She said what she said
From The GIST (hi@thegistsports.com)
Morning!
Still sweating after last night’s WNBA postseason tip-off? Same. Forward this email to a pal so you can relive the chaos together before we do it all again tomorrow.
— Legendary businesswoman Michele Kang, who owns not one, not two, but three professional women’s teams, including the NWSL’s Washington Spirit and the Women’s Super League’s London City Lionesses, the only independent club in the league. She said what she said.
NFL
🏈 A Spotify shuffle with no skips
The GIST: Week 2 of the NFL season had a little something for everyone — clutch field goals for the thrill seekers, short-sighted tunnel fits for the fashionistas, and pleas in the sky for the already fed-up. Just your average football Sunday, right?
❤️🩹 Cincinnati Bengals quarterback (QB) Joe Burrow injured: Cincy may have walked away with a rollercoaster 31–27 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars, but Burrow limped out of the stadium in a boot. The two-time All-Pro just can’t catch a break, suffering a big toe sprain (aka turf toe) in the second quarter.
- And that’s not the only toe in injury purgatory: Yesterday marked the first game San Francisco 49ers QB Brock Purdy missed while recovering from the same sprain. But backup Mac Jones shined in his absence, tossing three touchdowns in SF’s 26–21 W over the New Orleans Saints.
💥 Nine teams tally at least 30 points: Two words to characterize Week 2? Offensive explosion. From the Dallas Cowboys and NY Giants combining for a whopping 77 points to the Detroit Lions dropping 52 on their former offensive coordinator the Chicago Bears, Sunday was full of scoring — and the league’s updated dynamic kickoff rules just might be aiding the boom. Two birds, one stone.
🦅 Reigning champ Philadelphia Eagles double down on Super Bowl win: Eagles QB Jalen Hurts joined an exclusive group with yesterday’s 20–17 win over the Kansas City Chiefs — he’s now just the second signal caller to beat KC QB Patrick Mahomes three straight times. That said, it wasn’t pretty: Hurts threw for just 101 yards and rushed for a mere 15 more. But hey, a win’s a win.
- As for KC, they’re in unfamiliar territory, 0-2 for the first time since 2014, which also happens to be the last time they missed the playoffs. It’s worth noting that that version of the team didn’t have a Mahomes-shaped safety net.
🏀 No. 5 seed NY Liberty begin title defense with Game 1 upset despite Breanna Stewart injury
Natasha Cloud pitched in an inspired 23 points (against her old team no less) to pace the Libs in yesterday’s 76–69 overtime (OT) win over the No. 4 Phoenix Mercury. Now the reigning champs are just one win from a semifinal berth, but there’s an elephant in the room, and it isn’t Ellie — it’s Stewie’s knee. The two-time MVP tried to play through the pain before exiting the game in OT.
- The rest of the WNBA playoffs opening round was all chalk. The No. 1 Minnesota Lynx crushed the No. 8 Golden State Valkyries 101–72, the No. 2 Las Vegas Aces took down the No. 7 Seattle Storm 102–77, and the No. 3 Atlanta Dream beat the No. 6 Indiana Fever 80–68.
🏉 Top four ranked squads advance to Women’s Rugby World Cup semis
World No. 1 England, No. 2 Canada, No. 3 New Zealand, and No. 4 France all remain undefeated after sweeping their respective quarter-final (QF) competitions over the weekend, setting up two fiery semis later this week: Canada vs. New Zealand and England vs. France.
- New Zealand are six-time champions, but the Canadians are in peak form as they seek their first World Cup title, taking down No. 6 Australia 46–5 (!!!) in Saturday’s QF.
👟 U.S.’s Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, Jamaica’s Oblique Seville claim 100m titles at World Athletic Championships
There’s a new fastest woman and man in the world. Jefferson-Wooden finished in a world championship record 10.61 seconds to win the women’s title yesterday, while Seville stunned Olympic champion Noah Lyles to claim the men’s crown.
