Day: September 29, 2021

Come-from-behind wins, new records, blown calls, clutch performances. Week 3 had a bit of everything.

There are now five 3-0 and five 0-3 teams as we enter a Week 4 schedule offering a number of anticipated divisional matchups.

The stacked NFC West will be in the spotlight with the Cardinals visiting the Rams and 49ers hosting the Seahawks. There’s also an exciting AFC West battle between the unbeaten Raiders and surging Chargers.

Oh, and we’re thinking there could be some interest in watching Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski play against the Patriots for the first time in their Hall of Fame careers when Tampa travels to Foxboro.

Three weeks down and 15 to go as the jockeying for position continues.

THE NEW TEAM TO BEAT…FOR NOW:
1. Los Angeles Rams (3-0; Last week: 2)

After out-scoring Tom Brady’s Buccaneers on Sunday, the undefeated Rams get the edge — and their very own tier as the team to beat for the time being. The scariest part? The Matthew Stafford-Sean McVay partnership is only just getting started. – Sadler

DON’T LET ONE LOSS SCARE YOU OFF:
2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-1; Last week: 1)
3. Buffalo Bills (2-1; Last week: 9)
4. Green Bay Packers (2-1; Last week: 10)
5. Cleveland Browns (2-1; Last week: 6)
6. San Francisco 49ers (2-1; Last week: 4)
7. Baltimore Ravens (2-1; Last week: 5)
8. Dallas Cowboys (2-1; Last week: 14)
9. Los Angeles Chargers (2-1; Last week: 19)

After disastrous starts from Buffalo and Green Bay, it’s safe to say the Bills and Packers we’ve seen these past two week have been the ones to trust. All Aaron Rodgers needed was exactly 37 seconds to prove his Packers will be just fine (at least, on offence).

A statement defensive game from the Browns, courtesy of Myles Garrett’s 4.5 sacks against the Bears, leaves few questions about how complete a club Cleveland is, while the return of a healthy Odell Beckham Jr. brought another dose of star-power to what is a deep offensive group.

The Ravens, meanwhile, fall two spots from last week not because their win wasn’t plenty impressive — historic, actually, thanks to Justin Tucker’s incredible 66-yard game-winning field goal — but because of too many drops from should-be star receiver Marquise Brown and mistakes on defence that saw the Lions almost complete a wild comeback. (Not to mention, the fact that Tucker’s game-winner actually probably shouldn’t have happened in the first place due to a missed delay-of-game call.)

The Cowboys and Chargers are two of this week’s biggest risers, thanks to a pair of explosive offensive performances. Too often, we’ve seen the Chargers lose those tight games late in the most creative of ways, and it almost looked like we’d witness another Sunday against the Chiefs. L.A. has the talent, and they’re now showing signs of winning when it counts. – Sadler

WHAT’S UP WITH THE CHIEFS?
10. Kansas City Chiefs (1-2; Last week: 3)

Has the league caught up to the Chiefs? Have the champions from two seasons ago become complacent in Patrick Mahomes’ fourth year as KC’s starter? Or, are the team’s problems mostly on the other side of the ball? The Chiefs are allowing a league-worst 31.7 points against per game, the third-most rushing and total yards and the pass rush is struggling. As long as the core of the offence is intact we can’t dismiss the Chiefs. They’ve also played an extremely tough schedule thus far, beating the Browns before blowing back-to-back fourth-quarter leads against the Ravens and Chargers. – Johnston

HOW FOR REAL ARE THEY?
11. Arizona Cardinals (3-0; Last week: 7)
12. Las Vegas Raiders (3-0; Last week: 12)
13. Carolina Panthers (3-0; Last week: 15)
14. Denver Broncos (3-0; Last week: 16)

This quartet of unbeaten teams has the same record as the Rams yet we don’t have the same confidence in them. Offensively, Arizona is leading the NFL scoring 34.3 points per game while the Raiders lead with 471 yards of offence per game, but both teams are susceptible to untimely mistakes and avoidable coaching gaffes. Both have the potential to break through into the upper tiers.

How will the Panthers stay afloat without Christian McCaffrey? Can Canadian Chubba Hubbard break through and become a new fantasy star? Carolina’s revamped defence has exceeded expectations – they also just acquired CJ Henderson from the Jags with rookie Jaycee Horn out. The Panthers and Broncos are allowing the fewest and second-fewest yards, respectively, but neither team has been challenged. Denver’s opponents are a combined 0-9 for example, so the jury is still out. – Johnston

FEELING CAUTIOUSLY OPTIMISTIC:
15. Tennessee Titans (2-1; Last week: 11)
16. New Orleans Saints (2-1; Last week: 17)
17. Cincinnati Bengals (2-1; Last week: 25)
18. Minnesota Vikings (1-2; Last week: 26)

Derrick Henry had just 58 rushing yards in Tennessee’s opening-week embarrassment, but two wins and a combined 295 yards later the back-to-back league rushing champ is once again where he belongs. The key to the Titans’ success is simple.

