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Patriots’ joyous victory shows it’s Jerod Mayo’s team now, without the immense shadow

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Patriots’ joyous victory shows it’s Jerod Mayo’s team now, without the immense shadow


CINCINNATI — Let the record show that Jerod Mayo’s first postgame news conference as a head coach in the NFL was also his first postgame news conference as a victorious head coach in the NFL. But when he stood there in the tiny interview room at Paycor Stadium on Sunday afternoon following the New England Patriots’ 16-10 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals, he convinced nobody when he said, “I try not to get too high, I try not to get too low.”

For anybody in the room who might have had difficulty summoning the words to explain just how off-the-mark Mayo was with that remark, thank heavens the Patriots have quarterback Jacoby Brissett in their employ. For when Brissett was summoned to deliver an analysis of Mayo’s postgame emotions, he replied: “Excited, man. It’s hard to win in this league. He played in this league. He understands how hard it is, especially on the road, against a good opponent. What’s the word? Ecstatic? Elated? Any word you can think of that means overjoyed, he should be. It’s his first one.”

Excited. Ecstatic. Elated. Overjoyed. Who knew the Patriots brought a playbook and a copy of “Brissett’s Thesaurus” to Cincinnati?

To be fair, Mayo also spoke lots of words that conveyed his understanding of the significance of what he and the Patriots accomplished Sunday. He went so far as to mention his family, his grandparents “and my Pop Warner coaches and all the people who instilled not only the X’s and O’s of football but also how to operate in life.” It’s also worth noting that Mayo delivered his postgame remarks at about 106 mph, suggesting a man very much caught up in the moment.

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Patriots defy ‘rebuilding’ narrative, pull off huge upset vs. Bengals in Jerod Mayo’s debut

Yes, it was a big upset for the Patriots to topple the Bengals on their home field, sending thousands of orange-shirted Cincy fans out to the streets with red faces. Yes, it was big that the New England defense did so good a job of bottling up the Cincinnati passing game that quarterback Joe Burrow spent most of the day delivering nothing but pass-the-gravy passes. It was big that Christian Gonzalez was so proficient at shadowing Bengals receiver Ja’Marr Chase that it was hard to believe New England’s second-year cornerback was lost for the 2023 season after just four games due to a labrum tear.

And, yes, the Patriots are 1-0. That’s the most important aspect to New England’s victory over the Bengals, except that it isn’t. Mayo’s first victory as head coach may turn out to pay long-term dividends for the Patriots in that it has taken the organization exactly 60 minutes of football to distance itself from the looming presence of Bill Belichick, who happens to be the greatest coach in NFL history. Oh, make no mistake: Belichick isn’t going anywhere. He’s pretty much a 24/7 television personality now, in addition to ladling out hints he’s still interested in being a head coach again if any NFL owner out there comes to the belief that their underachieving team is just a Hall of Fame-bound coach away from getting over the hump. And for those who keep track of this at home, it’s Belichick 333, Mayo 1 on the All-Time Victories Scoreboard.

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But know this: Had the Patriots lost this opener, as the oddsmakers told us they would, it would have been the 0-1 Pats taking on Seattle in Week 2 at Gillette Stadium. A loss there and it’s the 0-2 Pats heading to the Meadowlands to play the Jets. The debate over exactly when, or if, Drake Maye will step in for Brissett as starting quarterback will continue all season. New England’s offensive line will continue to be a talking point, though it was not an issue against the Bengals. But not only is Mayo in the win column in the season opener, but also his players lavished so much praise on him after the game that it’s clear they’re buying what he’s selling. And it wasn’t just the game Mayo’s players were talking about, but the weeks, even months, leading up to that game.

“Guys are excited, guys are happy,” center David Andrews said. “(They) put in a lot of work, from guys from the offseason on their own time to workouts to OTAs to training camp. And obviously a lot of work this week.”

Brissett, the journeyman quarterback who contributed 15-of-24 passing for 121 yards to an offense that was highlighted by running back Rhamondre Stevenson’s 120 rushing yards, said he cried three times before the game and that Mayo had something to do with that.

“I cried when I got to the stadium,” Brissett said. “I cried when Mayo came up to me before the game, and he started laughing and said like, man, you’re about to win us a game, you’re about to ball out. I had never heard that from a coach and that meant a lot to me. And then I cried when I got on the field and we’re going out on offense.”

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GO DEEPER

How New England’s rushing attack, defense stifled Cincinnati in Mayo’s debut

Mayo contributed a discussion he says he had with Stevenson earlier in the year.

“I challenged Rhamondre in the spring,” Mayo said. “I said, ‘You don’t get a lot of love, a lot of hype.’ But I’ve always believed he’s one of the best running backs in the league, and when we signed him to the extension, there was no one happier than me because I know what he’s capable of and he showed that today.”

If you’re the type who believes Sunday’s outcome was as much a product of Cincinnati’s failures as what New England did right, have at it. And anyway, it’s just one game, just one victory.

But Mayo has his first Gatorade shower and a game ball to put on his shelf. It’s his team now, only without the giant shadow.

(Photo: Joseph Maiorana / Imagn Images)





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Deshaun Watson got trampled by the Cowboys, but please don’t blame the protection

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Deshaun Watson got trampled by the Cowboys, but please don’t blame the protection


CLEVELAND — How long? How much longer do Browns fans have to wait to see the quarterback they were promised? 

We’re into Year 3 of the Deshaun Watson Experience and the first lap around the track didn’t feel any differently. Is it too late to speak to a manager and request a refund? 

It’s supposed to be different this year. He’s healthy now. The suspension is long behind him. The offense has been rebuilt to suit his strengths. The Browns have overhauled their entire operation to make him more comfortable. 

