11/3/23 Hometown Broadcasting Sports Thursday
2 November 2023 Sports
The Packers returned to the practice field Wednesday in preparation for Sunday’s home game against the Rams.
Green Bay listed five players on its injury report. Jaire Alexander (back), Elgton Jenkins (knee), Aaron Jones (hamstring), Luke Musgrave (ankle) and Josh Nijman (foot) were listed and all five saw limited participation.
The Packers (2-5) come into the game hoping to break a 4-game losing streak after losing at home to the Vikings 24-10 Sunday, The Rams (3-5) have lost two-in-row and are coming off a 43-20 loss in Dallas to the Cowboys.
Meanwhile, Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst says the overall struggles of the offense make it tougher to evaluate the progress of Jordan Love in the quarterback’s first season as a starter.
The Packers rank 25th in total offense and haven’t scored a first-half touchdown in their past five games. The Packers (2-5) will try to avoid a fifth consecutive loss Sunday when they host the Los Angeles Rams (3-5).
Although Love is just 27th in passer rating, he hasn’t gotten much help in his first season since taking over for four-time MVP Aaron Rodgers. The 2020 first-round pick is throwing primarily to rookies and second-year pros who haven’t developed as fast as the Packers wanted.
“When the group as a whole is not functioning the way it should function, then it’s hard to evaluate anybody,” Gutekunst said Wednesday. “At the same time, it’s on us to get that right so we can move forward and evaluate the guys we have in that room.”
Gutekunst expressed confidence the Packers would be able to get a good evaluation on Love by the end of the season.
“These are going to be a very important 10 games, and I think he’s done a lot of really good things,” Gutekunst said. “Really like the way he’s responded to the adversity, how he’s led the team. Again, we’ve got to be better as a unit, and I expect that to happen over the next 10 games.”
Shortly after trading Rodgers to the New York Jets, the Packers signed Love to a contract extension running through the 2024 season. That theoretically gives the Packers two seasons to determine whether Love’s the long-term solution.
But if the Packers continue to falter the rest of this season, they could end up with an early enough pick to select one of the top available quarterbacks in next year’s draft.
Love’s season had an encouraging start. He threw six touchdown passes without an interception in the Packers’ first two games. He followed that up by leading a fourth-quarter comeback in which the Packers scored 18 straight points in the last 11 minutes of an 18-17 victory over the New Orleans Saints.
But he has faded since, throwing a combined seven interceptions and four touchdown passes during the Packers’ four-game skid. The entire offense has struggled, showing its inexperience.
In the NBA Wednesday night the Bucks lost in Toronto to the Raptors 130 to 111 to drop to 2-2 on the season. Malik Beasley led Milwaukee with 20 points while Giannis Antetokounmpo was held to 16 and Damian Lillard scored 15. The Bucks host the Knicks Friday night in an in-season tournament game.
In men’s college exhibition basketball Wisconson beat UW-Stevens Point 87-44.
Newcomer A.J. Storr led the Badgers in scoring with a game-high14 points while Connor Essegian and 11 and Steven Crowl chipped in with 10.
Wisconsin hosts Arkansas State Monday at the Kohl Center with the tipoff at 7:00.
It is too early for the Los Angeles Rams to know if Matthew Stafford will be healthy enough to start at the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, leaving coach Sean McVay to prepare for all possibilities.
Brett Rypien took first-team reps in practice on Wednesday, and Dresser Winn ran the scout team after being signed to the practice squad. Stafford was unavailable after spraining a ligament in his right thumb during a 40-23 loss at the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday.
“We’re just taking it a day at a time,” McVay said. “Obviously, (Stafford) won’t participate today, and we’ll have contingency plans for both situations that could potentially arise.”
Stafford doesn’t necessarily have to practice this week in order to play, McVay said, citing the Super Bowl winner’s experience. McVay also ruled out placing Stafford on injured reserve, which would see him miss a minimum of four games.
Rypien got his first regular-season action with the Rams (3-5) in relief on Sunday, going 5-of-10 passing for 42 yards. He threw for 778 yards and four touchdowns against eight interceptions and made three starts in three seasons with the Denver Broncos.
McVay said there would only be minor changes to the offense if Rypien starts. The Rams are averaging 245 yards passing per game, which ranks eighth in the NFL.
In Thursday Night Football Tennessee is at Pittsburgh. The Titans are 3-4 while the Steelers are 4-3.
The Texas Rangers are World Series champs in franchise history after shutting out the Arizona Diamondbacks 5-0 Wednesday night to win in five games. Texas entered the postseason as the fifth of six American League seeds and then went an unprecedented 11-0 on the road.
The Rangers were no-hit through the first six innings by Zac Gallen before their bats came alive in the seventh. Texas picked up one run and then broke it open with four runs in the 9th as Marcus Semien hit a two-run homer.
Texas starter Nathan Eovaldi went six innings to pick up the win to finish 5-0 for the postseason. Arizona threatened to score in each of the first five innings but could not get any runs across. Josh Sborz picked up his first save of the post season. Gallen went 6 1/3 innings giving up 3 hits and one run, all in the 7th and took the loss.
Rangers’shortstop Corey Seager hit three homers and drove in six runs in the series and was named the MVP for the second time in his career.
The Wisconsin Herd, NBA G League affiliate of the Milwaukee Bucks, has finalized its 2023 training camp roster.
The Herd’s 18-man training camp roster features for the first time three Milwaukee Bucks Two-Way players, Lindell Wigginton, TyTy Washington Jr. and Marques Bolden; four Bucks affiliate players, Drew Timme, Kihei Clark, Jazian Gortman and Glenn Robinson III.
The roster also includes Hassane Gueye who was selected in the 2023 NBA G League International Draft, six returning players Wenyen Gabriel, Ibou Badji, Alex Antetokounmpo, Anthony Tarke, Elijah Hughes and Iverson Molinar as well as four local player tryout invitees Yor Anei, Edward Gray, Stevie Thompson Jr. and Sam Peek.
Single-game tickets for all 24 home games for the Wisconsin Herd 2023-24 season are on sale now. Single-game tickets can be purchased at https://www.ticketmaster.com/wisconsin-herd-tickets/artist/2414076?home_away=home
Full-season ticket memberships are still available for purchase. For more information, visit https://wisconsin.gleague.nba.com/full.
Mobile Ticket Information:
For the 2023-24 season, Wisconsin Herd tickets will only be accessible through mobile ticketing. Everyone attending should come prepared in advance with a ticket.
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