Newspaper Page Text
2B Saturday, November 10, 2018
The Times, Gainesville, Georgia | gainesvilletimes.com
SPORTS
GOLF
Kuchar goes up
by 2 in Mexico
Associated Press
NASCAR
QUALIFYING
Harvick takes pole
for championship
Kevin Harvick has won
the pole for Sunday’s final
qualifying race for the
championship. The strong
run came as his team
is snared in a cheating
controversy.
Harvick’s winning car
from last week was found to
have an illegal spoiler and
the punishment cost him
his automatic berth into the
final four. Needing a trou
ble-free run at ISM Race
way outside Phoenix to get
back into the finale, Harvick
stepped up with a strong
qualifying effort to put him
in the top starting spot.
Harvick is a nine-time
winner at Phoenix, most
recently in March. He also
won at Phoenix in 2014
when a victory was the only
thing that would qualify him
for the Homestead-Miami
Speedway finale, where
he captured his only Cup
championship.
Race lineup
Friday’s qualifying; race Sunday
At ISM Raceway
Avondale, Ariz.
(Car number in parentheses)
1. (4) Kevin Harvick, Ford, 139.340 mph.
2. (9) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, 139.152.
3. (17) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford, 139.007.
4. (12) Ryan Blaney, Ford, 138.867.
5. (88) Alex Bowman, Chevrolet, 138.739.
6. (18) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 138.707.
7. (20) Erik Jones, Toyota, 138.344.
8. (42) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 138.259.
9. (22) Joey Logano, Ford, 138.254.
10. (11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 138.249.
11. (21) Paul Menard, Ford, 137.889.
12. (2) Brad Keselowski, Ford, 137.667.
13. (78) Martin Truex Jr., Toyota, 138.339.
14. (41) Kurt Busch, Ford, 138.180.
15. (3) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 138.069.
16. (14) Clint Bowyer, Ford, 137.878.
17. (6) Matt Kenseth, Ford, 137.767.
18. (10) Aric Almirola, Ford, 137.720.
19. (24) William Byron, Chevrolet, 137.604.
20. (48) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 137.541.
21. (1) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 137.531.
22. (31) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 137.342.
23. (34) Michael McDowell, Ford, 136.815.
24. (47) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 136.529.
25. (37) Chris Buescher, Chevrolet, 136.664.
26. (19) Daniel Suarez, Toyota, 136.529.
27. (32) Matt DiBenedetto, Ford, 135.916.
28. (13) Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 135.767.
29. (95) Regan Smith, Chevrolet, 135.649.
30. (43) Bubba Wallace, Chevrolet, 135.542.
31. (38) David Ragan, Ford, 135.267.
32. (00) Landon Cassill, Chevrolet, 134.158.
33. (15) Ross Chastain, Chevrolet, 133.482.
34. (72) Cole Whitt, Chevrolet, 133.328.
35. (23) JJ Yeley, Toyota, 133.284.
36. (97) Tanner Berryhill, Toyota, 132.202.
37. (66) Timmy Hill, Toyota, 131.114.
38. (7) DJ Kennington, Chevrolet, 130.124.
39. (51) Cody Ware, Chevrolet, 0.000.
Associated Press
Matt Kuchar knew he
was in trouble when his
tee shot sailed so far to the
right that he hit a provi
sional in case the ball was
out-of-bounds.
He found the ball, and
somehow never
lost the lead.
Kuchar escaped
his only big mess
Friday with a
35-foot bogey
putt on the 12th
hole, and he rode
eight birdies to a
7-under 64 that
gave him a two-
shot lead over
PGA Tour rookie Cam
eron Champ going into the
weekend at the Mayakoba
Golf Classic.
Champ, going after his
second victory in three
weeks, played in the morn
ing and shot 62 with a
bogey on his final hole.
Kuchar was at 14-under
128 as he tries to end more
than four years without a
PGA Tour victory.
