Sports

It’s a weekly challenge for college football fans: Let’s not make sweeping declarations after one game. It becomes even more challenging when the quarterback position is at the center of the conversation. It’s the most important position, in a game and the trajectory of a program. As we look across the country, several situations have fan bases on opposite sides of overreaction or underreaction.

The most notable story of the weekend was Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers’ abdominal strain and Arch Manning’s relief duty, which included five touchdowns in a 56-7 win over UTSA. Naturally, when an injury happens and a highly touted backup shines, some will raise thoughts and questions about what could be done with the backup. But that would be an overreaction.

Ewers likely won’t play this weekend, but his injury doesn’t sound serious, which is great news for Texas. There has never been controversy internally about the quarterback conversation, and with three weeks before facing Oklahoma, it feels like Manning will just steer the ship until Ewers returns. If Manning continues to shine, that’s great. Texas fans can get a peek into the future while knowing a quarterback capable of winning the national championship this year is coming back soon.

Texas’ in-state rival, Texas A&M, is in a different situation. Manning shared the SEC Freshman of the Week honors with Aggies quarterback Marcel Reed, who filled in late notice for starter Conner Weigman and shined against Florida with three touchdowns. Weigman, talented but not always available, has been a mixed bag to start the season. Reed provided a spark to the offense through the air and on the ground and could raise the ceiling of the offense because of that ability.

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Weigman, like Ewers, is considered week to week, and although he has more program equity than Reed, Weigman is far less established than Ewers. The Aggies face Bowling Green and Arkansas before Missouri on Oct. 5. It will be interesting to see what happens with the Aggies.

More quarterback news broke Monday morning when it was announced that Michigan would move toward Alex Orji over Davis Warren, who had a rough day against Arkansas State. One way to react: Michigan’s offense has no chance this season. Or this is the player who should’ve been starting from the beginning. Elsewhere, NC State will continue to start CJ Bailey over injured Grayson McCall, and Auburn is rolling with Hank Brown over Payton Thorne again this week. It’s only Week 4, and college football is fluid, so we’ll keep monitoring.

Texas A&M quarterback Marcel Reed accounted for three touchdowns in the Aggies’ win over Florida on Saturday. (Matt Pendleton / USA Today)

Here are five more things we are overreacting about, not reacting enough about and perfectly reacting to — all sides equally needed in the discourse of our great sport.

We’re overreacting to … trash talk.

In the latest talking point involving Shedeur Sanders, the Colorado quarterback went viral for his postgame exchange with Colorado State quarterback Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi, and Sanders declined an embrace. Many who saw only that exchange quickly wrote off Sanders as being disrespectful, continuing his scrutiny from a week ago, when he left the field early against Nebraska. But there are two sides to the story, and Sanders’ reaction was warranted.

Shedeur Sanders and Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi full exchange😱

FULL VIDEO: https://t.co/uRuUSXtcVE@deionsandersjr pic.twitter.com/mraNKbAKXu

— GUCCE🦬🐦‍⬛ (@gucceCU) September 15, 2024

Here’s part of what Fowler-Nicolosi said before the game: “The hype, the media train only gets so far at the end of the day. You have lined up 11 guys against our 11 guys, and we’ll see who wants it more. And we’ll see how far Instagram followers take them.”

“We should have murdered them guys …we’re coming for revenge”

“We’ll see how far instagram followers gets them”

Here’s what CSU’s Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi and Tory Horton had to say about last year’s Rocky Mountain Showdown and the upcoming game against CU: pic.twitter.com/51ZBPyigpf

— Romi Bean (@Romi_Bean) September 12, 2024

Sanders got the win and can react how he wants. And Fowler-Nicolosi’s comments were fine too. It’s competition! No personal lines were crossed, no foul play on the field ensued. Good old-fashioned trash talk (within limits) is good for the game, and rivalries like this are good as well.

We’re underreacting to … how good the Group of 5 has been.

In the old era, there wasn’t much room for conversation about the Group of 5 teams within the national championship landscape, but we can have those discussions with the expanded College Football Playoff field, as at least one Group of 5 team will get in annually. With that, this is the call to pay attention throughout the season because good ball is being played.

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Mountain West team UNLV is 2-0 against the Big 12 with wins against Houston and Kansas. Within the same conference, Boise State took Oregon to the brink and has a legitimate Heisman Trophy candidate in running back Ashton Jeanty. The MAC arguably has the biggest storyline of the season: Northern Illinois is ranked after its win over Notre Dame, but also, Toledo just went to Mississippi State and had a dominant win, and Bowling Green took Penn State to the wire in Week 2.

Then there’s Liberty, last year’s Group of 5 representative in the New Year’s Six, which is 3-0.

Memphis made the latest big statement with a win at Florida State, although that doesn’t hold as much weight as it would’ve in the preseason, but it’s a major win nonetheless. That win, no matter what FSU looks like at the end of the year, will help Memphis’ Playoff case if it takes care of business.

The days of monitoring one undefeated team needing all the breaks to have a chance at the Playoff are done. Now it’s a multilayered, multi-conference conversation that will happen every year. Let’s all dive into it.

We’re overreacting to … Georgia’s road game against Kentucky.

If you read last week’s edition, you know we talked about overreacting to top-10 teams struggling as big favorites early in the year. This week’s overreaction victim: Georgia, which escaped Kentucky with a 13-12 win.

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Let’s start with some respect for Kentucky. Georgia has been held below 20 points on the road three times in the past five years: 2020 at Kentucky, 2022 at Kentucky and 2024 at Kentucky. Some teams, in certain places, just make for good matchups. Additionally, Kentucky has recorded eight straight bowl-eligible seasons. There’s no denying Georgia was sluggish, but surely other top teams have struggled against teams more inferior than Kentucky.

In the course of more than 40 straight regular-season wins, some will be uglier than others, but great teams find a way. Georgia found a way and extended a historic streak, and that should be enough to hold serve in the rankings. But now there’s a new No. 1 team.

Texas has been the most impressive team week over week to start the season, but a case can be made that Georgia’s three wins (Clemson, Tennessee Tech, Kentucky) are better than Texas’ wins (Colorado State, Michigan, UTSA). The beauty of it is that these teams will meet in October to settle it on the field (at least until we get to the Playoff).

As for Georgia, perhaps it’s the wake-up call that’s needed. It better be because Alabama is up next on Sept. 28 in Tuscaloosa.

We’re underreacting to … Iowa’s offensive improvement.

One of the most intriguing subplots of last season was Iowa’s Drive for 325 points under offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz. The offense fell way short (216 points) and was held below 10 points five times before Ferentz was let go.

Insert new coordinator Tim Lester. Insert a lot more yards and a lot more points.

Iowa’s offense, which ranked 132nd (out of 133) in points per game and 133rd in yards per game in 2023, is ranked 58th in points per game (32.3) and 54th in yards per game (418) this season. The Hawkeyes have the leading rusher in all of college football in Kaleb Johnson. As a result, no team in the country has more 30-yard rushes than Iowa (six). Though the Hawkeyes have played only three games, that’s an incredible start to a turnaround.

Some will point out that Iowa has played Illinois State, Iowa State and Troy, and that’s true, but Iowa reached 400 yards once last season. In 2022, it beat FCS team South Dakota State 7-3 with two safeties. The level of competition hasn’t mattered in mocking the offense previously, so it shouldn’t matter in giving credit now. There are still questions, and the competition level is about to pick up, but we must acknowledge that this is the best (early-season) unit turnaround in college football.

We’re reacting perfectly to … Florida State’s downfall.

Many knew it was over after Week 2, but a few people were still holding out hope for the Seminoles after their bye week. The verdict is in: The 2024 Florida State Seminoles are done. It was obvious from the second play of their game Saturday: a fumble recovered by Memphis en route to the Seminoles’ 20-12 home loss. Errors continued to haunt Florida State throughout the day, marking four straight losses for the program after it started last year 13-0.

FSU Fumbles on the second play of the game

Just a dumpster fire in Tallahassee pic.twitter.com/GSqpXEjkub

— College Football Headlines (@CFBHeadlines) September 14, 2024

There’s still intrigue, mainly about what will happen at quarterback. For now, DJ Uiagalelei is the starter, but that could change. What’s undeniable is the need for some kind of spark after several rough weeks. Mike Norvell’s job security is not in question, but the program needs a culture reset. Unfortunately, it’s going to take several long months to get that process going.

(Top photo: Scott Wachter / USA Today)

PHILADELPHIA — Kirk Cousins didn’t want to say it, but Jessie Bates III finally admitted it.

This is what the money is for.

The Atlanta Falcons upset the Philadelphia Eagles 22-21 at Lincoln Financial Field on “Monday Night Football” on the backs of their most expensive free-agent acquisitions from the last two offseasons.

Cousins orchestrated a 70-yard game-winning drive that took only 1:05 and was capped by a 7-yard touchdown pass to Drake London with 34 seconds left. Bates intercepted a final desperation pass from Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts with 19 seconds left to ensure Philadelphia didn’t retake the lead.

The Falcons (1-1) signed Cousins to the largest free-agency deal in NFL history this offseason, a four-year contract that could be worth up to $180 million. Two offseasons ago, Bates was the big-money free-agency addition, signing a four-year, $64 million deal. In addition to his game-sealing interception, Bates also had a critical pass breakup at the goal line against receiver DeVonta Smith to force a field goal in the third quarter.

“I think when you get in big-time moments and big-time games, you expect those players to make plays,” Bates said. “You lean on those players to stand up and lead. I know we talk about money, but all that stuff doesn’t matter as much. It’s about getting the right guys in here, guys who can change the game.”

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And changing the game enough equals getting the money, right?

“I guess you could say that,” Bates said with a smile, “for sure.”

Bates also led the Falcons with 12 tackles.

“Jessie making those plays was very important,” coach Raheem Morris said. “It’s the reason he’s here. It’s the reason our ownership went out and put all that money into what we’ve got going on, on defense and offense.”

Cousins deferred the money question with the same nonchalance he seemed to operate the final drive, on which he was 5-for-6 passing for 70 yards.

“That’s not how I think,” he said. “I’m just trying to play football with my teammates and get out of here with a win. It’s so important to find ways to win. That’s how you put together a great season, when you have these games that can go either way, you find a way to have it break your way. That’s the way this league is so when you can find those inches, it can really change the tale of the season.”

Cousins’ pass to London was Atlanta’s first game-winning touchdown with under two minutes since 2016, according to ESPN Stats & Info, and it was the last of six lead changes in the game. With 1:56 left, the Falcons had a 0.7 percent chance to win, according to Next Gen Stats. It was the seventh-most improbable comeback since Next Gen Stats began tracking win probability in 2016.

