ANOTHER NOTCH ON THE BELT

BY MARK HALPERN

The Dallas Cowboys are one of the most iconic franchises in the NFL and they have had a great history when it comes to the Quarterback position. When the Cowboys became a team in the 1960 season Don Meredith was the first to do it for the Cowboys and led them to two NFL Title games. In the 70’s Navy Lt Rodger Staubach took the helm and was credited with many famous moments during his career but, none more famous than the “Hail Mary” play and lead them to two Super Bowls one and SB MVP. In the 80’s it was Danny White and though he was impressive by leading the Cowboys to three straight NFC Championships but, never reached the Superbowl (we can thank Dwight Clark for that RIP.) The 1990’s the Cowboys had Troy Aikman (my son is named after him) and he had some of the best talent in Cowboys Cowboy history and took them to three Super Bowls in 92,93,95. Aikman also won a SB MVP and has been inducted into Hall of Fame. The Beginning of the 2000’s it was such a mish mosh of untalented quarterbacks and really poor coaching until 2003 when Bill Parcells took over and we got the emergence of Tony Romo. Despite Romo’s good play during his career he never saw a Superbowl but gave the Cowboys some gusto from 2006-2016.

Now at the present we have Dak Prescott, who has one of the best offenses any Quarterback could ask for. Dak since entering the league and until present day has broken almost every Dallas QB record there is. He provided another on Sunday against the Commanders Dak broke Tony Romo’s career of 248 touchdowns on a 24-yard pass to Cee Dee Lamb late in the fourth quarter. This is a huge Milestone in Dak’s career but, since he has accomplished so much it another trophy on a wall that can light up a room when the sun hits it right.

What’s next you may ask well, Dak has to lead the Cowboys to the Superbowl and win it. Yes, there are a ton of obstacles in his way but, with good coaching and smart play decisions this can be done.

TOUGH LOSS

BY MARK HALPERN

The Lions took on the heavy Superbowl favorites the Buffalo Bills this past week and put up a good fight. The first half was all Buffalo. Josh Allen put on a show by not just throwing 3 passing TD’s and ran in 2 by himself (final stats by games end.) Allen already has that Super Bowl Swagger. The Lions woke up by the end of the half but, down 27-10.

The second half the Lions led by Jared Geoff did everything in his power to try and bring this team back but, because of the huge early lead it wasn’t possible. Geoff had a very impressive day throwing for 327 yards and 4 td’s, St. Brown the recipient of 142 yards and 2 of those TD’s. The problem for the Lions was that they couldn’t get star running back Jahmyr Gibbs going at all. Gibbs was held to 16 carries and a mere 52 yards. Gibbs did have six catches for 61 yards and a touchdown. Even though the Lions defense showed up in the second half there was no way back.

The Lions’ defense isn’t looking good through first 2 games as they let New Orleans right back in it in week 1 and now being run over by the Bills. The offense is beyond good enough to contend but if the defense keeps letting teams run over them then they could finish at the bottom of one of the strongest divisions in the NFL.

HOG TIED

BY MARK HALPERN

The Cowboys lost their season opener to the Giants. Their home opener was also against a division rival, the Washington Commanders, and the Cowboys couldn’t afford to go 0-2. This was Dallas’s home opener. The Cowboys showed some life during the Giant game but, not what we envisioned at all. The Commanders game (mind you it’s the commanders) was what Dallas needed after the loss to NYG. This was a tune up game for them as the Washington Defense just is still as poor as it was last year.

For the Cowboys on offense it was the Dak show. Dak Prescott was almost flawless going 26/31 for 279 yards and 4 TD’s and breaking Tony Romo’s record for most touchdown passes. CeeDee Lamb was the favorite target of the day accumulating 8 receptions for 153 yards and 2 td’s and Jake Fergusson also had a pair of TD catches. George Pickens wasn’t forgotten about but when you try a double one or play man to man this offense will get to you. For the second consecutive week the Cowboys had issues running the football, which is something they’ll have to clean up.

