mo Page 202 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

One of these things is not like the others
The downfall of Zach Wilson in 2022 coincided with the rise of Justin Fields. For every errant throw from Wilson, there is an impressive Fields pass or explosive run, and that disparity has many people looking back to the 2021 draft and wondering “How in the world did Fields go from the consensus No...

One and done: NFL head coaches who only lasted a season or less at the helm
Not surprisingly, the Denver Broncos fired head coach Nathaniel Hackett after the team was embarrassed — AGAIN — in primetime. The Los Angeles Rams beat them 51-14, and Russell Wilson was once again dog shit. ...

Two Nicks, two trophies
Christmas Eve saw most of the NFL’s slate played on Saturday and it was freezing at most stadiums. Recovering from frostbite while opening presents as a family apparently was a necessary evil to some. In two of the three stadiums where fans weren’t shivering, two of the NFL’s major awards were decid...

Sports is sometimes disheartening as a profit-margin-focused enterprise, but it does produce some great stories
Yes, sports is like all other major American industries — run by a handful of people who made out like bandits in this economic system of great wealth disparity. Because they have accumulated such vast wealth, they believe that is a sign of intelligence and that hubris frequently leads to poor decis...

Under the Coaching Tree: Ranking the Top 10 Coaching Trees in NFL history
Ho ho ho, folks! Christmas is here, and good ol’ jolly St. Nick is heading down the chimney with exactly what you asked for. If you’re an NFL head coach though, that probably means he’s headed down the chimney with a talented assistant to put on your staff to make you look even better. Until they le...

The NBA’s poverty franchises
The competitive lifespan of an NBA franchise is delicate. A team’s championship relevance depends on many factors, including the front office’s competence, coaching staff, and the totality of star power on the court. “Poverty” in the NBA sense can be defined by the corrosion of the team’s ethics and...

The road not taken: How Carlos Correa and other agreements voided or reversed have altered destinies
Days after agreeing to a 13-year, $350 million deal to serve as San Fran’s shortstop of the foreseeable future, former Astros SS, Carlos Correa regurgitated his Giants agreement and opted to occupy third base for the Mets for the next 12 years instead at a marked down $315 million rate. Correa’s abo...

Bettors backing Bears to beat Buffalo Bills
For the second week in a row, the Chicago Bears have received the most moneyline bets of any underdog for Week 16. According to OddsChecker US, this is actually the fourth time this year they’ve earned this distinction, going 1-2 in their previous three games under the same pretenses. This week, muc...

I hope Steve Cohen breaks it all
This isn’t some argument that Steve Cohen is some type of hero. Or even a good guy. I’ve made it pretty clear what I think of any billionaire and the possibility of them being decent people. Camel going through the eye of a needle and all that. ...

Who saw that coming?
The San Francisco Giants thought they had inked Carlos Correa to a 13-year, $350 million deal. But the introductory press conference was mysteriously postponed, supposedly over issues with the shortstop’s physical. ...

The Nets soap opera has been replaced by prestige drama
Previously on The Brooklyn Nets…...

I fear I may never know joy and happiness like Andrés Cantor
Maybe years ago, like a couple decades, Andrés Cantor was something of a cartoon to non-soccer fans with his outsized “GOOOOOOOOOOOOL!” calls making the rounds on various highlight shows as evidence of how silly soccer was to the agnostics and why it should never be bothered with....

The best soccer players of all time to never win a World Cup
It’s the pinnacle of soccer. The World Cup is a spectacle unlike any other in sport. And to truly be considered the greatest to ever lace up your cleats, you need to have lifted the trophy. Why can’t Dan Marino be in the discussion for the greatest quarterback of all time? He never won a Super Bowl....

Is this the dumbest play in NFL history?
The New England Patriots won the Super Bowl in 2018 and the Miami Dolphins didn’t make the playoffs. So their Dec. 9 matchup is far from one of the most memorable regular-season matchups in NFL history....

Taking a moment for Messi
It seems like something of a missed opportunity that my favorite Lionel Messi moment came 11 years ago. There’s been so much since. It just happened to be on my 30th birthday, on a day where pretty much everything went wrong (a fine introduction to one’s 30s, it could be easily argued). Barcelona th...

Baltimore’s offense desperately needs Lamar Jackson, but that won’t matter during contract negotiations
Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens have gone nearly the entire 2022 season and have yet to come to an agreement on a contract extension. We knew this would be the case entering the season, but now we’re going to find out where loyalties lay in a worst-case scenario. Jackson went down with a knee...

The NBA’s war on load management is pointless
Load management is going to happen in the NBA regardless of the league’s best efforts. Organizations have been taught to value the postseason over everything because of ringzzzzz culture, and that mindset only gets reinforced by teams like the Phoenix Suns busting their asses to win 64 games a year ...

Alexander Ovechkin, the 'GR8 One'
Alexander Ovechkin is the best pure goal-scorer in NHL history. That’s not up for debate. The longtime Washington Capital hasn’t been hockey’s best player for years, but his ability to put the puck in the back of the net is nearly as good as it was 15 years ago when he scored 65 goals during the 200...

Naming Pat McAfee Sports Media Person of the Year is an indictment of us all
This is not (totally) a hit piece on Pat McAfee. It’s more about how we should categorize what McAfee does, because The Athletic — you know that sports site owned by The New York Times — named him its Sports Media Person of the Year, and that implies that he’s a journalist....
