Packers begin home schedule against Colts after both teams lost their openers

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Packers begin home schedule against Colts after both teams lost their openers

2024-09-14 04:10 Last Updated At：04:20

Indianapolis (0-1) at Green Bay (0-1)

Sunday, 1 p.m. EDT, Fox

BetMGM NFL Odds: Colts by 3½

Series record: Colts lead 23-21-1

Against the spread: Indianapolis 1-0; Green Bay 0-1

Last meeting: Colts won 34-31 at Indianapolis in overtime on Nov. 22, 2020.

Last week: Colts lost 29-27 at home to Houston Texans; Packers lost 34-29 to Philadelphia Eagles at Sao Paulo

Colts offense: overall (16), rush (19), pass (14-T), scoring (11-T)

Colts defense: overall (31), rush (32), pass (22), scoring (25-T)

Packers offense: overall (3), rush (7-T), pass (7), scoring (7-T)

Packers defense: overall (29), rush (23), pass (27), scoring (29-T)

Turnover differential: Colts minus-1, Packers plus-2

QB Anthony Richardson. Injuries limited him to only four games before undergoing season-ending surgery last October. He had an encouraging start to his second season by throwing for 212 yards with two touchdowns and one interception while also rushing six times for 56 yards and a score. Accuracy remains an issue. He went 9 of 19 through the air against Houston.

QB Malik Willis. The 2022 third-round pick from Liberty will start Sunday's game if Jordan Love is unable to play. Love hasn't practiced all week after injuring his left medial collateral ligament on the third-to-last play of the Packers’ loss to the Eagles. The Packers released an injury report Friday listing Love as questionable. Willis has made three career starts — all in his rookie year — and didn’t throw for as many as 100 yards in any of them.

Colts running game vs. Packers run defense: Run defense has been one of Green Bay’s major weaknesses for years, and the struggles continued in Jeff Hafley’s debut as defensive coordinator. Saquon Barkley rushed for 109 yards on 24 carries to lead Philadelphia’s 144-yard rushing attack. Facing a mobile quarterback in Jalen Hurts and an elite running back in Barkley at least prepared the Packers for what they’ll face Sunday in trying to contain Richardson and Jonathan Taylor.

Love, Packers RB MarShawn Lloyd (hamstring) and Packers WR Jayden Reed (shin/calf) are all questionable. Lloyd didn't play against the Eagles. ... Colts S Julian Blackmon (shoulder) has been ruled out for Sunday's game. Colts DT DeForest Buckner (back), WR Josh Downs (ankle) and DE Kwity Paye (hamstring) are questionable. Downs hasn’t played since getting hurt in early August. Colts K Matt Gay is expected to play Sunday after missing the Texans game while recovering from a hernia.

Indianapolis has won its past three matchups with Green Bay, though each of them has been decided by five or fewer points. ... The winning team has scored 30 or more points in each of the past five games. … The Packers and Colts were division rivals who played each other twice every season from 1953-1966. That stopped in 1967, when the NFL was realigned to get ready for the NFL-AFL merger. ... The Packers are 12-9 against the Colts at home. … The franchises have a combined total of 58 Pro Football Hall of Famers. That list includes Ted Hendricks, who played for both teams.

Indianapolis is 0-10-1 in its past 11 season openers but has only started 0-2 once over the past six years, in 2021. ... The Colts ran 43 plays and only had the ball for 20 minutes last week, allowing Houston to have a two-to-one advantage in possession time. ... Richardson completed three throws of more than 50 yards in Week 1, including two for TDs, but only completed six of his other 16 throws for 41 yards with one interception in the loss to Houston. Richardson also ran for a TD, his fifth in five career games. ... Colts WR Alec Pierce caught three passes for a career-high 125 yards in Week 1, including a 60-yard TD catch. ... Former Wisconsin star Jonathan Taylor has scored in a league-best six consecutive games and will try to extend that streak in his first pro game at Lambeau Field. He needs 17 yards rushing to pass Tom Matte (4,646 yards) for sixth on the Colts career list. ... Colts WR Michael Pittman Jr. had 10 games with eight or more receptions in 2023. He had four last week. ... Colts safeties Nick Cross and Julian Blackmon both rank among the league’s top five in tackles after getting 14 and 13 respectively against the Texans. ... Indianapolis sacked 2023 AP Offensive Rookie of the Year C.J. Stroud four times last week. … Green Bay rushed for 163 yards against the Eagles. That was the highest single-game total the Packers have ever gained on 21 or fewer carries. … Reed had a 70-yard TD catch and a 33-yard TD run against the Eagles, making him just the fifth player since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger to have a TD reception of at least 70 yards and a TD run of at least 30 yards in the same game. He also had a 38-yard TD reception nullified because of offsetting penalties. … The Packers had three takeaways against the Eagles to match the highest total by any NFL team. … The Packers scored TDs on just one of their four red zone opportunities in the Eagles game. They settled for field goals on the other three drives. Packers rookie K Brayden Narveson went 3 of 4 on field-goal attempts in his debut, with his lone miss coming from 43 yards.

Reed’s outstanding performance against the Eagles makes him seem like an obvious choice to have in your lineups if he's healthy enough to play, but it might be wise to stay away from all Packers receivers due to the uncertainty surrounding Love. Willis has been much more effective as a runner than as a passer thus far in his NFL career.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Mbappé starts new Champions League campaign with a goal in Real Madrid victory

2024-09-18 06:52 Last Updated At：07:01

MADRID (AP) — Kylian Mbappé renewed his quest to win a European title by scoring for Real Madrid in his first Champions League match with the club.

Mbappé found the open net after a cross by Rodrygo just seconds into the second half of Madrid's 3-1 win over Stuttgart at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.

“It was a great night,” Mbappé said. “It was a tough match, as they always are in the Champions League, but it was important to start with the win at home.”

Mbappé celebrated with a gesture in which he appeared to blow candles and sending a kiss. Spanish media said it was to honor his mother's 50th birthday.

The goal gave defending champion Madrid a 1-0 lead before Stuttgart equalized with Deniz Undav in the 68th. Antonio Rüdiger put Madrid back in front in the 83rd and substitute Endrick closed the scoring deep into stoppage time to seal the victory for the defending champions.

It was Mbappé's 49th Champions League goal, putting him in the top 10 of top scorers all time in the competition.

He has scored in three consecutive matches and has five goals in seven games with Madrid so far in all competitions.

“I can do more,” Mbappé said. “I'm feeling better match after match.”

Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois was named the man of the match as he was key to keep Stuttgart from capitalizing on its many scoring opportunities.

Mbappé had been mostly quiet until scoring, with one of his clearest chances coming in the 25th minute after he entered the area and had his low shot was saved. He was free inside the area a couple of minutes later, but Federico Valverde’s low cross to the France star was intercepted by a defender.

Madrid struggled to created many significant scoring opportunities early on at the Bernabeu. It was Stuttgart that threatened the most, including with a couple on one-on-one situations and an attempt that hit the crossbar.

Vinícius Júnior also hit the crossbar for Madrid.

Mbappé won the 2018 World Cup with France but failed to win the Champions League in the seven seasons with Paris Saint-Germain, which was also on a quest for its first title in Europe’s top club competition.

The playmaker left PSG as a free agent at the end of last season to join Madrid following a decade-long pursuit by the Spanish powerhouse — a move could boost his chances of lifting the European trophy with the team that has won the Champions League six times in the last 11 years.

Mbappé reached the semifinals of the club competition in 2017 with Monaco, and was a beaten finalist in 2020 with PSG. He was also in the semifinals with PSG in 2021 and last season.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer