With the five-person class of this year’s Pro Football Hall of Fame of Drew Brees, Larry Fitzgerald, Roger Craig, Adam Vinatieri and Luke Kuechly in the rearview, we can turn our attention to next year’s class. 

Of course, that will likely mean another discussion about the résumés of two controversial snubs who were not inducted as part of Saturday’s ceremony: former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick and Patriots owner Robert Kraft. The news of their snubs (specifically Belichick’s) outweighed the news of those who were included as part of the Class of 2026, making them central figures among the candidates for the Class of 2027.

Along with those two, first-time eligible candidates who make sense as possible first-ballot selections include tight end Rob Gronkowski, running back Adrian Peterson, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and cornerback Richard Sherman. 

Offensive tackle Willie Anderson, guard Marshal Yanda and edge rusher Terrell Suggs were among the final seven modern-era candidates this past year, which means they automatically advance to the final 15 for the upcoming process. It’s the second year in a row Anderson has been an automatic finalist. 

To be eligible for the Hall of Fame, players must be retired for at least five years, while the wait for coaches is one year. There are at least four inductees in each class, but no more than eight will be enshrined from the 20 finalists selected (15 modern-era finalists and a maximum of five candidates from seniors, coach and contributors categories).

The 15 modern-era finalists are cut from 10 to seven. Voters are then asked to vote for five of those candidates, with candidates needing to receive at least 80% of the vote to be inducted. If only two or fewer candidates receive 80% of the vote, then the top three vote-getters move on. 

The new voting structure has led to a splintering of the vote from the selection committee, making it harder for players to get into the Hall, which ultimately led to Belichick not getting in the past voting cycle. 

As a member of the 50-person Hall of Fame selection committee, I’ve had the honor of voting on these candidates annually. It’s always a grueling process featuring long, challenging debates that lead to deserving candidates ultimately donning gold jackets. 

Here’s a first look at some of the candidates for the upcoming class, and what I think of their chances to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2027.

GOOD SHOT

Belichick won an unprecedented six Super Bowls as a head coach and two more as a defensive coordinator for the New York Giants. He coached the greatest player in league history in Tom Brady. The Patriots won 17 AFC East titles, made 13 appearances in the AFC Championship Game and went to nine Super Bowls. I voted for Belichick and Kraft last year and will vote for them again if they are on the ballot. 

Brady’s security blanket is another no-brainer. Gronkowski is a four-time Super Bowl champion who earned five invitations to the Pro Bowl and was on the All-Decade team for the 2010s. He’s also a member of the NFL’s 100th Anniversary All-Time Team. 

Rob Gronkowski and Bill Belichick won three Super Bowls during their time with the Patriots.  (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)

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A freak of nature, Peterson was an unstoppable force as a runner for 15 seasons in the league. His 14,918 rushing yards are fifth in NFL history. He rushed for over 2,000 yards in a single season, won league MVP and Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. A seven-time Pro Bowler, Peterson is a member of the 2010s All-Decade Team. The only major thing he did not accomplish was a Super Bowl win, giving him strong odds to be enshrined in Canton. 

Roethlisberger was the most accomplished of the storied 2004 quarterback draft class that included Eli Manning and Philip Rivers. Roethlisberger won two Super Bowls, and at 23 years old, was the youngest quarterback to win the big game. He won Offensive Rookie of the Year, led the league in passing twice and earned six trips to the Pro Bowl. 

A six-time finalist, momentum continues to build for one of the best right tackles in league history. Anderson has finished in the top seven twice, a signal that voters are bullish on his candidacy. 

PUNCHER’S CHANCE

A seven-time finalist, Holt fell out of the top 10 during the last voting cycle after making it to the top seven the year before, which is not a good sign for his candidacy. Holt is part of a logjam at receiver and deserves serious consideration. One of the cornerstones of the Rams’ “Greatest Show on Turf,” Holt finished with 920 career receptions for 13,382 yards and 74 touchdowns in 11 NFL seasons.

Torry Holt was a key part of the Rams’ “Greatest Show on Turf” offense. (Photo by John Biever /Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)

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Another one of the seven finalists from the last voting cycle, Suggs is a two-time finalist. He’s eighth all-time in sacks with 139, and all seven players above Suggs on the list are in the Hall of Fame. 

Like Suggs, Yanda was one of seven finalists in this past voting cycle. Considered one of the best guards to play the game, Yanda was an eight-time Pro Bowler and Super Bowl champion for the Baltimore Ravens. Yanda’s also a member of the 2010s All-Decade Team. 

A charismatic trash talker and one of the leaders of the Seattle Seahawks’ fabled Legion of Boom, Sherman played in back-to-back Super Bowls, winning it all after the 2013 season. A five-time Pro Bowler, Sherman is a member of the 2010s All-Decade Team. He finished with 37 interceptions in 11 NFL seasons, including stints with the Seahawks, San Francisco 49ers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. 

Richard Sherman is widely viewed as one of the top cornerbacks to have played in the NFL since the turn of the century. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images)

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One of the most complete tight ends in NFL history, only Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez had more catches among players at the position than Witten, whose 1,228 receptions rank fourth all-time. Witten’s 13,046 receiving yards are 20th in league history and second among tight ends, only trailing Gonzalez there as well. Witten is an 11-time Pro Bowler and won the Walter Payton Man of the Year in 2012. 

UPHILL CLIMB

A two-time finalist, Manning has yet to crack the top 10 in his two voting cycles of eligibility. His postseason accolades are impressive, including two Super Bowl wins over Brady and the Patriots in which he was named MVP of both games. But also on his ledger is a 117-117 record as a starter, including a 9-26 mark in his final three seasons. Manning’s career 84.1 passer rating is 60th in NFL history.

Eli Manning won two Super Bowls, but his .500 record might keep him out of the Hall of Fame. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)

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A finalist for the first time last voting cycle who cracked the final 10, Williams is a member of the 2000s All-Decade Team, a five-time All-Pro and six-time Pro Bowler. Williams is a member of the Vikings Ring of Honor.  

One of the leaders of the Dallas defense during his time with the team, Woodson is a three-time Super Bowl champion and five-time Pro Bowler. A four-time finalist, Woodson is a member of the Cowboys’ Ring of Honor, and the player in Cowboys history to have been in the starting lineup for five different head coaches. 

Wayne is one of only nine players in league history with at least 1,000 receptions, 14,000 yards and 80 touchdowns. A seven-time finalist, Wayne has been unable to separate himself from the logjam of talented receivers that remain a part of the voting process during his candidacy. 

Can Reggie Wayne join Peyton Manning and a handful of other former Colts teammates and staffers in Canton? (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)

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Gore entered the league with significant knee issues but played an impressive 16 seasons for five teams, finishing as the third-leading in league history with 16,000 rushing yards. A member of the 2010 All-Decade Team, Gore was a five-time Pro Bowler who rushed for over 1,000 yards nine times and led San Francisco to the Super Bowl after the 2012 season. 

Another talented lineman who was a finalist for the second time in his third year of eligibility. A six-time Pro Bowler and five-time All-Pro, Evans served as an anchor up front for one of the most dominant offenses of his era, led by Drew Brees. 

Known for his “Superman” celebration after scoring a touchdown, Newton took home league MVP honors after leading the Carolina Panthers to a 15-1 campaign and Super Bowl appearance after the 2015 season. A three-time Pro Bowler, Newton also won Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2011. 

Cam Newton is entering his first year of Hall of Fame eligiblity. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)

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A dynamic emotional leader for the Chargers alongside Hall of Famer Junior Seau, Harrison is a two-time finalist whose resume deserves a closer look. A two-time Super Bowl champion, Harrison played 15 seasons with the Bolts and Patriots and is in both teams’ Hall of Fame. He totaled 34 interceptions and 30 sacks, making him one of two players to record over 30 picks and 30 sacks in their career. The other is Hall of Famer Ray Lewis. 

A Super Bowl champion and member of the 2010s All-Decade team, Brown was a seven-time Pro Bowler and dynamic playmaker during his time in the league. However, Brown is caught in the glut of WRs worthy of Hall of Fame consideration. Also, he finished his career by quitting on his teammates, stripping off his gear mid-game with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. And his short tenure with the Raiders was also marred by controversy. 

The emotional catalyst of Seattle’s drive to back-to-back Super Bowl appearances, Lynch was dominant from 2011-14, totaling 5,357 rushing yards and scoring 56 touchdowns over that time. A member of the 2010 All-Decade Team, the five-time Pro Bowler’s 10,419 rushing yards rank just 29th all time, but in the postseason, he’s eighth all time with 970 rushing yards.

