Wayne Byers Show – Morning – Sept. 28

NFL ..

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott lost the handle on the ball while being rushed in the end zone, spotted the Eagles an easy touchdown and then proceeded to dismantle them.

Prescott threw for three touchdowns in his first home game since he suffered an ankle injury on the same field almost a year ago, Trevon Diggs returned an interception 59 yards for a score and Dallas dominated Philadelphia 41-21 on Monday night. Except for the fumble, Prescott was efficient, going 21 of 26 for 238 yards without an interception in the first NFC East game for both teams.

Ezekiel Elliott ran for a season-high 95 yards and two touchdowns, and tight end Dalton Schultz had the first two-TD game of his career.

Prescott’s first game at AT&T Stadium since the season-ending compound fracture and dislocation of his right ankle in Week 5 last year against the New York Giants was also the return to full capacity, with 93,267 inside and the retractable roof open at the $1.2 billion facility.

NFL-NEWS

— The Denver Broncos will be without speedy receiver KJ Hamler for the rest of the season. Hamler tore his left ACL in the Broncos’ 26-0 win over the New York Jets. He was the Broncos’ second-round pick last season. Their top 2020 pick is wide receiver Jerry Jeudy who is also injured.

UNDATED (AP) — The Jacksonville Jaguars are sending cornerback CJ Henderson, the ninth overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft, to the Carolina Panthers in exchange for tight end Dan Arnold.

The deal also includes a swap of draft picks in 2022: Jacksonville gets Carolina’s third-rounder, the Panthers get a fifth-rounder in return from the Jaguars.

Trading Henderson fills a need for unbeaten Carolina and unloads a headache for the winless Jaguars. Panthers first-round pick Jaycee Horn broke a bone in his right foot against Houston on Thursday night and could miss the rest of the season. Henderson had become Jacksonville’s latest first-round flop.

Elsewhere in the NFL:

— Panthers coach Matt Rhule said the team has decided not to place running back Christian McCaffrey on injured reserve while he recovers from a strained hamstring. Had McCaffrey been placed on IR he would have missed at least three games. However, by keeping him on the 53-man roster there is a chance he could return sooner.

— Chiefs coach Andy Reid has been released from the hospital. He felt ill and was taken by ambulance to be treated for dehydration following the Chiefs’ 30-24 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. The 63-year-old Reid is expected to coach Sunday when the Chiefs visit Philadelphia.

MLB..

UNDATED (AP) —Mitch Haniger hit two identical three-run homers and the Seattle Mariners gained precious ground in the AL wild-card race with a 13-4 win over the Oakland Athletics.

Seattle’s 10th straight victory against Oakland tied the team record for most consecutive wins against a single opponent. The Mariners have won eight of nine overall and nine of their last 11. They are 1 1/2 games behind Boston for the second wild card, with Toronto a game back of the Red Sox. Both those teams were off Monday. Oakland fell 3 1/2 games behind Boston and two back of the Mariners with two more games to play in Seattle.

In other Monday action:

—Josiah Gray pitched into the sixth inning to earn his second career win, and the Washington Nationals beat the Colorado Rockies 5-4. Luis García hit a two-run single and Alcides Escobar had three hits for the Nationals. Gray, who made his major league debut with the Dodgers on July 20, has won consecutive starts. The prized right-hander was acquired July 30 in the blockbuster trade that sent Max Scherzer and Trea Turner to Los Angeles. Colorado has lost 10 of 11 home games, including two three-game sweeps by the San Francisco Giants.

— Joey Votto homered twice and drove in four runs, and the Cincinnati Reds pounded the Pittsburgh Pirates 13-1 to stay alive in the race for the second NL wild card. Nick Castellanos, rookie Jonathan India and Eugenio Suarez also connected as Cincinnati posted its fourth straight victory, clinching a second straight winning season. Castellanos had five RBIs, and India finished with four hits and scored four times. The Reds pulled within 5 1/2 games of idle St. Louis for the second wild card. The Cardinals need just one more win to secure the spot.

— Eloy Jiménez hit a two-run home run, Yasmani Grandal homered to spark a six-run fourth inning and the AL Central champion Chicago White Sox held off the Detroit Tigers in a testy 8-7 win. The benches cleared after Chicago first baseman Jose Abreu and Detroit shortstop Niko Goodrum exchanged words when Abreu was tagged out attempting to steal second base in the ninth.

—The Cleveland Indians have won their last home game before they become the Guardians, beating the Kansas City Royals 8-3. Amed Rosario homered, drove in three runs and had four hits and Cal Quantrill pitched six strong innings to delight a Progressive Field crowd that came to see the Indians play one last time under the name they’ve carried since 1915. The team announced the name change earlier this year in the wake of a nationwide reckoning over racist names and symbols.

Cleveland’s Bradley Zimmer homered off his brother, Kansas City reliever Kyle Zimmer, in the eighth.

MLB-NEWS

Giants 1B Brandon Belt has broken left thumb, status unclear

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Giants first baseman and home run leader Brandon Belt has a broken left thumb and his availability for the final week of the regular season and playoffs is unclear. The Giants said an X-ray showed the broken bone and Belt will “continue to meet with doctors over the next couple of days to develop a recovery plan and timetable for his return.”