Success can still happen. It’s only one game and this offense had little time together in the preseason and training camp. That was evident during Sunday’s 33-17 embarrassment at the hands of the Dallas Cowboys.

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Browns show they’re not ready for big stage in lopsided loss to Cowboys

Watson should’ve played at some point in the preseason. That’s an organizational failure. It was 300 days from his broken shoulder last season until Sunday’s opener. We’ve been through this before with Watson and long layoffs. We know how it ends by now. 

It may not have made a difference in Sunday’s outcome, but it’s impossible to watch the Browns’ first game and believe they were ready for the start of the season. They weren’t. Whether they’ll be ready for the start of the season by Week 2 is debatable at this point. 

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But the bulk of this mess belongs to the quarterback. His minus-0.36 EPA/play was tied for second-worst on Sunday. Yes, there were far too many drops by his receivers, but his expected completion percentage was still less than 64 percent. That was fourth-worst for Week 1 entering Sunday night’s game. 

If we’re being honest, this rebuilt offense had a “the orange is oranger” type of feel to it. Nothing really looked much different from what we’ve seen previously other than a deeper disdain to run the ball. There were only a handful of RPO calls and at least one of them was negated by penalty. Watson was still under center for a decent amount of time. 

Watson was hit 17 times and sacked six. The 17 hits were easily the most of any quarterback in Week 1. But the one narrative we can’t have this week, the one talking point I won’t stand for is that Watson was hit too much because his protection broke down and he didn’t have enough time to throw. It’s a lazy assumption based on the statistics and the most outrageous lie you’ll hear all week. It is categorically false. Even Browns coach Kevin Stefanski has been duped. 

“He got hit way too often,” Stefanski said. “We can’t let that happen to him. … We have to protect our quarterback better than that.” 

Or, and hear me out, the quarterback has to protect himself better than that.

Dallas’ defense blitzed on one-fourth of its snaps, which was fairly average compared to other Week 1 teams. Here are the important numbers to know, according to a deep dive on data provided by TruMedia and PFF. All of the league-wide rankings are through all Week 1 games before Monday night.

• Watson averaged 4.16 seconds to throw per pressured dropback Sunday, the eighth-best time under pressure. On sacks that resulted from pressure, he held the ball for 4.29 seconds, the sixth-best time in Week 1. 

• On the six sacks he did take, his average time to throw was 4.87 seconds — which ranked 10th. 

• Since he joined the Browns in 2022, Watson has been the slowest from snap to throw on pressured dropbacks of any quarterback across the league (4.60 seconds). Tom Brady, who coincidentally called the game for Fox, was the fastest at 3.26 seconds. 

Part of what has made Watson great throughout his career is his ability to hold the ball and extend plays. It’s disingenuous to then turn around and blame his line for protection breakdowns when they are giving him more time to throw against pressure than any other offensive line in the NFL the past two-plus seasons. 

This isn’t a protection issue. It’s a Watson issue. 

There were costly procedure and false start penalties Sunday on both of the Browns’ starting tackles. That has to get cleaned up. But there was at least one sack that occurred because Watson was standing where he wasn’t expected to be so the protection wasn’t angled that way. 

It’s rhythm and timing issues. It’s “feel” issues. It just doesn’t seem like he’s seeing the field well. Or he’s not processing what he’s seeing. 

There were receivers open down the field Sunday, Watson was just busy throwing the ball 7 yards out of bounds on sideline routes and fade routes into the end zone. 

It was awful. It was worse than awful. It was some of the worst quarterback play in the league during Week 1. 

Forty-five minutes after Sunday’s game ended, while most players had showered and long departed the locker room, Watson was still unshowered wearing stained football pants and chatting with backup quarterback Jameis Winston. 

It was an emotional few days for Watson, whose father died this week. He was estranged from his father for most of his life, according to a Houston Chronicle story in 2017. But navigating grief is never easy. 

“I’m not going to use that as an excuse for why we played bad, but it was a heavy heart these last couple of days,” Watson said. “But again, I don’t want to use that as an excuse.”

Stefanski and the Browns have done everything they can to make Watson more comfortable in this offense. As Year 3 begins, the organization is holding on tight, patiently waiting for its $230 million gamble to show a proper return on its bold investment.

How long? How much longer will they have to wait? 

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NFL Week 1 takeaways: Cowboys’ talent overwhelms, Harbaugh’s formula works, Caleb Williams shaky

(Photo of Deshaun Watson getting hit by Micah Parsons: Nick Cammett / Getty Images)





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Carroll Dawson, legendary Rockets assistant coach and GM, dies at 86

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Carroll Dawson, legendary Rockets assistant coach and GM, dies at 86


Former Houston Rockets assistant coach and general manager Carroll Dawson has died at age 86, the team announced Monday.

The cause of his death was not disclosed.

Dawson, known as “CD,” spent nearly three decades with the Rockets from 1980 to 2007, starting as an assistant coach under Del Harris and working with Bill Fitch, Don Chaney and Rudy Tomjanovich before transitioning to the front office in 1996. He remains the lone figure in franchise history to have served as an assistant during each of their four NBA Finals runs, most notably during the back-to-back championships in 1994 and 1995.

“While CD’s contributions to basketball were remarkable, it was his character that truly stood out,” the Rockets said in a statement. “We will deeply miss his uplifting spirit, infectious humor, and kind-hearted nature. We are proud that CD’s legacy will forever be honored with his banner hanging from the rafters of Toyota Center, alongside our other Rockets legends.”

As an assistant, Dawson built a reputation around the league for developing big men, working closely with Hall of Famers like Elvin Hayes, Hakeem Olajuwon, Ralph Sampson and Moses Malone. His proficiency in player development carried over to his role as general manager, tasked with the day-to-day running of the Rockets’ scouting department.

