High & Tight 

August 30, 2023

By: Carlos Alvarez

Good Morning 👋

We\’re eight days away from the 2023 NFL season, but it\’s not a happy occasion for everybody. Over 1,000 players fell victim to the NFL’s preseason cuts where teams slice the roster from 90 to 53. Jags coach Doug Pederson had to cut his own son. Awkward holidays at the Pederson house… Thanks for not cutting me in youth sports, dad.

Speaking of cuts, Team USA\’s 12-man roster for the Ryder Cup is finalized, and we’re axing the U.S. Open field, fast.

Letter Rip!

NFL

NFL Cut Tracker

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Photo: Norm Hall / Getty Images

All the Notable Headlines, Trades & Roster Cuts for All 32 Teams With 8 Days to Kickoff

Get ready for the link factory. Tuesday’s 4:00 pm ET deadline saw hundreds of NFL players left jobless for the 2023 season, and a bunch of major news and kicker trades stole the show. No, the Colts didn’t find a trade partner for disgruntled RB Jonathan Taylor. Instead, Taylor will start the season on the PUP (physically unable to perform) list, meaning he’ll be ineligible for the first four games. Two major holdouts are still in effect — Nick Bosa (49ers) and Chris Jones (Chiefs). Three kickers were traded in the afternoon. And a few dozen surprise names were cut-day victims. Here are all the NFL notes before we shift the focus to College Football for the rest of this week.

Notable Headlines

Colts RB Jonathan Taylor to Miss First 4 Games on PUP List

Bills EDGE Von Miller to Miss First 4 Games on PUP List

49ers EDGE Nick Bosa Still Unreported Amid Holdout

Chiefs DL Chris Jones Still Unreported Amid Holdout

Most Notable Roster Cuts

Panthers Cut OT Cameron Erving & S Eric Rowe

Saints Cut LB Jaylon Smith & CB Bradley Roby

49ers Cut WRs Chris Conley, Anthony Miller & Willie Snead IV

Cardinals Cut QBs Colt McCoy & David Blough

Bengals Cut QB Trevor Siemian & CB Sidney Jones IV

13 Bucs Rookies Make 53-Man Roster, Including 6 Undrafted FAs

Notable Trades

Broncos Acquire K Will Lutz From Saints

Titans Acquire K Nick Folk From Patriots

Browns Acquire K Dustin Hopkins From Chargers

Cowboys Acquire CB Noah Igbinoghene From Dolphins

Patriots Acquire OT Tyron Wheatley Jr. From Browns

Eagles Acquire Suspended CB Isaiah Rodgers From Colts

Bears Acquire OL Dan Feeney From Dolphins

Read More

B/R: Biggest Takeaways From Every NFL Team’s Final 2023 Roster Cuts

ESPN: NFL Cuts Tracker 2023: Roster Updates for All 32 Teams

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GOLF

Team USA Ryder Cup Picks

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Photo: Montana Pritchard / PGA of America / Getty Images

Koepka, Spieth, Morikawa, Fowler, Thomas & Burns Fill Out Zach Johnson’s 12-Man Team USA Ryder Cup Squad

The picks are in! Team USA’s Ryder Cup Captain, Zach Johnson, solidified his final six captain’s selections on Tuesday morning. Johnson’s decisions didn’t yield much surprise, but he opted towards bigger names with Ryder Cup experience over recent success stories. Brooks Koepka was the target of much discussion. He was arguably a no-doubter, but some questioned if the LIV golfer was worthy of a Team USA nod. Koepka, along with Jordan Spieth, Collin Morikawa, Rickie Fowler and Justin Thomas all have Ryder Cup experience. Sam Burns joins Max Homa, Brian Harman and Wyndham Clark as the Ryder Cup rookies. Here’s a look at the final 12-man Team USA roster.