“Yesterday was kind
of a bogey-free day and
just easy, and everything
Par scores
Friday’s scores
At El Camaleon GC at the Mayakoba
Resort
Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Purse: $7.2 million
Yardage: 6,987; Par: 71
Second Round
Matt Kuchar
64-64—128
-14
Cameron Champ
68-62—130
-12
Danny Lee
65-66—131
-11
Whee Kim
68-63—131
-11
Dominic Bozzelli
64-67—131
-11
Patton Kizzire
65-66—131
-11
Brian Gay
68-63—131
-11
Anirban Lahiri
65-66—131
-11
Richy Werenski
65-66—131
-11
Jonas Blixt
69-63—132
-10
Kyoung-Hoon Lee
66-66—132
-10
Adam Hadwin
65-67—132
-10
Kramer Hickok
64-68—132
-10
Pat Perez
66-67—133
-9
James Hahn
66-67—133
-9
Kelly Kraft
69-64—133
-9
Bud Cauley
65-68—133
-9
Abraham Ancer
65-68—133
-9
Emiliano Grillo
65-68—133
-9
Josh Teater
67-67—134
-8
J.J. Spaun
69-65—134
-8
else today was about the
same,” he said. “I just had
that one challenging hole. ”
The challenge was figur
ing out what to do once he
found it.
The ball was under a
cluster of trees and bushes
with rocks scattered
everywhere. Even
taking a one-shot
penalty for an
unplayable lie was
not an easy option.
If his drop settled
between rocks,
he would have to
play that or take
another penalty.
Finally, he
found a spot and the drop
landed in enough soft soil
for him to pitch out of
trouble, through the fair
way and into the rough. He
got his fourth shot onto the
green and made the long
putt to escape with bogey.
“That was great,”
Kuchar said. “I knew I
had a par 5 following it,
and I figured I was prob
ably going to make double
there and birdie on the
next.”
Associated Press
Ryan Armour
67-67—134
-8
Jhonattan Vegas
68-66—134
-8
Tony Finau
69-65—134
-8
Steve Marino
70-64—134
-8
Jose de Rodriguez
70-64—134
-8
Rickie Fowler
66-68—134
-8
Jim Furyk
69-65—134
-8
Brian Harman
66-68—134
-8
J.T. Poston
65-69—134
-8
Harold Varner III
65-69—134
-8
Armando Favela
67-67—134
-8
Stephan Jaeger
65-69—134
-8
Brice Garnett
68-67—135
-7
Scott Piercy
67-68—135
-7
Shintaro Ban
68-67—135
-7
Scott Brown
67-68—135
-7
Jason Dufner
69-66—135
-7
Chez Reavie
67-68—135
-7
Kevin Chappell
65-70—135
-7
Russell Henley
66-69—135
-7
Sung Kang
65-70—135
-7
Denny McCarthy
72-64—136
-6
Scott Langley
69-67—136
-6
Cameron Davis
68-68—136
-6
Oscar Fraustro
66-70—136
-6
Sebastian Munoz
69-67—136
-6
Aaron Wise
71-65—136
-6
C.T. Pan
67-69—136
-6
Adam Schenk
66-70—136
-6
Associated Press
Kuchar
Football/NFL
AMERICAN CONFERENCE
East
W L T
Pet
PF
PA
New England
7 2 0
.778
270
202
Miami
5 4 0
.556
187
225
N.Y. Jets
3 6 0
.333
198
213
Buffalo
2 7 0
.222
96
241
South
W L T
Pet
PF
PA
Houston
6 3 0
.667
216
184
Tennessee
4 4 0
.500
134
141
Jacksonville
3 5 0
.375
134
170
Indianapolis
