Carolina Panthers quarterback Baker Mayfield said he will undergo an MRI on Monday after injuring his left ankle in Sunday’s loss to the San Francisco 49ers.
Mayfield attended his postgame press conference with a walking boot on his lower left leg. The struggling former number one overall pick sustained the injury late in the first half of Carolina’s 37-15 defeat, but remained in the game until being replaced for the Panthers' final possession with the outcome no longer in doubt.
"Somebody landed on the ankle," Mayfield told reporters. "It didn’t feel too good.
"[It’s] a little painful right now. I’m not sure exactly what it is. We’ll examine that [Monday] and find out."
The injury added to another ineffective performance from Mayfield, who entered the game 31st out of 32 qualified quarterbacks in completion percentage (54.7) and 30th in passer rating (75.0). The offseason addition finished the day 20 of 36 for 215 yards with no touchdowns and an interception that the 49ers’ Emmanuel Moseley returned 41 yards for a touchdown.
"I’m confident with where I’m at," Mayfield said when asked about his job security. "I haven’t played well enough, obviously. There’s a lot of ball left.
"I don’t live in the past, I live in the moment. Figure it out and move forward."
Sunday’s loss dropped the Panthers to 1-4 and was the team’s 11th in its last 12 games under head coach Matt Ruhle, whose future has also come under speculation.
"I would love to be in a better position record-wise, but you keep pushing forward," Mayfield said. "It’s not time to put your head down and give up."
With 2021 starter Sam Darnold still on injured reserve with a high-ankle sprain, P.J. Walker would presumably start at quarterback should Mayfield be forced to miss next week’s game against the Rams in Los Angeles.
Darnold, selected two spots behind Mayfield in the 2018 draft, started 11 games for the Panthers in 2021 but was displaced from the starting quarterback’s role following the team’s acquisition of Mayfield from the Cleveland Browns in July.
Mayfield became expendable to the Browns when Cleveland traded for the currently suspended Deshaun Watson earlier in the offseason and signed the former Houston Texan to a five-year, $230million extension.
Cousins throws for 509 yards, 4 touchdowns in Falcons' OT win over Buccaneers
Kirk Cousins passed for a career-high 509 yards and four touchdowns, the last of them a 45-yard scoring pass to KhaDarel Hodge in overtime that gave the Atlanta Falcons an improbable 36-30 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday night.
After a wild fourth quarter that featured a blocked field goal, a fumble and an interception, Cousins and the Falcons (3-2) got the ball back at their own 20 with 1:14 remaining in regulation and no timeouts, trailing 30-27.
Cousins completed five passes to push Atlanta to the Buccaneers 29, then hustled to the line to spike the ball with a single second on the clock. In all the confusion, the Falcons were called for delay of game as they lined up for a tying field goal, but it didn't cost them.
Younghoe Koo knocked it through from 52 yards to force overtime, one week after he made a 58-yarder with 2 seconds left to beat the New Orleans Saints.
The Falcons won the coin toss in overtime and made sure Baker Mayfield and the Buccaneers (3-2) didn't get their hands on the ball again. Cousins connected with Drake London on a couple of passes before throwing one over the middle to Hodge, who split the secondary and raced untouched to the end zone to end the game.
Chiefs place top wide receiver Rice on injured reserve
Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid told the media Thursday the team was waiting for swelling to go down on Rashee Rice's knee before performing additional tests.
Three hours later, the Chiefs had enough information to know he'll be side-lined for at least one month.
The Chiefs placed Rice on injured reserve later Thursday, meaning he will out for a minimum of four weeks.
Rice was injured in last Sunday's 17-10 win over the Los Angeles Chargers, and it was reported he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee.
There has been no update on the extent of the injury, but a torn ACL would side-line him for the rest of the season.
The second-year receiver was injured on a bizarre play when he collided with Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who inadvertently dove into Rice's knee as the two team-mates were attempting to tackle Chargers cornerback Kristian Fulton on an interception return.
Rice was carted off to the locker room shortly after leaving the field and eventually ruled out of the game.
His injury is the latest blow to a Kansas City team that is already without leading rusher Isiah Pacheco, who is recovering from a fractured fibula he sustained in Week 2.
It also leaves Mahomes without his top target, as Rice led the NFL with 24 receptions through this season's first three weeks.
No other Kansas City player had double-digit receptions entering Week 4, though Travis Kelce finally took on a larger role in the offence.
The veteran tight end had seven receptions for 89 yards against the Chargers after catching eight passes for 69 yards in the first three games.
Despite losing two of their top play-makers, the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs are 4-0 heading into their Week 5 Monday night game against the New Orleans Saints.
'It was a good day' - Goff proud of setting new NFL record
Jared Goff was proud of making history, as he set an NFL single-game record by completing all 18 of his pass attempts to help the Detroit Lions to victory.
The Lions beat the previously unbeaten Seattle Seahawks 42-29 on Monday, with Goff eclipsing Hall of Famer Kurt Warner's 10-for-10 performance in 2005, the previous standard for most passes in a game without an incompletion.
The quarterback threw for 292 yards, including touchdown passes to Jameson Williams and Amon-Ra St. Brown on his perfect evening, while also hauling in the latter's 7-yard toss for a touchdown in the third quarter.
That made him the first quarterback with a receiving touchdown since Zach Wilson in 2022, while he also became the first QB in NFL history with 15 or more pass attempts with no incompletions in a game.
Goff was aware that he was closing in on a perfect game, even if he had doubts at one point.
"I knew I did it in the first half last week, so I was aware of it then, and I was kind of aware of it today in the middle of the third quarter," he said.
"I couldn't think of one [incompletion], but then I threw the one out of bounds that ended up being offensive pass interference, and I was like, 'Does that count?' I didn't know if that counted or not.
"But yeah, it was a good day."
On his touchdown reception, he added: "No, I think that's my first one, too. Ever.
"And I'm saying all the way back to 7 years old, I think that's my first one."
Lions coach Dan Campbell did not realise how impressive Goff's performance had been after the game, choosing to give the game ball to Williams and safety Kerby Joseph for their strong play.
"I just gave the game ball to somebody else," Campbell laughed. "So, I feel awful right now.
"I knew he played a heck of a game. I did not realize he was perfect. I did not know he was literally 18 for 18.
"I thought what really kick-started him was that he had to move a little in the pocket, got spun around and hung with Jamo [Williams] and hit him on the hook for the first down, that was big because he was rolling after that."
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
