Good morning, it’s Josh Rosenblat and Kevin Sweeney, teaming up for today’s edition. Some big news came across the wire this morning, so let’s get into it.
In today’s SI:AM:
🏠 Tyrann Mathieu’s complicated homecoming
🏀 More fallout from the Robert Sarver punishment
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Roger Federer calls it a career
It was not even two weeks ago that the tennis world sent Serena Williams into her life “evolving away” from tennis with a raucous ovation at the U.S. Open. Now, the tennis world has to say goodbye to another legend: Roger Federer.
The 41-year-old announced today that his competitive career will come to an end following the Laver Cup next week in London, a team event featuring many of the top European men’s players against a squad of men’s players from the rest of the world.
In a statement, Federer shared that after three years of injuries and surgeries he’s learned more about his “body’s capacities and limits, and its message to me lately has been clear.”
The last 24 years on tour have been an incredible adventure. While it sometimes feels like it went by in 24 hours, it has also been so deep and magical that it seems as if I’ve already lived a full lifetime. I have had the immense fortune to play in front of you in over 40 different countries. I have laughed and cried, felt joy and pain, and most of all felt incredibly alive.
Federer won 20 Grand Slam singles titles during his career, including his last at the 2018 Australian Open, which came 14 and a half years after his first major title at Wimbledon in ’03. From ’05 through June ’13, Federer had one of the most consistently dominant periods of tennis history when it came to his performances in majors. He had a streak of 36 consecutive majors making it at least to the quarterfinals.
Though he’s been passed by rivals Rafael Nadal (22 majors) and Novak Djokovic (21), Federer still holds the longest streak of consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the ATP tour at 237. He also holds the Open-era records for most matches played and most match wins at Grand Slams.
—Josh Rosenblat
More on Federer:
- From 2017: Five Lessons We Can Learn From Roger Federer (L. Jon Wertheim)
- From 2009: Is He the Greatest of All Time? (S.L. Price)
- From 2005: He Stands Alone (S.L. Price)
Mahomes vs. Herbert kicks off Week 2
We couldn’t ask for a better way to start Week 2. Arguably the two most talented quarterbacks in the NFL face off in a divisional rivalry in K.C. If it goes anything like the last few meetings between these two young superstars, expect one of the games of the year in the NFL to happen tonight.
There’s history in this matchup
Herbert’s first NFL snaps actually came against the Chiefs in Week 2 of the 2020 season. The Chargers’ starting QB at the time, Tyrod Taylor, was injured after pregame warmups when his lung was accidentally punctured by a team doctor administering a painkiller injection. Thrust into action out of necessity, Herbert performed well, throwing for more than 300 yards and accounting for a pair of touchdowns in a game the Chargers would eventually lose in overtime.
That game has set the tone for plenty of madness when these teams meet. In last season’s two matchups, the Chargers won the first after Brandon Staley went for it on fourth-and-9 from inside of field goal range to keep the ball in Herbert’s hands, while the Chiefs got revenge in the second with another overtime victory.
In all, Herbert has thrown 10 TD passes compared to just two interceptions in his four career meetings with the Chiefs. Mahomes hasn’t been too shabby, either, including a 410-yard outburst in the teams’ last meeting.
Can the Chargers threaten for the AFC West title?
Despite having Herbert and a deep stable of receivers, the Chargers still went just 9–8 last season and missed the playoffs. But after some splashy additions this offseason, is L.A. positioned to challenge the Chiefs for the division in 2022?
The biggest-name addition might be Khalil Mack, who was acquired this offseason from the Bears in exchange for draft picks. Mack gives the Chargers bookend stars on the defensive front alongside Joey Bosa, who was “virtually unblockable” in camp, per Albert Breer. L.A. also bolstered its secondary by committing more than $80 million over five years to former Patriot J.C. Jackson, a Pro Bowler last season who had eight interceptions and 23 passes defended in 2021. He’s a game-time decision tonight.
Improvements on defense should take a little pressure off Herbert on offense to win shootouts. That said, there’s a strong case to be made that the AFC West is the best division in football now that Russell Wilson is a Bronco. Climbing the mountain and winning this division won’t be easy.
The Chiefs passed their Week 1 test with flying colors
Kansas City’s 44–21 win on the road against the Cardinals wasn’t even as close as the final score indicates. The Kansas City offense scored seven times (six touchdowns) in the nine drives Mahomes led, and averaged more than seven yards per play in the game. Doing that in the first game of the post–Tyreek Hill era was a great sign that the Chiefs won’t miss a beat offensively.
From Albert Breer’s 10 takeaways:
If there was one criticism of the Chiefs’ offense the past few years, outside of the line getting old all at once (hence the 2021 overall), it’s that maybe, just maybe, Kansas City had become too reliant on Hill and Travis Kelce.
Guess what wasn’t a problem in the first game post-Hill? Mahomes spreading the ball around. Six different receivers had at least three catches on Sunday in Arizona. And while Kelce still led the way (eight catches, 121 yards, TD), JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valdes-Scantling got off to strong starts, too, with Mahomes.