Others to consider: Alex Mack, Earl Thomas, LeSean McCoy, Anquan Boldin, Steve Smith Sr., Jimmy Smith, Eric Weddle, John Abraham, Robert Mathis, Hines Ward, Gerald McCoy, Andrew Whitworth.

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When Milwaukee Brewers ace Jacob Misiorowski recorded his fifth strikeout in Sunday’s outing against the Minnesota Twins, he etched his name in baseball’s record books.

Misiorowski’s strikeout of Alan Roden in the third inning was his 200th of the 2026 season. Misiorowski logged his 200th strikeout in just 129 ⅓ innings pitched this season, making it the second-fewest innings thrown for a pitcher to log that many strikeouts in a season. Only Atlanta Braves star Spencer Strider has reached the 20-strikeout mark in a season in fewer innings pitched, logging 200 strikeouts in 123 ⅓ innings in 2022.

Misiorowski’s career is off to a historically fast start at such a young age. Beyond throwing the fastest pitch in MLB history at 105.5 miles per hour, the 24-year-old’s already breaking franchise records at a relentless pace. He set a Brewers record with eight or more strikeouts in eight consecutive starts and broke the record for most strikeouts in a single month with 57 in May of this season. 

In Misiorowski’s final start in July, he opened up his outing against the Colorado Rockies with seven straight strikeouts. He also became the first pitcher to record 11 strikeouts and zero hits through four innings in a start since 1969 in that outing. 

Sunday’s start wasn’t as prolific, but it was still another quality start for Misiorowski. The 24-year-old went six innings, striking out nine batters while allowing three earned runs on four hits.

Still, Sunday’s outing should only help Misiorowski’s status as the NL Cy Young favorite. Before Sunday’s start, he had a 11-5 record with a 1.63 ERA, a 0.73 WHIP and continues to lead the league in strikeouts as he now has 204 punch outs this season. 

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The conclusion of Sunday’s final round at LIV Golf New York turned into a showcase for the league’s biggest winners.

Torque GC Captain Joaquin Niemann extended his record to nine tournament wins with a clutch back-nine performance to shoot a 2-under 69 and win by three shots. 

“A great feeling to have, especially coming down the stretch on how tough this golf course is,” said the 27-year-old Chilean, the league’s youngest captain.

Bryson DeChambeau’s Crushers GC emerged as the team champions in a tight battle against Torque and Legion XIII to become the winningest team in league history with 11 regular-season tournament titles. “It’s just the truth – when golf courses get tougher, it seems like we shine more for some reason,” DeChambeau said.

And Legion XIII Captain Jon Rahm clinched his third consecutive season-long Individual Championship, a reflection of his dominance despite a rare off-form performance at the challenging Trump National Bedminster course. Rahm won twice this season and added four second-place finishes.

“It’s been a great year,” said Rahm after shooting a closing 5-over 76 that left him tied for 41st, his lowest finish in any of the 36 LIV Golf starts that he’s completed. “A little sour taste in my mouth because of how badly I played this week. But it’s been something to be proud of.”

Niemann was certainly the most impressive individual player at Bedminster, shooting 16 under to become the fifth wire-to-wire winner this season and winning for the second time in his last four starts.

Entering the day with a two-stroke lead, he was tied with Harold Varner III through 11 holes. But after Varner suffered his first bogey at the day at the 12th, Niemann followed with a 58-foot birdie putt at the 13th to re-establish his two-stroke advantage. Two holes later at the par-5 15th, Niemann’s second shot landed 26 feet from the pin, and he drilled the eagle putt to essentially seal the tournament.

“I was going to be pretty happy with two putts there, and it was quite a surprise to make that one,” said Niemann about his long putt on the 13th. “It’s one of those that I just go to be grateful about it and just go pick it up and run. It was a big moment.”

The Crushers won with a cumulative score of 6 over, the highest ever by a winning team in LIV Golf history. On Thursday, they opened with a score of 11 over and were tied for 11th but steadily worked their way up the leaderboard the rest of the week, relying on their veteran depth rather than the heroics of two-time U.S. Open winner DeChambeau, who ultimately tied for 38th.

Paul Casey was the team’s top performer, shooting 6 under for the week to tie for 6th and producing a clutch 3-under 68 on Sunday. Anirban Lahiri tied for 17th at 1 over and Charles Howell IIII tied for 28th at 4 over.

The Crushers entered the final round eight strokes back of Torque but shot a cumulative 1 under to Torque’s 9 over. Lahiri birdied his last hole to provide separation from Legion XIII, who tied for second with Torque.

“I think when you get to a Sunday afternoon and we get in with a sniff, I think all our tails go up,” said Lahiri, who joined the team four years ago in Boston to complete its current lineup. “Like, we really want to win pretty badly.”

As for Rahm, his threepeat as LIV Golf Individual Champion is a standard no other player in league history can match. He has 944.54 points this season, which is 218.34 points more than his nearest competitor, DeChambeau. With one regular-season tournament left at LIV Golf Indianapolis in two weeks, Rahm cannot be caught, since individual wins are worth 200 points.

In his first two seasons, Rahm had to win his season-long titles in the final regular-season tournament. Not this year.

“Most season-long races, you have to wait until the last event because the last even counts so much,” he said. “But it feels different this year. … This year to play as good as I did early on and have such a big lead that I can even enjoy not playing good this week and next week, it feels really good.”

TOP OF THE LEADERBOARDS

Individual Top 10

1 (-16) – Joaquin Niemann, Torque (64-65-70-69)

2 (-13) – Harold Varner, OKGC (69-67-65-70)

T3 (-9) – Lee Westwood, Majesticks (69-65-69-72); Scott Vincent, HyFlyers (69-68-72-66)

5 (-7) – Byeong Hun An, Korean (72-68-68-69)

T6 (-6) – Thomas Pieters, 4Aces (68-70-70-70); Tom McKibbin, Legion XIII (70-66-70-72); Paul Casey, Crushers (70-67-73-68)

T9 (-4) – Younghan Song, Korean (72-70-68-70); Branden Grace, Southern Guards (73-69-72-66)

Team Top 3

1 (+6) –Crushers GC (DeChambeau 76-74-70-71, Casey 70-67-73-68, Howell III 75-69-71-73, Lahiri 74-67-73-71; Rd. 4 score: -1)

T2 (+8) – Legion XIII (Rahm 72-71-73-76, Hatton 73-76-69-72, McKibbin 70-66-70-72, Surratt 76-69-68-71; Rd. 4 score: +7)

T2 (+8) – Torque GC (Niemann 64-65-70-69, Ancer 71-72-70-76, Ortiz 71-71-76-73, Munoz 74-71-76-75; Rd. 4 score: +9)

ROUND 4 NOTES

NIEMANN’S NINE WINS: Joaquin Niemann won twice in 2024, five times last season and now twice again this season. He now has as many wins as Bryson DeChambeau (five) and Jon Rahm (four) combined.

“It’s an honor to play with Bryson,” Niemann said. “Obviously he’s a major champion, two times. I was able to play with him on Thursday. Obviously didn’t play his best, but it’s always nice to be around him and try to learn from everyone. …

“I played with Jon almost every weekend for the last two years. How competitive he is, he definitely doesn’t like losing, and I’m the same way as well.

“It’s fun. For me it’s good motivation to win. I love winning. I love to come here and work my ass and try to have the best chance possible to win.”

PODIUM SPOTS STILL UP FOR GRABS: Even though Jon Rahm has clinched the season-long Individual Championship, the other two spots on the podium will be determined at LIV Golf Indianapolis in two weeks.

Bryson DeChambeau currently is in second place in the standings with 726.20 points, with Joaquin Niemann in third at 553.66 points. Lucas Herbert is fourth at 541.41 points and Tyrrell Hatton is fifth at 453.23 points.

Those four players will battle it out for the second and third place finishers behind Rahm.

DECHAMBEAU ON HIS WEEK: Bryson DeChambeau shot 76-74 in his first two rounds at Bedminster, taking him out of the running in his bid to remain close to Jon Rahm in the Individual Championship race. The Crushers captain shot 70-71 on the weekend but was still able to celebrate a team trophy.

“I might have been 6-, 7-, 8-over par going into the third round, but I’m like, I need to get this thing back to even par, not just for myself but for my team,” DeChambeau said.

“It’s a bit disappointing and honestly embarrassing to be that far over considering the skill set and the playability that I know I have. But you’ve got to fight for every shot. It’s a little different out here. From a team aspect, yeah, this is what sets LIV Golf apart for sure.”

