Mets stun Brewers to advance to NLDS with Pete Alonso home run; Kirk Cousins sets records in Falcons comeback

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⚾ 🏈 Good morning to all, but especially to …

THE NEW YORK METS …

It could have been the last at-bat of his Mets career. Instead, it’s the greatest of his career, one of the greatest in franchise history and one that guarantees him and the Mets more playoff baseball to come. Trailing 2-0 in the top of the ninth inning, Pete Alonso drilled a three-run home run off star reliever Devin Williams, and the Mets stunned the Brewers, 4-2, in a winner-take-all Game 3 of their NL Wild Card Series.

The Mets will face the Phillies next, a classic NL East showdown set up by a classic Mets rally.

After Jake Bauers and Sal Frelick delivered back-to-back homers to give Milwaukee a 2-0 lead in the seventh, the Brewers looked to be on their way to advancing. But in the ninth, Francisco Lindor drew a leadoff walk, Brandon Nimmo singled, and Alonso went deep to the opposite field — the Mets’ first ever go-ahead ninth-inning home run in a playoff elimination game. Starling Marte added an RBI single, and David Peterson slammed the door in the ninth.

Alonso was an easy pick for series MVP — Mike Axisa picked every Wild Card Series MVP — and how can one not wax poetic about a free-agent-to-be, struggling all series, coming through? Matt Snyder did just that.

This is who the Mets are. Their eight wins when trailing entering the ninth inning this season were most by any team since 2019. They rallied to clinch a playoff berth. And, with their backs against the wall, they rallied yet again.

Playoff baseball. There’s nothing better.

Here are the updated bracket and schedule the Divisional Series.

• ALDS: Yankees vs. Royals (preview)
• ALDS: Guardians vs. Tigers (preview)
• NLDS: Dodgers vs. Padres (preview)
• NLDS: Phillies vs. Mets (preview)

And, of course, our expert picks are in.

… AND ALSO A GOOD MORNING TO KIRK COUSINS, KHADAREL HODGE AND THE ATLANTA FALCONS

When all looked lost, Kirk Cousins found something, and for the second time in four days, the Falcons won on their final offensive play. Cousins threw for a franchise-record 509 yards and four touchdowns, including the overtime winner to KhaDarel Hodge, in a jaw-dropping 36-30 win over the Buccaneers.

Trailing 30-27 with under two minutes left, Cousins threw an interception to Lavonte David deep in his own territory, and it looked like that would do it. Instead, Tampa Bay went backwards and didn’t even get to attempt a field goal. Cousins then drove Atlanta 46 yards in 1:14 with no timeouts, spiking the ball with one second left to set up a game-tying 52-yard field goal from Younghoe Koo.

After the Falcons won the overtime coin toss, more magic unfolded.

• Cousins drove Atlanta into Tampa Bay territory when Drake London got hurt after a hard tackle.
• Into the game came Hodge, he of one career touchdown catch and zero catches this season.
• Cousins threw a dart to Hodge, who spun away from a diving defender, turned up field and outraced everyone to the end zone. Game over. Comeback complete.

It’s Cousins’ 15th game-winning drive over the last four seasons, four more than anyone else.

Four days earlier, Atlanta won despite zero offensive touchdowns thanks to a pick six, a muffed punt picked up for a touchdown and four Koo field goals. Thursday, the offense couldn’t be stopped. What a turnaround, and what a moment for Hodge, for Cousins and for Atlanta. The Falcons have their guy behind center, and my goodness is he delivering.

👍 Honorable mentions

• Davante Adams wants to go to the Jets.
• Odell Beckham Jr. is close to returning.
• Bryce Young and Andy Dalton have grown closer despite the quarterback change.
• These Broncos throwbacks are awesome.
• Caitlin Clark won WNBA Rookie of the Year.
• The Reds hired Terry Francona.
• Maurice Clarett has advice for Ohio State superstar freshman Jeremiah Smith.
• Sam Houston is playing its own version of Moneyball and succeeding. The Bearkats are rising in Emory Hunt’s Group of Five Power Rankings.
• Also rising in those rankings? Navy, led by do-it-all quarterback Blake Horvath.
• These Western Kentucky helmets are … something.
• The 2025 Masters is on track to be played as scheduled despite damage from Hurricane Helene.
• Dawn Staley has advice for A’ja Wilson.
• The Big Ten men’s basketball preseason poll is here.
• Micah Shrewsberry has Notre Dame men’s basketball crushing it in recruiting.
• The long- and short-term futures should excite USMNT fans.

⚾ And not such a good morning for …

THE MILWAUKEE BREWERS

I mean, what can I say? It’s a gut punch in every sense. Williams had a 1.25 ERA this season. He has a 1.83 career ERA. He is outstanding. He just wasn’t when the Brewers needed him most. As the legendary John Sterling would say, “That’s baseball, Suzyn.”

Here’s what’s next for Milwaukee.