3 5 0
.375
231
213
North
W L T
Pet
PF
PA
Pittsburgh
6 2 1
.722
279
209
Cincinnati
5 3 0
.625
221
237
Baltimore
4 5 0
.444
213
160
Cleveland
2 6 1
.278
190
247
West
W L T
Pet
PF
PA
Kansas City
8 1 0
.889
327
226
L.A. Chargers
6 2 0
.750
220
180
Denver
3 6 0
.333
205
213
Oakland
1 7 0
.125
141
252
NATIONAL CONFERENCE
East
W L T
Pet
PF
PA
Washington
5 3 0
.625
160
172
Philadelphia
4 4 0
.500
178
156
Dallas
3 5 0
.375
154
151
N.Y. Giants
1 7 0
.125
150
205
South
W L T
Pet
PF
PA
New Orleans
7 1 0
.875
279
218
Carolina
6 3 0
.667
241
232
Atlanta
4 4 0
.500
228
226
Tampa Bay
3 5 0
.375
229
275
North
W L T
Pet
PF
PA
Chicago
5 3 0
.625
235
153
Minnesota
5 3 1
.611
221
204
Green Bay
3 4 1
.438
192
204
Detroit
3 5 0
.375
180
210
West
W L T
Pet
PF
PA
L.A. Rams
8 1 0
.889
299
200
Seattle
4 4 0
.500
188
156
Arizona
2 6 0
.250
110
199
San Francisco
2 7 0
.222
207
239
Thursday’s Games
Pittsburgh 52, Carolina 21
Sunday’s Games
Arizona at Kansas City, 1 p.m.
Buffalo at N.Y. Jets, 1 p.m.
Detroit at Chicago, 1 p.m.
Jacksonville at Indianapolis, 1 p.m.
Washington at Tampa Bay, 1 p.m.
New Orleans at Cincinnati, 1 p.m.
New England at Tennessee, 1 p.m.
Atlanta at Cleveland, 1 p.m.
L.A. Chargers at Oakland, 4:05 p.m.
Miami at Green Bay, 4:25 p.m.
Seattle at L.A. Rams, 4:25 p.m.
Dallas at Philadelphia, 8:20 p.m.
Open: Minnesota, Denver, Baltimore, Houston
Monday’s Games
N.Y. Giants at San Francisco, 8:15 p.m.
Football/college
Today’s games
EAST
Lafayette (3-6) at Army (7-2), Noon
Sacred Heart (6-3) at Duquesne (6-3), Noon
Fordham (1 -8) at Holy Cross (3-6), Noon
Kennesaw St. (8-1) at Monmouth (NJ) (7-2),
Noon
Wisconsin (6-3) at Penn St. (6-3), Noon
CCSU (5-4) at St. Francis (Pa.) (4-5), Noon
SMU (4-5) at UConn (1-8), Noon
BYU (4-5) at UMass (4-6), Noon
TCU (4-5) at West Virginia (7-1), Noon
Columbia (4-4) at Brown (1-7), 12:30 p.m.
Bucknell (1-8) at Georgetown (4-5), 12:30
p.m.
Colgate (8-0) at Lehigh (2-7), 12:30 p.m.
Princeton (8-0) at Yale (5-3), 12:30 p.m.
Wagner (2-7) at Bryant (5-4), 1 p.m.
Albany (NY) (2-7) at New Hampshire (3-6),
1 p.m.
Harvard (4-4) at Penn (6-2), 1 p.m.
Delaware (7-2) at Stony Brook (6-3), 1 p.m.
William & Mary (3-5) at Villanova (4-5), 1 p.m.
Dartmouth (7-1) at Cornell (3-5), 1:30 p.m.
Virginia Tech (4-4) at Pittsburgh (5-4), 3:30
p.m.
Michigan (8-1) at Rutgers (1-8), 3:30 p.m.
Clemson (9-0) at Boston College (7-2), 8 p.m.
SOUTH
Towson (6-3) at Elon (6-2), Noon
South Carolina (5-3) at Florida (6-3), Noon
Tulsa (2-7) at Memphis (5-4), Noon
SE Missouri (7-2) at Murray St. (4-5), Noon
Campbell (5-4) at Presbyterian (2-6), Noon
Navy (2-7) at UCF (8-0), Noon
North Carolina (1-7) at Duke (6-3), 12:20 p.m.
