Tag: NFL

Vikings drop Raiders to 1-2; Cook’s carries help Vikes to 34-14 win

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from sfgate.com: Minnesota Vikings defensive end Everson Griffen, right, sacks Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2019, in Minneapolis

By Jeremy Kahn

Once again, the Oakland Raiders ran into a buzz saw and once again they were chewed up by their opponent.

Dalvin Cook carried the ball 16 times for 110 yards and a touchdown, helping the Minnesota Vikings to a convincing 34-14 victory over the Raiders at U.S. Bank Stadium.

Cook, who is in his third season in the NFL is coming off back-to-back seasons where he suffered debilitating injuries in those seasons.

In his rookie season, Cook tore his Anterior Cruciate Ligament and last season, he was hampered by a hamstring injury that derailed his season.

Alexander Mattison scored his first NFL touchdown, as the Vikings rushed for 211 yards as a team. Also, for the second time in two home games, the Vikings did not attempt a pass in the fourth quarter.

Kirk Cousins went 15-for-21 for 174 yards and a score to Adam Thielen on the Vikings initial series of the game.

Thielen also scored on a handoff that gave the Vikings a 28-0 lead in the second quarter, their second 28-0 lead of the season.

Derek Carr went 27-for-34 for 242 and two touchdowns to J.J. Nelson and Tyrell Wililams. Tight end Darren Waller caught 13 passes for 134 yards in the loss.

NOTES: Marquel Lee hurt his ankle in the first quarter and did not return to the game. While Vontaze Burfict missed nearly half the game with an elbow injury, but eventually returned in the third quarter.

UP NEXT: The Raiders will stay on the road, as they will face the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Niners Improve to 3-0 with 24-20 Victory, Despite Five Turnovers

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photo from sfgate.com: Dante Pettis #18 of the San Francisco 49ers celebrates after scoring a touchdown in the fourth quarter against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Levi’s Stadium on September 22, 2019 in Santa Clara, California

By Joe Lami

SANTA CLARA — For the first time since 1998, the San Francisco 49ers have started a season 3-0. In a wild home opener Sunday, the Niners outlasted the Big Ben-less Steelers in a 24-20 win.

Despite turning the ball over five times, including three times in the red zone, the Niners were able to hold off Pittsburgh thanks to a last-minute touchdown throw from Jimmy Garoppolo to Dante Pettis.

It would be Garoppolo’s only TD pass of the game, but it came at the perfect time to overcome the sloppy first half and secure the victory. Garoppolo finished the game 22 of 32 for 277 yards, the touchdown, and two interceptions.

Garoppolo threw picks to TJ Watt and newly acquired Minkah Fitzpatrick in 49ers territory in the first half. The Steelers starting positions were the 33 and 24-yard lines, but San Francisco’s defense showed the bend, don’t break style we’ve seen through the first two weeks to force field goals, holding Pittsburgh to just six points.

Despite going into intermission with a -4 turnover differential, the Niners only trailed 6-3 at halftime, giving the offense new life and confidence.

The Niners came out to score the game’s first touchdown on their opening drive on the second half. Jeff Wilson Jr. ran in his first of two scores from one-yard out, bringing his season total to four since coming off the practice squad.

The Steelers offense was held to 239 total yards, with 76 of them coming on one play in the third quarter. Mason Rudolph, making his first career start, connected with JuJu Smith-Schuster for the Steeler’s first TD of the day. Smith-Schuster beat Ahkello Witherspoon over the top and on a crossing route and carried it the rest of the way to make it 13-10 at the time.

The Niners answered right back on their next drive, going 75 yards in ten plays setting up Wilson Jr.’s second rushing score of the game to re-take the lead 17-10.

The Steelers didn’t go down quietly. After Witherspoon went down with a foot injury in the fourth quarter, Rudolph attacked his replacement Jason Verrett on consecutive plays. Verrett first took a pass interference penalty that cost the Niners 32 yards and then was beat on a 39-yard pass to Diontae Johnson for the rookie’s first career touchdown.

