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CMC’s latest do-it-all effort has Kittle’s goal on track

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CMC’s latest do-it-all effort has Kittle’s goal on track


SANTA CLARA, Calif. — San Francisco 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan insinuated he wanted Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Falcons to be a big night for running back Christian McCaffrey.

On Saturday, Shanahan challenged his team to get 40 carries against the Falcons, a number that would signify the Niners controlled the line of scrimmage and handed the ball to McCaffrey early and often.

Tight end George Kittle, making his return from a right hamstring injury that caused him to miss five games, was less subtle.

“Every Saturday night, our tight end coach [Brian] Fleury wants all the tight ends to get up in front of the room and set a goal,” Kittle said. “Anywhere from dominate the edges, tight end touchdown, whatever goals. And my goal this week was CMC [to be] NFC Player of the Week. And if I actually called that, that might be the best guess of all time.”

After the 49ers had put the finishing touches on a 20-10 win to improve to 5-2, Kittle’s goal looked exceedingly realistic. McCaffrey, who has remained the focal point of the Niners’ offense despite the unit’s injury woes, had his finest performance in a season full of them.

By the time McCaffrey was through, he had posted a season-high 129 rushing yards on 24 carries with 2 rushing touchdowns. He also led the Niners in receiving with seven catches for 72 yards, including a 17-yard grab on third-and-13 before his game-sealing 4-yard touchdown run.

His 201 scrimmage yards were the most by McCaffrey as a Niner and accounted for 62% of the team’s yards from scrimmage, the highest percentage for any player in a game this season. And though the 49ers finished one shy of Shanahan’s goal of 40 carries, they accumulated a season-high 174 rushing yards on 39 attempts, an average of 4.5 yards per carry, also a season high.

McCaffrey continued to etch his name in the franchise and league record books for all-purpose production.

  • This was McCaffrey’s sixth game this season with 50-plus rushing yards and 50-plus receiving yards, the most by any player in NFL history through a team’s first seven games.

  • It was McCaffrey’s ninth career game with 100-plus rushing yards and 50-plus receiving yards, tied with Jim Brown and Priest Holmes for the third most in NFL history.

  • McCaffrey joined Roger Craig (1988) as the only 49ers with seven straight games of 100-plus scrimmage yards to open a season.

Through Sunday night’s games, McCaffrey leads the NFL in scrimmage yards (981), and his six total touchdowns is tied for fourth most. Despite the run game struggling mightily through the first six games, McCaffrey is on pace to have over 1,000 yards each rushing and receiving, and, at his current rate, he would surpass the NFL record of 1,097 receiving yards by a running back in a season with room to spare.

“He’s huge,” Shanahan said. “He’s the most consistent player I’ve been around. He just allows you to stay on track. He gets every yard in the run game and more and what he does in the pass game … it’s rare that you’re going to throw a ball to him and not get a completion.”

After another do-it-all performance, McCaffrey quickly credited his teammates. It was no coincidence that the 49ers’ run game took off upon Kittle’s return. McCaffrey had 20 rushes for 126 yards and 2 touchdowns when Kittle was on the field, compared with four rushes for 3 yards when he was not.

Although Kittle’s streak of 114 games with a reception ended, his presence was felt not only as a blocker in the run game but in the attention he drew from defenders. On the third-and-13 completion to help seal the win, 49ers quarterback Mac Jones said he saw multiple Falcons cover Kittle, leaving McCaffrey one-on-one for the easy first down.

“It’s a different ballgame when he’s in there,” McCaffrey said. “Even when he doesn’t have a big statistical game, the attention that he draws opens so much up … When you’ve got guys like that on the field, just their presence alone strikes a lot of fear in coordinators and so you have to keep eyes on them.”

Kittle’s return wasn’t the only emotional pick-me-up for the 49ers. After losing star linebacker Fred Warner (right ankle surgery) for the season, the Niners spent the week answering questions about how the defense would fare without Warner (and star defensive end Nick Bosa, who suffered a torn right ACL in Week 3).

