NFL

• Patriots 27, Cardinals 13
  • The Patriots, despite having less than a spectacular amount of talent, especially on offense, are so tough to beat because they typically make less mistakes than their opposition. That held true last night. The edge rusher duo of Matthew Judon and Josh Uche is one of the league’s best, as both players have over 10.0 sacks in 2022. The Patriots needed this one, as New England’s schedule the rest of the way is fairly difficult.
  • The Cardinals, if they weren’t already before, are officially dead in the water. To make matters worse, Kyler Murray is probably gone at least for the rest of this season with a knee injury. After this campaign ends, it’s time for Michael Bidwill to clean house. Steve Keim, Kliff Kingsbury, and Vance Joseph all should receive their pink slips. This organization needs a reset, badly.

NCAAF

• Five-star EDGE Keon Keeley commits to Alabama
  • Alabama, at least on the field, may have shown some signs of slowing down in 2022, but that hasn’t translated to recruiting. Nick Saban’s 2023 class looks like one of his best yet, and Keeley’s a big reason for that.

NBA

• Pistons PG Cade Cunningham out for rest of season due to left shin injury
  • At 7-22, Detroit has the worst record in the association, so this injury doesn’t dash any championship hopes, but it may hamper the second year guard’s development. Cunningham, albeit in just 12 games, didn’t make a massive leap from his rookie year, but should still be viewed as a franchise cornerstone for the Pistons. In the end, one positive coming from this situation is that Detroit is now a virtual lock to possess the maximum number of ping pong balls for next May’s Draft Lottery.

MLB

• Athletics receive: Kyle Muller, Esteury Ruiz, Freddy Tarnok, Manny Pina, and one prospect
• Braves receive: Sean Murphy
• Brewers receive: William Contreras, Joel Payamps, and one prospect
  • Sean Murphy, due to his all-around proficiency, is one of baseball’s top catchers, so it’s a bit curious that Oakland failed to receive any significant pieces in return. Murphy’s market was hot, as well, which makes matters even worse.
    Athletics Grade: D+
  • Sure, the Braves surrendered a few material pieces, most notably William Contreras, but Murphy will help keep Atlanta a contender, and is controllable for several more seasons.
    Braves Grade: A-
  • The Brewers gave up a couple of youngsters in this deal, but did well in bringing in Contreras and Payamps.
    Brewers Grade: B+
• Blue Jays sign SP Chris Bassitt to three-year, $63M contract
  • I’m a fan of this deal. Bassitt may already be 33, but the starter has a sneakily strong track record of consistent success. Most notably, Bassitt’s last three campaigns have been particularly strong, having finished in the top-10 of Cy Young voting in both 2020 and 2021. Toronto now has an excellent rotation.
    Grade: A-
• Giants sign SP Sean Manaea to two-year, $25M contract
  • Manaea, over a full season with the Padres in 2022, wasn’t exactly good, posting an ERA of 4.96. It wasn’t fluky, either, as the 30-year-old’s FIP was 4.53 — the worst of his career. With this deal, though, San Francisco is banking on getting the 2021 version of Manaea, the one that went 11-10 with a 3.91 ERA. If that outcome occurs for the Giants, this deal should be a good one, but there’s risk involved.
    Grade: C+