A Small Biased Weekend Recap

First and foremost, I want to say may Corrie Sanders rest in peace. The former heavyweight champion was shot to death in South Africa during a robbery. Sander's finest hour in the Boxing ring came in 2003, when he upset and knocked out Wladimir Klitschko. Say "hello" to Bert Sugar and Joe Fraizer for us, Corrie.

Tragedy aside, what an eventful weekend of sports. The San Francisco Giants and the Cincinnati Reds clinched their respective divisions. The New Orleans Saints are now 0-3 in a season without head coach Sean Payton. Kansas City Chiefs' running back Jamaal Charles quieted the naysayers with a brilliant 233 rushing yards on 33 carries performance. The Baltimore Ravens rallied to beat the New England Patriots by a last minute field goal. I wonder if Billy Cundiff was watching the prime-time game?

Ravens' wide receiver Torrey Smith put on a performance of a lifetime on what was a painful night for him and his family. Early Sunday, morning Smith received a call letting him know his brother was killed in a motorcycle accident. Smith rushed to his family and let his team know he wanted to play tonight. It was a performance that brought back memories of the game Brett Favre played in after his father's death against the Oakland Raiders. Smith caught six passes for 127 yards and one touchdown. His 5-yard touchdown pulled the Ravens to within a score at 30-28 in the fourth quarter. After the game an emotional Smith was consoled by Ray Lewis on the field. A very heart warming image. 

Speaking of dramatic finishes, the Detroit Lions and the Tennessee Titans went into overtime. Titans' kicker Rob Bironas kicked a 26-yard field goal to give the Titans a 44-41 victory. Tennessee blew a 20-9 halftime lead and became the first NFL team to score five touchdowns of 60-yards or longer in a game. Shaun Hill filled in for Matt Stafford after Stafford left the game with a strained right leg muscle. Hill tied the game after a 46-yard "Hail-Mary" that was tipped from Titans' linebacker Akeem Ayers into the hands of Titus Young at the end of regulation. 

The Pittsburgh Steelers and Raiders game lacked the emotion of the prime-time game, but was a nail biter. Daaaaa Raaaaaidaz (you have to say that in a Chris Berman voice) upset the Troy Polomalu-less Steelers with a 34-31 victory. Oakland's WR Darrius Heyward-Bey was carted off the field after taking a hard shot to the head from Ryan Mundy. ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter reported that doctors do not believe Heyward-Bey suffered a concussion, rather a neck injury that will require further testing Monday. Let's hope Heyward-Bey's playing days are not over.

I wont even get into my damn Philadelphia Eagles' shellacking. The Cardinals improved to 3-0 after a 27-6 clipping of the Eagles.

Over on the MLB side of things, The Los Angeles Dodgers salvaged the series in Cincinnati with a 5-3 victory. Dodgers' ace Clayton Kershaw returned to the mound and was effective if not shaky in five innings of work. The southpaw gave up five hits, five walks, five strikeouts, all in five innings. What an odd night of work. Adrian Gonzalez' bat finally showed signs of life with a two home run night. The Dodgers' offense displayed it's depth in the seventh inning when they scored four runs, started by a lead-off home run from Gonzalez. Shortstop Hanley Ramirez fouled a pitch off his left leg in the inning, after shaking off the hit, Ramirez singled to left only to hobble down to first base. Dee Gordon pinch ran and replaced Ramirez. Gordon made a costly error in the eighth inning sailing a throw into the first row of stands on a routine grounder. The error led to a massive-shot off the bat of Dennis Phipps, making his second career start. 

With the win, the Dodgers keep pace in the NL Wild Card race, trailing the St. Louis Cardinals by three games with nine games left on their schedule. The Dodgers head to San Diego on Tuesday for three games against the Padres, they head home for the final home stand against the Colorado Rockies and Giants.