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Category: Sports Wires

  • Two horses named in memory of Johnny Gaudreau are running Saturday at Belmont

    Two horses named in memory of Johnny Gaudreau are running Saturday at Belmont

    Because he grew up playing hockey with and against Johnny Gaudreau in their teenage years, Vincent Conanan talks about the late NHL star plenty. He gets chills when old text messages from Gaudreau show up when he’s searching his phone.

    Conanan buys thoroughbred yearlings annually for his Next Level Stables, and after his young son kept asking about the player known as “Johnny Hockey,” he pledged to name a racehorse after Gaudreau. After going to school in the Columbus, Ohio, area where Gaudreau played his final two seasons with the Blue Jackets, Devon Bradley of Bradley Thoroughbreds had the same idea.

    The Gaudreau family honors Johnny and Matty’s legacies through new learn-to-skate hockey program

    On Saturday, the horses — Johnny Hockey and Gaudreau — will run in the same race at Belmont Park.

    “Is that not bananas?” Bradley said.

    The winner out of the field of six in the Grade 1 Champagne qualifies for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile for 2-year-olds, the championship race that sometimes provides a sneak peek at the Kentucky Derby contenders the following spring.

    “Hopefully we can run 1-2 this weekend, either way,” Conanan said. “I know Johnny’s looking down and he sees it.”

    Johnny Gaudreau becomes a namesake twice

    These two colts were born roughly a month apart in the winter of 2024. Gaudreau and his brother, Matthew, died the night of Aug. 29, 2024, when they were struck riding their bicycles near their hometown in Salem County on the eve of their sister Katie’s wedding in a tragedy that transcended sports.

    Bradley was moved by all the great things that people said about Johnny and registered the names Johnny Hockey and Gaudreau with the Jockey Club.

    Watching U.S. players at the Olympics bring Gaudreau’s children onto the ice and skate around with his No. 13 jersey after winning gold in Milan was even more inspiration to use one of them. When she forgot to pay to re-up after a year and went to name the son of Nyquist — also a hockey connection for Swedish player Gustav Nyquist — and Free Cover, she saw that Johnny Hockey was already taken.

    Salem County’s Johnny Gaudreau was a seven-time NHL All-Star before his tragic passing.Aaron Doster

    So, she went with Gaudreau for the strapping horse Bradley Thoroughbreds owns along with Tanglewood Thoroughbreds, Thirty Year Racing, Rodeo Creek Racing, Laura Leigh Stable and Swift Thoroughbreds.

    “We needed a strong name: We needed a name that has some meaning, something to kind of give your horse just an extra oomph,” Bradley said. “We just felt like it fit, and I guess the rest is history.”

    Conanan asked the trainer at his farm in Ocala, Florida, which horse he liked best. The answer made it an easy call.

    “He goes, ‘Vin, this horse always tries hard and has a big heart,’” Conanan recalled. “I was like, ‘You know what, I’ll name this one after Johnny.’ Because Johnny as a kid, he wasn’t the biggest player, but he had the biggest heart. So, I was, like, ‘This horse, I think he’s going to be the one.’”

    Johnny Hockey and Gaudreau face off

    Gaudreau won his debut Aug. 8 at Saratoga Race Course. The very next day at Monmouth Park on the Jersey Shore, Johnny Hockey picked up his first victory in his fifth try.

    “My hopes are very high on the horse,” Conanan said. “[Trainer] Antonio Arriaga tells me, he goes: ‘The horse trains unbelievable. He just wants to keep going. He doesn’t stop. He wants to keep going around the track.’”

    Gaudreau has Chad Brown, a five-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer, overseeing his career, with acclaimed jockey Flavien Prat riding. Based on pedigree and performance, the expectations are lofty after just one race.

    “I’m thankful that this horse looks like he’s the real deal,” Bradley said. “Hopefully, it’ll bring light to, and kind of continue on, Johnny Gaudreau and Matthew Gaudreau’s legacies.”

    Gaudreau opened as the second choice on the morning line for the Champagne at odds of 8-5, behind 3-5 favorite U.S.S. Valor. Johnny Hockey is a 30-1 long shot.

    Conanan wants to invite Johnny and Matthew’s parents, Guy and Jane Gaudreau, to the Breeders’ Cup at Keeneland in Lexington, Kentucky, later this fall if his horse pulls off the upset.

    “This horse is something special,” Conanan said. “I know he’ll go out there and do his best, the same way Johnny would.”

