THE WEATHER REPORT
Weather conditions for key NFL, college football games this weekend
Stephen Uzick
Nov 30, 2018, 11:06 am
Aaron Rodgers will be in familiar surroundings. Andy Lyons
After a couple of weeks off the weather report is back this week. I know you all missed me dearly. And speaking of misses, boy did I miss out on getting something written about that Washington-Washington State game before it started. Well not to worry, I have some more snow for you this week. Lets get to that weather.
Bears @ Giants (12:00 PM Sunday): Temperatures will be comfortable, especially for this time of year, rising all the way into the mid to upper 50s. The issue here will be rain. Some potentially heavy rain will be moving through Sunday morning. It looks like the bulk of it should be out of the area by game time, however it is close enough that we could still see some rain lingering during the early portions of the game.
Cardinals @ Packers (12:00 PM Sunday): Ah December in Green Bay – and the conditions will be true to form here. Temperatures will be in the mid to low 30s, so not that cold relatively speaking. But the issue here will be snow. It looks like snow could be falling throughout the game and pick up to be moderate to heavy at times. In addition to the snow winds will be around 20 MPH gusting to 30 MPH. Probably not ideal for the dome team from the desert, not that they are any good at football anyway.
Panthers @ Buccaneers AND Colts @ Jaguars (12:00 PM Sunday): We’ll see typical Florida conditions at both of these games. Temperatures will be near 80 degrees with about a 40-50% chance of some passing rain during the game. Not looking for a deluge but it could be a bit damp at times.
Vikings @ Patriots (3:25 PM Sunday): Temperatures here will be in the mid 40s, again not so bad for the northeast in December. Similarly, to New York an area of rain will be moving through on Sunday. While the rain will linger a bit longer in the Boston area, the later start of this game will keep it from being a washout. Look for rain to be possible early on with chances declining as the game goes on.
COLLEGE SPECIAL
Pac-12 Championship Game in Santa Clara, California
Utah vs. Washington (7:00 PM Friday): While California has received a nice drenching recently rain does not look to be in the cards here. The only potential issue will be winds early on which could gust up to 20 MPH. After halftime though winds should die down.
ACC Championship in Charlotte, North Carolina
Clemson vs. Pittsburgh (7:00 PM Saturday): Rain looks likely here and could possibly be quite heavy at times. Additionally, the potential exists for a few thunderstorms, so a lightning delay isn’t totally out of the question here.
As always you can find me on Twitter @stephenuzick for any other weather questions you may have.
What looked like a minor blip after an emotional series win in Los Angeles has turned into something more concerning for the Houston Astros.
Swept at home by a Guardians team that came in riding a 10-game losing streak, the Astros were left looking exposed. Not exhausted, as injuries, underperformance, and questionable decision-making converged to hand Houston one of its most frustrating series losses of the year.
Depth finally runs dry
It would be easy to point to a “Dodger hangover” as the culprit, the emotional peak of an 18-1 win at Chavez Ravine followed by a mental lull. But that’s not the story here.
Houston’s energy was still evident, especially in the first two games of the series, where the offense scored five or more runs each time. Including those, the Astros had reached that mark in eight of their last 10 games heading into Wednesday’s finale.
But scoring isn’t everything, not when a lineup held together by duct tape and desperation is missing Christian Walker and Jake Meyers and getting critical at-bats from Cooper Hummel, Zack Short, and other journeymen.
The lack of depth finally showed. The Astros, for three days, looked more like a Triple-A squad with Jose Altuve and a couple big-league regulars sprinkled in.
Cracks in the pitching core
And the thing that had been keeping this team afloat, elite pitching, finally buckled.
Hunter Brown and Josh Hader, both dominant all season, finally cracked. Brown gave up six runs in six innings, raising his pristine 1.82 ERA to 2.21. Hader wasn’t spared either, coughing up a game-losing grand slam in extra innings that inflated his ERA from 1.80 to 2.38 in one night.
But the struggles weren’t isolated. Bennett Sousa, Kaleb Ort, and Steven Okert each gave up runs at critical moments. The bullpen’s collective fade could not have come at a worse time for a team already walking a tightrope.
Injury handling under fire
Houston’s injury management is also drawing heat, and rightfully so. Jake Meyers, who had been nursing a calf strain, started Wednesday’s finale. He didn’t even make it through one pitch before aggravating the injury and needing to be helped off the field.
No imaging before playing him. No cautionary rest despite the All-Star break looming. Just a rushed return in a banged-up lineup, and it backfired immediately.
Second-guessing has turned to outright criticism of the Astros’ medical staff, as fans and analysts alike wonder whether these mounting injuries are being made worse by how the club is handling them.
Pressure mounts on Dana Brown
All eyes now turn to Astros GM Dana Brown. The Astros are limping into the break with no clear reinforcements on the immediate horizon. Only Chas McCormick is currently rehabbing in Sugar Land. Everyone else? Still sidelined.
Brown will need to act — and soon.
At a minimum, calling up top prospect Brice Matthews makes sense. He’s been mashing in Triple-A (.283/.400/.476, 10 HR, .876 OPS) and could play second base while Jose Altuve shifts to left field more regularly. With Mauricio Dubón stretched thin between shortstop and center, injecting Matthews’ upside into the infield is a logical step.
*Editor's note: The Astros must be listening, Matthews was called up Thursday afternoon!
The Astros are calling up Brice Matthews, their top prospect on @MLBPipeline
via @brianmctaggart pic.twitter.com/K91cGKkcx6
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) July 10, 2025
There’s also trade chatter, most notably about Orioles outfielder Cedric Mullins, but excitement has been tepid. His numbers don’t jump off the page, but compared to who the Astros are fielding now, Mullins would be a clear upgrade and a much-needed big-league presence.
A final test before the break
Before the All-Star reset, Houston gets one last chance to stabilize the ship, and it comes in the form of a rivalry series against the Texas Rangers. The Astros will send their top trio — Lance McCullers Jr., Framber Valdez, and Hunter Brown — to the mound for a three-game set that will test their resolve, their health, and perhaps their postseason aspirations.
The Silver Boot is up for grabs. So is momentum. And maybe, clarity on just how far this version of the Astros can go.
There's so much more to discuss! Don't miss the video below as we examine the topics above and much, much more!
The MLB season is finally upon us! Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday.
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*ChatGPT assisted.
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