Former President Jimmy Carter was remembered in the sports world on Sunday after it was announced he had died at the age of 100.

The Atlanta Braves and the Atlanta Falcons were among those who remembered Carter in statements posted to social media.

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"The Atlanta Braves are deeply saddened by the passing of President Jimmy Carter," the Braves said. "President Carter was a testament to the best America, and Georgia, can produce.

"He served both his country and home state with honor his entire life. While the world knew him as a remarkable humanitarian and peacemaker, we knew him as a dedicated Braves fan and we will miss having him in the stands cheering on his Braves.

"Our deepest condolences to his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren."

The lifelong Braves fan was the first president to welcome a Super Bowl champion to the White House, kick-starting a time-honored tradition that has lasted through current President Biden’s administration. The Pittsburgh Steelers and Pittsburgh Pirates visited in 1980 at the same time.

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He was also in attendance when Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth’s Major League Baseball home run record with his 715th dinger on April 8, 1974. He threw out the first pitch in Game 6 of the 1995 World Series.

Carter was president when the U.S. announced the boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow as part of a protest against the Soviet Union’s invasion of Afghanistan.

Falcons owner Arthur Blank remembered Carter as an "inspirational global humanitarian."

"He lived his life with great civic responsibility and took it upon himself to be the change he wished to see amongst others," Blank said. "On behalf of my family and our family of businesses, we send a heartfelt message of condolence to his love ones.

"President Carter’s kind and uniting spirit touched so many lives. He was a man of deep faith, and did everything with principal and grace, doing things the right way for the right reasons."

Carter served one term as president. He entered hospice care in February 2023.

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The Atlanta Falcons have taken over first place in an NFC South race that is going to come down to the wire in the final two weeks of the regular season. 

However, the quarterback who helped beat the New York Giants on Sunday wasn’t Kirk Cousins – the $180 million man they signed to a four-year deal this offseason. 

It was Michael Penix Jr., the rookie first-round pick. Many were shocked when the Falcons called his name because they had just signed the veteran Cousins a month ago. 

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Cousins’ play, though, had been faltering of late, and one NFL Hall of Famer was blunt with his assessment of him this year after Penix looked good in his first NFL start. 

"Consistently mediocre. That’s what Kirk has been this year," Giants great Michael Strahan said, via the Daily Mail. "Whenever you’re a great player in your mind, you’re still that. But sometimes, your skill level diminishes, and it drops. 

"You don’t know when it’s going to happen, it can happen at any point in the season. I think for Kirk Cousins, it happened now." 

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The Falcons were 7-7 under Cousins, but head coach Raheem Morris made a change after Atlanta’s win over the Las Vegas Raiders saw more maligned offensive drives just like the ones in recent weeks with Cousins under center. 

But the 36-year-old, who is coming off a torn Achilles from the 2023 season with the Minnesota Vikings, was a part of four straight losses before that 15-9 win over the Raiders. In that span, Cousins didn’t throw a single touchdown and had eight interceptions. 

So, after throwing just one touchdown and yet another interception, Morris made the switch despite the Falcons being in such a tight playoff race. 

Penix’s debut saw no touchdown passes, but he was quick with his decision-making and on time with the ball to his receivers as he threw for 202 yards on 18-of-27 through the air. He also had an interception on his stat sheet, though tight end Kyle Pitts juggled a pass near the goal line that was ultimately picked off. 

With Penix taking the reins moving forward, Strahan believes that Cousins must play the mentor role. 

"Keep him around, let him teach Michael Penix the intricacies of the game," Strahan said. "It’s good to have that veteran influence, but I think Kirk may have to just humble himself to understand that’s his role right now."

There have been reports the Falcons could cut Cousins before March to avoid the remaining years on his contract, though $100 million was guaranteed at signing earlier this year. 

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Welcome to the NFL, Michael Penix Jr.

The rookie quarterback was thrust into the Atlanta Falcons’ starting role earlier this week as Kirk Cousins’ struggles became too much for the team to bear. Penix got his first start against the New York Giants and picked up a win even as he battled through some rookie troubles.

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Penix was 18-of-27 with 207 passing yards and one interception, but he wasn’t sacked. 

Atlanta defeated New York, 34-7.

The Falcons got on the board with a field goal following an eight-play, 36-yard drive in the second quarter. Falcons safety Jessie Bates III returned a Drew Lock interception for a touchdown to take the lead. Atlanta didn’t look back from there.

Penix’s 19-yard pass to Darnell Mooney helped setup Bijan Robinson for the first of his two rushing touchdowns. The Falcons took a 17-7 lead into the locker room.

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Robinson scored again in the third quarter. He finished with 94 rushing yards on 22 carries and two touchdowns. Mooney led the way with five catches for 82 yards.

It was the Falcons’ second straight win. They defeated the Las Vegas Raiders last week following a four-game losing streak. The Falcons are now 8-7 on the season.

For the Giants, the lowly season continued. 

Lock was 22-of-39 with 210 passing yards, a touchdown pass and two interceptions. But the lethargic offense was only able to have one drive out of 11 turn into points.

The defense didn’t help matters either. The Falcons had nine drives and 22 first downs. New York only had 14 first downs on 11 drives.

It was a good win to get for the rookie quarterback who will need to establish confidence fast if the Falcons are to win the NFC South and make the playoffs this season.

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Kirk Cousins may have been back at U.S. Bank Stadium, the place he called home with the Minnesota Vikings for six seasons, but his Atlanta Falcons were no match for his replacement at quarterback. 

Sam Darnold threw five touchdown passes and over 300 yards to thrash the Falcons, 42-21, to move the Vikings to 11-2 on the season. 

Darnold was 22-of-28 for 347 yards with his five scores, while Cousins, though he threw for 344 yards, had no touchdowns and two interceptions. 

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Cousins has been struggling with turnovers in recent weeks, as he had four interceptions last week in the loss to the Los Angeles Chargers and had one in each of the previous two games. 

But this game began with a master class from the Falcons, going 11 plays and 70 yards to see Tyler Allgeier score the game’s first touchdown. 

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However, a turnover-on-downs on the second Falcons drive ultimately flipped the momentum as Darnold’s first touchdown pass was a broken play to Jordan Addison, who scored three of those five touchdowns, as he caught a 49-yard bomb and walked into the end zone to tie the game after the extra point. 

A few drives later, Darnold zipped a pass to Justin Jefferson for a 12-yard score – his first since Week 7, which seems crazy to think about considering he’s the team’s top receiver. 

But Darnold wouldn’t just find Jefferson once. Yet another broken play came, this time in the second half, where he walked in as well from 52 yards out. 

Addison led the game with 133 receiving yards on eight receptions, but Jefferson was right behind with 132 yards on seven catches.

The Vikings put the game away in the fourth quarter, as they outscored the Falcons 21-0, which included an Aaron Jones touchdown. Jones had 73 yards on 13 carries on the day. 

For the Falcons, Bijan Robinson was able to find the end zone as well as leading the game with 92 rushing yards on 22 carries. 

Darnell Mooney was Cousins’ top target with 142 yards on just six catches, while Ray-Ray McCloud had 98 yards on eight receptions. 

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