Niners linebacker Dee Winters arrived at the game wearing Warner’s No. 54 jersey, multiple players warmed up wearing a shirt with Warner’s face on it, and Warner received a loud ovation pregame when he made his way onto the field with the help of a scooter. During the game, Warner was shown holding his young son in a suite and it drew cheers so loud that Kittle joked the Niners’ offense almost had to go to a silent count on that play.

Perhaps nobody was more inspired by Warner’s absence than his replacement, second-year linebacker Tatum Bethune. Bethune said he cried before the game, not just because Warner was out, but for the chance to prove to doubters that the 49ers’ defense can still slow down opponents.

For the second week in a row, Bethune finished with 10 tackles, leading a Niners defense that held Atlanta to 292 yards on 4.9 yards per play, including a season-low 62 rushing yards.

“I saw all of it and as a defense we didn’t talk about it, but I felt a certain way about it,” Bethune said. “I was emotional before the game. … It’s unfortunate that Fred got hurt, but it’s also an opportunity for me to be able to expand and get better while I can before he gets back.”



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Pakistan Shaheens announce squad for T20’s, ODI’s – SUCH TV

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Pakistan Shaheens announce squad for T20’s, ODI’s – SUCH TV



Pakistan Shaheens have announced their squad for the upcoming T20 and ODI series against England Lions to be played in the United Arab Emirates, with Shamil Hussain named captain for both formats.

All matches of the series will be held at the Oval Stadium in Abu Dhabi.

The three-match T20 series will begin on February 20, followed by a five-match ODI series from February 27 to March 9.

Abdul Samad, Hassan Nawaz, Moaz Sadaqat and Saad Khan have been included in the squad, along with Sameer Minhas and Arafat Minhas.

Rohail Nazir and Saad Baig will share wicketkeeping duties.

Spin bowlers Saad Masood and Sufyan Muqim are also part of the team, while the fast bowling unit includes Ali Raza, Ahmed Daniyal, Akif Javed, Muhammad Salman and Shahid Aziz.

Pakistan Shaheens will hold a seven-day training camp in Karachi from February 11 to February 17.

Former captain Sarfaraz Ahmed has been appointed mentor and manager of the Shaheens.

Ijaz Ahmed will serve as head coach, with Mansoor Amjad named fielding coach and Aizaz Cheema as bowling coach.



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NHL outdoor game sees its 1st goalie fight between Vasilevskiy, Swayman

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NHL outdoor game sees its 1st goalie fight between Vasilevskiy, Swayman


TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Lightning credited the first goalie fight in an NHL outdoor game for helping to spark their historic Stadium Series comeback win over the Boston Bruins on Sunday.

With 8:59 left in the second period and the Bruins leading 5-2, Lightning forward Brandon Hagel tried to poke the puck from under Bruins goalie Jeremy Swayman after a save. Swayman then jumped on top of Hagel next to his crease, leading to a melee between the teams while the Lightning were on a power play. Tampa Bay goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy skated from his crease to the opposite blue line during the chaos.

“I just saw Sway was swinging the blocker on [Hagel] a bit, so it was just a reflex to go to the red line and challenge him. He accepted,” Vasilevskiy said.

Swayman spotted the Tampa Bay goalie, dropped his stick and skated out to meet Vasilevskiy as the two engaged near center ice. Swayman took off his gloves and mask and signaled to Vasilevskiy to remember to remove his mask before the fists flew.

“I don’t want to hit his helmet, so I’m glad we didn’t do that,” Swayman said.

The Lightning goalie nicknamed “The Big Cat” grabbed Swayman’s collar and started throwing left hands. The Boston goalie wasn’t able to get much offense in before Vasilevskiy wrestled him to the ice.

Did Swayman know that Vasilevskiy was a lefty before their fight?

“No,” the Bruins goalie said curtly, with a laugh. “Glad we both had our first gig against each other. Really worthy opponent.”

Vasilevskiy gave him a tap on the back and then tapped the back of Swayman’s head in appreciation of the moment, grinning widely as the fans roared inside Raymond James Stadium.

