Tag: MLB Playoffs

LeBron James’ minutes restriction is actually a huge (but smart!) risk for the Lakers

This decision from Darvin Ham is smart. The question is can the Lakers actually afford to do this.

This is For The Win’s daily newsletter, The Morning Win. Did a friend recommend or forward this to you? If so, subscribe here. Have feedback? Leave your questions, comments and concerns through this brief reader survey! Now, here’s Mike Sykes.

Good morning, Winners! Thanks so much for reading the Morning Win today. We appreciate you.

What a night of NBA hoops, am I right? We got two pretty fun games — one came down to the wire in Golden State with the Suns coming out on top. The other between the Lakers and Nuggets never really felt in doubt despite getting pretty close at times.

The Nuggets are a well-oiled machine. Nikola Jokic is the best player in the league. There’s no one I’d rather have in the clutch — he makes every correct play. Denver had a 152.4 offensive rating in the fourth quarter behind his brilliance. He finished with 29 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists and the hilarious part is I’m not sure he picked up a basketball this summer before training camp. The dude is unflappable.

None of that was surprising, though. The biggest shock to me was LeBron James being on a minutes restriction.

James had a solid night finishing with 21 points, eight rebounds and six assists in just 29 minutes. But that’s the thing — he only played 29 minutes. He’s averaged 38 minutes a night for his career.

We’re here, folks. Darvin Ham says this is going to be a thing this season, per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.

“It’s easy with him to get caught up in the emotion of the game and you tend to forget you want to play these long stretches, but in order for him to be as effective as possible, we have to be mindful of the minute output and how long his stretches are.” 

This strategy is sound in theory. Remember when LeBron James went off against the Nuggets in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals last year only to run out of gas in the end? This is supposed to prevent that.

But in practice? If this is going to work long-term, Anthony Davis has to be the Lakers’ best player. He went scoreless in the second half.

That’s a bad sign for LA. Luckily for them, though, every team isn’t as nice as the Nuggets. We’ll see how this works for the rest of the year.

The Diamondbacks did it

(Photo by Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images)

Two years ago, the Arizona Diamondbacks were one of the worst teams we’ve ever seen in baseball. The team lost 110 games in a single season.

Imagine telling someone in 2021 that the D-Backs would be in the World Series in 2023.

Heck, honestly? Imagine telling someone that in August. It wasn’t a guarantee that this team would even make the playoffs after that stretch from July to August when Arizona could only muster up three wins. But here they are. Arizona is headed to the World Series for the first time since 2001.

This big hug between Torey Lovullo and Jeff Banister says it all, man.

What a moment for this squad. What a time to be alive. I guess Chris Russo really has to retire now. Good luck in the World Series, Diamondbacks fans.

Shoutout Travis Dermott

The NHL’s senseless and silly Pride tape ban is over now thanks to the efforts of Arizona Coyotes defenseman Travis Dermott.

The NHL barred players from wearing or using “cause messaging” gear to show support for causes they believe in. The ban was general, but its intention was targeted. The league didn’t want players using Pride Tape to support LGBTQ+ causes. It was essentially an NHL “Don’t say Gay” policy.

That’s over now all thanks to Dermott. Our Mary Clarke wrote a brilliant column on his change-leading defiance.

“Dermott made waves Saturday evening after wearing Pride Tape on the ice during the Coyotes game against the Anaheim Ducks in clear defiance of the NHL’s ban. While stars like Connor McDavid were outspoken against the NHL’s decision to ban Pride Tape, it was a 26-year-old middle-pairing defenseman who became the loudest voice on the issue by actually standing up and resisting the mandate.

The Coyotes defenseman also spoke to The Athletic about his decision before the ban was lifted and doubled down on his feelings in support of the LGBTQ+ community.

‘But, yeah, I’m still here. The fight’s not over,’ Dermott said. ‘We’re going to continue to talk about this. And if the league doesn’t want it to be on league time then we’ll find other ways.’,”

REQUIRED READING: Check out the rest of Mary’s brilliant piece and the reaction from around the league here.

Quick hits: NFL trade deadline deals … Shaq’s Nikola Jokic bromance … and more

— Cory Woodruff has five NFL trade deadline deals we’d love to see for you here.

— Shaq telling Nikola Jokic that he loves him in Serbian is going to easily be one of my favorite moments of this NBA season. Bryan Kalbrosky has more here.

