Dak has compound fracture

Class act by former coach Garrett

Good morning, everyone. Hope your weekend went well.

The weekend did not go well for Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, specifically with 6:33 remaining in the third quarter of Sunday’s game against his division rival the New York Giants. On a running play, while being tackled, Prescott suffered a severe ankle injury. By now, I am sure, many of you have watched the play, but I will put it at the end of the newsletter, if not. (Because this is an official NFL video, it cannot be played on this website, but the video will take you to the NFL’s You Tube channel.)

Prescott was carted off the field and taken to a hospital. ESPN has reported he suffered a right ankle compound fracture and dislocation. The injury set off quite the reaction. To begin with, Prescott’s former head coach, Jason Garrett, was one of the first on the scene, as medical staff tended to the injured QB; a classy move by the Giants new offensive coordinator. Throughout the stadium, people were stunned, many in tears. Players surrounded the cart and wished Prescott well, before the cart took off for the locker room. Others could be seen with heads bowed and saying prayers.

Prescott’s brother, Tad, tweeted a picture of the two in Dak’s hospital room.

The Cowboys rallied to beat the Giants, 37-34, on a last second 34-yard field goal by Greg Zuerlien. Some Giants fans were livid, taking to Twitter to claim a holding penalty was not called on the game-winning drive.

Meanwhile, Prescott is now left to wonder what might have been. Unable to get a new long-term contract from the Cowboys, the 27-year-old signal-caller “settled” for a $31.4M one-year deal, as a franchise player. He turned down a five-year pact valued at $34.5M per year, including $100M guaranteed. (Unlike baseball, NFL contracts are not guaranteed, unless it is specifically spelled out in the deal.)

So Cowboys’ fans must fret over what will happen the remainder of the year with back-up Andy Dalton as their quarterback. His comeback effort on Sunday is to be applauded. But let’s face it, he will be up against stiffer opposition than the pathetic Giants, who fell to 0-5.

NFL will not cancel season

The Boston media is in panic mode with a second-straight Patriots game being postponed because of Covid-19. Here is the sports page of the Boston Globe on Sunday night. Many in Boston want the season canceled. As I state in my latest podcast, the NFL will not be canceling the 2020 season.

Sabathia rips on Yankees

CC Sabathia was filled with second-guesses about his former club, after the Yankees were ousted by Tampa Bay in Game 5 of the ALDS. Sabathia let his opinions be known on his podcast R2C2, which he co-hosts with Ryan Ruocco. Sabathia, by the way, is listed as an adviser to Yankees GM Brian Cashman.

The former southpaw pitcher was not happy with the Yankees “opener” strategy in Game 2 of the series or with the pitch reliever Aroldis Chapman threw to Mark Brosseau, which the Rays hitter turned around for what proved to be the series-winning home run in Tampa Bay’s 2-1 win in Game 5.

“He (Brosseau) had him set-up for the strike out if he threw him the slider.” Sabathia said.

Brousseu hit a 100 MPH fastball.

Of course, last year, Chapman threw a slider to Jose Altuve, which he parked to give the Astros the ALCS over the Yankees. People were saying Chapman should have thrown Altuve a fastball instead of a slider. I guess you just cannot win. The Yankees can’t, that’s for sure.

Could the Red Sox going public ‘Beane’ Billy?

A story broke over the weekend that the Boston Red Sox could be going public. The ballclub’s parent owner, Fenway Sports Group, would take the Sox, the English soccer club it owns - Liverpool Football Club - and other holdings public, as a means of raising capital for other acquisitions. And the word is RedBall Acquisition Corp. wants in to the tune of $1 billion. FSG is reportedly worth $8 billion.

There is a fascinating side note to the story, however. What would happen to highly-touted Oakland Athletics general manager Billy Beane, who turned down the chance to run the Red Sox in 2012? Beane is a principal in RedBall and some are speculating he would have to make a choice. And that choice could come soon. Word is, a deal could be wrapped up by the end of this month, pending MLB approval.

Let’s just say that Beane has come a long way from the days, when he was playing left field for the Tidewater Tides, the then AAA affiliate of the New York Mets.

Well that’s it for this morning’s newsletter. We are off and running on a new week. As always, thanks for your support.

SPORTSCASTER DAN