|
| |
Good Morning 👋
It’s cut day in the NFL. Expect to see some roster changes by 4:00 pm ET. Speaking of rosters, the Cowboys dominated the airwaves yesterday. From Jerry Jones to CeeDee Lamb, we’ll tell you what happened.
Plus, the U.S. Open is officially underway in New York, and our last MLB Power Rankings are hot off the press before Labor Day Weekend. Baseball’s playoff picture looks a little clearer now. Letter Rip! |
Fun Story: Jansen Plays for 2 Teams in 1 Game
Former Blue Jays catcher Danny Jansen played for Toronto on June 26 against the Red Sox. That game was rain-delayed and eventually scheduled to resume yesterday. Jansen had since been traded to the Red Sox, and he finished the game in a Boston uniform. He’s officially the first MLB player to play for both teams in the same game. Incredible. |
|
|
Photo: Sam Hodde / Getty Images |
Jerry Jones Backs Up Big Talk — Cowboys Ink WR CeeDee Lamb to 4-Year, $136 Million Deal
If you were following along on Monday, the Cowboys went for a wild ride from AM to PM. A report from Cowboys beat writer Clarence Hill Jr. made waves with profanity-laced quotes from team owner Jerry Jones regarding his status as the general manager. In short, Jones will be the GM until he dies, and “there’s nobody that could f—ing come in here and do all the contracts… and be a GM any better than I can.” Hours later, he backed it up. The Cowboys and star WR CeeDee Lamb agreed to a four-year, $136 million deal with a $38 million signing bonus — the largest ever given to a receiver. Lamb’s deal also makes him the second highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history.
Highest-Paid Non-QBs (NFL History) 1. WR Justin Jefferson (MIN) — $35M / year
2. WR CeeDee Lamb (DAL) — $34M / year 3. WR A.J. Brown (PHI) — $32M / year 4. WR Amon-Ra St. Brown (DET) — $30M / year 5. WR Tyreek Hill (MIA) — $30M / year
Lamb was the biggest holdout in the 2024 training camp cycle. At just 25 years old, he has a chance to be one of the greatest Cowboys receivers of all time. In 2023, Lamb ranked top-three in all major receiving categories — 1st in receptions (135), 2nd in yards (1,749) and 3rd in TDs (12). What’s Next for Dak Prescott?
The Cowboys’ decision to sign Lamb could be telling for the future of QB Dak Prescott. Dak is entering the final year of his contract, and the Cowboys have had nothing but historic “almost” seasons with No. 4 at QB. Super Bowls change the narrative. Another playoff exit won't.
Read More Yahoo! Sports: CeeDee Lamb’s Extension Answers the Cowboys’ Easier Question, But Dak Prescott Issue Remains Sporting News: The Writing is on the Wall for Dak Prescott After CeeDee Lamb Extension |
|
|
Photo: Al Bello / Getty Images |
#3 Coco Gauff Starts U.S. Open Title Defense With Quick Win (And More From Round 1)
Soak it up, tennis fans. The fourth and final major of 2024 is finally here, and there’s a five-month wait until the Australian Open in January 2025. New York (Queens, to be exact) will be the last chance for some grand slam moments as the best players in the world take the courts at Flushing Meadows for the next two weeks. All eyes are on the defending champions — #3 Coco Gauff (Women) and #2 Novak Djokovic (Men) — but the draws are wide open with contenders lurking around every corner. Neither Gauff or Djokovic have won majors since they visited Queens one year ago, but Djokovic did capture gold at the Olympics last month.
These first few days are loaded with matches. We'll shorten the link list by next week.
