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Barrister for former St Kilda player says he will appeal both the sentence and the conviction for unprovoked assault in May 2025
Former AFL star Nicky Winmar has been jailed for six months for attacking a woman in a violent assault.
Winmar, 60, dropped his head as he was sentenced in Bendigo magistrates court over the May 2025 assault against a woman at Cohuna in northern Victoria.
Continue reading...ATLANTA — Tarik Skubal knows he will feel emotions when he makes his return to Detroit on Friday night to pitch against the Tigers only four weeks after he was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Skubal says he hopes to focus on representing the Dodgers instead of dwelling on his memories with the Tigers at Comerica Park. He acknowledged it may not be easy to keep his emotions in check.
“We’ll see, right?” Skubal told SI.com on Wednesday. “The whole process was emotional. I have a lot of respect for those guys over there. I’m just going to go play baseball.”
Overall this season, Skubal is 8-7 with a 2.91 ERA. In four starts for the Dodgers since the Aug. 1 trade, Skubal is 1-2 with a 3.38 ERA. He is coming off his first win for the Dodgers. The left-hander had 11 strikeouts in seven innings in a 4-3 win over Pittsburgh in Los Angeles on Saturday night.
Skubal, 29, made his major league debut with Detroit in 2020 and had played for no other team before the trade. The deal sent the two-time defending AL Cy Young winner to the two-time defending World Series champions.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said he believes Skubal has the right temperament to handle the emotions which will come with his Detroit homecoming.
“I think, you know, that whole ‘be where your feet are’ adage, I think that’s just who he is,” Roberts said Wednesday. “Some people have a hard time letting go, but I think that Tarik is a guy that, wherever he’s at, he’s all in.”
Roberts said he expects Skubal “is going to try to engage guys and immerse himself with coaches, with his teammates, the best he can. That’s a good trait. Like I said, I’ve only known him a short time, but I’m really, really fortunate we got him on our club. Not even just for the pitching, just beyond.”
Skubal said he is “sure it will be emotional there just because of the history.” The emotions will be fresh because he has had less than one month to adjust to his new Los Angeles home before making his return to Detroit.
“But at the end of the day, I’ve got to go play baseball,” Skubal said. “I’ve got to compete and do what I do well, what makes me a good pitcher. I’ll probably handle the emotions after.”
The Tigers are expected to have right-hander Drew Anderson (4-5, 4.09 ERA) face Skubal in the opener of the three-game series.
ATLANTA (AP) — Chris Sale struck out 11 in a five-hit shutout, Drake Baldwin launched a leadoff homer against Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and the Atlanta Braves edged the Los Angeles Dodgers 1-0 on Thursday night to complete a three-game sweep.
Sale (13-9) did not walk a batter. The left-hander posted his fourth double-digit strikeout game this season and the 95th of his career, which ranks seventh all-time.
Fans in the sellout crowd of 39,650 cheered when Sale strolled out to the mound for the ninth inning even though relievers were ready in the Atlanta bullpen. Braves manager Walt Weiss stuck with his ace after Freddie Freeman singled leading off the ninth.
Teoscar Hernández popped out, pinch-runner Alek Thomas was out at second on Miguel Rojas’ fielder’s-choice grounder and Sale struck out Alex Call for his 17th complete game and first since 2019 with Boston.
Baldwin lined the first pitch from Yamamoto (12-8) into the right-field Chop House restaurant. It was Baldwin’s fourth leadoff shot this season and 22nd homer overall. Yamamoto allowed only four hits with eight strikeouts in 6 1/3 innings.
The NL East-leading Braves won the season series 5-1 against the Dodgers, who sit atop the NL West.
NATIONALS 7, ROCKIES 1
WASHINGTON (AP) — Daylen Lile homered and drove in two runs as part of a three-hit day, and Washington beat Colorado to split their four-game series.
Keibert Ruiz also went deep for Washington, which had dropped 12 of 15. The Nationals won a game started by a pitcher other than Cade Cavalli for the first time since Aug. 9.
