Author Archives: German Rivera Aguilar

Broncos Disappointing 50-Point Loss

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Losing a game by over 50 points is a real gut punch, no matter what sport you’re playing or how skilled you are. It’s the kind of defeat that can leave you feeling disheartened and demoralized, making it especially challenging to bounce back the next day.

So many questions remain unanswered, leaving us curious and eager for more information. The world appears to be filled with a sense of diminished hope. But hitting rock bottom can actually have a strange kind of beauty to it. It’s like reaching the lowest point possible, where you suddenly realize that things can’t possibly get any worse.

“Look, it was a tough day, and today’s not gonna be fun, and it probably won’t be fun anytime soon until we start winning some games,” The Broncos coach, Sean Payton, expressed his thoughts on Monday, just a day after the Miami Dolphins delivered an astonishing 70-point performance against his team.

“We’ve got to have a better work week than last week. We’ve got to have a good plan in place for the team we’re playing. We’ve got to be able to take the coaching, and then ourselves as coaches, say hey, where did we fail, where did we not do a good enough job? That has to happen quickly.”

It must take place fast because Payton’s Broncos are currently 0-3, and they appear to be growing worse each week, having gone from losing by one and two points in Weeks 1 and 2, respectively, to losing by a lot more than that in Week 3.

It would be reasonable if some people lost their employment as a result of this startling loss. Payton stated on Monday that nobody’s job is in danger, and if it were, he wouldn’t bring it up on a conference call with reporters first thing in the morning.

Even though the Broncos were buried under enough points to insulate a Cold War bunker, it isn’t reason enough for Payton to clean house after only three weeks.

It’s going to get uncomfortable with these Broncos if the outcomes don’t improve soon.

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The Broncos spent the offseason saying Payton would “right the ship” and “get the crew in line,” but they haven’t shown any signs that’s actually happened. Therefore, the Broncos cannot just ignore Sunday’s contest. A few lessons may be gleaned from the 50-point thrashing.

Payton commented: “We’re learning as we go. … The attention to detail of what we’re doing at practice has to improve,”.  “We as coaches have to look closely at what we’re asking them to do.

“Look, this is one of those weeks where you take a butt-whooping like that, you find out a lot about everyone. It’s a tough film to watch. I debated whether we were gonna show it or not, but I think we’d be remiss if we didn’t. We’ve got to sit in here, and today, as it’s unpleasant as it’s gonna be, we’ve got to get these things cleaned up. Look, we played a good offence, but we certainly didn’t help ourselves in any way, shape or form in playing them.”

Despite the Dolphins’ explosiveness after three games, there’s no justification for allowing 70 points (10 touchdowns) against any team. Maybe it’s for the best that the Broncos got a stern jolt now instead of in late October; there’s still plenty of time to recover from that nightmare of a Sunday.

Brooks Robinson, Renowned Orioles Third Baseman, Dies at 86.

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Famous Orioles third baseman Brooks Robinson has passed away at the age of 86.

The renowned third baseman for the Baltimore Orioles, Brooks Robinson, was a baseball icon. Robinson, who was born in 1937, played professionally from 1955 to 1977, during which time he became widely recognized as one of the best defensive players in Major League Baseball history. Robinson was a third baseman of unparalleled brilliance, as evidenced by his record-setting 16 Gold Glove Awards. His defensive prowess against the Cincinnati Reds in Game 7 of the 1970 World Series is legendary. Robinson’s impact in baseball will live on thanks to his off-field qualities of humility and sportsmanship.

During his 23-year career in the major leagues, Brooks Robinson was nicknamed as “Mr. Oriole” due to the fact that he played third base for the Baltimore Orioles. Robinson passed away at the age of 86.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said: “All of us at Major League Baseball are saddened by the loss of Brooks Robinson, one of the greats of our National Pastime and a legend of the Baltimore Orioles,”

“Brooks stood among the greatest defensive players who have ever lived. He was a two-time World Series Champion, the 1964 American League MVP, and the winner of 16 consecutive Gold Gloves at third base. He was a model of excellence, durability, loyalty and winning baseball for the Orioles. After his playing career, he continued to make contributions to the game by working with the MLB Players Alumni Association.

“I will always remember Brooks as a true gentleman who represented our game extraordinarily well on and off the field all his life. On behalf of Major League Baseball, I send my deepest condolences to Brooks’ family, his many friends across our game, and Orioles fans everywhere.”