Fly, Drake, Fly

ESPN | NFL+ pic.twitter.com/kOAF4pIlir

— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) September 17, 2024

“Kirk throughout this whole week was getting so much criticism. ‘Kirk can’t move. Kirk can’t do this,’” Bates said. “And then to watch his poise, that wasn’t his first two-minute drive and to see how sharp it was … The leaders on this team, when it’s time to make a play, that’s who we lean on, and I’m happy that we got him.”

Cousins finished 20-for-29 for 241 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions and improved his record in “Monday Night Football” starts to 4-10.

“I just try to go play football the best I can whether it’s noon on Sunday or a night game, no matter what day of the week it is,” the quarterback said. “You just try to go play your best and let it go from there.”

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Darnell Mooney led the Falcons with three catches for 88 yards, including back-to-back catches for 47 yards on the final drive and a 41-touchdown catch in the third quarter. London had six catches for 54 yards and added one big sigh of relief after Younghoe Koo hit a 47-yard extra point that was necessary because London was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct after his tying score.

“Thank God Koo is an amazing kicker,” London said. “He sealed the deal. That’s all I was thinking about after the flag was thrown. I can’t do that. I can’t flash out like that. I can’t put my team in jeopardy, but Koo came in and saved us.”

Matt Ryan reacts to the #Falcons game-winning touchdown on the Manning Cast: pic.twitter.com/TXyM1Dyrk7

— Bryce Lewis (@Bryce_Lewis86) September 17, 2024

Atlanta rushed for 152 yards, led by Bijan Robinson’s 14 carries for 97 yards.

“I thought (offensive coordinator Zac Robinson) did a phenomenal job of committing to the run game,” Cousins said. “I was pleased with that, and I think it gave us a chance to win on the road.”

The Falcons had a jubilant locker room celebration. Team owner Arthur Blank emerged with his suit jacket soaked with water that was being splashed around. Several Atlanta players were excitedly repeating Cousins’ trademark “You like that?!” chant. And Morris came to the postgame interview session with a game ball tucked under his arm.

Atlanta, how you feeling this morning? pic.twitter.com/uC0o3H9MJC

— JosinaAnderson (@JosinaAnderson) September 17, 2024

That’s as far as the coach is willing to let the celebration go, though.

“I’m pretty steady,” Morris said. “I didn’t come here to beat the Philadelphia Eagles. I was brought here to put us in position to win championships and that’s what we’re going to do. You can’t ride the emotional roller coaster. They are all the same. We will go out next week and go through our process and get right back to it.”

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Next week means a visit from the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs for “Sunday Night Football” at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Cousins would only acknowledge one special moment from the weekend. That was seeing former Eagles quarterback Nick Foles on Sunday night at the team hotel and again for the coin toss, where Foles was serving as Philadelphia’s honorary captain. Cousins and Foles arrived at Michigan State as freshmen in the recruiting class of 2007.

“At Michigan State, there was concern about how this was going to work out for both of us,” Cousins said, “and I was reminded with him getting honored tonight so I said to him at the coin toss, ‘It worked out for both of us.’”

(Photo: Eric Hartline / Imagn Images)

Eric DeCosta was on vacation on Cape Cod, his last downtime for many months. Training camp was still a few weeks away, and the Baltimore Ravens had no pressing issues at the moment.

The mind of a talent evaluator, though, never rests. DeCosta’s childhood dreams of finding and developing players, drafting and building a roster went beyond becoming an NFL general manager. A devout Boston Red Sox fan, the Ravens GM once thought plenty about running a baseball team. All these years later, there are times when he still does.

Watching the Hyannis Harbor Hawks of the Cape Cod League, one of the top summer showcases for college baseball players, DeCosta observed the prospects on the field. He made mental notes of size, athleticism and field presence. He then got his phone out and started texting.

Top Orioles executives Mike Elias and Sig Mejdal don’t ask for DeCosta’s unstructured baseball scouting reports. Yet they look forward to them every summer. “I’ve told him when he’s on the Cape that I’m going to send him a radar gun and I expect some reports written,” said Elias, the Orioles executive vice president and GM. “He’s going to have to put his money where his mouth is and go on the record on some of these players.”

The downtown neighbors in a provincial Baltimore sporting landscape traditionally have kept each other at arm’s length. Beyond the occasional shared promotion, photo op or congratulatory social media post, the Ravens and Orioles maintained a distance that exceeded the half mile separating Oriole Park at Camden Yards and the Ravens’ M&T Bank Stadium. In recent months, that’s started to change.

New Orioles owner David Rubenstein reached out to Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti when his bid to purchase the Orioles from the Angelos family neared approval earlier this year. In April, Bisciotti and Rubenstein combined on a $10 million donation to support those most impacted by the collapse of Baltimore’s Key Bridge.

That collaboration at the ownership level represented a breakthrough; Bisciotti and former Orioles owner Peter Angelos weren’t adversarial, but they never got to know each other, either. The Ravens hosted a group of Orioles coaches and players at a training camp practice last month and again at their second preseason game. Ravens coach John Harbaugh recently took in Orioles batting practice as a guest of manager Brandon Hyde, the two having built a rapport over the past couple of years.

But nowhere is the growing bond between the two organizations more evident than in the friendship between the respective leaders of the team’s front offices. DeCosta built a relationship with Mejdal, the Orioles assistant general manager, well before Mejdal and Elias arrived in Baltimore in 2018 and were tasked with resuscitating an organization in need of a rebuild. DeCosta has cultivated a more recent friendship with Elias, too.

The executives have done speaking engagements together and spent time with one another in social settings. Their families have gotten to know each other. DeCosta’s daughter, Jane, babysits Elias’ kids. Mejdal’s wife, Arati, is a yoga instructor for the Ravens. Mejdal and his son even served as ball boys before a Ravens regular-season game, catching Justin Tucker field goals and making sure the football got back to the long snapper.

On the night of MLB’s 2022 draft, DeCosta was a guest of Elias and Mejdal in the Orioles draft room when they made Jackson Holliday the first pick. Twenty months later, the Orioles’ top executives were at the Ravens’ Under Armour Performance Center on a late April evening, when DeCosta chose Clemson cornerback Nate Wiggins in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft. It’s a relationship that has benefited both teams.

“It was a celebration of Baltimore in a way,” DeCosta said. “We have two pretty damn good teams here. I want the fans to see that we have that relationship. I think fans want to celebrate what we both have going on. I really do value those guys. It’s a beautiful thing.”

The Ravens and Orioles have historically kept each other at arm’s length. (Kirby Lee / Getty Images)

Orioles GM Dan Duquette’s contract was not renewed after a 47-115 season in 2018, and the team was undergoing a front-office overhaul. DeCosta had never met Louis Angelos, the son of Peter Angelos, but they had mutual acquaintances — and the Ravens executive had someone in mind for the job.

Elias, then in the Houston Astros front office, was viewed as a prime GM candidate. And there was a sense around the league that Mejdal, the former NASA biomathematician who specialized in sabermetrics, might be willing to come with him.

DeCosta texted Louis Angelos and told him that he had some GM candidates he wanted to talk to him about. Angelos suggested the two meet at a Baltimore-area coffee shop. DeCosta was expecting the conversation to last about 30 minutes. Instead, the two spoke for more than two hours in a conversation that initially focused on Elias and Mejdal but expanded to touch on collaboration, team building, analytics and scouting.

“He’s a really thoughtful guy,” DeCosta said. “He was really hoping that we could have a relationship and there was going to be a relationship with the teams. We talked about Mike and Sig and my experiences with them and how I really thought these guys were brilliant and smart and how what they were able to do with the Astros was incredible.”

DeCosta learned quickly that Elias and Mejdal had been on the Orioles’ radar well before he sat down with Angelos. Still, DeCosta figured a few more supportive words couldn’t hurt. Then, he waited for the news like everyone else.

“Eric was probably our biggest supporter,” Mejdal said. “He was checking in with me what seemed to be every other day, more frequently than my own family.”

That didn’t stop when the job offers were extended, and accepted. “When we got the job, my wife and myself, we knew zero people in Baltimore other than Eric and his wife, Lacie, and (former Ravens analytics manager) Corey Krawiec,” Mejdal said. “They are just kind people. They invited us to dinner. They welcomed us and some of their friends became our friends. They’ve made our Baltimore life so much better.”

DeCosta is an ardent reader. He enjoys learning about successful people, organizations and companies. He remembers reading about how the St. Louis Cardinals became one of baseball’s model organizations in part because of a player development machine that relied heavily on statistical analysis. DeCosta believes that’s when he first learned about Mejdal, who joined the Cardinals analytics department in 2005 and stayed through 2011 before heading to Houston.

When Bisciotti encouraged DeCosta, the assistant GM at the time, to beef up the Ravens’ analytics program in 2011, the organization hired consultants to accelerate the process. DeCosta admits now that mistakes were made in how the program was initially structured, but one thing that served the Ravens well was networking. They met with numerous professional sports teams, including the Cleveland Indians (now Guardians), New York Yankees and Detroit Red Wings, to exchange ideas. They also made a point to reach out to the Astros.

“They were the gold standard in sports,” DeCosta said. “For us to build a relationship with them in terms of analytics was a big deal for us.”

Mejdal dropped by the Ravens’ facility in August 2016 while the Astros were in Baltimore and met with DeCosta and other members of the organization to provide insight into how Houston was using analytics as part of its draft preparation. Later that night, DeCosta was a guest of Mejdal and then-Astros GM Jeff Luhnow in a suite at Camden Yards.

DeCosta shifted uncomfortably in his seat as the Orioles became the first team since 1900 to hit four home runs before making their first out. Tightly wound, and knowing how agitated he gets during games when things aren’t going the Ravens’ way, DeCosta asked Luhnow and Mejdal if they wanted him to leave.

“I didn’t know them that well, but if it had been a football game, I know I can’t watch it with a bunch of randoms,” DeCosta said.

Luhnow and Mejdal reminded DeCosta that it was only one of 162 and there was still plenty of baseball to play. Sure enough, the Astros came back and won the game, 15-8, and the seeds of a friendship were planted. (Luhnow would later be fired and suspended from baseball after The Athletic reported that the Astros had used technology to illegally steal signs during their 2017 championship run. MLB’s eventual investigation did not implicate Elias or Mejdal.)

DeCosta found Mejdal to be an easy communicator and a fun guy to have a beer with. Contrary to the stereotypes associated with analysts and quants, Mejdal struck DeCosta as engaging and curious. He seemed to ask the right questions at the right time and didn’t take himself too seriously. “Unlike a lot of people in sports,” DeCosta said.

