up Page 209 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

I hope Chris 'Mad Dog' Russo knows he’s in Shaq’s dog house
Chris “Mad Dog” Russo got a little carried away Wednesday on First Take. I know, that is his job on the show. The guy invented sports-talk radio volume. His takes are somehow louder than his voice. In small social media clips, I find Mad Dog entertaining. I even find some of his perspectives on life...

It’s fun to watch MLS get smacked down
We get pretty used to sports leagues doing whatever they want, and whatever they want is usually not in any interest of the fans. It’s almost always about control and profit, which runs in direct opposition to fans’ desire to see competition, accessibility and the game we remember that got us all he...

Devon Toews is not pleased with his Avalanche teammates
Last week, the Colorado Avalanche showed off that despite their warts and occasional hiccup, they still have a gear that few if any other teams can reach (Look at this now!). It looked as if the Avs were kind of picking their way through the regular season and hitting their stride in the spring. Aft...

If Florida State leaves the ACC, where does it go?
Updated Dec. 21: Florida State University’s Board of Trustees will meet Friday, with the Seminoles’ conference affiliation as the meeting’s central focus. According to a report from Yahoo Sports, the school may seek a declaratory judgment action in an attempt to argue that it is not bound to its con...
![Derrick Ward pleads not guilty to robbery charges [Updated]](https://images.deadspin.com/tr:w-900/35eadd976059bcfdfbd3eb25ad5d75f8.jpg)
Derrick Ward pleads not guilty to robbery charges [Updated]
Updated Jan. 4: Ward pleaded not guilty to the charges....

The NFL and NCAA football have a coaching-carousel problem
Raise your hand if you weren’t surprised that a Matt Patricia-coordinated defense caved during the waning minute of the Eagles-Seahawks game Monday. Now, keep them raised if you’re not shocked that Matt Nagy and Nathaniel Hackett are struggling to get their respective offenses in rhythm. Alright, to...

This is what happens when you put Matt Patricia in charge
Philadelphia’s newest defensive coordinator is off to a rough start. ...

This is what Eagles fans want
We all knew the truth. Eagles fans weren’t comfortable being the swaggering nobility of the NFL, or even the NFC. Oh, they’ll tell you loudly enough when the Birds, or any Philly team, is good. But it’s at such a volume that it’s easy to sense the insecurity hidden within. Maybe they don’t throw bat...

Halfway point for the Premier League can only mean a couple (or a million) things
We’re now into the Premier League fan’s favorite time of year and it’s symmetrical that it lines up with a child’s favorite time of year, given both’s penchant for inexplicable screaming and crying. It’s holiday time, which means children and fans alike don’t have to do anything but sit around, neve...

MLS proves once more it is a deeply unserious league
The Friday news dump has been generally found out for what it is. A way for slimy organizations to try to sneak another piece of larceny or incompetence or just generally distasteful act past the goalie of our awareness without the normal level of scrutiny. By now, the actual act of releasing news a...

It's time to take a hard look at who deserves to win NFL MVP
We have three Sundays left. Three more Sundays until that IV is ripped out of our arms and we are forced to trudge through the subsequent eight months not being able to start the week with at least 10 NFL games. With the holidays on the way to provide a bit of a distraction from that fate, let’s tal...

Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs beat the Pats but still look out of sync on offense
Entering Week 15, the Kansas City Chiefs were in the midst of a rough patch where they’d lost four of their last six games. That includes the previous two weeks against Green Bay and Buffalo, games most assumed they’d win coming in. Despite not performing like Super Bowl champs, the scheduling gods ...

This week in the basketball: Illinois St. coach in n-word flap; Giannis Antetokuonmpo still hasn't found his ball
What a typical response to racism from the head coach of Illinois State men’s basketball. During a home game on Saturday, Ryan Pedon got in an altercation with Norfolk State head coach Robert Jones. A situation that was none of Pedon’s business, because Jones was not even talking in the direction of...

This week in football: Chiefs' act is getting so old; No Supe for Al Michaels; Tommy DeVito's stupid situation with the Giants
Full disclosure, I’ve never been on board with the Kansas City Chiefs. Sure, they were, for a while, the best team in America, with a young and exciting generational talent under center and a head coach who never had to answer for anything because he wears Hawaiian shirts, has a funny mustache, and ...

Chargers subreddit becomes about phone chargers, not team
Things are looking very bleak for the Los Angeles Chargers. Not only is Justin Herbert done for the year, but the Bolts went out and got absolutely torched by the Raiders to the tune of 63-21 on Thursday Night Football....
![Tyreek Hill settles 1 paternity suit, still has others [Update]](https://images.deadspin.com/tr:w-900/42a63eb40ee4d39606898e8f0e3ea655.jpg)
Tyreek Hill settles 1 paternity suit, still has others [Update]
Updated Feb. 29: Tyreek Hill settled the paternity suit brought forth by Brittney Lackner, according to the Daily Mail. ...

Cam Newton doesn't understand what 'game manager' actually means
Cam Newton has earned the right to stake his claim for the Content Clickbait King throne. He was a former MVP, Heisman Trophy winner, national champion and Super Bowl competitor. Newton recently caught a wave of backlash for classifying Brock Purdy, Dak Prescott, Jared Goff and Tua Tagovailoa as gam...

The NFL has an offensive line problem — and help is not on the way
The league has an offensive line problem, according to longtime lineman Andrew Whitworth. ...

The Champions League group stage went out with a bang
The Champions League group stage spent most of its time getting maligned, some of that in bad faith from the biggest clubs who just wanted to mold the competition to their whims. But their main argument held a lot of water, which was that it lacked drama or suspense, as for the most part the top clu...

Travis Kelce is a lot of things. Washed up is not one of them
It’s crazy to think someone can get to the height of NFL general manager – the position solely responsible for making roster and personnel decisions – all while not knowing football. ...