
Denny Hamlin has a major issue with the NASCAR on FOX broadcast. But Hamlin isn’t sure if it’s FOX‘s fault or something on his end.
Speaking on Monday’s “Actions Detrimental” podcast, Hamlin said the audio coming from FOX isn’t going through both of the speakers a part of his TV setup. He wants to know if anyone else’s audio is “f*cked up,” or if it’s just him.
“Is FOX‘s audio f*cked up for anyone else?” Hamlin asked. “Like, I notice in my living room and in my bus, I have multiple speakers. I have a TV and then I have speakers, a left and a right. But the audio during our races only comes out of our right speaker. It’s like it’s on analog. I don’t know. I’ve noticed it for a few weeks that they’ve got something going on with their audio that is just not like all other audio coming through FOX or any other station for that matter. I don’t know what’s going on.”
Hamlin might have a gripe with FOX. Richard Petty certainly does. With throwback weekend taking place at Darlington Raceway, “The King” stopped by the broadcast to share some stories of his time racing at “The Lady in Black.” But as Mike Joy, Kevin Harvick and Clint Bowyer were saying goodbye on-air, Petty took a subtle jab at the network’s coverage of races.
“Thank you. It’s been interesting watching y’all try to operate up here,” Petty said, via Kyle Dalton of Athlon Sports.
Petty made the comment in a joking manner, and it drew some laughs from the three-man booth of Joy, Harvick and Bowyer. Joy said he took it as a compliment compared to what Petty said last year in the booth.
“I’ll take that as a compliment because last year on leaving you said, ‘I don’t know what race you guys are watching,” Joy responded.
Joy’s comment prompted more criticism from the 87-year-old Petty. He went after the network for not showing more of the racing taking place in the middle of the field.
“The big deal is, when I’m sitting here and see what I see on the TV and the race is really back about 15th or 20th,” Petty said. “Them guys, they drive their fanny off every lap. I mean, they’re really racing back there, but you know, if you’re here you can see that. You can’t see it on TV.”
Joy countered Petty’s critique: “We try to get back there as much as we can… but you’re right, if you wanna see it all, come buy a ticket.”
FOX continues to take shots from fans on social media. Now, it’s coming from drivers both past and present — far from what the network likely wants to hear.
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There are a lot of teams in the NFL that are already out of the playoff race this season and facing long roads back to contention. There might not be a single franchise that is facing a grimmer, bleaker situation than the Miami Dolphins. The franchise has not won a playoff game in 26 years, the longest ongoing drought in the NFL, and it is going to continue this season. They have mostly been mediocre in recent years only qualified for the playoffs just four times in the past 23 years. They have had no recent success, are having no current success, and do not seem likely to have success anytime soon in the future. Whatever momentum and shine they may have had from last week's big win over the Atlanta Falcons was completely erased on Thursday night in an embarrassing performance against the Baltimore Ravens in a 28-6 defeat. There were zero positives to take away from it, and it is hard to see where a quick fix comes from. The Ravens beat the Dolphins, and the Dolphins beat themselves Coming out of halftime on Thursday night, Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel said they were playing against two teams in the first half, referencing the fact they had several self-inflicted mistakes that helped cost them points, stall drives and give points to Baltimore. They had long drives on offense get bogged down by penalties, forcing them to settle for field goal attempts. They fumbled deep in their own territory to set the Ravens up for their first touchdown of the game, and then turned the ball over two other times later in the game. That is a losing recipe against almost any team in football, and especially against a team that is quarterbacked by Lamar Jackson. But that's only part of the problem for Miami, and it's largely only related to this game. The big picture problem is far more concerning. Tua Tagovailoa is not the answer Tagovailoa is far from the only problem in Miami right now. It's just not a good roster overall. But he also does not seem to be part of the solution, especially with a $53M salary cap number. The Dolphins are paying him like one of the NFL's elite quarterbacks — and one of its elite players — and they are not getting anything close to that level of play. He threw his league-leading 11th interception of the season on Thursday, and just looked like a quarterback that had no answers for anything. He lacks elite arm strength, and everything regarding the Dolphins offense is built around timing, their ability for the first read of their offense to get open, and his ability to hit it. When things do not work perfectly, the offense has zero chance to function. It has not worked. Tagovailoa's regression as a quarterback, combined with a gigantic contract that might quickly becoming one of the NFL's biggest albatross deals, is a big reason why this situation feels so grim. It is one thing to not have a quarterback. It is another thing entirely to invest in the wrong quarterback and be stuck with them and have almost no way out from it. Eventually head coach Mike McDaniel and probably general manager Chris Grier are going to be dismissed, and it will not be unfair given the roster and team they have built. Whoever comes in to replace them is going to have a mostly bare cupboard to restock with one of the NFL's worst contracts at its most important position. At least if you are the New York Jets or New Orleans Saints you can start over this offseason with a new quarterback. It seems almost impossible for the Dolphins to do that.
