Cowboys biggest loser from NFL Week 8; FSU starts coaching search after firing Mike Norvell

Plus, Lamar Jackson played one snap before suffering another long-term injury

Nov 2, 2026 at 8:57 am ET • 7 min read

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🤕 Five things to know Monday

1. Lamar Jackson is headed to IR with a thumb injury. The Ravens got their star quarterback back in the lineup for the first time since Oct. 4, but his return lasted all of one play. On his first throw, Jackson's hand hit a Bills defender, and he suffered a thumb injury that will require surgery. Coach Jesse Minter said Jackson will be placed on IR -- meaning he'll miss at least four more games. Shortly after that, backup Tyler Huntley left the game with turf toe, and UDFA Joe Fagnano played the rest of the game and struggled in the process.
2. Florida State has fired coach Mike Norvell. Following an embarrassing loss to Clemson on Saturday night, Florida State fired Norvell in the midst of his seventh season with the program. It will cost the Seminoles a pretty penny to get rid of Norvell, but a 10-22 record over the past three seasons was too much to ignore. As Florida State begins the search for its next coach, there are plenty of questions, but the program should still be able to attract some high-profile candidates.
3. The Valkyries are WNBA champions. With a 68-63 win over the Dream in Game 7, the Valkyries clinched their first WNBA title in just their second year of existence. Gabby Williams posted 30 points to lead Golden State to the comeback victory. Williams didn't get off to the fastest start in Game 7, but she stayed patient and waited for her opportunity to strike. It was a crushing loss for the Dream, but Angel Reese has already declared that Altanta will be back for another crack at a championship.
4. Georgia climbed to No. 2 in the new AP Top 25 poll. Coming off a decisive win over rival Florida, the Bulldogs are now the second-ranked team in the country. Georgia will try to avoid becoming the third consecutive second-ranked team to lose, but it won't be easy. The Dawgs will play at Ole Miss in one of many top 25 matchups in a loaded Week 10 slate. Before we get there, however, we'll get our first look at the first College Football Playoff rankings on Tuesday night. These three nuggets from the AP Top 25 poll could be a preview of what's to come when the playoff committee unveils its rankings.
5. Tom Nolan defeated Renato Moicano via controversial TKO. UFC Fight Night didn't end without a little bit of controversy on Saturday night. In the main event, Moicano had Nolan pinned in a dominant position, but referee Dan Mirgaliotta stood the fighters up due to inactivity. That debatable decision changed the course of the fight as Nolan found his footing and won via TKO in the next round. As a result, Nolan will creep closer to the top 10 of the lightweight rankings on Monday.

🏈 Do not miss this: Cowboys among NFL's biggest losers

When the Cowboys dominated the Eagles last week, they were a trendy pick to win the NFC East. That was certainly the case when they took a 14-point lead over the Cardinals in the fourth quarter on Sunday.

Then Dallas surrendered 23 points in just under 15 minutes for a 33-30 overtime loss. The catastrophic collapse was only made worse by the fact that Gardner Minshew was carving up the Cowboys like a Thanksgiving turkey.

It was a mind-melting finish, and Carter Bahns had every reason to make Dallas lead the list of Week 8's biggest losers.

• Bahns: "This loss for the Cowboys stings as much as any of the previous four. The most painful part might be that the 30 points they allowed in the second half and overtime came with backup quarterback Gardner Minshew on the field for Arizona. Or maybe it is the unfathomable splits in two-score games, where since 2000, the Cardinals were 1-174-1 when trailing by 14 or more points in the fourth quarter and the Cowboys were 69-0 at home when leading by 14 or more in the fourth."

Given all of that, I'm sure it won't suprise you to to learn that the Cowboys received a failing grade from our own John Breech. Even former Dallas quarterback Ben DiNucci was calling out the the team for an "embarrassing" loss.

When a team implodes like that, it's fair to question the coach's job security, but Brian Schottenheimer appears to be safe for the time being.

