Headline Sports podcast with London Marq: Who will win the AL MVP?; Ex-Raider Ball suffering aneurysm; Vikings’ Griffen asked to take mental evaluation

Photo credit: @StribSports

On the Headline Sports podcast with London:

#1 In the American League MVP selection, it comes down to the Los Angeles Angels’ Mike Trout with .314, 38 HRs and 77 RBIs, and for the Boston Red Sox’s Mookie Betts .343, 32 HRs and 80 RBIs.

#2 Former Oakland Raiders linebacker Neiron Ball, who played for the team for only six games in 2015 and was also a former Florida Gator. Due to a knee injury, Ball left the Raiders in his brief NFL career suffered a brain aneurysm that ruptured on September 16th. Could head trauma play a role in brain aneurysms and other head injuries after a player has retired?

#3 Minnesota Vikings defensive end Everson Griffen was ordered by the Vikings to take a mental health evaluation after having an outburst at the team’s Minneapolis hotel last Saturday. He was heard screaming and yelling that he was going to shoot someone if they didn’t open the door to his room. Police were called and found that he had no weapon.

#4 Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said that the comparison of the 1998 Chicago Bulls to the 2018 Golden State Warriors is a huge difference. The ’98 Bulls had free agents that were going to leave the team and the 2018 Warriors have players that plan to stay and the top brass is going to work to keep the free agents.

#5 The New York Yankees look like they have a great shot at getting the AL Wild Card title. The Yankees lead the Oakland A’s by two full games and neither team have given up. Both A’s and Yankees still continue to win.

London does the Headline Sports each week and will host the next remote podcast at Il Fornaio in downtown Sacramento Mon Nov 5th at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco 49ers podcast with David Zizmor: Garoppolo’s ex-girlfriend Instagrams “Karma” with smiling emoji on Instagram

Photo credit: nypost.com

On the 49ers podcast with David:

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garappolo’s ex-girlfriend Alexandra King Instagrammed “Karma” with a smiling emoji face after Garoppolo’s injury on Sunday in Kansas City. King had previously posted photos of herself and Garoppolo together on her Instagram account, but took them down after Garappolo was photographed together with porn star Kiara Mia and to say the relationship with King is deep-sixed is an understatement. King also disabled her Instagram comments.

Also, Dave talks about how the Garoppolo injury will impact the 49ers for the rest of the season. Las Vegas had San Francisco with 30% odds to get to the postseason. With Garoppolo out the rest of the season with the torn ACL, those odds were dropped to 1%.

David Zizmor does the San Francisco 49ers podcasts each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Raiders’ halftime lead disappears once again in 28-20 loss to Dolphins

Photo credit: @Raiders

By Jeremy Kahn

It seems that the Oakland Raiders just like playing in the first half and not in the second half of games…even when they knew about the Miami Dolphins in advance.

Once again, the Raiders went into the locker room at the end of the first half with the lead; however, the lead slipped away again for the third straight game.

Wide receiver Albert Wilson threw a 52-yard touchdown pass, and sealed the game with a 74-yard touchdown catch and the Dolphins came back from a 17-7 halftime deficit to defeat the Raiders 28-20 at Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

With the victory, the Dolphins improved to 3-0 for only the third time since the 1998 season and the Raiders are 0-3 out of the gate for the first time since the 2014 season, when they started the season 0-10.

Xavien Howard picked off two Derek Carr passes in Dolphins’ territory, who also came up with a huge goal line stop on fourth down that kept the Raiders out of the end zone in the second quarter.

Carr ended the day going 27-for-39 for 345 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.

Jordy Nelson was the top wide receiver for Carr on the afternoon, as he caught six passes for 173 yards and a touchdown.

Through the first 10 minutes of the game, Nelson caught three passes for 139 yards, but could only catch four passes for 34 yards over the final 50 minutes.

Ryan Tannehill went 17-for-23 for 289 yards and three touchdowns and no turnovers for the undefeated Dolphins.

Tannehill also carried the ball three times for 26 yards, while former San Francisco 49ers running back Frank Gore was held to just 12 yards on six carries, as the Raiders rush defense held the Dolphins to just 41 yards rushing on 14 carries.

Marshawn Lynch led the Raiders in rushing with 64 yards on 19 carries and a touchdown, as he scored from one yard out to give the Raiders a 17-7 with 2:58 remaining in the third quarter

On their ensuing possession, the Dolphins drove right down the field and scored when Jakeem Grant caught a 18-yard touchdown pass from Tannehill to cut the Raiders lead down to three at the end of the third quarter.

Wilson gave the Dolphins the lead for good with 7:18 remaining in the game, as he took a toss from Gore, who got the ball from Tannehill and Wilson thru the ball to a wide-open Grant.

