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ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens had an early, emphatic answer for the first 0-2 start since before he was their franchise quarterback.

The two-time MVP added a couple of clutch plays late when the Ravens were at risk of letting a big fourth-quarter lead get away.

Derrick Henry ran for 151 yards and two touchdowns, Jackson accounted for two scores and the Ravens held on for a 28-25 victory over the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday.

The Ravens (1-2) scored touchdowns on their first two drives and led 28-6 before Dak Prescott and the Cowboys rallied big late with some help from a rare onside kick recovery.

Baltimore was a play away from having to give the ball back to the Cowboys (1-2) leading by just three when Jackson had a clutch completion to Zay Flowers.

Jackson put the game away with a nifty fake to start a 10-yard run as the Ravens finished with 274 yards rushing. It’s the most Dallas has allowed since twice giving up at least 294 with one of the worst defenses in franchise history in 2020.

The Ravens, coming off a trip to the AFC championship game in which they lost to Super Bowl champion Kansas City, were 0-2 for the first time since 2015, three years before they drafted Jackson. Only one team since 2000 has made the playoffs after starting 0-3.

“Every game is a big game for us because we’re trying to get somewhere,” Jackson said. “We’ve got to win these games to get to the playoffs, and we need to get to the Super Bowl. But it starts with the game that’s in front of us.”

The Cowboys have allowed 120 points in their past three home games, including a 48-32 wild-card loss to Green Bay in January that ended Dallas’ 16-game winning streak at AT&T Stadium.

Brandon Aubrey kicked a 65-yard field goal for the Cowboys, 1 yard shy of the NFL record from 2021 held by the kicker on the other sideline, Baltimore’s Justin Tucker.

Just as in last week’s 44-19 loss to New Orleans, the Cowboys needed more than field goals because of their porous defense.

The touchdowns eventually came for Dallas. They were just a little late.

Prescott scored on a 1-yard quarterback sneak midway through the fourth, C.J. Griffin recovered the onside kick and Jalen Tolbert had a 15-yard TD catch to make it 28-18 before the Cowboys missed on a second consecutive 2-point conversion try.

Flowers recovered Dallas’ second onside kick after whiffing on the first, but the Ravens went three-and-out.

The Cowboys kicked deep after KaVontae Turpin’s 16-yard scoring catch cut the deficit to three before Jackson’s 9-yard completion to Flowers on third-and-6, then the keeper that finished off the final 2:53.

“Lamar was just phenomenal,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. “Didn’t really want to get to that situation, but we did, and we came through.”

Dallas lost consecutive home games in the same regular season for the first time since 2020, after Prescott’s gruesome, season-ending ankle injury in Week 5 of a 6-10 season.

“Make sure guys don’t dwell,” Prescott said after emerging from quiet, frustrated locker room. “They can feel bad tonight, but come the morning, it’s over with. If you’re dwelling on that, you’re not going to prepare the right away. You’re still going to be looking back at things you could have done, should have done.”

Nelson Agholor had a 56-yard catch-and-run to set up Henry’s first touchdown, a 1-yard plunge for a 14-3 lead.

The Ravens opened with a five-play, 71-yard drive capped by Jackson’s 9-yard run, untouched, to the pylon. His first throw of the game was a 30-yarder to uncovered tight end Charlie Kolar.

Henry, who averaged 6 yards on 25 carries, became the first Baltimore back to score at least one touchdown in each of his first three games for the franchise. He added a 23-yard catch.

A two-time rushing champion in his eight seasons with Tennessee, Henry ran 26 yards for a touchdown and a 28-6 lead on the opening drive of the second half.

Jackson was 12 of 15 for 182 yards with a 13-yard scoring toss to Rashod Bateman standing all alone in the end zone and added 87 yards rushing.

The late Dallas surge put Prescott at 28 of 51 for 379 yards and two touchdowns but once again didn’t have any help from an anemic running game, even before the score got out of hand. Dallas averaged 3.2 yards per carry.

Ultimately, the Cowboys were in too big of a deficit against a team that emphasizes defense and the running game.

