| Brant James: Five things we learned from Pure Michigan 400 and Chris Burke: Lessons from Week 2 of preseason |
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1. Kyle Busch and Jimmie Johnson. Jimmie Johnson and Kyle Busch. Back. And forth. Whether their decisive tussle for victory in the final laps at Michigan International Speedway on Sunday becomes a metaphor for the Sprint Cup championship in the final 13 races of the season remains unclear. But there is a reasonable assumption that Johnson, the five-time defending series champion, and points-leader Busch, the ultra-talented but historically fatally flawed challenger, will engage in this sort of battle again. Be it for a parcel of asphalt or a slot in the final point standings, they undoubtedly will claim the same space as property once the 10-race Chase for the Championship begins. Busch's teammate, Denny Hamlin, who finished second to Johnson last season, was supposed to be in this equation also. He still could. But he seemed as far removed from the championship picture as he did the race for lead on Sunday. [Read the full article] He stretched his arms out, grabbed the pass over his shoulder and fell into the end zone for a touchdown. After being away from the game for nearly three years, Plax was back."Everything feels normal," the wide receiver said. "It feels like football. To be honest, it feels like I never left."Burress caught three passes for 66 yards, including a terrific 26-yard reception for a touchdown, in his first game since 2008 to help the New York Jets beat the Cincinnati Bengals 27-7 in a preseason game Sunday night.Signed last month after serving 20 months in prison on a gun charge, Burress made his debut with the Jets (1-1) a memorable one. He caught a 20-yard pass from Mark Sanchez on the Jets' first offensive play, prompting huge cheers from the rain-soaked crowd at the New Meadowlands Stadium."He was ready to play," Sanchez said. [Read the full article] Manager Joe Girardi wasn't surprised in the least that Curtis Granderson was the one to provide it.Granderson flew around the bases for an inside-the-park home run to help the New York Yankees to a 3-0 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Sunday, A-Rod's first game back since July 7."Nothing he does really surprises me anymore," Girardi said. "You just kind of expect him to do something great every day."Rodriguez went 0 for 5 in the cleanup spot, but Mark Teixeira followed Granderson's seventh-inning speed show with a more conventional homer and Ivan Nova (13-4) pitched seven shutout innings as the Yankees took three of four from the Twins.Nova allowed five hits and struck out five to rebound from a poor start in Kansas City and Mariano Rivera picked up his 33rd save in 38 tries. [Read the full article] 
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