The injury is a big blow for the NL West leaders, who begin a home series with the Diamondbacks on Tuesday night still seeking to close out their first division title since 2012. The Dodgers are two games back to start the season’s last week.

NBA-NEWS

— The Minnesota Timberwolves are familiar with change. They’re undergoing plenty of it with training camp about to start. The biggest shakeup came last week when president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas was fired. Star center Karl-Anthony Towns says he had just joked the day before the dismissal about the offseason being strangely quiet until then. There’s also an ownership transfer taking place from Glen Taylor to partners Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez. The $1.5 billion sale is scheduled to be completed in two years, when Lore and Rodriguez will become majority owners.

NEW YORK (AP) — Forward Michael Porter Jr. has agreed to a five-year maximum extension with the Denver Nuggets that could be worth up to $207 million. His agent, Mark Bartelstein, confirmed the deal to The Associated Press.

Porter’s agreement would be worth at least $173 million over five years and could rise to the supermax level of $207 million over that span if he reaches certain criteria this season.

He’s assured of making at least $29.8 million in 2022-23, a figure that would rise if he qualified for more by being voted onto an All-NBA team or winning the league’s MVP award this season.

Elsewhere in the NBA:

— Giannis Antetokounmpo (YAH’-nihs an-teh-toh-KOON’-poh) says he feels fine as he prepares for the Milwaukee Bucks’ title defense but will be careful with the left knee that he hyperextended during the championship run. Antetokounmpo missed the final two games of the Eastern Conference finals after hurting his knee but returned to earn MVP honors in the NBA Finals. He scored 50 points in a title-clinching Game 6 victory over the Phoenix Suns.

– Unable to attend the Brooklyn Nets’ media day, Kyrie Irving asked for privacy when pressed about his vaccination status and availability for home games. The All-Star guard spoke via Zoom through a monitor set up in the interview room at Barclays Center. If a player is not vaccinated, he would be forced to sit out the Nets’ home games. Irving says his status will be cleared up at a later date.

In world and national news…

WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican senators have blocked a bill to keep the U.S. government funded and allow borrowing. But Democrats determined to avoid a federal shutdown say they will try again this week. All this as Democrats also press ahead on President Joe Biden’s big domestic policy agenda. The tangled efforts Monday are not necessarily linked. But the fiscal year-end deadline to fund government operations past Thursday is up against the Democrats’ desire to make progress on Biden’s $3.5 trillion federal government overhaul. Republicans reject Biden’s package as too big. And they won’t vote for more borrowing to pay past debts.

PARIS (AP) — France and Greece have announced a multibillion-euro defense deal including Athens’ decision to buy three French warships. This is part of a strategy to boost Greek defense capacities in the Eastern Mediterranean amid recurring tensions with longtime foe Turkey. French President Emmanuel Macron and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced a defense and security strategic partnership in a joint news conference in Paris on Tuesday. Greece will purchase three French frigates to be built by defense contractor Naval Group. The deal includes an option for the acquisition of a fourth frigate. The announcement comes at a key time for France after the loss this month of a $66 billion deal this month to sell diesel-electric submarines to Australia.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Top Pentagon leaders are set to appear before the Senate Armed Services Committee amid sharp criticism of the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan and the failure to anticipate the Taliban’s rapid takeover of the country. Tuesday’s hearing will be their first public testimony on Afghanistan since the U.S. completed its pullout on Aug. 30. Republicans in Congress have intensified their attacks on President Joe Biden’s decision to pull all troops out of Afghanistan, saying it leaves the United States more vulnerable to terrorism. They are demanding more details on the suicide bombing in Kabul that killed 13 American service members.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is nominating nine lawyers to run U.S. attorney’s offices across the country. It’s a diverse group of candidates in the latest round of picks for the top law enforcement positions. The nominations are announced by the White House on Tuesday. The nominees are expected to run the federal prosecutors’ offices in Hawaii, Rhode Island, North Carolina, Colorado, Ohio, Vermont and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The slate would include several historic firsts, including the first Black female attorneys to lead their districts. The Justice Department’s 93 U.S. attorneys are responsible for federal criminal prosecutions in their respective districts and are central to Biden’s efforts to combat violent crime.

TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s government says the coronavirus state of emergency will end Thursday to help rejuvenate the economy as infections slow. Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga announced that virus restrictions will be eased gradually. With the lifting, Japan will be free of emergency requirements for the first time in more than six months. The current state of emergency, declared in April, was repeatedly extended and expanded. Despite public weariness and frustration over the measures, Japan has managed to avoid the more restrictive lockdowns imposed elsewhere while recording about 1.69 million cases and 17,500 deaths from COVID-19.

(AP)  Pakistan’s planning minister says the government will begin a drive to vaccinate children aged 12 or above to protect them from coronavirus. The announcement on Tuesday by Asad Umar comes amid a steady decline in fatalities from coronavirus across the country. Umar in a tweet said Pakistan will launch a campaign soon to vaccinate children at schools. He did not say exactly when it will begin. Currently Pakistan is offering free jabs to teens and adults. The latest development comes hours after Pakistan reported 41 deaths from coronavirus and 1,400 new cases in the past 24 hours. It is the first time since July that Pakistan reported less than 1,500 single-day confirmed cases amid the fourth wave which authorities believe has subsided.