🇺🇸 Ryder Cup Automatic Picks (WGR)

Scottie Scheffler (1st)

Patrick Cantlay (5th)

Xander Schauffele (6th)

Max Homa (7th)

Brian Harman (9th)

Wyndham Clark (10th)

🇺🇸 Ryder Cup Captain’s Picks (WGR)

Jordan Spieth (12th)

Brooks Koepka (14th)

Collin Morikawa (19th)

Sam Burns (21st)

Rickie Fowler (25th)

Justin Thomas (26th)

Left Out: Cameron Young (17th), Keegan Bradley (18th), Tony Finau (20th), Russell Henley (28th), Kurt Kitayama (29th), Lucas Glover (30th), Denny McCarthy (32nd)

🇪🇺 Team Europe (4): Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Viktor Hovland, Tyrrell Hatton | *Remaining 8 Team Europe Selections Made by Captain Luke Donald on Monday, Sept. 4

2023 Ryder Cup: Sept. 25 — Oct. 1

Marco Simone Golf Club (Rome, Italy)

This will be the first Ryder Cup since the PGA-LIV split/merger. Some golfers are forever scarred, and the bad blood is still boiling. Expect the competitive spirit to be on overdrive between Rory McIlroy and Brooks Koepka. Can\’t wait!

Read More

PGA: Zach Johnson Announces Captain’s Picks for U.S. Ryder Cup Team

Golfweek: Player Profiles for All 12 Team USA Golfers at the 2023 Ryder Cup

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TENNIS

U.S. Open: Day 2 Highlights

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Photo: Clive Brunskill / Getty Images

#1 Carlos Alcaraz Cruises, #7 Caroline Garcia Next Upset Victim & More From Day 2

Day 2 of 14 is in the books at Flushing Meadows, and we have another upset victim. Women’s 7-seed Caroline Garcia fell in straight sets to 114th-ranked Y.F. Wang early in the afternoon. Two other top-12 seeds saw early exits, including #11 Karen Khachanov (men) and #12 Barbora Krejcikova (women). In the nightcap, it was the No. 1 overall seed, Carlos Alcaraz, with a dominating win in a forced retirement. Day 3 starts soon.

Men’s Singles Highlights

#1 C. Alcaraz def. D. Koepfer (6-2, 6-3, W/O)

#3 D. Medvedev def. A. Balazs (6-1, 6-1, 6-0)

#6 J. Sinner def. Y. Hanfmann (6-3, 6-1, 6-1)

#8 A. Rublev def. A. Cazaux (6-4, 7-6, 6-1)

M. Mmoh upsets #11 K. Khachanov (6-2, 6-4, 6-2)

A. Murray def. C. Moutet (6-2, 7-5, 6-3)

S. Wawrinka def. Y. Nishioka (7-6, 6-2, 6-4)

Women’s Singles Highlights

#2 A. Sabalenka def. M. Zanevska (6-3, 6-2)

#3 J. Pegula def. C. Giorgi (6-2, 6-2)

#5 O. Jabeur def. M. Osorio Serrano (7-5, 7-6)

Y.F. Wang upsets #7 C. Garcia (6-4, 6-1)

#9 M. Vondrousova def. N. Han (6-3, 6-0)

L. Bronzetti upsets #12 B. Krejcikova (6-4, 7-6)

Today’s Schedule (Round 2)

Top Matches in Must-Watch List

Read More

USOpen: US Open Day 2 in Review: Alcaraz & Medvedev Win, Venus Out

TennisMajors: Misfiring Garcia Upset by Qualifier Wang in 1st Round Stunner

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MLB

Cobb Gets Robbed

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Photo: Ezra Shaw / Getty Images

Giants’ Pitcher Alex Cobb Falls 1 Out Shy of Historic No-Hitter Against Reds

Sometimes, sports can be cruel. That was evident on Tuesday night in San Francisco when Alex Cobb retired 26 batters without a hit and came within one out of his first-career no-hitter. Then? Spencer Steer slapped an RBI-double with two outs gone in the 9th. Brutal! The Giants still got the win over the Reds (6-1), and the 35-year-old Cobb is having a renaissance season. He’s now 7-5 with a 3.57 ERA, 125 Ks, 141 innings pitched, and he’s secured the No. 2 spot in San Francisco’s rotation behind Logan Webb. A no-hitter on Tuesday would’ve been something special for the solid veteran. Instead, he’ll join the most heartbreaking list in baseball — pitchers who lost a no-hit bid on the final out. Surprisingly, the Giants have been on the list a lot lately, accounting for three of the last ten. It would’ve been the Giants’ first no-hitter since Chris Heston in 2015.