As for the Commander’s stats and scores aren’t the story. Nearing the end of the first half with about 3 seconds on the clock. Dan Quinn the Commanders head coach decided to try and score a Touchdown instead of putting up a quick field goal. This decision will now probably haunt Dan Quinn for a while. When Daniels snapped the ball his foot appeared to be stepped on by a Washington offensive lineman and reached his arm out to brace himself and if you were watching the game the shot of his elbow was gruesome. Daniels Dislocated the same elbow his dislocated twice last year and had to have season ending surgery on that elbow last year. Marcus Mariota replaced him as he did last year. This is a big concern for the Commanders as they have spent a ton of assets to help protect Daniels from injuries for it only to happen by accident. The main question will be how long he is going to miss.I don’t want to speculate on the timeline of the injury, but the Daniels situation feels very similar to RG3. The Commanders have a curse worse than the curse of the Bambino to deal with.

Up next is a real challenge for the Cowboys. Even though the Ravens lost to the Saints this past week doesn’t take away the fact that it’s Lamar Jackson leading the charge and has Derrick Henry right next to him. If Dallas doesn’t find a way to stop this strong dual running combo it will be a long day for the Dallas Defense.

WEEK 2 PREVIEW

BY SIN BLITZERS

MIA AT SF : The Dolphins finish off their two game west coast trip to start the season with a trip to Santa Clara. The Dolphins are coming off a 27-13 loss to the Raiders, Malik Willis threw for 220 yards and an interception, but did have a rushing touchdown. The bright spot for Miami was the rookies, Caleb Douglas had five catches for 94 yards and Linebacker Jacob Rodriguez had 14 tackles. Everything went right for the Niners in their week one thumping of the Rams. Brock Purdy was Purdy good throwing for 205 yards and three touchdowns. The defense forced a few turnovers and the Niners got a win in the land down under.

KEYS TO THE GAME

DOLPHINS : PRESSURE BROCK PURDY : The Dolphins didn’t register a sack against Kirk Cousins, they need to get some on Purdy. The Niners are thin at receiver, so if they play well in coverage, they can get some coverage sacks.

GET ACHANE GOING : The Raiders made a point of emphasis to contain De’von Achane and they did. The Dolphins need to establish him in both the run and pass game.

49ERS : Fred Warner – One of the best Linebackers in Football, Warner played very well last week, leading the Niners with 11 tackles.

WHO STEPS UP ON THE OUTSIDE : With De’Zhaun Stribling out the Niners are thin at Receiver. Mike Evans was awesome in his debut, but we’ll need to see if someone can establish themselves next to him, Deebo Samuel and George Kittle.

BENGALS AT TEXANS : Here’s a massive game in the AFC early on. The Bengals, who won in week one because of their defense take on a Texans team that struggled massively defensively in week one. Somethings to monitor as we approach this game, Joe Burrow’s back flared up and didn’t practice on Wednesday and Nico Collins’ hamstring flared up as well. The Texans don’t want to start 0-2, they need to hold serve at home.

VIKINGS AT BEARS – NFC North battle here, the Vikings are looking to go 2-0 in the division after their massive comeback against the Packers. We’ll need to wait to see who starts for the Vikings at Quarterback, but the defense in the second half was the story for the Vikings. The Bears on the other hand put on an offensive clinic against the Panthers, Brian Flores vs Ben Johnson should be a fun matchup.

STEELERS AT PATS : Two teams that didn’t have the best showings in week one. The Steelers beat the Falcons, but let’s be honest if it wasn’t Cooper Rush playing Quarterback for the Falcons they win that game. The Steelers offense was just abysmal, especially DK Metcalf, who had multiple drops and offensive pass interferences called against him. The Patriots blew a 10 point lead to the Seahawks. Drake Maye threw three interceptions. One of the big keys is the Pats Offensive line, it held up last week, if it does again the Steelers are in trouble.

