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The Chicago Bulls are starting their season without their big man. Nic Claxton will miss at least the first two weeks of the regular season due to a hamstring injury suffered in the preseason. This is a major hit for a team that needs size. Coach Tiago Splitter confirmed the timeline on Monday after the medical staff re-evaluated the center this week.

Splitter knows fans want a hard date. He told the media that he cannot give one. “This is not a science,” Splitter said. “I wish I could tell you guys, ‘Hey, 13 (days) left and then he’s going to play.’ It’s not like that. Everybody’s different. Everybody reacts to treatment different. Everybody reacts to practice different.”. The coach tried to be clear about the average recovery time. “On average, he should be back in two weeks. But that’s all I can do.”.

Smith Steps Into the Starting Role

Jalen Smith is the guy who has to fill the gap right now. He will start in the lineup while Claxton sits on the bench. Smith started most of the Bulls’ preseason games and should keep that role for the opener. This sets up a solid workload for him to open the season. The team opens Wednesday against the Raptors in Toronto. Smith has to be ready to lead the defense immediately. There is no time to warm up.

The injury situation is not just about Claxton. Zach Collins is also sidelined by a quadriceps injury. Collins might return for Wednesday’s opener after practicing without limitations in Monday’s short session. According to the Chicago Tribune, Collins has not received clearance to play Wednesday. Collins was not restricted in Monday’s practice, which sets him up to be available for the game. The Bulls are hoping for a quick return, but the frontcourt is thin.

Rebuild Patience Tested Early

The Chicago Tribune reports the Bulls expect Claxton to be ready by the first week of November. That is a long wait for a team trying to find its footing. The team cannot play double-big lineups until everyone is healthy. Splitter had shown interest in those lineups because of the team’s personnel.

Claxton will be re-evaluated in two weeks. Two days after reports surfaced that he was ramping up activity, Splitter confirmed the extended absence. K.C. Johnson of Chicago Sports Network reports that Claxton will be re-evaluated in two weeks.

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Marion Harding boys win a championship, plus more league XC results

Yahoo Sports - Mon, 10/19/2026 - 23:32

Marion Harding was pointing to Oct. 17 all season. The Presidents felt they could win a Mid Ohio Athletic Conference boys cross country championship on their own course.

"Honestly we’ve raced really good this season," Marion Harding coach Bob Peters said. "We made it a point to win the conference this year. I felt like we were racing well against the conference throughout the year when we saw somebody. The guys wanted this. They came in locked-in on this meet."

As they envisioned, the Presidents won the title with 46 points to edge Ontairio's 55 and Shelby's 78. Pleasant was fourth with 103 followed by Highland at 105, River Valley at 110 and Galion at 215. It is Harding's first league crown in boys XC in 21 years and its first in the MOAC.

"There was a lot of stress coming into this meet because they wanted it so bad," Peters said. "Starting off the day, we were talking that this is just another race. It’s the next race so let’s go out here and do our best and whatever happens, happens. They really worked this whole season for this moment."

For Harding, Andrew Tackett was third in 16 minutes, 48 seconds, Jackson Peters fourth in 16:58, Owen McCombs sixth in 17;15, Franklin Weaver 13th in 17:50, Deacon Durain 22nd in 18:34, Luke Estrada 29th in 19:00 and Trenton Estrada 30th in 19:01.

"We were at the awards area where they were announcing the teams, and they got to second place. I was watching them and you could see the reaction when they announce Ontario second so they knew they won it. It was really good to see them get rewarded for their work they’ve done for this year," the coach said.

For Harding's girls, Noel Stidham was the runner-up in 19:45 behind Shelby's Anna Will in 19:19 and just ahead of Pleasant's Madisyn Ruhe in third at 19:47 and Highland's Veronica Ballard in fourth at 19:53.

"This is my 10th year of coaching and that was one of the best races I’ve seen in all the years," Coach Peters said. "It was a great race to watch what she did there and come back like that and run as good as she did. It’s exciting to know she’s got two more years."

NFL Expert Has Blunt Verdict on Patriots’ A.J. Brown Trade

Yahoo Sports - Mon, 10/19/2026 - 23:32

NFL Expert Has Blunt Verdict on Patriots’ A.J. Brown Trade originally appeared on NESN. Add NESN as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Patriots sent shockwaves throughout the NFL when they traded for A.J. Brown. The trade with the Eagles was meant to ensure the Patriots will return to the Super Bowl.