- And the epic opening weekend was just the beginning of the fun in Tokyo, with even more track & field on deck in the week ahead. Next on your watch list? Superstar Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone in tomorrow’s 400m semis. Blink and you might miss her.
❤️🩹 Racing Louisville midfielder Savannah DeMelo is “stable and alert” after collapsing on the pitch during last night’s road match against the Seattle Reign. The game was abandoned at 0–0 and will resume at a later date. Sending strength.
⚽ Midfielder Jaedyn Shaw scored in her Gotham FC debut on Friday, powering the Bats to a 2–0 win over her original NWSL club, the San Diego Wave. She set a transfer record for a reason.
‼️ Sam Kerr is so back. Returning to the pitch for the first time in 634 days following an ACL injury, Kerr wasted no time, scoring her 100th career goal for the WSL’s Chelsea yesterday.
- The 3–1 win over Aston Villa also saw newly acquired forward Alyssa Thompson make her English-side debut.
⚾ The Milwaukee Brewers and Philadelphia Phillies have punched the first tickets to the MLB playoffs, each securing one of the 12 available spots.
- And the American League East–best Toronto Blue Jays are inching closer to joining them after sweeping their three-game weekend series vs. the Baltimore Orioles.
⛳ The LPGA now has a record 25 different winners in 2025 after world No. 8 Charley Hull won the Kroger Queen City Championship yesterday, taking down No. 1 Jeeno Thitikul on the final hole.
🏀 Canada won their record-setting third 3x3 Basketball Women's Series championship yesterday: The No. 2–ranked Canucks beat Azerbaijan 21–12 in the final behind a team-leading nine points from Paige Crozon.
👟 Canadian Evan Dunfee raced to the top of the podium in the men's 35km race walk at the World Athletics Championships on Friday, coming from behind to overtake five walkers over the final eight kilometers.
Together With Maybelline New York
Confidence looks good on you. Is it Maybelline New York’s:
👁️ Sky High Mascara, aka the best-selling mascara in the country?
💄 Super Stay Matte Ink lipstick that literally stays all day?
✨ Instant Age Rewind Concealer, the multi-use formula that has everyone buzzing?
Whatever it is, you’re in good company. Minnesota Lynx star Bridget Carleton’s a fan of Maybelline too, strutting her stuff on and off the court with the official beauty partner of the WNBA in Canada — because confidence powers your game and your glam.
Recs from our roster!
🎄 What to look forward to watching
Holiday Touchdown: A Bills Love Story. Hallmark is releasing a Buffalo Bills-themed holiday movie this season, featuring cameos from players. Can't wait.
📸 What to check out
The Stud Budz in Vogue. The duo known as the Stud Budz (Lynx stars Natisha Hiedeman and Courtney Williams) sat down to discuss basketball, viral fame, and identity.
🎲 What to play
Connections: Sports Edition. The Athletic has launched team-specific Connections puzzles so fans everywhere can test their knowledge.
Question of the Day
With the WNBA handing out end-of-season awards all week long, which hooper do you think will be named league MVP come Sunday?
On Friday, we asked who the best QB in the NFL is right now. 46% voted for Josh Allen (Buffalo), 15% voted for Lamar Jackson (Baltimore), 14% voted for Patrick Mahomes (Kansas City), 14% voted for Jalen Hurts (Philadelphia), and 11% voted for Joe Burrow (Cincinnati).Today’s email was brought to you by Alessandra Puccio, Lisa Minutillo, Lauren Tuiskula, Rachel Fuenzalida, Charlotte Mackenzie, and Briana Ekanem. Editing by Katie Kehoe Foster. Fact-checking by Marga Sison and Mikaela Perez. Ops by Briana Ekanem and Marga Sison. Ads by Katie Kehoe Foster, Alessandra Puccio, and Lisa Minutillo. Managing edits by Lauren Tuiskula and Alessandra Puccio. Head of content Ellen Hyslop.