👎 Not so honorable mentions

• Patrick Mahomes “felt like shit” for the hit that injured Rashee Rice, who went on IR.
• The NCAA gave Antonio Pierce an eight-year show-cause penalty for recruiting violations.
• Willy Adames waited for Jesse Winker in the parking lot after their Game 1 spat.
• Chez Mellusi‘s season is over.
• Nika Muhl tore her ACL while playing overseas and could miss the 2025 WNBA season.

🏈 NFL Week 5 picks

We can only hope the rest of the week lives up to the drama of Buccaneers-Falcons, and it starts with Jets-Vikings in London. Pete Prisco’s pick is …

• Prisco: “The Vikings are undefeated and Sam Darnold is playing at an MVP level. But facing this Jets defense will be a real challenge. The Jets offense was lifeless last week in the loss to Denver, and Aaron Rodgers will face a tough test from Minnesota’s attacking defense. His line had issues last week and will again here. It’s close but low scoring as the Jets take it behind their defense. Pick: Jets 19, Vikings 16“

Later in the day, there are some huge AFC clashes, including a Stefon Diggs revenge opportunity in Bills-Texans as well as an AFC North Ravens-Bengals battle, so be sure to read all of our expert picks/best bets:

Pete Prisco | Will Brinson | John Breech | Jordan Dajani | Tyler Sullivan

And finally, after going 2-1 last week, we here at the CBS Sports HQ AM Newsletter are 7-3 on the year. This weekend, let’s roll …

• Jaguars over Colts
• Cowboys over Steelers
• Broncos over Raiders

🏈 College football Week 6 picks, previews

It’s October, the month where College Football Playoff contenders begin to separate themselves from the pretenders. Conference play gets into full swing, and, as Will Backus notes, the month is full of games with major postseason implications.

That starts with a big one: No. 9 Missouri visiting No. 25 Texas A&M.

• Backus: “This is a huge test for Missouri for multiple reasons. It will be the Tigers’ first trip outside the friendly confines of Faurot Field this season. They also lost a bit of luster after beating Boston College by just six points and needing overtime to take down Vanderbilt. To go to Texas A&M and win the only game featuring ranked teams in Week 6 would be quite a statement. A win for the Aggies would vault them right back into the CFP conversation.”

Mizzou isn’t the only top-10 team hitting the road. No. 4 Tennessee heads to Arkansas (preview here), and in The Six Pack, Tom Fornelli has his best bet for Volunteers-Razorbacks.

🏀 What to watch for in NBA preseason

The NBA preseason begins today, and as such, we’ve rounded up offseason grades for every team.

We’ve examined the Knicks‘ side of the latest big move — Karl-Anthony Towns joining New York — but what about the Timberwolves, who earned an offseason “B” from Sam Quinn? James Herbert has best- and worst-case scenarios for Minnesota, where Julius Randle says he feels “wanted.”

As for preseason storylines, the LeBron James-Bronny James father-son duo in action ranks among the biggest, Jasmyn Wimbish writes.

📺 What we’re watching this weekend

Friday

🏀 NBA preseason: Celtics vs. Nuggets, noon on NBA TV
🏒 Devils vs. Sabres, 1 p.m. on NHL Network
🏀 WNBA semifinals Game 3: Lynx at Sun, 7:30 p.m. on ESPN2
🏈 Michigan State at No. 6 Oregon, 7:30 p.m. on Fox
🏈 Syracuse at No. 25 UNLV, 9 p.m. on FS1
🏀 WNBA semifinals Game 3: Liberty at Aces, 9:30 p.m. on ESPN2
🏀 NBA preseason: Timberwolves vs. Lakers, 10:30 p.m. on NBA TV

Saturday

🏒 Sabres vs. Devils, 10 a.m. on NHL Network
🏈 No. 9 Missouri at No. 25 Texas A&M, noon on ABC
🏈 Navy at Air Force, noon on CBS/Paramount+
⚾ ALDS Game 1: Tigers at Guardians, 1:08 p.m. on TBS/truTV
🏈 Iowa at No. 3 Ohio State, 3:30 p.m. on CBS/Paramount+
🏈 Auburn at No. 5 Georgia, 3:30 p.m. on ABC
🏈 No. 12 Ole Miss at South Carolina, 3:30 p.m. on ESPN
⚾ NLDS Game 1: Mets at Phillies, 4:08 p.m. on Fox
🏈 No. 1 Alabama at Vanderbilt, 4:15 p.m. on SEC Network
⚾ ALDS Game 1: Royals at Yankees, 6:38 p.m. on TBS
🏀 NBA preseason: Warriors vs. Clippers, 7 p.m. on NBA TV
🏈 No. 4 Tennessee at Arkansas, 7:30 p.m. on ABC
🏈 No. 10 Michigan at Washington, 7:30 p.m. on NBC
⚾ NLDS Game 1: Padres at Dodgers, 8:38 p.m. on FS1
🏈 No. 8 Miami at Cal, 10:30 p.m. on ESPN

Sunday