🚨 Notable Round 1 Upsets
W: C. Burel def. S. Stephens (0-6, 7-5, 7-5)
W: Y.F. Wang def. #9 M. Sakkari (6-2, W/O)
M: B. Nakashima def. #15 H. Rune (6-2, 6-1, 6-4)
Women’s Singles (Round 1)
#2 A. Sabalenka def. P. Hon (6-3, 6-3)
#3 C. Gauff def. V. Gracheva (6-2, 6-0)
#8 B. Krejcikova def. M. B-Ribera (7-6, 6-2)
#14 M. Keys def. K. Siniakova (6-4, 6-1) Men’s Singles (Round 1) #2 N. Djokovic def. R. Albot (6-2, 6-2, 6-4)
#4 A. Zverev def. M. Marterer (6-2, 6-7, 6-3, 6-2)
#6 A. Rublev def. T. Seyboth Wild (6-3, 7-6, 7-5)
#8 C. Ruud def. B. Yunchaokete (7-6, 6-2, 6-2)
#12 T. Fritz def. C. Ugo (7-5, 6-1, 6-2)
G. Monfils def. D. Schwartzman (6-7, 6-2, 6-2, 6-1)
Today’s U.S. Open Schedule (Round 1, Day 2) Read More ESPN: 16-Year-Old American Iva Jovic Wins Debut US Open Match
AP: Coco Gauff Begins US Open Title Defense With Easy Win After 2-Match Losing Streak |
|
|
Power Rankings: Playoff Predictor 📊 |
Photo: Nic Antaya / Getty Images |
Wild Card Chaos Settles (Momentarily) as Top-12 Playoff Teams Start to Take Shape
It’s our last MLB Power Rankings before Labor Day Weekend and the final month of baseball's regular-season. A lot has changed. Also, not much has changed. The same teams have held the top six spots all summer, but new challengers keep throwing their weight in the wild card hunt. The Diamondbacks are the latest surging team on a six-game win streak, but it’s their NL West rivals who still hold No. 1 (Dodgers). The difference between 1-12 is just eight games. The difference between 12-13 is a few more, and that signals the bubble mark.
Wild Card Outlook: The wild card races in both divisions have shaken out since our last check-in. It’s not so crowded in the NL (3-game gap), and the AL difference (5 games) could widen to a nearly drama-free finish in September. We’ve highlighted the current wild cards and division leaders below in today’s power rankings (top-12). Division Leaders: BOLD / Wild Cards: *Asterisk
MLB Power Rankings (Top 12) 1. Dodgers (78-53) — 2. Yankees (78-54) ↑1
3. Phillies (77-54) ↓1 4. *Orioles (76-56) —
5. Brewers (75-55) — 6. Guardians (75-57) — 7. *Diamondbacks (75-56) ↑4
8. *Padres (75-58) — 9. *Royals (74-58) ↑1 10. Astros (70-61) ↓3
11. *Twins (72-59) ↓1 12. *Braves (71-60) —
Teams 13-20: 13. Mets (68-63), 14. Red Sox (67-64), 15. Mariners (67-65), 16. Giants (66-66), 17. Tigers (66-66), 18. Cardinals (65-66), 19. Cubs (65-66), 20. Rays (65-66)
Teams 21-30: 21. Blue Jays (65-68), 22. Reds (63-68), 23. Pirates (62-68), 24. Rangers (60-71), 25. Nationals (59-73), 26. Angels (54-77), 27. Athletics (56-75), 28. Marlins (47-84), 29. Rockies (49-83), 30. White Sox (31-101)
Read More FOX Sports: 2024 MLB Power Rankings: Are Dodgers or Yankees Really No. 1? CBS Sports: MLB Power Rankings: Dodgers Return to No. 1 & AL Central Ready for Chaos
Yahoo! Sports: White Sox Reach 100 Losses for 6th Time in Franchise History: How Many More? |
|
|
🎾 U.S. Open
1st Round Schedule (11:00 am ET—TBD, ESPN)
⚾️ MLB Astros at Phillies (6:40 pm ET, TBS)
Orioles at Dodgers (10:10 pm ET, ESPN+) ⚽️ Soccer (U.S. Open Cup) Sporting KC vs. Indy Eleven (8:00 pm ET, AppleTV)
🏀 WNBA Aces at Wings (8:00 pm ET, NBATV) |
|
|
Photo: Stephen McCarthy / Getty Images |
On This Day in Sports History: Floyd Mayweather TKOs Conor McGregor in Legendary Night for Combat Sports
August 27, 2017 — To be clear, this iconic moment in sports history began on August 26, 2017, but the main event finished well after Midnight for most viewers. Semantics. Anyway… It was this day seven years ago (just before The Sportsletter was created) when Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor stepped into the ring in Las Vegas for one of the most hyped boxing-MMA crossover fights the world had ever seen. Mayweather was the undefeated 11-time boxing world champion. McGregor was the ultimate MMA bad boy and two-division UFC champion. The two biggest names in combat sports clashed for the second-highest pay-per-view event of all time.
I still remember where I watched this fight. Unofficial judges had it close on the cards before Mayweather won with a 10th-round TKO. |
|
|
Did Someone Forward You This Email? Subscribe Here
Feedback? Contact Our Editor: Jeff@TheSportsletter.com
*Sponsorship Has No Influence on Editorial Content* Not Loving The Letter? Unsubscribe Copyright © 2024 The Sportsletter
717 Market Street, San Francisco, CA, 94103 |
|
|
|
