Putting aside the distractions of numerous false-positive COVID tests, late schedule changes, and players going on and off the reserve list, the Giants rode an opportunistic defense, Graham Gano’s reliable leg, and just enough offense to defeat the Las Vegas Raiders, 23-16, in MetLife Stadium.

The Giants won for the second time in three weeks and improved to 3-6 entering their bye.

On Monday, they lost a winnable game in Kansas City, 20-17. Two days later, 13 positive tests from Tuesday forced practice to be pushed back. When the testing uncertainty continued Thursday, the players were sent home for Zoom meetings only to return for practice. Saquon Barkley, Xavier McKinney and Gary Brightwell were placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list.

Through all the news bulletins and updates, coach Joe Judge emphasized to his players and coaches they had to maintain their normal preparation and focus.

After two years and two fights, the two top welterweights in the world finally found a way to make peace. For one night, anyway.

But what mattered most at the conclusion of UFC 268 from Madison Square Garden was that Kamaru Usman is now 2-0 against bitter rival Colby Covington after winning a unanimous decision, 48-47, 48-47, 49-46, that was closer than the scorecards would indicate.

“It’s a lot of trash talk. It’s a lot of bad blood here,” said Usman (20-1, 10 finishes) in the octagon after the decision was read, referring to the bitter war of words with Covington (16-3, eight finishes) dating back to 2019. “But he’s a tough son of a b—h”

Usman’s respect for the challenger, who the champ defeated via fifth-round TKO in December 2019 in a win that failed to bury the hatchet, came moments after he and Covington looked to offer mutual props to one another as they awaited the decision.

“When you share an octagon with someone this tough, you can’t help it that respect is gonna come,” Usman said.

Carson Wentz threw three touchdown passes, Jonathan Taylor rushed for 172 yards and two scores and the Indianapolis Colts beat the New York Jets 45-30 on Thursday night.

Jets backup quarterback sensation Mike White injured his right forearm in the first quarter and had to watch the rest of the from the Lucas Oil Stadium sideline.

The injury put a halt to White’s storybook run and any idea of a quarterback controversy. It was unclear exactly when White was injured. White said he felt the forearm “lock up” after he threw a 19-yard touchdown pass to Elijah Moore to tie the score at 7-7 with 3:32 left in the first quarter.

“It’s very frustrating,” White said. “You get your opportunities and you want to take advantage of them. In the limited snaps I did get to play tonight, I thought I played really well. It’s not the end of the road by any means.”

Josh Johnson replaced White and played a respectable game, throwing for three touchdowns for the first time in his career — which goes back to 2008. It took him a while to get going, and most of his statistics came after the Jets had fallen behind by 30 points, but Johnson threw for 317 yards on 27-for-41 passing with a late interception.

The final score was deceiving. The Jets fell behind 42-10 before a late rally made the margin more respectable.