Secret sauce to Knicks bouncing back after disappointing start
The New York Knicks hit a recent rough patch. After winning its first two games, New York lost three straight. That worried fans, especially given the quality of teams they lost to. But fear not. With head coach Mike Brown new to his role, there was always going to be a learning curve. Add in the uncertainty around Mitchell Robinson, as well as the missed time from Miles McBride, and the early-season struggles become far less surprising.
Still, after seven games, New York is 4-3, which is a better record than they’ve boasted through the first seven games of last season or the season prior to it. After winning back-to-back games against the Chicago Bulls and Washington Wizards, it’s worth examining
Mikal Bridges quietly starts season off on right foot
Bridges is probably the Knicks’ most pleasant, early season surprise. After starting off the 2024-25 season with a cold shooting spell, Bridges rounded into form. And he has built on that (and then some) so far this season.
Bridges is stuffing the stat sheet. He is averaging 16.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 1.4 steals, and 1 block in 35.4 minutes through the team’s first seven games. He’s scoring efficiently, too. Bridges is sinking 54.5% of his shot attempts, specifically connecting on 48.5% of 3-point attempts. And he is shooting 87.% from the charity stripe as well.
But Bridges’ strong play is about more than just stats and efficiency. He has also been a vocal leader. Specifically, Bridges voiced displeasure with his teammates for a lack of hustle after most failed to get back in transition defense on Sunday against the Bulls. That’s a good sign from someone who remained relatively quiet for the early part of last season, his first with the Knicks.
Bridges has also served as a de-facto point guard at times, even with Jalen Brunson on the floor. And that, too, aids New York in its quest to remain healthy and give teams different looks. Bridges has advanced the ball up the floor as Brunson plays off the ball, giving Brunson a break from fighting with opposing defenses. And that’s something that was badly needed last season when Brunson was the team’s only ball handler, at least until former coach Tom Thibodeau turned to Bridges when Brunson was off the floor.
Knicks’ rotation is working itself out—and beginning to contribute
With McBride missing two of the Knicks’ first seven games and Robinson missing five, there have been rotational challenges due to a lack of continuity. However, the Knicks and its bench took care of business with a healthy squad against the Chicago Bulls at home on Sunday. And they followed it up with an impressive outing against the Washington Wizards in the second night of a back-to-back.
Specifically against the Bulls, the Knicks’ bench scored an eye-popping 46 points. And that was followed up with 33 against the Wizards. Comparatively, the 2024-25 Knicks’ bench averaged a league-worst 21.7 points per game. So, both recent outings represent a
Despite its progress, New York’s bench is still not a finished product. After starting the season with a 10+ man rotation, Brown has seemingly tightened his rotation a bit. He’s only played nine players meaningful minutes in the last two games. But who has played has changed, and it’s due to the changing availability of players like Robinson.
New York prefers to be cautious with Robinson, who didn’t play last night given that it was the back end of a back-to-back. That meant a bigger role for Guerschon Yabusele. Yabusele played 14 minutes against Washington after playing just two minutes against Chicago. And this fluid nature of reserve minutes will likely remain for the foreseeable future.
The Knicks will continue to experience growing pains as they figure out which lineups work best together. Guys like Landry Shamet, Yabusele, and maybe even McBride will probably experience varied playing time until Brown determines which players work best with each other. And while progress is rarely demonstrated in a straight line, the Knicks should get better and better as they understand more of what’s expected of them. And that
Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown Sends Heartfelt Message to Brian Branch After ‘MNF’ Win
The Detroit Lions have their teammate’s back.
Safety Brian Branch was suspended one game after he struck Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Juju Smith-Schuster after a Week 6 game and set off a brief fight.
The Lions were forced to play without Branch on “Monday Night Football” against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Detroit had a promising, dominating performance against Tampa, winning 24-9.
St. Brown, Robertson Support Branch Postgame
Several Lions players wanted to reach out to their teammate during postgame celebrations Monday.
“We love each other — we play for each other,” said receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown after the game. “Guys make mistakes, it doesn’t matter, we were here for each other.”
GettyDETROIT, MICHIGAN – OCTOBER 20: Amon-Ra St. Brown #14 of the Detroit Lions runs the ball against Jamel Dean #35 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the first quarter of the game at Ford Field on October 20, 2025 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images)
Cornerback Amik Robertson donned Branch’s No. 32 jersey during his postgame press conference to show support.
“That was our goal to go out there and support him because we always in his corner,” he said. “Great player, an unbelievable person, great teammate. We wanted to go out their and represent him. We love him, we can’t wait to have him back.”
Detroit Defense and Jahmyr Gibbs Was Recipe for Success
The Lions defense brought Tampa’s quarterback Baker Mayfield back to reality this season. Mayfield had a strong start to the season with whispers that he was in the MVP race, but the former No. 1 overall pick struggled on Monday night.
On offense, running back Jahmyr Gibbs shined. He scored on a long sprint in the second quarter and a 5-yard spinning dive in the third, while racking up a career-high 218 yards from scrimmage.
“You felt like this was coming,” Detroit coach Dan Campbell said. “This has been building.”
The Lions (5-2) rebounded from their loss in trademark fashion, extending their NFL-best streak to 51 consecutive regular-season games without suffering back-to-back defeats—a run that has lasted nearly three years.
“The guys responded, which I knew they would,” Campbell said.
Tampa Bay (5-2) was outgained by more than 200 yards in the first half but trailed only 14-3, thanks to Detroit’s miscues — an interception, a fumble, a turnover on downs, and a missed field goal.
Rookie Tez Johnson cut the deficit early in the second half with a 22-yard touchdown catch, bringing the Buccaneers within five, but they had no answer for Gibbs.
On the following drive, Gibbs broke loose for a 15-yard run and hauled in a 28-yard reception, setting up his second touchdown to extend Detroit’s lead to 21-9 late in the third quarter.
The third-year running back capped the night with a season-best 136 rushing yards on 17 carries and 82 receiving yards on three catches — a combined total topped only four times in franchise history this century.
Gibbs also became the first NFL player since Chris Johnson in 2009 to record at least 135 rushing yards, 80 receiving yards, and two rushing touchdowns in a single game.
“He’s a very talented running back and when you miss a gap, he can turn it into a big play,” Bucs coach Todd Bowles said.
Detroit quarterback Jared Goff completed 20 of 29 passes for 241 yards and a touchdown, while Mayfield went 28 of 50 for 228 yards, throwing one touchdown and one interceptio
