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christian mccaffrey falls to oblique injury

Christian McCaffrey falls to oblique injury in 49ers’ loss to Browns

The San Francisco 49ers lost more than they did in their first game of the season on Sunday. San Francisco’s running back Christian McCaffrey left the team’s 19-17 upset loss to the Cleveland Browns in the second half with an oblique injury.

McCaffrey’s injury happened in the third quarter, but he wasn’t ruled out of subsequent matches until early in the fourth quarter with San Francisco 17-13. His initial questionable designation came late in the third quarter with the 49ers trailing, 13-10, but the All-Pro quickly came back in the match. His return did not last long.

Christian McCaffrey joined Deebo Samuel on the sidelines. The receiver was ruled out earlier in the game with a shoulder injury. Samuel played only eight snaps.

Niners coach Kyle Shanahan said after the loss that the team did not yet know the severity of both player’s injuries. Samuel’s X-rays were negative, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapport reported Sunday, per a source. The receiver will get more tests on Monday.


In 30 snaps, McCaffrey gathered 52 yards on 14 touches and San Francisco’s first score of the match, a 13-yard touchdown catch-and-run. With the touchdown, he tied the league record for most consecutive games with a scrimmage TD (15 games).

Elijah Mitchell and Jordan Mason share carries for San Francisco (5-1) in McCaffrey’s absence, with the latter scoring a go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter. McCaffrey and Samuel will need a longer time than usual to heal up. 

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Raiders Jimmy Garoppolo taken to hospital for back injury suffered during win over Patriots.

jimmy garoppolo taken to hospital for back injury

Raiders Jimmy Garoppolo taken to hospital for back injury suffered during win over Patriots

Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo was taken to a local hospital after he suffered a back injury during last Sunday’s 21-1 victory over the New England Patriots. Garoppolo was initially said to be doubtful to return as the second half started but was immediately ruled out. Brian Hoyer took over under the centre for Las Vegas.

After the match, Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels affirmed that Garoppolo was transported to a local hospital.

“I know he (Garoppolo) left, and everybody knows that he left,” McDaniels said. “They are just doing tests you know and making sure they take care of all that stuff. I do not have an update on Jimmy.”

After a field goal drive, Garoppolo seemed frustrated on the sideline before talking to trainers while sitting on the bench. He then walked on his own to the locker room with the last few seconds of the first half still on the game clock.

Jimmy left with the Raiders leading, 13-3. He was 14-of-22 for 162 yards, a touchdown to Jakobi Meyers and an interception in the first half.

Playing against a New England Patriots side that chose him in the 2014 NFL Draft’s second round, Garoppolo led Las Vegas on three scoring drives in only under two quarters. Hoyer led two in the second half, concluding 6-of-10 passing for 102 yards.

Jimmy Garoppolo was drafted by the Raiders this offseason, reuniting with his former Patriots offensive coordinator, McDaniels, who is now the Las Vegas head coach.

In four-plus matches, Garoppolo completed 100 of 147 passes for 1,079 yards, seven touchdowns and eight interceptions. But, he already missed one match due to a concussion and now the Raiders will play the waiting game, hoping he will not be forced to miss any more time than he already did.

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atlanta united sign nick firmino

Atlanta United sign midfielder Nick Firmino from MLS NEXT Pro

Atlanta United has signed midfielder Nick Firmino through the 2026 MLS season, the club announced on Tuesday.

The 22-year-old Brazil native will formally join Atlanta’s first team in January 2024 after starring for Atlanta United 2 and securing a spot in this year’s MLS NEXT Pro Best XI.

“Nick is a player who has continued to improve and perform at a high level during the past two seasons, capped off by his MLSNP Best XI honours,” Atlanta VP and technical director Carlos Bocanegra said in a release.

“He’s a versatile midfielder with a good engine who has a nose for goal. We’re excited to continue to watch his development at the club.”

During the 2023 season, Firmino led Atlanta United 2 with 16 goals and six assists in 27 games (25 starts). An MVP finalist in MLS NEXT Pro, he memorably scored a goal in his MLS debut last June, subbing on and scoring the equalizer in a 2-2 draw against New York City FC.

Firmino initially turned pro in November 2018 as a homegrown player for the New England Revolution. He also spent the 2021 season competing with Union Omaha in USL League One.