LIV GOLF BESTS: HyFlyers GC’s Scott Vincent tied for third at 9 under, shooting a 5-under 66 that tied for the low round of the day. It’s the best career LIV Golf finish for Vincent, who is replacing Phil Mickelson in the HyFlyers lineup.

Majesticks GC Co-Captain Lee Westwood shared third place with Vincent, also equaling his best-ever LIV Golf finish. Westwood shot a final-round 72.

Korean Golf Club Captain Byeong Hun An was solo fifth at 7 under, shooting three rounds in the 60s after his opening 72. It’s the best finish for An in his first year on LIV Golf, and also the Korean team’s best individual result this season.

An’s teammate Younghan Song tied for ninth at 4 under, his best individual finish in his first full season.

HIGH TEAM SCORE: Crushers GC’s winning score of 6 over is the highest winning team score in LIV Golf history. The previous high was the 4 over shot by Ripper GC in winning in Miami in 2025.

STATS LEADERS

Round 4

Driving Distance: Matthew Wolff, 315.6-yard avg.

Longest Drive: Dean Burmester, 325.9 yards (15th hole). Official measured drives taken only on holes 15 and 18.

Driving Accuracy: Sergio Garcia, 100% (14 of 14)

Greens in Regulation: Richard T. Lee, 88.89% (16 of 18)

Scrambling: Scott Vincent (5 of 5), Laurie Canter (5 of 5), Brendan Steele (4 of 4), Paul Casey (3 of 3), Richard T. Lee (2 of 2), 100%

Fewest Putts: Peter Uihlein, 23

Bogey-free rounds: Scott Vincent (66), Richard T. Lee (67), Paul Casey (68)

CUMULATIVE

Driving Distance: Dean Burmester, 311.9-yard avg.

Driving Accuracy: Paul Casey, Yosuke Asaji, 82.14% (46 of 56)

Greens in Regulation: Joaquin Niemann, 77.78% (56 of 72)

Scrambling: Harold Varner III, 79.17% (19 of 24)

Fewest Putts: Harold Varner III, 105

Lowest Rounds: Rd. 1 – Joaquin Niemann (64). Rd. 2 – Richard Bland (64); Rd. 3 – Harold Varner III (65); Rd. 4 – Scott Vincent (66), Laurie Canter (66), Branden Grace (66)

This piece is courtesy of Mike McAllister in partnership with LIV Golf.

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There wasn’t any game action in the NFL this weekend, but plenty of noteworthy news broke throughout the league.

In the NFC East, one star offensive tackle made a big announcement about his future, while the Washington Commanders and Jayden Daniels received injury news that they didn’t want to hear. Elsewhere, the Buffalo Bills went public with their new alternate uniforms and their new home stadium during Saturday’s practice. 

That’s just a taste of what happened over the weekend. As we’re now less than one month away from the start of the regular season, here are things you should know that went down in the NFL this weekend. 

Philadelphia Eagles right tackle Lane Johnson indicated the 2026 NFL season will likely be his final year in the league over the weekend.

“As you get older, things change in your life. Your children get older. Your parents get older. Just to put this thing into perspective, it’s looking like this is probably potentially going to be my last year,” Philadelphia Eagles star right tackle Lane Johnson said about his NFL future at a press conference on Saturday. “Just because I am getting to that point of those priorities away from football are starting to merge. Not that I don’t enjoy this [football]. I love everything about this game and preparing for it, but that’s kind of where I’m at in my career.

Johnson is entering his 14th season, all spent with Philadelphia since being selected with the fourth overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft out of Oklahoma.

Throughout his career, Johnson has earned two All-Pro selections and six Pro Bowl honors while starting at right tackle during the team’s Super Bowl championship runs in 2017 and 2024. His 2025 season was cut short after 10 games due to a foot injury, but he did not allow a sack or a quarterback hit in those appearances.

Washington Commanders left tackle Laremy Tunsil reportedly suffered a torn triceps during pass-rush drills in practice on Saturday. 

The 32-year-old tackle is expected to undergo surgery and miss a significant portion of the 2026 regular season, marking his second major health setback since joining Washington.

Tunsil arrived in Washington prior to the 2025 season via a trade that sent a fourth-round draft pick to the Houston Texans, where he had previously earned five Pro Bowl selections. 

Before the start of last season, Tunsil signed a two-year extension with Washington. He is set to earn $34.35 million in 2026, which includes a $32.5 million signing bonus alongside a $1.495 million base salary, pushing his career earnings past $142.2 million. 

Washington is looking to bounce back from a dismal outing in 2025. The Commanders open the season against the Eagles, which is “America’s Game of the Week” on FOX for Week 1.

The Buffalo Bills hosted fans at the new Highmark Stadium on Saturday for their annual Blue & Red practice, marking the first time players took the field at the newest NFL stadium. 

Quarterback Josh Allen made his entrance wearing Buffalo’s new Nickel City alternate uniform, featuring an all-gray jersey and pants combination paired with a royal blue helmet. The helmet features the first blue shell in franchise history and a red streak from the team’s logo.

For Saturday’s practice, quarterbacks, punters, and kickers wore the full Nickel City alternate, while the rest of the offense wore blue practice jerseys and the defense wore white.

Although the Nickel City alternate design faced some public criticism, Allen defended the new uniforms during a July 29 interaction with reporters.

“I enjoy them. I think it’s very symbolic of what we want to do and what we want to be,” Allen said. “I understand people want the old jerseys and the old helmets and all that.

“But at some point, too, we are moving forward. We have to move forward and do something new — and that’s what we’re doing.”

And for Highmark Stadium, reporters at Saturday’s practice shared some visuals of how the inside of the stadium looks. 

Detroit Lions backup quarterback Teddy Bridgewater has decided to step away from professional football, informing the team of his retirement Sunday. 

Head coach Dan Campbell confirmed the news, marking the second time the 33-year-old quarterback has retired from the NFL. 

“I’ve known Teddy a long time and the human being is unbelievable. Certainly, the player, everything that he’s about. The type of teammate he is, the way he prepares … always played the game up here and had a huge heart,” head coach Dan Campbell told reporters. “He’s gonna be missed.”

Bridgewater previously retired following the 2023 season before taking over as head coach at Miami Northwestern Senior High School, where he guided the team to a state championship. 

He subsequently unretired late in the 2024 season to rejoin Detroit, then spent the 2025 campaign with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as Baker Mayfield’s backup. Bridgewater re-signed with the Lions in March.

In response to Bridgewater being placed on the reserve/retired list, the Lions agreed to terms with veteran quarterback Joshua Dobbs on a one-year contract to serve as the primary backup behind starter Jared Goff, NFL Network reported. Dobbs backed up Drake Maye with the New England Patriots last season, but saw very little action. He’s 3-12 all-time in 15 career starts.

 

• Chicago Bears wide receiver Luther Burden III avoided a major injury after tests confirmed a groin strain suffered during practice, ESPN reported. Burden is expected to miss time during the preseason, but the Bears did not disclose the nature of Burden’s injury Saturday.
• New Orleans Saints backup offensive guard Dillon Radunz will miss the entire 2026 season after suffering a torn ACL during practice on Saturday, according to ESPN.
• Former Cowboys CB Trevon Diggs tried out this weekend for the Detroit Lions, ESPN reported. The 2021 First-Team All-Pro selection is seeking a new landing spot after spending five seasons in Dallas and a brief stint with the Green Bay Packers in 2025.

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Ty Gibbs celebrated his victory at Iowa Speedway in a unique way. 

He helped start the digging up of the track’s surface as it prepares to undergo a repave.

Gibbs and some others might wish they wouldn’t repave the track. And that’s because Gibbs showed that, if a driver could get a handle on the seventh-eighth-mile oval, it’s possible to pass. 

For Gibbs, a bad pit stop sent him to near the rear of the field early in the race. But he was still able to work his way to the front and hold off Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Christopher Bell.

Here are my takeaways after Gibbs earned his second career victory:

1. Two Times The Charm

Ty Gibbs raced into Victory Lane at Iowa for his second win of the season.

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The first career victory for Gibbs at Bristol earlier this year will be hard to top.

But the second victory is important and Gibbs finally backed up that win from early in the year with the Iowa triumph. It took Gibbs 131 races to earn his first Cup victory. 

This one came just 15 races later.

“It just took us a little bit to figure out what I needed and what I needed in the team, and now we got it,” Gibbs said in his post-race news conference.

2. The Bell Tolls Second

Christopher Bell’s second-place streak continues.

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Christopher Bell finished second. Tell me where you’ve heard that before.

Bell now has seven second-place finishes this year, including four of the last five races. And all that without a win. And this one was frustrating, even though he moved from 10th to sixth in the standings.