Alex Cobb’s Near No-No: 9 IP, 1 Hit, 8 Ks, 1 ER

10 Pitchers in Last 10 Years to Lose No-No on Out 27

Alex Cobb (Giants, 2023), Dylan Cease (White Sox, 2022), Miles Mikolas (Cardinals, 2022), Sean Newcomb (Braves, 2018), Matthew Boyd (Tigers, 2017), Matt Moore (Giants, 2016), Carlos Carrasco (Indians, 2015), Shelby Miller (Braves, 2015), Michael Wacha (Cardinals, 2013), Yusmeiro Petit (Giants, 2013)

Watch: Giants’ Alex Cobb Loses No-Hit Bid on Final Out Against Reds (6-1)

MLB Quick-Hitters

Cubs Snap Crew’s Streak: Justin Steele helped Chicago toss a shutout against the streaking Brewers Tuesday in Wrigley (1-0). The win snapped the Crew’s nine-game streak and gave the Cubs a boost in the Wild Card race.

Philly HR Festival: Have a bat, Phillies! Five home runs from Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, Ale Bohm, Bryson Stott, and Trea Turner lifted Philadelphia to a high-scoring win over the Angels last night (12-7). The Phils (74-58) are winners of their last five with a firm grip on the top NL Wild Card spot.

3-Way Tie in AL West: The Rangers and Astros were winners on Tuesday with the Mariners eating their first loss in five games, and we have a three-way tie in the AL West. Seattle (75-57), Texas (75-57), and Houston (76-58) are in for a doozy down the stretch.

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STORYLINES

🧠 CTE in Young Athletes

A new study has diagnosed the degenerative brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in more than 40% of youth, high school and college athletes who were exposed to repetitive head impacts from contact sports and died before age 30. (ESPN)

🏎️NASCAR Playoff Standings

It\’s been a long and winding road through the regular season. But now comes the crescendo, the moment when drivers become legends. The postseason has etched many a racer into the annals of stock car history, all the while captivating supporters. (Sporting News)

🏈Ranking/Predicting Every NFL Offense

In the NFL, offense is king. Last season, eight of the teams that fielded top-10 offenses made the playoffs. We’ve studied the preseason tape and can now project how every NFL team’s offense will perform this season. Where does your team rank? (The Ringer)

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NEWS

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SCHEDULE

The Must-Watch List

U.S. Open (Round 2)

W: #6 C. Gauff vs. M. Andreeva (12:00 pm ET)

W: #1 I. Swiatek vs. D. Gavrilova (12:15 pm ET)
W: #4 E. Rybakina vs. A. Tomljanovic (7:00 pm ET)

W: #11 P. Kvitova vs. C. Wozniacki (9:00 pm ET)

M: #7 S. Tsitsipas vs. D. Stricker (11:00 am ET)

M: #2 N. Djokovic vs. B. Zapata Miralles (1:15 pm ET)

M: #5 C. Ruud vs. Z. Zhang (5:00 pm ET)

M: #10 F. Tiafoe vs. S. Ofner (7:00 pm ET)

MLB
Guardians at Twins (1:10 pm ET)

Brewers at Cubs (2:20 pm ET)

Reds at Giants (3:45 pm ET)

Rangers at Mets (6:40 pm ET)

Diamondbacks at Dodgers (10:10 pm ET)

MLS

Inter Miami vs. Nashville SC (7:30 pm ET)

FIBA World Cup

Team USA vs. Jordan (Wed. 4:40 am ET)

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