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mlb player supports stanton

Former MLB player supports Giancarlo Stanton as uncertainty looms around the Yankees hitter’s future

With so many fans and analysts advising the New York Yankees to drop Giancarlo Stanton over the offseason, one former MLB player believes that doing so would be a wrong decision. Stanton was bought by the Yankees on a massive contract in 2018 and could not live up to everyone’s high expectations of him since then. There have been a lot of rumours about him and the New York team separating, but ex-MLB catcher Erik Kratz says that there will be plenty of MLB teams willing to sign Stanton.

Giancarlo Stanton was fielded by the Florida Marlins in the 2007 MLB Draft and went on to make his major league debut for the team in 2010. He spent eight seasons with the Marlins, winning the NL MVP award among several other awards during that time, proving himself as one of the best hitters in the league. Stanton got traded to the Yankees ahead of the 2018 season and is one of the highest-paid players on their roster.

But, while his trade then was seen as a huge win for New York, in the long run, it proved not to be as fruitful as they would have hoped. Stanton showed flashes of brilliance during his time with the Yankees but has not been consistent and struggled with several injuries. He has had a particularly disturbing season this year, and with the Yankees failing to make the playoffs, many fans have seen enough of him.

However, Erik Kratz issued a word of warning on “Foul Territory’’ that Stanton still has some value.

“I promise you, if he’s available for a palatable price, there will be 25 other teams ready to pick him up.”

How will the Yankees solve the Giancarlo Stanton dilemma?

Giancarlo Stanton’s contract with the New York Yankees is still valid till 2027 and the New York team still owes him $98 million until then. That is no doubt a large contract even by Yankees standards, which has left fans and analysts wondering how their front office will handle the problem. They will have to wait and see if they decide to make a difficult decision before the start of the next MLB season.

Of course, the best route to take would be if Stanton starts performing well on a regular basis: something he has proved that he can do. Therefore, there are many who still believe that his best days with the New York Yankees are still ahead of him.

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takeaways from victor wembanyama's preseason game

3 takeaways from Victor Wembanyama’s 3rd preseason game

San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich unveiled his preferred super-sized training lineup alongside Victor Wembanyama. 

In a rush to celebrate former assistant Becky Hammon and the Las Vegas Ace’s second consecutive WNBA title, San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich squirmed in his seat ready to bolt.

“I thought about getting booted tonight,” he said Wednesday after his team’s 117-113 victory over the Houston Rockets. “But I just thought this [had] to be my priority. It was close.” Victor said.

Fortunately, Popovich stayed long enough to coach Prized No.1 overall pick Victor Wembanyama and the rest of the Spurs through preseason game No.3, which was billed as a dress rehearsal for the start of the regular season. The club released a lineup that competed in live action alongside one another for just the first time all preseason.

Headlined by Wembanyama, that group, according to Popovich, represents San Antonio’s starters for the October 25th regular-season opener against the Dallas Mavericks.

That and more will be discussed in these three takeaways from Wembanyama’s third exhibition outing.

Big ball, best 5

The Spurs chose to use a gargantuan starting five against the Rockets. With the 6-foot-8 Jeremy Sochan running point for the second straight exhibition outing, San Antonio tipped off with Wembanyama (7-foot-4), Zach Collins (6-foot-11), Devin Vassell (6-foot-5) and Keldon Johnson (6-foot-5), and the group ran off a 17-2 lead in less than five minutes to begin the game.

Besides clogging the paint with Wembanyama and Collins, this lineup has the collective length to consistently disrupt passing lanes. Count on this team to be the team’s most effective lineup this season. Wembanyama’s gravity, scoring prowess at every level, and passing ability only lift the lineup’s ceiling, offensively. But with what happened on Wednesday, fans can expect some ups and downs as San Antonio keeps experimenting.

“They better play well or we’re in trouble,” Popovich said. “Those are the big guys. They’re tall. They’re big. They’re gonna start. They’re getting used to each other, trying to figure out where to be in relation to the perimeter players.”

A 7-foot Manu

Manu Ginobili retired in 2018 from the Spurs. But if people ever wondered how this Hall of Famer might have looked in a seven-foot frame, Wembanyama showed a glimpse in the first quarter. Picking off a pass from Aaron Holiday, the Frenchman pulled off Ginobili’s flashy nutmeg move on the ensuing break by dribbling the ball in between the legs of Reggie Bullock Jr., before hitting Charles Bassey with a behind-the-neck pass under the basket.

