OK, before we go any further, we have to address Michael Phelps's new look. Apparently, Phelps has been hanging out in a lot of coffee shops and going to a lot of Japandroids concerts since the summer Olympics. Or perhaps he's just a really big fan of that crazy guy who used to edit Gawker.

It would be ludicrous to suggest that the San Francisco police department is scheming to hurt the post-season chances of the its hometown football team, right? Right. And yet, the 49ers are still giving the side-eye to the SFPD for undertaking (and informing the media of) the Michael Crabtree sexual assault…

It must be hard for NFL coaches to come up with fresh motivational techniques. You can't just slap a "Play Like A Champion" banner above the door or put some mean things that an opponent said about your quarterback on the bulletin board anymore. Those tactics are played out, and San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim…

Every morning, the fine folks at Sports Radio Interviews sift through the a.m. drive-time chatter to bring you the best interviews with coaches, players, and personalities across the sports landscape. Today: The Falcons kicker is a Happy Gilmore fan.

With all of the changes made to the NFL's overtime rules in recent years, anyone can be forgiven for not understanding some of the basics. But one detail that didn't change is what happens in a playoff game at the conclusion of the first overtime period: the teams move to the other side of the field, but otherwise…

The NFL is invincible. After a season of unnecessary distractions and safety crises and owner collusion and labor stoppages, in the course of two days the sport managed to put on two games that were so good they make you want to run through a fucking brick wall. Saturday's slugfest in Denver and yesterday's…

Ravens LB Brendon Ayanbadejo made headlines last summer when he very publicly announced his support of Maryland's gay-marriage referendum. Now he's opening himself up to an even more hateful bunch of opponents—Pats fans. (See?) Ayanbadejo didn't even wait for New England to finish its asskicking of Houston before…

Mayors of rival cities make cities make light-hearted bets on the outcome of sporting events all the time. Just yesterday the Packers-49ers game had chocolates, cheese curds, sparkling wine, "a free admission day to the Children's Museum" and bread, beer, more chocolates and a "a free admission day at the Exploratorium"

Broncos fans should be used to this by now: a big time, Super Bowl-winning quarterback lost to an obviously lesser quarterback in an overtime classic in Denver. The comparisons have been as inescapable as they are stupid:

Before Justin Tucker made the field goal that ended the the fifth longest game in NFL history yesterday, he jogged onto the field between the two overtimes and had an assistant coach hold the ball for him while he practiced his kicks. Champ Bailey was dismayed, as you can see in the video above, but nobody else on…