The Baltimore Ravens dominated the Miami Dolphins in a 28-6 rout on "Thursday Night Football" as quarterback Lamar Jackson shined in his return from injury. Here are four takeaways from the first NFL game of Week 9: Lamar Jackson returns in style You would never know that Jackson had not played since Week 4 judging by his incredible performance on Thursday night. He wasted no time getting started with this fourth-down strike to tight end Mark Andrews in the opening quarter and capped his four-TD night with a nine-yard connection to wide receiver Rashod Bateman late in the third quarter. His 18 total TD passes against the Dolphins are the second-most all-time in five games vs. one opponent, only behind George Blanda's 21 against the New York Titans. After going 18-of-23 for 204 yards and four TDs, Jackson now has 14 passing TDs and only one interception in five games. If he stays healthy, this Ravens team will be difficult to slow down in the second half of the season. Mike McDaniel's seat keeps getting hotter It keeps getting worse for the Dolphins head coach after Thursday's latest dud. Miami had 332 yards of offense, but went 0-for-3 in the red zone and committed three turnovers, including a brutal one in their own territory in the first quarter. During a pregame segment on Prime Video, NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport was asked what McDaniel's future looks like in Miami and said his job status is "firmly up in the air." While he said he did not "see anything imminent" from owner Stephen Ross, it will come down to how the players respond going forward. Although he signed an extension prior to last season and is under contract through 2028, a 2-7 record and another blowout loss is doing nothing to help McDaniel's case at the moment. Kyle Hamilton spearheads strong defensive performance from Ravens The Ravens entered the night allowing the third-most points per game (30 PPG), but Thursday night was a much different story. The All-Pro safety Hamilton may have not had the most tackles on the team, but his impact was certainly felt with six total tackles and one tackle for loss. He was more impressive than the stats show, especially at creating pressure on Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa and keeping Miami from having any success between the tackles. In the first quarter alone, Hamilton did not even line up as a safety in his first 15 snaps and still only gave up one yard rushing on four carries, opposed to 31 yards on three carries away from him, per Next Gen Stats. For a team that has struggled defensively, they need more of what they got on Thursday night if they are going to claw their way back into the AFC North conversation. Don't count the Ravens out yet It was not that long ago that Baltimore was 1-5 and staring at a wasted season. After back-to-back wins, an improving 3-5 record and a sloppy AFC North in which the Pittsburgh Steelers (4-3) are the only team above .500, the Ravens are firmly in the hunt. In fact, FanDuel currently lists them as the favorites (-145) to win the division as of Thursday night. The defense still needs to prove itself against stiffer competition, but if Jackson continues to ball out, the Ravens could complete a remarkable turnaround and mix up the AFC playoff picture.