Dawson constantly sought avenues to upgrade the roster, successfully pulling off trades for the likes of Scottie Pippen, Charles Barkley, Cuttino Mobley and Tracy McGrady — along with drafting of Yao Ming in 2002. In 2007, Dawson hired Daryl Morey as his successor.

That year, the Rockets hung a banner with the initials “CD” from the rafters at Toyota Center to honor Dawson’s work with the franchise.

But Dawson’s impact wasn’t just limited to the NBA. He was also an instrumental figure in the construction of four-time WNBA Champion Houston Comets, which still stands as the most successful WNBA franchise of all time. As executive vice president of the organization, Dawson played a monumental role in signing WNBA legends Tina Thompson, Cynthia Cooper and Sheryl Swoopes along with the hiring of coach Van Chancellor.

“I’m lucky to have the chance to get to know and work with (Dawson),” Rockets general manager Rafael Stone told The Athletic in a statement. “He’s a Houston Rockets legend and someone I learned a lot from, particularly his ability to use humor to make his point and connect with people. That’s a timeless quality that not many people possess and it was cool to get the chance to observe.”

(Photo of Dawson at the 2006 NBA Draft Lottery: Jennifer Pottheiser / NBAE via Getty Images)





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The best Aaron Judge trading cards to collect: From rookie cards to pieces of corn stalks

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The best Aaron Judge trading cards to collect: From rookie cards to pieces of corn stalks


Aaron Judge has broken records and compiled an array of individual honors on his way to becoming one of the faces of Major League Baseball during his career with the New York Yankees. Baseball card collectors have been drawn to the 2017 American League Rookie of the Year and 2022 AL MVP in growing numbers, but what are the best starting points when it comes to Judge cards? Here are our picks.

Things to know before buying

The value of sports cards can fluctuate for various reasons such as condition, print runs, or graded population. Other factors that can cause prices to go up or down include player performance, market trends, and health of the wider economy. The secondary sales market for individual cards of a given sport generally hits its lowest point during the offseason (in other words, you can usually find better prices in the offseason than during the season). My recommendations are not an attempt to promote specific investment behavior or trading advice, but to guide and inform readers about popular and unique cards that are celebrated by the sports card community.

Ultimately, the best cards to collect are always the ones you will enjoy regardless of whether they go up or down in value. The recommendations below should serve as a starting point for cards to consider, but a big part of the fun in collecting is the hunt for the cards you like the most.

“Raw” cards vs. Graded cards

Cards can come out of the pack (their “raw” state) with a wide variety of imperfections that can impact their value. Card grading is a process in a which an expert of the field determines the condition of a card based on a number of factors (including corner sharpness, image centering, print imperfections, and more) and assigns a numerical grade, usually on a scale of 1-10 (with the latter being close to perfect) and sealed in a protective case. There are a number of grading companies, each with their own unique grading scales, but Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA) is by far the largest and most prominent in the industry. Cards graded a “PSA 10” can carry a significant value multiplier compared to raw cards or those graded by other companies.

It’s fine (and often cheaper) to buy cards raw, but if you want to ensure authenticity and/or a minimum condition level and you’re not experienced at determining card condition for yourself, you may want to buy a graded card instead — particularly if you’re buying online and only able to see the card in photographs.

 

Judge’s 2013 Bowman Chrome #BDPP19 is my best value recommendation based on the number of graded copies and price. It also marks one of his first cards as a member of the Yankees organization, predating his official Topps rookie cards by four years.

Best low-end (~$1-$99) Aaron Judge cards

This is a category for collectors who are on a tighter budget or aren’t as concerned about the long-term monetary value of the cards they buy. 

2017 Topps #287 rookie card

I consider Aaron Judge’s 2017 Topps #287 a prototypical rookie card that’s high in demand and affordably priced. Raw versions are currently selling on eBay for around $20 with multiple transactions per day over the last 30 days.

I don’t necessarily blame folks who’d prefer a rookie card that captures Judge at the plate, but the fact that it’s his first rookie card from Topps’ flagship set makes it my top budget-friendly recommendation.

More expensive variations and parallels of this card: Purple, Negative, Rainbow Foil, Image Variation SP (short print), Gold (/2017), Vintage Stock (/99), Black (/66), Mother’s Day Pink (/50), Father’s Day light blue (/50), Memorial Day Camouflage (/25), Clear (/10), Platinum (1/1), Printing Plates (1/1), 65th Anniversary Stamp (1/1)

2017 Topps Archives #62 rookie card

As someone who appreciates the history of the hobby, I felt it was necessary to feature Aaron Judge’s’ 2017 Topps Archives #62 card. The Archives product was created to pay homage to the classic Topps baseball card designs of the past while featuring current rookies and stars. The horizontal look, dual imaging, and bright colors of this card are a tribute to the 1960 Topps design.

Although this is a set that’s not particularly known for garnering high interest on the secondary market for its base cards, the current demand for Aaron Judge rookies combined with the nostalgic aspects of this card design has it selling for around $40-$60 on eBay as of this writing.

More expensive variations and parallels: Grey Back, Peach (/199), Blue (/75), Red (/25), Black (1/1)

Best value (~$100-$499) Aaron Judge cards

This is a category for collectors looking to pay a bit more for cards that have some degree of scarcity and have a better chance at retaining or increasing in value long-term. 

2013 Bowman Chrome Draft Picks & Prospects #BDPP19

Before his 2017 Major League debut, Judge’s first official baseball card as part of the New York Yankees organization can be found in 2013 Bowman Chrome Draft Picks & Prospects.

Let me clarify the difference between a player’s first Bowman card and Topps rookie card — a “1st Bowman” card is a player’s first official pro baseball card that comes once they’ve joined a team’s minor league system through free agency or the draft. On the other hand, a Topps rookie card refers to a player’s first card once they debut in the Major Leagues, which, in the modern era, generally includes an “RC” (for “rookie card”) stamped on the front.