However, since the trade, it hasn’t gone as planned for New England.

Brown has played two games for the Patriots thanks to an ankle sprain he suffered in Week 1. He returned against the Jets on Sunday and earned 27 receiving yards. He dropped three attempts for the first time in his career.

There appeared to be some rust after missing all that time. Many have wondered if the Patriots already regret trading for Brown.

ESPN’s Dan Graziano reacted to that idea, calling it an overreaction. He stated that the team is 4-2 despite Brown's tough start, and "that tells you there's room for things to get a lot better."

Coach Mike Vrabel said the team was "lucky to win” following drops and multiple injuries. Brown later stated there are no excuses and that he’s going to put his best foot forward.

The Patriots have a quick turnaround as they head to Chicago to face the Bears on Thursday. Graziano believes there’s nothing in Brown’s history indicating his struggles will continue.

More Patriots

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Jordan Magee, Trey Amos back on roster

Yahoo Sports - Mon, 10/19/2026 - 23:32

Washington Commanders LB Jordan Magee (hamstring) and CB Trey Amos (ankle) were activated from the Reserve/Injured list Monday, Oct. 19. The team also placed LB Javontae Jean-Baptiste (pectoral) on the Reserve/Injured list.

SOURCE: Commanders.com

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jordan Magee, Trey Amos back on roster

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P.J. Fleck remains confident in Darius Taylor despite underwhelming season

Yahoo Sports - Mon, 10/19/2026 - 23:32

When Darius Taylor announced his return to Gophers football in 2026, there was hope that he could be one of the best running backs in the Big Ten. He has just 64 carries for 154 yards, but P.J. Fleck hasn’t lost confidence in Minnesota’s senior running back.

When Taylor broke onto the scene as a true freshman in 2023, he looked like a future star. He averaged 159.2 rushing yards in his first five games as a starter. He has never surpassed that number in a game since his first year with the program.

He set a career high with 1,336 yards from scrimmage in 2024, but he hasn’t been able to find that consistency since then. Injuries limited him in 2025, and since an injury in Week 2 this season against Mississippi State, he has looked almost unrecognizable compared to the player we saw in 2023.

“It’s just going back to that word consistency,” Fleck said at his weekly press conference on Monday. “I think the more he practices, and he’s able to practice the way he can practice, and we need him to practice, the better he’s going to be. I mean, Darius Taylor is a very good football player, period. And he’s only going to continue to get better.

“There are things that happen in our lives that are unfortunate that you work and battle through. Right? Period. Especially if it’s an injury, and you do everything you can to get better from that, but he’s a really good football player. In the pass game and the run game. And we need him at his absolute best.”

In the same press conference, Fleck said that Taylor has been in practice every single day as a full participant, which makes his earlier comments even more confusing. Taylor didn’t play at all in Week 3 against Akron. You never want to look too far into press conference errors, but his flip-flopping makes the entire situation weird.

Taylor’s production has reached an all-time low over the last three weeks, with just 44 carries for 83 yards against Big Ten competition. Minnesota’s run game is stuck in neutral, and Taylor has done little to help the Gophers get into gear.

“I know every day watching him, whether that’s in the training room, or whether that’s with our running backs coach Mohamed Ibrahim, whether that’s with the offensive staff, whether that’s with him and his yoga, and his Pilates. Nobody’s working harder to make sure that he does this part for this football team,” Fleck continued.

“I am really, really proud of him, and it’s only going to continue to get better because of the commitment that he has made. That’s been consistent since the day he walked in this door. But sometimes it’s not exactly everything that you wanted to get out of it, but you identify it, you’re transparent with it, and then you go fix it, and he’ll do that.”

Taylor has found some success as a receiver this season, with 18 receptions for 155 yards, and he leads Minnesota with five total touchdowns. Elon transfer TJ Thomas has outperformed him in nearly every major rushing statistic, except for carries.

Minnesota doesn’t have the same financial resources as the top programs in the country, so it has to make hard decisions. It’s entirely fair to hypothesize that the Gophers favored retaining Taylor over keeping emerging underclassman Fame Ijeboi, who’s now a star at Purdue after transferring in the offseason.

Despite an incredibly underwhelming first half of the season, Fleck sounds like a coach who still favors Taylor as Minnesota’s top running back. Whether or not that continues to be the case this week against Iowa remains to be seen. If the Gophers want to finish the season strong, Taylor needs to be better.