Mejdal, for his part, was impressed by DeCosta’s “growth mindset” and how eager he was to learn, from the time he first reached out to Mejdal.

“If you think you know it all, you don’t do that,” Mejdal said. “That reveals a modesty I admire very much.”

In 2018, Mejdal invited the DeCostas to an ALCS game between the Astros and Red Sox at Minute Maid Park. DeCosta stayed quiet as his beloved Red Sox prevailed — “I was joyful on the inside,” he said — but he was enthralled by how Mejdal clinically watched and analyzed the game, his mind working on every pitch.

“I’m watching the players and looking and evaluating their skills, and he’s looking at it from the standpoint of the science of baseball,” DeCosta said. “That was just really impressive to me.”

Elias and Mejdal were there when the Ravens selected Nate Wiggins (left) with this year’s first-round draft pick, while DeCosta sat in as the Orioles took Jackson Holliday (right) in 2022. (Scott Taetsch / Getty Images; Nick Cammett / Diamond Images via Getty Images)

A general manager lives what Mejdal calls “an imbalanced lifestyle.” So much time spent away from home and loved ones, family dinners and vacations interrupted by phone calls and text messages. There’s a lot on the line, and so many people are impacted by each decision a GM makes.

“Our jobs are really hard,” Elias said. “You have a lot that you’re having to balance, and every decision you make can weigh on you. There’s just very few people that have lived through that and have practical experience in that chair and understand the difficulties that you can seek advice from and know that they don’t have any particular agenda. It’s really nice to have Eric for me as a resource.”

Before a recent draft, Elias encountered a situation that was unusual for a baseball GM but that football GMs deal with more regularly (neither side was willing to provide the details). Seeking counsel, he called DeCosta. The roles have been reversed, too.

The two have similar backgrounds, both “scouts at heart” who have grown up in forward-thinking organizations determined to involve analytical input in the player evaluation process. When DeCosta was a guest in the Orioles’ draft room in 2022, an experience that he called one of the most enjoyable of his professional career, he took notes and paid particular attention to how the Orioles decision-makers processed so much information and weighed subjective scout observations with data-driven analysis. DeCosta was also in Elias’ office as he negotiated Holliday’s signing bonus with agent Scott Boras.

When the favor was returned, Elias marveled at the large digital boards in the Ravens’ draft room and the calmness, even when Baltimore was almost on the clock and phones rang incessantly with offers to trade back.

“Even though we’re in different sports, the nature of the draft is similar,” Mejdal said. “You have this finite, often large amount of information about each player, all of these different attributes, and they don’t all point in the same direction. As you get more and more sophisticated with the draft decisions, it becomes more an exercise in combining information. To see how another sport does it, especially with a team that’s on the forefront of it, is a tremendous opportunity.”

Everyone from the GMs to the mascots seems to be feeling the connection in Baltimore these days. (G Fiume / Getty Images)

The players have gotten in the act as well. As the Ravens were working through special teams drills at the start of a recent practice, their 23-year-old safety Kyle Hamilton, already an All-Pro, stood on the sideline engaged in a conversation with 23-year-old Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson, an All-Star, former Rookie of the Year and a current MVP candidate.

They posed for a picture, two faces of the franchises wearing wide grins. It was a treat for the city’s bird-loving sports fans, who have long celebrated glimpses of synergy — however small — between Baltimore’s two most prominent professional sports teams.

“It’s fun for us. They are the best at what they do and we’re hoping to be the same,” Elias said. “These sports teams have a relative importance to the city that is way beyond the average for a sports franchise. The health of the city, economically, and the national stature of the city are driven quite a bit by what these franchises do, how they are run, how they plan.

“We should be working together on that front. I know that the baseball and football operations have very close relationships now, but it’s exciting to see at the ownership and business operations level, that’s only going to grow.”

For a good number of years, late summer in Baltimore meant that the city’s sports fans had turned the page on a disappointing Orioles season and were already locked into the Ravens. That, however, has changed.

The Orioles are one of the top teams in baseball for a second consecutive year, thanks to a roster loaded with young stars such as Henderson, Holliday and catcher Adley Rutschman. It’s not hard to envision them playing deep into October for years to come, while the Ravens hit their stride during their regular season.

“I didn’t really know much about the Baltimore sports culture,” Mejdal said. “I had no idea how important baseball and football are to the people of Baltimore. I had no idea of the reverence they have for the players, the game, Camden Yards. That has made it a pleasure to be involved in this. I’ve seen Ravens playoff games and that energy is clear in football, too.

“Why in the world wouldn’t these two organizations that are so important to the city work together? It just seems inevitable and natural.”

(Top image: Meech Robinson / The Athletic; Photos: Nick Cammett / Diamond Images via Getty Images; Lloyd Fox / Baltimore Sun / Tribune News Service via Getty Images; Claire Greenway / Getty Images; G Fiume / Getty Images)

On Jan. 11, Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers posted a video to more than 200,000 followers on Instagram. In it, he signed a trading card with his face and added a message below.

“I’m coming back,” he wrote, holding the card up to the camera.

The top comment on the post?

“Yall gonna lose manning (sic),” it read, adding a pair of laughing emojis aimed at the Longhorns’ predicted misfortunes.

Manning, as in Arch Manning: five-star recruit, and the son of Cooper, nephew of Eli and Peyton and grandson of Archie. Ewers’ surprising decision was about chasing Texas’ first national title since 2005, but the commenter wasn’t alone in directing attention to college football’s most famous backup in an era in which there is no penalty for transferring.

Even before Ewers elected to return, Manning faced questions at the Sugar Bowl about whether he wanted to leave after barely seeing the field in his first season.

“It’s tough because you want to be out there playing with your boys,” Manning told The Athletic in July. “But just realizing there’s nowhere else I want to be, and it was my dream to play at Texas. I’m going to stick it out and play there eventually,”

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He made the same decision as Ewers: He was coming back. He was always coming back. Now, Manning is likely to make his first career start against Louisiana-Monroe on Saturday, as Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said Ewers is questionable to play after straining his oblique against UTSA.

“Arch is just another guy on our team, and the reason I’m able to do that is because that’s who Arch is every day,” Sarkisian said Monday. “He’s the selfless teammate. He cares about the guys on the team. He cares about Quinn. They’ve got a great relationship. He works his tail off. He wants to play good football for them because he knows how hard everybody’s working.

“So I literally don’t address it with him. I don’t address it with the team. He’s just part of the team.”

Arch Manning threw for 223 yards and had five total TDs versus UTSA. (Tim Warner / Getty Images)

There was a time when quarterbacks seeing the field before their second or third year was an anomaly. Now, it’s an expectation, at least for five-star prospects. When Manning’s name never appeared in the transfer portal, he bucked a decade of trends among college quarterbacks.

Transfer portal decisions are unique to every player, but as Manning enters what is expected to be his first start, we’re seeing the reasons why leaving would introduce more questions than answers and present more problems than solutions.

Though Manning has thrown only 23 passes in four appearances since arriving in 2023, things have largely gone according to plan at Texas — even if winning the starting job was delayed by a year because of Ewers’ return. Manning is still one good season away from crystallizing his status as a first-round draft pick, and he has plenty of time to do it, with three years of eligibility remaining after this season. His path to the field became clearer when last year’s backup, Maalik Murphy, transferred to Duke, and another year working behind Ewers was only going to make the results better once it was time for his turn in the spotlight.

His growing pains have mostly been able to come in closed practices. They haven’t had to come in nationally televised games like young quarterbacks who are asked to be saviors like freshmen Dylan Raiola at Nebraska and DJ Lagway at Florida. But when he has been given the opportunity, he’s excelled. On Saturday, thrust into extended duty against an overmatched UTSA team, he threw a touchdown pass on his first attempt, scooted past a safety for a 67-yard touchdown run and finished with three more touchdown passes in a 56-7 blowout win.

GO DEEPER

With Quinn Ewers injured, Arch Manning tallies five TDs vs. UTSA

Now, if he starts Saturday, he’ll do it for a Texas team ranked No. 1 in the AP poll for the first time since 2008, when Colt McCoy was under center for the Longhorns. McCoy, by the way, didn’t play his first season at Texas either.

Since high school, everything the Mannings have done with Arch points to a big-picture approach, aiming for a lengthy NFL career, not the quickest path to the playing field or the best way to earn money from his fame in college. Manning’s recruitment was straight out of 1995: If you don’t have DMs, reporters and coaches can’t slide into them, and it’s easier for coaches and parents to control coaches’ access to you, too.

He’s a non-factor on social media. He barely spoke to reporters about his college decision, a family strategy borne out of a desire to allow him to live a more normal high school life. His family background affords him the ability to shrug off the obligations of chasing NIL money, as does his status as a likely NFL Draft pick after he does get on the field.

GO DEEPER

Arch Manning’s unique approach to recruiting

Now, his decision to stay patient in college is old-school, too. NIL money is the invisible hand guiding players into and out of the transfer portal, but the success that his family has enjoyed means money was never going to influence his decision. As of last December, his only NIL deal was an exclusive trading card partnership with Panini America, despite erroneous reports that he was earning millions as Texas’ third-string quarterback. After initially declining to be included, he elected to opt into his name, image and likeness being used in EA Sports’ College Football 25.

Manning has done little to nothing to “grow his brand” and yet the brand he was born with has made him one of the five biggest names in college football.

Ewers returned to Texas with national title aspirations in Texas’ first season in the SEC after reaching the College Football Playoff a season ago and narrowly losing to Washington in the semifinals. His faith in Sarkisian and the team returning to Austin has thus far been rewarded, and Manning saw the same thing.

If the program had been on shakier ground entering the SEC, it stands to reason Manning might have entertained entering the portal. But Texas is as strong as it’s been since the heyday of Mack Brown in the 2000s. Why would Manning leave and adjust to new coaches, a new play caller, a new offense and a new head coach for what would almost certainly be a worse team?

And there’s the uncomfortable reality that Ewers, who could be the first quarterback taken in the 2025 NFL Draft, has been one of the more injury-prone QBs in college football, even as he’s developed into one of the best. When he strained his oblique Saturday, he did it as the betting favorite for the Heisman Trophy. In 2022, he missed a shade under four games after injuring his shoulder in a close loss to Alabama. In 2023, he missed two Big 12 games with a sprained AC joint in his shoulder. Texas turned to Murphy to keep its Big 12 and national title hopes on track and survived an upset bid from Kansas State while Ewers healed.

Now, Ewers is injured again, and Manning looked like America’s best backup quarterback in relief against UTSA.

