ham Page 84 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Baker Mayfield and Jared Goff joined some elite company
After the Wild Card Round of the NFL playoffs, Baker Mayfield and Jared Goff have etched their names in history, joining a short list of quarterbacks to win a postseason game with two different teams....

The NHL Eastern Conference playoff race is a mess
We’re halfway through the NHL season, which is now meant as a device to make everyone look stupid. Or really, to make me look stupid, which isn’t all that hard, because I’m stupid. After 41 games, we should have an idea of who is what and who’s going where. But in the Eastern Conference, we really d...

The NFL buying ESPN is the final frontier in the effort to kill sports journalism
Last week, my colleague Sean Beckwith wrote about the NFL possibly buying a stake in ESPN, and the potential for the self-proclaimed Worldwide Leader in Sports to become nothing more than the PR arm of the most popular league in America (at least, more than it already is). Yesterday, over at The Nat...

Jerry Jones will continue to coach the Cowboys
When studying bewildering decisions that Jerry Jones makes — like deciding to keep the consistent playoff dry heave Mike McCarthy, the guy who could only get to one Super Bowl with Aaron Rodgers — it’s important to remember how he and the Cowboys got here. It was a long time ago now and a lot of NFL...

Pascal Siakam makes the Pacers good at what they’re bad at, excellent at what they do best
The calendar has not yet reached February, but the Indiana Pacers have decided to kick the trade deadline into high gear. The No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference made a win-now move with darkhorse MVP candidate Tyrese Haliburton currently sidelined with a hamstring injury. Per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnaro...

Yes, the Ravens look strong, but the numbers say 'buyer beware'
The Baltimore Ravens will play their first playoff game of the season this coming weekend after securing a bye due to being the AFC’s top seed. They finished the season 13-4, and despite not having key players like tight end Mark Andrews or wide receiver Devin Duvernay, they trampled almost everyone...

Gio Reyna knows he needs to justify the noise
The funny thing about Gio Reyna, and more to the point, all the noise about him – the controversy with his family and Gregg Berhalter, the anticipation of any appearance with the national team, the confidence that he’s the country’s most talented player – is that it is built on such a tiny foundatio...

Mbappe bemoans lack of 'load management' in European soccer
Ligue 1 and the NBA are two leagues that usually don’t go together, but French soccer superstar Kylian Mbappé is worried that European soccer is starting to mimic professional basketball in one very specific way....

Alabama should be applauded for defying historical trends by hiring Kalen Deboer
In response to Nick Saban’s sudden retirement, the Crimson Tide hired Washington’s Kalen Deboer and averted the mistake that’s plagued program after program over the last half-century. Bravo to Alabama for expanding beyond their horizons....

Aaron Rodgers and Pat McAfee are proof that ESPN only wanted Black talent to ‘stick to sports’
“It’s not what you say, but how you say it,” is a wise adage. But at ESPN, it’s always felt like who said it was more important than what was said. Aaron Rodgers and Pat McAfee haven’t been sticking to sports for a while now, which was, and still is, a privilege that former and current Black employe...

Can the Bruins win without any centers?
The Boston Bruins are the perfect team in the NHL to have the eternal-long fatalism vs. determinism debate. They sit atop the Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference once again, just as they did last year. Just as last year, David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand are two of the best players in the league...

The Pistons should be sending thank you cards to the Lions
Midway through January of 2024, Detroit exists at the cross-section of grief and euphoria. Grief for the terminally ill Detroit Pistons and euphoria towards the Detroit Lions reanimating. Nothing encapsulates the circle of life and sports quite like the present-day 313. There’s even a dash of relief...

In honor of Martin Luther King Day, here are some of the best HBCU athletes to make it in the pros
We’ve already highlighted some of the famous Black celebrities who are HBCU alumni, but what about the athletes?...

Kim Mulkey & LSU's diversity flap; Who's on NBA trade block?; Steve Kerr is wrong about Draymond Green
Kim Mulkey has consistently shown us where she stands on social matters. She leans to The Right, which is her right. But when 83 percent of your team are women of color, it’s on you to answer for how your employer’s decisions will affect them. - Carron J. Phillips Read More...

Here are the best possible Super Bowl LVIII matchups
People are going to watch the Super Bowl no matter what, but not all Super Bowl matchups are created equal. With a total of 49 possible Super Bowl matchups remaining, only so many are going to be truly watchable. Considering seeding, history, narratives, and outright entertainment, this is a deep di...

These are the teams most likely to suffer upsets during NFL's Wild-Card Weekend
After 18 weeks of grueling NFL action, we’ve made it to Wild-Card Weekend and the first round of the postseason. We often hear the term “must-win” during the regular season, but once a team makes it this deep into January, every game is truly a must-win scenario. Like any other week, there’s always ...

Sure, Bill Belichick was a great coach, but he was also a jerk
Yes, we get it. Bill Belichick is arguably the greatest coach in NFL history. He’s also one of the sport’s biggest jerks. ...

The Bears once again do the minimum in the most backward way possible
To make it clear right at the top, here are all the things Matt Eberflus was allowed to do to keep his job: Completely waste training camp, except getting pretty much half the team hurt. “Mr Track Shoes” didn’t have his team ready to start the season, starting 0-4 and looking bewildered while doing ...

Pistons-Spurs matchup should be mandatory viewing for fringe NBA prospects
What If I told you that we’re almost at the halfway point of the NBA season and two teams with two of the best young players in the league don’t have 10 wins between them? And what if I told you that tonight’s matchup between Cade Cunningham’s Detroit Pistons and Victor Wembanyama’s San Antonio Spur...

As the NBA season approaches the halfway point, let's look at the winners and losers so far
With 2024 in full swing, let’s award the winners and losers of the first half of the NBA season. It’s been a banner year, but not without controversy and major development. Many questions are left unanswered. Will the Lakers regain their contender status? Can the Thunder compete this year? Are the K...