Colorado fell to an NL-worst 52-82, clinching its eighth consecutive losing season. The Rockies were 1 for 9 with runners in scoring position and left 13 on base overall.
Lile led off the fifth inning with a drive to right off Gabriel Hughes (0-6) for his 18th home run this season. The left fielder was 8 for 15 with three homers and eight RBIs in the series.
Tom Cosgrove (1-2) pitched 1 2/3 scoreless innings in relief for his first win since his major league debut on April 29, 2023, a span of 89 appearances.
CARDINALS 7, ORIOLES 5
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Blaze Jordan and Ramón Urías homered early to help St. Louis beat Baltimore, snapping a five-game losing streak.
Riley O’Brien pitched a scoreless ninth inning to earn his National League-leading 34th save after allowing a combined seven runs and taking the loss in his previous two outings.
The teams traded runs in the eighth after Coby Mayo hit a three-run homer, his 18th of the season, off Caleb Ferguson in the seventh to cut the St. Louis lead to 6-4.
Urías hit his third homer off starter Trevor Rogers (9-9) in the fourth to give the Cardinals a 5-0 cushion.
Rogers allowed six runs and seven hits with seven strikeouts in five innings.
Jordan launched his third homer to center field in the second after Alec Burleson singled to extend his hitting streak to 13 games and Joshua Báez doubled, putting St. Louis ahead 3-0.
Jordan left in the top of the eighth after diving awkwardly into third base to tag out Gunnar Henderson when Samuel Basallo hit a grounder to pitcher George Soriano.
Luis Gastelum (4-3) tossed 1 1/3 perfect innings after Justin Bruihl allowed one run in 1 2/3 innings and Gordon Graceffo pitched three perfect innings as an opener for the Cardinals.
ROYALS 13, BLUE JAYS 2
TORONTO (AP) — Jac Caglianone had a homer among his career-best five hits and finished with a career-high six RBIs, Noah Cameron pitched six strong innings and Kansas City beat Toronto.
The Blue Jays are 3 1/2 games behind Cleveland in the race for the final American League wild-card spot.
The Royals took two of three in the series, have won 10 of their last 11 games and four consecutive series, including two straight on the road after starting the season 3-15-2 in road sets. Kansas City, which went in tied with the Giants for the worst road record in MLB, is 24-45 away from home this season.
Cameron (9-8) allowed six hit and two runs and struck out three.
Carter Jensen hit a 421-foot homer off Spencer Arrighetti to lead off the game, and Vinnie Pasquantino hit a two-run homer that capped Kansas City’s six-run sixth and made it 10-0.
Caglianone’s two-run shot with two out in the ninth capped the scoring.
Bobby Witt Jr. and Kyle Isbel each had a run-scoring double.
ASTROS 5, YANKEES 1
NEW YORK (AP) — Christian Walker had three hits, including a two-run homer off Gerrit Cole in the sixth inning, and Jeremy Peña added a solo shot to power Houston to a victory over the New York Yankees.
Astros starter Hayden Wesneski (4-1) allowed one run and three hits in five-plus innings against the team that drafted him in 2019 and traded him to the Chicago Cubs in 2022 for reliever Scott Effross.
Houston (67-67) took two of three at Yankee Stadium and leads the AL West by one game over Texas.
Walker broke an 0-for-11 skid with a single in the second and homered on Cole’s 1-0 curveball for a 3-0 lead in the fifth. He doubled off Justin Topa in the eighth and scored when the Yankees committed two errors on one play.
Yainer Diaz’s grounder caromed off George Lombard Jr.’s glove for the rookie shortstop’s seventh error in 20 career games. The ball ricocheted to third baseman José Caballero and he was charged with a throwing error for his wild toss to first as Walker scored Houston’s fifth run.
Lombard became the first Yankees shortstop since Roger Peckinpaugh in 1915 to commit an error in six straight games.
BREWERS 8, METS 2
NEW YORK (AP) — Jackson Chourio went 4 for 5 with two homers, four RBIs and four runs to help Jacob Misiorowski and Milwaukee beat the New York Mets.