— Christian D’Andrea has his weekly quarterback rankings ready to go for Week 8. Patrick Mahomes is coming for your favorite QB, folks.

— Speaking of the trade deadline, here’s Christian again with 15 of the best deals we’ve seen over the years.

— Here’s Blake Schuster with the Heisman tracker on the College Football front and *checks notes* J.J. McCarthy is at the top? What a time.

—Bryce Harper wore the wrong jersey to the Phillies final game smh. Never bring the 76ers vibes to the table.  Meghan Hall has more here.

Thanks so much for reading, folks! Happy Wednesday. Take it easy.

-Sykes ✌️

The best 2023 MLB postseason atmospheres, ranked

Is there any doubt about No. 1?

There’s just something magical about playoff baseball.

Teams have to go through a long grind of 162 games, and it’s sometimes difficult for a collective crowd to get amped about a game in the middle of August. But once October comes around, it’s a completely different ballgame.

We’ve seen that thus far in the postseason.

Though the perception of home-field advantage has been tested in these playoffs, one team in particular has stood out with raucous atmospheres at home (any guesses?). But let’s take a look at all the postseason crowds from the 2023 playoffs. Note that the Blue Jays and Marlins did not host any home games, so they were not included in the list.

Nobody from Bryce Harper to reporters did anything wrong in the Orlando Arcia trash-talk controversy

This Orlando Arcia and Bryce Harper controversy is silly on many levels.

The Atlanta Braves are a game away from being eliminated for a second-straight year by the Philadelphia Phillies in the NLDS, but that’s somehow not the focus around the clubhouse right now.

No, it has much more to do with a harmless piece of fun sparking an elite baseball player to do something he normally does in the postseason, and a discussion on journalistic ethics that should be blatantly obvious.

In what’s clearly the second-dumbest MLB playoffs controversy going on right now (first place goes to you, Mattress Mack), the baseball world is now fixated on Braves shortstop Orlando Arcia trolling Phillies right fielder Bryce Harper in the Atlanta clubhouse after the Braves won Game 2 of the NLDS.

Well, it’s a bit more what happened after that, as Harper used Arcia’s light ribbing with fellow teammates as bulletin board material to smack a three-run homer out of Citizens Bank Park en route to a Game 3 Phillies victory.

Like many great athletes before him, Harper used a perceived slight, even one as innocuous as Arcia saying “ha-ha, atta-boy Harper” to his fellow Braves after Harper’s base-running error gave Atlanta the last out needed to win Game 2 at Truist Park.

The reporting above by Fox Sports’ Jake Mintz is typical sports journalism done in the postseason of a professional sport. He overheard someone say something newsworthy in a locker room filled with reporters, and he shared it. Quite frankly, it was a nice catch by Mintz that added flavor to his game story.

Even if Arcia didn’t realize he was being recorded, everything he said was fair game for a reporter to report on. There are legitimate television cameras rolling in MLB clubhouses after postseason wins. How is this surprising?

After all, Arcia said absolutely nothing out of the ordinary for what you’d expect a winning team to say about a rival after that rival made a mistake to lose a game, and Mintz just got within earshot to share the comment.

Arcia was just having justified fun, and Mintz shared what he heard.

Well, since Harper very clearly heard about Arcia’s joking and let him know about it on that dramatic homer, the Braves are not happy it got reported in the first place.

Braves catcher Travis d’Arnaud alleged that Mintz shared the comment off the record and violated some sort of sacred rule about reporting what’s said in a clubhouse when it’s not said directly to a reporter.

He likens the clubhouse to a “sanctuary.” We apologize if your eyes have rolled so hard that they’ve started spinning like an out-of-control windmill.

A baseball clubhouse during the MLB Playoffs is about as sacred as a Wendy’s dining room at the lunch rush.

If you overhear Fran from church smack-talking the preacher’s sermon to Claudia and Betsy Lee while munching down on a Nacho Loaded Cheeseburger, you’re in your legal right to tell someone else you heard it.

Mintz was not interviewing a city councilperson off-the-record for an ordinance vote, nor was he in Arcia’s backyard during a private function with his Braves teammates. He was in an open locker room after a professional sports victory, one with tons of other reporters who have legal and ethical fair game to report on whatever they might hear on the job.