“You definitely want to get in front of that team,” Dallas coach Mike McCarthy said. “That’s a team that plays to their strength and their profile. We were not clean enough to get the win today.”
Injuries

Cowboys S Markquese Bell injured an ankle in the first half and didn’t return. … Ravens CB Jalyn Armour-Davis injured a hamstring and didn’t return.
Up next

Ravens: Home against Buffalo next Sunday night.

Cowboys: At the New York Giants in their first NFC East game Thursday night.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

HOUSTON (AP) — Zach Neto hit two home runs and drove in six, and the Los Angeles Angels came from behind twice to beat the Houston Astros 9-8 on Sunday.

“At the end of the game there, his last three at-bats he took the game over,” Angels manager Ron Washington said. “He has that capability. … He got us the win.”

The Angels trailed 4-0 in the sixth before scoring two runs in back-to-back innings, and then took the lead in the eighth on a solo shot from Neto.

“We’ve got a lot of grit, we’ve got a lot of fight on this team,” said Neto, who cut the lead in half in the sixth with a two-run shot in his second career multi-homer game. “We trust in each other to put us in the best spots and just being able to come through.”

The Astros responded with two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning before the Angels had a four-run ninth. With the bases loaded against Astros closer Josh Hader, Taylor Ward drew a game-tying walk before Neto ripped a bases-clearing double down the left-field line to drive in three more.

“Can’t let the first guy get on, that was the first problem,” Hader said. “Hung a slider to Pillar and then they just started jumping on the fastball up.”

This was Hader’s fourth blown save of the season. Hader (8-8) gave up four runs on three hits, walked two and struck out none in 1/3 innings.

Leading 9-6, Jose Quijada gave up a pair of RBI singles to Yainer Diaz and Victor Caratini, making it a one-run game.

“Not quitting until the last out of the game, that fight, that’s what it’s all about,” Astros manager Joe Espada said. “We were one swing away from winning that game. I give credit to those boys. They fight until the end.”

The Angels called on Guillo Zuniga to close it out. He struck out Jeremy Pena with the tying run on third base. It was Zuniga’s second save of the season. Brock Burke (2-1) got the win.

“We held on and we won,” Washington said. “It should have been an easier victory but that team over there is relentless and they showed it again. But we were also relentless and holding on.”

Houston (85-71) begins a three-game series with Seattle (80-76) on Monday and has a chance to clinch the AL West with a win in that series.

“One game at a time,” Espada said. “I just saw Texas won, which is good news for our club. But we just have to take care of our business.”

The Astros bullpen ended up surrendering seven runs to the Angels over the final three innings of the game.

“They’ve been so good, our bullpen has been lights out,” Espada said. “Just one of those nights.”

Spencer Arrighetti gave up two runs on five hits, walked none and struck out six in six innings in a no decision.

“I thought he threw the ball really well,” Espada said. “When he came in, his body wasn’t feeling great so I decided to hand the ball to the bullpen.”

Angels starter Griffin Canning gave up four runs on six hits, walked three and struck out three in 4 1/3 innings.

Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman homered in the fifth inning. It was the 20th homer of the season for Altuve, who also has 22 stolen bases this season, giving him his first 20-20 season since 2017.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Angels: OF Jordyn Adams was out of the lineup for a third-straight game due to right knee soreness. Angels manager Ron Washington considers his status still day-to-day.

Astros: OF Yordan Alvarez exited the game in the third inning with a right knee contusion. Alvarez is “pretty sore” and was getting imaging done on his knee following the game. … OF Chas McCormick, on the injured list since Sept. 11 with a fractured right hand, will swing a bat on Monday. … OF Ben Gamel (fractured left fibula) is likely done for the season, according to Astros General Manager Dana Brown.

UP NEXT

Astros: RHP Hunter Brown (11-8, 3.57 ERA) faces Seattle RHP Bryce Miller (11-8, 3.06 ERA) in the series opener on Monday night at home.

Angels: After an off day, RHP Jonathan Cannon (4-10, 4.61 ERA) will face White Sox RHP Jack Kochanowicz (2-5, 4.56 ERA) in the series opener on Tuesday in Chicago.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Marcus Semien lined a game-ending single into the left field corner to score Leody Taveras as the Texas Rangers rallied from a five-run deficit for a 6-5 win Sunday that kept the playoff-chasing Seattle Mariners from gaining ground in the AL wild card race.