Jags at Broncos : The Jags put up quite the performance in week 1…. Against the Browns, so traveling to Mile High will be a challenge. Trevor Lawrence threw for four touchdowns in the win. The Broncos on the other hand really struggled against the Chiefs. They let Kenneth Walker run all over them, the Broncos defense missed 28 tackles in the game, they need to clean it up. And on offense they need to get Jaylen Waddle involved, he had one catch for two yards.

COMMANDERS AT COWBOYS : Neither one of these teams can afford to go 0-2 in the division. The Commanders need Jayden Daniels to be better than he was last week, when he was 18-34 for 164 yards and two touchdowns, he also needs to establish his favorite target Terry Mclaurin, who was limited to two catches for 14 yards. The Cowboys were bullied by the Giants, and that new defense we heard great things about really struggled. The high powered Cowboy offense had two possessions in the second half. Like the Commanders, they need to establish George Pickens in this game, he had three catches for 28 yards and some big drops.

SUNDAY SIDELINE REPORT WILL PREVIEW ALL THE GAMES ON THE SIN YOUTUBE CHANNEL SUNDAY MORNING.

LETTING THEIR VOICES BE HEARD

BY MIKE RIFKIN

For the last three days it’s been weird to be a Mets fan. For the last three days it feels there has been an uncivil discourse between fans and players alike, whether that’s through social media or through the traditional media. The last three days have been an eternity, and it has ended, but the feelings haven’t. Pete Alonso returned to Citi Field as a member of the Baltimore Orioles, and let’s say he got his revenge on the team that didn’t make him an offer last Winter. Alonso wound up hitting two homers in the series, including career number 300, and the fans gave him an ovation and he took what is known as a curtain call to acknowledge the fans.

Now, there’s a group of Met fans who are over the fact that Alonso left and there’s a group of Met fans (myself included) that are disappointed in the fact that Alonso is no longer a Met. Met players were also not too pleased with the fans’ reaction to Alonso’s 300th homer. Sean Manaea said “ I love him to death, but as the 2026 Mets I know we’ve definitely underperformed. The guys in here work their ass off every single day. To have that reaction to an opposing player is crazy to me.” I understand Manaea’s point, but he does make a point for the fans, this team HAS UNDERACHIEVED this season. If the Mets are in a playoff race, do they applaud? Yes, but not to that extent.

If there’s one thing teams should never do it’s question the loyalty of a fanbase. The Mets fans have suffered through a lot of dark times, and some of us, (myself included) have never seen the team win the World Series. It’s been 40 years since they last won, and the run they gave us in 2024 is something most of us will never forget, but the last two seasons have been unacceptable. Pete Alonso should have been the next David Wright in the sense of being a Met for life, and he’s not. The fact of the matter is I’m not sure if Alonso would change what the 2026 Mets are, but he’d bring stability to a position that has been awful for the Mets this season and the fans would be happier.

Fans have a right to be mad, the players have underachieved and the President of Baseball Ops has failed. Fans voiced their displeasure at what has one of the worst seasons in franchise history just based on the expectations, and they got to cheer for a guy who should still be on the team. This is New York, fans are going to let you know how they feel and whether it’s Manaea or someone else on the team who has a problem with what went down the last three days, well they can leave as well.

New York Giants 28, Dallas Cowboys 20

Week 1 — September 13, 2026

The New York Giants couldn’t have asked for a much better start to the 2026 season. In John Harbaugh’s first game as head coach, the Giants defeated the Dallas Cowboys 28-20 in a game that was much more impressive than the final eight-point difference might suggest.

New York controlled the ball, dominated third down, ran the football effectively, and got a huge defensive play at exactly the right time. The Giants weren’t perfect—in fact, they made plenty of mistakes—but they made fewer costly mistakes than Dallas.

For a team beginning a new era, it was a very encouraging opening night.

FIRST QUARTER: THE GIANTS COME OUT SWINGING

The Giants wasted no time showing Dallas what kind of team they wanted to be.