Plus, Steve Spagnuolo’s defense looked sharp dealing with Kyler Murray. Mahomes plus a strong defense? Now that should scare the rest of the NFL.
It’s the hottest ticket in the league
The biggest game of the week is also the most in-demand ticket with the average ticket price pegged at just under $400. Some of the other top matchups this week include the Dolphins at Ravens, the Titans visiting the Bills for their first home game of 2022, the Raiders hosting the Cardinals and the Monday-night showdown between the Vikings and Eagles.
—Kevin Sweeney
The best of Sports Illustrated
In today’s Daily Cover, Greg Bishop explains the complicated nature of Tyrann Mathieu’s return to New Orleans, the city that raised him but almost destroyed him.
A return home, like his life, is as messy and intricate as the city that’s charmingly problematic. Others can pretend his return is simpler, because it’s comfortable to look at it that way, palatable and polite. Mathieu, having found beauty in the struggle, the joy of a city that endlessly celebrates what it does have, must live in the complexity. He must confront it, deploying his most valuable instinct, for the final ride.
Chris Herring opines that allowing Robert Sarver to keep the Suns proves there’s nothing that can be done in private that would rise to the league removing an owner. … Ahead of Game 3 of the WNBA Finals tonight, Ben Pickman caught up with the former Colorado State coach whose fingerprints are all over the careers of both coaches in the Finals. … Will Laws details the remarkable path taken by Framber Valdez to become one of the best pitchers in baseball. … Plus, Michael Fabiano gives his Start ’Em, Sit ’Em advice for Week 2.
Around the sports world
LeBron James says the NBA “definitely got this wrong” on the Robert Sarver punishment, while Suns star Chris Paul tweeted that the sanctions “fell short.” … Donovan Mitchell says he thought he was heading to the Knicks before landing with the Cavs in a blockbuster trade earlier this summer. … Erling Haaland found a late breakthrough to give Manchester City the win against Dortmund in the Champions League. … The NFL released data suggesting that “Guardian Caps” led to a 50% decrease in concussions during training camp. … The USMNT released its last roster before the World Cup ahead of friendlies later this month.
The top five...
… things we saw yesterday.
5. Mallory Pugh’s brilliant goal.
4. Yadier Molina’s mask commemorating a record-setting night with Adam Wainwright.
3. This Little League home run from Gleyber Torres.
2. Roquan Smith miked up during Sunday’s soaking wet Week 1.
1. Buck Showalter’s lack of social media knowledge.
SIQ
Yadier Molina and Adam Wainwright last night set the MLB record for most career starts as a battery with 325. Molina, unsurprisingly, is the MLB’s active leader in games played at catcher. Who is second, with more than 1,500 defensive games behind the plate?
Check tomorrow’s newsletter for the answer.
Yesterday’s SIQ: The Connecticut Sun find themselves in the unenviable position of being down 2–0 in the WNBA finals. No team has come back from a 2–0 since the WNBA moved to a best-of-five series in 2005. There have, though, been multiple sweeps. Who was the last team to get swept in the WNBA Finals?
Answer: The Las Vegas Aces in 2020. The ’20 season was condensed and played in the Wubble in Bradenton, Fla., because of the coronavirus pandemic. It was a grueling season, one unlike any other. Games began in late July, with the regular season ending in mid-September.
The Aces earned the top seed in the playoffs with an 18–4 record and won the tiebreaker over the Seattle Storm by virtue of their two regular-season wins over the Storm. The top seeds ended up meeting in the Finals.
The biggest difference in the series was Breanna Stewart. The Seattle superstar dominated, leading each of the three games in scoring. But the Aces could be out for revenge this season, it seems. They took out Stewart and the Storm in the last round and look poised to earn a sweep of their own with tonight’s Game 3.
—Josh Rosenblat
From the Vault: Sept. 15, 1980
What made the 1980 U.S. Open men’s singles final so special, Curry Kirkpatrick wrote, was all that led up to it.
However many more tennis matches Björn Borg and John McEnroe are fated to play against each other, surely their names will be linked forever by the memories from a single summer. The summer of 1980.
Ahead of that summer, the rivals met seven times in official matches. McEnroe won three of them, while Borg won four. But then they met for the first time at a Grand Slam in July 1980 in the Wimbledon final. Borg won an epic match: 1–6, 7–5, 6–3, 6–7 (16), 8–6. It was his fifth straight Wimbledon title.
Coming into the 1980 U.S. Open, though, both players were hurt and not playing their best tennis. But, as fate would have it, they’d end up meeting in a major final again. McEnroe got the better of Borg in New York, returning the favor with a five-set victory of his own.
They’d play again in both Wimbledon and the U.S. Open finals the very next year, with McEnroe winning both matches in four sets.
—Josh Rosenblat
Check out more of SI’s archives and historic images at vault.si.com.