The Mariners (80-76) dropped two games back in a tight, four-team wild card race with three AL Central teams, and likely only two of that quartet will make the playoffs.

Detroit and Kansas City are both 82-74, tied for the final two playoffs spots and four games behind wild card-leading Baltimore. All have six games to play.

Minnesota (81-75) began the day as the third wild card, but is now a game back of its division rivals. The Twins got swept in a doubleheader at Boston, and Seattle missed a chance to catch them after blowing a 5-0 lead in Texas.

“These guys have faced that challenge a lot during the last couple of weeks,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. “We talked about it a lot (and) how they’ve been able to be resilient, to bounce back and be ready to play the next day. We’re going to have to do it again.”

The Mariners, five games behind the Astros in the AL West, open a three-game series in Houston on Monday.

Texas, last year’s World Series champion, was eliminated from postseason contention on Friday. The Rangers (74-82) won their home finale to avoid being swept by the Mariners.

“It hasn’t been the year we wanted,” Semien said. “Glad we ended it like that. We just want to finish strong.”

Taveras tied the score at 5-all with a solo homer in the seventh inning and finished with three hits — all from the sixth inning onward.

The Mariners led 5-0 on Dylan Moore’s RBI single in the second inning, Cal Raleigh’s solo home run in the third and a three-run sixth that included Victor Robles singling in two runs, stealing second base and scoring when a pickoff attempt led to two Texas errors.

The Rangers countered by cutting the deficit to one run in the sixth on an RBI single by Josh Smith and a three-run homer by Wyatt Langford off starter Bryan Woo, who allowed four runs on seven hits in six innings.

Raleigh hit his career-best 31st home run. Andrés Muñoz (3-7) took the loss.

Texas starter Andrew Heaney allowed four earned runs on seven hits with four strikeouts and a walk in 5 2/3 innings. Kirby Yates (7-2) worked an inning of relief and earned the victory.

TAKING TWO FOR THE TEAM

The Mariners needed only two innings to tie and break the modern record for being hit by pitches in a season at 113. Raleigh was plunked by an 85 mph slider from Heaney in the first inning, and J.P. Crawford was tagged by a 90 mph fastball from Heaney in the second. The mark of 112 was held by the 2022 New York Mets.

UP NEXT

Mariners RHP Bryce Miller (11-8, 3.06 ERA) will open the series at Houston on Monday against Astros RHP Hunter Brown (11-8, 3.57 ERA).

Rangers RHP Nathan Eovaldi (11-8, 3.96) will face Oakland RHP Mitch Spence (8-9, 4.30) on Tuesday in the opener of the Athletics’ final home series at Oakland Coliseum before moving next year.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

NASCAR champions Brad Keselowski and Martin Truex Jr. were among the first four drivers knocked out of the playoffs Saturday night at Bristol Motor Speedway, where Kyle Larson cruised to an easy victory.

The first of three elimination races in the 10-race playoffs began with Denny Hamlin, Truex, Keselowski and Harrison Burton all below the cutline and facing elimination from the 16-driver field.

Hamlin, a three-time Daytona 500 winner with four career wins at the track in Bristol, Tennessee, was never really worried and finished fourth.

“My aspiration was winning,” Hamlin said. “It’s as good as what we’ve been here the last couple times. It’s all offense from this point forward.”

Burton, who used a surprise win at Daytona last month to qualify for the playoffs in the final few weeks before he loses his seat with Wood Brothers Racing, was doubtful to recover enough to advance and finished 35th. Keselowski, the 2012 Cup champion, and 2017 champion Truex had a better shot at salvaging their playoffs but both came up empty.

Truex was penalized for speeding on pit road, taking him out of contention to advance, and Keselowski just didn’t have the pace. Joe Gibbs Racing also had two of its four cars eliminated from the playoffs as Ty Gibbs was also penalized for speeding.

Keselowski finished 26th.

“Didn’t have the pace we wanted. We ran as hard as we could, there just wasn’t anything there,” Keselowski said. “Just gotta be faster.”