New York opened the game with an 83-yard touchdown drive. The Giants ran the ball seven times during the drive, and rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart even broke loose for a 22-yard run.

Cam Skattebo finished the drive with a 3-yard touchdown run.

Giants 7, Cowboys 0.

The Giants continued to control the first quarter. They moved the ball, converted third downs, and kept Dallas’ offense sitting on the sideline.

After one quarter, New York had seven first downs compared with only two for Dallas.

The Cowboys eventually answered when Dak Prescott found CeeDee Lamb for a 1-yard touchdown.

Giants 7, Cowboys 7.

At that point, it looked like Dallas had finally settled down.

Then the game changed.

SECOND QUARTER: A HUGE TURNOVER CHANGES EVERYTHING

The Giants made one of their biggest mistakes when running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. fumbled near the Dallas goal line.

It was a painful mistake because New York was threatening to score.

Dallas recovered, and suddenly the Cowboys had a chance to take control.

But the Giants’ defense came up with the play they needed.

Jevon Holland intercepted Prescott late in the first half.

It was a fantastic play, but the Giants’ pass rush deserves some credit, too. Kayvon Thibodeaux pressured Prescott and helped force him out of his normal throwing position.

Holland made a sliding interception and gave the Giants the ball back.

New York didn’t waste the opportunity.

Jaxson Dart quickly moved the Giants down the field, and with only 20 seconds remaining in the half, Dart threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to Isaiah Likely.

Halftime: Giants 14, Cowboys 7.

That interception and touchdown were enormous.

Dallas had gone from having a chance to take the lead to watching the Giants score instead.

It was one of the biggest momentum swings of the game

THIRD QUARTER: NEW YORK TAKES CONTROL

The Giants came out of halftime and put together one of their best drives of the night.

The drive lasted 12 plays, covered 74 yards and took more than eight minutes off the clock.

That is exactly the kind of drive a coach loves.

Instead of giving Dallas the football, the Giants kept Prescott and the Cowboys’ offense standing on the sideline.

Dart finished the drive by throwing another touchdown pass to Likely.

Giants 21, Cowboys 7.

Likely had quickly become Dart’s favorite target. He finished the game with:

8 receptions
78 yards
2 touchdowns
0 dropped passes

Dallas answered with a long drive of its own. Prescott helped move the Cowboys down the field, and Javonte Williams scored on a 1-yard touchdown run.

Giants 21, Cowboys 14.

Suddenly Dallas had a chance again.

But New York’s offense had another answer.

FOURTH QUARTER: THE GIANTS FINISH THE JOB

The Giants put together another long drive in the fourth quarter.

This time, New York ran 13 plays and used more than eight minutes.

That was important because the Giants weren’t simply trying to score—they were also keeping the Cowboys’ offense off the field.

The drive ended with Devin Singletary scoring a touchdown.

Giants 28, Cowboys 14.

Dallas wasn’t finished.

Prescott eventually connected with Javonte Williams for another touchdown, cutting the Giants’ lead to eight points.

Giants 28, Cowboys 20.

Dallas had one last chance, but a strange mistake made things even harder.

After scoring, Williams was penalized for taunting Giants safety Tyler Nubin. That pushed Dallas’ extra point attempt farther back.

Brandon Aubrey missed the longer extra point.

The Giants still had work to do, but they now had an eight-point lead instead of a seven-point lead.

New York held on to the football and finished the game.

Final: Giants 28, Cowboys 20.

THE NUMBERS THAT TELL THE STORY

The final statistics show why the Giants won.

Giants Offense

Jaxson Dart

23 completions
29 attempts
230 passing yards
3 touchdown passes
0 interceptions
54 rushing yards

For a young quarterback making his first start of the season, Dart looked extremely comfortable.

One of his most impressive statistics was his performance on third down.

He completed 9 of 11 passes on third down, while the Giants as a team converted 9 of 10 third downs.

That’s an incredible 90% third-down conversion rate.