Carr then began to drive the Raiders down the field on what could have the game-winning drive, but Carr’s pass into the end zone was intercepted by Howard and then the Dolphins clinched the game with Wilson’s 74-yard touchdown reception that saw him and Grant high five each other down the sidelines on their way to the end zone.

NOTES: Donald Penn was forced to leave the game in the first half after suffering a concussion, and Karl Joseph missed the second half with a lower leg injury.

UP NEXT: After a two-road trip, the Raiders return to the Coliseum, where they will face the Cleveland Browns and former head coach Hue Jackson on September 30 at 1:05 pm PDT. The Browns are coming off their first win in 635 days after a 21-17 victory over the New York Jets on Thursday night at FirstEnergy Stadium.

Garoppolo Suffers Serious Injury in 49ers’ 38-27 Loss to Chiefs

By Joe Lami

Unfortunately, the 38-27 beatdown to the Chiefs isn’t the biggest loss the 49ers took on Sunday, as Jimmy Garoppolo went down with what could be a season-ending knee injury.

Driving late in the fourth quarter, down by 35-24 and inside the red zone, Garoppolo cut his right near the sideline attempting to make more out of a scramble before his left knee buckled. Garoppolo made a collision with Chiefs’ corner, Steven Nelson on the play before he hobbled off the field.

The fear is that he suffered a torn left ACL. He is scheduled to have an MRI on Monday.

Garoppolo would exit the game on a crucial 4th and goal, leaving backup C.J. Beathard to make an incredible connection with George Kittle, only to be taken away by the team’s 13th penalty of the day. San Francisco would have to settle for a field goal while a cart rushed the 49ers’ franchise quarterback to the locker room.

The injury to Garoppolo came during a late comeback for the Niners. After going down 35-7 in the first half, where penalties, amazing plays by Patrick Mahomes, and a sluggish offense cost the Niners, San Francisco was pushing right back.

It was an abysmal first half of football for the Niners, in which they surrendered 35 points for just the eighth time in franchise history. Mahomes threw all three of his touchdowns in the first, pushing his season total to 13, while the 49ers nine penalties for 109 yards just added fuel to the fire for the first-year starter. The Chiefs finished the half with 22 first downs on their way to scoring a TD on all five drives.

The Niners lone first-half touchdown came on a beautiful play-action pass, where Garoppolo connected with Kyle Juszczyk on a wide-open play that would get the 49ers’ offense going.

Jimmy G continued the pushback in the second half finding Goodwin for his first touchdown of the season. Alfred Morris found paydirt on a three-yard scamper, bringing the Niners within 11.

All was going well for the Niners in the second half until Garoppolo went down. Early reports suggest it’s dire, making Sunday’s nightmare turn into San Francisco’s doomsday.

To make matters worse, Richard Sherman also went down on Sunday with a calf injury in the second quarter. He was listed as questionable to return, but the hobbling Sherman never got off the sideline.

The season is now in the balance for San Francisco and what was supposed to be a building year for the Niners may have ended before it ever really got going as the 49ers’ rebuild may have just been reset to zero.

Oakland Raiders podcast with Joe Hawkes Beamon: Raiders need to button down the hatches on defense; Carr can beat the Dolphins

Photo credit: @Big_Tah47

On the Raiders podcast with J Hawkes:

#1 The Raiders continue their road trip. This time, Week 3 brings them to Miami as they come off a razor edge loss in Denver last Sunday 20-19.

#2 Last season in Week 9, both the Raiders and Dolphins played to a 27-24 Raiders win when Marshawn Lynch carried a three-yard, fourth quarter touchdown for the win.

#3 The Raiders lost on a game-winning field goal after leading the Broncos by as much as 17 points. Broncos quarterback Casey Keenum helped the Broncos’ down field to set up a score.

#4 After Khalil Mack went to Chicago, the Raiders’ defense has been suspect and that was evident after dropping the 17 points in the second half of Sunday’s game.

#5 The Raiders now face the Miami Dolphins (2-0) with quarterback Ryan Tannehill, whose 31-57 for 398 yards. Joe takes a look at these two teams matching up.

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

San Francisco 49ers podcast with Joe Lami: 49ers will be facing a strong, prepared Chiefs offense this Sunday

Photo credit: @Rob_Lowder

On the 49ers podcast with Joe:

#1 The San Francisco 49ers got a big break on a holding call that stopped the visiting Detroit Lions from spotting the ball on the 49ers’ seven-yard line after an interception.

#2 The hold call helped 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo to his first win of 2018. He threw 18-26 for 206 yards.

#3 Despite throwing well, Garoppolo got sacked six times. Where was the offensive line and protection for Jimmy G?

