The Sportsletter - Lions, Packers & Bears... Oh My!

BY JEFF YODER

OCT. 14, 2024 | SUBSCRIBE | WEB VIEW

Welcome Back 👋

Another one of those 100-game October weekends has passed, and we're still recovering. College football’s Saturday slate brought must-see finishes at every turn. And if you missed a moment of Sunday’s loaded sports buffet, allow us to dish out the leftovers. Both the MLB and WNBA playoffs need recaps, but we start in the NFL where one division is rising above the rest.

Letter Rip!

NFL

Lions, Packers & Bears... Oh My!

Photo: Harry Murphy / Getty Images

Best of Week 6: NFC North Domination Reaches New Level (Plus Other Top Highlights & Storylines)

Okay, so technically there are no “Tigers” in our Wizard of Oz headline quip. Sorry, Dorothy. But this week’s focus is on the NFC North after a Sunday blitz that stamped it the best division in football. The 5-0 Minnesota Vikings were on a bye week, but the Lions, Packers and Bears all won, and they won running away. The Lions embarrassed the Cowboys by 38 (Jerry Jones' worst loss since he bought the team). The Packers beat the Cardinals by 21. And the Bears held tea time in the London end zone against the Jaguars for a 19-point blowout. Those three quarterbacks — Lions' Jared Goff (3 TDs), Packers' Jordan Love (4 TDs) and Bears' Caleb Williams (4 TDs) — combined for 11 touchdowns on Sunday. All four NFC North teams have at least four wins through Week 6, and they boast an overall record of 16-4 against other divisions. Oh my, indeed.

NFC North Standings: Vikings (5-0), Lions (4-1), Packers (4-2), Bears (4-2)

Other Week 6 Storylines

🚨 Aidan Hutchinson’s Leg Injury: The negative side of the Lions’ big win over the Cowboys was the loss of star pass-rusher Aidan Hutchinson. The former No. 2 pick was the NFL sack leader (7.5) before suffering a gruesome leg injury where his left leg appeared to snap. He was carted off and rushed to the hospital for emergency surgery to repair a broken tibia.

Drake Maye’s 1st Start: The Patriots handed the ball to rookie QB Drake Maye against the Texans. New England lost big (41-21), but Maye did throw for 243 yards and 3 TDs. There’s something promising there.

The DMV Showdown: The Ravens and Commanders met for the first (at least first in awhile) compelling matchup of the DMV rivalry. Baltimore flexed after a slow start and handed Washington its first loss since Week 1 (30-23). Lamar Jackson (363 yards) and Derrick Henry (132 yards, 2 TDs) went wild. Baltimore is handling business.

NFL Scores & Highlights (Week 6)

49ers def. Seahawks (36-24)

Eagles def. Browns (20-16)

Bears def. Jaguars (35-16)

Ravens def. Commanders (30-23)

Texans def. Patriots (41-21)

Colts def. Titans (20-17)

Packers def. Cardinals (34-13)

Buccaneers def. Saints (51-27)

Chargers def. Broncos (23-16)

Steelers def. Raiders (32-13)

Lions def. Cowboys (47-9)

Falcons def. Panthers (38-20)

Bengals def. Giants (17-7)

Monday Night Football

Bills at Jets (8:15 pm ET, ESPN)

B/R: NFL Week 6: Top Takeaways for Every Game on Sunday

CBS Sports: Lions’ Aidan Hutchinson Undergoes Surgery After Serious Leg Injury

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Has the Big Ten Supplanted the SEC?

Photo: Alika Jenner / Getty Images

#3 Oregon Beats #2 Ohio State (32-31) in Saturday of Thrillers as Fresh Conference Rivalries Remove SEC From Top-5 Entitlement

For what seems like decades, the SEC has held a firm grip on college football’s top spots. Big Ten teams have secured one of the four College Football Playoff spots in most seasons, and almost all of those playoff bids have come from Ohio State and Michigan. It’s a new era after conference realignments have forged new rivalries. That was evident in Saturday’s matchups including #2 Ohio State vs. #3 Oregon and #4 Penn State vs. USC. The Ducks won a stunner in Eugene (32-31) and #4 Penn State held off USC (33-30, OT). Two epic games, and the result is three Big Ten teams still in the top four. SEC, where you at?