Third down is when an offense either keeps the drive alive or gives the ball back. The Giants almost always kept the drive alive.

THE GIANTS WON THE TIME OF POSSESSION BATTLE

New York possessed the football for approximately:

36 minutes, 40 seconds

Dallas had it for only:

23 minutes, 20 seconds

That’s more than a 13-minute advantage for the Giants.

The Giants also rushed for approximately 165 yards and gained nearly 400 total yards.

The Cowboys had only about 244 total yards.

In other words, New York controlled the football, moved the ball, and made Dallas’ offense wait.

THE GOOD AND THE BAD

The Giants played well, but they certainly weren’t perfect.

GOOD: Zero dropped passes

The Giants were credited with zero dropped passes.

That’s especially impressive because Dart completed 23 of 29 passes.

Isaiah Likely caught all eight passes thrown his way.

BAD: Four fumbles

The Giants put the ball on the ground four times:

Tyrone Tracy Jr. — lost fumble
Isaiah Likely — fumble, recovered by Patrick Ricard
Jaxson Dart — fumble, recovered by Jon Runyan Jr.
Cam Skattebo — fumble, recovered by himself

Only Tracy’s fumble became a Dallas turnover.

Still, four fumbles is something the Giants will need to fix.

THE PENALTY PROBLEM

The biggest concern for New York may have been penalties.

The Giants were charged with 10 penalties for 114 yards.

Several came from the secondary, including defensive pass-interference penalties.

Dru Phillips had multiple pass-interference penalties, while Greg Newsome II was charged with a huge 38-yard pass-interference penalty.

Those mistakes gave Dallas free yardage and extra chances.

The Giants were fortunate that Dallas couldn’t consistently take advantage of those opportunities.

THE FINAL VERDICT

The Giants’ first game of the 2026 season was a very positive sign.

They weren’t perfect. They fumbled four times and committed too many penalties.

But they also showed several things that should make Giants fans excited.

The offense ran the football.

The offensive line protected Dart.

The Giants converted third downs at an incredible rate.

The receivers didn’t drop a pass.

Jaxson Dart looked confident.

Isaiah Likely became a major weapon.

The defense made the biggest play of the game when Jevon Holland intercepted Prescott.

And most importantly, the Giants controlled the game for long stretches.

The final score was Giants 28, Cowboys 20, but New York’s performance suggested that this team could be much better than many people expected entering the season.

The biggest question heading into Week 2 is simple:

Can the Giants clean up the penalties and ball-security problems while keeping the same offensive efficiency?

If they can, the Giants may have something very interesting developing in New York.

RETURN OF THE POLAR BEAR

BY MIKE RIFKIN

For a generation of Met fans December 11th 2025 is a day that they’ll never forget. It’s the day that the team’s homerun leader and a player that they felt would be the next Met for life Pete Alonso signed a five year 155 million dollar contract with the Baltimore Orioles.

Alonso, was a second round pick (64th overall) by the Mets in 2016 out of the University of Florida. Alonso came up in 2019 and immediately became the face of the franchise. Alonso slugged 53 homers, a Major League rookie record on his way to National League Rookie Of The Year. For seven seasons Alonso was a player Mets fans loved to watch, and in the special 2024 season Alonso had the signature moment. In game three of the NL Wild Card Series against Devin Williams, who ironically now is a Met Alonso hit a go ahead three run homer to put the Mets ahead and they won the game and the series. That was probably the coolest Mets homer since David Wright in the 2015 World Series. In seven seasons in Flushing Alonso hit 264 homers, the franchise record and he ranks in the 10 in homers, Slugging percentage, OPS, Runs scored, RBI’S.

As fans we can criticize Alonso for turning down an extension at an earlier time, but with what Alonso meant to the fans, for the Mets to not even make an offer to him this past winter is unacceptable. Would Alonso being on the 2026 team change what they are? No, probably not, but the Mets are one of those franchises that haven’t had many Mets for life. If you go to Citi Field and look at the retired numbers, the only one who played their whole career for the Mets was David Wright. If Alonso had stayed he would’ve been the second.

As fans we rationalize things, but one of the things you can’t rationalize is what a player meant to a fanbase. Pete Alonso wasn’t Keith Hernandez at first base, but he is sure better than what the 2026 Mets have put out there. Pete would also be the perfect DH, if it was something he’d do for the Mets. Could we consider what has happened to the 2026 Mets karma for not even acknowledging one of the franchise’s greatest players this winter? I hope Citi Field is packed for the next three days, and the Mets fans give Alonso the ovation he deserves, and I want it to be a reminder that there are some things analytics are good for, but there are certain things you cannot measure. Pete Alonso should still be a Met today, is it a annoying narrative yes, would it change things at the moment, no, but it would make most Met fans joyful.

FOOTBALL SLIGHTY EDGES BASEBALL

BY MARK HALPERN

If you subscribe to the network or have seen me live on many podcasts on the network there is no Secret that I am a huge Dallas Cowboys fan and the same for the New York Mets (I also love my Knicks but as sports go Basketball ranks 3^rd.) I am one of the few who are part of the network who have seen all of his professional teams win a World championship. That being said I get more vocal, and write more articles pertaining to Football and Baseball then any other sport I am involved with here on the Sports Insanity Network.

Football to me has more actions and more strategy than Baseball. Both sports have an offensive team and defensive team but, in Baseball its all the same players while Football staffs a full offensive and defensive team. This isn’t to say there is not strategy in baseball, there is but not that you can plainly see. Baseball is a game of anticipation and patience where football is a fast paced non stop action.

I grew up liking sports beginning when I was four years old. I was brought up a NY Mets fan cause of my mom and a Dallas Cowboys fan because of my brother (at the time the two most influential people in my life) because he bought me a Danny White jersey and taught me football otherwise I would have been a Giant fan (oh the horror to think about. Every year I cue up the TO that’s my quarterback quote when the Cowboys season ends) I have witnessed the Mets win in 1986 and have watch their up and downs for the past 44 years and I have been a Dallas fan for 44 years. and it’s the sport itself that propels it over baseball by so little but, honesty is a rare and hard quality to find. In closing hopefully we will hope to see Lindor hit his 300^th Home Run by this season’s end and my Cowboys atop of the NFC East and on their way to the Super Bowl for the first time in 31 years (lets be honest we would be happy at a title game shot.) But 2026 is already a success because of the Knicks. I am curious to hear where any of my readers stand on this point. Please come and check out the network at www.thesportsinsanitynetwork.com or on X @Sinsanityreal.

TO GRADE OR NOT TO GRADE

BY MARK HALPERN

When baseball cards were introduced, there were no grading services to determine how good a card was. Let’s face it most cards that came out of packs (because of the way kids ripped them) would have been hard to problem see a mint 9 or higher. Cards made back then were flimsy, if they got a drop of water it would seep through and the way most kids kept cards, whether wrapped in rubber bands cards back then didn’t have much of a shot. However, today if you are lucky to still have some of your treasures from then, then they are needed to be graded.

What does Grading in the Sport Card Business mean? Well, simple answer: it’s like getting a grade on a test instead of a letter grade. It’s a number from 1-10, the company you chose looks for 4 distinctive characteristics to determine a grade. The company puts the card literally under the microscope checking the surface for any scratches or print lines, the corners are the one of the toughest to get perfect cause they deduct for the slightest ding, they way the card is printed, meaning is perfectly centered or is 80/20, 70/30 (which is most common) or God forbid the dreadful 60/40. Lastly are the edges around the card itself. Older cards have a very rough time getting a fair grade because just removing them from the pack’s edges gets scuffed. With the print stock (meaning thicker and better quality of paper) edges usually are the easiest to determine. So, if you grade a card and get a 10 that’s the best it can get (like getting an A+) and then down from there and ending with a 1 or an F.