Rudolph played decent in his first start, passing 14 of 27 for 174 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception from K’Waun Williams. The Niners front seven did a great job slowing down the Steelers’ run, holding James Conner to just 43 yards on 13 carries.

The Steelers held the 20-17 late into the fourth quarter when the 49ers were driving. With the ball at the PIT 11-yard line, San Francisco’s turnover bug hit again, and a wonky snap went off the motion man for the Niner’s fifth turnover.

But once again, the defense didn’t let that bother them, buckling down for a huge forced turnover. Just a minute later, Arik Armstead forced James Conner fumble that was recovered by DeForest Buckner. The turnover allowed the 49ers to set up at the Steelers’ 24-yard line, setting up the game-winning score.

San Francisco’s defense has been the revelation in this young season. The newly acquired defensive line is doing precisely what Robert Saleh’s scheme is meant to do. Creating havoc and causing turnovers, the Niners have already matched 2018’s turnover total of seven in just the first three games.

Side Notes:

Justin Skule played excellent, protecting Garoppolo’s blind side in his rookie debut. The Vandy sixth-round product did take three bad penalties late in the third that luckily didn’t cost San Francisco. “Those were costly penalties at pretty bad times. I had a couple of good things, but I am going to learn from it all from the tape and move on,” Skule said.

Skule and company have a couple of weeks before their next action. Heading into the early week four bye, the Niners return to action October 7th on Monday night at home against the Browns.

When asked about heading into a bye with a 3-0 record, everyone had the same generic answer. They aren’t thrilled having a bye week this early and with the potential of having it kill momentum but see the value in getting healthy and more bodies back before the second quarter of the season.

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast: Pats can’t withstand keeping Brown; Pirates overwhelmed by Vazquez coverage; plus more

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@AB84 photo: Former New England Patriot Antonio Brown confers in practice photo with Patriots head coach Bill Belichick

On That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast:

#1 How surprised were you about the New England Patriots letting wide receiver Antonio Brown go on Friday. It looked like prosecutors were not going to go after him for the rape accusations made by his former trainer Britney Taylor.

#2 Baseball no doubt is in a state shock regarding Pirates pitcher Felipe Vazquez and his child solicitation charges can the Pirates shake this one off.

#3 Amaury talks about the A’s and how they are ahead of Tampa Bay in the wild card by two games. They’ve had to beat some of baseball’s best like the Houston Astros and the New York Yankees in recent weeks.

#4 The San Francisco Giants open a three-game series in Atlanta and the Braves need a win tonight to get back to back NL Eastern Division titles.

Amaury does the A’s Spanish play-by-play broadcasts on 1010 KIQI San Francisco and does News and Commentary each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Oakland Raiders podcast with Joe Hawkes Beamon: Raiders can see for miles and miles, starting six-game out of town schedule

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Photo credit: sports.yahoo.com

On the Raiders podcast with Joe Hawkes:

#1 The Oakland Raiders start the first of six out of town games on Sunday. They’ll be in Minnesota this Sunday followed by trips to Indianapolis, London vs. Chicago, Green Bay, and Houston. Do the Raiders get the sense they got the short end of the stick by the schedule makers?

#2 After what happened against the Kansas City Chiefs last Sunday at home, the Raiders certainly would like to regroup and get at least one win at the Oakland Coliseum, but that’ll be some eight weeks before they get to do that.

#3 For the Raiders last Sunday, they jumped to a 10-0 lead, but in the second quarter, the Raider secondary broke down and the Chiefs scored four touchdowns, which would be enough for the 28-10 win as both teams went scoreless in the second half.

#4 Joe talks about the Raiders acquiring wide receiver Trevor Davis from the Green Bay Packers. Davis played only two games last season suffering from hamstring injuries. Davis has nine catches for 122 yards and has averaged 22.6 yards.

#5 The Raiders open up their road trip against the Minnesota Vikings. The Raiders head coach Jon Gruden said this week that while he’s not happy about the schedule and called it unrealistic, uncommon, and unprecedented. Yet, he’s confident the Raiders can handle the long road swing and overcome adversity.