“When we both fell, we just kind of said to each other nice words. It was super nice. It’s one of the biggest moments for me, because I never fought in the NHL,” Vasilevskiy said. “Big thanks to him. He was great in the net all game and great in the fight as well.”

Swayman was also appreciative.

“He wanted to win, which is good. So did I. So that’s game respecting game,” he said. “I’m fighting the biggest, toughest goalie in the league. It wouldn’t be my first choice, but glad we got the first one out of the way. Probably retire after that.”

The crowd of nearly 65,000 fans stood and cheered during the confrontation, and then again when the referee announced the goalies had both received five-minute majors for fighting. Players on both benches were on their feet, too, slapping their sticks against the boards in appreciation and respect for their netminders.

“He was throwing lefts. I was like, ‘Oh my God.’ I didn’t want to be the other guy,” Lightning winger Nikita Kucherov said. “I was so happy. I was so fired up. I think the bench felt it. Everyone in the building felt it. Ever since that fight, the game was turned. Vasy had to do it, I guess. He had to wake us up.”

The Lightning would score twice on 5-on-3 power plays over the next 5:12, cutting the Bruins’ lead to 5-4 heading into the third period. Kucherov tied the score in the third period, and the Lightning eventually won 6-5 in a shootout.

Tampa Bay’s rally from a four-goal deficit to win marked the largest comeback victory in franchise history and the largest in an NHL outdoor game.

Lightning coach Jon Cooper said he could feel the momentum starting to swing before the fight, but the goalie throwdown was an emotional high the Lightning needed at that moment.

“I was like, ‘Thank goodness something positive was going to happen to our game,'” he said. “I give Boston a lot of credit. They took it to us and we weren’t prepared for it. Vasy was pissed.”

Hagel said he felt the fight was “a big turning point in the game.”

So did Kucherov, who was also convinced that his goalie would win the fight.

“I knew he was going to beat the wheels off of Swayman right away,” Kucherov said. “We call him ‘White Tyson’ now.”



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Inter Milan extend Serie A lead | The Express Tribune

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Inter Milan extend Serie A lead  | The Express Tribune



MILAN:

Inter Milan moved eight points clear at the top of Serie A after a comfortable 2-0 victory over hosts Cremonese on Sunday, but the victory was marred by a flare thrown on to the pitch from the away end that narrowly missed home goalkeeper Emil Audero.

The win takes Inter to 55 points from 23 games, eight ahead of city rivals AC Milan, who have a game in hand. Cremonese lie in 16th with 23 points from the same number of games.

Lautaro Martinez and Piotr Zielinski scored first-half goals as the visitors took control of the contest and despite not finding the back of the net again, they never looked unduly troubled by their hosts.

“There’s a long way to go,” Martinez told DAZN. “We made mistakes, especially in the first half, but there’s also a lot to enjoy because the championship is very balanced.”

Early in the second half a flare was thrown from the stands and landed near Audero, who dropped to the floor but did not appear to be injured. The match continued following a short delay.

“These things must not happen, there’s a risk to a person,” Martinez said. “We’re putting on a show that can be seen all over the world. I apologise to Audero and all the Cremonese fans.”

Inter have won 10 of their last 11 Serie A games since losing to AC Milan in November, their only blemish in that run a 2-2 home draw with Napoli.

By contrast, Cremonese are winless in eight, with five defeats in that sequence, which leaves them six points above the relegation zone.

The visitors might have won by a greater margin given their dominance of possession and chances, but did more than enough to secure another three points.

Inter hit the front on 16 minutes thanks to a header from Martinez, who steered Federico Dimarco’s corner into the net. It was just reward for a bright start.

Cremonese had an excellent chance to equalise when Jamie Vardy was sent through on goal. However, a heavy touch allowed Inter goalkeeper Yann Sommer to get to the ball ahead of him.

The ball swerved past Audero, who will feel he should have made the save, but the power and the movement through the air left him floundering.



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