Browns running back Chubb out for season
Cleveland Browns star running back Nick Chubb will undergo surgery on his left knee after suffering a gruesome season-ending injury in Monday night's loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
A four-time Pro Bowler in six seasons, Chubb got hurt when Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick tackled him low on a carry in the second quarter. The impact buckled the same knee Chubb injured in 2015 at Georgia and had reconstructed.
Coach Kevin Stefanski confirmed Tuesday that Chubb's season is over. He did not provide any specifics on the severity of the injury or when he'll have the operation.
“Very disappointed for Nick,” Stefanski said on a Zoom call. “He means a lot to this team, means a lot to this organization so he will be missed. But he will bounce back. I have no doubt.”
The 27-year-old Chubb was taken off on a cart and transported to a Pittsburgh hospital for precaution. He was released and returned to Cleveland to undergo an MRI.
The Browns (1-1) now need to regroup and proceed without one of their best players. Quiet and unassuming, Chubb is perhaps the most respected player on Cleveland's roster. He sets the tone with his work ethic and business-like demeanor.
After Chubb went down, quarterback Deshaun Watson and Cleveland's offense struggled for extended stretches in the 26-22 loss, the Browns' 20th consecutive regular-season defeat in Pittsburgh.
• Carolina Panthers linebacker Shaq Thompson has a broken right leg and is expected to miss the remainder of the season, according to coach Frank Reich.
Thompson underwent surgery on Tuesday to fix a fractured fibula he sustained in the first quarter of Carolina's 20-17 loss to the New Orleans Saints on Monday night. He has been placed on injured reserve.
Reich said it's hard to put into words how much Thompson brings to the team, calling him a team player and “a warrior, a guy who knows how to practice.” Thompson has four 100-tackle seasons in nine years with the Panthers and is considered the team's emotional leader on defense.
Reich would not say who'll replace Thompson in the starting lineup for Sunday's game at Seattle.
The news is a blow for the Panthers' defense, which lost starting cornerback Jaycee Horn to a hamstring injury last week. Horn is expected to miss at least six weeks.
“These injuries hurt, but the train has got to keep going,” Reich said. “You can love your brother and feel bad for your brother, but at the same time understand we got to have the nextman-up mentality.”
• Three-time All-Pros Julius Peppers and Antonio Gates headline the list of nine first-year eligible players picked among the 273 nominees for the 2024 class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
The other first-year eligibles are receivers Brandon Marshall and Jordy Nelson; running back Jamaal Charles; offensive linemen T.J. Lang, Josh Sitton and Max Unger; and defensive tackle Haloti Ngata.
The nine new candidates combined for 42 Pro Bowl berths, 12 first-team All-Pro selections, with five of the nine winning Super Bowls and Peppers and Gates making all-decade teams. Peppers also won the Defensive Rookie of the Year award in 2002 and Nelson was picked as Comeback Player of the Year in 2016.
Peppers and Gates were both college basketball players before finding their greatest success in football.
Peppers was one of the league's most dominant linemen after being picked second overall by Carolina in 2002 following a twosport career in college at North Carolina.
He had 12 sacks as a rookie and never really slowed down in a 17-year career that included stops in Chicago and Green Bay before ending with the Panthers. He was an All-Pro in 2004, 2006 and 2010.
Peppers finished his career with 159 1/2 sacks — the fourth most since they became official in 1982 — and had 10 seasons with doubledigit sacks.
Gates only played basketball in college before turning into one of the NFL's top tight ends ever when he switched to football as a pro after going undrafted.
The Chargers took a chance on him and it paid off in a big way as he became an All-Pro in just his second season in 2004. He was All-Pro again the next two seasons and went on to have a 16-year career for the team.
Gates finished with 955 catches for 11,841 yards and an NFL record for tight ends 116 touchdown receptions. Only Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez and Jason Witten have more catches or yards as a tight end.
Turf Paradise in Arizona closing doors
Turf Paradise, a racetrack that has been a staple of horse racing in Arizona for decades, announced Monday it will cease live racing.
Jerry Simms, the longtime owner, announced he is retiring to spend more time with family.
There will be no live racing or simulcasting from the north Phoenix racetrack starting Oct. 1.
This also means the 37 Off Track Betting sites Turf Paradise runs, which make up more than half of OTB sites statewide, will close. OTB sites televise live races and simulcasts from other racetracks nationwide for wagering. They are inside bars and restaurants. But live racing is a requirement for operating off-track betting facilities.
Turf Paradise opened in January 1956. Simms has been at the helm since 2000.
Stewart's 27 lead Liberty past Mystics
Breanna Stewart scored 27 points and the New York Liberty beat the Washington Mystics 90-85 in overtime on Tuesday night to advance to the semifinals of the WNBA playoffs for the first time in eight years.
New York hadn't won a playoff series since 2015.
The Liberty will play either No. 3 Connecticut or sixth-seeded Minnesota. Those two teams will play the deciding game of their best-of-3 series tonight. The semifinals begin Sunday.
The Liberty had to work to advance after blowing an 11-point halftime lead.
Natasha Cloud scored a career-high 33 points to lead Washington.
• Arike Ogunbowale scored 20 points, Teaira McCowan had 12 points and 16 rebounds, and the Dallas Wings advanced to the semifinals of the WNBA playoffs after a 101-74 victory over the visiting Atlanta Dream.
The Wings won a playoff series for the first time since relocating to Dallas for the 2016 season. Dallas will play top-seeded Las Vegas on Sunday.
Dallas became the first team in WNBA history to have seven double-digit scorers in a playoff game. Satou Sabally and Awak Kuier each scored 13 points, Kalani Brown added 12, Crystal Dangerfield had 11 and Natasha Howard 10.
Rhyne Howard scored 21 points and Allisha Gray added 19 for Atlanta.
Tennessee extends Barnes' contract
Tennessee has extended coach Rick Barnes' contract through the 2027-28 season, which should help ensure he finishes his career with the Volunteers.
Athletic director Danny White on Tuesday announced the extension that adds a year onto Barnes' contract with no change in his supplemental pay of $5.75 million for each of the final two seasons.
Barnes, who turned 69 in July, is going into his ninth season at Tennessee and 37th as a head coach. He is 779-406 in his career and currently 15th of all time for most Division I wins.
Under Barnes, Tennessee has made five straight NCAA Tournaments, won at least 25 games four times and has been a top four seed in the NCAA Tournament four times. The Vols have appeared in The Associated Press Top 25 under Barnes 38 times, spending four weeks ranked No. 1.