Truex is retiring from full-time racing at the end of the season.

“That kind of screws up your whole season,” Truex said of the speeding penalty. “It’s on me. It was my mistake. Just really sad for my guys. We had a really good car. I hate I screwed it up, would have at least tried to see what we could do.”

Larson, meanwhile, led 462 of 500 laps, the most since Cale Yarborough led 495 laps in 1977. Larson’s laps led is the most ever by a Hendrick Motorsports driver and marked the fifth win of the season for the driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet.

He led all but 38 laps at Bristol.

It’s an impressive stat considering the Hendrick team has fielded cars for Hall of Fame drivers Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Terry Labonte and Dale Earnhardt Jr., among others.

“That’s pretty awesome because there’s been some legendary Hall of Famers race for Hendrick Motorsports, and we’ve all grown up watching Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson dominate,” Larson said. “So pretty cool to get my name on another record at Hendrick Motorsports.”

Daniel Suarez, who finished four laps down in 31st, squeezed out the final spot into the second round of the playoffs by 11 points over Gibbs.

Also advancing were Chase Elliott, who finished second, Christopher Bell, who finished fifth, Ryan Blaney, Joey Logano, Chase Briscoe, William Byron, Austin Cindric and Alex Bowman.

Hendrick’s entire four-car Chevrolet lineup advanced, as did all three Ford drivers from Team Penske. But Toyota lost a pair of JGR entries, and Ford lost two cars in Keselowski and Burton.

Corey LaJoie had already been told by Spire Motorsports it was not bringing him back next year, which gave him the rest of this season to finish out strong.

Then Spire threw him a lifeline with an unusual driver swap with Rick Ware Racing that will move Justin Haley into the Spire No. 7. LaJoie will replace Haley at RWR starting next week at Kansas Speedway.

While Haley’s deal guarantees him the seat in 2025, LaJoie will have to earn the RWR ride. But in the meantime, he wanted one final good finish with Spire. He qualified ninth and was running 11th when he was involved in a crash that essentially ended his career with Spire.

NASCAR opens the second round of the playoffs at Kansas Speedway, where Tyler Reddick won last fall and Larson won in May. Bell takes a six-point lead over Larson into Kansas.

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AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

ByTIM MCMANUS
September 22, 2024, 2:59 PM

NEW ORLEANS — Eagles wide receiver DeVonta Smith and right tackle Lane Johnson both suffered concussions in Sunday’s 15-12 win over the Saints.

Smith left early in the fourth after a big collision with defensive tackle Khristian Boyd. His momentum was going backward after being corralled by Saints defenders following a short completion, and then he was blindsided by Boyd.

Smith remained on the ground for several minutes, with teammates gathered around him and coach Nick Sirianni placing a hand on his knee before Smith eventually got up and walked off under his own power.

Johnson exited in the first half after being evaluated in the medical tent. He was replaced by Fred Johnson. Right guard Mekhi Becton (finger) and receiver/returner Britain Covey (shoulder) also exited the game.

ByTIM MCMANUS
September 22, 2024, 5:59 PM

NEW ORLEANS — Philadelphia Eagles safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson called the hit that injured receiver DeVonta Smith in Sunday’s game against the New Orleans Saints a “cheap shot” and accused his former team of “playing dirty.”

Smith left early in the fourth quarter with a concussion after a big collision with Saints defensive tackle Khristian Boyd. Smith’s momentum was going backward after he was corralled by Saints defenders following a short completion, and he was blindsided by a high hit from Boyd. There was no flag on the play.

“Man, that’s the dirtiest s— I ever saw in football, bro,” Gardner-Johnson said following the Eagles’ narrow 15-12 win. “Y’all obviously saw forward progression was stopped. For them to take a cheap shot on one of our key players, it goes to show what type of team that is. They’re front-runners.”

This was Gardner-Johnson’s first time playing against the Saints since they traded him to the Eagles in August 2022, and his emotions were clearly running high.

“Y’all always talk about Ceedy this, Ceedy this, but let’s talk about how they’re playing dirty on their side,” Gardner-Johnson said. “At the end of the day, the league will handle it. … We got the dub and keep it pushing.”