Judge’s Chrome base card (chromium cards are shiny and are printed on a thicker card stock than the generally more abundant and flimsier “paper” cards) from 2013 Bowman Chrome Draft Picks & Prospects is my best value recommendation based on the number of graded copies and price. Unlike most of the cards on this list, this set was not offered in big box retail stores (like Walmart or Target) and could only be purchased in hobby shops or online. In most cases, this means fewer cards are printed for hobby-exclusive releases compared to sets with retail formats.

According to PSA, there are less than 3,500 examples of this card authenticated by the company and less than 1,500 have received a Gem Mint 10 grade. Since the card’s grading population is relatively low for today’s standards, raw copies will cost you around $150. (For comparison, there are around 10,000 PSA graded examples of the aforementioned 2017 Topps #287 and more than 5,000 PSA 10s.)

This set also offers numerous refractors and autograph variations that I’d highly consider if you really want to splurge. In 2022, the year he won his first AL MVP award, Judge’s Bowman Chrome DPP Superfractor 1/1 Autograph sold for over $300,000.

More expensive variations and parallels: Refractor, Blue (/99), Green (/75), Gold (/50), Black (/35), Orange (/25), Red Ice (/25), Purple Ice (/10), Orange Ice (/5), Red (/5), Black Ice (1/1), Superfractor (1/1), Printing Plate (1/1)

Note: there is also a mini version of this card that sells for less than the full-sized version. 

2017 Topps Chrome #169 rookie card

First released in 1996, Topps Chrome has lit up collectors eyes’ with shiny metallic cardstock and rainbow refractor parallels. Experienced collectors know that Aaron Judge’s 2017 Topps Chrome #169 is his most popular rookie card.

To go with that high demand, it has the highest PSA 10 population on this list with over 6,500 copies graded in Gem Mint condition (but fewer total PSA-graded examples than the paper #287 at less than 9,000). The Chrome base rookie card is a logical starting point for novice or experienced collectors, but the Refractor or Prism Refractor are solid alternatives for those who prefer more limited parallel cards. PSA 10 sales of the base card are currently around $200 as of this writing.

More expensive variations and parallels: Refractor, Negative Refractor, Pink Refractor, Sepia Refractor, Prism Refractor, X-Fractor, Image Variation, Purple Refractor (/250), Blue Refractor (/150), Green Refractor (/99), Blue Wave Refractor (/75), Gold Refractor (/50), Gold Wave Refractor (/50), Orange Refractor (/25), Red Refractor (/5), Printing Plates (1/1), Superfractor (1/1)

Best high-end (~$500+) Aaron Judge cards

This is a category for collectors looking to acquire the most desired Judge cards on the market. 

2017 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs #AJ rookie card

Topps Heritage is praised as one of the go-to baseball card sets for rookie autographs. One of the major selling points to Aaron Judge’s 2017 Topps Heritage “Real One” Autographs is that his signature is directly on the card. This may seem like no biggie, but “on-card autographs” are highly desired because many of the signatures in modern collecting come in the form of the player signing a sticker, which is then affixed to the card. It’s just not the same as the player signing the card itself.

2017 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs come in two variations: a base card auto in blue ink and a parallel red ink autograph limited to 68 copies (2017 Topps Heritage harkened back to the 1968 Topps set design). The base auto in various grades is currently selling for over $2,000.That said, I wouldn’t consider this the priciest Aaron Judge card on the market, but it has my vote as his best rookie autograph card.

2017 Topps Chrome Sapphire Edition #287 rookie card

Aaron Judge’’s 2017 Topps Chrome Sapphire Edition #287 is his most expensive base rookie card and is also known for its extreme rarity. 2017 Topps Chrome Sapphire Baseball was released as a premium box set featuring 700 blue sapphire chrome cards, five rookie autographs, 13 parallel cards, and two Superfractor 1/1 parallel cards. Back then, Sapphire could only be purchased as an online exclusive and was a limited release of 250 sets — meaning there were only 250 copies of Aaron Judge’s Base Sapphire RC ever produced. A raw version of this card was purchased for $750 in July, while a Gem Mint PSA 10 example sold for $2,500 in August. I consider this the holy grail of Aaron Judge base rookie cards.

Two other cool Aaron Judge Cards

2021 and 2022 Panini Absolute Kaboom!

Topps has the exclusive MLB trading card license, meaning they are the only card manufacturer that can print Major League team names and logos on their trading cards. Unlicensed cards, like those produced by Panini for baseball, generally garner lower collector interest, but some cards can overcome their unofficial status with an eye-catching design and that’s the case with the Kaboom! inserts. Even more highly sought-after in Panini’s NFL and NBA sets, where they do have league licenses (for the time being), Kaboom! cards have become some of the most popular inserts of the modern era thanks in part to their relative scarcity and comic-book style design. Judge was featured in both the 2021 and 2022 Kaboom! checklists and it’s a perfect fit for a player who has become synonymous with hitting home runs.

2021 Topps Now Field of Dreams Game Autograph and Corn Stalk Relic

In 2021, the Yankees and White Sox played a regular season game at the filming site for the 1989 baseball classic “Field of Dreams.” Judge hit two homers into the cornfield in that game and to mark the occasion, Topps Now — a print-on-demand product used to quickly commemorate milestones and significant performances — produced an autographed Judge card that also featured an MLB authenticated “game-used corn stalk.” Cards featuring pieces of memorabilia have become commonplace in the hobby, but the game-used corn stalk is an unusual one.