Of course, that was one of many wild games on Sunday, so here's everything you may have missed:

• The Buccaneers beat the Falcons without completing a single forward pass.
• It might be time for the Vikings to consider benching Kyler Murray.
• A disastrous season for the Eagles got even worse on Sunday night.
• Andy Reid backed Harrison Butker again, but the numbers are too glaring to overlook.
• The Colts aren't actively shopping Jonathan Taylor ... but they aren't ignoring calls either.
• Ashton Jeanty has apparently been demoted to a third-down back in Las Vegas.

📉 College football Week 9 roundup

With November upon us, the college football season is reaching a crescendo. Week 9 wasn't the wildest weekend we've seen, but it delivered enough drama to tee us up for the home stretch.

Coming off a 30-18 loss to USC, Ohio State is out of mulligans, and the high-wire act begins in earnest this weekend against Oregon. The Buckeyes can't afford another loss, and they'll be starting a freshman quarterback the rest of the way. As our own Tom Fornelli explains, optimism is tough to find in Columbus these days.

• Fornelli: "I don't know if Ohio State can get past the version of Oregon I saw Saturday. Even if they do, I don't know that the version of Ohio State we saw can get past Northwestern, Nebraska and Michigan. Make no mistake about it: while the 19-15 win over Indiana is one of the better wins any team will be able to claim this season, the rest of the resume is looking a bit thin right now."

Ohio State has no margin for error left, and it's fair to wonder whether it will be able to hold things together long enough to reach the playoff. There should also be some concern about the Heisman Trophy candidacy of Jeremiah Smith with freshman Luke Fahey at quarterback.

The Buckeyes aren't the only Big Ten disappointment, and it's starting to look like the conference's run of national title dominance will come to an end.

Here are a few more of the biggest headlines from Saturday:

• Dylan Raiola and Oregon got a badly needed win over Northwestern.
• Indiana continues to live dangerously with yet another overtime win in Big Ten play.
• After his win over Ohio State, Lincoln Riley has flipped the script on hot-seat talk.
• Thomas Castellanos completely rejuvenated a slumping Texas Tech offense.
• A lackluster passing attack could come back to bite Georgia when it matters most.

👍👎 The best (and not-so-best) of the rest

• Check out all our expert picks for opening day in college basketball.
• Pete Crow-Armstrong headlines the Gold Glove recipients as Red Sox and Diamondbacks win three each.
• Ace Tarik Skubal tops our list of the 50 best MLB free agents this winter.
• Reigning NHL MVP Nikita Kucherov has requested a trade: These are the five best landing spots.
• Schooled: Luka Dončić taught Yaxel Lendeborg a lesson -- even if the rookie balled out.
• Rookie Aday Mara will have to step up if the Thunder are going to survive Chet Holmgren's injury.
• Blazers star Ja Morant is expected to miss four weeks with a hamstring injury.
• Can anyone catch Sarah Strong as the best player win women's basketball?
• The Padres have declined Nick Pivetta's option to make him a free agent.
• Borussia Dortmund spoiled the Ballon d'Or party for Harry Kane.
• The NWSL playoff bracket is set after an entertaining Decision Day.

📺 What we're watching Monday

🏀 No. 20 Maryland vs. No. 1 South Carolina (W), Noon ET on ESPN
🏀 No. 21 Oklahoma vs. No. 12 North Carolina (W), 2:30 p.m. on ESPN2
⚽ Everton at Newcastle United, 3 p.m. on USA Network
🏀 No. 14 Miami vs. No. 1 Florida (M), 6 p.m. on ESPN2
🏀 Army at No. 2 Duke (M), 6:30 p.m. on ESPNU
🏀 Memphis vs. No. 18 Iowa State (M), 7 p.m. on FS1
🏒 Golden Knights at Bruins, 7 p.m. on NHL Network
🏀 Thunder at Cavaliers, 7 p.m. on NBCSN
🏀 No. 15 Gonzaga vs. Purdue (M), 7:30 p.m. on TNT
🏈 Bears at Seahawks, 8:15 p.m. on ESPN
🏀 Ohio State vs. No. 25 BYU (M), 9 p.m. on FS1
🏀 No. 5 Arizona vs. No. 22 UCLA (M), 10 p.m on TNT