Kirk Cousins, Falcons shock Eagles; UEFA Champions League begins on Paramount+

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🏈 Good morning to all, however particularly to …

KIRK COUSINS AND THE ATLANTA FALCONS

With 106 seconds left, issues appeared dire for the Falcons.

With 27 seconds left, they had been in victory formation, with a stunning and doubtlessly season-saving win within the bag.

Kirk Cousins directed a six-play, 70-yard drive to steer the Falcons to a shocking 22-21 road win over the Eagles. How did the turnaround happen?

• With 1:46 left and main 18-15, the Eagles confronted third and three. The Falcons had no timeouts. A primary down meant sport over. Jalen Hurts rolled out and threw to a wide-open Saquon Barkley … who dropped it. Philadelphia settled for a discipline objective.
• Then got here Cousins, who accomplished 5 of six passes for all 70 yards on the game-winning drive. Two passes and 47 yards went to Darnell Mooney, who additionally scored a landing earlier within the evening. The sport-tying landing go went to Drake London, who burnt Darius Slay.
• Younghoe Koo deserves credit score, too, for the game-winning 48-yard additional level, lengthened after London’s unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.
• Jessie Bates III intercepted Hurts to clinch the win.

Cousins, who admitted he isn’t 100% coming off an Achilles tear, was a lot, a lot better in comparison with his Week 1 stinker. He was underneath heart — the place he thrives — on 60% of his snaps, in comparison with 4% every week earlier. Over 1 / 4 of his throws got here off play motion — additionally the place he thrives — after none of them did in Week 1.

Oh yeah, and the “Cousins is not clutch” narrative took one other hit: His 9 game-winning drives since 2022 are tied for many of any quarterback.

Atlanta was staring down the barrel of an unsavory 0-2 begin and main questions after an enormous offseason. Cousins stepped up when his staff wanted him most, which is precisely why Atlanta acquired him.

👍 Honorable mentions

🤕 And never such morning for …

THE PHILADELPHIA EAGLES

We’ll be fast right here: Barkley had the win in his arms. Catch a ball he is caught hundreds of occasions, flip upfield, fall down and win.

I do not blame Barkley an excessive amount of. He had 116 whole yards. I do not blame the play name. It was proper there. Was it a hair aggressive? Positive. May the Eagles have performed it less complicated and tried to get the primary down on the bottom? Positive. However hindsight is 20/20. Even Barkley thought it was name.

With A.J. Brown out, the Eagles leaned on Hurts’ legs, DeVonta Smith‘s catching and Barkley’s all-around abilities. Sadly for them, that third half got here up one play quick. Then the protection melted down.

Garrett Podell broke down the anatomy of the loss.

👎 Not so honorable mentions

🏈 NFL accidents piling up

There are accidents everywhere in the NFL, however we’ve to begin with the Rams, who’re coming off a 41-10 loss to the Cardinals and will likely be with out Cooper Kupp (ankle) for “extended time,” based on Sean McVay. Right here different notable injured Rams:

• WR Puka Nacua (knee, IR)
• TE Tyler Higbee (knee, PUP)
• G Jonah Jackson (shoulder, IR candidate)
• G Steve Avila (knee)
• T Joe Noteboom (ankle, IR)
• CB Darious Williams (hamstring, IR)
• CB Derion Kendrick (knee, IR)
• S John Johnson III (shoulder)

One season after the Rams had been the least-injured staff within the league, the pendulum has swung within the different route, and the prospect of Matthew Stafford surrounded by this group is a scary one.

The Rams face the 49ers in Week 3, and San Francisco is not precisely an image of well being, both. Already with out Christian McCaffrey, they’re going to be with out Deebo Samuel (calf strain) for several weeks. This matchup is changing into a warfare of attrition.

Elsewhere …

🏈 Bryce Younger benched: Panthers flip to Andy Dalton amid dismal begin

The Panthers are beginning over once more, simply months after they began over … once more. Carolina benched Bryce Younger for Andy Dalton at quarterback.

That is devastating. Flat-out.

A yr and a half in the past, Carolina despatched DJ Moore, two first-round picks (Darnell Wright and Caleb Williams) and two second-round picks (Tyrique Stevenson and one other subsequent yr) to maneuver as much as No. 1 and choose Younger, the Heisman-winning Alabama product. It looks like one of the worst trades ever, and Younger appears like one of the biggest busts ever.

