for 1 touchdown.  The Seahawks look very tough to beat, especially at home.  Their quest to repeat got off to a great start Thursday night.  Seattle 36, Green Bay 16.

Elsewhere in the NFL, it’s being reported that the San Francisco 49ers have the highest ticket prices in the NFL for a family of 4 to attend a game.  Their new stadium boosted ticket prices, and it’s reported that it costs an average of $641 for a typical two-child family to enjoy a game at the stadium. When you factor in ticket prices, parking, food, and drinks — it comes out to the highest price league wide.  The 49ers need to put a good product on the field, however, as their pre-season has not been good.  The Browns and Vikings are reported as the cheapest tickets in the league.  

Finally, in some women’s college basketball news, UCONN head coach Geno Aueriemma is in a bit of hot water.  In the Little League World Series 2 weeks ago, Mo’Ne Davis was all the rage.  A female pitcher who was striking out boys left and right.  But she said that baseball isn’t even her favorite sport — that she wanted to play basketball for the UConn Huskies.  Well, Geno reached out to Mo’Ne to congratulate her.  She is only in 8th grade, and is not considered a recruit, but apparently, this is still breaking the rules.  This will probably blow over quickly, but it shows just how strict the NCAA is about recruiting protocol. 

TENNIS

It was the quarterfinals of the US Open and the matches were starting to heat up.  On Wednesday, we were treated to a match-up between Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray.  These guys have become rivals over the years and seem to always meet up in big tournaments.  It was a close match, but in the end The Joker (Djokovic) ousted his foe to advance.  Keep watching the US Open this weekend, and you will be guaranteed to catch some amazing tennis.  

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In the NFL, the Denver Broncos’ Wes Welker was suspended for 4 games.  The primary reason was that Welker abused amphetamines, specifically the drug “Molly” when he was at The Kentucky Derby.  Wednesday, Welker told the media that he was appalled by the claims, saying “That’s a joke. I don’t do marijuana, I don’t do drugs. I don’t do any drugs”.  Welker continued by saying that anybody who questions his commitment to the game, saying “I want to make one thing abundantly clear: I would never knowingly take a substance to gain a competitive advantage in any way. Anyone who has ever played a down with me, lifted a weight with me, even eaten a meal with me, knows that I focus purely on what I put in my body and on the hard work I put in year round to perform at the highest levels year-in and year-out”.  Clearly, Welker is very upset about the suspension, but the timing may be fortuitous for him, as Welker is currently recovering from a concussion and could use the rest.

Finally, in the NFL, the St. Louis Rams may have cut the first openly gay player from their roster, but that doesn’t mean that there is no demand for his services.  Sam is still a young defensive player with a lot of talent and the Dallas Cowboys made their interest in his talents very well known.  The Cowboys signed Michael Sam to their practice squad.  This means that he will be at all the teams practices, but won’t dress from the game.  The Dallas Cowboys defense is truly terrible right now, however, so it may be possible that Sam will actually see some game action later in the season. 

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The NFL season begins Thursday night and fantasy teams around the country are having last minute drafts and filling in their rosters. My team had our live draft Tuesday night and by our last pick at 10:00 pm, we feel confident that this is our year. Our goal this year is not necessarily winning the coveted Super Bowl Trophy but more importantly preventing the hated Ziti Shooters (seen here in true Ziti form) from winning an astonishing 4 times in a row. The draft was brutal hearing about the unprecedented “3 peat Ziti’s”. We hold an auction and this year we went for value. Our starting roster is: Andrew Luck, Matt Forte, Shane Vereen, Randall Cobb, Percy Harvin, Bengals Defense,  Adam Vinatieri and the indomitable Calvin Johnson. We even picked up Colin Kaepernick as our backup QB (for only $5 out of $300). It’s going to be great year!