  • Rams star Aaron Donald out for Eagles game, Puka Nacua set to return

    Rams star Aaron Donald out for Eagles game, Puka Nacua set to return

    LOS ANGELES — Aaron Donald will miss the Rams’ game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday because of a sore back, while Puka Nacua will return after missing two games because of hip and groin injuries.

    Donald did not practice all week and coach Sean McVay officially ruled him out Friday. A three-time AP Defensive Player of the Year, Donald has four tackles, one tackle for loss and one quarterback hit in two games after ending his two-season retirement.

    McVay said the Rams (1-2) were erring on the side of caution with Donald and that the 35-year-old defensive tackle probably could have played through the injury if needed.

    “We have to protect him from him,” McVay said. “This guy will do everything (to play) and that much more.”

    Nacua had five receptions for 74 yards in the season opener against the 49ers but missed games versus the Giants and Broncos after hurting himself in practice on Sept. 17.

    “Just in some of the change of direction stuff, some of the stuff in my hip area just was not feeling great,” Nacua said. “It was causing me some pain and some restriction in some of my movements.”

    The Rams also ruled out tight end Terrance Ferguson (ankle) and cornerback Jaylen Watson (shoulder), while tight end Colby Parkinson (knee/shoulder) and linebacker Grant Stuard (groin), a key special teams contributor, are questionable.

    McVay also said wide receiver Alex Bachman will likely be called up off the practice squad to contribute on special teams after return specialist Xavier Smith was waived on Friday.

    The decision to move on from Smith came one day after special teams coordinator Bubba Ventrone was critical of Smith’s performance while also ruling out replacing the third-year wide receiver from Florida A&M. Smith’s status had been in question since he muffed a punt leading to a Seattle touchdown in the Seahawks’ 31-27 win over the Rams in the NFC championship last season.

    “We just need better production out of that position,” McVay said. “That’s exclusively what it was.”

    “We weren’t thinking about it when (Ventrone) talked to you guys yesterday. And as you get a chance to kind of take a step back, evaluate the totality of our group — what’s the best way to try to be able to put together all three phases? Did feel like that was in the best interest of the group, and that was kind of what went into it.”

  • CBS announces Tony Romo’s permanent exit following arrest for operating a vehicle while intoxicated

    CBS announces Tony Romo’s permanent exit following arrest for operating a vehicle while intoxicated

    CBS Sports and Tony Romo have officially parted ways, one month after the former Dallas Cowboys quarterback pleaded no contest to charges of operating a vehicle while intoxicated.

    Romo had been on leave since his July 23 arrest in Wisconsin. He had been the lead game analyst for CBS’ NFL coverage since 2017.

    “CBS Sports and Tony Romo have mutually agreed to part ways,” CBS Sports said Friday in a statement. “We thank Tony for his contributions over the past nine years and wish him the best moving forward.”

    Analyst JJ Watt had joined play-by-play announcer Jim Nantz and sideline reporter Tracy Wolfson on CBS Sports’ lead NFL team during Romo’s absence. Watt will continue in that role now and all other CBS teams will remain the same.

    Romo was arrested following a traffic stop as he was driving south on Interstate 43 in Wisconsin. He pleaded no contest to a charge of operating while intoxicated on Sept. 1 and issued a statement apologizing for the actions that led to his arrest.

    According to Milwaukee County court records, Romo lost his driving privileges for six months and was ordered to complete an alcohol assessment program.

    “The past month has been difficult, but it has also been personally significant,” Romo said Sept. 1 in a statement on Instagram. “It has required me to confront and own my mistakes fully — to the Lord, to myself, to my family and now to the public.”

    Romo said the multiple back surgeries that led to his retirement as a player “left me with constant, debilitating pain.” He noted that the pain “led to a dependence on pain medication, and my efforts to get off those medications led to an over-reliance on alcohol.”

    “None of this is an excuse,” Romo said. “These are my failures and I take responsibility for them.”

    Romo said he is working with a team of doctors to address his health and “make the necessary changes.”

    The 46-year-old Romo made four Pro Bowl appearances during a playing career that ran from 2004-16 and was spent entirely with Dallas.

  • Senate passes college sports bill that would rein in athlete payments and transfers

    Senate passes college sports bill that would rein in athlete payments and transfers

    WASHINGTON — The Senate passed a sweeping bipartisan bill on Monday that would regulate college sports, an attempt to end “chaos” in an industry that has been upended by skyrocketing athlete payments and near-unrestricted transfers between schools.

    The overwhelming 77-22 vote to pass the legislation is the strongest effort yet by Congress to set national regulations governing payments to college athletes for their name, image and likeness and how often they can transfer. It would give the NCAA new authority over those rules and limited antitrust protections to enforce them.

    The bill is the product of years of Senate negotiations that intensified after a 2025 lawsuit settlement uprooted the college sports landscape by allowing colleges to pay their players. The legislation, which would still have to pass the House, would codify the settlement into law but also establish new guardrails around the system in an attempt to rein in the runaway costs for colleges.

    “It would be nice if college sports could somehow magically fix itself, but this is a matter of law, federal law, and only Congress can fix it,” said Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz, R-Texas, who negotiated the bill with the top Democrat on the panel, Washington Sen. Maria Cantwell.

    The bill’s backers — more than 70 senators from both parties — say it aims to curtail constant litigation and uncertainty across college sports for athletes, schools and fans. It would also give hundreds of thousands of student athletes new health and labor protections.

    But critics say the bill doesn’t do enough to protect athletes or curtail the enormous sums of money flowing to coaches, colleges and conferences.

    “This is a bill that essentially ensconces a system of exploitation, and it doesn’t fix the broader problems,” said Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy, a Democrat who has worked with labor and civil rights groups to rally opposition to the bill.

    The bill’s future is still unclear.

    President Donald Trump has repeatedly expressed an interest in the legislation, and the White House formally endorsed the bill last month. But it could face an uphill battle in the House, which failed repeatedly over the last year to get a different version to the floor and is in recess until after the November elections.

    Lawmakers will have to start over in the next Congress if the bill doesn’t pass both chambers by the end of the year.

    Bill addresses skyrocketing spending, unlimited transfers

    College sports have been reeling in the wake of the 2025 court settlement allowing colleges to directly pay players for their name, image and likeness. The fallout has reshaped the industry and led to football roster payrolls that can exceed $40 million.

    The bill would codify the court settlement, including a revenue cap that allows schools to share up to $21.5 million in revenue with their players. The legislation would more than double that amount for some schools, allowing up to an additional $27.5 million in payments through a retention fund — a change that helped win the support of the two largest conferences, the Big Ten and Southeastern Conference.

    To help schools raise more revenue, the bill would give schools and conferences the option of pooling their TV media rights.

    The legislation also aims to stabilize the NCAA transfer portal that has led to players constantly switching teams. It would restrict player transfers to one “free” move over five years without sitting out a year, with some exceptions, and also would restrict players to five years of total eligibility.

    The proposed eligibility limit comes amid backlash to schools that have increasingly pushed boundaries, including LSU’s now-canceled plans to place players on the roster who had participated in NFL training camps.

    “That was probably like a big lamp for some people who saw it and said, ‘Oh my God, this is so out of control,’” Cantwell said in a recent interview with The Associated Press.

    The bill also would restrict coaches from leaving their schools during the season, force schools that want to switch conferences to spend three years as an independent and prevent conferences from growing larger than 20 programs — an effort to prevent so-called “superleagues” from taking over sports. A last-minute amendment proposed by Florida Sen. Ashley Moody raised that cap from 19 in the original legislation.

    The vote was delayed several hours on Monday as senators negotiated Moody’s amendment and others that were eventually adopted, including provisions to make it easier for athletes to sue over sexual assault and a requirement to disclose foreign financing.

    The Senate rejected an amendment by Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., that would have put limits on ticket prices for fans and two by Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., that would have capped coaches’ salaries at $5 million a year and increased compensation for athletes who have catastrophic injuries.

    Critics say it wouldn’t do enough to help athletes

    The legislation includes new protections for athletes, including caps on agent fees and guarantees for health insurance and scholarships. It would also require schools to maintain a minimum number of sports and roster spots — an effort to ensure that women’s and Olympic sports are not cut in favor of football, basketball and other sports that generate more revenue.

    Still, some Democrats say it wouldn’t do enough to limit the big money in college sports.

    The legislation “places a cap on the students’ cut of the revenues, but there are no caps on coaches’ salaries or on the size of donations to athletic programs,” Murphy said last week.

    Groups like the NAACP, Congressional Black Caucus and AFL-CIO have also opposed the bill, in part, because it leaves unresolved whether athletes should be considered employees with the ability to collectively bargain.