Misiorowski (14-5) overcame some command issues and reduced velocity — at least by his standards — to allow two hits and strike out six over six innings.
Both hits he gave up came in the fifth, when Jacob Young had an RBI double and Christopher Morel laced a run-scoring single.
Nine of Misiorowski’s 95 pitches were clocked at 100 mph, with none reaching 101 mph. He walked two batters for the second consecutive outing after issuing four walks in seven starts from July 2 through Aug. 15.
The 6-foot-7 right-hander appeared to have issues with his landing foot on the slippery Citi Field mound. Brewers manager Pat Murphy had a discussion with third base umpire and crew chief Vic Carapazza in the third, when Misiorowski fell behind 2-0 on Francisco Alvarez following a walk to Morel. The grounds crew spent a few minutes working on the mound before the bottom of the fourth.
Andrew Vaughn, Gary Sánchez, William Contreras and Cooper Pratt each had an RBI for the Brewers (83-51), who are three games ahead of the Los Angeles Dodgers for the best record in the big leagues.
GIANTS 6, DIAMONDBACKS 1
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Drew Gilbert homered and drove in the go-ahead run, Landen Roupp pitched five solid innings and San Francisco beat Arizona to snap a four-game home losing streak against the Diamondbacks.
Arizona is 1 1/2 games behind San Diego for the final National League wild card.
Roupp (8-13) allowed one run and four hits. Trent Harris, Carson Seymour and Ryan Walker combined for four scoreless innings of relief.
Christian Koss was hit by a pitch leading off the fifth and advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt by Nate Furman before Taylor Clarke replaced Arizona starter Jose Cabrera. Three pitches later, Gilbert’s sacrifice fly gave San Francisco a 2-1 lead.
After Jose Fernandez singled to load the bases with one out in the fourth, Roupp got Ildemaro Vargas to fly out and then struck out Ryan Waldschmidt to end the threat.
Gilbert hit a 3-2 pitch 421 feet into the bleacher in right-center field in the first.
Gabriel Moreno hit a leadoff homer in the fourth to make it 1-all.
Bryce Eldridge doubled in a run, Jonah Cox and Turner Hill followed with back-to-back RBI singles and Shay Whitcomb’s sacrifice bunt scored Cox to make it 6-1 in the eighth.
Cabrera (0-3) gave up two runs and three hits with four strikeouts in 4 1/3 innings.
NEW YORK (AP) — Cecilia Zandalasini scored 14 of her 20 points in the first half, Gabby Williams added 16 points and the Golden State Valkyries beat the New York Liberty 79-60 on Thursday night.
Golden State (28-11) improved to 3-0 against New York this season — the only team the Liberty have not beaten this season. The Valkyries held the Liberty to 70, 67 and 60 points in three games, the three lowest-scoring games of the season for New York.
New York (23-16) had scored 80-plus points in 16 straight games — the longest streak in franchise history.
Veronica Burton had a season-high 13 assists to go with eight points for Golden State, which was coming off an 89-64 victory over Connecticut on Wednesday. Tiffany Hayes had 12 points off the bench.
Jonquel Jones scored 18 points for New York, which had a six-game home winning streak halted. Breanna Stewart added 16 points on 4-of-10 shooting.
Zandalasini made four 3-pointers in the first half to help Golden State build a 42-30 lead. The Valkyries started the third quarter on an 11-6 run to go ahead by 17 points, and scored the opening six points of the fourth to go ahead 65-47.
Valkyries: At Portland on Sunday.
Liberty: Host Chicago on Saturday.
Fernando Mendoza was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, but the expectation is he will begin his career as the backup to veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins.
As a result, the Las Vegas Raiders' preseason Week 3 game against the San Francisco 49ers represented a key opportunity for Mendoza to get playing time before the start of the 2026 NFL season.
Raiders coach Klint Kubiak opted to play Cousins the first two drives of the Thursday, Aug. 27, preseason clash. But after that, Mendoza played until the start of the fourth quarter, when Aidan O'Connell entered.