Mercer (4-5) at Chattanooga (6-3), 1 p.m.
Robert Morris (1-7) at E. Kentucky (5-4),
1 p.m.
Troy (7-2) at Georgia Southern (7-2), 1 p.m.
Delaware St. (2-7) at Morgan St. (2-7), 1 p.m.
Howard (4-4) at Norfolk St. (3-5), 1 p.m.
NC A&T (7-2) at Savannah St. (2-6), 1 p.m.
Furman (4-4) at VMI (1-8), 1:30 p.m.
Grambling St. (5-4) at Alabama A&M (5-4),
2 p.m.
Rhode Island (5-4) at James Madison (6-3),
2 p.m.
Hampton (5-3) at MVSU (1-7), 2 p.m.
Samford (5-4) at The Citadel (3-5), 2 p.m.
Charlotte (4-5) at Marshall (5-3), 2:30 p.m.
Jackson St. (4-4) at Alabama St. (3-5), 3 p.m.
Gardner-Webb (3-6) at Charleston Southern
(3-5), 3 p.m.
Maine (6-3) at Richmond (3-6), 3 p.m.
Jacksonville St. (7-2) at Tennessee St. (3-4),
3 p.m.
Tennessee Tech (1-8) at UT Martin (1-8),
3 p.m.
Liberty (4-4) at Virginia (6-3), 3 p.m.
Mississippi St. (6-3) at Alabama (9-0), 3:30
p.m.
North Texas (7-2) at Old Dominion (2-7),
3:30 p.m.
Kentucky (7-2) at Tennessee (4-5), 3:30 p.m.
Wofford (6-3) at W. Carolina (3-6), 3:30 p.m.
NC Central (4-4) at Bethune-Cookman (5-5),
4 p.m.
SC State (3-5) at Florida A&M (6-3), 4 p.m.
Stephen F. Austin (2-6) at Nicholls (6-3),
4 p.m.
East Carolina (2-6) at Tulane (4-5), 4 p.m.
Arkansas St. (5-4) at Coastal Carolina (5-4),
5 p.m.
W. Kentucky (1-8) at FAU (4-5), 5 p.m.
Georgia St. (2-7) at Louisiana-Lafayette (4-6),
5 p.m.
Louisiana-Monroe (5-4) at South Alabama
(2-7), 5 p.m.
Ark.-Pine Bluff (1-8) at Southern U. (5-3),
5 p.m.
Auburn (6-3) at Georgia (8-1), 7 p.m.
Miami (5-4) at Georgia Tech (5-4), 7 p.m.
Rice (1-9) at Louisiana Tech (6-3), 7 p.m.
North Greenville (4-5) at North Alabama (6-3),
7 p.m.
McNeese St. (6-3) at Northwestern St. (3-6),
7 p.m.
Southern Miss. (4-4) at UAB (8-1), 7:30 p.m.
MIDWEST
Stetson (7-1) at Butler (3-6), Noon
Akron (4-4) at E. Michigan (5-5), Noon
Maryland (5-4) at Indiana (4-5), Noon
Kansas (3-6) at Kansas St. (3-6), Noon
Ohio St. (8-1) at Michigan St. (6-3), Noon
Vanderbilt (4-5) at Missouri (5-4), Noon
Illinois (4-5) at Nebraska (2-7), Noon
N. Iowa (5-4) at Youngstown St. (3-6), Noon
Morehead St. (3-6) at Dayton (4-5), 1 p.m.
Illinois St. (5-4) at Indiana St. (6-3), 1 p.m.
Marist (5-4) at Drake (5-3), 2 p.m.
Austin Peay (4-5) at E. Illinois (2-7), 2 p.m.
