The Ebbs And Flows Of Another Football-Filled Weekend

The Philadelphia Eagles won the game and clinched the NFC East division title. But their loss – quarterback Carson Wentz – may dull some of that enthusiasm.

The Eagles (11-2) went toe-to-toe with the Rams (9-4) in Los Angeles and emerged with a 43-35 win. Wentz, however, left the game late in the third quarter with what was reportedly a torn ACL in his left knee. If that is the case, the second-year standout will be done for the regular season and playoffs as well.

The Minnesota Vikings (10-3) saw their eight-game winning streak end. They fell 31-24 to the Carolina Panthers (9-4), costing themselves a chance to clinch the NFL North.

And in Sunday night’s game, Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger led a 39-38 comeback win over the Baltimore Ravens (7-6) at Heinz Field. The Steelers clinched the NFC North as Roethlisberger completed 44 of 66 passes for 506 yards. Antonio Brown caught 11 of those passes for 213 yards. Chris Boswell’s 46-yard field goal with 42 seconds left provided the margin of victory in a game once led 14-0 by the Steelers (11-2). The Steelers have won the division four consecutive years.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL: Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield won the Heisman Trophy in a landslide. Mayfield was a walk-on at Texas Tech who transferred and walked on at Oklahoma. He’s the first senior to win the award since Ohio State’s Troy Smith in 2006. … Army (9-3) earned its second consecutive win over Navy (6-6) on Saturday in snowy Philadelphia. The Cadets hung on for a 14-13 victory as Navy’s 48-yard field goal try on the final play was missed.

BASEBALL: The Miami Marlins began completing disassembling their team via trades to get the payroll down to $90 million. The big deal involved National League Most Valuable Player Giancarlo Stanton, who was dealt to the New York Yankees for second baseman Starlin Castro and minor league prospects. … The Los Angeles Angels won the bidding war for Japanese star Shohei Otani, a slugging outfielder who can also pitch. The Angels are not planning to have him pitch.

ELSEWHERE: No. 1-ranked Duke fell 89-84 on the road to Boston College on Saturday. When ranked No. 1, Duke had beaten unranked opponents 19 consecutive times. No. 2 Kansas also fell, 95-85, to No. 16 Arizona State. The Jayhawks have now lost consecutive games for the first time since 2013. The new poll comes out Monday. … Jozy Altidore led Toronto FC to a 2-0 victory over the Seattle Sounders and the MLS Cup. Altidore scored in the 67th minute and denied Seattle back-to-back championships.

 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman