ow Page 155 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Want to reduce college football Bowl opt-outs? Pay the players
The bowl opt-outs are a letdown, but we all saw what happened to Jaylon Smith. During the 2016 Fiesta Bowl — which was not a playoff game — his leg was mangled. A projected top-five pick fell to the second round. Since then, many star players have made the intelligent business decision to not play i...

Luke Littler: 16-year-old dart prodigy, or Robin Williams from <em>Jack</em>?
The darts world is abuzz over Luke Littler, a 16-year-old prodigy on the verge of winning the World Dart Championship. The Englishman burst onto the scene in this tournament, going from relative unknown to the sport’s Bobby Fischer (minus the racism and genius though I’m not sure those two can be tr...

NHL contenders have something of a goalie crisis
The NHL is almost certainly delighted that it’s seen an uptick in scoring the past three seasons (though down a skosh this season from last). It probably should pull a muscle patting itself on the back for the crackdown on goalie equipment leading to lower average save percentages across the Origina...

It’s time for ESPN to put an end to Pat McAfee’s Aaron Rodgers disaster
There was a time in journalism when allowing people to spew false information in a public forum was frowned upon. That was before the ghouls at FOX News realized that there was a lot of money in telling people what they want to hear — truth be damned — first as wild speculation about where former Pr...

Bill Belichick said he'd reveal his future on TacoCorp's MyFace offline social network
There have been persistent rumors that this could be Bill Belichick’s final season as the HC of the New England Patriots. The team is 4-12 heading into the final week of the NFL regular season, and has seen uneven QB play since Tom Brady left town....

Aaron Rodgers tries to link Jimmy Kimmel to Epstein because he's butthurt over sketch mocking him
Aaron Rodgers should work on his sense of humor. He will never have a sharp enough wit to compete with Jimmy Kimmel, but no one expects that. What would benefit Rodgers would be to learn that slanderous statements and verbal comebacks are not the same thing....

The College Football Playoff semifinals felt like the glory days of the sport
From the moment that Pat McAfee, Desmond Howard and Joey Galloway breathed a sigh of relief after Rece Davis said “naysayers” on College Gameday, the College Football Playoff semifinals were off and running. With Michigan taking on Alabama and Washington going up against Texas, there were great expe...

The Bears are deluding themselves into thinking Justin Fields is their QB of the future
Near the end of Justin Fields’ triumphant win over the Atlanta Falcons, Chicago Bears fans serenaded him with a passionate “We want Justin” chant. The chorus reached a fever pitch on a night when Fields threw for north of 260 yards and one touchdown in a blowout win over the Atlanta Falcons. Through...

ESPN's <i>First Take</i> continues to be a bizarre cesspool of inappropriate behavior
We already know Dan Orlovsky is an odd character. The former NFL QB — best remembered for running out of the back of his own end zone — admitted on Twitter that he uses his towel at least 30 times before washing it; and once went on The Pat McAfee Show to reveal his wife’s poop schedule....

Chris Mortensen, Carl Weathers and the sports figures we've lost in 2024
Here is where we look at some of the athletes and sports figures we’ve lost in 2024....

ESPN apologizes for Sugar Bowl boob flash
What happens on Bourbon Street doesn’t always stay on Bourbon Street. In one case, it gets broadcast to millions of people. ...

Michigan’s talent level stops another Jim Harbaugh dry heave
There were many who had their headlines and stories written, piling on a third-straight CFP semifinal loss for Jim Harbaugh on top of his lost Super Bowl and two lost NFC Championship games. Nice sets come in threes and all that. And he still may add that next Monday. ...

Celebrating 2024 with the best players to ever wear 24
Happy New Year! We’re on to ‘24. Years have become synonymous with athletes and their jersey numbers recently (ask any 23-year-old how their “Jordan Year” is going). In honor of the trend, here are the greatest athletes to ever wear No. 24....

Youth is wasted on the young, unless you are these NBA teams
So, who has the hottest young talent in the league? We’re analyzing the five teams who have built the best through the draft across positions and skill sets. No room for wannabes here – gotta be 25 or below to even join the party. We’re also looking for impact players, not DNPs, with dreams bigger t...

Baltimore Ravens to honor RB who assaulted fiancee in elevator
Ray Rice, the former NFL running back whose career ended after he assaulted his then-fiancee — the charges were dropped — will be honored by his former team Sunday....

New Year’s Six bowl games kicked off with a barely watchable product
The Cotton Bowl felt like a watershed moment for anyone watching — or casually following along on gamecast. The latter would’ve been the preferred method for a slap fight that featured 16 punts. Missouri mercifully gave fans a touchdown to start the fourth quarter, and would add another score for a ...

Bowl shenanigans are at full-throat
The great thing about bowl season is it lets fans check in on programs they may not have watched much during the regular season. With 86 teams participating across 43 exhibitions, and little else to do but veg out on football, this seems like a good time for a little peer review. On Thursday, Miami ...

This week in the NBA: Kevin Durant unhappy in Phoenix?; Ja Morant in more hot water; Cade Cunningham can't save Pistons
Well, it didn’t take long for Kevin Durant to find something to complain about it on his new super team....

Jalen Hurts’ fugazi QB record is evidence that sometimes numbers do lie
The NFL’s Big Data complex, including Next Gen Stats and Pro Football Focus, would have you believe that numbers don’t lie, but the truth is that numbers can be untrustworthy little digits. They don’t explicitly generate faux stats, but accurate statistics can be framed deceptively. For instance, on...

IDIOT OF THE YEAR 2023: The complete rankings
Welcome to the grand finale of Deadspin’s IDIOT OF THE YEAR festivities. Here’s hoping 2024 will be better. It probably won’t....