After a strong preseason debut and a less impressive second effort, Mendoza's outing in the Raiders' preseason finale showed off even more of his limitations at this early stage of his career. If nothing else, it showcased why Las Vegas was wise to bring in a veteran in Cousins to help bridge the gap.
How did Mendoza perform in his all-important final preseason game? Here's a full breakdown of his outing, as well as a grade for it.
Mendoza didn't have much to write home about in his final preseason outing.
Throughout two quarters – and a bit of a third – the rookie quarterback leaned heavily on checkdown passes, overthrew his targets multiple times, was late on some throws, took a couple of sacks and threw an interception. In other words, Mendoza looked the part of a rookie quarterback still adjusting to NFL game speed.
At times, the Raiders' lack of good depth on their offensive line made it hard to evaluate Mendoza. Was he taking sacks and facing pressure because he couldn't get the ball out fast, or because the line was letting guys go unblocked? Sometimes the answer was the former, sometimes the latter, occasionally both.
The No. 1 overall pick was late on his throws on multiple occasions, which led to some of the overthrows and incompletions. But there were plenty of blown blocking assignments from the line in front of him as well.
After Mendoza's interception, which he threw on his second snap of the game, it also seemed like he lost a bit of confidence in his ability to push the ball. There appeared to be an extra emphasis on progressing through his reads, and he ended up throwing to his final, checkdown option often – but in the third quarter especially. That meant fewer intermediate and deep targets as the game progressed; Mendoza hesitated to pull the trigger on his earlier reads in his progression. By the end of the night, the most net yards the Raiders got on a single Mendoza-led play was a 19-yard pass interference call that was questionable at best.
A full analysis won't be possible until we see some of the all-22 film from the matchup against the 49ers. Perhaps the 49ers were actually just really good in coverage and checkdowns were really the only available option.
For now, the main takeaway from Mendoza's showing in the Raiders' preseason finale is that he still has a ways to go before he's ready to swipe the starting job from Cousins.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fernando Mendoza shaky in preseason finale: Instant analysis, grade
Right as the school year is about to start, Marquette men’s basketball has adjusted their roster for the 2026-27 season. On Thursday, Marquette and head coach Shaka Smart announced the signing of fifth year transfer guard Colin Porter. The 5’10”, 170 pound guard spent the last four seasons at Liberty.
Shaka Smart on his new player:
“We’re thrilled to be adding the person and player that Colin is,” Smart said. “He’s a strong cultural fit who possesses excellent basketball IQ, poise and maturity. Colin’s shooting, ballhandling and passing will bolster our backcourt immediately.”
Colin Porter started every single game he played for Liberty for the past four seasons, and yes, that is all 135 games that the Flames played in that time period. He averaged at least 27 minutes a game in each of his four seasons, and capped off his time there with 11.1 points, 3.0 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 1.4 steals per game. Porter is a career 38% three-point shooter with his senior year mark of 35.8% going in the books as his worst output. Seeing as that was also his career high in attempts per game, I’m going to guess that if he gets a little bit more choosy, he’ll go back towards the 40% from freshman year or 43% from junior year.
His assist rate trailed off this past year after three straight seasons in the top 400 in the country according to KenPom.com. I don’t think there’s anything to worry about with Porter not even making into the top 500 in 2025-26, as Zach Cleveland was a top 25 assist rate guy for Liberty last season. That’s gonna make a dent in Porter’s ability to be the guy who makes the pass that leads to the bucket, y’know? Elsewhere in Analytics Town, Porter had a slightly questionable turnover rate as a freshman, coming in at 20.4% on KenPom, but he’s been under 18% in each of the last three seasons, including just 13.1% this past year for the Flames.
One thing that’s slightly bothersome? It’s not his shooting in general. As mentioned, his three-point shooting is fine to great. Porter is a career 49.5% shooter on two-point attempts, and he was north of 50% each of the past two seasons as well. It’s his shooting in specific circumstances. In 27 career games against what KenPom.com calls Tier A+B opponents — top 100 teams, adjusted for home/road situations — Porter is shooting 39-for-94 on two-pointers. That’s just 41.5%. Last year, 15 of Marquette’s 20 Big East games were A+B games, and they played five more in non-conference play, and the Big East tournament game against Xavier counted, too. That’s 21, and we can roughly presume that the 2026-27 schedule will land somewhere in that vicinity. 3.5 two-point attempts per game is more than Porter averaged in any of his four seasons at Liberty, so he was shooting more than average in those contests and coming up with more misses than his career or season averages.
