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🚨 Headlines
🏈 Tua benched: The Dolphins are in favor of Quinn Ewers, the seventh-round rookie out of . Tagovailoa, the fifth total decide in 2020, leads the league with 15 interceptions this season and is now Miami’s QB3, behind Zach Wilson.
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🎾 Alcaraz splits with coach: World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz . “We have managed to achieve the highest, and I really feel that if our sports activities paths needed to half methods, it needed to be from up there,” , who didn’t give a motive for the cut up.
🏀 Knicks will not increase banner: The Knicks within the Madison Sq. Backyard rafters as a result of the crew is “targeted on the larger image” of profitable their first NBA title since 1973. The Bucks and Lakers, the primary two NBA Cup winners, each raised banners.
⚾️ Nats youth motion continues: The Nationals 31-year-old Phillies assistant GM Ani Kilambi as their new basic supervisor. He’ll crew up with supervisor Blake Butera, 33, and president of baseball operations Paul Toboni, 35.
🏀 Rioux makes historical past: ‘s 7-foot-9 freshman Olivier Rioux made his first profession basket within the Gators’ blowout win over Saint Francis, turning into in a school basketball recreation.
🏈 May the Bears transfer to… Indiana?
(Discovered Picture Holdings/Corbis through Getty Photographs)
The Chicago Bears are considering exterior of the field — er, state — for his or her subsequent stadium, writes Yahoo Sports activities’ Jack Baer.
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What they’re saying: Bears president Kevin Warren despatched a letter to season-ticket holders on Wednesday with an replace on the franchise’s years-long seek for a brand new residence after a century at Soldier Discipline.
In recent times, the marketing campaign has targeted on a web site within the suburb of Arlington Heights that the Bears bought in 2023, with Warren saying in September that the crew must finalize plans this yr.
From the letter:
Steady timelines are crucial, as are predictable processes and elected leaders, who share a way of urgency and appreciation for public partnership that initiatives with this stage of influence require. We have now not acquired that sense of urgency or appreciation thus far.
Consequently … we have to develop our search and critically consider alternatives all through the broader Chicagoland area, together with Northwest Indiana. This isn’t about leverage. … Our followers deserve a world-class stadium [and] our group should hold each credible pathway open to ship that future.
Soldier Discipline in Chicago. (Quinn Harris/Getty Photographs)
Border crossing: The NFL has by no means appeared to thoughts the placement of a stadium not matching a crew’s identify.
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The New York Jets and New York Giants play in ; the Washington Commanders play in (although they’re shifting again to ).
Nonetheless, a transfer to Northwest Indiana — the place Gary and Hammond are the 2 largest cities — can be a stunning final result for the Bears… and the Colts.
Actuality test: Warren says “this isn’t about leverage,” however in fact it is about leverage. The Bears are hoping that the specter of them leaving forces state leaders to the desk. They do not truly need to transfer to Indiana. (That stated, the longer this drags on — and the louder it will get — the extra believable it turns into that their bluff turns right into a fallback plan.)
The backdrop: All of this lands three days earlier than the first-place Bears (10-4) host the second-place Packers (9-4-1) in one of the crucial significant video games at Soldier Discipline in years. Speak about a bizarre second to remind followers the crew may be in search of the exits. I consider the time period is “tone deaf.”
💯 Huge numbers
Teammates swarm Draisaitl to have a good time his 1,000th profession level. (Gene J. Puskar/AP Photograph)
🏒 1,000 factors
With 4 assists on Tuesday, Oilers celebrity Leon Draisaitl turned the 103rd participant in NHL historical past , and the primary German to take action.
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1,000 in a rush: Draisaitl reached the milestone in simply 824 video games, which is the (Connor McDavid, Sidney Crosby, Nikita Kucherov) and the fifth-fastest amongst all gamers born exterior North America (Peter Šťastný, Jari Kurri, Jaromír Jágr, Kucherov).
⚽️ $50 million
Subsequent yr’s World Cup will characteristic the most important prize within the historical past of the event, with the winner . That is up from $42 million 4 years in the past and $2.2 million again in 1982, the primary yr FIFA publicized the prize cash.
Full payouts: Champion ($50M); runner-up ($33M); third place ($29M); 4th place ($27M); Fifth-Eighth place ($19M); Ninth-Sixteenth place ($15M); Seventeenth-Thirty second place ($11M); Thirty third-Forty eighth place ($9M).
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🏈 14 coaches
A whopping 14 head coaches, coordinators or assistants on Faculty Soccer Playoff-bound groups are departing for different packages on the finish of the season, . That listing spans eight of the 12 CFP groups, with Ole Miss “main” the way in which at six departing personnel. Texas A&M and have two every, whereas Ohio State, JMU, Tulane and have one. (Congrats to Texas Tech, Oklahoma, Georgia and Indiana for avoiding the teaching carousel!)
What they’re saying: “We have got to repair the calendar,” stated Tulane assistant Will Corridor, who will substitute Jon Sumrall as head coach after the Inexperienced Wave’s playoff run ends. “We’re the one sport on the earth the place free company for gamers and coaches begins in the midst of the season.”
Rivers celebrates a landing move throughout final week’s recreation. (Steph Chambers/Getty Photographs)
🏈 5 years
Philip Rivers’ shocking return to the NFL means he and his household are actually eligible for , which was in any other case set to run out subsequent August. On the one hand, he is made $244 million in his profession, so he can actually afford his personal insurance coverage; on the opposite, he has 10 youngsters between the ages of two and 23. These premiums ain’t low-cost!
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Corridor of Fame clock reset: Rivers’ insurance coverage is not the one factor with 5 additional years of runway. He additionally should now wait 5 extra years earlier than turning into eligible for the Corridor of Fame, regardless of having already been named a .