Now, if only New Orleans’ outlook was as easy to figure out. Jameis Winston’s every snap is constantly toeing the line between fortune and fiasco… and, apparently, fate.

Meanwhile, how about that Joe Burrow-Ja’Marr Chase connection? If the LSU alumni can keep that chemistry up, watch out, AFC North. The Bengals could keep climbing. – Sadler

HOW WORRIED ARE WE?
19. Seattle Seahawks (1-2; Last week: 8)
20. Pittsburgh Steelers (1-2; Last week: 13)
21. Miami Dolphins (1-2; Last week: 22)
22. New England Patriots (1-2; Last week: 18)
23. Washington Football Team (1-2; Last week: 20)
24. Philadelphia Eagles (1-2; Last week: 21)

Each team here is off to a slower start than they had anticipated. The Seahawks are in the best spot, largely because Russell Wilson is by far the most reliable QB of the bunch, however they’re behind the eight ball in the league’s deepest division.

The quality Steelers defence isn’t fully healthy with T.J. Watt banged up and it’s proving too much for the team to overcome. A Week 1 win over the Bills seems like an aberration at this point. The o-line isn’t blocking well for an immobile Big Ben and that won’t change anytime soon. Things could start getting really ugly in Pittsburgh, as their schedule doesn’t ease up until November. – Johnston

NOT MUCH SILVER LINING:
25. Indianapolis Colts (0-3: Last week: 23)
26. Atlanta Falcons (1-2; Last week: 29)
27. Chicago Bears (1-2; Last week: 24)
28. Detroit Lions (0-3; Last week: 30)
29. Houston Texans (1-2; Last week: 28)
30. New York Giants (0-3; Last week: 27)
31. New York Jets (0-3; Last week: 31)
32. Jacksonville Jaguars (0-3; Last week: 32)

Of the eight teams in this bottom grouping, four had rookie quarterbacks at the helm in a Week 3 outing that didn’t bode well for any of them.

Sunday was supposed to mark the opening of a new chapter for the Chicago Bears, with rookie Justin Fields getting his first career NFL start following last week’s injury to Andy Dalton. Only, it felt like the same old story for the Bears, whose offence was down-right dreadful against the Browns. Playing behind a porous offensive line, Fields was sacked nine (!) times and head coach Matt Nagy’s play-calling did him absolutely zero favours. Questions of whether Fields was/is ready for the role of QB1 now feel more like, ‘Are the Bears ready for their QB1?’ And the answer, based on that outcome, is clearly no — at least, not with Nagy calling the shots. – Sadler

LeBron James said during the Los Angeles Lakers’ media day that he has received the COVID-19 vaccine, confirming publicly for the first time that he is inoculated against the virus.

James noted that, when the vaccines were first released, he was “very skeptical” but after doing his own research decided it was “the right thing to do” for himself and the health of his family.

The Lakers superstar stopped short of openly advocating for others to be vaccinated, saying that it wasn’t his job.

“I think everyone has their own choice to do what they feel is right for themselves and their family,” he said.

Though 90 per cent of the league is believed to be vaccinated, James’ comments come in the wake of several high-profile players espousing a range of anti-vaccine sentiments.

In Brooklyn, after the Nets’ official media day concluded, Kyrie Irving conducted an Instagram Live version of media day in which he fielded questions from reporters. Irving was unable to attend the team’s media day in person at Barclays Center because municipal policies bar unvaccinated individuals from entering arenas.

When asked about his vaccination status, Irving said he’d “like to keep that stuff private” and insisted “the last thing” he wanted to create was “more hoopla and more distractions.”

 

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Editor’s note: With overwhelming consistency, research has shown vaccinations against COVID-19 are safe and effective. Residents of Canada who are looking to learn more about vaccines, or the country’s pandemic response, can find up-to-date information on Canada’s public health website.

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In an extensively reportedly story by Matt Sullivan published in Rolling Stone magazine over the weekend, Irving’s aunt, Tyki Irving, was quoted as saying that Irving was unvaccinated for reasons “not religious-based, it’s moral-based.” The story did not specify when the interview took place, however.

Irving, who is a vice president on the NBA Players’ Association’s executive committee, is believed to be one of the leading player voices against vaccine mandates in the NBA, despite the overwhelming evidence that vaccines reduce both the spread of the virus and the likelihood an individual will suffer severely adverse effects if they do contract COVID-19.