Regardless of Ewers’ readiness to play, handing Manning the keys for a game against ULM in which Texas is favored by 45 points is the prudent decision. The next two opponents, Louisiana-Monroe and Mississippi State, are unlikely to test the Longhorns, and Ewers seems likely to return by the time the national championship pressures increase when Texas’ date with Oklahoma in the Red River Showdown arrives on Oct. 12 before Georgia comes to town on Oct. 19.

When Ewers stayed for one more unexpected year in Austin, it was easy to expect Manning to act like every other quarterback and develop a drifting eye to find a new program. But Manning leaving Texas never made sense. His college football experience is not like every other quarterback’s.

Why wouldn’t his decision-making be different?

(Top illustration: Dan Goldfarb / The Athletic; photos: Eric Gay / Associated Press; Tim Warner / Getty Images)

By Grant Brisbee, Andy McCullough and Stephen J. Nesbitt

Every week,​ we​ ask a selected group of our baseball​ writers​ — local and national — to rank the teams from first to worst. Here are the collective results.

There are two weeks left in the Major League Baseball regular season. Each team has four series remaining between them and whatever is on their October calendar: playoffs or pool time.

But November looks the same for all of ’em.

That’s awards season, baby!

We’ve paired this week’s Power Rankings with picking each team’s top individual award candidate — MVP, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year, Jomboy Lip-Reading of the Year, et cetera. This isn’t to suggest each team has someone with a shot to win. Far from it. Some races have basically been called. But it’s still worth tipping a cap to each team’s best bet.

Record: 90-59
Last Power Ranking: 2

Top award candidate: Zack Wheeler, NL Cy Young Award

This might be Wheeler’s best season with the Phillies, which is saying something, considering how excellent he has been since he joined the team heading into 2020. He has accumulated more wins above replacement, according to FanGraphs, than any other pitcher during that time frame. He is operating at a high level as the postseason approaches. In his last eight starts, Wheeler has posted a 1.76 ERA while striking out more than a batter per inning. He is the ace of the best team in baseball, the sort of horse Philadelphia intends to ride back to the World Series. — Andy McCullough

Record: 88-61
Last Power Ranking: 1

Top award candidate: Shohei Ohtani, NL MVP

I know this will be a controversial choice because Ohtani doesn’t even play in the field (!!!), but I’m thinking this will be the first time in baseball history that an injured pitcher wins the NL MVP. It would be his third MVP, which means he’d join the three-timers-and-more club:

• Jimmie Foxx
• Joe DiMaggio
• Stan Musial
• Roy Campanella
• Yogi Berra
• Mickey Mantle
• Mike Schmidt
• Alex Rodríguez
• Albert Pujols
• Mike Trout
• Barry Bonds (7)

That’s a ridiculous list, but Ohtani is a ridiculous player. He’ll fit in just fine. — Grant Brisbee

Record: 87-63
Last Power Ranking: 3

Top award candidate: Aaron Judge, AL MVP

Well, duh. He is having the best season of his career, even in the midst of a brief slump. (Judge went 16 games without hitting a home run before blasting a grand slam in a stirring victory over the Red Sox on Friday.) The downswing will prevent Judge from breaking his own American League home run record of 62, but he still may wrangle his second MVP trophy out of the clutches of Kansas City sensation Bobby Witt Jr. Witt is a five-tool dynamo and a delight to watch — but Judge has come close to replicating the production of Barry Bonds at his peak while playing center field. — McCullough

Record: 86-63
Last Power Ranking: 4

Top award candidate: Pat Murphy, NL Manager of the Year

If your predecessor walks for a record contract and your ace is traded away but your team doesn’t miss a beat — another 90-win season, another division title — yeah, you’re winning this award. It’s a pretty easy pick. So, here’s a second award candidate: Jackson Chourio, NL Rookie of the Year. He was so overmatched in April and May that many wondered if he’d head to Triple A.

Before June 1: .210/.254/.327, 5 HR, 61 wRC+, 27 K%, 5.7 BB%
Since June 1: .309/.368/.555, 16 HR, 152 wRC+, 16.4 K%, 7.8 BB%

Turns out, Chourio figures things out just fine on the fly at the major-league level. Another reason to give his manager an award! — Stephen Nesbitt

Record: 86-64
Last Power Ranking: 7

Top award candidate: Emmanuel Clase, AL Reliever of the Year

Let’s start with Clase’s case for Reliever of the Year as of this writing: 0.66 ERA, .659 WHIP, MLB-leading 45 saves in 68 1/3 innings. Got it? Got it.

Now for the bigger argument: Cy Young. No reliever has won the award in 21 years, and all signs point to the Tigers’ Tarik Skubal winning this time. But, man, what Clase’s doing is incredibly rare. I could only find 10 pitchers with a sub-1 ERA and at least 68 innings pitched, most recently 2018 Blake Treinen. Only two have matched Clase’s ERA.

2012 Fernando Rodney: 0.60 ERA, 48 saves in 74 2/3 innings
1990 Dennis Eckersley: 0.61 ERA, 48 saves in 73 1/3 innings

Both finished fifth in Cy Young voting and got down-ballot MVP votes. (Eck won both awards in 1992 when he had a 1.91 ERA and 51 saves.) — Nesbitt

Emmanuel Clase doing Emmanuel Clase things. pic.twitter.com/OEhKj7jQWy

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) September 17, 2024

Record: 86-65
Last Power Ranking: 6

Top award candidate: Jurickson Profar, NL Comeback Player of the Year

Because it’s a more common tale, this award often goes to the best player who was injured the previous season and then came back to post his usual numbers. Back in 2011, Lance Berkman won it over Ryan Voglesong, who had one of the better comeback stories in modern history. Not that I still think about these things. But it’s the perfect example of how the vote usually goes. 

Profar wasn’t injured much last season. He just stunk it up and got released. This year, he was an All-Star for the first time, and he’s going to be a key part of the Padres’ postseason hopes. It’s refreshing, honestly. This award should go to players who stunk the season before. Profar has the best case in years. — Brisbee

Record: 84-66
Last Power Ranking: 5

Top award candidate: Gunnar Henderson, AL MVP

No, he will not take home the hardware, not in a season graced by Aaron Judge and Bobby Witt Jr. But a year after winning the American League Rookie of the Year award, Henderson leveled up in 2024. During a season in which many of his young teammates have dealt with extended slumps or nagging injuries, Henderson boosted his OPS from last year by about 100 points while playing solid defense at shortstop. He has struck out less, walked more and made consistent solid contact. It’s an excellent combination. He just turned 23 this summer. He figures to be a fixture in this discussion for years to come. — McCullough

Record: 83-66
Last Power Ranking: 8

Top award candidate: Mike Hazen, NL Executive of the Year

OK, so Eduardo Rodriguez and Jordan Montgomery haven’t quite worked out yet, but that’s an argument for Hazen winning this. He created a roster that could withstand dud seasons from their two biggest free agents. Randal Grichuk wouldn’t be a bad choice for Comeback Player of the Year. Corbin Carroll might be a good candidate for the award based on the difference between his first and second halves. Every regular in the lineup has an OPS+ of 100 or better, and the Diamondbacks are absolutely lapping the rest of baseball in runs scored, in no small part because of the creative additions to the roster, both during the season and in the previous offseason. The trade for Eugenio Suárez alone should make Hazen a strong contender for the award. — Brisbee

Record: 82-68
Last Power Ranking: 9

Top award candidate: Bobby Witt Jr., AL MVP

If WAR is the answer, this race is still neck-and-neck between Witt and Aaron Judge. By FanGraphs WAR, Judge leads, 10 to 9.7. By Baseball-Reference WAR, Judge is up, 9.7 to 8.9. The odds remain in Judge’s favor after he snapped a 16-game homerless drought with two big flies over the weekend. But Witt is still authoring an incredible season. He’s in line for a batting title, hitting .331 with 31 homers and 28 steals. He also has 17 outs above average at shortstop, tied with Francisco Lindor and Marcus Semien for second among infielders, trailing only Andrés Giménez (18 OAA). We may have jinxed Witt with the hitting-.400-at-home headline. He’s only batting .379 at home now. That’s on us. — Nesbitt

Record: 81-69
Last Power Ranking: 11

Top award candidate: Yordan Alvarez, AL MVP

Quietly one of the best hitters of his generation. Or of any generation, for that matter. Alvarez might put up yet another OPS+ over 170, which would be his third time doing so. The only players to have more of those seasons before turning 28: Ty Cobb, Mike Trout, Frank Thomas, Jimmie Foxx, Mickey Mantle, Stan Musial, Johnny Mize, Rogers Hornsby, Babe Ruth and Tris Speaker. Alvarez is on the next tier down, which means he’s only keeping up with guys like Albert Pujols, Willie Mays, Ted Williams, Joe DiMaggio and Lou Gehrig. He’s never won an MVP award, and he won’t this year. But he’s deserving of something. So, here, take this acknowledgment in a power rankings. Print it out and stick it to the fridge with a magnet that has a funny saying on it. You’ve earned it. — Brisbee

Record: 81-68
Last Power Ranking: 10

Top award candidate: Chris Sale, NL Cy Young Award

For baseball fans of a certain vintage — the type of people old enough to have hard opinions about the relative merits of Timbaland’s “Shock Value” and “Shock Value II” — it has been charming to see Sale dominating this season like he did in the previous decade. Sale was the best pitcher in the 2010s to never win the Cy Young. He finished in the top six in voting in seven consecutive seasons but never topped the balloting. That figures to change in 2024. Sale entered this week on track to win the Triple Crown with a 17-3 record, a 2.35 ERA and 219 strikeouts in 172 2/3 innings. At 35, after several years disrupted by injury, he has authored a remarkable comeback story — and been the best pitcher in baseball. — McCullough

Record: 81-68
Last Power Ranking: 12

Top award candidate: Francisco Lindor, NL MVP

Lindor’s importance to the Mets was apparent long before his back injury sidelined him for a pair of crushing defeats to the Phillies this past weekend. If he can return to the lineup soon, there will be a fierce MVP debate pitting Lindor, a strong shortstop, against Shohei Ohtani, who has not played the field this season. Ohtani’s heroics at the plate may make him the first designated hitter to win MVP. But Lindor has put together a strong case. He has been more valuable than Ohtani, according to FanGraphs’s version of WAR (while Ohtani has the edge, according to Baseball-Reference). One point in Lindor’s favor — besides the whole “playing a position every day” thing: He has been reliable with runners in scoring position, posting an .847 OPS. — McCullough

GO DEEPER

Is WAR the answer? How one advanced metric has come to dominate MVP voting

Record: 79-70
Last Power Ranking: 13

Top award candidate: Carlos Santana, AL Gold Glove

Can the Comeback Player of the Year award go to a guy with 50 fewer games than the previous year? Asking for a different Carlos (Correa).

