Sports
Looking to avoid 0-3 start, Giants shift focus to Browns
Sep 15, 2024; Landover, Maryland, USA; New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers (1) holds his face after dropping a pass against the Washington Commanders in the second half at Commanders Field. Mandatory Credit: Luke Johnson-Imagn Images
The New York Giants are already in must-win territory when they visit the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.
The Giants (0-2) lost their first two games of the season to the Minnesota Vikings and Washington Commanders. If they lose to the Browns (1-1), things really get dicey. New York then has a short week before hosting the Dallas Cowboys next Thursday.
“I’m pissed because I hate losing with a passion,” Giants nose tackle Dexter Lawrence II said Wednesday. “I take that hard — losing. I really don’t like it. For me, it’s just something that I’m not going to keep accepting.”
The anxiety is growing as only two teams (out of 32) that started 0-2 over the past four seasons made the playoffs.
That 6.3 success rate raises the urgency. But Giants coach Brian Daboll said he doesn’t think desperation has set in.
“I want to see consistency like we talk about every week,” Daboll said. “Go in, prepare the right way, come out, play a good football game, do good in situations, play together. Each week is its own week, and we’ll just focus on the Browns this week.”
Cleveland split its first two games, getting routed by the Cowboys in its opener before posting an 18-13 road win over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday.
“It wasn’t perfect, wasn’t always pretty, but it was gritty,” Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said of the victory. “And I thought the guys found a way there. And it’s certainly a learning experience. I think win, lose or draw, you gotta learn from these things.”
One area the Browns need to improve is penalties. Cleveland has committed a league-worst 24 penalties.
“I’m not going to ignore the fact that we have the most called penalties against us in the league,” Stefanski said. “We watched every single one of them as a team. We’re going to correct the ones that we can correct and we’re just going to play really clean with our technique, but it’s something that we’ll continue to address.”
The Browns averaged 17.5 points over their first two games, while New York is posting 12 per game.
Still, Stefanski is surprised the Giants are winless.
“That 0-2 is very misleading to me,” Stefanski said. “They lost at home in Week 1, which obviously we lost at home in Week 1. And then they go on the road, and they play good enough to win, and had some extenuating circumstances with the kicker.”
Veteran Graham Gano entered the game against Washington with a sore groin and then injured a hamstring while trying to chase down Austin Ekeler on a 98-yard opening kickoff return for touchdown that was negated by a Commanders’ penalty. Punter Jamie Gillan missed an extra point after New York’s first touchdown and the Giants later missed on two two-point conversion passes in the 21-18 loss.
The loss of Gano hurt the most when New York faced fourth-and-4 from the Washington 22-yard line with the score tied. The Giants went for it and failed to convert when rookie Malik Nabers dropped a pass that would have resulted in a first down. The Commanders took over with 2:04 left and won on Austin Seibert’s 30-yard field goal as time expired.
“Once you look back on the record, you are going to feel like one of those losses was mine,” said Nabers, who has 15 receptions in two games. “I’m going to continue to move forward, get better and work on how I cannot drop that pass again.”
Gano was placed on injured reserve on Tuesday and New York signed Greg Joseph off the Detroit Lions’ practice squad to handle the kicking.
The only Giants’ player to miss practice Wednesday was cornerback Nick McCloud (knee).
Cleveland tight end David Njoku (ankle) is expected to miss his second straight game. Others to miss practice Wednesday were star defensive end Myles Garrett (foot), offensive tackle Dawand Jones (knee), receiver Jamari Thrash (illness) and running back Pierre Strong (hamstring).
Browns standout cornerback Denzel Ward (shoulder) played just 11 snaps against Jacksonville. He was a limited practice participant on Wednesday.
In the most recent meeting, the Browns recorded a 20-6 road win over the Giants in 2020.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Warriors star Steph Curry out at least 5 more games with knee injury
Feb 22, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) cheers from the bench during a game against the Denver Nuggets in the third quarter at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: David Gonzales-Imagn Images The Golden State Warriors on Sunday said Stephen Curry will miss the next five games before his right knee injury is re-evaluated.
Curry, who hasn’t played since Jan. 30, is officially out for Monday’s home game against the Los Angeles Clippers with “right patellofemoral pain syndrome,” also called “runner’s knee.” It’s an overuse condition that is marked by pain around the kneecap.
In addition to the Clippers game, Curry will miss the Warriors’ three-game road trip to Houston, Oklahoma City and Utah and a home game against Chicago on March 10. The soonest he could be back is March 13 against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Warriors have said Curry is making progress but is not doing work on the court yet.
Golden State (31-29) is in eighth place in the Western Conference and just 4-6 in the games Curry has missed before and after the All-Star break. The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Warriors 129-101 on Saturday.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Anders Lee's game-winner downs Panthers, caps another Islanders comeback
Mar 1, 2026; Elmont, New York, USA; New York Islanders left wing Anders Lee (27) controls the puck against the Florida Panthers during the first period at UBS Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Schneidler-Imagn Images Anders Lee scored the game-winning goal with 30.9 seconds left Sunday night for the surging New York Islanders, who overcame another two-goal deficit to beat the Florida Panthers, 5-4, in Elmont. N.Y.