For three days, the LSU Tigers had the most appealing head-coaching opening in college football. That changed Wednesday, when first-term Louisiana governor Jeff Landry (R) opened his mouth. Below are three absurd statements from Landry that should make prospective candidates run in the other direction instead of considering becoming the next LSU head coach. 1. Who's in charge? What Landry said: "No, I can tell you right now [athletic director] Scott Woodward is not selecting our next coach. Maybe we'll let President Trump pick it." Reaction: What should terrify candidates the most is how unorganized the search for head coach is at the top, creating a trickle-down effect that could permeate throughout the program. With an embattled AD — who has since been fired — plus the university looking for its next president, LSU's next head coach has no way of knowing what administration he'll be answering to. That uncertainty is no way to attract elite candidates. 2. Pot, meet kettle What Landry said about hiring the next football coach at LSU: "We're gonna make sure that he's compensated properly, and we're gonna put metrics on it because I'm tired of rewarding failure in this country and then leaving the taxpayers to foot the bill." Reaction: One of three programs with three national titles this century (joining Alabama and Ohio State), LSU has higher expectations for its football team than at most FBS programs. Landry's comments raise questions about how much time the Tigers will give their next head coach to construct a winner. What kind of metrics will be in place? It's normal for coaches to earn raises with conference or national championships, but what happens if Kelly's successor doesn't have the same immediate success he did, leading the team to the SEC title game and coaching a Heisman winner (Jayden Daniels) in his first two seasons? "I'm tired of rewarding failure in this country" is also a rich statement from a man whose state was ranked 46th of 50 states in education and last for economy by U.S. News World Report. 3. Politicians should stay out of sports What Landry said: "All I care about is what the taxpayers are going to be on the hook [for]." Reaction: Is it too much to ask that our elected officials know how things work? Landry was asked why LSU officials met with him at the governor's mansion before Kelly's firing, and his reasoning was nonsensical. Coaching buyouts, including Kelly's, are often paid through boosters with money to burn, not taxpayers. WDSU-New Orleans reporter Travers Mackel wrote on Monday that one private donor will foot the majority of Kelly's buyout. "Zero public money set aside for education, salaries or scholarships will be used," Mackel wrote. Landry's meddling in Kelly's firing is more than just concern for Louisiana taxpayers. "In the absence of a permanent president [at LSU], the governor has grabbed authority over key decisions," Yahoo Sports reporter Ross Dellenger wrote earlier this week. (A search for a new university president is in the final stages, according to The Advocate.) Politicians have no reason to get involved with college coaching decisions. Where does their influence end? What if the best available candidate doesn't share Landry's leanings? It's ridiculous to even have to consider. Well, everywhere but at LSU.
Atlanta Falcons backup quarterback Kirk Cousins reportedly is still interested in finding a starting job with a different team before the NFL trade deadline arrives at 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Nov. 4. That said, there was no indication throughout October that any team was close to pulling the trigger on a transaction to land his services. For an article published on Friday, Falcons reporter Josh Kendall of The Athletic revealed that it is "unlikely" Cousins will have a new NFL home by the time the first Tuesday of November comes to an end. Why Kirk Cousins, Falcons will likely stay married through trade deadline "Is there a team out there willing to give up a Day 2 draft pick for a 37-year-old quarterback with two-plus years and $115M of cap hits remaining on his contract? Probably not," Kendall wrote. As Kendall pointed out, Cousins was "mediocre" while starting in place of injured starter Michael Penix Jr. for Atlanta's Week 8 home game versus the lowly Miami Dolphins. In total, Cousins completed 21-of-31 passes for 173 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions in a 34-10 blowout loss to what was previously a 1-6 Miami side. That same Dolphins team was booed off its home field during a 28-6 home loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday night. Why Falcons may want to hold onto Kirk Cousins despite his bad outing "Even though Cousins told Falcons owner Arthur Blank during an offseason meeting that he wanted to be traded to a team with which he could start again," Kendall continued, "Atlanta kept him on the roster. And while Cousins has reportedly reiterated his desire to be moved in recent weeks, given what the Falcons would get in return — a late-round pick — it seems likely they’d rather stand pat and keep him as insurance for Penix." The 3-4 Falcons will enter the first weekend of November in the playoff hunt. Blank likely understands that quality QB2s don't simply grow on trees, so it makes sense that he'd want to keep a proven veteran who knows how to run Atlanta's offense on the roster. That said, one wonders if the outcome of this Sunday's game between the Falcons and 6-2 New England Patriots could result in Atlanta dropping its asking price for Cousins. As of Friday morning, ESPN BET had the Falcons as 5.5-point underdogs for the matchup at Gillette Stadium.
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