“I’ve been waiting for the occasion to try it,” Wembanyama said. “I don’t want to limit myself to what’s conventional. I want to expand my game as much as I can. I think that was a good move.”

The play signified yet another example of the 19-year-old displaying something spectators probably have never witnessed before from a player his size. 

It is not just Victor Wembanyama

Keldon Johnson led the San Antonio Spurs in scoring last season (22.0 points per game), but Wembanyama will get more help on both ends in 2023-24 from rising fourth-year veteran Vassell, who looks poised for a breakout season. Vassell averaged a career-high 18.5 points last season. But he appeared in 38 games due to a knee injury that led to surgery.

Now healed, Vassell, according to reports within the organization, has taken a leadership role, and has made strides shooting the 3-ball, even after knocking down at least 34.7% from deep in all of his first three NBA seasons. In three exhibitions, Vassell has connected on 12 of 20 from range. He drained six 3-pointers on October 13 (his career regular-season high is five).

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Adam Silver hints at NBA making changes to All-Star Game format.

adam silver hints changes to all-star game format

Adam Silver hints at NBA making changes to All-Star Game format

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver announced on Tuesday in a televised press conference on ESPN that changes will be made to the All-Star Game and while not saying if any decision has been finalized, he hinted that the current format of top vote-getters acting as captains and drafting their own teams may be shelved.

“Maybe a return to something more traditional, in terms of how the teams are presented,” Silver said in the interview on ESPN’s “First Take” program. “We went to sort of this captain-draft notion, but clearly, historically, it was East vs. West, so that’s something we are looking at.”

This season’s All-Star Game is at Indianapolis on February 18th. The league has not yet made any official announcement regarding format changes. The first 66 All-Start Games all had the East vs. West format. The previous six have witnessed leading vote-getters from each conference serve as captains who could draft their teams. LeBron James was one of the captains all six times, with Giannis Anetokounmpo being captain three times, Kevin Durant twice and Stephen Curry once.

The last four All-Star Games have used a target score at the end of games, ensuring that the matchup ends on a made shot. The fourth quarters have been untimed; the winner is the first team to reach whatever the leading team had after three quarters, plus 24 points, the 24 is a nod to Kobe Bryant’s last jersey number.

In the first year of the target score, the format saw a fourth quarter that was too dramatic. Last season’s game, however, was almost totally uncompetitive and became a disaster in terms of television ratings in part as some of the big names like James, Antetokoummpo, Durant, and Curry all missed much or all of the All-Star Game because they were injured.

“I mean, it’s fun to kind of get out there and do some dunks and stuff like that,” Utah’s Lauri Markkanen said after last season’s All-Star Game. “But we’re all competitors. I think everybody would enjoy it too if we just play against each other and it gets competitive.”

League officials announced last week that they have been hammering how important it is to improve the quality of the All-Star Game to players. It has been a talking point for years, as has the slam dunk competition which got a serious shot in the arm last season when Mac McClung gave a show for the ages.

“When you turn on an NBA All-Star Game, I think people expect to see some competition,” said Joe Dumars, the league’s executive vice president and head of basketball operations. “There’s a happy medium somewhere between a hard-fought playoff game and what you saw last year. … When you have the reaction that fans and people had around the game and just visually, it matters because it didn’t make the product look good.”

It’s unclear when the league will finalize any All-Star Game changes.

“We’ve lost sight a bit that it’s about the game at the end of the day,” Adam Silver said.

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wayne gretzky partners with northland sticks

Wayne Gretzky partners with Northland Sticks to make Hockey more affordable

Wayne Gretzky and the Wayne Gretzky Foundation launched an initiative with Northland in a bit to make hockey more affordable for families with a new offering of sticks.

Gretzky first used Northland hockey sticks when he entered the NHL. Now, he and the Wayne Gretzky Foundation are collaborating with Northland with the goal of making hockey more affordable for families in Canada and the United States.

Gretzky and Northland, owned by Roustan Hockey and W.Graeme Roustan, plan to tackle the issue of equipment costs and “assist families that otherwise cannot play the sport without a more affordable offering,” according to a news release on Thursday. (Full disclosure: Roustan is also the owner and publisher of The Hockey News.)

