A Sports Filled Weekend It Was

Nothing used to be more automatic than the extra point in the NFL. Not anymore.

The NFL changed the distance of the extra point a season ago, turning a 20-yard gimme into a 33-yard adventure. Twelve extra points were missed on Sunday, the most ever, with Mike Nugent of the Cincinnati Bengals and Robbie Gould of the New York Giants missing two apiece. Neither had ever missed two in a season before.

In Sunday night’s game, Kirk Cousins passed for 375 yards and three touchdowns and Robert Kelley ran for 137 yards and three touchdowns as the Washington Redskins (6-3-1) flattened the Green Bay Packers 42-24. The Packers (4-6) have lost four in a row.

The Redskins will play the streaking Dallas Cowboys (9-1) on Thanksgiving Day. The Cowboys won their ninth straight – a franchise record – defeating the Baltimore Ravens 27-17.

The NFL’s No. 1 overall draft pick, quarterback Jared Goff, debuted as the Los Angeles Rams starter against the Miami Dolphins but hardly influenced the result. The Dolphins (6-4) overcame a 10-0 deficit on a pair of touchdown passes and defeated the Rams 14-10. The Rams are 4-6; the Dolphins have won five in a row.

NASCAR

Jimmie Johson won a record-tying seventh NASCAR championship Sunday at Homewood-Miami Speedway. Johnson joins Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt as a seven-time premier series champion, the most by any driver. It’s his first title since 2013, and his first with this current Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup format that began in 2014.

College Football
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The battle of the titans awaits. That would be Michigan vs. Ohio State on Saturday. Both are 9-1. The Big Ten placed three teams in the top five of the Associated Press college football poll for the first time in 56 years, setting up a No. 2 vs. No. 3 matchup for Ohio State and Michigan. Alabama is still No. 1, Clemson is No. 4 and Wisconsin is fifth. The College Football Playoff rankings will be released Tuesday night…Texas appears to be on the brink of firing third-year coach Charlie Strong after Saturday’s 24-21 overtime loss to Kansas. Texas hadn’t lost to Kansas since 1938 and needs to beat TCU to finish 6-6 and gain bowl eligibility.

Elsewhere
Props to Delaware, which won its first field hockey championship, beating North Carolina 3-2. … Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr has been fined $25,000 for public criticism of officiating.
 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman