There is always a random nature to Week 17 in the N.F.L., and this year was no different. New England lost in shocking fashion to Miami, Tennessee and Philadelphia completed their circuitous journeys to the postseason and Baltimore’s backups beat Pittsburgh. But when put to the test, San Francisco, Green Bay and Kansas City all […] More
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — On the first day of December, the Philadelphia Eagles lost their third game in a row, a 6-point defeat at Miami. The Eagles were 5-7, and even in the woeful N.F.C. East, a playoff berth seemed unlikely. But the Eagles won each of their next three games, the third one a […] More
LIVERPOOL, England — Perhaps, for you, it was way back on the first day of the Premier League season that the doubts set in, when Raheem Sterling’s armpit was deemed offside in Manchester City’s game against West Ham. Or maybe you had a little more patience than that. Maybe you accepted that any innovation, any […] More
At first glance, the N.F.L. playoff picture might seem settled: Every division in the A.F.C. already has a champion, and five of six of the N.F.C.’s playoff spots are already spoken for. But the results of Sunday’s games remain hugely important, even for the teams that already clinched a playoff berth. The San Francisco 49ers, […] More
A federal court judge has dismissed a lawsuit against Pop Warner, saying the two women who sued the youth football organization failed to prove that their sons’ deaths were directly linked to head trauma sustained a decade earlier as young players. The women, Kimberly Archie and Jo Cornell, said their sons’ brain trauma was caused […] More
Want more soccer in your inbox? Sign up for Rory Smith’s weekly newsletter and we will send it to you every Friday. The start of soccer’s modern era can be dated precisely: Jan. 9, 2011. It can be located exactly, too: to the Twitter feed of Ryan Babel, the Dutch forward then playing for a […] More
One thing that most football fans know about Giants quarterback Eli Manning: He is good at winning Super Bowls against the Patriots. One thing that most fans do not know about him: He is just as good at pranks, big and small. A receiver removes his gloves to discover his hands are dyed blue. An […] More
With one more round of games before the playoffs begin, motivation varies wildly. There are teams fighting for better playoff positioning, others simply fighting for a playoff spot and some at the lower end that are probably playing for their coach’s job. With many teams resting their starters, Week 17 tends to have some surprising […] More