S. Dakota St. (5-3) at S. Illinois (2-7), 2 p.m.
W. Illinois (5-4) at South Dakota (3-6), 2 p.m.
Jacksonville (2-6) at Valparaiso (1-8), 2 p.m.
Bowling Green (1-8) at Cent. Michigan (1-9),
3 p.m.
N. Dakota St. (9-0) at Missouri St. (3-5),
3 p.m.
Portland St. (4-5) at North Dakota (4-5),
3 p.m.
Northwestern (5-4) at Iowa (6-3), 3:30 p.m.
Baylor (5-4) at Iowa St. (5-3), 3:30 p.m.
Purdue (5-4) at Minnesota (4-5), 3:30 p.m.
South Florida (7-2) at Cincinnati (8-1), 7 p.m.
Florida St. (4-5) at Notre Dame (9-0), 7:30
p.m.
SOUTHWEST
Mississippi (5-4) at Texas A&M (5-4), Noon
Middle Tennessee (6-3) at UTEP (1-8), 3 p.m.
Oklahoma St. (5-4) at Oklahoma (8-1), 3:30
p.m.
Abilene Christian (5-4) at Sam Houston St.
(5-4), 3:30 p.m.
Incarnate Word (5-4) at Cent. Arkansas (5-4),
4 p.m.
Houston Baptist (1-8) at Lamar (5-4), 4 p.m.
Appalachian St. (6-2) at Texas St. (3-6), 4 p.m.
Temple (5-4) at Houston (7-2), 7 p.m.
FIU (6-3) at UTSA (3-6), 7 p.m.
LSU (7-2) at Arkansas (2-7), 7:30 p.m.
Texas (6-3) at Texas Tech (5-4), 7:30 p.m.
FAR WEST
UCLA (2-7) at Arizona St. (5-4), 2 p.m.
N. Colorado (2-8) at Montana St. (5-4), 3 p.m.
New Mexico (3-6) at Air Force (3-6), 3:30 p.m.
Washington St. (8-1) at Colorado (5-4), 3:30
p.m.
TODAY ON TV
FOOTBALL
■ Mississippi at Texas
A&M, noon, CBS
■ Wisconsin at Penn State,
noon, ABC
■ Ohio State at Michigan
State, noon, Fox
■ South Carolina at
Florida, noon, ESPN
■ Navy at UCF, noon,
ESPN2
■ Tulsa at Memphis, noon,
ESPNU
■ TCU at West Virginia,
noon, Fox Sportsl
■ Mississippi State at
Alabama, 3:30 p.m., CBS
■ Oklahoma State at
Oklahoma, 3:30 p.m., ABC
■ Northwestern at Iowa,
3:30 p.m., Fox
■ Washington State at
Colorado, 3:30 p.m., ESPN
■ Purdue at Minnesota,
3:30 p.m., ESPN2
■ Virginia Tech at
Pittsburgh, 3:30 p.m.,
ESPNU
■ Baylor at Iowa State,
3:30 p.m., Fox Sportsl
■ Georgia vs. Auburn,
7 p.m., ESPN
■ Georgia Tech vs. Miami,
7 p.m., ESPN2
■ South Florida at
Cincinnati, 7 p.m., ESPNU
■ Florida State vs. Notre
Dame, 7:30 p.m., NBC
■ Texas at Texas Tech,
7:30 p.m., Fox
■ Clemson at Boston
College, 8 p.m., ABC
■ California at Southern
Cal, 10:30 p.m., ESPN
■ UNLV at San Diego
State, 10:30 p.m., ESPN2
■ Colorado State at
Nevada, 10:30 p.m.,
ESPNU
RACING
■ Xfinity Series, Phoenix qualifying,
12:30 p.m., NBC Sports
■ Monster Energy Series, final
practice, 2 p.m., NBCSports
■ Xfinity Series race, 3:30 p.m.,
NBC
GOLF
■ Mayakoba Classic, third round,
1 p.m., Golf channel
■ Champions Tour, Charles Schwab
Classic, 4 p.m. Golf channel
NFL
Midseason superlatives
RON SCHWANE I The Associated Press
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes rushes during the first half of the Cleveland
Browns on Nov. 4 in Cleveland.