There is no difference in Mintz reporting on Arcia’s very light jab at Harper than there is the Fox Sports camera crew picking up on Justin Verlander’s expletive-laden victory speech to his Houston Astros teammates before popping the bottles for the team’s ALDS win.

A locker room is not a confessional booth. It’s a place where players go before and after games and practice, and there are set times where media is allowed to interact with players. Mintz was present for one of those times. Even if Arcia’s comments weren’t told directly to Mintz, he had more than a right to report on them being said.

It doesn’t matter if Harper got wind of these comments or not; it’s not Mintz’s fault that Braves manager Brian Snitker didn’t pull starting pitcher Bryce Elder in time for Harper’s at-bat.

This anecdote from This is Football host Kevin Clark spells out just how “sacred” the clubhouse is during media availability.

As for Harper? He’s got a right to make a mountain out of a molehill just as any professional athlete, just as Arcia is perfectly reasonable in mildly trolling a rival for an on-field mistake and Mintz is in reporting that Arcia did so when he overheard it in the Braves locker room.

This is the nothingburger of the postseason so far, one that has the Braves all in a tizzy when they should be focusing on getting back to Truist Park for Game 5 and making Harper work for another World Series berth on the road.

Nobody did anything wrong, and that’s how it should be.

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2 people got to watch Bryce Harper’s big three-run Phillies homer from the roof of Citizens Bank Park

Watching a Bryce Harper homer from the roof of Citizens Bank Park? Priceless.

If you’re going to take in an MLB Playoffs game at Citizens Bank Park, choosing to watch one while standing on the roof is certainly an option.

For two folks on Wednesday night, they had, well, certainly one of the seats in the house for Phillies slugger Bryce Harper’s game-altering three-run homer.

If Philadelphia wins on Thursday and takes the series, Phillies fans will point to this major homer by Harper as what sparked them to get there.

On the broadcast, it was clear that two people, whether they be Phillies fans or ballpark employees, got a glimpse at the homer by standing on the stadium roof.

It’s not the first time people have been spotted on the roof at Citizens Bank Park for Phillies postseason action.

 

Look, we do not encourage anyone who is not already supposed to be on the roof at Citizens Bank Park to be on the roof at Citizens Bank Park.

These two folks were either just doing their job and got a sick view at a big Phillies moment during Game 3 of the NLDS … or  just got busted on national television for being where they weren’t supposed to be.

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Nick Castellanos’ son Liam had the most adorable reaction to his dad’s second homer in Phillies win

This kid is adorable.

 

The Philadelphia Phillies didn’t hide the fireworks from fans at Citizens Bank Field as the team earned a 10-2 win in Game 3 of the NLDS against the Atlanta Braves.

One of the game’s defining moments was Nick Castellanos’ second homer of the evening that basically added insult to injury for the struggling Braves.

After the big hit, Castellanos’ son Liam had the most wonderful reaction in the stands to his dad’s MLB Playoffs heroics.

You could see the absolute excitement in his face as his dad earned yet another run, making this another memorable moment for the Phillies in yet another promising postseason outing.

Hey, even if you’re the world’s biggest Braves fan, you have to love seeing such a pure reaction from a player’s kid. Liam Castellanos had himself quite a night at Citizens Bank Park, as did his dad.

We’ll see if the good vibes continue for the Castellanos family as the Phillies take on the Braves in Game 4 of the NLDS on Thursday.

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Rangers fans embraced team’s Creed MLB Playoffs soundtrack by singing along to “Higher”

The Rangers are taking fans higher with an MLB Playoffs Creed sing-a-long.

The Texas Rangers have embraced Creed during this MLB Playoffs, and the fans are getting in on the grungy fun.

After the Rangers used Creed music to loosen up ahead of the ALDS series with the Baltimore Orioles, the team invited fans to sing along to the 1990s/2000s rock band’s hit “Higher” as the Rangers returned home to Globe Life Field for Game 3 of the series.

The Creed vibes have clearly worked, as the Rangers led the Orioles by the sixth inning on the way to a possible 3-0 series lead.

Rangers fans are clearly in on Creed, as this is a great reminder of how electric playoff baseball environments can be when your team is playing well. [anyclip-media thumbnail=”undefined” playlistId=”undefined” content=”dW5kZWZpbmVk”][/anyclip-media]

 

 

Creed has fully embraced the moment as the Rangers use their music to fuel playoff success.