If Marquette’s offensive system is still going to be predicated on getting open layups — offensive guru Nevada Smith is the head coach at Siena now, after all — and that’s going to lead to Porter taking more shots near the rim, then maybe this is all okay. It all comes down to how he’s going to be used, and to be very clear: There is zero reason that Shaka Smart is taking a transfer under these circumstances if Porter isn’t going to play some kind of a role on the 2026-27 team.
The circumstances in question? Colin Porter is only technically legally eligible right now. He just finished four years at Liberty, and if this was a year ago, that would be that. However, the NCAA approved five years/five seasons rules over the summer, and Porter is part of a lawsuit in North Carolina that contests the NCAA’s rule that the seniors from 2025-26 don’t get the fifth year. I want to be 100% clear about this: I think Porter should be eligible, because I am shocked that the NCAA was stupid enough to not anticipate the mountain of lawsuits like this that they are facing and thus just grandfather the Class of 2026 in for a fifth year. However, the lawsuits on this topic are far from being completely settled. As such, there remains a chance that Colin Porter will never suit up for Marquette. Early indications from all the courts involved seem to point towards the players seeking a fifth year will end up victorious, but Billable Hours remains undefeated, so who can say for certain?
I can say for certain that we didn’t see Nash Walker at all when Marquette went on their Canadian trip as he continues to rehab from shoulder surgery in the spring. I can also say that Colton Crowdis played a total of 2:34 in the entire three game trip, and that was also the final 2:34 of a 102-65 victory. There’s a need for a point guard option behind Nigel James on this roster. Porter being available means that maybe Nolan Minessale doesn’t have to slide over to point guard duties here and there, and maybe that means that Shaka Smart is 1) making sure he has point guard options and/or 2) sending a message to everyone on the roster that playing time is precious. If he’d rather bring Porter in during August when that could mean Minessale absorbing minutes that maybe we thought would go to Damarius Owens or Michael Porter? You see the message being sent here.
There’s another slightly more interesting message here. Shaka Smart has gone from “nah, we’ll just improve the guys we have here” to “well, this has gone poorly” to “I have added two of the best transfer fits in the country” to “hey, I can make my roster better in November thanks to legal goofiness that has opened a loophole? Cool, let’s do it.” I know what I said about Smart’s future as the Marquette head coach back in mid-March, and I stand by it. The fact of the matter is that Smart has acted like he believes it ever since then. We’ll have to wait to see what the results look like, but the process, the path taken? These are the actions of a coach who is driven to not just win, but put the horrors of last season very far in the rear view mirror.
Let’s get you a brand new scholarship chart and get out of here, eh?
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Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders received the bulk of the playing time at quarterback for the Cleveland Browns as they battled for the starting job across the team's first two preseason games.
In preseason Week 3, it was Dillon Gabriel and Taylen Green's team to run the show after Todd Monken named Watson Cleveland's starter.
Gabriel, a third-round pick from the 2025 NFL Draft, was granted the chance to start. It was a critical opportunity for the 25-year-old, who had struggled in mop-up duty across his first two preseason contests.
Gabriel capitalized on the chance afforded to him. He led the Browns offense to 27 points while demonstrating great rhythm and accuracy across one half of action. Entering Thursday's action, Cleveland had only scored 17 total points across its previous two preseason games.
Here's more to know about Gabriel's outing against the Patriots, including a grade for his performance.
Gabriel put together a strong performance against the Patriots, one that will likely help him lock down the Browns' third-string quarterback job ahead of the 2026 NFL season.
Gabriel looked much more comfortable in the pocket than he did across his first two preseason outings. He was in rhythm throughout the evening, routinely finding open receivers and hitting them with accurate passes at all levels of the field.