Gardner-Johnson’s teammates were more measured, though the play appeared to be weighing on the minds of several players in the locker room.

“Did I think it was dirty? Yeah,” said left tackle Jordan Mailata, who pushed Boyd to the ground following the play. “Did I think it was intentional? No — ah, I don’t f—ing know. I’ve got to watch it. I’m conflicted as you can tell. I hope Smitty is OK.”

Mailata added that Boyd was “just trying to make a play” — a sentiment echoed by defensive end Brandon Graham.

Smith remained on the ground for several minutes. Teammates gathered around him and coach Nick Sirianni placed a hand on Smith’s knee before the receiver eventually got up and walked off under his own power. He was later ruled out for the game.

On the next play, running back Saquon Barkley broke off for a 65-yard touchdown run to put the Eagles ahead for the first time.

“You see something like Smitty getting hurt today, that’s frustrating,” center Cam Jurgens said. “I hope everybody’s all right. There were a lot of injuries, but it sucks when a player gets hit like that.”

Standout right tackle Lane Johnson also exited with a concussion in the first half and did not return. Right guard Mekhi Becton (finger) and receiver/returner Britain Covey (shoulder) sustained injuries as well and were ruled out. Covey was wearing a sling on his left arm as he walked out of the locker room postgame.

ByABC News
September 22, 2024, 6:09 PM

SAN DIEGO — The Chicago White Sox had a 2-1 lead going into the bottom of the eighth inning on Sunday, and then history struck.

That tenuous lead disappeared in the span of four San Diego Padres batters, and the White Sox went on to their 120th loss, tying the post-1900 record set by the 1962 expansion New York Mets.

The dichotomy couldn’t have been greater.

The White Sox headed to a somber clubhouse and quietly packed for their flight home.

The Padres, who are closing in on a postseason berth, gathered in front of their dugout to applaud the sellout crowd of 45,197 that roared through the bottom of the eighth and then the top of the ninth of the 4-2 win in their regular-season home finale on the brilliant first day of autumn. Some fans even chanted “Beat L.A.!” in anticipation of a huge series starting Tuesday night at the Los Angeles Dodgers.

“I guess when you lose 120 it’s easier to brush it off but it [stinks] to go through it, but that’s where we’re at,” veteran White Sox outfielder Andrew Benintendi said.

There had been hope for the White Sox to at least delay the historic loss, until there wasn’t. Right-hander Sean Burke, making just his second big league start — and third appearance — was outstanding through six innings. The White Sox took their lead on two home runs off Yu Darvish, including one by Korey Lee, who grew up in northern San Diego County.

“Burke threw a hell of a game,” Benintendi said. “They’ve got a lot of good bats up and down that lineup, guys that have played a long time, and once they get the lead with that bullpen, it seems like it’s pretty much over at this point.

“So yes, it [stinks].”

So many of the White Sox’s losses have come late in games.

“Yeah, we joke about it all the time. It never seems like we get blown out, and the seventh, eighth and ninth come around and we’re facing their seven-eight-nine-inning guys every night, which is big. It’s hard to score runs off the back ends of the bullpen,” Benintendi said.

“It seems like we have been here a lot of times and it just hasn’t panned out.”

With one more loss in their final six games, the White Sox will hold the modern-day record outright. They finish with three at home against the Los Angeles Angels beginning Tuesday night and finish with three at Detroit, which is in the AL wild-card hunt.

The 1899 Cleveland Spiders hold the major league record for losses at 20-134.

Interim manager Grady Sizemore didn’t address the team afterward.

“No loss is good,” he said. “It’s not something that we’re focused on. I think everyone outside this clubhouse is more obsessed with it than us. The way we spin is to put this one behind us and get ready for the series back home.”

Asked how his players were digesting it, Sizemore said: “We all know the situation. We know where we are at. We have a job to do and they are still playing for something. They have handled it like professionals and we will be back out there on Tuesday ready to go and give it our best.”

Said Lee: “I think if you ask all 50 guys or so [who have been on the roster this season] we are not going to be happy about it. If you’re happy about it, I don’t know what you are doing here.

