🏈 Commanders & Eagles TNF Preview, Historic Night in the NBA, + More!

Morning Blitzers,

We had a little bit of everything last night. We saw overtime winners on both the hardwood and ice. Multiple superstars scoring 50+ points, long win streaks continued, and much more. Hope you’re all having a great week! Let’s ride.

WTF Stat: Which QB in the NFL would you want running your 2-minute drill? We’ll see two of the best tonight. QB Jayden Daniels has the best Passer Rating with 2 minutes left in either half this season at 145.8, while QB Jalen Hurts has a rating of 108.1.

🏈 The Colts have decided to return to Anthony Richardson as their starting quarterback after a two-game stint with QB Joe Flacco. Richardson, who was benched after Week 7 due to struggles with a low completion rate and turnovers, has reportedly made significant improvements in his off-field preparation and attention to detail over the past two weeks. Head coach Shane Steichen praised Richardson's growth and said he will be the starter for the rest of the season.

• 🔥Take: I still think they should have just started adding packages for Richardson to come in during the game, and build his confidence back up, but I guess he’s learned everything he needs to learn in two weeks. The Colts faceoff against the the Jets this weekend. The Jets are 3rd in the NFL in sacks and have a top 10 secondary… So I hope the gameplan calls for a steady diet of RB Jonathan Taylor.

🏈 Speaking of the Jets, Aaron Rodgers, the 40-year-old QB, expressed his intention to play in 2025, despite his team's struggles this season. Speaking 19 days before his 41st birthday, Rodgers said, "I think so, yeah," when asked about continuing his career. However, he also acknowledged that potential organizational changes could influence his decision.

• 🔥Take: As someone that is fluent in Aaron Rodgers speak, what he is saying is he will continue to play as long as he can hold the team hostage and dictate which coaches/offensive coordinators and weapons he is surrounded by. Just like Brett Favre before him. Unfortunately for the Jets, unless they want to start over from scratch, will have to listen to him.

Thursday Night Football Preview

Game: Commanders (7-3) @ Eagles (7-2) at 8:15 EST

Why we’re watching: Another great Thursday Night matchup! We get to see an Eagles team that has won 5-games in a row versus the best young team and QB in the NFL (sorry Texans). This will be a great measuring stick for both teams, the Eagles 5 game win streak has come against teams with a combined record of 13-35, and the Commanders get a challenging road game against a proven top team in the NFL.

Key Matchup: Saquon Barkley vs. Commanders rush defense - Barkley (who is second in the NFL in rushing) has to be pretty excited about this matchup. The Commanders are bottom 5 in the league in rushing yards allowed, YPC, and rushes of over 20+ yards. How will Barkley follow up last weeks backwards hurdle? Can’t wait to find out!

Bonus: Saquon Barkley has that dog/dawg in him:

TNF Prop Bets: Jean (3-6) - Saquon Barkley over 1.5 TDs — Keith (5-4) - Kenneth Gainwell over 12.5 yards rushing.

D-Man’s Pick (6-4 TNF): Eagles -3.5 - This Washington team is commanding/Commandering the attention of the gambling public, it can’t continue!

Top NBA Scores

• Spurs 139, Wizards 130: Victor Wembanyama scored a career-high 50 points in the San Antonio 139-130 win over Washington. The 20-year-old rookie also set a career-high with eight 3-pointers. At 7-foot-4, Wembanyama became the tallest player in NBA history to score 50 points and is the fourth-youngest player to achieve the feat, behind Brandon Jennings, LeBron James, and Devin Booker.

• Cavs 114, 76ers 106: The Cavaliers continue to make history by extending their season-opening winning streak to 13 games, becoming just the sixth team in NBA history to do so. Donovan Mitchell led the way, scoring 13 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter to help secure the win. Darius Garland added 25 points, and the Cavs held off a resilient 76ers team that was missing All-Stars Tyrese Maxey, Paul George, and Joel Embiid.

• Magic 94, Pacers 90: Franz Wagner scored 29 points, and Jalen Suggs hit two key free throws in the final seconds to help Orlando defeat Indiana. With the win, the Magic improved to 6-0 at home this season and extended their home winning streak to 13 games.

• Bulls 124, Knicks 123: Zach LaVine scored 31 points, and Colby White added 22, including clutch free throws in the final seconds to secure the win. The Bulls had a commanding 22-point lead in the third quarter, but the Knicks mounted a strong comeback. With four seconds left, Jalen Brunson's basket put the Knicks ahead 123-121, but White was fouled on a 3-point attempt by Josh Hart and sank all three free throws to give Chicago the lead.

• Bucks 127, Pistons 120: Giannis Antetokounmpo erupted for 59 points, leading the Bucks to a 127-120 overtime victory over the Pistons. It was the highest-scoring game of the NBA season so far this season and was the second-highest of Antetokounmpo's career. He shot 21 of 34 from the field, made 16 of 17 free throws, and added 14 rebounds and 7 assists as the Bucks came back from an 18-point deficit.

See full NBA scoreboard here, and standings here.

Top NHL Scores

• Maple Leafs 4, Capitals 3: John Tavares scored the game-winning goal in overtime as the Leafs rallied from a 3-1 deficit to win. The victory came after a dramatic comeback sparked by William Nylander's goal with just over four minutes left and Mitch Marner's power play goal with 47.8 seconds remaining in the third period, when the Leafs pulled their goalie for an extra attacker.

• Red Wings 3, Penguins 2: Simon Edvinsson scored the game-winning goal 1:30 into overtime to capture the victory. Patrick Kane, who had a goal and an assist, scored on a power play in the second period—his first goal since October 24 and his third of the season. Jonatan Berggren also scored for Detroit, while goaltender Cam Talbot made 32 saves, earning his 250th career win.

• Golden Knights 3, Ducks 2: Nicolas Roy, Tomas Hertl, and Pavel Dorofeyev scored for Vegas. Jack Eichel added his 20th assist of the season, ranking second in the NHL.

• Avalanche 4, Kings 2: Mikko Rantanen scored a hat trick, including two goals in the third period, to lead the Avalanche to a 4-2 win. Nathan MacKinnon added three assists, extending his point streak to 16 of 17 games this season.

See full NHL scoreboard here, and standings here.

On this day in 1993, Don Shula becomes the head coach with the most regular season wins in NFL history. He passed George Halas who had 318 wins in his career. Shula finished with 328 wins. Bill Belichick (302) and Andy Reid (267) are the next closest to his record.

Yesterday’s Trivia Time Answer

Which player holds the most MLB Silver Slugger Award at shortstop?

A) Barry Larkin - The 12x All-Star and Hall of Famer, has 9x Silver Slugger Awards, leading all shortstops. He benefited from playing in the NL (Ripken, A-Rod, and Nomar all played in the AL during his era), but still was a very underrated player in his 19 seasons with the Reds.

Check back tomorrow for the answer to today's trivia question and more info!