THE LEFT TURN
NASCAR heads home to Charlotte for the Coca-Cola 600
May 28, 2021, 11:15 am
Start your engines! Photo via: Wiki Commons.
NASCAR heads home this week to one of the crown jewels of NASCAR for the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. This race is considered by many to be the second most important race on the schedule behind the Daytona 500. Its six-hundred mile distance makes it one of the most difficult races not just in NASCAR but in the world. The race begins in the heat of dusk and as the race winds down the track cools off tremendously and there is a lot more grip. Things will really start to change late in the race as there are four stages instead of the regular three. Considering this race is the Coca-Cola 600, there will also be practice and qualifying this week, so that could really give us a good idea of who has speed this week.
Last week's race at Circuit of the Americas we saw something we have never seen before and may never see again, racing in the rain. This was an absolute disaster, and it wasn't because of the rain itself but the standing water that came with the rain. Because of the large puddles of water around this massive 3 mile racetrack, it was next to impossible to see through the spray. There were multiple serious accidents involving Bubba Wallace, Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr. and Cole Custer. When asked about the conditions, Harvick responded by saying "We don't have any business doing this. This was the most unsafe I have ever felt in a race car." The race was red-flagged and the track was dried enough to where it was serviceable, but there were still plenty of drivers who drove off track or spun out. When the waters settled, it appeared that it was going to come down to Hendrick teammates, Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson but along came the rain again. It got so bad that NASCAR decided to end the race early and award Chase Elliott the victory. This is the sixth victory on a road course for the defending champion and his first win of the season.
With Chase's victory, this now means that all four Hendrick Motorsports cars have clinched a spot in the playoffs. This is the first time since 2014 that this team has been able to accomplish this feat. These last couple of years have been especially tough for the winningest team in NASCAR and while they did win the title last year, it seemed like the team as a whole had a hard time finding speed. What a difference a year makes as now each driver has won a race this year. One thing I can attribute to this run of success was the decision to move crew-chief Chad Kanus to Vice President of Competition. Because of this, he can now focus on making the entire team better as a whole and not just one car in William Byron. Look for Hendrick Motorsports to continue to be the team to beat in the future.
While all eyes will be on the Hendrick four horsemen, the driver I have winning this week is Penske driver Joey Logano. The 2018 champion punched his ticket to the round of 16 by winning at the Bristol dirt race, since then it has been up and down. He has found a bit of a groove here in the past two weeks with back to back top fives at Darlington and COTA. I think he is due for another win. This track has been pretty good to him, and he has the highest average finish here of all active drivers. Look for Logano to take the #22 Mustang to his second victory of 2021.
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Oct 30, 2024, 3:06 pm
The Jets host the Texans and their scary defense on Halloween night! Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images.
Houston (6-2) at New York Jets (2-6)
Thursday, 8:15 p.m. EDT, Amazon Prime
BetMGM NFL odds: Jets by 2.
Against the spread: Texans 3-4-1; Jets 2-6.
Series record: Jets lead 7-3.
Last meeting: Jets beat Texans 30-6 in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on Dec. 10, 2023.
Last week: Texans beat Colts 23-20; Jets lost to Patriots 25-22.
Texans offense: overall (9t), rush (18), pass (8), scoring (14).
Texans defense: overall (2), rush (13), pass (3), scoring (15t).
Jets offense: overall (24), rush (30), pass (13), scoring (25).
Jets defense: overall (4), rush (17), pass (2), scoring (11t).
Turnover differential: Texans plus-4; Jets minus-3.
Texans player to watch
RB Joe Mixon. He has carried Houston's offense in the three games since he returned from an injury and could be even more important this week after wide receiver Stefon Diggs tore the ACL in his right knee last Sunday and is out for the season. Mixon ranks third in the NFL by averaging 100.6 yards rushing a game and has had at least 100 yards rushing and a TD run in three straight games.
Jets player to watch
Edge rusher Haason Reddick. After ending his lengthy contract holdout early last week, Reddick made his Jets debut and played 26 snaps on defense with two quarterback pressures while working mostly on third downs. His snaps might increase a bit Thursday and he could help the Jets get after C.J. Stroud, who has been sacked 22 times this season — tied for third most in the NFL.