It may be arduous to recollect, however Younger was as soon as the preternaturally calm, sensible, correct chief alleged to convey stability to a franchise that badly wanted it. As a substitute, he was thrown to the wolves as a rookie, surrounded by a discombobulated teaching workers and an terrible roster. That was the primary restart. Restart No. 2 got here this offseason, when Carolina employed Dave Canales and added to its offensive line and receiving corps.

Although points stay round him, Younger appeared terrible: inaccurate, turnover-prone and primarily as unhealthy as he was final yr, which should not have been doable. His bodily limitations (dimension, arm energy) make him look, frankly, overwhelmed. The Panthers are 0-2 and have been outscored by 60 factors.

So the Bryce Younger period seems over after 18 begins. Will Brinson sums up the swap to Dalton nicely: It makes some sense, but it doesn’t really matter. The Panthers are hopeless. They misplaced their finest participant, Derrick Brown, for the season in Week 1. They’ve alarmingly little expertise on either side, partially a product of the Younger commerce. They’re an NFL-worst 31-70 since 2018, when David Tepper grew to become the proprietor.

The extra issues — quarterbacks, coaches, gamers — change, the extra they keep the identical.

🏈 Texas tops CBS Sports activities 134; Billy Napier period nearing finish at Florida?

Identical to within the newest AP Top 25, Texas jumped Georgia for No. 1 within the CBS Sports 134, and the SEC now has 4 of the highest six in our ranking of every single team:

1. Texas (earlier: 2)
2. Georgia (1)
3. Ohio State (3)
4. Alabama (4)
5. Tennessee (7)
6. Ole Miss (5)

Nevertheless, the opposite prime tremendous convention — the Large Ten — has the biggest riser of the week, notes Chip Patterson.

• Patterson: “No. 37 Indiana (+26): Curt Cignetti‘s group wanted an influence convention win to solidify the outcomes that to this point had pointed to a powerful begin to his first yr with Indiana. The Hoosiers have truly moved up 36 spots within the final two weeks, however a majority of that got here after a 42-13 win on the highway at UCLA.”

Washington State, in the meantime, jumped 24 spots from 57th to thirty third after beating Washington within the Apple Cup. That cemented an excellent week for the Cougars, who additionally beat Texas Tech in Week 2 and spearheaded the Pac-12’s comeback of including Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State and San Diego State. Dennis Dodd has extra on what’s next for the conference.

After all, not every thing is sunshine and rainbows, particularly within the Sunshine State. Each Florida State and Florida make John Talty’s five most disappointing teams through three weeks, and Richard Johnson has extra on Billy Napier‘s Gators in “The Monday Read.”

• Johnson: “It actually is not Napier’s job to high quality management each little factor in-game like substitutions, however it’s on the individuals he employed and empowers, which factors to an absence of group … Excuses had been made in 2023 about being one of many youngest groups within the nation and time wanted to develop right into a championship program, however Florida continues into this season with procedural points nonetheless underneath the hood.”

Here is extra:

⚽ New-look UEFA Champions League returns; knowledgeable picks for Matchday 1

The UEFA Champions League is back and (in my view) higher than ever due to a new format. We’ve got a full explanation here, however shortly …

• 36-team “league” ranked by a single desk
• Eight video games performed — in opposition to two groups from 4 completely different pots
• High eight groups advance to the common UCL spherical of 16.
• Groups 9-24 go right into a two-legged playoff to achieve the spherical of 16.

OK, now that that is out of the way in which, here are the games for Matchday 1, and the undoubted Sport of the Day in the present day is AC Milan vs. Liverpool (preview here). Our specialists have made their picks for that game and every game of Matchday 1, and James Benge anticipates an enormous sport for Christian Pulisic.

Keep in mind, you possibly can watch every game on Paramount+.

Here is extra:

📺 What we’re watching Tuesday

⚽ We’re watching the UEFA Champions League on Paramount+ and CBS. Here’s how.
🏀 Liberty at Mystics, 7 p.m. on NBA TV
⚾ Phillies at Brewers, 7:40 p.m. on TBS
⚾ Astros at Padres, 9:40 p.m. on truTV
🏀 Aces at Storm, 10 p.m. on NBA TV
🏀 Mercury at Sparks, 10:30 p.m. on CBS Sports activities Community