“I hope this will assist parents in finding an economical way for all boys and girls to achieve their dreams,” Gretzky said in a statement.

As for The Great One, he is not just partnering with the stick brand he used when he started his NHL career that solidified him as the consensus No.1 hockey player of all-time, but his hometown of Brantford, Ont, is also where Northland sticks are presently produced.

Wayne Gretzky and Roustan began their partnership by offering hockey stick bundles at $99 for a pack of three youth and junior sticks, and $109.99 for a pack of three senior sticks, which includes shipping to Canada and the continental United States, according to the announcement.

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kim ng leaving miami marlins

Kim Ng, first female MLB GM, leaving Miami Marlins after rare winning season

Miami Marlins General Manager and MLB’s first female head of baseball operations Kim Ng will not return to the team in a shocking exit after the club won more games this season than it had in over a decade, officials announced on Monday.

The club had exercised a mutual decision to bring Ng back for 2024, but she refused her end of the deal, Marlins chairman and principal owner Bruce Sherman announced.

“We thank Kim for her contributions during her time with our organization and wish her and her family well,” Sherman said in a statement.

Miami went 84-78 this season, clinching the National League’s second wild-card spot, before they were knocked out by the Philadelphia Phillies.

Minus the Covid-shortened 2020 campaign, it was the Marlin’s first winning season since 2009, when they went 87-75.

While speaking to the Athletic and MLB.com, Ng acknowledged that she had a fundamental disagreement with management’s plans.

“Last week, Bruce and I discussed his plan to reshape the Baseball Operations department. In our discussions, it became apparent that we were not completely aligned on what that should look like,” Kim Ng said.

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broncos release frank clark

Broncos release Frank Clark after no trade materializes

NFL Network Insiders Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero reported on Friday that the Denver Broncos are letting edge rusher Frank Clark go after they could not find a trade partner, per sources aware of the situation.

As was the case with Randy Gregory last week, a trade partner may still materialize until Clark’s release becomes official.

The next step for Clark’s future became apparent when he returned $1.679 million on his base salary this week to facilitate a departure.

He signed a one-year $5.45 million contract during the offseason to boost the pass rush on Vance Joseph’s defense. It was an ill-fitted contract from the beginning.

Clark played 25 snaps in Week 1, collecting two tackles and zero QB pressures. He missed three weeks with a hip injury. In his Week 5 return, he played only 11 snaps and did not record a stat. He was inactive for Thursday night’s defeat in Kansas City, due to an illness.

Just like Gregory, Frank Clark did not fit into the picture of the Denver Broncos’ future as they went with Nik Bonitto and Jonathan Cooper as the top edge rushers. 

In his first eight seasons, Clark gathered 58.5 sacks with the Seattle Seahawks and Kansas City Chiefs. With three Pro Bowls and two Super Bowl rings, he will enter the market with the aim of helping boost a contender.

A reunion in Kansas City could be a reasonable landing place for Clark after he spent the last four seasons with the Chiefs.

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adidas sneaker contract with damian lillard uncertain

Adidas sneaker contract with Damian Lillard uncertain

Damian Lillard penned a contract extension with Adidas in 2014, and his days under this sneaker seem to coming to an end after their basketball Fall/Winter 2024 priorities deck release, which snubbed the new Milwaukee Bucks guard.

Lillard and Derrick Rose are two athletes who will no longer be with Adidas moving forward, according to Instagram user yuanchengxin1. The new basketball sneaker line will focus on Anthony Edwards, Trae Young, Donovan Mitchell and James Harden.

The Dame 8 EXTPLY was the most recent release of Lillard with Adidas, although the former iteration of his signature shoe, the Dame 8, was released in December of 2021.

There is no reported contract extension in sight or any known project in the works for a new sneaker, and the usual industry standard maximum of two years between launches has passed.

Damian Lillard shared an Instagram post six weeks ago to promote the release of the “Advantage Dame’’ (Tennis Ball neon) and “Out Of This World’’ (black/orange/lavender blue) colourways for his Dame 8 EXTPLY.

However, on the Adidas Basketball IG page, they shared pictures of Lillard’s arrival in Milwaukee, so there is a chance that there is still loyalty between the two parties.

Lillard might be working on a contract extension behind the scenes or is ready to become a free agent in the sneaker world as he will also be entering the upcoming NBA season on a brand new team.

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