Let’s set that aside and stump for Santana to win his first Gold Glove. The 38-year-old has been a solid contributor with the stick this season, with 22 homers and a 113 OPS+, and has continued playing superlative defense at first base. He has 13 outs above average. The only other first baseman in his orbit is Christian Walker, the NL’s two-time defending Gold Glove first baseman, who has 12 OAA. — Nesbitt

Record: 77-73
Last Power Ranking: 14

Top award candidate: Cal Raleigh, AL Gold Glove

The Mariners have an absurdly talented rotation, with five different starters with at least 19 starts and an ERA between 2.38 and 3.62. Those five starters have combined to walk 152 batters as of this writing; Randy Johnson walked 152 batters by himself in 1991.

You can’t avoid walks if your catcher isn’t stealing strikes, though, and Raleigh is one of the best at doing it. He leads all AL catchers in defensive metrics according to both FanGraphs and Baseball Savant, and it isn’t especially close. He’ll almost certainly be one of the finalists after the season, and he’s earned it. — Brisbee

Tarik Skubal has impressed this season, with a 16-4 record and a 2.50 ERA. Will he be Detroit’s fifth Cy Young winner? (Duane Burleson / Getty Images)

Record: 77-73
Last Power Ranking: 16

Top award candidate: Tarik Skubal, AL Cy Young Award

A Cy Young has been in Skubal’s sights since he returned from Tommy John rehab before the 2023 All-Star game. He dominated down the stretch last season, with a 2.80 ERA, and has delivered more of the same this season. Skubal is 16-4 while leading the league in ERA (2.50), FIP (2.56) and strikeouts (214) across 180 innings. The 27-year-old lefty has been brilliant all season, and lately, the Tigers have matched his level, surging into the postseason race as the finish line nears. It’s still a long shot but not out of the question, and that’s wild. Skubal would be the Tigers’ fifth Cy Young winner, joining Denny McLain (who did it twice), Willie Hernández, Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer. — Nesbitt

Record: 76-73
Last Power Ranking: 15

Top award candidate(s): Shota Imanaga and Michael Busch, NL Rookie of the Year

Neither Imanaga nor Busch has a real shot of winning the award, but since they’re equally unlikely, we’ll recognize both. The Cubs acquired Busch from the Dodgers for prospects Zyhir Hope and Jackson Ferris — now ranked Nos. 5 and 12, respectively, in the Dodgers system by Baseball America. The trade may work out wonderfully for both sides. Busch has blasted 20 homers with a .793 OPS (122 OPS+) while playing plus defense at first base for the Cubs. The 31-year-old All-Star Imanaga, signed to an entirely reasonable contract with team options through 2028, has been terrific in his first season stateside, allowing three earned runs or fewer in 24 of 27 starts and posting a 3.03 ERA. — Nesbitt

Record: 75-75
Last Power Ranking: 17

Top award candidate: Tanner Houck, AL Cy Young Award

In an odd year for starting pitchers, Houck should land on a few Cy Young Award ballots, even if he entered the season’s final fortnight with a losing record. No longer do starters get punished as harshly by voters for their win-loss results, and Houck has been a stable presence for Boston all season. He has kept hitters off-balance by leaning heavily on his sweeper and his splitter. In turn, he’s kept opposing lineups from going deep, which is never an easy task in the American League East. — McCullough

Record: 74-75
Last Power Ranking: 18

Top award candidate: Ryan Helsley, NL Reliever of the Year

After missing much of the 2023 season with a forearm strain, Helsley has been both healthy and excellent this year, leading the league with 44 saves — more than doubling his previous high of 19 — and posting a 2.19 ERA. Helsley’s fastball averages 99.6 mph, though this season, his slider is his primary pitch — and for good reason: opposing hitters are batting .164 against it. Helsley has been more hittable in 2024, with a higher WHIP (1.15) and lower strikeout rate (28.7 percent) than he had the previous two seasons as the Cardinals’ closer. But despite the traffic, he’s limited damage by missing barrels. — Nesbitt

Record: 73-77
Last Power Ranking: 19

Top award candidate: Junior Caminero, AL MVP (in 2027)

We write about Caminero relatively often in this space, so forgive us for repeating ourselves, but he’s been a burst of energy in an otherwise bleak season. The Rays underachieved early in the year. The front office tore down the roster at the deadline. Taj Bradley ran out of gas. (Well, at least Ryan Pepiot proved to be a better bet than Tyler Glasnow.) The reasons for long-term optimism center around faith in the team’s baseball operations department and hope in players like Caminero, the 21-year-old infielder who is capable of ferocious contact and ferocious whiffs in equal measure. — McCullough

Record: 73-78
Last Power Ranking: 22

Top award candidate: Elly De La Cruz, NL MVP

While Hunter Greene will receive down-ballot Cy Young votes, we’ll go with the guy who’s been healthy. De La Cruz has leveled up across the board in his first full MLB season. He leads the majors with 64 steals, is slashing .257/.342./.469 (120 OPS+) and has contributed 14 outs above average at shortstop. De La Cruz is crushing fastballs, walking more and chasing less than last season. He has 24 homers, and with his astounding raw power he could turn more barrels into homers in future years. His clear flaw is his strikeout rate, which still sits at 31 percent. If that comes down, watch out, Ohtani. — Nesbitt

Record: 72-78
Last Power Ranking: 20

Top award candidate: Tyler Fitzgerald, NL Rookie of the Year

Fitzgerald won’t pull this off when his competition is Paul Skenes, Jackson Merrill and Jackson Chourio, all of whom deserve to win. But in a season that’s not as saturated with future stars, he’d have a chance. A recent back injury scuttled his chances at a 20-20 season, which is impressive for a player who didn’t become a lineup regular until the middle of June.

The Giants have other award-adjacent types, like Patrick Bailey (Gold Glove candidate) and Ryan Walker (Trevor Hoffman Award candidate), but in a normal season, Fitzgerald would be getting a lot more attention for the Rookie of the Year. If the Giants didn’t have him, goodness, they would be lousy. More so. — Brisbee

Record: 72-78
Last Power Ranking: 23

Top award candidate: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., AL Silver Slugger

This is not damning with faint praise. This is progress! After two quieter seasons at the plate, Guerrero returned as a force in 2024. Too bad it wasn’t in service of a postseason chase. At least Guerrero has set himself up for a massive payday. That could come in the form of an extension with the Blue Jays, who are committed to attempting to contend again next season with this year’s core. Or, if Guerrero wants to test the market, it could come in free agency after 2025. He is still so young that he would hit the market while entering his age-27 season. No free-agent first baseman has inked a deal worth $200 million since Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder heading into 2012. Guerrero could change that. — McCullough

Record: 71-79
Last Power Ranking: 21

Top award candidate: Bruce Bochy, AL Manager of the Year

Why not just vote for the most respected manager, regardless of their team’s record? Surely the folks who created this award never thought it would become “Manager of the team that did way better than expected” every stinking year. Where’s the love for the managers who are simply doing their jobs better than others?

So start a revolution. I don’t know if the Rangers would be 61-89 without Bochy, or if they’d be three games up in the wild-card chase without him. All I know is how his players and ex-players talk about him, and it seems like this award would be a fine way to honor him or any of the other widely respected managers around either league. The last time he won a MOY award, he was 40, almost as old as two of his players at the time, Rickey Henderson and Fernando Valenzuela.

All Bochy has done since is build an unbeatable Hall of Fame career. Seems like managers like that should get more awards, not be tied with Tony Peña, Gabe Kapler, Kirk Gibson and Matt Williams, who combined to manage 17 seasons. That is, 10 fewer seasons than Bochy alone. — Brisbee

Record: 71-78
Last Power Ranking: 24

Top award candidate: Paul Skenes, NL Rookie of the Year

Skenes entered his start Monday with a 2.10 ERA over 120 innings as a starter. Here are the last five rookies to do that.

1986 Mark Eichhorn: 1.72 ERA in 157 innings
1980 Doug Corbett: 1.98 ERA in 136 1/3 inning
1973 Steve Rogers: 1.54 ERA in 134 innings
1968 Stan Bahnsen: 2.05 ERA in 267 1/3 innings
1968 Jerry Koosman: 2.08 ERA in 263 2/3 innings

That’s the whole list going back to the Year of the Pitcher, 1968. Corbett and Rogers pitched entirely in relief. Bahnsen was the only one of the group to win Rookie of the Year. Skenes is in toss-up territory. He was the story of the Midsummer Classic and has dominated hitters. But Mr. Clutch Jackson Merrill has had an everyday impact in getting his team to the playoffs. The Pirates have only had one Rookie of the Year winner: Jason Bay in 2004. — Nesbitt

Record: 68-81
Last Power Ranking: 25

Top award candidate: James Wood, NL Rookie of the Year

It’s tough to be a National League rookie in 2024, a season blessed with the debuts of Paul Skenes, Jackson Merrill and Jackson Chourio. That trio has overshadowed Wood — and, with his 6-foot-7 frame, Wood rarely gets overshadowed. He has held his own since the Nationals called him up on July 1. His size will always leave him prone to strikeouts. But he has the potential to be a star for a franchise that could use some. — McCullough

Record: 65-85
Last Power Ranking: 26

Top award candidate: Brent Rooker, AL MVP

The former first-round pick is just a couple years removed from wondering if his career was almost over. In April 2022, Rooker was a throw-in to the deal that sent Taylor Rogers to the Padres. A couple months later, the Padres traded him to the Royals for a backup catcher who never reached the majors with them. Two months after that, the Royals waived Rooker. He had just turned 28, he had a .668 OPS in the majors, and the marketplace was suggesting his value was somewhere between a fringey backup catcher and a waiver claim. That’s right about when some start thinking about law school or opening a sandwich shop.

Instead, Rooker will finish in the top 10 in the AL MVP voting, and it’s hard not to get sentimental about stories like his. Although I’m really in the mood for a sandwich right now, so I’m wondering what his shop would have offered.  — Brisbee

Record: 60-90
Last Power Ranking: 27

Top award candidate: Zach Neto, AL MVP (10th place)

The order I write these capsules is determined by the alphabetical order of the team name. That’s how they show up in the document every week, which means I typically have to think about the Angels first. This one feels like an OSHA violation.

This was the category that broke me. You look for a player on their team who can win an award, even a simple Gold Glove. You can’t.