Key matchup
Jets offensive line vs. Texans' pass rush. New York has had issues this season with injuries, consistency and protecting Aaron Rodgers. The Jets will face a tough test Thursday night against the Texans, whose 27 sacks are third in the NFL. DE Will Anderson Jr. is tied for third in the league with a career-high 7 1/2 sacks, including at least one in his past three games. DE Danielle Hunter has 5 1/2 sacks and DT Tim Settle has four, powering a formidable defensive front for Houston. Hunter leads the league with 51 quarterback pressures and Anderson is fourth with 39, the only teammates in the top 15, according to Next Gen Stats.
Key injuries
Diggs' injury leaves Houston without its top two receivers. Nico Collins, who leads the Texans with 567 yards receiving, is out for at least one more game after being placed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury. ... S Calen Bullock was limited in practice Monday and Tuesday after injuring his shoulder Sunday. … LBs Azeez Al-Shaair (knee) and Henry To’oTo’o (concussion) both missed the Colts game, but could return this week. … S Jimmie Ward could miss a fifth straight game with a groin injury. … LG Jarrett Patterson is in the concussion protocol and is likely out. … RB Dameon Pierce missed practice this week with a groin injury. ... Jets LB C.J. Mosley suffered a stinger in his neck during pregame warmups at New England and was meeting with neck and spine specialists this week. ... RG Alijah Vera-Tucker (ankle), WR Allen Lazard (chest), DL Leki Fotu (knee) and safeties Tony Adams (hamstring) and Ashtyn Davis (concussion) all missed the game vs. the Patriots and their availability for this week was uncertain. ... K Greg Zuerlein was placed on IR. Riley Patterson and Spencer Shrader were signed to the practice squad, and one will be promoted for the game.
Series notes
The Jets have won the past two meetings. ... New York won the first five meetings, including the first game between the franchises in 2003, when LaMont Jordan's late 8-yard touchdown run helped lift the Jets to a 19-14 victory. ... Zach Wilson threw two touchdown passes in the most recent meeting, a 30-6 rout by New York during which Stroud left with a concussion.
Stats and stuff
The AFC South-leading Texans have won four of their past five. ... Stroud is 2-0 with three touchdowns and zero interceptions in two career starts in prime time. He had 285 yards passing last week for his ninth career game with at least that many yards passing, which is tied for second most in the NFL since 2023. ... WR Tank Dell had a touchdown reception last week and has a TD catch in two of his past three games. ... TE Dalton Schultz had a season-high 52 yards receiving against the Colts. He has two TD receptions in each of his past two Thursday night games. ... Hunter has 10½ sacks in eight career Thursday night games. … LB Neville Hewitt, who spent the 2018-21 seasons with the Jets, forced a fumble last week. … Rookie CB Kamari Lassiter had a career-high three passes defended last week. … S Jalen Pitre had his first interception of the season last week. ... S Eric Murray had seven tackles and a season-high three passes defended last week. ... New York is trying to snap a five-game skid. ... Jeff Ulbrich is 0-3 as the Jets’ interim head coach since replacing the fired Robert Saleh on Oct. 8. Ulbrich, also the team's defensive coordinator, said earlier this week he'll continue to call plays on defense. … Rodgers snapped a streak of three consecutive games with an interception. He has seven in eight games, six shy of his single-season career high set in 2008 in his first year as Green Bay’s starting quarterback. ... Rodgers hasn't passed for 300 yards since throwing for 341 against Chicago on Dec. 12, 2021 — a span of 30 regular-season games and 31 overall, including one playoff game. ... WR Garrett Wilson leads the NFL with 84 targets, 11 more than the Giants’ Malik Nabers. Wilson’s 51 receptions are second in the league behind Las Vegas’ Brock Bowers, who has 52. ... WR Davante Adams had four catches for 54 yards, giving him seven receptions for 84 yards in two games since being acquired from the Raiders. ... Second-year WR Xavier Gipson caught his first career TD pass last Sunday. ... TE Tyler Conklin has a TD catch in consecutive games after not having one since catching two TD passes in Week 8 of the 2022 season against New England. ... RB Breece Hall has 316 yards receiving, the most among NFL running backs. ... Edge rusher Will McDonald has eight sacks, second in the NFL to the Giants’ Dexter Lawrence (nine). … The Jets have only six takeaways, ranking among the fewest in the league. Backup CB Brandin Echols has New York's only two interceptions.
Fantasy tip
Houston wide receiver John Metchie is coming off a career-best three-catch game and could see more targets — and perhaps his first NFL touchdown — with both Diggs and Collins out. Might be worth a stash as a potential WR3.
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