Getting the best price

Prices for a certain trading card can vary wildly and fluctuate quickly, making it important to check recent sales of a given card to make sure you’re buying at a fair value. You can check recent sales of an item on eBay by selecting the “sold items” filter on search results. You can also run a search on 130point.com, which is a free site that provides sales data from a number of online marketplaces. There are also several apps that provide more in-depth sales data, often charging subscription fees for full access.

To account for outliers, it’s important to take multiple previous sales into account, not just the single most recent. It’s also important to note the recency of those sales and any real-world factors that could affect changes in value.

Why you should trust us

As a second-generation collector (thanks to his dad’s lifelong passion for sports collectibles),  Tyler Holzhammer started collecting cards and attending the National Sports Collectors Convention at 10 years old. He’s continued his passion as a collector into a career, providing sports card content and market analysis for companies like Sports Card Investor and Goldin Auctions. Tyler’s sports card collection is centered around players from his favorite teams, the Los Angeles Rams and the St. Louis Cardinals.

How we selected these cards

We utilize marketplace research databases that provide sports card analysis and sales information, such as eBay’s Terapeak product research tool and CardLadder. We recommended this list of cards by analyzing the values, sales volume, set popularity, and grading population of over a dozen different Aaron Judge rookie cards, while also incorporating the personal preference of an experienced collector.

The Athletic maintains full editorial independence in all our coverage. When you click or make purchases through our links, we may earn a commission.

Further reading

(Top photo by Sam Hodde/Getty Images; all card images: eBay)



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Taylor Fritz’s U.S. Open final offers hope for men’s tennis — and a reality check

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Taylor Fritz’s U.S. Open final offers hope for men’s tennis — and a reality check


NEW YORK — In the build-up to Wimbledon, Taylor Fritz said men’s tennis feels more open now, compared with the Big Three era.

“It took just one of them to be playing incredibly well,” he said of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.

“We were younger and not as good as we are now. You were hoping that they’d have an off day and you’d have an on day,” Fritz said. “Nowadays, anyone in the top 15, it’s kind of whoever plays better.

“It’s exciting for all of us because we know that all it takes is two weeks or 10 days of playing really high-level tennis, and taking the opportunity as best as possible.”

This U.S. Open has proved Fritz right and wrong. Early exits for Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz offered hope to the chasing pack, but the tournament ended upholding the status quo, as world No. 1 Jannik Sinner won his second Grand Slam of the year by beating Fritz 6-3, 6-4, 7-5.

With the other two majors of 2024 going to Alcaraz, 21, he and Sinner, 23, have won five of the last six Slams. They are delivering at the sharp end of majors with Big Three-like efficiency, and they’re still quite young.

Their domination feels different to the rest of the locker room, though. After Frances Tiafoe was defeated by Fritz in Friday’s semifinal, he said this tournament had been “big” in showing the best of the rest that a Grand Slam win is within reach. “It shows that it’s definitely possible,” he said. “The game’s open. Even with Alcaraz and Sinner and these other guys, it’s not what it used to be.”

Alexander Zverev, ranked just ahead of Alcaraz at No. 2 but without the same major success, expressed similar sentiments ahead of Wimbledon.

Part of the sentiment comes from the fact that even if they’re winning the bulk of the slams, Sinner and Alcaraz are not yet at the point of being a shoo-in for the semis or finals of every big tournament. Alcaraz showed that with his second-round exit here. Djokovic is still wildly talented but has been more uneven, offering the field a glimmer of hope after his worst Grand Slam year since 2017 (and second worst since 2009).

Fritz said Sunday that what encourages him is that he reached the final without playing that well.

“I think it’s really positive for me because I don’t feel like at any specific point in these two weeks … I was playing, like, amazing tennis,” he said. “Maybe it is a bit more open. I don’t think you have to, I don’t know, play unbelievable to go deep in tournaments and contend.”


“When I play good tennis,” Taylor Fritz said, “I think that level is good enough to win.” (Jamie Squire / Getty Images)

Players such as Fritz also haven’t built up the kind of scar tissue with Alcaraz and Sinner that they had with the Big Three. Even if they find themselves losing to them, at least they feel like they have a chance of winning.

With the Big Three, players such as Fritz largely went in with hope rather than expectations. By contrast, before facing Sinner, Fritz said: “I have a feeling I’m going to come out and play really well and win. When I play good tennis, I think that level is good enough to win.”

In the end, Sinner proved too strong. Fritz acknowledged afterward that: “I think that (now) you can find yourself a little deeper in the draws — quarterfinals and stuff — if you just play solid tennis. I still think to beat the top guys, you need to bring your best game.”

And that is the rub. For a player like Fritz to break through and win a slam, he more than likely still has to face Sinner, Alcaraz or Djokovic. And as much as this tournament showed there might be more chances for players outside the elite to reach the quarters, semis and finals, none of those players recorded a landmark win against one of the top three.

Djokovic’s conqueror, Alexei Popyrin, is a rung or two below the group of main challengers, and Botic van de Zandschulp, who defeated Alcaraz, isn’t likely to be at the sharp end of slams anytime soon.

Fritz, though, will come out of this tournament with his standing in the game slightly altered. He spoke after losing to Sinner about how you can only beat what’s in front of you, and the way he navigated the highly stressful and slightly strange semifinal against his good friend and compatriot Tiafoe on Friday seems to have boosted his confidence.

There had always been a competition between those two and the rest of the close group of American players about who would get to a Grand Slam final first. Fritz has done it and, in his mind, while not playing his best. That bodes well for him heading into the Australian Open in January.

But Sunday, Fritz was reminded he’s still a way off from taking that final step. He spoke about how his Plan B of grinding it out works against most players but not those at the very top. He knows he’ll need to add more to his game to take that next step.

Because while the paths to the semis and finals might be getting easier, as long as Alcaraz and Sinner are delivering, the chasing pack still has a way to go.

(Top photo: Kena Betancur / AFP)



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How to watch the Trump-Harris presidential debate Tuesday

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How to watch the Trump-Harris presidential debate Tuesday



Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Trump will meet for the first time on a Philadelphia debate stage Tuesday evening, giving Americans their first chance at evaluating the candidates side by side, less than two months before Election Day.

What time is the debate?

The debate begins at 6 p.m. PDT on Tuesday, Sept. 10.

It will last 90 minutes, and there will be two commercial breaks, according to ABC.

How to watch the debate

ABC will air the event on television and several streaming networks, including ABC News Live, Disney+ and Hulu. It will also be available on the ABC app and online at ABC.com.

Several other networks will be broadcasting the debate live via simulcast.

Streaming or other networks will probably be an option for DirecTV subscribers who find they cannot access the debate. Because of a dispute over a distribution deal, Walt Disney Co.-owned channels, including ABC stations, were knocked off DirecTV platforms on Sept. 1 and it’s unclear when the dispute will be resolved.

Who is moderating the debate?

Anchors of the ABC show “World News Tonight” David Muir and Linsey Davis will moderate.

How will it work?

The two candidates will meet onstage at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, with no studio audience. There will be no opening statements. After introducing each candidate, the moderators will launch into questions.

Harris and Trump, who will stand behind lecterns, are not allowed to bring props or prewritten notes. They will be given a pen, a pad of paper and a bottle of water.

They will have two minutes for answers and rebuttals, and one extra minute for follow-ups, according to the debate rules.

Despite the Harris campaign’s request to leave the microphones on for the entire debate, a candidate’s microphone will be on only when it is their time to speak.

Based on a coin flip, Trump chose to get the final word and give the last two-minute closing statement.

The last debate

Tuesday’s debate marks 2½ months since President Biden and Trump faced off, beginning the rapid demise of Biden’s presidential bid. The president appeared meandering and confused throughout the debate, giving incomplete answers and seeming to lose his train of thought at multiple points.

Trump also gave incomplete and meandering answers, including a multitude of falsehoods. But Biden’s disastrous performance alarmed Democrats, who feared it could cost them the presidential race. Pressure in his own party for Biden to drop out mounted, and less than a month after the June 27 debate, Biden heeded the call.

He immediately threw his support behind Harris as his replacement to become the Democratic nominee. She kicked off a whirlwind campaign, clinching the nomination, naming Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate and quickly overtaking Biden in the polls.

Trump’s campaign scrambled to reorganize itself around a new opponent, blasting Harris for her work on the border and the Biden administration’s economic record — and launching a flurry of personal insults, including questioning Harris’ race.

The Biden-Trump debate on CNN in June averaged 51.3 million television viewers, well below the viewership the first time they debated in September 2020, when 73 million viewers tuned in.



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Patti Scialfa reveals multiple myeloma diagnosis in new Springsteen documentary

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Patti Scialfa reveals multiple myeloma diagnosis in new Springsteen documentary


Patti Scialfa, a longtime member of the E Street band and wife of Bruce Springsteen, confirmed that she has been battling blood cancer for about six years.

Scialfa, 71, made the revelation in “Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band,” the world tour documentary that premiered Sunday at the Toronto International Film Festival. She was absent from the film’s festival premiere, which was attended by Springsteen, his manager Jon Landau and bandmate Steven Van Zandt.

The musician said she has multiple myeloma, which occurs when cancerous plasma cells build up in bone marrow and crowd out healthy blood cells, according to the Mayo Clinic.

“Touring has become a challenge for me. In 2018, while Bruce and I were doing the play on Broadway [‘Springsteen on Broadway’], I was diagnosed with early stage multiple myeloma. And this affects my immune system,” Scialfa says in the documentary.

She added that she has to “be careful what I choose to do and where I choose to go” because of the disease.

“Every once in a while I come to a show or two and I can sing a few songs onstage. And that’s been a treat. That’s the normal for me right now. And I’m OK with that,” she said during an interview in the doc that shows footage of her performing onstage through the years.

Scialfa has been a member of the E Street band since 1984, serving as the group’s only member who is a woman. She provides backing vocals, plays tambourine and guitar. She married the the Boss in 1991, after his 1989 divorce from actor Julianne Phillips, and has toured and sung with the 74-year-old superstar for years.

“‘Fire’s’ always fun to sing. It’s very personal in away. You can see a side of our relationship that you usually don’t get to see,” Scialfa says in the film over footage of her and Springsteen’s duet. “Being back onstage with Bruce is a blast. … Every night of this tour gives the band a chance to celebrate.”

Meanwhile, Springsteen has also made health headlines over the last year or so. Last year, the “Dancing in the Dark” and “Born in the U.S.A” singer postponed several shows due to his digestive illness, peptic ulcer disease, which is not mentioned in the documentary. Later that month, he and the E Street Band announced the postponement of their remaining 2023 tour dates so that he could continue to receive treatment.

The tour resumed in March with 11 rescheduled shows in the U.S. — including two at SoFi Stadium — before heading to Europe and then back to the States. The tour hits Baltimore on Friday, plays Asbury Park, N.J., two days later, then heads to Canada for shows that run into late November. After another break, the band will return to Europe in 2025.

In an interview with The Times last week, Van Zandt confirmed that Springsteen is doing “remarkably well.”

“[H]e is really completely back to normal,” the guitarist said. “I think we did the right thing, playing it safe, taking extra time off and letting him heal. And he’s been terrific, really good shape.”

The documentary, which will begin streaming on Hulu and Disney+ on Oct. 25, takes an up-close look at the preparations for the ongoing 2023-2024 world tour that reunited the rock star with his band after taking an extended hiatus to work on solo projects and his Broadway show.