Mahomes early leader to be the league MVP
BY BARRY WILNER
Associated Press
By the time every NFL
team has played eight
games, there are some heav
ily established favorites for
The Associated Press NFL
awards that are handed out
on Super Bowl eve.
Not this year.
MVP? Lots of candidates
— and not just quarterbacks.
Coach of the Year?
Nearly every division has a
contender.
Comeback Player? Some
likely Hall of Famers are in
the mix there.
So the AP polled a few of
the 50 voters for the awards,
including genuine Hall of
Famer James Lofton. The
theme was clear: There isn’t
much clarity as we head into
the final eight weeks of the
schedule.
MVP
This honor has gone to a
quarterback the past five
seasons and 10 of 11. Two
running backs, Adrian
Peterson in 2012 and LaDai-
nian Tomlinson in 2006,
broke through the
QB domination
in the past dozen
years.
Lofton and some
others select Chiefs
quarterback Pat
rick Mahomes.
“So good you just
can’t take your eyes
off of him,” the CBS
analyst says.
“Maybe this opinion
changes next week, given
the stellar competition that
includes (Todd) Gurley
and (Drew) Brees,” adds
USA Today’s Jarrett Bell.
“Maybe not, as the kid keeps
showing up. A first-year
starter as quarterback? Hey,
Mahomes is like the
new Kurt Warner.”
Paul Domowitch
of the Philadelphia
Daily News opts for
Brees. Charean Wil
liams of Pro Foot
ball Talk prefers
Gurley.
Don’t forget about
Tom Brady, Adam
Thielen or Philip
Rivers, and perhaps even a
defensive force such as J.J.
Watt.
COACH
Another wide-open field
headed by, according to
Jenny Vrentas of Monday
Morning Quarterback, Kan
sas City’s Andy Reid.
“I selected Andy Reid
.. for his ability to seam
lessly transition from Alex
Smith to Mahomes,” Vren
tas explains. “He’s been so
invested in Mahomes’ devel
opment that he sits with him
on the bench in between
offensive series, going over
what they see and how
they’ll attack the opponent
next. Reid has demonstrated
an ability to keep his offense
fresh and tailored to his
players, updating his West
Coast system with spread
concepts pulled from the
college ranks.”
Bob Glauber of Newsday
points to last year’s winner,
Sean McVay of the Rams.
“He’s one of the brightest
minds in the game, and at
32, is proving not only to be
a brilliant play caller, but an
exceptional leader as well,”
Glauber says.
Not far behind in our little
poll: the Saints’ Sean Payton,
the Texans’ Bill O’Brien, the
Bears’ Matt Nagy, and the
Chargers’ Anthony Lynn,
whose team “plays a road
game every week,” Lofton
notes.
COMEBACK PLAYER
Rarely has there been
such an impressive group
vying for an award no one
really wants to win consid
ering the implications of a
comeback.
From Watt to Peterson
to Aaron Rodgers, from
Andrew Luck to
Carson Wentz to
Deshaun Watson,
from Odell Beck
ham Jr. to Richard
Sherman — WOW!
“It’s either
Andrew Luck or
Watt,” says Wil
liams, “but Watt has
returned to being
one of the best at
his position. He is playing
at an All-Pro and Pro Bowl
level. Luck is not one of the
top-five quarterbacks in the
NFL and maybe not in the
top 10.”
Eric Adelson of Yahoo
Sports goes for the Colts
quarterback.
“Can’t imagine
the frustration he’s
faced,” Adelson
says. “A pro’s pro.”
Vrentas picks
Watt.
