The Sportsletter - Let's Get Wild

BY JEFF YODER

OCT. 7, 2022  |  SUBSCRIBE  |  REFER  |  WEB VIEW

Happy Friday 👋

If you watched Thursday Night Football, I’m sorry you lost a night of your life. One of the ugliest games of the NFL season featured seven field goals, four turnovers and zero touchdowns. You’re up, baseball. Save us all. It’s Wild Card Weekend, so let’s get wild.

Letter Rip!

THE SPORTSLETTER'S NFL PICK 'EM

Thursday Night Football Games Not Included to Allow Players to Make Picks Until Sunday Morning

MLB

Let's Get Wild

Photo: Steve Russell / Getty Images

2022 MLB Playoffs Set to Begin With Wild Card Weekend

After 162 games, the MLB Playoffs are about to begin. We’ve watched the Yankees and Mets rise to the top only to drop off in the second half. Hopes of an all-New York World Series are still alive and well, but the Dodgers and Astros will have something to say. Either Los Angeles or Houston have appeared in each of the last five World Series, including 2017 when they met each other. And don’t forget last year’s champs. The Braves caught fire at the right time, but no team has won back-to-back World Series titles since the Yankees three-peat from 1998-2000.

Those top teams will wait to start their playoff runs until next week. For the next three days, it’s Wild Card Weekend to trim the field from 12 to eight. It’s best-of-3, and it starts now.

Wild Card Weekend Schedule

Friday

ALWC Gm 1: Rays at Guardians (12:07 pm)

NLWC Gm 1: Phillies at Cardinals (2:07 pm)

ALWC Gm 1: Mariners at Blue Jays (4:07 pm)

NLWC Gm 1: Padres at Mets (8:07 pm)

Saturday

ALWC Gm 2: Rays at Guardians (12:07 pm)

ALWC Gm 2: Mariners at Blue Jays (4:07 pm)

NLWC Gm 2: Padres at Mets (7:37 pm)

NLWC Gm 2: Phillies at Cardinals (8:37 pm)

Sunday

ALWC Gm 3: Mariners at Blue Jays (2:07 pm)

ALWC Gm 3: Rays at Guardians (4:07 pm)

NLWC Gm 3: Padres at Mets (7:37 pm)

NLWC Gm 3: Phillies at Cardinals (8:37 pm)

Additional Storylines

FanSided: MLB Playoff Wild Card Series Odds for Every Team

B/R: Final MLB Power Rankings of the 2022 Regular Season

NFL

Ugliness in Primetime

Photo: Cooper Neill / Getty Images

Colts Beat Broncos in Ugly Touchdown-Less Thursday Nighter (12-9, OT)

The Thursday Night Football matchup was one many circled on the schedule at the beginning of the season. By Week 4, it was less enticing. And in the end, the Colts-Broncos showdown was one of the ugliest games of the season. With both Russell Wilson (Broncos) and Matt Ryan (Colts) being offseason headlines with new teams, the two QBs combined for zero touchdowns and four interceptions. They both fumbled six times, too, but no fumbles were lost. Both teams were already missing players with injury, and the war of attrition continued as Denver OL Garett Boles was carted off with a leg injury.

The Broncos held a 9-6 lead in a field goal frenzy before Colts DB Stephon Gilmore secured a late-game interception. Indy tacked on the game-tying field goal to force overtime with seconds left before winning with another field goal in OT. Some fans were so disgusted, they left at the end of regulation (imagine leaving a primetime game heading to overtime).

Scoring Summary

K C. McLaughlin (IND): 4-for-4 (12 Points)

K B. McManus (DEN): 3-for-4 (9 Points)

Watch: Colts Beat Broncos in Field Goal Laugher (12-9, OT)

Fun Fact: Even with an extra game in the books, the Colts (31st) and Broncos (21st) still rank near the bottom in scoring offense. In what seemed to be an attempt to replicate Matthew Stafford’s career revival in Los Angeles from a year ago, Denver and Indy appear lifeless on offense with their new quarterbacks.

Additional Storylines

SI: NFL World Collectively Groans as Broncos-Colts Ends in a Dud

CBS Sports: Ryan & Wilson Stumble as Colts Win Ugly Defensive Battle

NASCAR

Round of 12 at the Roval

Photo: Brian Lawdermilk / Getty Images

NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs Cut the Field at Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval Course

The NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs have been in full effect over the last month, but Sunday’s big race at the Charlotte Oval Road Course (Roval) will knock a few drivers off the pace. The field of 12 gets cut to eight, and we’ll be full speed ahead with four more races to determine the champ. It’s the Bank of America Roval 400 to send four drivers packing. Let’s see where they stand before the exciting final month of racing.

NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Standings

1. Chase Elliot (3,103 points)

2. Ryan Blaney (3,101 points)

3. Ross Chastain (3,097 points)

4. Denny Hamlin (3,090 points)

5. Joey Logano (3,087 points)

6. Kyle Larson (3,087 points)

7. William Byron (3,083 points)

8. Daniel Suarez (3,081 points)

9. Chase Briscoe (3,069 points)

10. Austin Cindric (3,069 points)

11. Christopher Bell (3,036 points)

12. Alex Bowman (3,015 points)

NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Schedule

Round of 8: Las Vegas (Sun. Oct. 16)

Round of 8: Homestead-Miami (Sun. Oct. 23)

Round of 8: Martinsville (Sun. Oct. 30)

Championship 4: Phoenix (Sun. Nov. 6)

Round of 12 Finale: Charlotte Motor Speedway (Sun. 2:00 pm ET)

Additional Storylines

NASCAR: Charlotte Roval 101: Qualifying Format, Tires, Story Lines & More

ESPN: William Byron Wins NASCAR Appeal, Regains Playoff Points After Deliberately Spinning Denny Hamlin

THE STORYLINES

⚽️ Messi’s Last World Cup

Soccer superstar Lionel Messi has announced that the 2022 World Cup will officially be his last. The upcoming FIFA World Cup in Qatar will mark the fifth for the 35-year-old legend (2006, 2010, 2014, 2018), who has scored six goals in 19 matches. (FOX Sports)

🏈 6 Pack: CFB Week 6 Best Bets

The sun shines a little brighter and flowers smell a little sweeter when The Six Pack is back on the profitable side of the ledger, and that's where we sit after a 4-2 performance last week. (CBS Sports)

🏀 Predicting 1st-Time NBA All-Stars

The dawn of a new NBA season will soon spawn a new batch of first-time All-Stars. Last season, seven players made their All-Star debuts. The following five players have a chance to follow in their footsteps and earn invites to the world's greatest pickup game. (Bleacher Report)

📰 THE HEADLINES

• New York Giants Finalizing Deal to Bring Back Safety Landon Collins (ESPN)
• LeBron James Tells Commissioner Adam Silver He Wants a Team in Las Vegas (SI)
• Megan Rapinoe Speaks Out Against NWSL Owners (B/R)
• LIV Golf’s Attempt to Get World Rankings Points Put on Hold (Yahoo! Sports)
• Protestor Who Was Tackled by LB Bobby Wagner at Rams Game Files Police Report (USA Today)

• Aaron Rodgers & Packers Complain About London Trip, Travel Schedules (CBS Sports)

• Chelsea Sodaro Ends American Drought With Ironman Kona World Championship Win (NBC Sports)

🗓️ WEEKEND SCHEDULE

The Must-Watch List

The first full weekend of October pulls no punches. It’s Wild Card weekend in the MLB postseason with football and soccer to complete a glorious fall sports weekend. The NASCAR Cup Series trims the field to eight on Sunday. Plus, preseason basketball and hockey are back. Fall is for all!

MLB Playoffs

AL/NL Wild Card Series: Best of-3 (Friday-Sunday)

Full Wild Card Weekend Schedule

College Football Week 6 (Saturday)

#4 Michigan at Indiana (Noon)

#8 Tennessee at #25 LSU (Noon)

#17 TCU at #19 Kansas (Noon)

Texas at Oklahoma (Noon)

#11 Utah at #18 UCLA (3:30 pm)

Auburn at #2 Georgia (3:30 pm)

Texas A&M at #1 Alabama (8:00 pm)

Full CFB Week 6 Schedule

NFL Week 5 (Sunday)

Giants at Packers (9:30 am)

Chargers at Browns (1:00 pm)

Eagles at Cardinals (4:25 pm)

Cowboys at Rams (4:25 pm)

Bengals at Ravens (8:20 pm)

Full NFL Week 5 Schedule

Soccer

Women: USWNT vs. England (Fri. 3:00 pm)

GER: Dortmund vs. Bayern (Sat. 12:30 pm)

EPL: Arsenal vs. Liverpool (Sun. 11:30 am)

Racing

NASCAR: Round of 12 — Charlotte (Sun. 2:00 pm)

Formula 1: Japanese Grand Prix (Sun. 1:00 am)

NBA Preseason Schedule

NHL Preseason Schedule

*All Times ET

Support The Sportsletter Team

Writer & Editor: Jeff Yoder

Product Manager: Matthew Cahill

Lead Designer: Joe Stella

Technical Lead: Kevin Lonergan

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