🏀 100 wins
Duke’s victory over Lipscomb on Tuesday was the one centesimal win of Jon Scheyer’s profession, making him the to achieve the century mark in ACC historical past (122 video games). That is six video games sooner than Duke’s Vic Bubas (1959-69) and 7 video games sooner than ‘s Roy Williams (2003-21).
Who bought there sooner? Up to now 45 years throughout all of Division I, solely Butler’s Brad Stevens received 100 video games sooner than Scheyer, reaching the milestone in his one hundred and twentieth recreation again in 2011.
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⚽️ $1 million
Sophia Wilson (née Smith), who missed all the 2025 NWSL season after giving beginning to her first baby, price $1 million — the primary seven-figure wage in league historical past.
Extra to return? The NWSL that may enable groups to pay choose stars as much as $1 million above the wage cap, so offers like Wilson’s ought to develop into extra widespread shifting ahead.
🥊 Joshua to Paul: “I can kill you”
(Eva Marie Uzcategui/Getty Photographs for Netflix)
Anthony Joshua has made it clear that he on Friday of their polarizing boxing match.
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Joshua: “If I can kill you, I’ll kill you,” the previous heavyweight champion stated Tuesday forward of his bout in opposition to the YouTuber-turned-boxer. A day later, when pressed on these phrases, he doubled down:
“It is my job — we battle. We have now a license to kill. … Whenever you’re in that ring, it is a harmful place to be and something can occur. You hope your opponent leaves the ring safely, but when they do not, you continue to must go to mattress at evening realizing that you’ve got simply executed your job, it wasn’t private.”
To which Paul responded: “Let’s f***ing go, bro. Let’s placed on a present for the followers. Let’s go to battle. … I would like his hardest punches. I would like there to be no excuses when it is all stated and executed, and let’s f***ing kill one another. … That is going to be the most important upset within the historical past of sports activities, and also you guys get to witness it.”
Pre-fight studying (through Uncrowned):
⚾️ Take me out to the (jail) ballgame
The gates at Outdated Joliet Jail in 2011. (Raymond Boyd/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Photographs)
The Frontier League’s Joliet Slammers will play an exhibition recreation subsequent season . And for any beginner baseball historians on the market, it ought to come as no shock to you that the Veeck household has a hand on this stunt.
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“The Huge Home Ballgame”: The Slammers will face the Gateway Grizzlies on April 30 in the identical Chicago-area yard that after housed criminals resembling Leopold and Loeb, John Wayne Gacy and, most famously (albeit fictitiously), “Joliet” Jake Blues in 1980’s “.”
How are the Veecks concerned? William “Night time Practice” Veeck (pronounced veck) joined the Slammers final yr as a advertising and marketing govt and part-owner. His father, Mike, and actor Invoice Murray are additionally a part of the possession group, and this upcoming exhibition is simply their newest foray into the household custom of promotional showmanship.
Only a few examples: In 1951, as proprietor of the Browns (Orioles), he drummed up gross sales by sending 3-foot-7 Eddie Gaedel to the plate ; in 1979, as proprietor of the White Sox, he and Mike threw the notorious and harmful “.”
Why Outdated Joliet? The correctional facility has a longstanding connection to baseball, which by a warden who sought to enhance morale and encourage good conduct. Inmates continued taking part in there till the jail closed in 2002, and April’s recreation is the official kickoff for the centennial celebration of Route 66, the historic freeway from Chicago to Los Angeles that opened in 1926.
📺 Watchlist: Thursday, Dec. 18
The Rams received their first assembly this season, 21-19. (Sean M. Haffey/Getty Photographs)
🏈 Rams at Seahawks
The 2 finest groups within the NFL simply so occur to play in the identical division, giving additional weight to this NFC West conflict (8:15pm ET, Prime). Tonight’s recreation might decide which crew will get the bye because the No. 1 seed, and which is pressured to go on the street throughout Wild Card Weekend because the No. 5-seed.
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A league of their very own: With all due respect to the Broncos (12-2) and Patriots (11-3), no groups have seemed as constantly nice because the Rams (11-3) and Seahawks (11-3), who’ve by far one of the best scoring differentials within the NFL, at +163 and +159, respectively. The Pats are in third at +106.
🏐 NCAA Volleyball Closing 4
The semifinals are tonight in Kansas Metropolis, the place the trail to a championship after undefeated ‘s beautiful defeat within the Elite Eight. First up is No. 1 Pitt vs. No. 3 Texas A&M (6:30pm, ESPN), adopted by No. 1 vs. No. 3 (9pm, ESPN).
Trophy case: Pitt and Texas A&M are searching for their first nationwide championships, whereas Kentucky (2020) and Wisconsin (2021) are searching for their second.
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Extra to observe:
🏀 NBA: Clippers at Thunder (8pm, NBA) … OKC (24-2), coming off a loss, hasn’t dropped two straight video games since April.
🏈 NCAAF: Missouri State vs. Arkansas State (9pm, ESPN2) … The Xbox Bowl in Frisco, Texas.
🏈 NFL trivia
(Megan Briggs/Getty Photographs)
The Dolphins have , making him the one QB of the 4 taken within the first spherical of the 2020 draft who’s now not his crew’s starter.
Query: Are you able to identify the opposite three?
Trace: LSU, Oregon, Utah State.
Reply on the backside.
📸 Photograph end
(Jason Mowry/Getty Photographs)
🇺🇸 Columbus, Ohio — Blue Jackets goalkeeper Elvis Merzlikins locks eyes along with his son, Knox, by means of the glass earlier than Columbus’ recreation in opposition to the Geese. And sure, is for Knox, who’s an enormous fan.
Core reminiscence, unlocked.
Trivia reply: Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert, Jordan Love
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