#4 Does it look like Josh Gordon at wide receiver for the 49ers will be a regular?

#5 The 49ers’ next opponent is the Kansas City Chiefs. This team is not the Detroit Lions. The Chiefs are a very prepared and strong offensive team. The 49ers will have to key in on the Chiefs and Patrick Mahomes.

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

Oakland Raiders podcast with Tony Renteria: Raiders couldn’t seal the deal in Denver Sunday; look to Miami for first road win

Photo credit: @Raiders

On the Oakland Raiders podcast with Tony:

#1 For the last six seconds of Sunday’s game in Oakland, the Oakland Raiders looked as if they had game in hand with a 19-17 lead, but Denver Broncos kicker Brandon McManus kicked a 36-yard field goal for the 20-19 win at Sports Authority Field.

#2 The Broncos led by quarterback Casey Kennum led the Broncos down the field with just 1:58 left in the game, Kennum threw to Tom Patrick for 26 yards in the closing moments of the game to get the ball and McManus into field goal range for the winning score.

#3 Tony talks about some of the numbers starting for Raiders quarterback Derek Carr going 29-32 for 288 yards, one touchdown and one sack. Impressive outing for Carr who did all he could do to win in the Raiders’ first road game.

#4 Wide receiver Amari Cooper tallied up some yards with 10 receptions for 116 yards. Although Cooper didn’t get a touchdown, he averaged 11 yards and topped the team for total yards.

#5 The Raiders get set for their next meeting against the Miami Dolphins, the Dolphins are 2-0 and have Ryan Tannehill, who’s averaging 199 yards with four touchdowns on the year. Tannehill and the Dolphins have been fierce. Will the Raiders defense have their hands full this Sunday? Tony takes a look.

Tony does the Oakland Raiders podcasts each Thursday and is a beat writer for the Sacramento Kings at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

49ers welcome Foster back, but face an uphill battle

Photo credit: @247Sports

By Jeremy Harness

The 49ers got their first win of the year last Sunday, getting past the Detroit Lions, who made a hard charge in the fourth quarter to make things mighty interesting, to say the very least. But now, they have a completely different challenge on their hands.

The Lions have a potent offense – particularly with a guy like Matthew Stafford pulling the trigger – but the Kansas City Chiefs have an offense that has just exploded onto the scene in this young season.

Patrick Mahomes, who has taken over the reins as the Chiefs’ starting quarterback after the team traded away Alex Smith, is off to a blistering start to this season. Mahomes has thrown for a whopping 10 touchdown passes over the first two games and has not thrown a single interception, and he brings a dimension to the Kansas City offense that has not been there for a very long time.

The second-year signal-caller specializes in throwing the deep ball, which allows big-play receivers such as Tyreek Hill and Sammy Watkins, as well as tight end Travis Kelce, to rack up big yards and get upfield.

That is something that was not prevalent when Smith, who was much more proficient in the short-to-intermediate throws, was at the controls. He is now the starting quarterback for the Washington Redskins.

The 49ers will get some help on the defensive side. However, the team welcomed back linebacker Reuben Foster, who was suspended by the NFL for the first two games due to disciplinary issues stemming from his domestic assault case in the offseason.

He practiced on Wednesday and is expected to start on Sunday against the Chiefs. Also making his way to the practice field for the first time was fellow linebacker Malcolm Smith, who had been recovering from a hamstring injury.

Smith has yet to play in a game for the 49ers, as he missed the first two games of the year with the hamstring issue. Smith also missed the entire 2017 season with a pectoral injury.

Headline Sports with London Marq: Garoppolo, 49ers look to avoid the INT Sunday; Halos look to be spoilers as A’s chase Yanks; Raiders drop to 0-2 in close battle with Denver; Quakes make a coaching change; plus more

Photo credit: @KNBR

On Headline Sports with London:

#1 The A’s battle the LA Angels this week and the Angels want to be spoilers and try and set the A’s chase of the New York Yankees in the AL Wild Card a peg or two.

#2 The Oakland Raiders played a nail-biter on Sunday, but lost to the Denver Broncos just by one point. Derek Carr looked and threw well, but the Raiders tried as hard as they could and lost their second game of the season, dropping them now to 0-2.

#3 With all the losses mounting, the San Jose Earthquakes fired head coach Mikael Stahre and assistant coach Alex de Crook. The Quakes have won only four games this season. When do you think Stahre should have got fired.

#4 The San Francisco Giants, who are a good 12 games out of first place, and their current hosts, the San Diego Padres, who are some 26 games out, will mostly look at their call ups during this series since the playoffs are dimming each day.

