Month: September 2022

Despite being held out of practice for a second day in London for the NFL’s first international game of the season, New Orleans Saints quarterback Jameis Winston is still expected to play on Sunday. Winston has been playing through four fractures in his back since the start of the season, and has also been dealing with an ankle injury. The injuries have affected Winston’s performance, however, and he has been sacked 11 times in three game, throwing for 858 yards, four touchdowns and five interceptions. New Orleans record stands at 1-2.

As of press time, it was expected that Winston would play Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Vikings; however if he can’t play, coach Dennis Allen will turn to either backup Andy Dalton, or tight end/quarterback Taysom Hill, both of whom took reps at the training facility of rugby club London Irish.

Two other starters on the Saints’ offense – wide receiver Michael Thomas and tackle Ryan Ramczyk – also were not at the team’s practice in London. Thomas left Sunday’s game with a toe injury, while Ramczyk was listed as questionable with an elbow injury.

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LA Chargers head coach Brandon Staley told reporters that defensive end Joey Bosa will have surgery to repair the groin injury he suffered in last Sunday’s loss to the Jaguars. Bosa is expected to return to action this season, but will go on injured reserve and miss at least four games.  Bosa’s surgery performed by Dr. William Meyers at the Vincera Institute in Philadelphia to correct a core muscle issue while on injured reserve.

Bosa, a four-time Pro Bowler, is coming off of a 2021 season that saw him record 10.5 sacks. He had 1.5 sacks during the Chargers’ season-opening win over the Raiders. Veteran Kyle Van Noy is slated to replace Bosa in the starting lineup.

Bosa’s injury is just the latest bad news for the Chargers; who also lost starting left tackle Rashawn Slater and receiver Jalen Guyton to season-ending injuries. They are also dealing with Justin Herbert’s injured ribs, which he sustained during the team’s Week 2 loss in Kansas City. The team is expected to have receiver Keenan Allen back at practice this week after he missed the previous two games with a hamstring injury.

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NY Jets head coach Robert Saleh said on Wednesday that quarterback Zach Wilson has been cleared to make his season-debut after missing the season’s first three games.  The second-year quarterback will start Sunday’s road game against the Steelers as long as all goes well for Wilson during this week’s practices.  Pending confirmation from Wilson’s Los Angeles-based doctor, Saleh was optimistic about Wilson, saying he will “absolutely” start, adding: “He’s very comfortable. He’s in a great mental state. Everyone is comfortable with where he’s at physically.”

Wilson tore his meniscus and suffered a bone bruise during New York’s first preseason game against the Eagles. On Aug. 16, he underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee in Los Angeles, performed by Dr. Neal ElAttrache.  While initially the team said Wilson had a two- to four-week recovery, the Jets announced four days before the start of the season that Wilson would return Week 4 at the earliest.

The Jets are off to a 1-2 start with 15-year veteran Joe Flacco filling in for Wilson. Sunday’s game would mark Flacco’s 22nd start against the Steelers if Wilson cannot return. Flacco went 10-11 against Pittsburgh during his 11-year run as Baltimore’s starting quarterback, while Wilson has yet to face the Steelers.

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61 years since Roger Maris hit 61 home runs in 1961, his all-time American League record has been tied by a fellow NY Yankee slugger. 30-year-old Aaron Judge went deep for the New York Yankees against the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday night, hitting his 61st home run of the season and tying Maris’ long-standing record. The home run came in the seventh inning against Toronto pitcher Tim Mayza, driving the ball over the left-field fence at Rogers Centre.

Judge’s 61st home run came in the Yankees’ 155th game of the season, and Judge’s 151st, with seven more games still to play in the regular season. Judge moved past the 60 home runs Babe Ruth hit in 1927, which had stood as the major league mark until Maris broke it in 1961 on the final day of the ’61 season. All three players reached these achievements while playing for the Yankees.

Maris’ record has been exceeded six times, first when Mark McGwire hit 70 home runs for the St. Louis Cardinals in 1998. Judge is the first player to hit 60 home runs since 2001, when Barry Bonds (73) and Sammy Sosa (64) each accomplished the feat; however, all three players have had their records tainted by reported steroid use. McGwire admitted using banned steroids, while Bonds and Sosa denied ‘knowingly’ using performing-enhancing drugs.

Judge also leads the Major Leagues in nearly every offensive category, and tops the AL all three Triple Crown stats: batting average, home runs and RBIs. If he holds onto those leads, Judge may also become the first Triple Crown winner in a decade, and just the second in 55 years. He would also become the first Yankee to earn the honor since Mickey Mantle did so in 1956.

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