NFL
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Tyreek Hill and Mecole Hardman had short touchdown catches, the Kansas City defense shut down a Patriots offense missing quarterback Cam Newton and running back Sony Michel, and the Chiefs beat New England 26-10 in a game postponed by positive COVID-19 tests on each team.
Tyrann Mathieu returned a late interception for the clinching touchdown, and Patrick Mahomes added 236 yards passing in a somewhat shaky performance - at least, by his standards - as the Chiefs overcame an uncharacteristically slow start offensively to win their 13th straight game dating to Week 10 of last season.
The matchup between the Patriots and the Super Bowl champs was supposed to be Sunday, but it was put on pause when New England confirmed a player later revealed to be Newton tested positive for COVID-19. Later on Saturday, it same out that Chiefs practice squad QB Jordan Ta’amu also had tested positive, forcing the NFL to postpone the game.
HOUSTON (AP) - The Houston Texans fired coach and general manager Bill O’Brien.
The firing comes a day after Sunday’s 31-23 loss to the Vikings dropped the Texans to 0-4 for the first time since 2008.
After assuming the role of general manager in the offseason, O’Brien received almost universal criticism when he shipped superstar receiver DeAndre Hopkins to Arizona for running back David Johnson and draft picks.
The pressure on O’Brien only intensified as the Texans limped out to the terrible start with Johnson struggling as their running game was the worst in the NFL and with the defense allowing the most yards in the league.
CLEVELAND (AP) - Nick Chubb has been stopped for a while.
Cleveland’s powerful Pro Bowl running back will miss “several weeks” with a sprained ligament in his right knee, a major blow to the improved Browns, who are off to their best start since 2001.
Chubb injured his medial collateral ligament in the first quarter of Sunday’s 49-38 win over the Cowboys, moving the Browns to 3-1 for the first time in 19 years.
Browns first-year coach Kevin Stefanski said Chubb, the NFL’s second-leading rusher in 2019 and one of the league’s rising stars, will be placed on injured reserve. Unlike previous seasons, teams can put players on the injured list and bring them back after a minimum of three games.
MLB
SAN DIEGO (AP) - Giancarlo Stanton hit a grand slam in the ninth inning for New York’s fourth home run of the game, and the Yankees beat the Tampa Bay Rays 9-3 in the opener of their AL Division Series at Petco Park.
Stanton homered to straightaway center field on a 2-2 pitch from John Curtiss with one out. The slugger took several steps with his bat still in his hands as he watched the ball sail through the warm San Diego night before beginning his trot.
A few fans chanted “Let’s Go Yankees!” from a balcony on an office building just beyond right field of the mostly empty ballpark.
Kyle Higashioka and Aaron Judge hit the tying and go-ahead home runs off Blake Snell in the fifth inning to back Gerrit Cole. Clint Frazier hit an impressive shot into the second deck in left in the third.
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Carlos Correa homered twice and drove in four, Jose Altuve hit a go-ahead, two-run single during Houston’s four-run sixth inning and the Astros rallied to beat the Oakland Athletics 10-5 in the opener of their AL Division series at Dodger Stadium.
George Springer, MVP of the 2017 World Series, had four hits for Houston.
The Astros rallied with two outs in the sixth against Oakland’s vaunted bullpen to take control of Major League Baseball’s first neutral-site postseason game resulting from the coronavirus pandemic. Houston pounded out 16 hits in all as the A’s ran through eight pitchers.
CHICAGO (AP) - Theo Epstein appears to be gearing up for one more go-round as the Chicago Cubs’ president of baseball operations.
Epstein said his expectation is the “status quo” when it comes to the team’s leadership and he anticipates remaining on the job for at least one more season, with his contract set to expire in 2021.
Epstein’s future figures to be a big point of discussion when he meets with chairman Tom Ricketts.
He has said repeatedly he thinks executives have about a 10-year shelf life in a job. Next year will mark a decade for Epstein with the Cubs, and a contract extension seems like a long shot.
NHL
EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) - Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid has tested positive for COVID-19.
McDavid, a 23-year-old forward, is self-quarantining at home and experiencing mild symptoms, according to the Oilers.
“He will continue to be monitored and will follow all associated health protocols,” the team said in a statement.
McDavid, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2015 draft, is widely considered the best player in the NHL. The captain of the Oilers had 34 goals and 63 assists in 64 games during the pandemic-shortened season.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) - Arizona football coach Kevin Sumlin has tested positive for COVID-19 less than a week before the team begins its preseason practices.
The school said in a statement that the 56-year-old Sumlin received back-to-back positive tests and has entered self-isolation. The school said Sumlin has not experienced any symptoms and that the positive test result was not related to any team activities.
Sumlin is among a handful of FBS coaches who have contracted COVID-19 over the past few months, including Florida State’s Mike Norvell.
Arizona begins its six-game schedule on Nov. 7 at Utah. The school still plans to start preseason practice Friday.
___
More AP sports: https://apnews.com/apf-sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
Please read our comment policy before commenting.