COHEN'S CORNER SPORTS

 SEAHAWKS 27 - GIANTS 13 After winning four straight games, the Giants had no answer for Geno Smith and the Seattle Seahawks, who pulled away late in the second half in a 27-13 victory. While the Giants never led in the game, they did find themselves in a 13-13 tie as late as the early stages of the fourth quarter when Graham Gano connected on a 45-yard field goal. Unfortunately for the Giants they just couldn't get their offense moving all afternoon. While he didn't force any turnovers, Daniel Jones was constantly under siege, sacked five times, and threw for only 176 yards. The Seahawks did a tremendous job keeping Jones in the pocket, as he ran for only 20 yards on six carries. Saquon Barkley was also bottled up, held to 53-yards on 20 carries.  In the fourth quarter, Geno Smith turned things onto another gear, and showed the Giants why this was not the same guy who was Eli Manning's understudy, and not even remotely close to being the same guy who was drafted by the Jet...

 PATRIOTS 22 - JETS 17 With 37 seconds to go before halftime, leading 10-3, it appeared — for a beat — that this was definitely going to be the Jets moment. Patriots quarterback Mac Jones dropped back, felt the rush, hurried his throw and was picked off by Michael Carter II, who went coast to coast for an 84-yard touchdown to give Jets a 16-3 lead. Until he didn’t. Flags were thrown, and Jets defensive end John Franklin Meyers was called for roughing the passer when he body slammed Jones after he threw the ball. The call was easy. The touchdown was wiped out, and the Patriots would eventually kick a field goal. Instead of the Jets running into the break up 17-3, they led only 10-6. That was the turning point, and the Jets never recovered. Then the game turned into a sloppy performance by quarterback Zach Wilson, who tossed three interceptions in the second half. All the turnovers came when Wilson was trying to roll out of the pocket and throw off his back foot. When W...

  According to a story from the AP, Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner plans on keeping Aaron Boone as manager for the 2023 season.    “As far as Boone’s concerned, we just signed him and for all the same reasons I listed a year ago, I believe he is a very good manager,” Steinbrenner said Wednesday as he left the Yankees player development complex. “I don’t see a change there. “We didn’t get the job done … it’s time to get it done,” Steinbrenner said. “Any time we don’t win a championship, it’s a disappointing year. We had a lot of good ups, we had some downs, we had some injuries like everybody else.” When pressed about the contract of General Manager Brian Cashman, Steinbrenner said “preliminary” conversations have taken place. Cashman’s contract is up at the end of the World Series.  See full story on Fox Sports New Jersey.  

  It was another standout week for the local NFL football teams as New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week, and New York Jets rookie cornerback Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week. This is what happens when to two teams in the midst of four game winning streaks. The awards come fast and furious. See my full story on FOX SPORTS NEW JERSEY For Jones, it is the third time in his career he has received the honor. Last week against Jacksonville, Jones completed 19-of-30 passes for 202 yards and a touchdown. He also ran for 107 yards and the game winning score. It is the first time in franchise history the Giants have had a player throw for over 200 yards and run for over 100 yards in the same game.  Jones is the third Giant to receive NFL honors. Saquon Barkley, the NFL’s leading rusher, received offensive player of the week after his outstanding Week 1 effort against Tennessee. Kicker Graham Gano w...

 It all now comes down to this.  After years of hearing about how they were cheated by the Houston Astros sign stealing scandal in 2017, and years of waiting for the once "Baby Bombers" to get over that Houston speed bump en route to World Series glory, the Yankees find themselves here.  They find themselves in a 3-0 series hole, starring at both a sweep at the hands of their tormentors, the Astros, and with an uncertain future starring them right back in the face.  So much went wrong in Game 3. The Yankees lost 5-0. Their offense was once again inept against Houston. The Yankees managed only three hits, two of those hits came in the ninth inning when the Yankees tried to stage a late rally. Not happening.  How inept are the Yankee offensively in this series? They are hitting .128 with 41 strikeouts. 41 strikeouts!!  Talk about a team that is home run or nothing. That is exactly what the Yankees have been throughout this season, and in the most important ga...

 YANKEES  5 - GUARDIANS 1 -- NYY win series 3-2 After much consternation and hand-wringing. After it looked like Aaron Boone had tossed the series away in Game 3 of this American League Division Series when he didn't pitch Clay Holmes with the Yankees up 5-3.  After fans had to wait nearly three whole hours on Monday night before word came down that Game 5 would be postponed, the Yankees are moving on.  And for Yankees fans it feels oh so good.  The Yankees took care of business without much drama, winning Game 5 by the score of 5-1 over the Cleveland Guardians. Now the Houston Astros await on Wednesday night down in Texas for the start of the American League Championship Series.  There was little doubt in this one. Right from the onset the Yankees put this one out of reach when Giancarlo Stanton cracked a three-run homer to put the Yankees up 3-0 in the bottom of the first. Cleveland's decision to start Aaron Civale after 13 days without pitching in a game...