If you’re the Orioles, well, it’s your sacrifice to endure this during what has been a disastrous playoffs so far.

If Creed really can take the Rangers higher to a World Series victory, we’re betting the band will get played at Texas games for years to come.

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Don’t blame the MLB playoff wild card format for the Dodgers’ and Orioles’ failures

The format is fine. The league’s best teams just aren’t playing well enough to win.

This is For The Win’s daily newsletter, The Morning Win. Did a friend recommend or forward this to you? If so, subscribe here. Have feedback? Leave your questions, comments and concerns through this brief reader survey! Now, here’s Mike Sykes.

Good morning, Winners! Thanks for taking some time and reading TMW today.

There’s been a lot of discussion surrounding rest versus rust in the MLB postseason so far. Now, with the Dodgers and Orioles both in 2-0 holes as the top seeds in the AL and NL, that conversation is heating up even more.

To be fair, what’s happening is very weird. In the first 118 MLB postseasons only three 100-win teams lost their first two postseason games at home, per ESPN. The Dodgers and Orioles have done it on consecutive nights here. That’s wild.

This strange phenomenon has led some people to question the league’s new playoff format. The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal even wrote a column on what changes could be made to improve the format.

But do we really need to go that far?

The biggest problem here the best teams in baseball just aren’t winning right now. That’s not a playoff format problem — that’s an individual team problem.

The Braves certainly had no trouble digging a tough one out against the Phillies on Monday night. It took a bit of superhero work from Michael Harris II in the end, sure, but Atlanta made it happen.

That’s just sports, man. It’s the playoffs. Find a way to win. If you can’t? Tough. Go home.

It might be news to some, but the best teams in baseball don’t always win. Check this out from USA Today’s Gabe Lacques from last year. 

“The best team won’t win the World Series? Brother, that’s old news: Since divisional play began in 1969 through 2021, the team with the best record in baseball won the World Series just 14 times in 52 years – or 27% of the time. And since MLB split into a six-division format beginning with the 1995 playoffs, we’ve welcomed plenty of relatively middling champions.” 

Sure, sometimes we get juggernauts like last year’s Astros or the 2020 Dodgers who are very clearly head and shoulders above the rest of the teams in the league. But other times, we get teams like 2021’s 88-win Braves who manage to climb the mountaintop.

The fact that we can have both is what makes the sport — and this journey as a whole — beautiful. It’s imperfect and that’s awesome.

The NBA’s future is alien

TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP

That’s the only way possible to describe what we saw from Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren on Monday night. Those dudes just don’t make any sense. Literally.

The two rookies squared off in a preseason game and I felt like I might has well been watching a Kaiju flick. A 7-5 big guard versus a 7-1 big guard. Basketball has never looked like this before.

I’ll let Bryan Kalbrosky tell you how wild it was.

“Both of these players did so many things we’re simply not used to seeing on the confines of an actual basketball court.

Holmgren is 7-foot-1 but scored as the ball-handler in a pick-and-roll set and nailed a 3-pointer using an off-ball screen. He also scored in more traditional ways like a big man would, including putbacks and basket cuts and rim rolls.

Wembanyama also managed some absurd scoring possessions. Some of his most impressive moments came after off-ball screens, dribble handoffs and transition leak-outs.

His offensive rebound putback scores were exciting but the finesse that he displayed on his layup package was fully unbelievable.”

My favorite part of the game was when Wembanyama basically stole the ball from Cason Wallace from the 3-point line (!!!!). It was unreal, man.

The next 10 years are going to be so fun, man. Please stay healthy, fellas.

Can we turn off injuries? Please?

Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

Obviously, we hate to see injuries happen to anyone. But it always stings a bit more when you see some of the best players in the NFL go down.

It feels like we’ve gotten so many of those major injuries in the last few days. Just today we saw big news on the injury front with:

— Justin Jefferson being placed on injured reserve for the next month with a hamstring injury.

— Rookie standout De’Von Achane is reportedly out for multiple weeks with a knee injury

It’s football. We know injuries are going to happen. It’s part of the game. You just absolutely hate to see it.

Football gods, let’s just turn off injuries like we do on Madden. Please? Just this once? I would like to watch Justin Jefferson play football.

Quick hits: It’s the 49ers then everyone else in the NFL … Micah Parsons talks too much … and more

— Wake up, babe. Robert Zeglinski and Christian D’Andrea just dropped their Week 6 NFL power rankings and the 49ers are at the top of the top.