Joe Hawkes does the Raiders podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco 49ers podcast with Joe Lami: Ford day-to-day from knee injury; Garoppolo says team is pushing for next win; plus more

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Photo credit: sfchronicle.com

On the 49ers podcast with Joe:

#1 Dee Ford, a Pro Bowl pass rusher who missed the second half of Sunday’s game in Cincinnati due to knee tendinitis and also the early part of training camp, suffered from a healing knee injury. 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said that Ford is day-to-day and has a chance to get in against the Pittsburgh Steelers this Sunday.

#2 Safety Jaquiski Tartt is suffering a toe injury. Shanahan said that Tartt’s injury is not a turf toe injury.

#3 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo said the 49ers have seen the worst of the worst in past years and said with that in mind, the team is this year will not take it’s foot off the pedal and said it’s what’s pushing them.

#4 A 2-0 start both wins on the road the 49ers really look forward to this week’s game with the Steelers. The Steelers are spending their first week without injured quarterback Ben Roethisberger and adjusting to life without former Steeler receiver Antonio Brown.

#5 The Steelers are 0-2. It’s early, but is it a reflection of who they are or do they have a quarterback and a receiver who can give them their confidence back?

Joe does the San Francisco 49ers podcast each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Headline Sports podcast with Tony Renteria: Vazquez admits to solicitation charges with minor; Astros’ Cole K’s 300 batters in a season; plus more

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photo file from nytimes.com: Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Felipe Vazquez admitted to Pennsylvania Police that he had sexual relations with a 13 year girl. Vazquez’ admissions has sent shockwaves through the Pirates organization and MLB.

On Headline Sports with Tony Renteria:

Breaking: Antonio Brown will not be prosecuted for rape allegations from Florida ex-trainer Britney Taylor

#1 Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Felipe Vazquez admitted that he did have sexual relations with a 13 year old minor. The mother of the minor said she contacted police after finding photos that Vazquez sent to her daughter’s phone. Vazquez reportedly admitted to contacting the minor, who he met at a Pirates game when he was in the bullpen and got her contact information at the time.

#2 Houston Astros right-hander Gerrit Cole struck out 300 batters becoming the 18th pitcher in MLB history to do so. Cole is 18-5 with an ERA of 2.61. The Astros are having a great year and having pitching like this from Cole certainly has complimented the ball club.

#3 Just looking ahead to the postseason, the Oakland A’s are in first place in the AL wild card. They have dominated some of baseball’s best teams winning series from teams like the New York Yankees and Houston Astros. If the A’s can get past the wild card, the road to the World Series is past teams like the Astros and Yankees.

#4 After Sunday’s second quarter drubbing by the Kansas City Chiefs, the Oakland Raiders are regrouping and taking a look at their secondary, who took a bath when the Chiefs scored four touchdowns all the scoring they needed to upend Oakland 28-10.

#5 After the tough loss last Sunday at home, the Raiders have four away games in their next five games, which schedule wise can be considered their toughest challenge of the season.

Tony does Headline Sports each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Raiders start long road journey away from Oakland Sunday in Minnesota

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Photo credit: dailynorseman.com

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
SRS Contributor

After two AFC West divisional games to start the season at home, the Raiders get set for their first road test of the year as they prepare to face the NFC North’s Minnesota Vikings in Week 3. The Silver and Black are 9-5 all time against the Purple People Eaters, with each team winning two games apiece over their last four matchups.

In their last meeting, the Vikings took down the Raiders 30-14 on Nov. 15, 2015 at the RingCentral Coliseum in Oakland.

Kickoff is set for 10:00 a.m. PDT this Sunday at U.S. Bank Field, as the Raiders begin a 49-day stretch away from Oakland and the first of four games against the NFC North this season.

The Raiders (1-1) lost 28-10 to the visiting Kansas City Chiefs in Week 2, after jumping out to a 10-0 lead in the first quarter. Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes shredded Oakland’s defense in the second quarter, throwing 278 of his 443 yards and four touchdowns in the period that put the game out of reach.

With the win, Mahomes improved to 3-0 against Oakland and has now thrown for 10 touchdowns to just one interception in those three games.

History was made in the game for Oakland as quarterback Derek Carr surpassed Hall of Fame quarterback Ken Stabler for most passing yards in franchise history, as Carr threw for 198 yards in the game and now stands at 19,196 threw his first 80 games.

Wide receiver Tyrell Williams caught his second touchdown of the year, while tight end Darren Waller led the Raiders in receptions again for the second-straight week as he caught six balls for 63 yards.

Per the Elias Sports Bureau, Waller joined Todd Christensen (1986) and Brandon Myers (2012) as the only tight ends in team history to record at least 50 yards receiving in the first two games of the season.

Defensively, the Raiders didn’t muster much of a pass rush against the Chiefs but Benson Mayowa had a day to remember, as he recorded 1.5 sacks and a forced fumble.

Mayowa became the first Raiders player to record at least one sack and one forced fumble in each of the first two games of the season since sacks became an official statistic in 1982, while also becoming just the seventh defensive player league wide to do so since 2010 according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

After defeating the Atlanta Falcons 28-12 in Week 1 at home, the Vikings (1-1) lost on the road in Green Bay, 21-16 in Week 2 at Lambeau Field.

Vikings running back Dalvin Cook rushed for a career-high 154 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries against the Packers. It was the second-straight game that the third-year pro from Florida State rushed for over 100 yards.

Through the first two games of the season, Cook is the NFL’s leading rusher with 265 yards.

Vikings signal-caller Kirk Cousins can play like he’s a top-10 NFL quarterback at times, making tough throws look routine to stud wideouts Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs.

Then there are times where Cousins will throw those head-scratching passes late in a game that’ll get intercepted, sealing a loss that makes you wonder, if he’s even worth the $84 million fully guaranteed the Vikings are paying him?

Minnesota has Super Bowl aspirations and the pressure is on Cousins to guide them to Miami (the site of Super Bowl LIV), this season.

After throwing just 10 times in the season opener against the Falcons, Cousins finished 14-of-32 with one touchdown and two interceptions against the Packers.

With a chance to throw a potential game-winning score for Minnesota late in the fourth quarter, Cousins was intercepted by Green Bay cornerback Kevin King in the end zone.

Didn’t I mention a few spaces before about those head-scratching throws from Cousins that’ll cost you a game?

But the ultimate strength of the Vikings is its defense, which has been among the NFL’s best during head coach Mike Zimmer’s six seasons in Minnesota. The Vikings can generate a strong pass rush from its edge rushers in Danielle Hunter and Everson Griffen, which will give its strong secondary led by strong safety Harrison Smith and cornerback Xavier Rhodes opportunities to create turnovers.

Carr and the offense have to be on high alert for a tough Vikings team and one of the toughest venues in the NFL, U.S. Bank Stadium this Sunday.

Following Sunday’s game, the Raiders will travel to Indianapolis to battle the Colts in Week 4 before flying to London to take on the Chicago Bears in a “home game” in Week 5.

The Vikings will begin a two-game road trip when they take on the Bears in Week 4 followed by a trip to New York for a date with the Giants in Week 5.

Headline Sports podcast with London Marq: Roethlisberger heartbroken over season-ending injury; Brees seeks second opinion on torn thumb; plus more

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Photo credit: cbssports.com

On Headline Sports podcast with London:

#1 Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger injured his right elbow and will need surgery and said after last Sunday’s game that it was heartbreaking to be out on an injury. The injury knocked Roethlisberger out for the rest of the season and Roethlisberger said he looks forward to coming back next season.

#2 New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees torn thumb will need surgery. Brees sought a second opinion in Houston, and after being looked at in Los Angeles, Brees will miss six to eight weeks of the football season, which would put him at Week 10 at the latest that he can return.

#3 The Oakland A’s continue to believe in miracles. They got a huge win past the Kansas City Royals on Tuesday night. The A’s, who lost the first game of the series Monday night to the Royals 6-5, who came back on them, came back on the Royals on Tuesday night after being down 1-0 scored two runs in the bottom of the seventh inning for the 2-1 win. The A’s lead second place Tampa Bay by two games.

