Kommandozentrale » On Saturday night he got his first official win

Long after the NFL cut ties with Greg Hardy Christian McCaffrey Jersey 2019 , the UFC (with help from corporate partner ESPN) is attempting to turn him into a cage fighting star. .The win was a flimsy excuse for a “fight,” as the UFC fed Hardy a newcomer named Dmitrii Smoliakov, a “fighter” who had no business in the Octagon. Hardy destroyed Smoliakov less than halfway into the first round, and the story of the fight was less that Hardy looked good than that Smoliakov looked bad — not to mention that the UFC looked bad for giving Hardy such an easy win.Smoliakov appeared to be stepping into the cage with Hardy just to cash a paycheck and get out of there as soon as possible. The commentator on the broadcast of the fight, former UFC champion Dominick Cruz, succinctly described the fight by saying that Smoliakov “doesn’t want to show up and fight this guy.”The UFC apparently thinks Hardy’s notoriety from his NFL days makes him a potentially lucrative draw. But if the UFC wants to get into the Greg Hardy business at all, the organization could at least give him a worthy opponent. Hardy has now had two official UFC fights, and both times the UFC gave him an easy opponent: Last time, Hardy fought a man who was coming off an ugly first-round knockout loss, and Hardy should have won easily but instead lost by disqualification when he illegally kneed his opponent in the head. This time, Hardy fought a man who quite clearly didn’t want to fight.If the UFC is going to keep inviting Hardy into the Octagon, it could at least match him up with someone who has previously won a UFC fight and might give him a challenge. Feeding overmatched opponents to Hardy is just gross.But the better question is why Hardy is in the Octagon at all. The NFL has taken plenty of warranted criticism for its handling of domestic violence, but even the NFL’s 32 teams all eventually decided they were done with Hardy. The UFC is not only still supporting him, but is bending over backward to help him win easy fights. Panthers coach Ron Rivera wanted a little something more from his offense Jordan Scarlett Carolina Panthers Jersey , which is why he turned to his old boss Norv Turner as the team's new coordinator this season.Rivera, who once coached under Turner in San Diego, said he got exactly what he was hoping for Sunday.Cam Newton threw for two touchdowns and ran for two others , Christian McCaffrey racked up a career-high 184 yards rushing and Carolina handed the Cincinnati Bengals their first loss of the season 31-21 behind a well-balanced offensive attack."We want to impose our will," said Newton, who praised Turner's play calling. "We are a team that can attack a defense in many different ways. As the game progresses I see the body language of defenders and they are wearing down."Newton completed 15 of 24 passes for 150 yards and ran for 36 yards as the Panthers (2-1) won their seventh straight home game going back to last season.McCaffrey, who tied a franchise record with 14 receptions last week against Atlanta, did his damage on the ground this time. He surpassed his previous career high of 66 yards rushing and became the first player in franchise history to post a 100-yard receiving game and a 100-yard rushing game in back-to-back weeks.Newton believes McCaffrey's 28-carry outing will dispel myths he's just a scat back."He's a total running back," Newton said. "... This is not a fluke. He has been doing this his entire career, collegiately and professionally. The fact that we have a special talent, you can't really gear in using packages for him."McCaffrey said the labels "definitely" bother him, but has learned to deal with them."The more and more I go through this league I learn that it's never been about proving anyone wrong or proving anybody right," McCaffrey said. "It's proving myself right, and that's the biggest thing that I've had to mentally take over as I continue to grow."When the Panthers weren't running McCaffrey Jordan Scarlett Jersey , they used him as a decoy.On one Turner play call, Newton sold a fake pass to McCaffrey and came back to the other side of the field to hit backup running back C.J. Anderson for a 24-yard touchdown on a screen play. The Panthers call it their Pony 21 set, which features McCaffrey and Anderson, a 1,000-yard rusher last season with Denver, in the backfield."This is a different style of offense, the way they attack," Bengals coach Marvin Lewis said. "We have to adjust and morph and play in it and make sure we stay sound in it. You have to be good for the whole ballgame. There were times we were perfect and times we were not."GREEN DAYBengals wide receiver A.J. Green, who had three touchdowns last week against the Ravens, left on the third play in the third quarter with a groin injury when he was hit while trying to make a catch over the middle. He did not return.Green said after the game he was starting to feel better and expects to play next week against Atlanta."At first, I thought I'd just knocked the air out of myself and just needed to catch my breath," Green said. "When I got up and running, I was pretty sore."YOU GOTTA OBADAEfe Obada, the first player to make a 53-man roster from the recently formed NFL International Pathways Program Jordan Scarlett Carolina Panthers Jersey , turned in a huge game in his first NFL appearance, getting an interception, a key fourth-quarter sack and two quarterback pressures on Dalton. One of his pressures was initially ruled sack-fumble in the second quarter, but later overturned by instant replay to an incomplete pass.DALTON'S DAYAndy Dalton was 29 of 46 with two touchdowns, but was intercepted four times, including twice by rookie cornerback Donte Jackson. Carolina's defense, which allowed 432 yards and 31 points to the Falcons last week, held the Bengals (2-1) to 66 yards rushing without Joe Mixon in the lineup.ON THE FUMBLENewton took a lot of heat for not jumping on a loose football in a Super Bowl 50 loss to the Denver Broncos, so he wasn't going to risk losing another in the fourth quarter with the Panthers clinging to a 28-21 lead. After a strip sack, Newton beat three Bengals players to the ball to maintain possession."Come hell or high water I was going to get that fumble, how about that?" Newton said. "I'm just trying to create good habits."BOYD STEPS UPTyler Boyd had a big game for the Bengals with six catches for 132 yards and a touchdown. Gio Bernard had 61 yards rushing on 12 carries and a touchdown, and five catches for 25 yards filling in for the injured Mixon.INJURIES:Bengals: Nose tackle Ryan Glasgow was carted off the field in the fourth quarter with a lower right leg injury and did not return.Panthers: Panthers middle linebacker Luke Kuechly left in the fourth quarter with dehydration but received an IV in the locker room and returned to make an interception on a "Hail Mary" on the game's final play.UP NEXT:Bengals: Visit the Falcons next Sunday.Panthers: Have a bye next week, then host the Giants on Oct. 7.