— Micah Parsons keeps talking about the 49ers and it’s really weird. He’s mad at George Kittle now. Cory Woodruff has more.

— Tyler Nettuno has winners and losers for Week 6 in the college football world. Shoutout Brent Venables and Oklahoma.

— Charles Curtis has the 6 best moments from the ManningCast. This is the content I look forward to every week.

— Mary Clarke and Charles have their NHL predictions ready to go for you.

— Michael Harris II was so hyped after Austin Riley’s home run against the Phillies. This is the best.

That’s all for Tuesday, folks. Catch you again tomorrow! Thanks for reading. Have a fantastic day.

Michael Harris screaming in joy after Austin Riley’s HR will give you chills

Michael Harris II had the best reaction.

The Atlanta Braves relied on one of their best players to help even out the NLDS series between the Philadelphia Phillies on Monday Night at Truist Park.

After some late-inning offensive plays, the Braves got a 5-4 lead with just the top of the ninth possibly to go against the Phillies.

On a blast of a Nick Castellanos hit, center fielder Michael Harris II made a spectacular leaping catch and double play to get the Braves the last two outs to close things out in dramatic fashion.

It was a clip of Harris’s jubilant reaction from earlier in the game that summed up everything that had just happened as he sealed Atlanta’s first postseason win of 2023.

Seriously, that will get you as fired up (unless you’re a Phillies fan… or a fan of any other team that doesn’t like the Braves).

Harris made the play of a lifetime, and his reaction after that home run earlier just cements what a special night this was for him and Atlanta.

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Michael Harris’ spectacular catch and game-ending double play for the Braves left MLB fans in awe

Michael Harris II is unreal.

The Atlanta Braves finally saw their bats come alive late in Game 2 of the NLDS with the Philadelphia Phillies, but it’d be center fielder Michael Harris II who would cement the series equalizer.

On a Nick Castellanos bomb to the back of the diamond for Philadelphia, Harris made an incredible snag to keep the ball in play and get the second out of the ninth inning.

He also made a heads-up throw to the bases to get the Braves in position to get Bryce Harper out to close things out in the top of the ninth, which they did in style.

Harris’ spectacular play helped give Atlanta a 1-1 serie tie with Philadelphia before the series heads up to Citizens Bank Park for two games.

This is the kind of play that has turned Harris into one of the game’s best players, and it proved huge for Atlanta to close out a game it desperately needed to win.

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The Dallas Cowboys are frauds and we should thank them for showing us this early

The Cowboys are exactly who we thought they were.

This is For The Win’s daily newsletter, The Morning Win. Did a friend recommend or forward this to you? If so, subscribe here. Have feedback? Leave your questions, comments and concerns through this brief reader survey! Now, here’s Mike Sykes.

Goooood morning, folks! Welcome back to The Morning Win. Thanks so much for reading.

We’ll have a quick word on the Cowboys in a second, but before that I wanted to update you all on our poll results. On Friday, I asked you all which organization you’d rather be part of: The Washington Commanders or the Chicago Bears.

There were 40 responses in total and 34 of you said Chicago.

I’m not going to lie — I thought it’d be closer! But it turns out that Washington’s organizational stink doesn’t just wash away overnight. That’s totally fair.

Anyway, let’s roast the Cowboys.

Don’t trust Dallas

I was so sure that today’s column would be about Sean Payton absolutely embarrassing himself against the Jets after talking all that trash about Nathaniel Hackett and the alleged worst coaching job ever. Those were his own words, man.

But the Cowboys bailed him about. Dallas absolutely spilled all types of milk all over the field against San Francisco.

This happens every year, man. The Cowboys just trick people into believing that they’re somehow the team to beat without actually beating much of anybody.

There’s always a stretch in the season where the Cowboys just look like world-beaters. Dak Prescott makes all the right throws. Micah Parsons seems unblockable. CeeDee Lamb looks like the most talented receiver in the NFL. The defense seems immovable as a whole.

Then, all of a sudden, the Cowboys can’t stop anybody. Dak just starts throwing some of the worst interceptions. Tony Pollard goes missing. Dallas just doesn’t look like the same team anymore. Reality sets in.

The 49ers were reality this year.