He’s far from the only notable name who’s touted baseless anti-vaccine sentiments. Last week, Andrew Wiggins of the Golden State Warriors had his request for vaccine exemption denied. Wiggins, who requested a religious exemption, will not be allowed to suit up for home games with Golden State until he is vaccinated.

“I’m confident in my beliefs and what I think is right, what I think is wrong,” Wiggins said on Monday, doubling down on his stance.

The NBA players’ union has not yet agreed to a vaccine mandate and, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, has denied the league’s proposals for one to be implemented. The referees’ union, however, has agreed to one. In the WNBA, 99 per cent of players were fully vaccinated by June without a mandate going into effect.

Despite the hesitancy from the likes of Wiggins and Irving, other high-profile players were, like James, open about their willingness to get vaccinated

“I’m not mad at people who say they need to do their research,” Damian Lillard, the star point guard of the Portland Trail Blazers, said on Monday. “But I have a lot of people in my family that I spend time around. I’m just not going to put their lives in danger. As a kid, I had to get shots my whole life.”

— With files from Sportsnet’s Emily Sadler

MADRID (AP) — Barcelona’s salary cap has been significantly reduced because of its financial struggles, becoming more than seven times smaller than that of rival Real Madrid, the Spanish league said Wednesday.

The league said Barcelona’s spending limit on salaries for the 2021-22 season has been set at 97 million euros ($113 million), about 285 million euros ($334 million) less than a year ago.

The reduction was part of the reason the Catalan club failed to give Lionel Messi a new contract and led to him joining Paris Saint-Germain.

Messi reportedly earned nearly 140 million euros ($163 million) per season, although he said he had agreed to cut his salary in half so he could stay with the club. That still wasn’t enough of a saving for Barcelona.

Each club has a different salary cap calculated based on a series of factors that include revenues, costs and debts. It is proportional to roughly 70 per cent of a club’s revenues.

The adjustments are part of the Spanish league’s longstanding financial control measures to reduce clubs’ debts and keep them financially healthy.

Barcelona’s struggles had already forced the league to slash the club’s cap from a league-high 670 million euros (now $785 million) in 2019-20 to 385 million euros ($450 million) last season. In addition to losing Messi, Barcelona also sent Antoine Griezmann on loan to Atletico Madrid, and its only signings this offseason were free agents.

Six other clubs now have bigger spending limits than Barcelona’s.

Madrid’s cap is the highest, going from 470 million euros ($550 million) to 739 million euros ($863 million), which is 642 million euros ($750 million) more than Barcelona’s. Madrid benefited from better management and especially from not making big signings in recent transfer windows.

Sevilla followed with a cap of 200 million euros ($233 million), up from 185 million euros ($215 million) a season ago.

Atletico Madrid was third in the list after having its limit reduced to 171 million euros ($199 million).

Valencia, owned by Singaporean businessman Peter Lim, was last in the list of first-division clubs, with its salary cap being cut from about 100 million ($116 million) euros to only 30 million euros ($35 million).

The league’s total cap for top-tier clubs was at 2.27 billion euros ($2.64 billion), a figure 2 oer cent lower than it was last season.

Clubs are already starting to budget based on the expected revenue they hope to get from a new investment fund with private equity company CVC that could generate 2.7 billion euros ($3.2 billion), but that has been opposed by the Spanish football federation, Real Madrid and Barcelona. CVC would gain a 10 per cent stake in a new commercial entity with the competition known as La Liga if the investment package goes through.

The league said Spanish clubs spent 271 million euros ($316 million) in signings in the latest transfer window, the lowest among the top five European leagues.

The 2020-21 Quebec Major Junior Hockey League season wasn’t an easy one across the league with teams facing COVID-19 restrictions and schedule changes at the blink of an eye.

While the COVID-19 pandemic isn’t over yet, teams across the QMJHL and across the Canadian Hockey League are looking forward to getting back to some sort of normal season in 2021-22.

With the regular season in The Q opening this week, we take a look at some of the questions surrounding each team across the league.

Acadie-Bathurst Titan: Titan general manager Sylvain Couturier has gone on the record speaking to the depth of the Acadie-Bathurst roster this season. The question will be how far can that depth carry the team? On the blue line, the Titan have six defencemen on its pre-season roster with QMJHL experience. The development of that group will go a long way in determining the direction of the season for a team that boasts some high-end talent up front including Calgary Flames prospect Cole Huckins and Washington Capitals prospect Hendrix Lapierre, who was added in a summer trade.

Baie-Comeau Drakkar: The COVID-19-affected 2020-21 season wasn’t an easy one for the Drakkar, who posted an 8-26-1-1 record. With a young roster heading into the season, adding veteran goaltender Olivier Adam to the mix in a trade with Blainville will be important. A lot of eyes will be on 2021 first-round picks Vincent Collard (third overall) and Nathan Baril (18th overall) as well. With a potentially young core, how will the youth adjust to the grind of a longer season following interruptions last season due to COVID?

Blainville-Boisbriand Armada: With graduation meaning the loss of five of its top seven scorers from last season, who will step up in the absence of that group? In Luke Henman (Seattle Kraken) and Mathias Laferriere (St. Louis Blues), the team also loses its top two goal scorers from last season. Forward Simon Pinard and defenceman Miguel Tourigny are the top returning goal scorers from last season and will be looked to for another gear offensively.

Cape Breton Eagles: Goaltender Nicolas Ruccia got into 22 games last season. How the 17-year-old adjusts to a heavier workload in a full season is one thing to focus on in Cape Breton. Ruccia will team up with fellow 17-year-old Remi Delafontaine in goal for the Eagles. The duo will play behind a group of defencemen that includes some key experience in Jeremy Langlois and Sean Larochelle among others.

Charlottetown Islanders: The graduation of Colten Ellis means an increased role for Jacob Goobie between the pipes. In 16 games last season, the 18-year-old Goobie posted 12 wins and a solid 2.82 goals-against average and he has 33 games of QMJHL experience under his belt. Goobie will lean on that experience as he takes on a bigger workload in 2021-22 and how he handles the added workload remains to be seen.

Chicoutimi Sagueneens: The loss of Dawson Mercer (New Jersey Devils) to graduation and dealing Lapierre to Acadie-Bathurst means the team will look to others to step up offensively. The question will be which of the current group will take the next step forward. A team that gave up just 77 goals last season, Chicoutimi will look to Russian goaltender Sergei Litvinov to take over from Alexis Shank between the pipes. Will Litvinov be ready for the added workload this season?

Drummondville Voltigeurs: After a solid rookie season, what will Justin Cote do for an encore? The 2022 NHL draft prospect scored 17 times in 34 games last season. The former second-rounder finished last season on a tear with 12 goals in his final 11 games, which included a stretch where he scored seven times in a three-game period. A lot of eyes will be on 2021 second overall QMJHL pick Tyler Peddle as well to see what the 16-year-old brings to the table.

Gatineau Olympiques: Goaltender Remi Poirier’s game took a step forward in the 2020-21 season as the Dallas Stars prospect posted the best numbers of his career in 24 games. Will the veteran netminder be able to further that and show additional improvement in a full season in 2021-22? Emerick Despatie provides the Olympiques with a quality duo between the pipes as well.

Halifax Mooseheads: With its top four scorers returning, Halifax stands to be potent offensively this season with Elliot Desnoyers (Philadelphia Flyers), Zachary L’Heureux (Nashville Predators), Robert Orr (Carolina Hurricanes), and Markus Vidicek (2022 NHL draft eligible) combining for nearly 43 per cent of the Mooseheads goal total last season. The 152 goals scored by Halifax were second in the league and with that group returning, what they will be able to produce in a full season could be interesting.

GOALS.

What a legend Zachary L'Heureux is.

( @PredsNHL) pic.twitter.com/tUWCJy4812

— NHL (@NHL) September 19, 2021

Moncton Wildcats: The Wildcats will enter the season with a pair of rookies between the pipes in Vincent Filion and Thomas Couture. Couture got into three games with Rimouski during the 2019-20 season and was a training camp invite by the Wildcats in 2020 while Filion was acquired in a trade last season that sent Jordan Spence to Val-D’Or, and got into six games in Moncton. How the pair adjusts to full-time minutes in major junior remains to be seen.

Quebec Remparts: Returning their top two scorers in centres Nathan Gaucher and Theo Rochette, the Remparts stand to be a tough team to play against this season based on offence alone. Adding St. Louis Blues first-round pick Zachary Bolduc in a trade with Rimouski, Quebec stands to be a dangerous team offensively. Coming off a strong year in 2020-21 with a deep roster returning, one would thing is clear: it’s Memorial Cup or bust for the Remparts in 2021-22.

Rimouski Oceanic: Rimouski is one of a handful of teams that will enter the season with limited experience in goal. Carolina Hurricanes prospect Patrik Hamrla will look to step in and lead the way between the pipes. How the Czech product adjusts to the league will be a key question for the Oceanic this season.