“This is what you call a bad second-place finish for sure,” Bell said in his USA Sports interview after the race. “I don’t know what else to say.

“Ty did a really good job. He did a great job managing the race. I could tell that he was slipping and sliding around. … He just didn’t make a mistake.”

3. Reddick, Hendrick Woes Continue

When will Reddick right the ship?

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Tyler Reddick crashed on the fourth lap of the race and suffered his fourth finish of 30th or worse in the last six races. He took out Erik Jones, who is on the bubble to make The Chase, along the way.

“For us to take ourselves out is one thing, but to take out a fellow Toyota teammate when they are racing for The Chase pretty much ended their day as well. It is the type of stuff you don’t do to yourself, and you don’t do to a teammate,” Reddick said outside the medical center.

Reddick isn’t the only driver with recent woes. 

Chase Elliott wrecked in practice and had to overcome a bad pit stop to finish 15th for his ninth consecutive finish outside the top 10. His teammate Kyle Larson was 33rd after a wreck that also damaged Alex Bowman (34th).

Larson has finished 30th or worse in four of the last five races.

4. Josh Berry Surging 

Josh Berry is finally finding his footing.

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Josh Berry, who already knows he is out of a ride at Wood Brothers Racing after this year (Jesse Love will replace him), finished fourth at Iowa. That was following his seventh-place finish at Indianapolis.

Those were the type of finishes Berry — who is 30th in the standings — had been hoping for all along. 

“We’ve just got to keep pushing,” Berry said in his USA Sports interview after the race. “I think we’ve got a lot of good tracks coming up.”

4 ½. What’s Next: Richmond

The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Richmond, a relatively flat 0.75-mile oval, for a Saturday night race. It is the only visit to Richmond for the series this year.

Austin Dillon has won the previous two races at Richmond. He captured the victory in 2024 but with controversy after having contact with Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin in the final turns. 

He won in 2025 with no drama.

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One week after the MLB Trade Deadline, one key contender will show off its new-look lineup on national TV.

The National League is still chasing the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Milwaukee Brewers will begin the week with the best record in baseball, but Los Angeles won the deadline by adding two-time Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal at the trade deadline.

The Philadelphia Phillies, who are in action on FS1 against the St. Louis Cardinals on Monday, did their part to try to keep up. Philly has rearranged its lineup and defensive alignment to accommodate second baseman Luis Arraez, who has slotted in as the Phillies’ cleanup hitter so far.

Will it make a difference, though? Our MLB writers break down some of the biggest questions in the NL, as well as those surrounding the teams facing off in St. Louis on Monday night.

1. What’s your biggest takeaway one week after the Trade Deadline?

Deesha Thosar: Even all these days later, with Tarik Skubal’s first start as a Dodger done and dusted, it remains incredible that the reigning back-to-back AL Cy Young Award winner was traded to the reigning back-to-back champions. FanGraphs increased Los Angeles’ chance of winning the World Series by 6% after the deal was completed. 

It was an unprecedented move that changed the landscape leading up to the stretch run – as well as the ongoing labor battle between the league and the players’ union.

Amid all the fury and objection to the Dodgers firing up the Death Star, they’ve gone 3-7 in their last 10 games. Los Angeles finally won on Sunday, snapping a seven-game losing streak. Edwin Diaz looks lost. The pitching is actually a problem. The offense has been sliding over the last month. 

And yet, we still expect them to win the NL pennant, right? It’s just that now, the Skubal trade looks more like a necessity than it did a week ago. 

Rowan Kavner: Good for Boston for pushing the chips in, despite the risk involved. It’s certainly possible (and perhaps even likely, given the prospects that switched hands) that we look back at the trade that saw catcher Adley Rutschman go from Baltimore to Boston a few years from now and wonder how in the world Baltimore managed to get that kind of return. But if Rutschman ends up being the difference in the Red Sox winning a World Series championship this year, isn’t that worth it?

There’s something to be said about a front office demonstrating to its players how much it believes in a team at the deadline. The trade for Rutschman — who just started his rehab assignment by reaching base three times on Saturday — is evidence of that and should help the Red Sox continue building on their momentum.

Adley Rutschman was a surprise addition on deadline day for the Red Sox. (Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images) –>

2. What team is best-equipped to beat the Dodgers?

Thosar: In the NL, I’ll go with the Phillies. If we’re talking about the World Series matchup, I’ll go with the Yankees. My reasoning for both of these picks comes down to pitching. 

Philly has Zack Wheeler, Cristopher Sanchez, and Jesus Luzardo as a formidable top three in its starting rotation. New York already has Gerrit Cole, Cam Schlittler and Max Fried going strong, and Carlos Rodon is working his way back to the rotation. These are October-ready staffs that other contenders, including the Dodgers, who don’t know when Shohei Ohtani will pitch again, should be envious of, and they’re all arms that can beat anybody.

Kavner: The Phillies (despite how they’re playing lately) and Cubs (who just swept the Dodgers in Chicago) stand out most to me as the biggest threat to the Dodgers’ three-peat, if either can get the Dodgers in a short series when the depth of L.A.’s rotation won’t be as big of a factor and more randomness can come into play.

If I had to choose one, I guess I’d lean toward Philadelphia based on what we saw last October. That NLDS was a lot closer than the Dodgers’ 3-1 series victory might have indicated. Having starting pitchers Cristopher Sánchez, Zack Wheeler and Jesús Luzardo available in a short series gives them a chance against anybody, and the addition of Luis Arraez adds an important element to an offense that has struggled to reach base consistently. 

Zack Wheeler headlines a formidable Phillies rotation. (Jeff Dean/Getty Images) –>

The problem, of course, is that the Phillies would likely have to get through a wild-card round, meaning they wouldn’t be able to set their rotation up in an ideal fashion, and the drop-off is steep after their top three arms. But if the Phillies could steal a game in which Sánchez, Wheeler or Luzardo aren’t pitching, they’d at least give themselves a chance at an upset. But they have to get into the playoffs first.

I think the Cubs — with an MVP contender in center fielder PeteCrow-Armstrong plus lineup depth behind him, excellent defense and now pitching reinforcements at the deadline — will have a better shot at knocking off the Dodgers than the Brewers. 

As we saw in last year’s NLCS, Milwaukee lacked the star power to contend on the biggest stage against L.A. And even with Cy Young favorite Jacob Misiorowski reaching an entirely different level this year, I don’t see that changing for a team that ranks last in MLB in home runs despite its continued regular season dominance.

3. The Phillies went out of their way to accommodate Luis Arraez at the trade deadline. Did they do enough to establish themselves as a legitimate threat to Los Angeles?

Thosar: The Phillies are definitely a threat to the Dodgers on paper now, but they have to actually show it. 

I like the impact Arraez already has had on the Phillies clubhouse. He’s bringing a new competitive energy that seemed to be missing from a run-it-back Phillies roster that looked stale at times. 

But the defensive re-alignments are concerning in a short playoff series, where we’ve seen the Dodgers use it to their advantage. Los Angeles exploited the Yankees’ issues with poor fundamentals in the 2024 Fall Classic, and there’s reason to believe the Dodgers will again wait for a team with brutal defensive metrics, like the Phillies, to step on their own feet.

Kavner: If they get into October, they will be among the Dodgers’ biggest threats. Obviously, they have to play better baseball down the stretch for that to happen. They entered Sunday in one of the final wild-card spots, just a game ahead of the Padres, with an offense that ranks 28th in OBP and 23rd in OPS, plus a bullpen that ranks 24th in ERA. Their deadline additions should help in both facets.

Arraez is already providing the offensive boost that made him such an attractive piece that the Phillies were willing to rearrange their entire defense to accommodate his addition. And yet, their play lately has been … rather inauspicious. The depth of their lineup is still suspect even after the Arraez trade; they didn’t add a depth starter; and deadline bullpen additions Brooks Raley and Caleb Kilian, who is already hurt, have gotten off to shaky starts.

Still, I think the acquisitions will be beneficial moves. Kyle Schwarber’s August power outage hasn’t helped matters, but Sunday was a step in the right direction.

4. Are the Cardinals close to competing in the NL Central as early as 2027?

Thosar: Realistically, it looks more like 2027 will be a bridge year for the Cardinals, with their true contention window lining up for 2028. We could see St. Louis become highly competitive by late 2027, particularly if they give their younger prospects some runway down the stretch. 

The rest of the NL Central is just too far ahead of the Cardinals this year and next to suggest they can truly capture the division title. That gap can always be closed by health, which plays a huge factor in any division race, and impending offseason moves. But I don’t see the Cardinals getting truly aggressive until 2028.