“The surgery
Watt had last Octo
ber to put his leg
back together after
a tibial plateau
fracture was so
complicated that the sur
geons couldn’t even be cer
tain that it would work, and
that his leg would be able
to bear the full weight of
his body while running full
speed,” she explains. “Watt,
who has nine sacks in nine
games, was undeterred. He
wasn’t back to full strength
in the season opener but has
steadily gotten better each
week, a scary thought for
opponents.”
OFFENSIVE PLAYER
Another free-for-all, with
Gurley, Mahomes, Thielen,
Brees, Michael Thomas
and James Conner getting
consideration.
“Before it’s done, he could
wind up as MVP,” Bell says
of Gurley, his choice in this
category. “Ditto for Brees.
Running backs don’t get the
same love as quarterbacks
in the pass-centric envi
ronment of the NFL. But if
Gurley breaks LaDainian
Tomlinson’s single-season
TD record and the Rams
keep winning big, people
will have to take notice.
Then again, Brees has a few
records and has never been
MVP.”
Domowitch, a Brees
supporter for MVP, puts
Mahomes here. So does
Williams.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER
This category could be a
two-horse race between a
pair of thoroughbreds pre
viously honored with the
award: Aaron Donald and
Watt.
“Now that’s a man who
don’t need no stinking train
ing camp,” Bell says of
Donald.
Eric Adelson of Yahoo
Sports prefers Donald, as
well.
“A game wrecker on
every down,” Adelson says.
Adds Glauber: “Donald
is a disruptive force in the
middle and already has 10
sacks. The only problem for
him — and the Rams — is
that teams will often go to
great lengths to shut him
down. Thus, the constant
double teams he has to fight
through.”
Lofton likes what Khalil
Mack has done in Chicago:
“Mack turned the Bears
from pretenders to contend
ers.” But this train could be
a runaway for Donald and
Mack.
OFFENSIVE ROOKIE
No contest.
“He’s the only good thing
going for an awful Giants
team,” Glauber says of
Giants RB Saquon Barkley.
“Until the Giants figure out
their quarterback situa
tion, he’ll be wasted in this
offense.”
But not lost in the awards
prognostications.
“On pace for more than
2,000 total yards — on a bad
team,” Adelson notes.
DEFENSIVE ROOKIE
Chargers safety Derwin
James has gotten lots of
love, but there’s no runaway
leader.
“Darius Leonard and
Denzel Ward make this
an interesting race for the
award down the stretch,”
Williams says.
Glauber leans to Leonard:
“Halfway through the sea
son, he not only led all NFL
rookies with 88 tackles, he
led all NFL players in that
category.
Beckham
Brady
TV ratings up on
most platforms
After years of declines,
NFL television ratings are
showing modest gains.
Three of the league’s tele
vision partners have shown
increases after the first nine
week of the season while one
remains flat.
That is welcome news
after ratings decreased 9.7
percent last season and 8
percent in 2016.
“I’m glad the league has
turned the corner. The top
teams are very exciting and
there are plenty of high-scor
ing games,” said Neil Pilson,
the former president of CBS
Sports who now runs his own
sports television consulting
company.
Pilson said a major rat
ings driver has been the
emergence of young quar
terbacks like the Rams’
Jared Goff, Chiefs’ Patrick
Mahomes and Bears’ Mitch
ell Trubisky. That has cre
ated a buzz not only with
their teams but throughout
the league.
Another factor is that
player protests against
social and racial injustice
during the national anthem
have not been a major story
line this season. Pilson noted
that “a few of those folks
who said they were going to
stop watching I don’t know
how many did.”
NBC’s “Sunday Night
Football” package has
shown the biggest improve
ment with an eight percent
increase from last season.
It is averaging 19.7 million
viewers, compared to 18.3
million last season.
This past Sunday’s game
between the Green Bay
Packers and New England
Patriots averaged a league-
high 23.7 million, and was
the largest prime-time audi
ence on any network since
ABC aired the Academy
Awards in March.
Associated Press
