Monday High 5: Takeaways from a Super Weekend of Sports

The sports weekend gave us a lot to chew on. Tom Brady’s status as the greatest was cemented, fans returned to watch Suns games in person and golfer Brooks Koepka regained his winning form in Scottsdale. Let’s dive into our biggest takeaways from a super fun week in the sports world.

Tampa Bay defense dominates in 31-9 Super Bowl win over Kansas City.

The Bucs defense harassed Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes all game long and had him running for his life in a dominant performance that made Super Bowl LV a bit boring to watch at times. Mahomes was sacked three times and intercepted twice – and the league’s No. 1 offense was held to 350 total yards (after averaging 415 yards per game during regular season) and three field goals. It was the first time in Mahomes’ pro career he lost by double digits. Tampa Bay’s elite pass rushers Jason Pierre-Paul and Shaq Barrett, along with linebacker Devin White, abused the Chiefs offensive line and gave Mahomes no time to pass.

There was also this guy named Tom Brady (perhaps you’ve heard of him) winning his 7th Super Bowl ring (6 in New England, 1 in Tampa Bay). We can only marvel at his accomplishments at this point. Here are some of the silly numbers that prove how great of a career he’s had:

Big Takeaway: There’s no more debate about Brady – he’s the greatest football player of all time, end of story. Don’t waste your breath. Instead, talk more about that Bucs defense and how they stopped the great Chiefs offense in Super Bowl 55. Brady will get remembered, but the defense won the game.

Brooks Koepka finds his winning form again at Phoenix Open.

Koepka won his first career PGA event six years ago here in Phoenix and quickly rose to the top of the Tour. He went on to win four majors but had not won a tournament since 2019 – until this week at the Phoenix Open. Koepka stayed in contention all weekend and pulled away to win it with an unbelievable eagle chip-in on 17 on Sunday.

Big Takeaway: It’s good to have Koepka back in the winner’s circle, especially in Scottsdale. He’s a huge fan favorite on the PGA Tour because he doesn’t take himself too seriously. Golf is more entertaining with Koepka near the top of the leaderboard each week.

Suns don’t disappoint in return to playing in front of fans.

The Phoenix Suns are hosting the Cleveland Cavaliers Monday night in front of 1,500 season ticket holders at the newly renovated arena in Downtown Phoenix. It’ll be the second straight home game allowing fans in attendance after nearly a full calendar year of no fans. Sunday afternoon, the Suns defeated the Boston Celtics 100-91 in front of 1,493 health care workers who were given free tickets.

Big Takeaway: The Suns have won five of the last six games and are finally worth seeing in person for the first time in a decade. At 13-9, Phoenix is fourth in the Western Conference, competitive and entertaining on most nights. It may be awhile until the Suns Arena can be filled to capacity, but when that time comes, the Suns will be a hot ticket to find.

Report: Cardinals and Patrick Peterson to part ways.

It appears the Arizona Cardinals will not attempt to re-sign 10-year veteran cornerback Peterson when he enters free agency this off-season, according to a report from Fansided NFL reporter Matt Verderame.

Big Takeaway: No real surprise here since Peterson is a free agent and he had the well-documented trade demand back in 2018, a demand the Cardinals never gave into. At 30, Peterson still has a few more solid years left in the NFL, and although he’s not near his All-Pro days, the Cardinals defense is better with him on the field. If he signs with another team, he’ll be missed here in the desert.

Dodgers reload and leave D-Backs in the dust.

The World Series champions are gearing up for another run at the title – and who’s going to stop them? The Los Angeles Dodgers added starting pitcher and reigning NL Cy Young winner Trevor Bauer last week, adding to their already stacked roster.

Big takeaway: 3 MVPs and 3 Cy Youngs on one team! The Diamondbacks stand no chance to compete with this in 2021. The lost season is scheduled to begin with spring training later this month and Opening Day slotted for April 1 at San Diego.