Kavner: Cardinals president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom has done a terrific job rebuilding the farm system, but the Brewers aren’t going anywhere. And while the Cubs have a ton of impending free agents, their nucleus of Crow-Armstrong, shortstop Dansby Swanson, third baseman Alex Bregman, second baseman Nico Hoerner and first baseman Michael Busch remains strong. 

So, I’m not counting on the Cardinals to contend for the NL Central next year unless they make some significant pitching additions in free agency. But they could absolutely be a wild-card team next season, and they’re making the right strides toward contending in the near future. We’ll have to see how some of the arms on the farm continue to develop.

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Portland International Raceway (Portland, Ore.) — Alex Palou knew the race on Sunday was pivotal in his quest for a fourth consecutive INDYCAR title and fifth overall.

He certainly wouldn’t lose the title at Portland, but he for sure could squash the hopes of many.

The Chip Ganassi driver did just that.

Palou led 60 of the final 80 laps. The 20 he didn’t lead were the result of various pit strategies — to increase his points lead from 83 points over David Malukas to 110 over Kyle Kirkwood (fifth) and 118 over Malukas (12th). 

Five races remain in the 2026 season.

“It would take an immense amount of misfortune by them to not close out the championship and actually fight for it at the end and that’s just to fight for it,” Kirkwood told me after the race. “They’re doing everything right. … They’re doing a hell of a job, but they’re making our lives hell.

“We’re just going to keep doing what we can do.”

Here are my takeaways:

1. Palou Punishing Opponents

Alex Palou’s win at Portland all but ensures he will win his fifth INDYCAR title.

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With two new tracks in the next two weeks at Markham (Ontario, Canada) and Washington, D.C., Palou knew the race Sunday was pivotal.

A win is worth 10 more points than a second-place finish.

So Palou leaves Portland feeling really good.

“I’m more comfortable than when we came here,” Palou said in his post-race news conference. “This was one of those weekends where we wanted to do good.

“We want to do good every single weekend. But we don’t know what’s going to happen at Markham. New track for everyone, new track for me. We don’t know what’s going to happen at D.C. There’s still a lot of points to play. It was important to maximize.”

2. Kirkwood Happy With Fifth

Kyle Kirkwood feels generally good about his fifth-place finish at Portland.

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Kirkwood might have lost much sight of Palou in the championship battle. But overall, the Andretti Global driver was happy with fifth — considering he had finished 20th a year ago at Portland.

“I’m going to take that,” Kirkwood told me. “I’m not happy to see Palou win. I don’t think anybody is except for himself and his crew. … But I’m happy with fifth.

“We finished 20th here and that was on merit with no issues. Today, we had issues. We had a tire going down, we had to pit earlier than what we wanted to. We had a couple of little hiccups in pit lane and we still salvaged a fifth.”

3. Power’s Pit-Road Miscue

Will Power’s huge miscue impacted his day.

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Will Power didn’t hear his team call him to pit, so he pitted a lap later than the team wanted for his final pit stop. On that last lap before pitting, he lost a little bit of time trying to pass the lapped car of Sting Ray Robb.

“I just didn’t hear [the team instructions] clear enough,” Power said in his post-race news conference. “Normally the strategists will repeat it multiple times. I never heard it again.

“Heard in [Turn] 10. I was waiting, waiting [to hear again]. Was that a call or not? I think I missed a pit call there. … [And then] I absolutely got held up massively.”

Both Power and second-place Felix Rosenqvist bemoaned the way the lapped cars race, although they indicated it wasn’t what allowed Palou to win.

4. VeeKay Finishes Fourth Again

Rinus VeeKay’s good pace wasn’t enough to get him on the podium.

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Rinus VeeKay finished fourth for the third time in the last five races. He made the Fast Six in qualifying, just as he did at Mid-Ohio, the most recent road-course race before Portland.

The Juncos Hollinger Racing driver is showing that the speed in qualifying is translating into the race.

“INDYCAR has become a track-position series, especially with the hybrid” VeeKay told me and other reporters after the race. “It was especially tough with Kyle Kirkwood on [soft tires] there at the start of the race, really breathing down my neck.

“I had really good pace, but it wasn’t enough to move much further forward.”

4 ½. What’s Next: Markham

With recent years of building construction in the area by the Toronto Exposition Center for the World Cup, INDYCAR ended up moving its Toronto race to the suburb of Markham.

The new home for INDYCAR in Ontario is a 2.19-mile, 12-turn street course. The track should be nice compared to other street courses as the city has repaved the streets of the circuit.

Source

The start of every college football season brings plenty of uncertainty. However, ahead of the 2026 college football season, there’s one thing I’m certain about: who should be considered the No. 1 team in the nation. 

As this college football offseason has provided us with plenty of drama, there’s one Big Ten team that’s built an elite roster across the board. Which team is it?

Let’s take a deep dive into my preseason top 25. 

25.

How often do you see a team that went 1-11 start out in a preseason top 25? Welcome to the new modern age of college football, which I think is better than how the sport used to be. 

There was so much turnover at Oklahoma State this offseason. Eric Morris comes in as head coach after leading North Texas to the No. 1 scoring offense in the country a year ago. Morris has worked with a who’s who of quality offensive players in college football — Baker Mayfield, Patrick Mahomes, Cam Ward, among others. You know he’s going to get the best out of his quarterback, and he did a year ago with Drew Mestemaker.

And guess what? Mestemaker followed him to Oklahoma State, and I love this for the Cowboys. This is a completely different team. They have 55 transfers come in, with 17 of them arriving from North Texas. 

24.

I’m a big fan of the Cats and Brent Brennan, now entering his third year as Arizona’s head coach. But first-team All-Big 12 quarterback Noah Fafita returning is huge. He’s got great experience as he enters his fourth season as a starter.

The big question for me with Arizona, though, is that it has to replace three All-Big 12 players in the secondary. Arizona has some tough road games in conference as well, playing at BYU, Texas Tech and Kansas State. 

23.

Listen, I think Tennessee can go either way here. It has a good roster. Josh Heupel has four straight top-15 recruiting classes, and his offenses can produce. 

The big question for me is the inexperience at quarterback, particularly in that system. Can you step in and produce right away? Whoever does start will have zero career starts in college football. Redshirt freshman George MacIntyre and five-star true freshman Faizon Brandon are competing for the job. Luckily, the Vols have talent at running back and wide receiver between All-SEC DeSean Bishop and Braylon Staley. But the quarterback has to make post-snap decisions down the field with that deep choice system. 

They’ve got a lot of these big games at home, and historically, they’ve won a lot of their big games at home. Three of their four toughest games are at home, as they host Texas, Alabama and LSU. This is a team that might make some noise in the SEC. 

Joel Klatt’s Favorite Over/Under Win Total Bets for the 2026 Season

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22.

It doesn’t matter what Iowa brings back. It doesn’t matter if the Hawkeyes don’t have a quarterback. They still have head coach Kirk Ferentz and defensive coordinator Sean Parker. It’s not a quarterback-centric program. They’re going to continue to do the same things: play fundamentally sound football, be physical, stop the run and run the ball well.

Iowa does have to replace some of the guys who helped it win the Joe Moore Award for the nation’s best offensive line a year ago. A lot of this season will come down to whether Iowa can develop its offensive line quickly enough. If it does, then Iowa will have something here — and I trust the infrastructure. 

21.

I don’t feel great about this ranking, to be honest with you. But Willie Fritz won 10 games in his second season as Houston’s head coach, and it has its quarterback back, Conner Weigman, after a good first year with the program. There were some good transfer portal adds for Houston on the offensive side of the ball, too. 

The one thing that I’m worried about is Houston’s record in close games last year. It went 6-1 in one-score games in 2025, and teams typically regress to the mean after such a year. Maybe with an experienced quarterback, though, Houston will be able to turn those one-score victories in multiple-score wins? 

20.

It was a messy start to the offseason, but maybe all is well in Washington? Demond Williams is back at quarterback — remember the whole dilemma with him this offseason? That’s my biggest question with the Huskies, honestly. Williams is a heck of a player, averaging 332 total yards in the Huskies’ nine wins last year.

Head coach Jedd Fisch’s teams get better every single year, going 9-4 in Year 2. They had a solid recruiting class, but the Huskies still have to replace running back Jonah Coleman and wide receiver Denzel Boston. Dezmen Roebuck could help potentially fill in the void left by Boston following his strong freshman year. 

Demond Williams saga comes to a close as he returns to Washington

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19.

I like Louisville and head coach Jeff Brohm a lot. The Cardinals have won nine games in three straight seasons. We’ll see how Ohio State transfer Lincoln Kienholz does at quarterback, but he’s got a strong running back returning in Isaac Brown, who is an absolute star. The Cardinals also have a top-15 portal class to help fill in some gaps to compete in a conference that I don’t think is overly difficult.

Louisville has a game early in the season against SMU that I think is pivotal in the ACC title race. Miami’s the best team in the ACC, but that game might determine who the Hurricanes could face in the conference title game. 

18.

That Louisville-SMU game in Week 3 is why I have these two teams ranked back-to-back. 

SMU has been really successful under Rhett Lashlee, and the Mustangs have a really experienced quarterback in Kevin Jennings. If he doesn’t turn the ball over, he’s a really dynamic quarterback. Jennings has helped SMU reach the playoff in his career and led the Mustangs to an upset over Miami last season. 

17.

I toyed around with placing Penn State higher in my rankings because it hit the schedule lottery. But the turnover in Happy Valley this offseason was really impressive.

Matt Campbell is a hell of a football coach, and he brought, well, everybody with him at Iowa State over to Penn State. The most important person Campbell brought over was Rocco Becht, the most experienced quarterback in college football. He’s made 39 career starts, and he’ll continue to work with Taylor Mouser, who was the offensive coordinator at Iowa State. Becht will also be handing the ball off to running back Carson Hansen, who was second-team All-Big 12 a year ago. 

Penn State in Joel Klatt’s preseason top 25 Joel Klatt Show

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Penn State also made a great defensive coordinator hire in D’Anton Lynn, and it won the schedule lottery. It has a tough game at Michigan and it hosts USC, but it avoids Ohio State, Indiana and Oregon. This could be a big year for Penn State. 

16.

This is the start of the next tier in my top 25. Honestly, you could rank these next six teams in any order.  

I love Ole Miss’ backfield. Quarterback Trinidad Chambliss is fantastic. His leadership was really tremendous during the College Football Playoff, when Lane Kiffin bailed on them. The Rebels also brought in the No. 2 transfer portal class, so there’ll be some talent around Chambliss.

Still, Kiffin was a force of nature, especially on the offensive side during his Ole Miss tenure. Can the Rebels replicate that? Pete Golding did a wonderful job as their head coach during the CFP, but they’ve got a tough schedule ahead of them this year. They’ve got to open the season against Louisville. They host LSU in Week 3. They face Florida, Oklahoma and Texas on the road, while they host Georgia later in the year. 

So, with replacing Kiffin and the tough schedule, Ole Miss is at the bottom of this tier. 

15.

Bama fans, you know what to do. You think I hate Alabama, but I don’t. 

This is viewing this team through regular lenses and not Crimson lenses. I don’t love the trajectory of this program right now, even though they made the playoff a year ago. They got blown out by Georgia and Indiana. Indiana, particularly, put a physical beatdown on Alabama in that Rose Bowl. 

Here’s what I’m concerned about for Bama: It’s going to have a brand new quarterback and I don’t know where the run game is to help whoever the starting quarterback will be. That was the issue for Alabama last season, as it couldn’t support an elite quarterback in Ty Simpson with a run game. 

USC & Alabama in Joel Klatt’s stock watch for 2026

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What do I like about Alabama? I love their roster. Kalen DeBoer has recruited really well at Alabama. I love the defense, and the secondary should be one of the best in the country. But Alabama also lost a bunch of defensive linemen in the portal, raising my concerns about the Tide’s play along the line of scrimmage. The offensive line is also a huge question mark. 

14.

Keeping head coach Kalani Sitake was a huge win for BYU after it proved it could handle just about everyone in the Big 12, outside of Texas Tech. The Cougars are also returning their quarterback, Bear Bachmaier, and running back LJ Martin, the reigning Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year. That’s big for a BYU program that’s looking to level up. 

BYU did lose defensive coordinator Jay Hill to Michigan, but it should still be good on that side of the ball. I’m a big fan of Sitake and this BYU team. 

13.

Mike Elko has done a great job as Texas A&M’s head coach, and I’m optimistic about the Aggies because of him.

I think quarterback Marcel Reed can improve. Reed’s next step is being more consistent and not turning the ball over against top competition. We saw him go through some lulls and play great in the same game at times, but the last we saw of Reed was in the CFP loss to Miami. I think he can improve, and he’ll have wide receiver Mario Craver back, which is good. 

The one thing Texas A&M’s defense will have to get better at is stopping the run. What were the Aggies defensively against the run when you take away their sack yardage? 127th. Can Texas A&M get a road win at either LSU or Alabama? If it does, there’s a good chance the Aggies enter November at 7-1.

12.

This is Lincoln Riley’s best team at USC. The Trojans are a real team at the line of scrimmage. This is no longer smoke and mirrors and wondering if Caleb Williams can carry the team back when he was their quarterback. 

I’m not concerned about who the quarterback will be in Riley’s offense, as they almost always prove to be a Heisman contender. Jayden Maiava is back behind center, and he’ll have two impressive running backs alongside him (Waymond Jordan, King Miller).

The defensive line at USC looks legit. It had the No. 1 recruiting class in the country as well, which could be great for USC’s depth. 

So, why isn’t USC in the top 10? Its schedule is brutal. It comes down to this: If you think USC has to go 10-2, then it likely has to split the games at home against Ohio State and Oregon. If not, then you have to think that this could be the first 9-3 team to make the CFP if it’s able to win at Penn State or Washington. Eventually, a 9-3 team is going to get into the playoff. Will it be USC? It could be. 

11.

Yes, I know Texas Tech lost quarterback Brendan Sorsby after his gambling saga. But this is still a very talented Red Raiders’ roster and Texas Tech is clearly the best team in the Big 12. Quarterback Will Hammond is good and got some experience last season, too. He’s returning from an ACL injury, but from what I’ve heard, Hammond’s expected to be ready to play early in the season. 

Can Texas Tech replace Romello Height and David Bailey along the edge and Jacob Rodriguez at linebacker? The Red Raiders got some really good players because of their willingness to spend. You might not have heard of them, but linebacker Austin Romaine had over 160 tackles at Kansas State the last two years. They got a pair of edge rushers that you might not have heard of (Trey White, San Diego State; Adam Trick, Miami of Ohio) who had a combined 15 sacks last season. 

The schedule sets up for them to go either 11-1 or 12-0. Will they be able to level up against the elite teams? That’s the big question for them. 

10.

I probably have Michigan ranked higher than most, and I think the Wolverines are the second-biggest wild card in college football this season. 

But for a long time I said “death, taxes and Utah football.” Well, I should really say: “death, taxes and Kyle Whittingham.” I believe in Whittingham’s structure and fundamental traits to make Michigan a great football team. Whittingham’s blueprint for success also matches the blueprint Michigan used to win the national title in 2023. Whittingham also brought talented coaches with him, including former Utah offensive coordinator Jason Beck and Utah offensive line coach Jim Harding.  

Michigan in Joel Klatt’s preseason top 25 Joel Klatt Show

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Michigan was a young team last year, particularly on the offensive side of the ball. The Wolverines had six freshmen playing for them on offense in big moments late in the year, including quarterback Bryce Underwood. Can Underwood develop? He has to improve his total touchdown-to-interception ratio (17-11). But Beck has a track record of getting the most out of athletic quarterbacks, helping Devon Dampier become one of the most dangerous quarterbacks in the nation.

9.

John Mateer is healthy, and when Mateer is healthy, he’s one of the better players in the country. The problem with Oklahoma last year was that it couldn’t run the football, and when you can’t run the football, you can’t protect your quarterback. Mateer can’t do everything, as he physically broke down after carrying Oklahoma’s offense in the opening weeks of the season.

This is a team that plays great defense under Brent Venables. That was one of the best defenses in college football, but the offense was woefully short of that standard due to the Sooners’ inability to run the football. If I’m an OU fan, I’m wondering if we can finally marry an elite defensive unit with an offense that can be at least OK. 

8.

This is the biggest wild card in the country. LSU could climb into the top three. It could also fall out of the top 25. I think the Lane Kiffin experience will work, but who knows? LSU brought in the No. 1 transfer portal class in the country, but it also had the No. 1 transfer portal class in the country last year and it couldn’t play its way offensively out of a wet paper bag. 

Kiffin should fix the offense, though. He averages over 500 yards of offense just falling out of bed. That’s what he does. He brought in Sam Leavitt, a heck of a quarterback out of Arizona State. Kiffin also had a history of rebuilding through the portal at Ole Miss, and it worked out for him there. 