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On behalf of the organization and Robinson’s loved ones, the Orioles have issued the following statement: “We are deeply saddened to share the news of the passing of Brooks Robinson. An integral part of our Orioles Family since 1955, he will continue to leave a lasting impact on our club, our community, and the sport of baseball.”

“The Human Vacuum Cleaner” was nicknamed because of how well he defended the third base.

Robinson won the American League Most Valuable Player Award in 1964, was a World Series champion in 1966 and 1970, and was awarded the Most Valuable Player of the 1970 World Series.  In 1983, he became the first third baseman ever to be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.

Casey DeSmith With The Vancouver Canucks

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The Vancouver Canucks have acquired goaltender Casey DeSmith from the Montreal Canadiens.

On September 19, the general manager of the Vancouver Canucks, Patrik Allvin, made the announcement that the team had acquired keeper Casey DeSmith from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for winger Tanner Pearson and a third-round choice in the 2025 NHL Entry Draft.

Manager Patrik Alvin said “On behalf of the Canucks organization, we are very grateful to Tanner Pearson for all of his contributions and efforts in Vancouver the last five seasons” “We wish him and his family the best in their next chapter.

“We are also excited about adding some more goaltending depth to our roster with a veteran like Casey DeSmith,” continued Allvin. “His experience and versatility will provide us with more options and stability in the crease moving forward.”

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Casey DeSmith was acquired by the Montreal Canadiens from the Pittsburgh Penguins in a three-team transaction that also included San Jose earlier this summer. The goaltender played a career-best 38 games for Pittsburgh last season, amassing a record of 15-16-4 throughout those games, along with a 3.17 goals-against average and a.905 save percentage.

Throughout his five seasons playing in the NHL, all of which were played with the Pittsburgh team, DeSmith has participated in a total of 134 games. During this time, he has achieved a record of 58 wins, 44 losses, and 15 ties. Additionally, he has managed to secure nine shutouts throughout his career. DeSmith’s performance is further highlighted by his commendable 2.81 goals-against average and an impressive save percentage of .912. He made his debut in his inaugural playoff game of his career in the opening round of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs against the New York Rangers. He skillfully defended against 48 out of 51 shots encountered over four and a half periods of intense gameplay before being forced to leave the game due to an injury.

Casey DeSmith has additionally made appearances in 103 regular season games and 14 playoff games in the American Hockey League (AHL) with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. During the regular season, he has achieved a record of 57 wins, 33 losses, and 14 ties. In his inaugural season as an official rookie (2016.17), he received the prestigious honour of being selected for the AHL’s All-Rookie Team. Additionally, he achieved the remarkable feat of winning the esteemed Harry “Hap” Holmes Memorial Award alongside his fellow goaltender, Tristan Jarry. This esteemed accolade recognized their exceptional performance in maintaining the lowest goals-against average throughout the league.

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“Checo” Perez Felt Disappointed by the ‘Disastrous Weekend’ in Japan.

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The ‘disastrous weekend’ in Japan left Perez disappointed, but he praised Red Bull’s ‘incredible year’

After Sergio Perez’s “disastrous Sunday” in Japan (he had to retire twice from Sunday’s race), he was glad to see his Red Bull team win another constructors’ championship.

Although Perez qualified sixth for the race, he fell behind early due to a sluggish start and was eventually passed by Carlos Sainz and Lewis Hamilton. However, when they passed three abreast on the approach to Turn 1, Perez collided with Hamilton, damaging the end plate of his front wing.

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The replays showed him passing Fernando Alonso under the Safety Car as he came into the pits for a new front wing, forcing him to the rear of the field. He was subsequently penalized five seconds for violating the Safety Car’s rules.

However, things went from bad to worse for Perez when he attempted to pass Kevin Magnussen for eleventh and crashing down the inside of the Haas driver at the hairpin, sending Magnussen skidding and leaving Perez with further front wing damage.

After Perez radioed “the car doesn’t feel right” and received another five-second penalty for provoking a collision, Red Bull was able to attach another front wing onto his RB19, but they still retired his car.

When it appeared his day was over, Red Bull sent him out again 28 laps later to serve the penalty; he finally went out of the race for good on Lap 42.

Perez said this about his participation in the Japanese Grand Prix:   “It was just a disastrous weekend. It all started into Turn 1, with a really bad start.

“I was squeezed and was just a passenger there, in a sandwich. I think we carried a lot of damage in the car as well and that just made it a lot harder for us.”

With Max Verstappen’s triumph, Red Bull claimed their second directly constructors’ title and their sixth in general and while Perez was disappointed that Red Bull didn’t have a one-two finish, he remained satisfied to have contributed to the team’s triumph.