The question I get is what is worth grading? I have several reasons on why I choose to grade cards but I reached out to my Cosigner at Top Notch Sports Club a Mr. Mike Romito (who has never been wrong yet on his assessments) and asked him his opinion what he suggests people to consider today when sending cards in to be graded today and he said “With the grading prices the way they are now, I would grade cards that are worth $100+ raw, or if they are vital to your personal collection. “ Over the last 2 years Bulk grading has been slow because the companies don’t staff enough and prioritize the higher paying submissions first. PSA, SGC, BGS all were backing off of processing bulk orders due to the fact they are beyond overwhelmed and again not enough staffers and have told their customers that the usual 25-50 business days can end up taking closer to 6-8 months.

I agree with Mike that yes older cards of bigger players such as Mantle and Aaron from those days yes they are worth grading because those cards most likely carry way over the $100 value but, if you have a common base card that even though right now might see some graded selling higher but, after you wait six months that value has a great chance of dropping due to many factors (injuries and bad play don’t help) and you’re agreeing to pay a min of $60 to wait six months and be told your card is an 8 and now worth less than what you just paid. Before sending your cards into any grading company most Sport Card Graders will offer an inspection before sending the card out. It is beyond worth it and usually costs as little as $10 for a view to give the customer the best knowledge of what they can possibly expect.

I have been grading cards for a very long time even before it was overly popular. I have scaled back better than 80% of what I used to grade because TIME in this market is not something you have a lot of depending on the player and card itself. If you want the best opinion, reach out to the team at www.topnotchsportsclub.com with any questions on grading, I am sure they would be happy to answer about their process.

ROOKIE AND THE VET

BY MARK HALPERN AND MIKE RIFKIN

The New York Mets have underachieved this season. They lost some of their biggest players to free agency before Mets fans had a chance to think about next year. The biggest being Pete Alonso, who was affectionately as “The Polar Bear” went to the Baltimore Orioles for a 5 year deal and is now known as “the Orange Bear” but, is also having a great last two months as Baltimore pushes to make one of the last of the three wild card spots to head to the playoffs. A series of injuries were a big point of the Mets season, and that caused a fire sales at the trade deadline. It’s been a tough season for Mets fans, but here at the end of the season are a couple stories to pay attention to.

Francisco Lindor, who many fans believe should be named the captain of the team. He dosen’t make excuses about his poor play or others, he is heavily critical of himself and not to mention has empathy towards his teammates and wants them to succeed. Lindor is approaching a big Milestone and after Saturday’s game against the Yankees. His two home runs on Saturday put him one shy of #300. A milestone like this is a positive story Mets fans have been needing. Over the past month Lindor has returned to the player Met fans are used to seeing. The other thing he has found is his smile. He has been injuried, slumping, making errors (so unusual) and just being off. For the first time this year I truly believe that Lindor is 100% healthy. Which is a good sign for 2027.

The other major story that is brewing is the outstanding play of Rookie Carson Benge on offense and defense. Benge made the opening day roster and it got off to a slow start. But that was a blip on the radar, as Benge has probably been the most consistent Met. Benge has become a fan favorite because of how great a defender he is, he has been outstanding with the ground he covers and has an absolute bazooka of an arm. Pete Alonso won Rookie of The Year in 2019, Carson Benge might not have the 50+ Home Run power like Alonso but, Benge is hitting for a higher average and his OBP is slightly lower than Alonso. But his Defense is far beyond what Alonso’s was (also different position) but, with his arm strength (which was a nice surprise for fans) but, his 10 outfield assists put him near the top of the league. Let that sink in for a minute, not top of the rookie class we are talking in the league itself and that’s hard to do with the talent that is in the outfield amongst the 30 Major League teams. If Benge keeps this level of play up over the rest of September, Mets Fans will have two huge stories to vault them into next year. What Benge, Lindor and some of the other Mets have done is establish a new core of players, that’ll hopefully translate into a better 2027.