 JETS 27 - PACKERS 10  The New York Jets have been one of the NFL's most ridiculed teams for well over a decade.  From Buttfumbles to Adam Gase's googly eyes, nobody has taken the Jets seriously in some time. That is all changing, and Head Coach Robert Saleh is taking receipts.  When Saleh said following New York's 24-9 opening day loss to Baltimore that he would take stock of all those who knock his football team, many scoffed. They aren't anymore.  The Jets thoroughly beat up the Green Bay Packers and their Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers to the tune of 27-10.  The Jets snapped Green Bay's 15-game home winning streak; snapped Green Bay's 9-0 record following a loss, and got its first win against Rodgers since he took over the reins from Brett Favre.  At 4-2 the Jets are most definitely for real.  While the stats say that Rodgers threw for 241 yards, he never got comfortable in the pocket. He was sacked four times, fumbled twice -- lost on...

 GIANTS 24 - RAVENS 20  Sometimes you need a little help on the road to a 5-1 start to a season.  The Giants got that and more courtesy of the Baltimore Ravens who totally collapsed in the fourth quarter, blowing a 20-10 lead as Big Blue came all the way back to win it 24-20. New York is now 5-1, its best start since 2009.   The Giants rally started in earnest in the fourth quarter with quarterback Daniel Jones shaking off three quarters of shaky play to lead Big Blue on a 12-play, 75-yard drive that ate up nearly seven minutes. Jones two biggest pass completions of 18-yards to Marcus Johnson and 17-yards to rookie Wan'Dale Robinson proved to be a huge difference in this drive.  Before the Ravens knew what hit em, Jones had Big Blue in the end zone on an touchdown pass to Daniel Bellinger to slice the Raven lead to three points.  On the Ravens ensuing possession, everything came apart for Baltimore. On third and five from their own 40, Jackson fumbled the f...

GUARDIANS 6 – YANKEES 5 CLE Leads Series 2-1 Questions abound about the Yankees bullpen and decision making after the Cleveland Guardians rallied from down 5-3 to plate three runs in a stunning bottom of the ninth to swipe Game 3 of this Best-of-Five ALDS. The Guardians now lead the series 2-1 and can send the Yankees home early with a win Sunday night in Progressive Field. Already beleaguered by injuries in the pen, Yankees skipper Aaron Boone decided not to bring in Clay Holmes for the ninth inning, instead opting to stay with Wandy Peralta, who had pitched 1-1/3 innings already, and watched those plans blow in stunning fashion. The Guardians used the kind of small ball technique that led them to a surprising AL Central title and a Wild Card series win versus Tampa Bay. First Myles Straw and Steven Kwan both singled with one out. With the Cleveland faithful starting to rock, Boone removed a tiring Peralta for Clark Schmidt, not Holmes. Amed Rosario then slapped a soft...

 GUARDIANS 4 - YANKEES 2  And just like that we got a brand new series. Behind a two-run tenth inning rally, the Cleveland Guardians stunned the Yankees and a sold out crowd at Yankee Stadium to beat the Yanks 4-2, evening up this best-of-five series at one a piece.    The Guardians tied the game at two in the top of the fifth inning when former Met Amed Rosario cracked a solo homer to right-center of Game 2 starter Nestor Cortes, chasing him from the game after five innings. The contest would remain tied at two until the top of the tenth. Jose Ramirez led off the top of the tenth by blooping a hit to left in front of a diving Oswaldo Cabrera, who couldn’t make the catch. Josh Donaldson tried to back-up the play, but his throw into the infield went wide of first baseman Anthony Rizzo, allowing Ramirez to move to third. Oscar Gonzalez followed with a bloop single over the head of Rizzo, allowing Ramirez to score the go-ahead run. Finally, Josh Naylor li...

 JETS 40 - DOLPHINS 17  The New York Jets are on a roll. Behind a stellar ground game that produced 135 yards, and a even more stellar effort by rookie running back Breece Hall, the Jets closed the gap a bit in the AFC East with a thunderous 40-17 win over the Miami Dolphins.  It was New York's first win in the division since 2019, ending a 12-game AFC East losing streak.  The victory also marked the first time in 63 games that the Jets scored 40 or more points in a football game.  All of this was the result of the Jets young players, once again, contributing in big ways against a division opponent.  Last week Zach Wilson was the hero for New York. This week it was Breece Hall. The rookie out of Iowa State rushed for 97 yards on 18 carries, and caught two passes for 100 yards. Michael Carter also got into the action scoring two of the Jets five rushing touchdowns on the afternoon.  For a team that had been so maligned regarding the offensive line, a he...