    All four Black Democrats in the Senate — Booker, Raphael Warnock of Georgia, Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware and Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland — have opposed the bill.

    Booker, who played football at Stanford in the late 1980s on a scholarship, noted the “outsized role” that Black athletes play in college sports. He said it wasn’t until college athletes were able to begin to win cases in court that the power started to shift, “and now the NCAA is coming here to the United States Senate, asking for sweeping powers” to exempt antitrust laws.

    “We know who this bill is protecting,” Booker said.

    House passage is uncertain

    Despite strong bipartisan support in the Senate, the bill faces a murky path in the House.

    House lawmakers won’t return to Washington until mid-November, after the elections. And it’s unclear what will be on Republican leaders’ agenda in the chaotic last few weeks of the session.

    Pressure from Trump could help push the bill to passage. But some House Republicans have insisted on language explicitly stating that athletes are not employees, which the Senate bill does not have — a key concession to Cantwell to win enough Democratic support.

  • Giants acquire quarterback J.J. McCarthy from the Vikings for a 2027 fifth-round pick

    Giants acquire quarterback J.J. McCarthy from the Vikings for a 2027 fifth-round pick

    The New York Giants have acquired quarterback J.J. McCarthy from the Minnesota Vikings for a 2027 fifth-round pick.

    The Vikings announced the trade Monday pending McCarthy passing a physical.

    The Giants made the aggressive move days after Jaxson Dart had surgery on his left knee that will sideline him for at least the rest of the regular season.

    J.J. McCarthy was drafted in the first round of the 2024 draft by Minnesota.Bailey Hillesheim

    Jameis Winston started and beat Tennessee on Sunday, despite not scoring a touchdown and having just 238 yards of offense. Coach John Harbaugh said afterward that Winston would get the nod again this Sunday against Arizona.

    It’s unclear what New York’s QB situation will be moving forward after adding McCarthy, the 10th pick in the 2024 draft who lost the starting job in Minnesota to Kyler Murray and fell behind Carson Wentz on the depth chart.

  • Florida rides win over Rebels to No. 8 ranking, Penn State falls out of AP Top 25

    Florida rides win over Rebels to No. 8 ranking, Penn State falls out of AP Top 25

    Florida made a massive jump in The Associated Press Top 25 on Sunday and landed in the top 10 for the first time in five years while four new teams joined the rankings in a major shuffle.

    The Gators’ 24-point win over then-No. 4 Mississippi under first-year coach Jon Sumrall on Saturday earned them a 13-rung promotion to No. 8, their highest ranking since 2020 and first top-10 appearance since 2021.

    Texas, Georgia, and Notre Dame continued to hold the top three spots, Miami was a season-high No. 4 and Ohio State moved up two spots to No. 5. Indiana, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, and BYU completed the top 10.

    The Longhorns received 62 first-place votes from the media voting panel, four more than last week, after they held off Tennessee 20-17 in their first road game.

    Georgia, coming off a convincing win over Oklahoma and outscoring opponents by an average of 41.5 points per game, got six first-place votes, double its number last week. Miami and Indiana each received one first-place vote.

    No. 13 Penn State fumbles a 10-point second-half lead to lose to Wisconsin in Big Ten opener

    Mississippi State moved up eight spots to No. 16, its highest ranking in four years, for beating Missouri at home. Oregon was up five spots to No. 15 after winning on the road against Southern California. Houston also moved up five spots to No. 20 after winning at Georgia Southern.

    Iowa earned its highest ranking since 2021, at No. 14, for knocking off Michigan on the road on the final play of the game.

    Seven ranked teams lost in Week 4 and four dropped out of the poll. Penn State took the biggest fall, going from No. 13 to unranked after losing to Wisconsin at home.

    In and out

    No. 19 Oklahoma State, which won at West Virginia for its third straight victory after losing 21 straight against Bowl Subdivision opponents, is ranked for the first time in two years.

    No. 22 Boise State of the Pac-12 is the first Group of Six team to crack the Top 25 this season. The Broncos’ 25-point win at Western Michigan was their third straight win after a narrow loss at Oregon. They hadn’t been ranked since the 2025 preseason poll.

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    No. 23 UCLA is 4-0 for the first time in four years after a 51-point road win over Maryland and is ranked for the first time in three years.

    No. 24 Kentucky followed its win at Texas A&M with an easy victory at South Alabama to earn its first ranking since 2023.

    In addition to Penn State, Michigan, Louisville, and Texas A&M fell out of the Top 25.

    Full rankings

    1. Texas
    2. Georgia
    3. Notre Dame
    4. Miami
    5. Ohio State
    6. Indiana
    7. Alabama
    8. Florida
    9. Mississippi
    10. BYU
    11. LSU
    12. Texas
    13. Utah
    14. Iowa
    15. Oregon
    16. Mississippi State
    17. Tennessee
    18. USC
    19. Oklahoma State
    20. Houston
    21. SMU
    22. Boise State
    23. UCLA
    24. Kentucky
    25. Missouri
  • Cubs clinch second straight playoffs trip by beating Marlins as Crow-Armstrong joins 40-40 club

    Cubs clinch second straight playoffs trip by beating Marlins as Crow-Armstrong joins 40-40 club

    CHICAGO — Pete Crow-Armstrong joined the 40-40 club by stealing his 40th base to go along with his major league-leading 45 home runs, and the Chicago Cubs clinched their second straight postseason berth a 2-1 victory over the Miami Marlins on Thursday.

    Seiya Suzuki homered for the Cubs (88-71), who assured themselves of one of the NL’s three wild-card berths.

    Chicago also was a wild card last year, when the Cubs beat San Diego in the first round and lost to Milwaukee in a Division Series. The Cubs will be making consecutive postseason appearances for the first time since four straight from 2015-18, which in 2016 included their first championship since 1908.

    The Cubs clinched their berth shortly after the White Sox earned their postseason trip with a 9-1 win at Kansas City.

    Miami (78-81) was assured its third straight non-winning season.

    A favorite to win the NL MVP award, Crow-Armstrong became the seventh 40-40 player, joining a group that includes Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani and Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. Jose Canseco was the first with the 1988 Oakland Athletics.

    Crow-Armstrong hit his 45th homer during Sunday’s 9-1 win at Cincinnati, extending his career high. The 24-year-old drew a leadoff walk from former Phillie Tyler Phillips in the first inning and swiped second base on the next pitch to Suzuki for his 40th steal in 47 attempts. Fans chanted “MVP” as the Wrigley Field videoboard proclaimed the feat.

    Ohtani was the previous player with a 40-40 season, hitting 54 homers and stealing 59 bases for the 2024 Dodgers. Acuña hit 41 homers and swiped 73 bases for Atlanta in 2023. Alfonso Soriano (2006 with Washington), Alex Rodriguez (1998 with Seattle) and Barry Bonds (1996 with San Francisco) are the other 40-40 players.

    Matthew Boyd (10-5) allowed one run, five hits and two walks over seven innings, and Ryan Zeferjahn pitched a perfect ninth for his seventh save to finish a five-hitter.

    Ian Happ tripled off Jack Ralston (0-2) to start the sixth and came home three pitches later on Nico Hoerner’s single, breaking a 1-1 tie.

    Miami’s Jakob Marsee had an RBI single in the third and Suzuki hit his 26th homer in the fifth, a drive off Jack Ralston.

  • Mets hire interim manager Andy Green for full-time job, giving him three-year contract

    Mets hire interim manager Andy Green for full-time job, giving him three-year contract

    NEW YORK — In a change of course, the New York Mets hired interim manager Andy Green for the full-time job on Tuesday, giving him a three-year contract.

    The team made the announcement before opening a three-game series in Texas against the Rangers.

    Green had been running New York’s farm system before taking over as interim manager when Carlos Mendoza was fired in late June. At the time, Green said he wasn’t particularly interested in managing beyond this year, and Mets president of baseball operations David Stears said Green would return to a front-office role after the season — a stance Stearns stuck to in the months that followed.

    The last-place Mets have played better baseball under Green, however, going 37-38 since he took over, and the club chose not to conduct a search for a new manager this offseason.

    Green also managed the San Diego Padres from 2016-19.

  • Source: Bears QB Tyson Bagent placed in the NFL concussion protocol

    Source: Bears QB Tyson Bagent placed in the NFL concussion protocol

    CHICAGO — Chicago Bears quarterback Tyson Bagent has been placed in the NFL concussion protocol, according to a person familiar with the situation, adding another wrinkle to the team’s plans for Monday night’s game against the Eagles.

    The person confirmed Bagent’s status to The Associated Press on Tuesday on condition of anonymity because the Bears hadn’t released their first injury report of the week.