“Yeah, it’s been an incredible year,” said Perez. “I’m really happy to contribute to the constructors. It’s a very special day for the whole team, to finally clinch that constructors’ title.

“It’s been a tremendous year so far; the team has done an amazing job. It would have been really nice to clinch the championship with a one-two finish, but anyway it is what it is.”

For the fourth year in a row, nearly all players are wearing excellent helmets to prevent head injuries.

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99%  of athletes are protecting their heads with high-quality helmets for the fourth season running.

The National Football League (NFL) is committed to fostering innovation in helmet safety by continuing to provide data, collaborate with medical professionals, engineers, and manufacturers, and work toward the creation of helmets that are more effective. This goal was initially outlined as part of the league’s Engineering Roadmap in 2018, and position-specific helmets are the most recent development in helmet technology. They provide personalized protection for position groups and are the result of this vision. This year, there is a helmet on the market that is designed just for quarterbacks.

Each year, on the instruction of the National Football League and the NFL Players Association, biomechanical engineers conduct comprehensive testing of helmet designs by simulating the conditions of actual on-field play. The goal of these tests is to collect data and determine which helmet models are the most effective in reducing the force of a hit. When put through tests in a laboratory setting designed to simulate the circumstances faced by quarterbacks, the quarterback-specific helmet demonstrated a roughly 20% improvement over the model’s conventional iteration. The introduction of a helmet designed specifically for quarterbacks follows the introduction of helmets designed specifically for offensive and defensive lines in the 2021 season. The 2023 NFL and NFLPA Helmet Rankings have been updated, and position-specific helmets are currently in first place.

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Since the beginning of the program to conduct yearly tests, there has been a consistent acceleration in the rate of improvement of helmet models, which has resulted in a ninefold increase. The rate of innovation may be seen in the rankings of helmets through time, which are as follows:

o Seven helmets that were ranked among the Top-Performing group in 2020 have been removed from consideration for use in the next season.

o An increase in the performance of helmets has resulted in a persistent reduction in concussions by an average of 25% over the course of the past five seasons.

o For the fourth season running, 99 percent of athletes are wearing helmets that are at the top of their game.

In the search of ever-improved player safety equipment, the National Football League (NFL) not only collaborates with conventional helmet manufacturers but also seeks out the knowledge and experience of professionals working in other fields in order to capitalize on novel ideas and innovations. The league organizes competitions for innovative ideas, such as the NFL Helmet Challenge, and gives financial support to manufacturers, engineers, small companies, and other inventors and designers so that they may create new helmet models that are more effective.

The Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

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The Philadelphia Eagles ran for 201 yards and accounted for 472 in total offence in their 25-11 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday night. However, there is still something missing from the offence.

On their initial drive, the Eagles were unable to get any farther than the 14-yard line before turning the ball over on downs. They drove all the way to the 18-yard line on their next possession before kicking a field goal. Philadelphia was unable to convert on any of their five red zone opportunities, as Jalen Hurts threw two interceptions while playing with the sickness.

Philadelphia’s ability to defeat opponents despite playing under level following three weeks is indicative of an excellent program.

“It’s a growth process. We’re not a final product yet,” Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said after the game on Monday. “Everybody wants us to be a final product now, but it’s a growth. You want to grow every day, so we’re not going to be playing our best football until we get going into the season. We still [have] things to work on, and we still [have] growth to do. If you’re truly in the mindset of getting better every day — if you’re truly in that mindset of getting better every day, which I know that we are on this team, you’re going to continue to rise. You’re going to keep getting better.”

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Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni commented after the game “Everybody wants us to be a final product now, but it’s a growth. You want to grow every day, so we’re not going to be playing our best football until we get going into the season. We still have things to work on, and we still have growth to do. If you’re truly in the mindset of getting better every day — if you’re truly in that mindset of getting better every day, which I know that we are on this team, you’re going to continue to rise. You’re going to keep getting better.”

The Eagles have superior equipment for use in the games. They have dominated the scrimmage line in every game this season. On Monday night, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were annihilated by rookie Jalen Carter, Jordan Davis, Josh Sweat, Brandon Graham, and the rest of the D-Line. The offensive line of Jason Kelce, Lane Johnson, Cam Jurgens, Jordan Mailata, and company dominated the game, culminating in a spectacular 15-play, 9:22 drive.

The team’s success with the “big uglies” has helped them overcome a lacklustre passing game and a secondary that has been battered by injuries.