This will be the first season the Angels haven’t had a top-five MVP finisher since 2011, which is wild. So while we can’t pretend that Neto deserves a top-five finish for the AL MVP, he’s got a shot at a single 10th-place vote, at least. He’s currently 23rd in the AL in WAR among position players, according to FanGraphs, but he’s a win-and-a-half away from 10th place. Fudge a little and give him extra credit for being one of the brightest lights in a dark situation. The Angels can get a single 10th-place MVP vote, as a treat, to wean them off the award endorphins that are long gone. — Brisbee

Record: 57-93
Last Power Ranking: 29

Top award candidate: Brenton Doyle, NL Platinum Glove

Any Tom, Dick and Harry can win a Gold Glove. And they have. (Tom Pagnozzi, Corey Dickerson and Harold Reynolds, to be specific.) But it takes a true fielding freak to win a Platinum Glove, and Doyle certainly qualifies. Coors Field has a monstrous, punishing outfield, and the Rockies will always need one of the best defensive center fielders in the game. They have one in Doyle. Now he’s hitting well, too, which seems unfair. There go those Rockies again, catching all the breaks.

This would be the 15th Platinum Glove in the award’s history. If Doyle wins, this would be the breakdown by team:

• Cardinals (6)
• Rockies (6)
• Cubs (1)
• Braves (1)
• Padres (1)

If Nolan Arenado wasn’t traded, the Rockies might have more than three-quarters of the Platinum Glove awards. Wild. — Brisbee

Record: 55-95
Last Power Ranking: 28

Top award candidate: Skip Schumaker, Manager of the Year (in 2025)

Schumaker will become the darling of the free-agent managerial market when the season ends. The move was telegraphed months ago when Miami eliminated his option year for 2025 after Peter Bendix replaced Kim Ng as the head of baseball operations. Schumaker won Manager of the Year after the Marlins snuck into the postseason last season. There was far less good fortune in 2024. Miami was a wreck from Opening Day onward, and the rebuilding figures to take a while. Schumaker is expected to take over in a different dugout next spring — and he’s likely to benefit from Craig Counsell’s financial windfall with the Cubs. — McCullough

Record: 36-115
Last Power Ranking: 30

Top award candidate: Jerry Reinsdorf, Commissioner’s Historic Achievement Award

The Commissioner’s Historic Achievement Award has been given out to 15 individuals. Cal Ripken Jr. for his Iron Man streak. Tony Gwynn for his batting titles. Mariano Rivera for his saves record. Most recently, Shohei Ohtani for making two-way history. Only one team has received the commissioner’s award: the 2001 Mariners for tying the 1906 Cubs’ wins record of 116.

If winning the most games makes you worthy of the award, losing the most should, too. I humbly nominate Reinsdorf and his 2024 White Sox to be the second club honored. Outdoing the 1962 Mets’ loss record of 120 would be nothing short of historic. — Nesbitt

(Top photo of Mookie Betts: Rich von Biberstein / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Pete Radovich, the coordinating producer of the UEFA Champions League coverage on CBS Sports, is reflecting on how he came to realise that the network’s Champions League Today studio now owns the global conversation on major nights of European football.

“Thierry Henry, in no uncertain terms, says he gets asked more about CBS now than Arsenal,” Radovich grins. “He will tell you that straight up. That to me is wild.

“This summer, I was in a taxi in Croatia. The driver asked me where I’m from. I told him New York. He’s like, ‘Oh, you’re into sports?’. I said yes and he said ‘My favourite sports show is in the U.S.’. A taxi driver in f****** Croatia! He’s saying ‘I don’t know if you’ve ever seen it; Thierry Henry, Kate Abdo, Micah Richards. It’s hilarious. I love that show. Have you ever seen it?’. And you just sit there and you’re like, ‘How in God’s name…?’.

“Four years ago, if you told me people outside of America would know our show, that is truly bigger than we could have ever dreamt. That’s the fun part. The hard part is staying relevant and getting better.”

The growth is reflected in numbers as well as anecdotes. CBS say their Champions League coverage garnered more than 3.5 billion video views across social media last season, the majority of which were from their Champions League Today studio show. It is anchored by Kate Abdo, the multilingual, 43-year-old British presenter, and merges insight and camaraderie with a panel comprised of the former Arsenal and Barcelona legend Henry, a Liverpool icon and Champions League winner in Jamie Carragher and ex-Manchester City defender Micah Richards, who is a Premier League winner.

This season represents the start of a six-year contract for Paramount Global, the owner of the CBS network, to broadcast UEFA club tournaments across the CBS network and its Paramount+ streaming service in the United States. It is one of the largest broadcast contracts in the sport, worth $1.5billion (£1.15bn) across six years. Paramount beat competition from Amazon to keep the UEFA competitions, including the Europa League and Conference League. David Berson, the president and CEO of CBS Sports, says the property is now considered one of the network’s “marquee assets”. He says: “We’re known for the NFL, Super Bowls, NBA Final Fours and the Masters and so on. The fact that we now put our soccer portfolio with the UEFA Champions League in that same discussion, that’s thrilling for us. It’s different. It’s exciting. It’s growing. It’s young-skewing (the average age of soccer viewers on Paramount+ is 37). It’s moved into that upper echelon of properties that help define who we are.”

Abdo, Henry, Richards and Carragher in the studio (CBS Sports/Paramount+)

It has certainly aided the growth of Paramount+. The Champions League was a “top five” driver of subscriptions throughout the 2023-24 season and it has been that way since the service launched in March 2021. CBS first broadcast the Champions League in 2020, when Turner Sports opted out of their UEFA contract after Paramount secured an initial three-year deal with UEFA beginning in the 2021-22 season. It allowed CBS to pick up the broadcast even earlier. The most recent contract will take CBS and UEFA through to 2030, representing a decade-long commitment and a period in which it is eminently possible that some UEFA club games may make their way across the Atlantic to the U.S. UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has previously said it is a possibility, while PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi, the chair of the European Clubs’ Association, is a major advocate.

“I do think it’s real,” Berson says. “The powers that be recognise, by doing so, it can help further grow the game long-term. I think eventually you’re going to see more of this. They’re doing a lot of friendlies now. It’s intentional. I went to the Manchester City vs AC Milan game at the Yankee Stadium this summer and the crowd was incredible. The lines outside to get in. People wearing the uniforms, the jerseys. It’s truly remarkable; kids everywhere. They have to figure out how it works in the context of the actual schedule, but I would not be surprised because of the potential to get more fans in this country even more engaged in the product.”

Is it feasible within the current rights cycle? “Maybe — it is more their issue to figure out. We’d obviously welcome it. We’re not expecting it. It would be additive and something that can help showcase the sport to this country even more.”

As for another idea UEFA rather like — gaining access to some weekends for Champions League games — Berson says: “It would be desirable for us.”

He adds: “UEFA has more challenges to do that, but it’s appealing. We’re quite busy on weekends; there’s positives to that because the potential audience is typically bigger because people aren’t working. But you also start facing a lot more competition (from other sports). It’s pretty fun now with the excitement that it generates at a time of day when no one else is focused on sports, but some exposure on weekends could be of help as you move forward.”

Along with the Champions League, CBS has also recently secured rights to the EFL, while it has renewed deals for the NWSL and Serie A. It is becoming a destination for football fans in the U.S. and it is tempting to wonder whether CBS may have its eyes on even more premium content, such as the World Cup or the Premier League, when the next set of rights comes around.

“We’d love to have more,” Berson says. “It’s challenging because when you have the Champions League and all the UEFA products, the majority of the real fans of the sport are part of your service already. So how much incremental value will you get by adding some of the others? It doesn’t mean we won’t. The World Cup is tremendous. It’s different in that it is every four years versus 10 and a half months of every year, like the Champions League.

“I give props to NBC for the great job that they do with the EPL — they took a swing at this several years ago and proved their potential. Of course, we’d like to be the only destination, but when all media companies are committed to growing the sport, we all wind up benefiting. Frankly, it’s not that dissimilar from the tremendous success that we all have with the NFL. It’s not realistic that any one network could carry it all. We don’t have space or money for that. When we all get behind it, a rising tide lifts all boats. So you could make a similar point here on soccer.”

There will never be anything more powerful than the game itself when it comes to driving interest, but the studio show has made waves and headlines. Radovich, a Croatian-American whose cousin, Dragan Radovich, played for the Washington Diplomats alongside Johan Cruyff in the late 1970s, is a lifelong football fan. He is a former producer on Inside The NFL. “It was the longest-running show on cable television. Full stop. Not just sports, any show. And when I started working on that show, we had some fun because we were on tape, so you can take risks. It really conditioned me to push the envelope. Going live, obviously it’s a different animal. But you develop an understanding of what could work and when the alarms go off to tell you, ‘Hey, dial back here’. Inside The NBA is another inspiration. Kudos to them; they have their talent but also to the production for taking risks, sometimes crossing a line and having to deal with that.”

The CBS team during a broadcast (CBS Sports/Paramount+)

At its best, the Champions League studio show is playful, daring and funny, but also interspersed with sharp tactical analysis and powerful interventions, notably when Henry and Richards led a conversation about racism in European football in 2023 after abuse endured by Romelu Lukaku. The casting was intentional. Radovich wanted characters new to American television, which was true of Henry, Richards and Carragher.

“In the coaching world, a manager gets fired here and then suddenly they appear there. It’s just rotating and the wheel never changes. What I didn’t want for us to do was just bring in faces that have been on other networks over the years. It would have felt like every other show. Kate was the one exception and she was the first hire. I felt like she’d not cut through yet. Then it came down to Zoom calls — the story with Jamie Carragher was whether an American audience would understand him.

“And within the first two minutes of the conversation, I had to say, ‘Listen, I’m going to cut to it. Can you dial back the Scouse? Because that’s the concern here. Because if it’s a problem, then really we shouldn’t waste our time here’. Jamie said, ‘Of course, that’s not a problem — I’ve done television for Danish TV where English is a second language and I’m forced to dial it back’. So those are the kind of conversations that we were having. We wanted to feel new. We wanted to feel like something that people had not seen before. And then they had to be willing to have fun at their own expense.”

But there have also been moments of controversy. Last season, after Arsenal’s victory over Porto in the round of 16, Carragher appeared to question, in jest, Abdo’s loyalty to her now husband Malik Scott live on air. On social media, the matter rapidly “snowballed”, as Radovich puts it. Yet on the next broadcast, Abdo handled the matter to great acclaim.

She said: “This group has been together for three and a half years. I grew up with a brother and I feel like I have gained three more here. Let me introduce you to the group again; Thierry Henry; the golden child, can do no wrong, always says the right thing, sets the example to the rest of us. He is the big brother we all look up to. Then there is the middle child; Jamie Carragher, a chip on his shoulder, capable of saying anything for attention. Does he go too far sometimes? Absolutely. Does he apologise? Yes, he does. But all of us have that one annoying family member that we still love. Then there’s little bro; loud but loveable, Micah Richards, easy to pick on, impossible not to love.”