Gabriel was particularly impressive when throwing to the intermediate portion of the field. On one occasion, the lefty was able to hang in the pocket amid pressure and hit Ben Patterson breaking open over the middle of the field.
San Francisco 49ersowner Jed York was arrested in Ohio last weekend for allegedly making an arrangement "to have sexual activity" with a woman "in exchange for $140."
San Francisco general manager John Lynch addressed York's situation during an in-game interview with CBS during the 49ers' final preseason game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium in Nevada.
"Obviously a difficult situation. You know, I have so much love and respect for the York family, for Jed, for Danielle, John, and Denise and Jenna and Mara − they've just been tremendous to me and my family," Lynch said. "I thought Kyle said it well. It's a real personal situation. We're going to leave it as such."
Lynch echoed head coach Kyle Shanahan, who also told reporters it was "personal" after San Francisco's Aug. 25 practice.
York reached a plea deal that saw his charges of "engaging in prostitution" – a misdemeanor – reduced to disorderly conduct misdemeanor charges. Additionally, he pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge of possessing criminal tools.
The NFL is looking into potential punishment for York, reviewing the matter under terms of its personal conduct policy, which states a "higher standard" for owners.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 49ers GM John Lynch calls Jed York arrest 'a real personal situation'
Brumbies prop Allan Alaalatoa will captain the Wallabies against Argentina after regular skipper Harry Wilson was left out of Australia’s squad for Sunday morning’s Test in Salvador de Jujuy.
It only took one possession for veteran play-by-play man Al Michaels to get into midseason form during Amazon Prime Video's preseason "Thursday Night Football" broadcast.
The broadcast was coming back from a commercial after the Browns opened the game with a touchdown from Dillon Gabriel to Luke Floriea. It showed an aerial shot of Huntington Bank Field, which abuts Lake Erie.
Michaels used that opportunity to crack a joke about U.S. president Donald Trump's order to rename Lake Ontario to "Lake America" amid an ongoing trade dispute with Canada.
"That is Lake Erie. We think it is still called Lake Erie – we're not quite sure at this point," Michaels said. "But we'll be by Lake something like Ontario or whatever it's going to be called by the time we get to Buffalo. Anyway, you know what I'm talking about, some of you do. Read the news."
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With a full slate of NFL football on deck, beginning at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday, Aug. 27, here are my NFL moneyline picks for Week 3 of the preseason.
Let's navigate these murky waters together, break down the quarterback battles, and find our edges in my this week's NFL picks.
| Matchup | Pick | Result |
|---|---|---|
 PITvs.  BUF | 58% | |
 NEvs.  CLE | 57% | |
 SFvs.  LV | 60% | |
 LARvs.  LAC | 40% | |
 WASvs.  BAL | 59% | |
 ATLvs.  MIA | 65% | |
 HOUvs.  CAR | 45% | |
 TBvs.  JAX | 58% | |
 NYGvs.  NYJ | 60% | |
 CINvs.  PHI | 56% | |
 ARIvs.  GB | 55% | |
 SEAvs.  KC | 48% | |
 NOvs.  DAL | 58% | |
 MINvs.  DEN | 71% | |
 DETvs.  IND | 63% | |
 CHIvs.  TEN | 57% |
Lines courtesy of Kalshi as of 8-27.
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Buffalo Bills' Kyle Allen will likely get significant run in the final week of the preseason after he went 10 of 12 for 128 yards and a touchdown in Week 2. Will Howard and Drew Allar will go for the Pittsburgh Steelers; those two totaled 144 yards with two interceptions and four sacks against the New York Jets. I'm placing my money on the vet.
Grade: B
Neither Deshaun Watson nor Shedeur Sanders will play in this game, leaving me to side with Tommy DeVito, who's thrown for 289 yards and two touchdowns across two weeks of the preseason. Easy money here.
Chalk me up as one of the guys who got killed by Aidan O'Connell's final drive against the Houston Texans a week ago — I won't make that mistake again, especially when the San Francisco 49ers will likely remain cautious with their starters before the season.
