ACL tear to shelve Redskins rookie RB Guice for season
Redskins rookie running back Derrius Guice is out for the season after tearing the ACL in his left knee, a significant blow to the ground game. Guice was injured in Washington’s preseason opener at New England on Thursday night and could be seen on the sideline with ice on his knee. The team announced the prognosis Friday following an MRI, saying Guice should make a full recovery and be ready to play in 2019.
Guice was expected to be the Redskins’ starter after they selected him 59th overall in the draft. The LSU product was considered a firstround prospect and fell amid reports of character concerns before being taken late in the second.
Washington averaged 90.5 yards rushing last season, fifth-worst in the NFL. Injuries to Week 1 starter Rob Kelley and prolific third-down back Chris Thompson contributed to that, and Guice was expected to be a major part of solving the problem.
In camp, Guice had been splitting first-team carries with Kelley and second-year back Samaje Perine.
Top draft picks: Baker Mayfield and Saquon Barkley lived up to early expectations as the top two picks in the draft in their first action as the Browns beat the Giants 20-10 on Thursday night.
Replacing starting quarterback Tyrod Taylor late in the first quarter, Mayfield hit 11 of 20 passes for 212 yards, two touchdowns, and converted two fourth-down plays with his feet. The Heisman Trophy winner who was the No. 1 overall pick found tight end David Njoku on a 10-yard TD pass to cap a 14-play, 72-yard drive on his second series. He finished his debut with a completion on a 54-yard slant and run to fellow rookie Antonio Callaway.
Taylor, expected to be coach Hue Jackson’s starter as Mayfield learns this season, hit all five of his passes in two series, including a 36-yard TD pass to Njoku.
Barkley, the No. 2 pick, electrified the fans at MetLife Stadium, taking a handoff from Eli Manning on the opening play from scrimmage and turning no apparent hole into a 39-yard run down the sideline in front of the Giants’ bench. The Penn State running back finished with 43 yards on five carries.
Colts: Andrew Luck could feel the pressure building as he prepared for his first game action with Indianapolis since the final week of the 2016 season.
When he let go of trying to contain his excitement, the pressure was released.
“I really enjoyed it. I didn’t quite know I’d have this much fun getting practice again. I didn’t know I’d have this much fun even playing football,” said Luck, who was back under center, leading Indianapolis on a pair of field-goal drives in just over a quarter in the Colts’ 19-17 victory over the Seahawks.
Anthem protests: Several players demonstrated during the national anthem at preseason games Thursday, drawing another rebuke from President Donald Trump. Writing on Twitter from his New Jersey golf resort, Trump said Friday players “make a fortune doing what they love,” and those who refuse to stand “proudly” for the anthem should be suspended without pay.
The land of Ernie Els, Retief Goosen, Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel could be delivering another winner of a major title.
With his second straight solid round at the PGA Championship on Friday, South Africa’s Brandon Stone is one good weekend away from breaking through at the same course where the godfather of golf in his country, Gary Player, completed the career grand slam a generation ago.
“There’s an abundance of fantastic not only golfers but sportsmen who hold themselves to a very high (standard),” said Stone, a former Texas Longhorn. “So all of those names are the benchmark of what you try to achieve as a South African sportsman.”
If carrying that weight feels like a burden, the 25-year-old Stone certainly didn’t show it over a steamy 4-hour, 38-minute round at Bellerive Country Club — the same place where Player won an 18-hole playoff over Kel Nagle to capture the U.S. Open in 1965.
Stone shot 2-under 68 to head into the weekend at 6 under. That put him four behind leader Gary Woodland and one shot behind Schwartzel, the 2011 Masters champion, who tied a PGA record with a 63. “There will be a lot of happy golf fans back home,” Stone said.
Starting on the back nine, Stone made back-to-back birdies on 16 and 17 to briefly pull into second place, one shot back of Woodland. He played his second nine at even par, and though there were lower scores to be had — Brooks Koepka joined Schwartzel in the “63 Club” on a soft, nearly windless morning at Bellerive — Stone likes where he stands.
“Guys who are in this position have been dreaming of being here since they were 5 or 6 years old,” he said. “I feel real comfortable in my game. I’m playing really nicely, the rhythm has been spectacular all week and 6 under par going into the weekend is right where I want to be.”
Stone’s switch back to a blade putter has sparked a surge that is keeping him in the headlines this summer.
Four weeks ago, he slid an 8-foot putt just outside the cup on the 18th hole in the final round of the Scottish Open to come an inch from shooting 59. The win there got him a spot in the British Open the next week, and he spent much of the first round near the top of that leaderboard.
At the PGA, it’s now two days near the top of the leaderboard, and he insists it is not all that uncomfortable a feeling. “I’m playing really nicely. The rhythm has been spectacular all week,” he said.
Stone spent 2013 at Texas, where he was named NCAA Freshman of the Year, but then left to turn pro.
“Beautiful golf swing,” said Jordan Spieth, who briefly overlapped with Stone at UT. “He would hit driver just about everywhere.”
Stone said using his driver a lot is part of his game plan at Bellerive, and it’s helping him. Over two days, he’s averaging 303 yards off the tee — fifth-best in the field.
Not surprisingly, Stone’s phone has been blowing up. He’s receiving texts from a who’s who of South African sports figures — mostly rugby and cricket players, including one of the country’s best cricketers, AB de Villiers.
“He said he’s going to be glued to his TV screen all weekend, and to get it done,” Stone said. “Just said, ‘Go out, enjoy the moment, and see what you can get done on Sunday.’”
Before that, Stone had to navigate his way through Friday night and Saturday morning — he knew it would be a long wait until his next tee time. His plan was to get into some air conditioning, possibly by going see “Jurassic World,” which won’t show up in South African theaters for a few more weeks yet.
“The biggest thing is not getting too caught up in the social media aspect of everything, the messages from back home and watching the leaderboard too often,” he said. “I just want to go and pass the time without getting too much energy spent.”