 William Shakespeare once wrote to open his venerable play Hamlet , "There is more to Heaven and Earth, than are dreamt in your philosophy...".   It turns out England's most famous playwright was right; and it was fitting that in London, England, the New York Giants did the unthinkable: beat Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers 27-22 to improve to 4-1.  No! No possible. It happened.  Daniel Jones was near perfect, completing 21-of-27 passes for 217 yards and engineered a 17-point swing as the Giants erased a 17-3 deficit and turned it into a 27-20 lead in the fourth quarter. Blasphemy?  I think not.  If anyone had any doubts about the Giants, there should be little now. They are good, and they are for real. And in the NFC East that many thought would be a two-team race between the Eagles and Cowboys, well here come the G-Men.   Give credit to Brian Daboll and his coaching staff. When the Giants fell behind 17-3 midway through the second qu...

 METS 7 - PADRES 3  The Mets will live on to see another day of baseball. Behind six solid innings from ace Jacob deGrom, and an offense that finally woke up from its catatonic state, the Met held off the San Diego Padres 7-3, Saturday night in Game 2 of the NL Wild Card series. deGrom and the Mets set the tone early. The two-time Cy Young Award winner was hitting 103 mph on the radar gun in the top of the first inning as he overpowered Jurickson Profar, Juan Soto and Manny Machado in the top of the first inning. Francisco Lindor later gave the Mets a 1-0 lead in the bottom half of the inning. Later on it was Pete Alonso who put the Mets back in front with a solo home run in the bottom of the fifth as a quick and necessary response to San Diego tying the game at two. The Mets would never trail again. The bottom of the seventh inning was highlighted by San Diego reliever Adrian Morejon’s inability to get throw strikes, and the Mets increasing patience at the plate ...

 PADRES 7 - METS 1 So this is what it comes down to? After 101 wins, a season full of so much promise, so many memories and good feelings, it could all be over come Saturday night.  The New York Mets not only lost Game 1 of their NL Wild Card series to the San Diego Padres, they were annihilated.  Max Scherzer, the Mets $43 million man at the age of 38, suffered his worst start -- not only of this season -- but of his entire career in the postseason.  The former three-time Cy Young Award winner got shellacked for four home runs, seven earned runs, and was out of the ball game before the fifth inning concluded.  Not since 2011, when he gave up nine runs over two starts with the Detroit Tigers in that year's ALCS has Scherzer been this bad in a postseason game.  You can talk about oblique's all you want, and certainly Scherzer hasn't been himself for well over a month, but in his last two outings, when the Mets needed him the most -- he wasn't there to answer...

 JETS 24 - STEELERS 20  It was not pretty. In fact, at times, it was downright ugly. But somehow, the New York Jets found a way to get a victory on the road in Pittsburgh.  They withstood their own mistakes; withstood their deficiencies on the offensive line; withstood a wild effort by Zach Wilson in the first three quarters of the game, and withstood the momentum Heinz Field was feeling with rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett came into the ball game.  They withstood it all, and inked out a win.  Wilson, when it mattered the most was Wilson delivered. 10-of-12 for 128 yards and a touchdown in the fourth quarter, including orchestrating the game winning score in the final minute.  It wasn't always pretty for Wilson. For much of the afternoon he was running for his life thanks to the Jets leaky secondary, and at times would hurry his throws. Two of those hurried throws resulted in interceptions that bounced off the hands of his intended receivers.  And bot...

 GIANTS 20 - BEARS 12  The New York Giants not only threw it back to the 80's and 90's with their uniforms on Sunday afternoon, they played the kind of gritty defensive football we used to see from those teams during that era.  The Giants muscled their way to a 20-12 victory with Saquon Barkley and Daniel Jones using their legs to muscle their way to a victory over the lowly Chicago Bears.  Barkley had 146-yards on 31 carries, while Jones carried the rock six times for 68 yards and two long touchdowns.  Jones' first score came on a fake handoff to Barkley, before spinning to his left and running down the sideline for the score to put the Giants ahead 7-3.  In the second quarter, Barkley got into the action when took a screen pass from Jones, worked out of a gangtackle at the 41-yard, and raced down field for a 26-yard gain to the Bears 11 yard line. Two plays later, Jones again scored on a naked bootleg to put Big Blue up 14-6.  Still the game wasn't w...