mac Page 13 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights
When it comes to MLB rumors, why isn’t it ever anyone new?
Right before I sat down (or stood up as it were, as I’m one of those brain geniuses who works standing up. I’m ever so svelte!), news broke that the San Diego Padres had signed Xander Bogaerts to an 11-year, $280 million deal. Bogaerts kicks Fernando Tatis Jr. to the outfield or DH spot for a season...
Lotta goals in the desert - World Cup Daily Diary: Day 11
Game of the day: Mexico 2 - 1 Saudi Arabia...
Come home, Kevin Durant
The NBA’s greatest epics have been built around a meteoric star crash landing in a small market, galvanizing the city around their greatness in hopes of delivering glory. Think LeBron James in Cleveland, Dirk Nowitzki in Dallas, Tim Duncan in San Antonio, Isiah Thomas in Detroit, Hakeem Olajuwon in ...
5 surprising NBA rookies you need to know about
As Paolo Banchero begins to run away with the Rookie of the Year award, there are still hidden gems and surprise showings by first-year players selected outside the top 10. We have highlighted which ones have been the biggest surprises thus far and project comps for their young career....
Can’t get no respect
If the playoffs were starting right now, the New England Patriots would be the AFC’s sixth seed. They’d get an opening-round matchup with the Tennessee Titans, followed by a likely road gig against the Kansas City Chiefs. It’s a tough path in the already daunting American Football Conference. That s...
Hey, Bill Belichick, we told you so
Remember when photos of a shredded Mac Jones circulated before the season? Patriots fans were so hyped by the Mac-churian Candidate’s transformation that they gave him a standing ovation the first time he ran out on the field in training camp. ...
The truth about Zach Wilson is becoming clear
The subterranean arc of Zach Wilson’s career hit a new low in New York’s 10-3 loss to the New England Patriots. For 59 minutes and 30 seconds, the Jets’ defense surrendered only one field goal against the New England Patriots. However, punt returner Marcus Jones’ game-winning punt return in the wani...
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the next big thing
Let’s get this out of the way. This is not a trend piece arguing why Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander needs to be playing in a bigger market. SGA is just fine where he is. Sure, he could “save” plenty of franchises like the New York Knicks, Toronto Raptors, or Los Angeles Lakers....
It’s too early for the Blue Jays to be panicking
It’s hard to not see the Toronto Blue Jays sitting in the catbird seat. It doesn’t feel like the Yankees are exactly poised to hold onto their seat atop the AL East, even if Aaron Judge returns. They don’t have the potential for growth that the Jays do, given the youth of their roster. Bo Bichette, ...
Who had TCU as the first Texas program to (possibly) make the College Football Playoff?
I hate to give Texas credit for anything because the state already takes credit for everything. However, of all the supposed football-obsessed hubs, the Lone Star State tops them all. Mostly because of how unhealthy the population’s dedication to the sport is — I’m sure there are Texans who got wher...
Coming off the bench has brought back some semblance of vintage Russell Westbrook
Russell Westbrook’s first season in L.A. was an unmitigated failure. He was plugged into a lineup of non-shooters including LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and a confusing mix of ill-fitting pieces. Of Rob Pelinka’s misfit toys, though, nobody took last season’s debacle harder on the chin than Westbroo...
By all means, the 49ers should have no trouble with the Chargers
The Los Angeles Chargers are a very good football team. Even in the absence of Keenan Allen and Mike Williams for parts of the season, the downfall of JC Jackson, and the abysmal play of Jerry Tiller on the D-line — thankfully he just got waived — the Chargers have played their way to a 5-3 record a...
Albiceleste of Steel? World Cup 2022 Group C Preview: Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Poland
OK, I’m stretching to get a Rush reference into these. But the heart wants what it wants. ...
Who will be stepping into the limelight this NBA season?
When a new wave of players becomes NBA relevant, it usually happens over time, never all at once. It’s a gradual increase in relevance, sometimes under the radar, because it’s guys who reach their potential in small markets and losing situations. When a lottery pick hits early and fast, like Paolo B...
The 2022 Astros don’t absolve the 2017 Astros of anything
When the Astros’ 2017 cheating scandal was exposed in 2019, team owner Jim Crane wanted to make sure everyone knew the championship wasn’t tainted. “Our opinion is that this didn’t impact the game,” Crane said. “We had a good team. We won the World Series and we’ll leave it at that.” Then-right fiel...
Are these second-year NFL QBs suffering a sophomore slump?
During the 2021 season, we tracked rookie QBs who were either drafted in the first round or started most of their team’s games. Mac Jones was the lone standout as his team qualified for the postseason. We’re about halfway through year two for these players, and it’s time to check in and see how life...
The Second Coming of Dennis Smith Jr.
Maybe all he needed was to come home. Smith is from Fayetteville, North Carolina, and is now playing with the Charlotte Hornets, just a mere three hours from his hometown. The Hornets are Smith’s fifth team in six seasons. Last year, he split time between three teams, including the Hornets. So why h...
Tom Brady and the infinite sadness
Thursday Night Football is usually a pretty sad occasion as ritual, given the mess that it tends to be with the short rest and everyone still very much sore from the game they played just four days prior, and the lack of practice time dulling any sharpness. But last night was particularly acute. ...
A decade after the Thunder traded James Harden, regret should linger
A decade after Oklahoma City traded James Harden on the eve of the 2012-13 regular season, it still stands as an atrocity upon the art of dynasty-building. As the central players involved in that deal wind down their Hall of Fame careers in bleak situations, there is no more denying it, Oklahoma Cit...
This is bigger than Bailey Zappe and Mac Jones — Bill Belichick has never been good at drafting quarterbacks
I’m a New England Patriots fan that loves how Bill Belichick coaches football. I’m a New England Patriots fan that’s always hated how Bill Belichick drafts quarterbacks. Two things can be true at the same time....