How much pressure is on Lane Kiffin in his first year at LSU? Joel Klatt Show

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Who knows what Kiffin is going to say or do; he’s an absolute loose cannon. He left a playoff team before the playoff. But if LSU fixes the offense, the Tigers should be good. Those matchups against Clemson, Ole Miss and Texas A&M early in the year could determine how Year 1 goes for Kiffin, though.  

7.

You could honestly talk me into any order between No. 2 and No. 7. We are splitting hairs here, so I don’t want to hear it. 

Texas has things it needs to fix, and we can’t assume that everything will be fixed until we see it. The biggest area the Longhorns needed to fix was the offensive line and running the football. Going back to his time at Washington, Steve Sarkisian’s best teams are effective at running the football. 

Texas went into those areas, spent and upgraded in the transfer portal. It got players like Auburn wide receiver Cam Coleman, along with running backs Hollywood Smothers and Raleek Brown. Arch Manning had a tough start to the year last year. However, if you think he’s bad and is Texas’ problem, you don’t know ball. Manning was a top-three quarterback in the back half of last year, and the people around him were falling short of expectations. 

The entire question for me about Texas is not about Manning, and if your question is about Manning, you don’t know what you’re looking at. 

6.

Georgia’s still the class of the SEC. The roster is great. Kirby Smart is a great coach. You can’t kill Georgia, either, because quarterback Gunnar Stockton is a gamer who is tough as nails and absolutely tough as nails. He’s an elite fourth-quarter quarterback. 

If Stockton had some better options to throw to in the passing game, maybe the Bulldogs would have made their way into the top five. The defense should be elite again. 

But here’s the problem: Georgia hasn’t played at the same level as the teams in the top five. Can Georgia score at the level that some of the top teams in the nation can? I’m not sure. 

5.

Candidly, this might be too low. 

Curt Cignetti was the best head coach in the country last year, and he kept his coordinators. I know the Hoosiers lost a lot and don’t have Fernando Mendoza. However, Josh Hoover is the best of the three quarterbacks Cignetti has had at Indiana based on what they were at their previous school. Hoover is probably going to work. He’s going to have two best friends he can rely on: a running game and a defense, as Cignetti put it. 

And while Hoover has struggled with interceptions, I trust that Cignetti can coach his quarterbacks. Indiana’s QBs had the lowest interception percentage in the country during the first two years under Cignetti and OC Mike Shanahan. This should be a run-first team with a great offensive line and talent at wide receiver after landing Michigan State wide receiver Nick Marsh.

 I’m going to trust Cignetti. The schedule’s a bit tougher than it has been during Cignetti’s time there, but Indiana is an elite program. 

4.

Last year was a breakthrough for Miami, getting all the way to the national championship game. Mario Cristobal has recruited at a high level and built great offensive and defensive lines.

The Canes will have to replace a good bit of talent in the trenches from this past season. But remember when Alabama and Georgia got the benefit of the doubt when they lost five-star players, particularly in the trenches? Cristobal and Miami have earned that benefit of the doubt as they have five former five-star players on the defensive line. 

Former Duke quarterback Darian Mensah, wide receiver Malachi Toney and running back Mark Fletcher are a talented group to complement that. Miami still has to clean up some of the blunders it had in close losses last year, but it’s heading in the right direction. 

3.

This team is coming into this season about the opposite of what it was a year ago. Ohio State will have one of the best offenses in the country, with quarterback Julian Sayin, wide receiver Jeremiah Smith (the best player in college football) and several other starters on that unit returning. 

So, the question is if the Buckeyes can replace the defensive stars that were selected in the first round of the NFL Draft. They have to replace eight starters on that side of the ball as they were the No. 1 defense in the nation. 

Ohio State in Joel Klatt’s preseason top 25 Joel Klatt Show

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But as I mentioned with Miami, don’t we have to give Ohio State the benefit of the doubt that it can replace those stars? Ryan Day has done it plenty of times before during his tenure as Ohio State’s head coach, recruiting at a high level consistently. 

This is an elite program that will be ranked in the top four for the foreseeable future. 

2.

I love Notre Dame, and this team is angry. Notre Dame has 15 returning starters, and I love that. That’s the MO for success in college football these days.  

Marcus Freeman has elevated this program during his time as head coach. He’s recruited at an elite level, and this team is fantastic everywhere — except for maybe running back, where the Fighting Irish lost two first-round picks. They bring back quarterback CJ Carr and cornerback Leonard Moore, who were in the top three of my top 10 players in college football list last week. 

Wide receiver Jaden Greathouse is back after missing a bunch of games last season and their offensive line could be the best in the nation. So, whoever replaces Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price will do so behind a monstrous front. That defense is going to be absolutely sick. 

1.

Oregon is the clear frontrunner, and I don’t know why there isn’t more of a consensus that the Ducks aren’t the No. 1 team in the nation. 

Every team in the country has a question on their roster, except for Oregon. The only question is if Oregon can eventually get over the hump. But let’s be real, this team has only lost three games over the last two years — all to that season’s eventual national champion. We don’t think the Ducks aren’t right there?

You’ve got an experienced and elite quarterback with great talent around Dante Moore. Running backs? They’re back. Offensive line? Strong. Wideouts? Great. Tight end? Probably the best in the country. Defense? Elite, with probably the best defensive line in the country. Several players along the defensive line should be in the NFL.  

Oregon in Joel Klatt’s preseason top 25 Joel Klatt Show

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Dan Lanning has built a roster that’s the best roster in college football. There’s no starting 22 that rivals Oregon’s. The only question we have about Oregon is whether it performs in the biggest games at the end. I think Oregon will get better from last year’s CFP loss to Indiana. 

Dan, I know you asked me not to do this, but your team is the best in the nation. 

Honorable mentions: UCLA, Utah, Missouri, Clemson, Cal, Boise State 

Source

It’s almost impossible to accurately wager on the NFL preseason, considering fans have no idea which players will take the field.

But that doesn’t mean it’s not worth a try.

Here are the lines for every preseason Week 1 matchup at DraftKings Sportsbook as of Aug. 10. 

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THURSDAY, AUG. 13

Packers @ Steelers

Spread: Steelers -1.5
Moneyline: Steelers -130, Packers +110
O/U: 36.5

Lions @ Bengals

Spread: Bengals -7
Moneyline: Bengals -285, Lions +230
O/U: 37.5

Colts @ Patriots

Spread: Patriots -1.5
Moneyline: Patriots -125, Colts +105
O/U: 38.5

Chargers @ Texans

Spread: Texans -1.5
Moneyline: Texans -142, Chargers +120
O/U: 37.5

Cardinals @ Raiders

Spread: Raiders -2.5
Moneyline: Raiders -135, Cardinals +114
O/U: 40.5

Titans @ 49ers

Spread: Titans -3
Moneyline: Titans -148, 49ers +124 
O/U: 37.5

FRIDAY, AUG. 14

Dolphins @ Commanders 

Spread: Dolphins -3
Moneyline: Dolphins -162, Commanders +136
O/U: 36.5

Buccaneers @ Jets

Spread: Jets -1.5
Moneyline: Jets -122, Buccaneers +102
O/U: 35.5

Broncos @ Falcons

Spread: Broncos -5.5
Moneyline: Broncos -238, Falcons +195
O/U: 38.5

SATURDAY, AUG. 15

Panthers @ Bills

Spread: Panthers -1.5
Moneyline: Panthers -142, Bills +120
O/U: 38.5

Vikings @ Giants 

Spread: Vikings -3
Moneyline: Vikings -162, Giants +136
O/U: 39.5

Browns @ Bears

Spread: Bears -1.5
Moneyline: Bears -118, Browns -102
O/U: 38.5

Jaguars @ Saints

Spread: Saints -1.5
Moneyline: Saints -142, Jaguars +120
O/U: 38.5

Rams @ Chiefs

Spread: Chiefs -1.5
Moneyline: Chiefs -135, Rams +114
O/U: 38.5

Eagles @ Ravens

Spread: Eagles -2.5
Moneyline: Eagles -142, Ravens +120
O/U: 36.5

Cowboys @ Seahawks

Spread: Seahawks -2.5
Moneyline: Seahawks -148, Cowboys +124
O/U: 37.5

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The Braves avoided being swept, thanks to a strong arm and a timely bat. A pair of Schwarbombs, a five-hit game and some great defense by a rookie. Sunday’s MLB action provided all that and much more.

