Conor Allen

Tom Brady and the 2-1 Bucs will pay a visit to Foxboro Sunday evening to take on the 1-2 Patriots. Brady parted ways with the Patriots after the 2019-2020 season and lead the Bucs to a Super Bowl win in Tampa Bay. The 43 year-old Brady threw for over 4,000 yards while posting 40 TDs on the season, plus one sweet completed pass of the Lombardi trophy from one boat to another during the Super Bowl parade. He'll return with a Bucs squad dealing with some injuries and coming off a tough loss to the Rams.   The Pats went 6-10 in 2020, missed the playoffs, drafted Mac Jones, cut Cam Newton, swore that they didn't care about Brady's success and were definitely not in the mood for any boat parades during or after their season. They were also definitely not in a parade mood after last Sunday's 28-13 loss to the Saints in which Jones was sacked three times and threw three INTs. The loss dropped the Pats to 0-2 at home for the first time since the 2000 season.  Through three games...

The 49ers will travel to Philadelphia Sunday, with both teams looking for a 2-0 start. If you came here looking for a Game Of The Week preview that doesn't feature the 49ers you're in the wrong spot. I'm choosing to write about the Niners for a second consecutive week and I can't promise there won't be more. The only thing I can promise based on this very early 2021 season are injuries and astroturf.  Where to start with last week's 49ers/Lions game? The 49ers were up 38-10 early in the fourth quarter. Nick Bosa had taken off his tape, Jimmy Garoppolo was smiling, and I was strongly considering doing something else with my Sunday, like washing the dishes. The Lions then scored 23 points in just over three minutes of play, closing the lead to eight. At some point an onside kicked doinked off of George Kittle's helmet and Deebo Samuel fumbled a potential game-deciding first down. Suddenly, improbably,  we had a game, and I made the decision to definitely not d...

The 49ers and Lions will open their seasons this week at Ford Field in Detroit, meeting for the first time since 2018. Much has changed since then for both organizations. A head coach fired, a Super Bowl nearly won, a franchise quarterback traded, a star DE lost to injury, a North Dakota State star drafted...and Lions coach Dan Campbell said "turds" in a press conference. These two squads were a combined 11-21 last season, but expectations are sky high. One teams has Super Bowl aspirations. Another has a new quarterback, a new head coach, and is hungry for their first playoff win since 1991. It's time to start the 2021 season.  The Lions dealt quarterback Matthew Stafford to the Rams this offseason at Stafford's request. Staring down yet another rebuild, the 33 year old former 2009 first round pick wanted a fresh start, and he deserved it after throwing for 282 TDs and over 45,00 yards in a Detroit career that was very successful, save for zero postseason wins.  The L...

The Brewers will take on the Giants Wednesday at Oracle Park, where the fog is cold and the kayakers are plentiful. The Giants have the best record in baseball, but have lost four out of their last five. They've now dropped two straight to the Brewers, and three overall to them this season. I'm not saying the Brewers have the Giants figured out, but this could be a problem for San Francisco as these two teams will likely see one another in October.  Milwaukee's All-Star right-hander Brandon Woodruff got the win Tuesday, dishing out eight strikeouts in six innings, while left fielder Christian Yelich extended his hitting streak to 10 with two singles. Johnny Cueto (7-7) got the loss for SF. He's 8-2 against Milwaukee since 2016, but struggled Tuesday, allowing six runs on 10 hits. The 35-year-old Cueto had been scratched from his scheduled start on Monday due to flu-like symptoms, and this may have played a factor in his struggles. Cueto tested negative twice for COVID-1...