#4 What happen to the Raiders after having a 10-0 lead on Sunday? The visiting Kansas City Chiefs took over in the second quarter scoring four touchdowns and won it 28-10 and the Raiders couldn’t score in the second half.

#5 The San Jose Earthquakes, who have lost three of their last five games battled against one of the MLS’ best NYC FC, on Saturday losing 2-1. The Quakes’ Chris Wondolowski continues to find the back of the net with the Quakes’ only goal — his 14th of the season.

Join London for Headline Sports each Wednesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Niners look to stay unbeaten vs. shorthanded Steelers

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Photo credit: ninersnation.com

By Jeremy Harness

The 49ers are in a position that they have not been in since their Super Bowl year of 2012, as they are 2-0 and have a great chance to extend that win streak as they get ready to take on their rivals in the NFC West.

And they’ll have a reeling, hurting Pittsburgh Steelers team traveling across the country to face them at Levi’s Stadium Sunday.

However, just a note here: Pittsburgh has ended a 49ers winning streak before. The Niners won their first six games of the 1984 season until the Steelers pulled off a 20-17 upset win at Candlestick Park.

The 49ers did not lose another game that year, which culminated with the second Super Bowl victory in franchise history, a 38-16 win over the Miami Dolphins.

However, they do have some injury concerns going into Sunday.

Defensive end Dee Ford is listed as day-to-day with a quad injury, and he did not practice Wednesday. Among the others who were sidelined for Wednesday’s practice were receivers Trent Taylor (foot) and Jalen Hurd (back), starting back Tevin Coleman and safety Jaquiski Tartt (toe), who is listed as day-to-day but is expected to play against the Steelers.

Tackle Joe Staley suffered a broken tibia during Sunday’s game, and he is expected to be out for several weeks.

However serious the 49ers’ injury situation currently is, it pales in comparison to what’s going on in Pittsburgh. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger injured his elbow in Sunday’s loss to the Seattle Seahawks and has been forced to have season-ending surgery on his throwing elbow.

Mason Rudolph took over for Roethlisberger following the injury, and he is expected to be under center Sunday. The Steelers selected Rudolph in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft and was the third quarterback that season before being elevated to the backup job before the start of this season.

Meanwhile, cornerback Joe Haden, whom the Steelers recently signed to a multi-year extension, did not practice Wednesday as he recovers from a shoulder ailment. Meanwhile, former 49ers tight end Vance McDonald was limited in practice Wednesday with a back injury.

Starting running back James Conner was held out of practice Wednesday while nursing a knee injury, but the team fully expects him, as well as Haden, to start against the 49ers.

Headline Sports podcast with Barbara Mason: Can Garoppolo, 49ers do it again with the offense this Sunday?; How concerned is Gruden about Raider defense?; plus more

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Photo credit: nbcsports.com

On Headlines Sports podcast with Barbara:

#1 For the San Francisco 49ers, the offense gained 527 yards rushing and the defense stopped the Cincinnati Bengals ground game.

#2 The Raiders couldn’t hold Kansas City’s offense as they scored four touchdowns in the second quarter in the Raiders’ 28-10 loss to the Chiefs.

#3 The Oakland A’s Matt Chapman lets it rip. He belted a home run that help set an Oakland franchise record for 244 home runs surpassing the A’s 1996 all-time record for home runs in a season

#4 San Francisco commuters on the 8 City College Muni line were held hostage to horrible traffic conditions in what may be more congestion issues to come at the home of the Golden State Warriors. The Dave Matthews Band held a concert there last Tuesday, September 10th and Muni pulled most of it’s buses from the 8 City College lines, which forced commuters to find other alternative ways to get home. The move allowed concert goers and traffic to move the public smoothly in and out of Chase, but at the cost of making commuters trying to figure how to get home on another line, that pulled almost all of its service to facilitate concert goers to Chase.

#5 He may be the victim of collusion and never will throw a ball again in the NFL, but former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick is being recognized for his recent commercial with Nike, which just won an Emmy Award at the 2019 Creative Arts Emmy Awards. Kaepernick’s commercial addresses his activism and bringing up issues and achievements in promoting diversity and calling out racism and discrimination.

Join Barbara on Headline Sports each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com