sports Page 56 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Virgil van Dijk and Alisson Becker saved Arsenal’s season
We spend a lot of time trying to unearth the little tactical nugget, or superlative performance from one player, or decoding the 3D art that most soccer matches at the highest level usually are to figure out why one team won or lost and why this team is higher in the table than the other. But someti...

Eric Bieniemy should be preparing for the Super Bowl. Instead, he’s out of a job (Updated)
Updated 3:15 p.m EST: ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting that new Commanders head coach Dan Quinn has said Bieniemy will not return to Washington’s staff....

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s MVP heist is nearly complete
Joel Embiid’s departure from the MVP race while he undergoes minor surgery to repair a displaced flap in his meniscus has created a vacancy. His coronation has now become a vastly different two-man heat. With due respect to Luka Doncic’s gaudy numbers, he’ll be a long shot as long as the Dallas Mave...

These are the current and former NBA players who need their own podcast
A decade ago, who would have thought that current and former players would be the best analysts and commentators in the NBA? A novel idea, eh? Former players Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson’s “All The Smoke” and Gilbert Arenas were early purveyors of player-run podcasts. It’s since evolved to includ...

Jalen Brunson is the best point guard in the NBA
At his introductory press conference on Sept. 22, 2022, Jalen Brunson sat at a podium, decked out in a crisp number 11 New York Knick jersey, and said the following, “I’m not a savior in any way, shape, or form. I just want to be able to contribute to the team.”...

Nikita Kucherov exposed NHL All-Star weekend for the farce that it is
There’s a fallacy out there that any All-Star Game is “for the fans.” That idea flew out the window long ago, especially for the NBA and NHL. The All-Star Game is merely a junket for the league’s biggest sponsors to get the chance to hobnob with the game’s top stars, a reward for their support of th...

A week in Las Vegas: Godspeed to those embarking upon that journey for Super Bowl week
The best Las Vegas experience is usually one that is a whirlwind. A couple of days of cards, dice, shows, and booze that goes by so fast the most vivid memory of the trip might be time spent at Harry Reid International Airport. Vegas at warp speed is the best way to go, but that does not work for th...

Your guide to hate-watching Super Bowl 58’s Chiefs-49ers rerun
The best 2024 could give us for Super Bowl LVIII is a rerun. The Kansas City Chiefs marching into a showdown against a defensive juggernaut helmed by a lowly-regarded quarterback is another reminder that time is a flat circle. We even got a Shanahan-McCaffrey revival 25 years after Ed McCaffrey and ...

It’s time to face reality — Bill Belichick is likely done coaching in the NFL
We’ve heard the phrase, “end of an era” quite a bit in the football world lately. Nick Saban retired in Alabama, Bill Belichick was “ushered” out of New England, and Pete Carroll was moved into an advisor’s role in Seattle. All championship coaches who many feel the game has passed by. Initially, it...

How many points does Steph Curry have to score in a loss before we write off the Warriors?
Among the signs of the apocalypse, Steph Curry scoring 60 points in a Golden State Warriors loss is right up there. That the 141-134 defeat came against the Atlanta Hawks is even more frightening. The Hawks are five games under .500, and appear to be well on their way to resetting the roster around ...

The last year each MLB team reached the World Series
Baseball’s World Series has seen everything, from the breaking of curses to cheating scandals, to huge wins and dynasties, it has also seen almost every team. Here is the last time every team has been in the championship game. ...

Carl Weathers and the professional athletes who became actors
Acting and sports have a lot in common. It takes a ton of body control to do either, both are consumed by millions, and the biggest stars usually have a ton of charisma. These are the athletes who broke out of their sports and became big stars in Hollywood. ...

Penguins on the edge; The Canucks are for real?; A bad hockey take for the ages
No one ever wants to admit the end is coming, much less is here. Especially when there are signs that it’s still a bit of a ways off, if one knows where to look. There will come a day when the Pittsburgh Penguins will recede into the background, which they haven’t really done since the beginning of ...

Coach gave insider info to bettor; Orioles have new owner; Theo Epstein returns to Red Sox
New findings in NCAA sanctions against Alabama and former head baseball coach Brad Bohannon revealed that Bohannon knowingly provided insider information to a gambler who bet against the Crimson Tide last spring, according to ESPN. - Cale Clinton Read More...

Kim Mulkey needs to do right by Brittney Griner; Ben Simmons a hero?; Klay Thompson being traded?
Anyone who dresses the way Kim Mulkey does loves attention. And since the ultra-competitive and always controversial head coach has never shied away from the camera, she might as well show up in Waco next month for a photo-op on Brittney Griner’s big night — even if the two can’t stand each other. -...

Eric Bieniemy passed by again; Zach Wilson's Aaron Rodgers delusion; Patrick Mahomes' dad-bod saga
(UPDATE, 11:20 am, Feb. 1): ESPN is reporting that Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn has been named Commanders head coach.)...

Former Raider, <i>Rocky</i> star Carl Weathers dead at 76
Carl Weathers, the actor who starred in the Rocky franchise, Predator, and The Mandalorian, died on Feb. 1, according to Variety. He was 76. ...

Jaguars want FanDuel to reimburse stolen $20M: report
The Jacksonville Jaguars want FanDuel to reimburse them for some or all of the roughly $20 million that former employee Amit Patel stole and used on the site, but the gambling company is refusing, according to ESPN. ...

Admitted steroid user Gary Sheffield claims MLB tried to blackball him for speaking out
Former slugger Gary Sheffield claims MLB tried to force him out of the sport in the 1990s after he spoke out about the growing steroid scandal. ...

The NHL is back in the Olympics for 2026, 2030
The NHL will announce its official return to the Olympics, according to TSN and Chris Johnston. The move marks the league’s first time back in the games since 2014. ...