    Bagent was expected to take most of the first-team reps in practice after Caleb Williams left Sunday’s 9-3 loss to Minnesota with a right hamstring injury. Coach Ben Johnson said Williams is “week to week,” and he left open the possibility that the No. 1 pick in the 2024 draft could play against the Eagles.

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    If Williams and Bagent are unable to play Monday night, the Bears likely would turn to Case Keenum. The 38-year-old Keenum has 66 career starts, but he hasn’t thrown a pass in a regular-season game since Dec. 24, 2023, for Houston against Cleveland.

    Bagent was 5 for 9 for 54 yards against the Vikings. He was sacked by Dallas Turner on the final play of the game.

    Bagent, 26, had a record-setting career at Division II Shepherd University before signing with the Bears in May 2023 as an undrafted free agent.

    He made four starts while appearing in five games as rookie, passing for 859 yards and three touchdowns with six interceptions. He signed a two-year contract extension in August 2025.

  • Jaxson Dart injures his knee as several Giants stars get banged up in loss to Rams

    Jaxson Dart injures his knee as several Giants stars get banged up in loss to Rams

    INGLEWOOD, Calif. — If there were a list of most important New York Giants, seemingly all those key players got hurt at some point during a 28-6 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Monday night, starting with quarterback Jaxson Dart injuring his left knee during his team’s first series.

    Coach John Harbaugh would not confirm reports that Dart sprained his MCL, choosing to wait for further testing.

    “That’s in the neighborhood of it, I would say,” Harbaugh said. “We’ll get an MRI (on Tuesday) and have a real good feel for it, and give you more information from there.”

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    The Giants also saw top pass rusher Brian Burns sprain his left ankle and left tackle Andrew Thomas sustain an apparent lower-body injury in the fourth quarter. Wide receiver Malik Nabers had to pop his right shoulder back into place after dislocating it on the second-to-last play of the first quarter.

    “But that’s just part of football,” Burns said. “Guys go down every day, and it’s always next guy up. That’s why you try to develop a culture where you don’t slack off in production with the guys that’s behind.”

    Even with that mentality, the Giants were never able to get back on track after Dart was hurt less than four minutes into the game while being pressured on third and 8. Rams linebacker Byron Young hit Dart from the quarterback’s right side, sending him into linebacker Josaiah Stewart, who undercut Dart’s legs, resulting in a hard fall. Dart was eventually able to walk gingerly to the sideline under his own power, and he went into the medical tent for further evaluation before walking to the locker room.

    Gameday Central: Is it time for the Eagles to start Willie Lampkin?
    Video: Gameday Central: Is it time for the Eagles to start Willie Lampkin?

    Jameis Winston replaced Dart on the ensuing Giants drive.

    Dart, who was 3-of-5 passing for 20 yards, spent the second half on the sideline in street clothes.

    “Any time your quarterback goes down, obviously that’s a gut punch to the team, right?” said Winston, who was 11 of 27 for 111 yards with one interception.

    The body blows kept on coming.

    Nabers was injured jockeying with Rams cornerback Trent McDuffie when he was targeted on a first-down pass. Nabers immediately grabbed his right shoulder and ran to the sideline, where he was clearly in pain. He was able to return on the next series, finishing with one reception for 1 yard on four targets, while clearly laboring at times.

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    “Nah, I ain’t gonna make no excuse for anything that happened in the game,” said Nabers, who indicated he would undergo X-rays on Tuesday. “Yeah, I’m battling through injuries, but it doesn’t make a difference on how the performance was.”

    Burns got stepped on by Rams center Coleman Shelton but shook off a cart ride back to the locker room when the game ended. He would not speculate on his chances of playing against the Tennessee Titans on Sunday.

    “I’ve dealt with this,” Burns said. “It just depends on how fast you can get the swelling and inflammation out. So I’m just going to do everything possible to get it as tamed as I can.”

    The Giants had to navigate the absences of many of these same players last season. Dart sustained a concussion in Week 10 against the Bears during his rookie campaign, and Nabers missed most of the year with a torn ACL in his right knee.

    But the enthusiasm of Harbaugh’s victorious debut against the Cowboys now gives way to the likelihood Winston will be running New York’s offense for the near future. An 11-year veteran who was drafted first overall in 2015, Winston started two games and appeared in three for the Giants in 2025, throwing for 567 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.

    Harbaugh said the Giants can’t get discouraged by their change in fortune.

    “All around the league, everybody deals with it,” he said. “This is football. This is the NFL. This is what you do. So our task is not to lament it.”