Lee got a step on Aaron Ekblad, extended his stick to draw out goalie Sergei Bobrovsky and buried a forehand into the wide open left corner of the net.
Rookie Mathew Schafer scored twice while Carson Soucy and Bo Horvat also scored for the Islanders, who have won five straight games. New York has trailed 2-0 in each of its last three victories.
Goalie David Rittich made 29 saves.
Sam Bennett scored twice while Sandis Vilmanis and Sam Reinhart scored one apiece for the Panthers, who have lost seven of nine (2-7-0). Bobrovsky recorded 21 saves.
Vilmanis opened the scoring 3:44 after the opening faceoff, when he gloved a pass from A.J. Greer and backhanded a shot that trickled under Rittich’s legs.
Bennett doubled the lead by scoring six seconds into a power play with 5:06 left, when his shot from the left faceoff circle sailed past Rittich’s glove.
The Islanders began their latest comeback in unusual fashion with 1:59 remaining, when Schaefer’s shot from the right faceoff circle bounced before the crease, caromed over Bobrovsky’s head and glanced off the top post before bouncing off his back and into the net.
Soucy tied the score with a 4-on-4 goal 7:28 into the second. The defenseman took a drop pass from Simon Holmstrom, who was draped by the Panthers’ Gustav Forsling, and sent a shot under Bobrovsky’s glove.
Bennett gave the Panthers the lead again with 7:56 remaining, when his backhander from the middle of the right faceoff circle went under Rittich’s stick arm.
Horvat tied the score with 2:46 left with an angled shot from near the goal line that landed beneath Bobrovsky’s stick.
Schaefer gave the Islanders their first lead by scoring from the slot with 9:31 left in the third. This gave Schaefer 20 on the year at just 18 years old, making him the youngest defenseman to ever record 20 goals in a season and the youngest since Dion Phaneuf (20 years old) did it for the Calgary Flames in 2005-06.
With Bobrovsky pulled for an extra attacker, Reinhart tied it back up with 1:58 remaining.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Lionel Messi, Miami score four in second half to upend Orlando
Mar 1, 2026; Orlando, Florida, USA; Inter Miami CF forward Lionel Messi (10) controls the ball from Orlando City SC defender Tahir Reid-Brown (29) in the first half at Inter&Co Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images Lionel Messi recorded a brace, Telasco Sevogia scored the tiebreaking goal in the 85th minute and assisted on two others and Inter Miami dominated the second half to record a 4-2 comeback victory over host Orlando City on Sunday night.
Mateo Silvetti added a goal and an assist in Inter Miami’s four-goal second half that erased a 2-0 deficit. The Herons (1-1-0, 3 points) bounced back from a 3-0 season-opening loss to Los Angeles FC.
Messi, who scored in the 57th and 90th minutes, has eight goals in five meetings against the Lions across all competitions.
Marco Pasalic and Martin Ojeda scored goals for Orlando City (0-2-0, 0 points).
Orlando was unable to clear the ball out of its zone on the tiebreaking sequence.
Miami’s German Berterame came up with the ball to begin the sequence. Sevogia eventually received it and booted a right-footed shot into the net.
Three minutes later, Orlando City’s Colin Guske pulled Messi down and was given his second yellow card. The automatic upgrade to red led to Guske’s ejection, leaving the Lions with just 10 men for the rest of the match that included 10 minutes of stoppage time.
Messi then took a free kick from close range in the 90th minute and sent a left-footed shot past the wall and inside the left post to give the Herons a two-goal lead.
Dayne St. Clair made three saves for Miami, which outshot Orlando City 16-12 and placed eight shots on target to the Lions’ five.
Maxime Crepeau had four stops for Orlando City.
Orlando City won both regular-season meetings last season, prevailing by scores of 4-0 and 3-1.
Miami woke up fast after the halftime break.
Silvetti was beyond the box when he ripped a right-footed shot into the left corner of the net in the 49th minute.
Messi scored the equalizer eight minutes later by lining a left-footed shot inside the right post.
Ojeda had a big opportunity to put Orlando City back ahead in the 70th minute but St. Clair made a leg save on Ojeda’s close-ranged left-footed shot.
Orlando struck in the 18th minute when Ivan Angulo fed Pasalic, who sent a left-footed grounder that caromed off the arms of St. Clair and into the net.
Six minutes later, the Lions made it 2-0 when Ojeda performed a give-and-go with Griffin Dorsey. Upon receiving the ball back, Ojeda sent a right-footed shot into the right corner.
Crepeau made three first-half saves, including one of Messi in the 28th minute. Messi also sent a free kick wide left of the net late in the half.
–Field Level Media
Warriors star Steph Curry out at least 5 more games with knee injury
Anders Lee's game-winner downs Panthers, caps another Islanders comeback