New York Jets Shouldn’t Depend on a Quarterback Change Anytime

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New York Jets shouldn’t depend on a quarterback change anytime soon despite the Jets’ continued offensive struggles in Week 3.

Despite the continued offensive struggles in Week 3, New York won’t be getting a new quarterback any time soon.

After the New York Jets’ 15-10 loss to the New England Patriots, Robert Saleh defended Zach Wilson during the ensuing inquiries. The Jets’ head coach stood by his statement that Wilson is the best option at quarterback and that the third-year pro should not be held responsible for the team’s loss on Sunday at home.

“He’s our unquestioned quarterback, guys,” Saleh told reporters on Monday. “Like, as long as he continues to show the way his preparation, the way he’s been practicing … and even in these games, guys, like, he’s not the reason we lost yesterday. It’s always a team effort. As long as continues to show improvement — and I know it’s not, from a box score standpoint, showing — he’s going to be our quarterback.”

On Sunday, Wilson’s offence stumbled out of the start and managed only one first down on its five possessions before being forced to punt. New York Jets finally scored on the board before halftime thanks to a 53-yard field goal by Greg Zuerlein, the sputtering offence kept Thomas Morstead busy on punts after the break despite halftime tweaks.

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While the Jets’ defence kept the Patriots scoreless down the stretch, the offence couldn’t convert its opportunities into points. On third-and-15, as Wilson looked for an open receiver, he was sacked in the end zone, resulting in a safety. New York had one last chance to win the game after Saleh’s defence forced a fast three-and-out, but the offence was unable to capitalize due to three consecutive incompletions and a 2-yard dump off.

“One thing I’m gonna give him credit for is that he had a turnover-free game yesterday,” Saleh said. “He had no turnover-worthy throws from my recollection. And because of that we were in position and had the ball at midfield with 1:40 to go and two timeouts to go win the game — because we played a clean game of football on the offensive side of the ball and were able to win the field position battle in the second half. You can never be too boring, in my opinion, when you have the ball in your hands.”

Wilson completed 18 passes out of 36 attempts for 157 yards and 0 touchdowns and 0 interceptions. The 24-year-old quarterback’s tendency to hang on to the ball for too long produces frenzied plays, some of which result in sacks or useless throwaways, in addition to his struggle to reliably execute throws downfield.

Wilson wasn’t helped by the Jets’ ground game on Sunday, which totaled only 38 yards on 22 attempts, but the Patriots’ defence may have been able to concentrate more easily on running plays without a formidable passing offence to worry about.

Having Wilson as their starting quarterback in 2023 wasn’t part of Saleh’s original plan after Aaron Rodgers tore his Achilles in the season opener.

McLaren Takes Their First Double Podium

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McLaren takes their first double podium sweep, Norris praises the team’s “outstanding” development

After Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri finished second and third, respectively, against Max Verstappen in the Japanese Grand Prix, Norris declared that McLaren is “getting there” in their quest to dethrone Red Bull.

Piastri and Norris started the race on Sunday in second and third place respectively, and they both made moves to pass Verstappen as soon as the lights went down. Piastri tried to pass Verstappen on the inside of Turn 1, while Norris attempted to pass him on the outside.

After coming so close to winning, Norris eventually settled for second place, while Piastri took third. When Piastri made his pit stop while there was a Virtual Safety Car in effect, their positions shifted, but Norris’ good performance following his own stop persuaded McLaren to switch the duo around.

After crossing the finish line slightly less than twenty seconds behind Verstappen, Norris commented after the race:

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“My start was very good, I almost had Max, but Max is Max, so I didn’t have a lot of chance into Turn 2. I tried, but the pace was extremely strong today, comparing to everyone.

“We are not close to Max, but we are not miles away either, so it was a very good day, and also for Oscar, it was his first podium in F1, so congrats to him.”

When asked if he believes McLaren are moving closer and closer to the front, particularly because they have now claimed back-to-back P2 results, he responded as follows: “We are pushing, we are getting there. The progress we’ve made is pretty outstanding.

“Like I said, I’m very proud of the team, the steps forward we are making every weekend. I’m sure there is going to be some tough times again, but we are getting there, step-by-step.”

Piastri ultimately finished 17 seconds behind the winner, but he was ecstatic to secure his maiden podium finish in a Grand Prix. This achievement came on the heels of his finishing in second place in the Belgium Sprint event earlier this year.

“It feels pretty special, definitely,” he commented. “I’ll remember it for a very long time. I can’t thank the team enough for giving me this opportunity.