Stetson Bennett IV has the inside track on Ty Simpson to win the QB2 battle, but both will get their final chance to make a name for themselves in Week 3. On the other side, don't expect many starters to play for the Los Angeles Chargers, and I'll take the Los Angeles Rams' depth every time.
Dan Quinn said Jayden Daniels will get his reps during joint practices, leaving me to believe he won't be seeing the field in Week 3. With Lamar Jackson sidelined before the regular season, Tyler Huntley and Joe Fagnano will be getting the reps, and I trust them more than Sam Hartman and Athan Kaliakmanis.
Kevin Stefanski said Atlanta Falcons starters will be seeing some reps as a dress rehearsal for the regular season. However, Tua Tagovailoa will be behind center in the first quarter. Jeff Hafley confirmed Quinn Ewers will get a ton of work, but the lack of depth for the Miami Dolphins is concerning, so we'll ride with the Falcons.
Kenny Pickett was 15 of 25 last week against the Jacksonville Jaguars and will likely get the most run with Bryce Young and Haynes King sidelined before the regular season. C.J. Stroud will play a series but leave most of the work to Davis Mills, who couldn't move the ball whatsoever a week ago. I'll throw my belief in Pickett to give us a cushion.
We won't be seeing Baker Mayfield in this one; it feels like Jake Browning might be playing for his job against Jalon Daniels, who was getting snaps ahead of Browning in Tuesday's joint practice. That competition should bear fruit this week against the Jacksonville Jaguars' backups.
John Harbaugh didn't say whether or not Jaxson Dart will play, but in Jameis Winston we trust, nonetheless. The three-quarterback rotation for the New York Jets didn't do much of anything behind Geno Smith last week, so I'll give the New York Giants the benefit of the doubt here.
I'm in the business of fading Josh Johnson as well as the Cincinnati Bengals' bench (Zac Taylor confirmed starters won't play), and will do so this week against Tanner McKee, Andy Dalton, and the Philadelphia Eagles.
With the Green Bay Packers likely sitting their starters here, I'm relying on Gardner Minshew for the Arizona Cardinals, who's been throwing the ball pretty damn well in the preseason. He's thrown just six incomplete passes on 39 attempts alongside two touchdowns and a pick. We'll ride with him against the Packers' bench.
With Patrick Mahomes unlikely to play and the combo of Drew Lock and Jalen Milroe throwing virtually every pass for the Seahawks in the preseason, I'm all over Seattle in this spot. Lock has been solid over two weeks, too, completing 21 of 27 passes for 134 yards. Don't overthink this one.
If it ain't broke, don't fix it - the Cowboys have been a cash cow for us in the preseason with Joe Milton at the helm. With him looking to lock up QB2 duties, I'm sticking with Dallas.
It'll be Sam Ehlinger vs. Jarrett Stidham in a QB2 battle in Week 3, which usually bodes well for our wallet. I'll fade J.J. McCarthy and the Minnesota Vikings as a result.
We won't see many starters for the Detroit Lions or Indianapolis Colts in Week 3; it'll be Josh Dobbs against Anthony Richardson Sr. After the latter did next to nothing against the Falcons last week, I'll lean on Dobbs and Co. to get the job done.
Head coach Robert Saleh has trotted Cam Ward out there each week so far in the preseason, and we'll likely see him one more time against the Chicago Bears. With serviceable quarterbacks Mitch Trubisky and Will Levis waiting in the wings, I'll take that depth one more time.
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.
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The Rams and Chargers wrap up their respective preseasons at SoFi Stadium tonight, with the Chargers sitting as 59% favorites at Kalshi.
Rams coach Sean McVay never plays his starters in preseason, and that won’t change here. The Chargers starters, meanwhile, will see six to nine plays.
My Rams vs. Chargers predictions and NFL picks believe a drive and change with the regulars isn’t going to be enough to tilt things the Chargers' way on August 27, so look the Rams' offense to lead the way to a win and an Over.
| Pick |  Probability |
|---|---|
| Rams moneyline | 41% |
| Over 37.5 | 52% |
Percentages courtesy of Kalshi, one of the best prediction market apps.