#5 The San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo had a rough outing against the Detroit Lions on Sunday at Levi’s Stadium. The Niners had a 17-point lead, but lost it as their lead collapsed to just three points. If it wasn’t for a holding penalty late in the fourth quarter, the Lions would have been in field goal range or at best scoring range after picking off a Garoppolo pass.

London Marq does Headline Sports each Wednesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Raiders will head to Miami for Week 3 tilt with Dolphins

Photo credit: nj.com

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND, Calif — If one road game wasn’t enough, how about a double-dip?

The Raiders are hitting the road once again this time, they are heading to South Beach where they will take on a surprisingly undefeated Dolphins team in a key Week 3 matchup for Oakland this Sunday.

Kickoff is at 1:00 p.m. ET, which means 10:00 a.m. PT for West Coasters.

Last season, the two teams faced each other in Week 9 with the Raiders defeating the Dolphins, 27-24, behind a three-yard touchdown run by running back Marshawn Lynch late in the fourth quarter.

Oakland (0-2) lost a heart-breaker last week in Denver, 20-19, wasting an awesome performance by starting quarterback Derek Carr.

Carr was sharp all game, completing 29-of-32 passes for 288 yards and one touchdown. He’s the only quarterback in NFL history to complete 90 percent of his passes with more than 30 attempts, per ESPN. It was nice to see Carr bounce back from an ugly game in Week 1, where he threw three interceptions in Oakland’s 33-13 loss to the visiting Los Angeles Rams.

Out of those 29 completions, 10 were to wide receiver Amari Cooper, who also rebounded from a bad first game of the season where he posted just one catch for nine yards on three targets.

Against the Broncos, Cooper was targeted 10 times (catching each one) for 116 yards. It was a welcoming sign for Oakland, albeit in a loss.

Oakland held a 19-7 lead into the third quarter before the Broncos rallied with 13 unanswered points, including kicker Brandon McManus’s game-winning 36-yard field goal with six seconds remaining in the game.

Without stud defensive end/outside linebacker Khalil Mack, who was traded to Chicago prior to the start of the regular season because the Silver and Black were hesitant to reward Mack with a new contract extension, Oakland’s defense has been a no show through the first two games of the season.

The Raiders have had a tough time generating any kind of pass rush this season. Only linebacker Bruce Irvin and rookie defensive tackle Maurice Hurst have recorded a quarterback sack, but that could change against Miami. Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill has been sacked five times this season, which ranks 13th in the NFL. Tannehill has also been hit nine times in the pocket.

Miami (2-0) defeated the Jets, 20-12, in New York at MetLife Stadium behind Tannehill and the NFL’s fourth-ranked scoring defense.

Tannehill completed 17-of-23 passes for 168 yards and two touchdowns, leading the Dolphins a 20-0 lead before halftime. Through two games this season, Tannehill has completed 31-of-57 passes for 398 yards with four touchdowns, two interceptions and a 104.9 passer rating.

Running back Kenyan Drake had 11 carries for 53 yards and one touchdown against the Jets. Drake leads the Dolphins with 25 carries for 101 yards this season.

Backup running back Frank Gore finished with just nine carries for 25 yards, but those yards were all he needed to pass Hall of Famer Curtis Martin (14,101) for fourth place on the NFL’s all-time rushing list with 14,103 yards. Gore, who is in his 14th season, signed a 1-year deal with his hometown Dolphins in the offseason.

Electric wide receiver Jarvis Landry was traded to Cleveland in the offseason, leaving the Dolphins with question marks at the position. Holdover Kenny Stills leads the Dolphins in receiving yards (123) and touchdowns (2) through two games, while free agent addition Danny Amendola leads the team in catches (8).

Amendola, who won two Super Bowl rings in four seasons with the New England Patriots, signed with the Dolphins this past offseason to give Tannehill another reliable target.

Middle linebacker Kiko Alonso and safety Reshad Jones are two of Miami’s prime defenders that Oakland must be aware at all times.

Jones is arguably the Dolphins most reliable playmaker, as he leads Miami with two interceptions this season. Last season, Jones led Miami in tackles with 122.

The two-time Pro Bowler will likely be following Raiders tight end Jared Cook, who has been explosive the first two weeks of the season. In 2017, Cook led all Raiders receivers with 688 yards and this season, he leads Oakland with 229 yards, which includes his franchise record-setting 180-yard performance in Week 1.

After posting back-to-back seasons of 115 tackles, Alonso is a major focal point for the Dolphins defense. Last week against the Jets, Alonso recorded a 13 tackles and two forced fumbles, coming up huge for Miami many times in that contest.

Sunday’s game in Miami is a must-win for Oakland. There’s no way to sugarcoat it.

Falling to 0-3 with a loss before coming home to take on a puzzling Cleveland Browns team in Week 4 at the Oakland-Alameda Coliseum would be catastrophic.