Abdo’s response immediately extinguished the flames. What did Radovich make of it all? “The first thing to say is everyone was surprised at the reaction that night; myself, Kate and Jamie included, because it was just banter gone wrong amongst friends, between a brother and sister. That night, when it started to snowball, we had discussions. It wasn’t alarms or questioning if we were going to be able to repair this. He misspoke. He felt bad. Kate wasn’t crazy about it, but none of it was like, ‘This could be the end’.

“The biggest reaction was surprise at how much play it got. So, there was never a moment in all of that time where I was like, ‘Wow, I don’t know if we can bounce back from this’. Not even for a split second because I knew internally we were all cool. It’s not for me to speak for Kate, but I can only speak to the conversations I had with Kate. She conveyed to me that she wasn’t crazy about the comment, but at the same time, we can get over this.”

Henry and Richards speaking to City’s players (Michael Regan/Getty Images)

Is all publicity good publicity for a studio show? “Well, you don’t want them talking about you like that. That’s never a good thing. Even the recovery, if you want to call it that, I don’t look at it as a good thing because that only happens with the bad. So you never want it to go bad. But you understand (the risk) when you play this game.

“Using a football analogy, you want to be aggressive in your game planning as a manager. That means if you want to press, press, press, you can get caught, right? We’re going to always press. And that’s how we’re going to score our goals and get our wins. But yes, on occasion you’re going to get countered or something’s going to go wrong. And you dust yourself off and get back at it. I can’t give the talent enough credit. They’re the ones who have to be able to be vulnerable on camera in front of millions of people on television and social media. It is not easy to put yourself out there like that. It only works because they’re willing to do that. But again, willing to do that with friends. They have to have that chemistry. They have to have that love for one another.

“We were on a group chat a couple of hours before the gold medal game for the Olympics in Paris (where Henry’s France Under-23 team lost 5-3 against Spain). And we’re exchanging texts with Thierry, saying ‘Good luck, we love you, we’re rooting for you’. And Thierry is responding. That’s special. That’s a family. It’s not just show up to work, punch the clock and go home and forget each other. There are legitimate friendships here.”

One of Radovich’s objectives is to bring American supporters closer to the European game. That means sometimes taking the show on the road, from the studio in London, and doing big matches on location. Last season, for Dortmund’s semi-final against Paris Saint-Germain in Germany, Carragher travelled to the game and once again captured the headlines. A few drinks with Dortmund fans escalated and he ended up watching the game in the famous “Yellow Wall”. By full time, he appeared rather merry as he filled the studio in on his day and then secured an interview with Jadon Sancho, on loan from Manchester United at the time. Carragher put his arm around him while asking questions to the English winger. Radovich calls it another moment of “pushing the limits”.

“We started our coverage during Covid,” he says. “There were a lot of restrictions. You have the greatest European club competition in the coolest cities, the coolest countries. You can go anywhere, but you can’t. It was like: ‘Here is this cake in front of you, but you can’t eat it’. So the minute we were told you could eat it, we went in head first, not even using our hands.

“The broadcasters that had it before us, whether it was a budget thing or whatever, there was virtually zero presence on site. Everything was done in a sterile studio back in America. ‘And here’s the game’. Our studio is in Europe, our talent is in Europe, and the games are in Europe. That visceral feeling of being pitchside at AC Milan vs Inter Milan for a Champions League semi-final — if had we been in London, you wouldn’t have Maldini coming over or Lukaku coming over. This is a financial investment for sure, but we feel that we’re getting so much in return.

“To UEFA’s credit, they see what’s happening in America. They understand what the audience wants. We’re probably a thorn in their side at times, but they also see the results and think, OK, that was painful at the time, but maybe there’s something here. So Jamie and Dortmund. That was an interesting day, but the result is that it’s now looked back on very fondly. At the time it was a little bit of a headache for everyone, but now when we look back, it’s like, ‘Was that so bad?’”

Carragher watched Dortmund in the Champions League with their fans (ANP via Getty Images)

This season brings more games for CBS, as UEFA introduces the Swiss model for the Champions League group phase, meaning there will be eight rounds of fixtures. “There’s more jeopardy for longer,” Radovich says. “This is an absolute improvement. The debate is whether more matches are good or bad. That’s a completely different conversation. But from a television and a drama standpoint, from building an arc and keeping an audience longer, 100 per cent this is going to be better.”

For CBS, it will almost certainly mean more subscribers. Last season was their most-streamed Champions League campaign on Paramount+, with double-digit year-over-year growth in households and streaming minutes. The final between Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund was the third-most watched final on record in U.S. English-language television, averaging 2.3 million viewers. It was also the most-viewed final to not feature an English club. Their Golazo network had its most-streamed day of 2024.

Why do Americans like it so much? Radovich believes he has the answer.

“Americans believe that we have the best movies, the best television shows, the best musicians, the best Broadway shows. Anything related to entertainment, we already have the best of the best. So if you’re going to give me entertainment, if it’s not the best, I’m not interested. It’s that simple. We saw that a long time ago, back in the days of the New York Cosmos. The one time that the domestic league did work here was when, in theory, the best players, the Peles of the world, were playing here; George Best and Johan Cruyff.

“I know it’s oversimplified, but when you live here and when it comes to entertainment, basically you are spoiled. These are the best basketball players in the world? Yep. Best hockey players? Yep. Best baseball players? Yep. Best NFL players? Yep. Are these the best soccer players in the world (in MLS)? Um, not really. So, OK, what else have we got? The Champions League is the best of the best. Best clubs? Yep. Best players? Yep. Cool. I’ll give this a try. It’s that simple.”

(Top photo: CBS Sports/Paramount+ and Getty Images; design: Dan Goldfarb)

Before Sidney Crosby’s first home opener at Pittsburgh’s now-extinct Mellon Arena in October 2005, Mario Lemieux walked past a media scrum encircling Crosby and into the players’ lounge, pouring a cup of black coffee.

Smirking, he opined about soon being “forgotten.” Then, in an unusually earnest moment, Lemieux predicted Crosby would “own all my records one day,” nodded his head and walked out.

Lemieux might have undersold it. Crosby will have an opportunity to break Lemieux’s Penguins records, but also NHL records by Wayne Gretzky (most consecutive seasons averaging at least a point per game) and Steve Yzerman (most consecutive seasons as a team captain).

“(Lemieux) really said that?” Crosby said on Monday afternoon, after speaking with Pittsburgh media following his annual delivery of season tickets to an unsuspecting family in Mars, Pa. “Like, really?

“Uh, there’s still a long way to go.”

Not too long. Crosby needs 99 goals, 30 assists, and 128 points to knock Lemieux from the Penguins’ perch in those regular-season categories. He long ago set the franchise marks for postseason assists (130) and points (201), and needs only six postseason goals to do one better than Lemieux’s 76.

Still, after Crosby signed a new, two-year contract with an $8.7 million average annual value with the Penguins on Monday, he’ll get at least three more cracks at a bargain rate to notch more accomplishments.

GO DEEPER

Crosby’s new Penguins contract is his sweetest assist yet

Whether he drags the Penguins along for the ride — and back into a position of prominence — or becomes the only reason to care about a proud-turned-fledgling franchise could determine if Crosby does what Lemiex did in Pittsburgh: stay until the end of his career.

Crosby has said he wants to play only for the Penguins. He also wants to chase another Stanley Cup championship.

The Penguins have not qualified for the last two playoffs and will again enter a season with one of the NHL’s oldest rosters. Since Kyle Dubas traded for star defenseman Erik Karlsson last August, the Penguins’ front-office boss’s most intriguing acquisitions have been a handful of prospects.

Once a rite of passage for Crosby’s Penguins, a postseason appearance is hardly guaranteed before his new contract expires. Intriguingly, that contract is structured so he can leverage an exit before its final season if Dubas doesn’t quickly return the Penguins to contender status.

Crosby’s contract is designated 35-plus, a notable status per the collective bargaining agreement between the NHL and its Players Association. The contract includes two signing bonuses — a choice, essentially, by Crosby and agent Pat Brisson to get the bulk of the actual money paid before Crosby plays the final season of the new deal.

Crosby will earn $780,000 and $1.09 million in salary respectively in Years 1 and 2 of the new contract. But he will have been paid $16.31 million in real money before playing a game in Year 2.

Who cares how Penguins owner Fenway Sports Group pays Crosby so long as it pays him, right?

Every other GM in the league will care.

With 93.7 percent of Crosby’s salary paid before Year 2 of the new contract, he would come cheap — again, in terms of actual money — in any potential trade during the 2026 offseason. By paying the supermajority of Crosby’s real money before that second contract season, the Penguins could justifiably demand a more favorable return in any potential trade, especially if, as would be likely, they took on a sizeable chunk of Crosby’s cap hit.

It would be just a one-season hit if Dubas retained even 50 percent ($4.35 million) to maximize the return in a trade that would end — albeit probably only temporarily — one of the NHL’s great love stories.

Crosby didn’t sign this new contract to not see it through. He’s said repeatedly, publicly and privately, that he wants to play only for the Penguins.

He also said he wants to win. He reiterated that point a few hours after the Penguins announced his new contract on Monday.

“I had some conversations with Kyle throughout the process,” Crosby said of the negotiations. “I think that was reassuring — just based on what we discussed as far as there’s still hunger from the organization and ownership to win and a commitment there.

“I think that’s really important. I feel like as players, for all the different guys that have played here over the course of the time that I’ve been here, it’s something that you build as a culture… something’s that’s ingrained. And missing the playoffs for a couple of years, not being in it, is difficult.

“You want to try to find every way possible to get back in there and make sure that we compete for the Stanley Cup. So, I think that was reassuring to hear and that helped. But no, I think it was more just hearing that reassurance.”

After next season, Crosby will be approaching his 39th birthday, and Dubas will have had three full years to set a course. His franchise icon should be able to look at the roster and assess whether it’s a Cup contender. By then, Crosby’s view of the situation in Pittsburgh could depend as much on his opinion of the roster as it could on whether he wants to continue without Evgeni Malkin (likely to retire) and possibly Kris Letang, whose final two contractual seasons are not as trade-prohibitive.

Crosby reiterated Monday how special it’s been to play 18 seasons with Malkin and Letang as teammates. The Penguins’ Big Three isn’t going past 20 seasons, if only because of Malkin’s contract.

If, after next season, one or both of his dear friends have moved on and the Penguins aren’t closer to winning their first playoff series since 2018, who would begrudge Crosby for wanting what could be his final NHL season to be a shot at the Cup somewhere else?