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Kalshi probability: 41%
Prediction markets seem to be putting a great deal of weight on the news about the starters playing for the Chargers.
This will be the first time their entire offensive line has played together this preseason. That probably isn’t enough to change what we’ve seen on the field through the first two exhibition games, however.
The Los Angeles Rams have posted the highest point differential through two games, +42, without a single starter seeing the field this preseason. Only the Bills have scored more than their 54 points on offense, and only the Ravens have allowed fewer than their 12.
The Los Angeles Chargers have been outscored through two preseason games, including a 41-17 beatdown at the hands of the 49ers.
Kalshi probability: 52%
Neither team has had trouble scoring.
Rams rookie Ty Simpson will likely get the start and go most of the way. The first-round draft pick appears to have lost the backup job to veteran Stetson Bennett, and McVay has hinted that Bennett may not play at all.
That’s no problem for the Rams offense, as Simpson has had the better passer rating in both games so far. He had two touchdowns and 190 yards on 21 of 25 passing in the first game, and was 8 of 12 for 73 in the second.
The Chargers have gotten 476 passing yards and 44 points from the quarterback tandem of DJ Uiagalelei and Trey Lance.
That, coupled with a defense that's allowed 48 points in two games, should help this game reach the Over.
Dome.
| Location | SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, CA |
| Date | Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026 |
| Kickoff | 10 p.m. ET |
| TV | KCAL, KCBS |
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.
Not intended for use in MA.
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CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The Illinois men’s basketball team is adding a new face to the fold, as transfer guard Quentin McCoy joins the roster as a late addition.
McCoy’s an in-state add, as he grew up in Chicago and played his high school basketball at Lindblom Math and Science Academy.
The latest in Illinois head coach Brad Underwood’s group of “Everyday Guys,” McCoy spent his first two seasons of college hoops with the Arizona State Sun Devils, yet only played in nine total games for the team.
In his college career, the young guard only attempted one shot, so he’s coming to Champaign as a bit of a fresh canvas.
As for his measurables, he comes in at 6’3” and 175 pounds according to Illinois men’s basketball’s announcement.
McCoy joins a pretty stacked group of guards on the Illini’s roster, including Andrej Stojakovic, Quentin Coleman, Stefan Vaaks, Lincoln Williams, Blake Fagbemi, Lucas Morillo and Ethan Brown.
Based on the social media graphic put out by the team, it appears as though McCoy will wear No. 5, last worn by guard AJ Redd last season.
More than a month after former Cowboys quarterback and CBS broadcaster Tony Romo was arrested for suspicion of operating while intoxicated in Milwaukee, the authorities have filed three new citations against him.
Via TMZ, the district attorney has charged Romo with first-offense operating while intoxicated, unsafe passing on the right side, and possessing open intoxicants in his vehicle.
Romo was placed on leave by CBS eight days after the arrest, which created multiple bodycam videos that created a general bad look for Romo. CBS has elevated J.J. Watt to replace Romo on the network's top broadcast team, and it seems to be a move that will cover the entire season.
Romo has four years left on his CBS contract, at a total payout of $72 million. CBS could try to terminate the deal for cause, owing him nothing. Romo would surely fight such a move. A settlement for something less than the full amount is always possible.
The Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Chargers meet in their shared home Thursday night in the final preseason game for both teams.
Coach Jim Harbaugh and the Chargers will serve as the home team against coach Sean McVay and the Rams.
The Chargers are looking to bounce back from a 41-17 home loss to the San Francisco 49ers on Aug. 20.
The Rams enter the final preseason game with momentum, having beaten the New Orleans Saints 34-0 on Aug. 22.
USA TODAY Sports is bringing you live coverage with updates, highlights and analysis for Thursday's preseason finale between the Rams and Chargers.
The game will be televised nationally on NFL Network. Fans local to the Los Angeles area can also watch on KCAL 9.
Kickoff between both Los Angeles teams is scheduled for 10 p.m. ET (7 p.m. PT), on Thursday, Aug. 27.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Rams vs Chargers score, highlights, live updates, how to watch preseason game