Here are all the best moments from last night in Major League Baseball:

Acuña’s Arm, Harris’ Bat Sink Yankees

This weekend brought us a matchup between heavyweights, with the Yankees — seven games up for the top AL wild-card — facing off against the Braves, the NL East leaders and holders of the second-best record in the National League. Atlanta lost the first two games of the series to New York, but on Sunday, the Braves avoided a series sweep with a win in extras.

This play would be notable regardless of the final score, but with the Braves winning this in extras, it became that much more important. Right fielder Ronald Acuña Jr. didn’t throw a runner out here, but that’s the point — simply being Ronald Acuña Jr. kept anyone from even attempting to score.

In the next inning, first baseman Matt Olson — playing in his 900th game in a row — put Atlanta up 1-0 with his 34th homer of the season.

In the bottom of the eighth, however, New York scored when center fielder Trent Grisham sent a Didier Fuentes fastball 392 feet to right center, tying the game up — that failure to even attempt to score earlier made itself felt here, because neither of the teams scored again before extras.

Olson started the 10th inning on second, and center fielder Michael Harris II worked a six-pitch at-bat against reliever Nick Blackburn before connecting on a low-and-inside, 96 mph sinker — he turned it into a ground ball single to right, and the game-winner.

Not the greatest weekend overall for the Braves, but Atlanta notched its 71st win and avoided being swept. That’s something, as is winning a game where Cam Schlittler gave up one run over seven innings with 11 strikeouts — this would have been a very excusable one to lose.

Brewers Walk Off Twins In Extras

Jacob Misiorowski… this guy just keeps getting it done. Here, he pitched six innings with nine strikeouts and three runs allowed facing the Twins, against a single walk, and made it to 200 strikeouts before anyone else in 2026. It’s also the second-fastest anyone ever reached 200 Ks, as Braves’ starter Spencer Strider got to 200 in 123 ⅓ innings in 2023, compared to Miz’s 129 ⅓ frames. 

Misiorowski had help, though. With the game tied 3-3 in the sixth, rookie Luis Lara made an excellent catch at the wall to rob a homer, keeping things even.

Lara certainly didn’t seem like he’s just 5-foot-7 on that leap. The game ended up going to extras, still 3-3, and there, Lara made another huge catch — this one didn’t rob a homer, but it was still at the wall and there was a runner on second ready to score if given the opportunity, and he wasn’t given it.

In the bottom of the 10th, Brice Turang was the runner on second to start the inning. While catcher William Contreras whiffed for the first out, first baseman Jake Bauers singled in Turang, and the play at the plate, after review, favored Milwaukee. Ballgame.

The W put the Brewers a season-high 30 games over .500, the best mark in MLB to go with the top run differential and most wins. 

This was a rough result for Minnesota, as its position isn’t nearly as strong. The Twins are now 58-61, 1.5 back of a wild-card spot and four games back in the AL Central. That doesn’t seem all that far back in either case, but things would be even closer if Minnesota had managed to pull off this W, with all but one team in front of them in the wild-card race losing on Sunday as well.

Phillies Walk Off Blue Jays In Extras

Sensing a theme? The Phillies lost the first two games of the weekend series against the Blue Jays, which made life difficult for Philadelphia since it now finds itself just a game up on the Padres in the wild-card race without the cushion it once had. Philly was able to salvage things a bit and avoid a sweep on Sunday, though, thanks to Kyle Schwarber hitting his first home run since July 18… and then his second dinger since then, too. 

The DH now has an MLB-leading 35 homers after a day that also saw him walk three times and drive in four runs. This was only enough to have the game tied and sent to extras, however: there, center fielder Derek Hill — who entered as a pinch-hitter earlier in the game — hit the walk-off single to center to send everyone home.

Toronto still won the series, of course, and now sits 3.5 back for an AL wild-card spot, but with eight teams in front of them.

D-Backs Take Series From Dodgers

On Saturday, the Dodgers finally won their first game of August, snapping a seven-game losing streak. Sunday was a chance to win the series against the Diamondbacks and string together consecutive wins for the first time since July 30, but it was not to be. Starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez went seven innings with nine strikeouts and just two walks and runs allowed against Los Angeles, which was much better than Justin Wrobleski’s third-consecutive rough start: five runs, seven runs and now four (three earned) in just 3 ⅓ innings. 

That makes 15 earned runs in his last 13 ⅔ frames. The Dodgers’ bullpen held Arizona scoreless the rest of the way, but the damage was done. DH Ketel Marte hit a two-run homer to start things off against Wrobleski, then in the second left fielder Ryan Waldschmidt hit a sac bunt for the eventual game-winner, and catcher Gabriel Moreno doubled in the fourth run of the game.

With the dub, Arizona kept pace with the Phillies and remained tied for the two wild-card spots behind the Cubs: the D-backs are 7.5 behind the Dodgers, which is as close as they have been for some time, but still a less likely dream than a wild-card at this stage.

Padres Bash 4 Homers

The Astros scored two runs in the top of the second to take a 2-0 lead over the Padres, but that was all Houston would manage. Not just for runs, but for hits: the Astros managed a single followed by a two-run homer from newcomer Daulton Varsho, and then didn’t manage another knock for the rest of the game.

San Diego, though? San Diego mashed. The Padres responded with not just seven unanswered runs, but each of them coming via the long ball. Center fielder Jackson Merrill drove in the first run of the game for the Friars with a dinger in the bottom of the second…

…then right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. crushed his 11th homer of the season, a 421-foot three-run blast to put San Diego up 4-2.

Designated hitter Gavin Sheets then added on with a solo shot in the sixth to make it 5-2…

…and brand new Padre, Austin Hays, hit his first homer with the team and second of the year on a liner to left in the eighth to extend the lead to 7-2.

Hays had entered the game off the bench, after he was released by the White Sox earlier in the week and subsequently signed by the Padres to be a right-handed bat off the bench. He delivered in his first opportunity in the role.

Houston is still in good shape — grading on the curve of the AL West, anyway — as the Astros are in first in the division and also the only team above .500 within it. Of course, Houston is just 60-59 and half-a-game up on the Rangers, so it’s not like it has a commanding lead. Its competition includes a Mariners team that has lost four in a row, though, and a Rangers team that has topped out at three games over .500 this season, though. So, there’s that.

White Sox Win Key Series Vs. Guardians

It’s been a real rough few weeks for the Guardians. Cleveland lost five in a row between July 22 and 26, and has gone just 4-8 since snapping that skid. With the White Sox not exactly thriving at the same time, this was a huge missed opportunity for the Guardians. Despite Chicago posting its own four-game losing streak in this stretch, Cleveland went from a game back to four behind in the span of a few weeks, and is now 58-61.

The Guardians went up 2-0 in the first, but the White Sox tied it up with a pair of RBI doubles, one each in the second and third, from first baseman Munetaka Murakami and left fielder Randal Grichuk. Then, DH Colson Montgomery put things out of reach for Cleveland with a three-run shot after Vargas’ double.

Third baseman José Ramírez would drive in his second run of the day late to cut the lead to two, but that’s as close as Cleveland would get. Which is bad news for multiple reasons…

What A Throw!

…one of them being what the Tigers were up to over the weekend while the Guardians were losing the series to the White Sox. Detroit won its own series against the Giants, with a 3-1 win in extra innings. And what helped even get to the point where that could happen? This throw from right fielder Zack McKinstry to keep a run from scoring.

Second baseman Hao-Yu Lee drove in the game winning run in extras on a liner to right, leading to what would be a 3-1 win, and it also put the Tigers ahead of the Twins in the AL Central. Detroit is now 23-11 since June 29, tied for the second-best record in MLB in that stretch, and once again “why did Tarik Skubal and Casey Mize get traded at the deadline?” comes to mind.

Cardinals Reach .500 With A Great Catch

An eighth-inning shot to give the Cardinals the lead over the Rockies, by second baseman J.J. Wetherholt…

…and very exciting chaser, courtesy left fielder Evan Perreira, who had entered the game as a defensive replacement at the start of the ninth.

St. Louis is now 59-59, 3.5 back of a wild-card and coming up on a series against the Phillies.

Bo Bichette’s 5-Hit Game

This was a real big day for Bo Bichette, as the third baseman got on base six times in a dominant 11-1 win over the Pirates. Bichette logged five hits: a single in the top of the first, another single in the top of the third, a double in the top of the fourth, another double in the seventh and finally, a single in the ninth.

Bichette hasn’t fully recovered his season line by any means, but he’s up to .263/.307/.378 for the year after thanks to a .317/.347/.463 mark since June 3, a 57-game stretch. That’s possible good news for next season, as the Mets try to move past a 2026 that has them 19.5 back in the NL East and 11 behind in a wild-card race most of the rest of the senior circuit seems to be in.

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