Rouyn-Noranda Huskies: A common theme for a number of teams across the league this season is youth and Rouyn-Noranda is no different. With nearly half of its roster on opening night made up of rookies, the Huskies will look for its younger players to lead the way this season. Overage goaltender Samuel Richard, who is coming off his first full season in the league, will play an added role on a team that is relatively inexperienced.

Saint John Sea Dogs: The 2022 Memorial Cup hosts enter the regular season with a new head coach and high expectations. The team completed a handful of summer deals prior to learning of its successful bid to host the tournament, one of which saw the team acquire overage goaltender Jonathan Lemieux from Val-D’Or. The big question surrounding the team will be exactly what moves will be made between now and the trade deadline to tinker with the roster ahead of the event.

Shawinigan Cataractes: When it comes to Shawinigan, one might ask whether there will be enough pucks to go around for the forward group? Import forwards Lorenzo Canonico and Marek Sramaty along with NHL prospects Mavrik Bourque (Dallas Stars), Xavier Bourgault (Edmonton Oilers), and Olivier Nadeau (Buffalo Sabres) appear poised to have strong offensive years.

Sherbrooke Phoenix: Whether it’s in goal or on the blue line, Sherbrooke is relatively inexperienced on the defensive end of the puck. All eight defencemen on the roster are entering their first or second QMJHL season and that includes overage blue liner Maxime Blanchard. The team is also entering the season with a pair of rookie goaltenders. The big question in Sherbrooke to start the season looks to be how well the young group will learn on the fly.

Val-D’Or Foreurs: After going 29-3-2-2 last season, the Foreurs feature a lot of new faces this year, including Maxime Desruisseaux behind the bench. With some heavy turnover from last season, the depth from last season is going to come into play in 2021-22. Exactly how some of the veterans handle increased roles will go a long way in determining what kind of success Val-D’Or has this season.

Victoriaville Tigres: On the heels of a playoff title last season, the roster in Victoriaville stands to look very different in 2021-22. As the regular season opens this week, the team has eight rookies on its roster at forward heading into the new season. With experience up front at a premium, the rookies in the group have an opportunity to leave a mark early. Will they take advantage?

MANILA, Philippines — Boxing legend Manny Pacquiao is officially hanging up his gloves.

The eight-division world champion and Philippines senator on Wednesday announced his retirement from the ring.

“As I hang up my boxing gloves, I would like to thank the whole world, especially the Filipino people for supporting Manny Pacquiao. Goodbye boxing,” the 42-year old said in a 14-minute video posted on his Facebook page. “It is difficult for me to accept that my time as a boxer is over. Today I am announcing my retirement.”

Pacquiao finished his 26-year, 72-fight career with 62 wins, eight losses and two draws. Of those 62 wins, 39 were by knockout and 23 by decision. He won 12 world titles and is the only fighter in history to win titles in eight different weight classes.

His retirement from boxing followed a disheartening defeat to Yordenis Ugas in Paradise, Nevada on Aug. 21. The younger Cuban boxer, who defected to the United States in 2010, beat Pacquiao by unanimous decision, retaining his WBA welterweight title. It was Pacquiao’s first fight in more than two years.

“Thank you for changing my life, when my family was desperate, you gave us hope, you gave me the chance to fight my way out of poverty,” Pacquiao said in the video. “Because of you, I was able to inspire people all over the world. Because of you I have been given the courage to change more lives. I will never forget what I have done and accomplished in my life that I can’t imagine. I just heard the final bell. The boxing is over. “

Pacquaio had hinted at retirement recently. It also had been expected because he is setting his sights on a bigger political battlefield. Earlier this month, he accepted his political party’s nomination and declared that he will run for Philippines president in the May 2022 elections.

He has accused the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte, his former ally, of making corruption worse in the Philippines. He promised to fight poverty and warned corrupt politicians they will soon end in jail.

Pacquiao’s rags-to-riches life story and legendary career brought honour to his Southeast Asian nation, where he is known by his monikers Pacman, People’s Champ and National Fist.

He left his impoverished home in the southern Philippines as a teenager and stowed away on a ship bound for Manila. He made his professional boxing debut as a junior flyweight in 1995, at the age of 16, fighting his way out of abject poverty to become one of the world’s highest-paid athletes.

Eddie Banaag, a 79-year-old retiree, said Pacquiao was his idol as a boxer and he watched almost all of his fights. But he believes the boxing icon should have retired earlier.

“He should have done that right after his victory over (Keith) Thurman,” Banaag said of Pacquiao’s win over Thurman on July 20, 2019 in Las Vegas, Pacquiao’s second-last fight. “It would have been better if he ended his boxing career with a win rather than a loss.”