“There’s not many people in the world that get this opportunity in their whole life, and I’ve managed to have in my first season. It wasn’t my best race ever, but it was enough to get a trophy at the end, so I’m super happy.

“In the second half of the race, I got more into a groove, more into a rhythm, and the pace was a bit better, so I’m very, very happy and excited to try and get some more.”

Mercedes Needs the Greatest Six Months of Development to Catch Up to Red Bull.

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Following an interesting Japanese Grand Prix weekend, in which he qualified seventh, 1.031 seconds behind pole sitter Max Verstappen, which he called “crazy” and “worrying,” and ultimately finished fifth in the race on Sunday, Hamilton had much to say.

As Charles Leclerc led the pack in fourth place, Lewis Hamilton had to fight off the other Ferrari driver, Carlos Sainz, all the way to the finish line. Hamilton crossed the line in fifth place, 49.376 seconds behind race winner Max Verstappen,

Hamilton during the interview said how he felt:  “I mean I’m exhausted for one, fighting the car, fighting with absolutely everything I have to get as high up as possible and get ahead of Ferrari, which had an upgrade this week, so they were particularly quick.

“They have been quicker the last three races, it was a hell of a fight. I’m really trying to hold on to the constructors’ title… I know how important it is for everyone in the background, back at the factory, so giving it everything.

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“But it’s tough on weekends like this when the car is such a handful. Basically, the exact same as last year. Feeling wise the car felt just the same as last year, bouncing and sliding.

“That’s tough given how much work we’ve done to progress, and we are not any closer to the front, at least here. But we did get ahead of one of the Ferraris, which is great teamwork, and great work from the guys in the pit stop and with strategy. Long way to go.”

When asked about the amount of influence he has on the 2024 vehicle, Hamilton responded as follows: “There are things that I’ve asked for that we’ve gone in a direction, part of the direction for next year. I think all the points that George and I give have been fully listened to.

“I have no idea where the car is going to be next year. But we are a long, long way away. We’ve got to hope the next sixth months has to be the greatest six months of development that we’ve ever had just to close that gap, to be really banging on the door.

“But the evidence is there with the McLarens, and we can’t turn a blind eye to that, we’ve got to look at what they’ve done and go in that direction, that is the direction. But I truly believe my team can do it.

“We’ve always been great at putting downforce on the car. It’s just that, with the way our car currently works, adding downforce doesn’t work – it just makes it bounce more. Hopefully with the change in philosophy we will be back to where the team deserve.

“This is a world championship team; we still are an amazing team. I have absolute faith in everyone but decisions that are made in this period of time are critical to our trajectory.”

Alpine’s Japan Grand Prix Dilemma

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Pierre Gasly was irritated with Alpine’s decision to let Esteban Ocon by on the final lap in Japan.

Pierre Gasly had been racing in ninth position towards the finish of the race – after he had been given the go-signal to pass his teammate.  As he tried to put his newer hard tyres to efficient use by chasing down Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin for eighth position.

Nevertheless, it became certain that he was unable to pass Alonso. Alpine required him to let Esteban Ocon pass on the final lap so that they might win the place Pierre Gasly obeyed the instruction and allowed his teammate to pass him at the corner on the final lap, but his onboard camera showed that he was obviously agitated as he waved his hands in the car.

When he gave an interview to the media after the race, his irritation was still apparent. Pierre Gasly, when asked about his reaction to the decision taken by the team,  he said “Just a bit frustrated, because we need to swap positions in the last lap.” I don’t really see the necessity for it, and I don’t quite comprehend it, but we will discuss it among ourselves.”

 

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After being informed of Gasly’s dissatisfaction, Esteban Ocon responded: “Well I’ve been with this team four years and the rule has always been the same, that if you swap the position – initially which I did to Pierre, I gave him the position – if you don’t get the car in front, then you always switch back before the end.

“It was the same with Daniel, it was the same with Fernando. We were doing that if it’s me, if it’s him. If it’s the other way around I would do the same. I always prefer to fight on track, more a bit of an old school way.

“But I understand the team’s point of view, which is to try and get some more points ahead. I think today we maximised what was on the table, and we can be proud of ourselves for the good teamwork.”

After Zandvoort, this was Alpine’s second double-point result in the most recent nine races. Esteban Ocon finished ninth and Pierre Gasly finished tenth, making it Alpine’s second double-point finish overall.

Gasly took one point that was available after starting the race in the 12th position on the grid. He felt that this was a reflection of where Alpine is at the present time.