Elsewhere in college football, three top-13 games needed overtime in Week 7, and six other ranked games were decided by three points or less in a fun-never-stops Saturday. As for No. 1? Complete domination in the Red River Rivalry by Texas made it barely worth watching. The Longhorns are still the team to beat.

Top Highlights (Week 7)

#1 Texas def. #18 Oklahoma (34-3)

#3 Oregon def. #2 Ohio State (32-31)

#4 Penn State def. USC (33-30, OT)

#5 Georgia def. Miss. State (41-31)

#7 Alabama def. S. Carolina (27-25)

#8 Tennessee def. Florida (23-17, OT)

#13 LSU def. #9 Ole Miss (29-26, OT)

#10 Clemson def. Wake Forest (49-14)

#11 Notre Dame def. Stanford (49-7)

#18 Kansas State def. Colorado (31-28)

AP Poll (Top 10)

1. Texas (6-0) | —

2. Oregon (6-0) | ↑1

3. Penn State (6-0) | ↑1

4. Ohio State (5-1) | ↓2

5. Georgia (5-1) | —

6. Miami (6-0) | —

7. Alabama (5-1) | —

8. LSU (5-1) | ↑5

9. Iowa State (6-0) | ↑2

10. Clemson (5-1) | —

Full AP Poll (Top 25)

ESPN: Colorado Loses 2-Way Star Travis Hunter & 3 Other WRs to Injuries in Loss to K-State

MLB PLAYOFFS

Dodgers Unload in Game 1

Photo: Media News Group / Getty Images

Dodgers Dismantle Kodai Senga & Mets in NLCS Game 1 (9-0)

The MLB’s final four is set afte Saturday’s winner-take-all Game 5 in the ALCS where the Guardians used a grand slam from Lane Thomas to outlast the Tigers (7-3). That sets the stage for a Guardians-Yankees ALCS this week. But first, Round 1 of the NLCS saw a haymaker in Hollywood. The Dodgers rocked the Mets (9-0) behind multi-hit games from Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman and Kike Hernandez. No home runs were needed from the Dodgers, just an onslaugh of at-bats that never stopped. Los Angeles plated nine runs off nine hits while Jack Flaherty was a boss (7IP, 6Ks, 2H, 0ER).

Both series are in action tonight.

Watch: Dodgers Pummel Mets in NLCS Game 1 (9-0)

The Athletic: Mets’ Kodai Senga Stumbles, Dodgers Pounce Early in Game 1

WNBA FINALS

Liberty Reload in Game 2

Photo: Dustin Satloff / Getty Images

Liberty Coast Past Lynx (80-66) to Win WNBA Finals Game 2 & Even Series (1-1)

It was hard to envision a world where the New York Liberty would drop two games at home to open the WNBA Finals. The league’s top team bounced back in Game 2 with a convincing win thanks to their superstar frontcourt. Breanna Stewart (21 pts, 8 rebs, 5 ast, 7 stl, 1 blk) was an all-around force while Betnijah Laney (20 pts), Sabrina Ionescu (15 pts, 5 ast) and Jonquel Jones (14 pts, 9 rebs) were all firing at 40-percent clip or higher. The Lynx got out played in every facet of the box score. They fell behind by double digits in the first quarter and clawed to stay relevant for 40 minutes. It’s all square heading back to Minnesota, but we’ll have to wait until Wednesday for Game 3.

Watch: Liberty Respond With Big Game 2 Win in WNBA Finals (80-66)

ESPN: How the Liberty Sealed Game 2 of the WNBA Finals Over the Lynx

SCOREBOARDS

🏒 NHL

Full NHL Scoreboard

⚽️ International Soccer

International Soccer Scoreboard

🏀 NBA Preseason

NBA Preseason Scoreboard

🏁 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs

Kyle Larson Captures Charlotte Roval for 6th Win of 2024

Larson Takes Command in Round of 12 Finale