San Francisco’s 42-10 route of the Cowboys shows us that, yes, there really are levels to this thing. And Dallas is very clearly not on the 49ers’ level — not even close.

But it’s also hilarious that the Cowboys thought they were. The team was confident enough in Sunday night’s game that Dan Quinn wore all black to it like he was going to a funeral.

I mean, even after the game, Micah Parsons is still talking like his team can hold a candle to San Francisco. He said he still doesn’t feel like the 49ers are on a “higher level” than the Cowboys. It’s almost like he didn’t play in the game at all.

Look, man. The Cowboys are an extremely talented team. They’re also easily the most talked-about team in the NFL — here I am, talking about them on this platform right now.

But I’m doing so to tell you this: DO NOT TRUST THIS TEAM. Do not pass Go. Do not collect $200 dollars in Cowboys bucks. It’s just not going to work out for you because it’s not going to work out for them.

Sorry, Cowboys fans. But you and I both know what the deal is. So let’s just act accordingly moving forward.

Sean Payton is still catching this L

Feb 6, 2023; Englewood, CO, USA; Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton speaks at the UCHealth Training Center.
Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

Sean Payton, don’t you worry. You’re not getting off easily this Sunday morning. His 2023 Broncos might be worse than Nathaniel Hackett’s 2022 Broncos. The irony is so delicious.

Robert Zeglinski perfectly breaks it down here in his NFL Week 5 awards column.

“Sean Payton talked all that smack about Nathaniel Hackett in the offseason, in turn making it clear his version of the Denver Broncos would be better. After all, he was the “brilliant” coach with a Super Bowl ring. Payton’s team couldn’t possibly be worse than the guy who presided over the worst season of Russell Wilson’s NFL career. Right?

About that.

Through five games in 2023, Payton’s iteration is 1-4. Through five games in 2022, Hackett’s Broncos were 2-3. Even if Denver might, theoretically, be in better places (like on offense), there’s nothing meaningful to suggest that Payton is doing any better of a coaching job than Hackett, the now offensive coordinator for the New York Jets. What a coincidence that the two teams had the pleasure of meeting in Denver on Sunday. And what a dream for those of us fond of drama after the Jets’ 31-21 win.”

Humble pie has been served. I absolutely love to see it.

REQUIRED READING: Here’s a full look at Robert’s Week 5 Awards, including another ridiculous Aidan Hutchinson interception and a terrible week from Mac Jones.

Something is in the water

(Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

The MLB playoffs have just been filled with so many upsets and underdog stories so far.

  • Over the weekend, nearly every higher seed in the wild-card round of the playoffs was eliminated with the exception of the Phillies (No. 4) who beat the Marlines (No. 5)
  • The Orioles (No. 1) are currently down 2-0 in the ALDS to the Texas Rangers (No. 5) and are on the brink of elimination.
  • As of Monday morning, no higher seed has a series lead in either the ALDS or the NLDS. The only higher seed with a win so far is the Astros (No. 2) who won Game 1 against the Twins (No. 3).

We’re only one game into so many of these series, but still. This is just not what anyone would expect so far in these playoffs.

It’s not even just the fact that lower seeds are winning — it’s the way they’re doing it. For example, the O’s gave up 11 runs in Game 2 against the Rangers. Baltimore’s ERA on the season was 3.78.

Or how about Clayton Kershaw getting rocked for six runs in Game 1 against the Diamondbacks while only recording one out? That’s never happened before — not just to Kershaw, but to anyone.

This postseason has been so weird. It’s also made for some pretty entertaining baseball. More, please.

Quick hits: The best of Week 5 in the NFL … a GIF for every NHL team … and more

— Christian D’Andrea has the best things from Week 5 of NFL action, including the Jared Goff renaissance. In Dan Campbell we trust.

— Mary Clarke has a GIF for each and every NHL team entering the season. This is too fun.

— Mary also did watchability rankings for each team, too! Can’t say we don’t have NHL preview content for you.

— Here’s Ben Fawkes on the big win the Dolphins gave public bettors over the weekend.

— Here’s the Cowboys fan meme content you’ve been searching for. Charles Curtis has you covered.

— What a brilliant fake punt. Robert Zeglinski has more for you here.

That’s all, folks! Thanks so much for reading TMW this morning. And thanks so much to everyone who responded in our poll. We appreciate you!

Let’s do this again tomorrow. See you then!