A photo of Aaron Rodgers went viral on social media Monday following the New York Jets’ 23-20 loss to the Buffalo Bills at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.
A despondent Rodgers was seen sulking on the Jets’ sideline after his team dropped its third straight contest.
Fans watching from home couldn’t help but notice a splotch of blood on Rodgers’ hand as he covered his face in frustration. Several spectators felt like the mark was appropriately shaped like a scarlet-colored letter “L” after the Jets’ fourth loss of the season.
It appears Aaron Rodgers has a blood stained “L” imprinted on his wrist- sorry Jets fans, that’s a sign. This season is over. pic.twitter.com/nnYKEfTSYu
The lasting image of Rodgers’ hand may have felt like a pseudo-Rorschach test for Jets fans who have gotten used to all the losing. It’s hard not to see an “L” when your team hasn’t had a winning season since 2015 and hasn’t made the playoffs at all since 2010.
The positive news for Jets fans was that Rodgers had arguably his best game of the season. The four-time MVP went 23/35 for 294 yards with 2 touchdowns and 1 interception. Rodgers also uncorked a beautiful Hail Mary for a touchdown just before halftime (video here).
Rodgers and the Jets will have a chance to wash away the Week 6 “L” when they take on the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.
Monday night’s marquee matchup between the New York Jets and Buffalo Bills came with quite a healthy serving of flags. Fans weren’t exactly happy about it.
But all the football action on Monday felt like the side dish to the game’s true main course: penalties. The Bills and Jets gave up a whopping 204 yards on 22 combined penalties.
To fans and media members on X, it felt like there was a flag thrown on every other play.
tonight feels like we're watching the refs call a makeup call after a bad call after a makeup call after a bad call after a makeup call after a bad call after a makeup call after a bad call after a makeup call after a bad call after a makeup call
The flag throwing virus in the NFL is out of control. And to make it worse tonight, these refs are in conference mode after every play to figure out why they’re even throwing the flags.
The penalty situation only got worse as the game progressed. 10 of the game’s 22 penalties were called during the fourth quarter. There was even the rare penalty called during the break between the third and fourth quarters.
This is insane.
A penalty was called on Dion Dawkins between the end of the third quarter and start of the fourth quarter. Dawkins was getting into it with multiple Jets players.
Officials have cost the Bills significantly in this game.
Philadelphia 76ers fans held their collective breath Monday after newly acquired star Paul George left the team’s preseason contest with a leg injury.
The 76ers beat the Atlanta Hawks 104-89 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Ga. But the final result probably felt negligible for Sixers fans after George left the game midway through the second quarter. The Sixers star hyperextended his knee while trying to cut off a driving attempt from Hawks forward Jalen Johnson.
Paul George hyperextended his left knee, per @ginamizell
George was immediately subbed out from the game following the play and did not return. He finished with eight points and two rebounds on 3/5 shooting from the field.
The nine-time All-Star had trouble staying healthy during his five-year stint with the Los Angeles Clippers. He missed a total of 127 games across five seasons while dealing with a myriad of injuries.
But George stayed relatively healthy last season, missing just eight games during his last campaign with the Clippers.
One New York Yankees fan went the extra mile during Game 1 of the ALCS.
During Monday’s opening game of the ALCS vs. the Cleveland Guardians, a fan at Yankee Stadium was shown on the TBS broadcast during Juan Soto’s first-inning at-bat. The fan was holding up a giant fake check issued out to Soto for the sum of $600 million. The fake check had “Yankee4Life” written in the memo portion plus a mock signature that read “New York Yankees.”
That was A-plus work from the fan, both in terms of effort and execution. The 25-year-old Soto will be a free agent after the season, and the Yankees faithful clearly want to keep him around for as long as possible, especially after a 2024 regular season where Soto hit .288 with 41 homers, 109 RBIs, and an AL-leading 128 runs scored.
The New York Jets quarterback threw another big pass right before the end of the half on Monday night of his team’s game against the Buffalo Bills at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.
The Jets had the ball at their 48-yard line with 8 seconds left. Rodgers dropped back to pass and then heaved a ball from the Jets 43 that went into the end zone. Allen Lazard caught the ball in the end zone for a touchdown to close the gap.
It’s bad enough for Buffalo Bills kicker Tyler Bass that he missed an extra point attempt in front of everyone watching “Monday Night Football.” But ESPN announcer Joe Buck also made sure to kick Bass while he was down.
The Bills took on the New York Jets in a Week 6 matchup at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. Buffalo took its first lead, 13-10, midway through the second quarter after Josh Allen hit wide receiver wide receiver Mack Hollins for an 8-yard touchdown. However, Bass completely shanked his PAT attempt wide left of the goalposts.
“Bass. No chance,” said Buck on the ESPN broadcast. “That was just weird … I’ve seen better kicks than that on ‘College GameDay.’ What the heck was that?”
The extra point miss was Bass’ second of the 2024 season. The 27-year-old kicker entered the game with a 97.4% success rate on PAT tries since he entered the league in 2020.
Lisa Salters is one of the usual members of ESPN’s “Monday Night Football” broadcast crew, but she was not present for the network’s telecast of the Week 6 game between the Buffalo Bills and New York Jets at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.
Salters was absent due to what Joe Buck said was a personal matter.
“Lisa Salters is attending to a personal matter. We look forward to her return. And all of us sending our very best to Lisa and her family,” Buck said.
Joe Buck: Lisa Salters is tending to a personal matter. We look forward to her return. And all of us sending our very best to Lisa and her family. pic.twitter.com/tt77cbWW4B
Kyle Kuzma on Monday nearly put Ben Simmons on the wrong side of a highlight reel. Instead, the Washington Wizards forward shared in Simmons’ embarrassment.
Simmons’ Brooklyn Nets hosted Kuzma’s Wizards for a preseason contest at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.
The Wizards led the Nets 9-8 three minutes into the contest between the two potential East cellar dwellers.
Kuzma got the ball on the left wing and hit Simmons with a subtle yet nasty hesitation move that dropped the former Defensive Player of the Year runner-up to the ground. But as every hooper knows, no ankle breaker is a true highlight unless you make the shot. Kuzma didn’t just miss the shot. He missed the rim entirely.
Adding to the hilarity was that the Wizards’ bench players had stood up in anticipation of a made basket. They ended up sitting back down while likely feeling some second-hand embarrassment.
Aug 24, 2024; Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA; Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (10) during warmups prior to the game against the Baltimore Ravens at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
Houston Texans coach DeMeco Ryans had some comments about quarterback Jordan Love on Monday that certainly raised some eyebrows.
Ryans was previewing the Texans’ Week 7 matchup against the Green Bay Packers, which will likely hinge on whether the Houston defense can keep Jordan Love in check. The Houston coach is certainly taking the opposition seriously, as he referred to Love as “the best quarterback we’ve seen this year.”
#Texans coach DeMeco Ryans on Packers QB Jordan Love: "He will be the best quarterback we've seen this year."
While the Texans have faced a rather forgiving schedule in terms of opposing quarterbacks, they did face Buffalo’s Josh Allen and beat him two weeks ago. That’s pretty high praise on the part of Ryans.
Love is coming off a breakout 2023 campaign that saw him throw for over 4,000 yards and 32 touchdowns in his first season as the Packers’ starter. There is no doubt that he is still prone to some regrettable mistakes, and the Texans will try to force him into more. Despite that, Ryans’ opinion seems to be part of a growing consensus regarding the Green Bay quarterback.
Mar 7, 2022; Sacramento, California, USA; Sacramento Kings guard De’Aaron Fox (5) warms up before the game against the New York Knicks at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Sacramento Kings guard De’Aaron Fox has made a significant decision about his contract status.
Fox will not sign a three-year, $165 million max extension this offseason, according to Shams Charania of ESPN. The Kings guard instead prefers to wait until next offseason, when he will be eligible to sign a longer and more lucrative contract extension.
Fox could have signed the three-year deal up until the start of the regular season, but he and agent Rich Paul have decided against it. By waiting until next summer, he will be eligible to sign a four-year, $229 max extension instead. He could also get a five-year, $345 million supermax extension if he is selected to an All-NBA team this season.
Though Fox is deferring on a deal right now, it does not appear to have anything to do with his feelings toward the Kings. He has said both privately and publicly that he wants to remain with Sacramento long-term, and this decision is purely about maximizing the contract that will be available to him.