“I think it’s obviously hard, but at the same time everyone is coming in here every day and giving their best.”

The catcher said the team has stayed together through all the losing.

“It shows you how close we are. We talked about it earlier today. Honestly, that is what I look forward to every day when I come in here is having the guy right next to me and knowing he is going to care for me, inside and out, on the field and off the field.

“That is all you can ask for. It’s good family around us. Obviously there is a lot of bad, but you have to take the good out of every day. And the good is coming in here with this group of guys and doing the thing we all love to do.”

The White Sox had tied the AL record of 119 losses by the 2003 Detroit Tigers on Saturday night. They lost their 20th straight road series and were swept for the 24th time this season.

ByPAUL GUTIERREZ
September 22, 2024, 8:59 PM

LAS VEGAS — Antonio Pierce angrily rocked back and forth for more than five minutes at the postgame podium, the Las Vegas Raiders coach searching for answers in the wake of his team’s stunning 36-22 loss to the Carolina Panthers.

Pierce was sure of one thing: His team did not show up for its home opener — and he went in on some unnamed players.

“As the game went on,” Pierce said, “I think there was definitely some individuals that made business decisions. And we’ll make business decisions going forward, as well.

“We got our ass whupped … I would have booed us too.”

Given what was on the table — a festive home opener after last week’s emotional comeback win at the Baltimore Ravens, the heretofore winless Panthers having benched their former No. 1 draft pick Bryce Young in favor of 14th-year veteran quarterback Andy Dalton and the Raiders’ offense having seemingly caught up with the team’s opportunistic defense — this loss, to longtime observers, was comparable to several embarrassing defeats in recent memory.

From losing to the Indianapolis Colts and former high school coach Jeff Saturday in 2022 in his first NFL game at the helm — the fallout of which led to then-Raiders QB Derek Carr crying at the podium — to falling to Baker Mayfield two days after he joined the Los Angeles Rams later that same season to last season’s defeat at the Chicago Bears, who started undrafted rookie Tyson Bagent at quarterback.

The difference? These Raiders were thoroughly dominated by Dalton and the Panthers.

“We’ve got a lot of people that have to look in the mirror,” said Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby, who was severely hampered by a left high ankle sprain suffered on the second-to-last play of the Raiders’ win at Baltimore and finished Sunday with three tackles and a pass defensed.

“Everybody’s got to continue getting better. It’s not the end of the world, but it’s a wake-up call, you know what I mean? We’ve got to be better. Period. Simple as that.”

The Raiders surrendered 437 total yards to Dalton & Co., who also dominated the time of possession 36:02 to 23:58. Offensively, only 55 of Las Vegas’ 331 offensive yards came on the ground. And the Raiders trailed by as much as 33-7 early in the fourth quarter.

Raiders wide receiver Davante Adams seemed puzzled by Pierce’s claim of players making “business decisions” late in the game.

“I feel like, I don’t know, this is tough for me to identify that,” said Adams, who had four catches on nine targets for 40 yards. “I’m not sure.”

Crosby offered his take.

“I don’t know. There’s a lot of things. You’ve got to watch the film,” he said. “Just wasn’t good enough. Just a bad loss. I mean, s—ty. We didn’t play our best football.”

Meanwhile, Pierce said not much should be gleaned from his replacing starting quarterback Gardner Minshew with Aidan O’Connell with 4:47 to play and Las Vegas trailing 36-15.

“The game was kind of out of hand, and we’ve got two quarterbacks that battled,” Pierce said in reference to the training camp competition, eventually won by Minshew. “Let the other guy go in there and see what he can do for a little bit.”

O’Connell led the Raiders on a 13-play, 70-yard touchdown drive, completing 9 of 12 passes for 82 yards, including an 8-yard TD to Tre Tucker, while another pass was nearly intercepted.

Minshew, meanwhile, passed for 214 yards in completing 18 of 28 attempts with a 13-yard TD pass to Jakobi Meyers and an interception.

“It sucks, obviously, especially at home,” O’Connell said. “You wanted to take another step forward and, hopefully, get a win here, but we’re going to bounce back. Good thing about football is there’s always the game next week.”