Ravens most to blame for another blown double-digit lead in Browns loss

Yahoo Sports - Mon, 10/19/2026 - 23:32

Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Ravens most to blame for another blown double-digit lead in Browns loss appeared first on ClutchPoints. Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

It was a long day for the Baltimore Ravens, who missed too many opportunities. And Derrick Henry had another crucial fumble. And here are the Ravens most to blame for another blown double-digit lead in the loss to the Browns.

Surprisingly, the Ravens took it on the chin against the Browns. They lost 13-10 in a game that caused a three-way tie for first place in the AFC North. The Ravens had a chance to flex, but they came up noodle-armed. So what went wrong? Let’s look at the blame list.

Ravens RB Derrick Henry

King Henry needs to close the deal. That’s all there is to it. In the fourth quarter, with his team leading and controlling the game throughout, Henry suffered the indignity of a punchout by Carson Schwesinger. Tyson Campbell fell on the ball at the Ravens’ 35-yard line. And the Ravens were unable to right the ship after the sudden change.

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It was Henry’s first fumble of the season. But the timing, like some of his fumbles in the past, was terrible. Henry owned his miscue, according to a post on X by Jamison Hensley.

“I got to take care of the ball,” Henry said. “There’s no excuses for that. I got to be better. I put the team in harm’s way. (And) I sound like a broken record with this. But I got to go back to work on it. I told the team to put this one on me, and I just got to be better. Can’t put the team in that situation.”

Henry is averaging just 4.1 yards per carry. That would be the worst average of his career. He’s averaging 4.9 for his career. And at the goal line? Check out this post on X by Michael F. Florio.

“I know he has a ton of TDs but … Derrick Henry has not been good at the goal line this season: 7 carries, -4 yds, 1 TD so far this season (counting today)”

That leads to speculation that Henry may finally be slowing down after a Superman career, according to The Athletic.

“At 32, you’re supposed to be about 54% of your career average, according to aging-curve data,” Michael Salfino wrote. “Counting Sunday, he’s averaging 4.1 yards per carry versus 5.6 the prior two years combined. The data seems to be fitting the age narrative, but maybe the cure is just getting Lamar Jackson back (possibly Week 7).”

Yes, things should be better for Henry when Jackson gets back. And that’s why another Ravens player deserves to join the blame list.

QB Tyler Huntley

After playing great down the stretch in the overtime win over the Falcons, Huntley could not get things done throughout the game against the Browns. He completed only 19 of 31 passes for 165 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions. Also, Huntley carried five times for 28 yards.

But Huntley couldn’t get the offense in rhythm. The team only needed a little rhythm to win this game. He missed open targets, and avoided disaster only when Browns safety Emmanuel McNeil-Warren dropped an easy interception in the fourth quarter. Huntley gave the Browns’ defense plenty of credit, according to The Baltimore Banner.

“Man, they were doing a good job of switching it up all throughout the game,” Huntley said. “I don’t know how many times I can say they changed it up, but they did a great job of switching it up every drive that we came out.”

The offensive line didn’t help Huntley as much as expected. Left tackle Ronnie Stanley acknowledged it.

“I think it just comes down to the details — lining up right, making sure you’re taking the right leverage on your block — and a lot of those plays come down to one block here or one person there,” Stanley said. “Putting us behind the sticks, it’s always going to be a long game if you keep doing that.”

Yes, Huntley is a backup. But in today’s NFL, the backups have to get victories. The problem is the Ravens only needed an average performance from Huntley to win this game. They got below average, and the Browns stole one.

Head coach Jesse Minter

There’s no reason to give Minter a pass just because Jackson didn’t play. The Ravens’ defense couldn’t get it done with the game on the line, and that’s Minter’s baby.

Maybe the Ravens just put the rookie coach in a situation where he would struggle to succeed, according to Sports Illustrated.

“Allowing 130 yards and eight first downs and getting outscored, 10-0, in the final quarter in a 13-10 loss was all too familiar,” Jason La Canfora wrote. “Minter’s defense has already blown three double-digit leads and lost twice, and the disparity between his first half and second half defense is kind of sickening.”

Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton said: “I’m not going to sound like a broken record. It’s ‘Groundhog Day’ with this question. I don’t know. I’m not going to give you an answer. I really don’t know.”

The good news for the Ravens is that they stand in a three-way tie with the Browns and Steelers for first place in the AFC North.

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