Jimmy Garoppolo gets a status update, an injury for the Aces, and Kyle Busch books win number 100— all that and more last week in Las Vegas sports (July 17 – 23).
Josh Jacobs is expected to miss training camp after failed negotiations with the Raiders. The news came after the organization tried to get him to accept a 1-year franchise tag deal, but Jacobs wanted more.
According to Mike Florio, Jacobs might have made a mistake by not taking the $10 million deal. “If they know Jacobs plans to skip all of training camp and the preseason, the most cold-blooded move would be to wait until every other team’s roster is set in late August before pulling the tender,” Florio wrote in a July 20 column. “At that point, Jacobs would have a very hard time getting the money he could instantly get in Las Vegas.”
Kyle Busch is a man who makes history very often and continued that trend last week at Pocono. This is the result of Busch passing Cory Heim with a bold move in the final lap to take home the 100th win for his team, Kyle Busch Motorsports. The Las Vegas native was ecstatic after the victory and grabbed the checkered flag before bowing to the crowd.
“It’s pretty cool, we’ve been around for a long time, but it’s been fun,” said Busch, “A great ride. Obviously, this [Chevrolet] Silverado today was really, really fast, just mired in traffic. Couldn’t find a way to make a clean move, so had to make a little bit of a racey one, a little bit of a dicey one there at the end, getting into (turn) two. Heim ran a great race. He just needed this hundredth win to get it over with”
The Las Vegas Aces are without Candace Parker after the forward suffered an ankle injury earlier July. This marks the Aces’ first big blow of 2023 and pokes a massive hole in their championship roster. Also, according to coach Becky Hammon, Parker could be out for a while due to this incident.
Not only does this force the Aces to rely more on their less experienced talent, but it also creates a major vulnerability. Despite this news, Las Vegas is 19-2 in their first 21 games of the season and leads the league in victories. They are also first in their division with over a five-game lead.
That might sound like a comfortable lead, but Parker’s absence will make things difficult. She averages nine points, five rebounds, three assists, and a 43% 3-point percentage, which are solid numbers. Now it will be up to someone else on the roster to fill that slot.
Davantae Adams talked with NFL Total Acess last week and had much to say. One particular topic of interest was Joshua Jacobs’ contract negotiations, which continue to drag on. Fortunately for Jacobs, he received a huge endorsement from Adams during the interview. The wide receiver stated that Las Vegas needed Jacobs to win the title.
“If we really want to have a shot at winning the Super Bowl and having all the elite aspirations that we do, we’re gonna need that guy,” he said. “So I’m praying that we can still figure something out, but also understanding where Josh is coming from and trying to coach him through it at the same time.”
Jimmy Garoppolo passed his training camp physical last week and is now cleared to play for the 2023 NFL season. The news, reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter, comes after months of speculation about Garoppolo’s status.
A source also claims that fans can expect Garoppolo to be worked into practice soon. However, he still might have to compete against Brian Hoyer, Aidan O’Connell, and Chase Gabers, for the top quarterback spot.
The Las Vegas Golden Knights are now Stanley Cup Final Champions and have every reason to celebrate. Unfortunately for Las Vegas, that celebration might not last very long after they realize how many free agents they have coming up in 2024. Many prominent figures on the Golden Knights’ main roster are set to be up for grabs in just a year.
These names include Jonathon Marchessault, Chandler Stephenson, William Carrier, Michael Amadio, and Alec Martinez, who are all in the final year of their contracts. This raises the question of who the Golden Knights will look to resign and which players will get sent elsewhere. That’s a terrifying question for Las Vegas fans, especially after the controversial moves the organization has made in the past.
The Golden Knights already dealt Reily Smith to the Pittsburgh Penguins in a surprising postseason trade. Las Vegas also traded Max Pacioretty in 2022 to the Carolina Hurricanes in 2022. Then there’s the controversial Marc-Andre Fleury trade in 2021, which sent Las Vegas’ best goalie to the Chicago Blackhawks.
Next: Las Vegas Golden Knights players who might be on the chopping block
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