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In young American activist’s death in the West Bank, associates see pattern of impunity

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In young American activist’s death in the West Bank, associates see pattern of impunity


JERUSALEM — 

The young American activist, newly arrived in the West Bank, was nervous but determined. She believed that her presence, along with that of other foreign protesters, could help protect the land and lives of Palestinian villagers in the shadow of an encroaching Jewish settlement.

On Friday, in the scant shelter of a few gnarled olive trees near the Palestinian village of Beita, a first field outing became her last. As her companions on a rocky, arid hillside looked on in horror, Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, 26 — a bubbly, black-haired recent graduate of the University of Washington — fell to the ground, mortally wounded by a bullet to the head.

Colleagues of slain activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi carry posters with her image during her funeral procession in the West Bank city of Nablus on Monday. Eygi, an American citizen, was killed during an anti-settlement protest.

(Nasser Nasser / Associated Press)

“I saw a soldier on the rooftop training his gun in our direction,” said Jonathan Pollak, an Israeli activist who was a short distance away from where Eygi and a small group of protesters were standing when the shots were fired.

After an earlier brief clash in which soldiers fired tear gas at Palestinian protesters, it was calm, he said, and the contingent that included Eygi and her foreign companions had moved some distance away.

“Nothing was happening,” he said in an interview. “It was quiet.”

Then Pollak heard two shots, and panicky shouts erupted behind him.

“I saw Aysenur lying on the ground beneath an olive tree, bleeding to death,” he said. He and others tried to render first aid, but even though paramedics arrived quickly, it was obvious they could not save her.

“I could see brain matter,” said a European protester who was a few yards away at the time, who wanted to be identified only as Mariam. Eygi, a dual U.S.-Turkish national, was later pronounced dead at a hospital in the nearby northern West Bank city of Nablus.

On Monday, hundreds of mourners marched in Nablus. They hoisted Eygi’s body, draped in a Palestinian flag and a black-and-white kaffiyeh, and denounced the young women’s death as the cold-blooded murder of a peaceful protester.

Her family said she would be buried in Turkey, where Eygi was born before spending her childhood and early adulthood in the United States.

The Israeli military, which acknowledged firing shots to quell what it called a threat to troops’ safety, said in an initial statement Friday that it was investigating the episode, but did not respond to subsequent queries.

The White House said Friday it was “deeply disturbed” by news of the death, and Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken said the Biden administration was seeking additional information from Israel.

But in the intervening days, Eygi’s friends, family and associates have voiced doubts that anyone would ever be held accountable for the killing — especially if it is the Israeli military itself that is doing the investigating.

They pointed to the similar deaths of not only Palestinian civilians, but to other U.S. citizens in the West Bank and Gaza, including the veteran Palestinian American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh. She was shot dead in the northern West Bank in 2022, while reporting on an Israeli raid in the Jenin refugee camp.

The Israeli military eventually apologized for Abu Akleh’s death, citing the “high probability” she was shot by a soldier, but said she was mistakenly targeted. No criminal probe was opened.

“There’s a culture of cover-ups,” said Neta Golan, an Israeli activist who was a co-founder, in 2001, of the International Solidarity Movement, which organizes nonviolent protests in the Palestinian territories, including Friday’s in Beita. “Israeli investigations are not investigations, they’re ‘How do we cover this up?’”

The killing sparked broad calls for an independent probe, including from the United Nations.

“People should be held accountable,” said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for the U.N. secretary-general, Antonio Guterres.

In a weekend statement, the Eygi family also called for an independent investigation. “An Israeli investigation is not adequate,” they said.

Israeli officials have said little publicly about Eygi’s death, although an Israeli spokesman said the U.S. ambassador, Jack Lew, raised the subject in a weekend meeting with President Isaac Herzog, whose role is mainly ceremonial.

“The president expressed his sorrow over her death, and said the incident was being investigated by the [Israeli military],” said the spokesman, Jason Pearlman.

Israeli authorities have long regarded the International Solidarity Movement as a thorn in their side, sometimes seeking to halt entry of foreign activists who travel to the Palestinian territories via Israel to participate in its protests. In 2003, another American activist with the organization, 23-year-old Rachel Corrie, was crushed by an Israeli army bulldozer as she tried to block home demolitions in the Gaza Strip.

Corrie’s parents, Cindy and Craig Corrie, said Eygi’s death revived painful memories. The couple, who founded a nonprofit foundation in their daughter’s name, also called for an independent investigation into Eygi’s killing, which they likened to Rachel’s.

The latest episode raised diplomatic tensions between the United States and Turkey, a NATO ally that has been harshly critical of U.S. backing for Israel in the 11-month-old war in the Gaza Strip. The Turkish foreign ministry condemned Eygi’s death, describing it as murder.

Turkish officials said repatriation of Eygi’s remains had been complicated by a deadly weekend attack at the land crossing between the West Bank and Jordan, and that the body might have to be transported via a direct flight to Turkey. On Sunday, a Jordanian gunman killed three Israeli civilian workers at the crossing, which was closed in the aftermath.

Since the Gaza war began in October, violence has surged in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, with more than 600 Palestinians killed, according to U.N. figures.

In light of that, some critics have questioned whether international activists were deliberately putting themselves in harm’s way by taking part in demonstrations like the one near Beita, which take place almost every week.

Mariam, the European protester who was a few yards away from Eygi when she was shot and was with her during preparations for the protest, described her as serious-minded and aware of the risks, but joyful.

“She had the most beautiful smile,” said Mariam, who did not want to be fully identified for safety reasons.

Associates from Egyi’s college days described her as committed and passionate.

She “abhorred suffering and believed in justice,” Kyle Haddad-Fonda, a University of Washington history lecturer, told the Seattle Times.

Since 2020, more than a dozen Palestinians have been killed in protests against the Israeli outpost of Evyatar, whose establishment contravened international and Israeli law. Palestinians say the settlers have seized private lands in a campaign of violence and intimidation against villagers.

Protest organizers said Eygi and those with her that day did what they could to safeguard themselves, but that the dangers were clear to all. Illustrating that, a 13-year-old Palestinian girl was shot and killed the same day in a town a short distance away, as she watched a clash between troops and Palestinians from her window.

“She really played it safe,” International Solidarity Movement co-founder Golan, who was not present at Friday’s protest, said of Eygi.

“She stayed in the back. They went into the olive grove, and there was nothing happening where she was. She should have been safe.”





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Hedge fund challenges Murdoch family’s longtime control over News Corp.

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Hedge fund challenges Murdoch family’s longtime control over News Corp.


Activist investor Starboard Value is challenging the ownership structure of media empire News Corp., arguing that its dual-class share arrangement gives outsize say to the Murdoch family and amplifies members’ complicated interpersonal dynamics.

The hedge fund said it has submitted a proposal to eliminate the dual-class share structure of the company.

That proposal would be voted on at News Corp.’s upcoming annual shareholder meeting, according to a letter released Monday by Starboard. The date has not yet been set, though last year’s meeting took place in November.

News Corp. owns influential publications, including the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, Dow Jones and Investor’s Business Daily.

Starboard said its proposal was prompted by media reports of an ongoing internal struggle among founder Rupert Murdoch and his children over the future strategic direction of News Corp. and Fox Corp., parent company of Fox News and the Fox broadcast network.

The family’s ownership of the company is tied up in a trust, which hands over control after Murdoch’s death to his four children. But Rupert Murdoch is attempting to amend his trust to ensure that his eldest son, Lachlan Murdoch, solely runs the company to maintain its conservative editorial viewpoint, according to the New York Times.

The other three children are disputing this change, the newspaper reported.

News Corp. confirmed that it received the nonbinding proposal but said in a statement that the company believes its dual-class share structure “promotes stability.”

“The company has thrived under the current structure and guidance of the Board and senior leadership despite major changes in consumer behavior amidst the digital revolution of the last decade,” News Corp. said.

The Murdoch Family Trust owned less than 1% of the company’s outstanding Class A shares and about 40% of its Class B voting shares as of June, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Starboard owns 3.7% of the Class A shares and 4.6% of the Class B stock, the hedge fund said.

“The four Murdoch siblings with voting rights within the Trust are reported to have widely differing worldviews, which, collectively, could be paralyzing to the strategic direction of the Company,” Starboard said in its letter. “More importantly, we are not sure why their perspectives should carry greater weight than the views of other shareholders.”

The hedge fund said support for the proposal would send a message to the board of directors that it should eliminate the dual-class structure. But if the board does not listen, Starboard said, “We can then take further action.”



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NFL Network host apologizes after criticizing Tom Brady’s broadcasting debut: ‘I am rooting you on’

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NFL Network host apologizes after criticizing Tom Brady’s broadcasting debut: ‘I am rooting you on’


Tom Brady seemed a bit nervous.

That’s right. The man who won seven Super Bowls, earned three league MVP awards and set numerous quarterbacking records during a 23-year NFL career — not to mention sat there and withstood hours of raunchy barbs at his expense during a recent Netflix roast — didn’t completely kill it during his regular-season debut as a color commentator for Fox.

Working with play-by-play announcer Kevin Burkhardt during the Dallas Cowboys-Cleveland Browns Week 1 matchup Sunday, Brady displayed the kind of football knowledge one would expect from the player largely regarded as the sport’s GOAT.

But one game into his 10-year, $375-million contract with Fox, Brady is being criticized for a delivery that seemed somewhat robotic and showing a level of emotion that resembled that shown by former New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick during postgame news conferences.

Just before halftime, for example, Dallas kicker Brandon Aubrey lined up to attempt a 71-yard field goal, after having a record-tying 66-yarder negated by a delay-of-game penalty. While Burkhardt marveled at the idea of even attempting a kick from such a distance, Brady commented on how the Cowboys need to be prepared in case the kick comes up short and, after the Browns called timeout, that “maybe everyone’s gonna rethink this one.”

The clip was shown on NFL Network’s “NFL RedZone,” with host Scott Hanson calling out Brady for his apparent lack of enthusiasm.

“Oh, come on,” Hanson said. “Brady’s gotta get more excited than that in the booth.”

On Monday morning, Hanson reposted a clip of his comment, along with an apology to Brady.

“This was unfair & inconsiderate by me,” Hanson wrote. “Yes, I was saying it tongue in cheek — but I didn’t calculate how it may come across. @TomBrady, I apologize. I promise I am rooting you on in this new venture!”

Incidentally, Brady’s analysis of the situation was correct. Dallas actually did rethink the field-goal attempt and instead ended the half with a Dak Prescott pass attempt to the end zone that fell incomplete.

Another awkward moment occurred on camera, when Brady’s attempt at a fist bump with Mike Pereira wasn’t noticed for several seconds by the rules analyst. “Oh, don’t leave me hanging,” joked Brady, who was eventually bumped back by Pereira.

To be fair, Brady didn’t have a lot to work with during his regular-season debut as an NFL announcer. The game itself was a dud, with the Cowboys winning in blowout fashion.

Brady did have his moments, like when he made an apparent reference to Belichick in saying, “I played for a coach that didn’t mind cussing his players out,” then explained why he thought that wasn’t such a bad thing.

“If you want to be a great player, you want to be pushed, you want to be challenged, you want to be criticized,” Braday said.

He added: “I was the beneficiary of a lot of that hard coaching. … Discipline and accountability are mainstays in any successful organization, and I have no problem with any coaches that feel like they need to tell their player the truth, ’cause you just don’t get a lot of truth all the time as an NFL player.”



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