The onus is on Dubas to make Crosby’s decision easy by then. By keeping his cap hit as is, Crosby provided Dubas precious millions to upgrade the Penguins next offseason and the one after it. If the Penguins are on the upswing after 2025-26, who better than Crosby to show their next potentially great team how to win?

That would be a picture-perfect swan song for Crosby — with the Penguins in the playoffs, one last run before No. 87 is done.

Then, he can take however much time away he wants, start a family and return to the franchise in whatever off-ice capacity he chooses. He doesn’t need to become an owner, as Lemieux did, but he might.

Crosby’s heart is with the Penguins. He made that clear on Monday.

“It’s probably difficult to put that … into a sound bite,” he said, speaking from the back porch of a suburban Pittsburgh home where he playfully traded high-fives with children wearing various versions of his No. 87 Penguins jersey. “Support (from) the people, the fans, the organization, just everything over the years — it’s been really special, and we’ve had some incredible experiences and memories.

“I just want to continue that.”

(Illustration: Dan Goldfarb / The Athletic; Photos: Jeanine Leech and Brandon Sloter / Icon Sportswire / Getty Images)

Welcome to our 2024 NFL projections, where you will find each team’s probability of conquering its division, advancing through the playoffs and winning the Super Bowl. The projections are based on 100,000 simulations of the remainder of the season, which factors in each team’s projected strength, current health as well as its remaining schedule. All projections and probabilities are rounded to the nearest whole number. You can read more about the model at the bottom of the page. The projections will be updated regularly throughout each week.

By Joe Person, Lukas Weese and Larry Holder

The Carolina Panthers are benching 2023 No. 1 pick Bryce Young for their Week 3 matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders, a league source confirmed Monday. Andy Dalton will be the new starting quarterback for the Panthers, per the league source.

Tom Pelissero of NFL Network was first to report the news.

This move happens after the Panthers’ second straight blowout loss to open the season, falling 26-3 to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday. Young completed 18 of 26 passes but those completions went for just 84 yards, the fourth-lowest passing total in franchise history for a quarterback with at least 25 pass attempts.

On Monday, Panthers coach Dave Canales said he decided to bench Young after watching the film of Sunday’s loss. He said he met with various personnel decision makers on how to proceed. Canales declined to answer what role Panthers owner David Tepper had in the decision to bench Young.

“Ultimately this comes on me,” Canales said. “My number one responsibility is to help the Panthers win. This move puts us in the best position to do that this week.”

Canales’ words differed from what he said at the podium after Sunday’s game, when he said, “Bryce is our quarterback.”

Dalton is in his 14th NFL season and is a three-time Pro Bowler.

“I’m really looking forward to it,” Dalton said. “I’m excited about what’s ahead. It’s a tough situation. I’ve been on both sides of it. It’s hard on everybody.”

Through two games, the Panthers scored a combined 13 points. Carolina is looking to avoid its second consecutive season starting 0-3 when it faces the Raiders in Las Vegas on Sunday.

Dave Canales declines to say what role David Tepper had in the Bryce Young decision. pic.twitter.com/NR92UujGe4

— Joe Person (@josephperson) September 16, 2024

Why now?

When Young struggled through a rookie season that saw him finish as the NFL’s worst-graded passer, the Panthers dedicated a good chunk of their free-agent budget and offseason energies to improving the offensive line and giving Young more playmakers. Despite better protection, Young regressed through the first two games with no passing touchdowns, three interceptions and 245 combined passing yards.

Canales was in danger of losing the locker room and fan base if he stuck with Young. During Sunday’s loss to the Chargers, fans booed Young, some wore bags over their heads and others chanted encouragement for Tepper to sell the team. — Joe Person, Panthers beat writer

What does Dalton bring?

For starters, a veteran presence who should be able to settle things down for Canales and the first-year offensive staff. The 36-year-old Dalton started Week 3 for the Panthers last year at Seattle when Young was sidelined for one game with an ankle injury.

Dalton threw for 361 yards (34 for 58), which was the high-water mark for the Panthers in 2023 in terms of passing yardage. If nothing else, inserting Dalton gives Young a chance to catch his breath, watch how a seasoned quarterback performs in Canales’ scheme and perhaps regain confidence. — Person

Numbers behind moving Dalton to QB1

You would’ve thought rock bottom had already occurred for Young after Week 1, but his Week 2 performance was even worse. Young produced the worst EPA per dropback rate of his career, via TruMedia, at -0.69. For the season, Young ranks last in the league in EPA per dropback rate at -0.44 and passer rating at 44.1.

It gets worse.

Young ranks last (99 qualified quarterbacks) in total QB EPA at -143.1 and EPA per dropback at -0.24 among quarterbacks in their first 18 starts since 2000.

At least Dalton gives the Panthers a chance on offense. He last served as a starter for the Saints in 2022 and compiled a respectable 0.02 EPA per dropback rate along with a 95.2 passer rating. But the Saints only went 6-8 with Dalton under center as QB1. — Larry Holder, NFL senior writer

Required reading

(Photo: Jared C. Tilton / Getty Images)

GLENDALE, Ariz. — After the second touchdown, Paris Johnson Jr., sprinted downfield and lifted his teammate, just as he had done numerous times during their time together at Ohio State.

The 6-foot-6 left tackle grabbed Marvin Harrison Jr., placing his hands underneath the rookie receiver’s arms, and lifted. As their Arizona Cardinals teammates surrounded them, Harrison spread his arms, holding the football in his left hand, and smiled.

Shown a photo of this after Sunday’s 41-10 win over the Los Angeles Rams, Johnson said to celebrate again like this with Harrison was awesome. Harrison said the two had talked about this for a while, their first touchdown together as professionals.

Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon said Harrison is a serious person, one who never strays from routine. Even so, the second-year head coach admitted: “It was good to see him smile.”

Coming off an opening loss, Week 2 might be the most important week of the NFL regular season. Another loss sparks panic from the outside. That’s dangerous for an organization such as Arizona, which hasn’t won a playoff game since 2015 and historically has given fans more reasons to doubt than to believe.

A win restores optimism. In that sense, Arizona’s effort over the Rams was much needed for the present, but it was how it unfolded that provided optimism for the future. This was the most dominant the Cardinals have looked in a couple of years — their first win over an NFC West opponent under Gannon and his staff.

“You feel like, ‘OK, now we can get the ball rolling,’” center Hjalte Froholdt said.

Someone frame this right now pic.twitter.com/knBOZdJVRz

— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) September 15, 2024

On a day in which Kyler Murray posted a perfect 158.3 passer rating, it started with Harrison. In a Week 1 loss at Buffalo, Harrison had been a non-factor, with one catch for four yards and targeted three times. The performance left some questioning the play calling and others questioning Harrison.

If this stressed Harrison, he didn’t let on. Asked about last week’s scrutiny, he stuck with a familiar script of never getting too high (Johnson’s touchdown lifts aside) and never getting too low. It’s telling that after posting four catches for 130 yards — all coming in Sunday’s first quarter — Harrison seemed more concerned about Murray’s four incomplete passes. On the sideline late in the game, Harrison realized that he had been the targeted receiver on all four incompletions.

“I’m not very happy about that; we definitely got to get that fixed,” Harrison said. “But we’ll continue to build our chemistry as the season goes on.”

Perfection is a difficult task to pursue, motivating some and consuming others. But this is the only path Harrison knows. It’s what has led him to this point, and it’s why so many were disappointed with his underwhelming Week 1 performance. Those concerns have faded.

His first touchdown catch came on Arizona’s first possession. He wasn’t wide open, but Harrison had a step on Rams corner Tre’Davious White. Murray placed the 23-yard pass exactly where it needed to be, leading Harrison to the back of the end zone, where only he could catch the football.

MARVIN HARRISON JR.’S FIRST NFL TOUCHDOWN HAS ARRIVED pic.twitter.com/EFquDWaM8V

— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) September 15, 2024

The second came on Arizona’s second possession. Murray faked a handoff to James Conner and rolled right. Harrison started on the left side and broke his route, crossing the field, beating safety Kamren Curl. The rookie receiver caught the ball on the 25 and raced to the end zone. Curl jumped and wrapped Harrison’s right ankle at the 7. Harrison stretched and leaped into the end zone.

“Once Kyler rolled to the right, I kind of felt like there was going to be nobody deep there,” Harrison said. “And, obviously, with Kyler and his ability to extend the play, you always have to be ready and kind of pre-snap know what (you) want to do if he starts to scramble.”

Marvin Harrison Jr. we love you pic.twitter.com/GE6a9vVabw

— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) September 15, 2024

Gannon swore that Arizona did not enter the game intending to get Harrison involved early — “You guys are going to think I’m a liar,” he said — it’s just how everything unfolded. But the effect cannot be overstated. With the threat of Harrison making big plays, the offense opened. Conner rushed 21 times for 122 yards. Tight end Trey McBride had six catches for 67 yards.

And orchestrating it all was Murray, who wasn’t flawless, but close. He completed 17 of 21 for 266 yards and three touchdowns. His decision-making was sound. He seldom forced passes. This was a quarterback in complete command, something Murray hasn’t shown much since his 2021 Pro Bowl season.

Murray’s best touchdown pass may have been the third, which covered 18 yards in the air but much more on the ground. Leading 14-0 in the second quarter, he dodged outside linebacker Jared Verse, circling 15 yards behind the line of scrimmage. Murray reset, darting up as his linemen recovered. He broke free from Verse once more before spotting tight end Elijah Higgins running across the end zone. Murray said he knew it was a touchdown as soon as the ball left his hand.

THE MURRAY MAGIC IS STRONG TODAY 🪄 pic.twitter.com/FYDZCoSRNH

— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) September 15, 2024

“He was lights out,” Gannon said of his quarterback. “He’s a premium player for a reason. You’d take him against anybody. That’s how I feel. That’s what he did today.”

After a shaky Week 1 performance, Arizona (1-1) was much better defensively. The Cardinals limited the 0-2 Rams — who played without injured receiver Puka Nacua and lost star Cooper Kupp in the first half to an ankle issue — to 245 yards. Safety Budda Baker made several key stops, and outside linebacker Dennis Gardeck had three sacks.

But the biggest takeaway comes on offense. The Cardinals didn’t face a third down until their third series, a stretch of 13 plays. They totaled 489 yards, 231 coming on the ground. They were balanced and explosive, and it started with Murray hooking up with Harrison.

“The more we play together, the more we practice together, we’re only going to get better,” Murray said. “He’s only going to get better. … We executed well today. Obviously, there were a couple throws I wish I had back, but he had a great game.”

(Photo: Christian Petersen / Getty Images)