Deadspin > Sports News Without Fear, Favor or Compromise

If there is one aspect of sports which the NFL should have an unquestioned expertise, it should be in the maintenance of its playing surfaces. If the NBA and NHL can share stadiums and puzzle piece courts together over ice, then the NFL should be able to have the grass in pristine condition at the Super Bowl host...Read more...

Katie Sowers was a member of Kyle Shanahan's coaching staff the last time the San Francisco 49ers were in the Super Bowl. That was back in 2020, when the Niners took on the Kansas City Chiefs, whom Sowers would join as an offensive assistant the following season.Read more...

A meniscus injury might be the most dangerous of all knee injuries for the simple fact that it's not treated like a major knee injury. Reigning MVP Joel Embiid just underwent a procedure to repair a meniscus injury in his left knee, and will be reevaluated in four weeks, but for someone with his history of ailments,...Read more...

This is going to be the biggest Super Bowl for gambling in recent memory. The American Gaming Association estimates that Americans will wager a combined $23.1 billion on the Big Game this year, up from $16 billion year-over-year.Read more...

Now that this year's coaching musical chairs are done, we can focus on those passed over by NFL organizations. One of the most unexpected names on this list is former Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel. On top of that, one of the excuses circulating around the water cooler for why he wasn't hired is completely...Read more...

A Nevada teacher's union doesn't believe that $380 million in public funds that could be put towards education should be used to fund the new home of the Las Vegas A's, and they're suing to stop it.Read more...

Somehow, the New York Knicks are MacGyvering their way to the top of the East in a super soldier league in a manner we haven't seen since the 04 Pistons. OG Anunoby's arrival has fortified Tom Thibodeau's defense into the NBA's Fort Knox, and once Mitchell Robinson returns, the paint in Madison Square Garden will be...Read more...

John Fisher, who might be the luckiest idiot alive because no dunderheaded maneuver he makes can seem to deprive him of the money that must've been chucked out of a moving car at him, has once again caught a break in that, with the Super Bowl being in Vegas this week, it'll mask that the latest indignity he faces....Read more...

Every year, people tune into the Super Bowl to watch the two best teams in the league give everything they have to win the game and hoist the Lombardi Trophy. Companies, on the other hand, fight each other for those elusive and expensive moments of airtime to promote their brand. Everyone in the world is watching, so...Read more...

There is nothing more stressful than knowing you have a group of people coming over in 20 minutes, but your dip in the oven takes 40 minutes. Or that you might be showing up empty-handed to the pot-luck style watch party, and you are hoping no one notices. In any case, here is a guide to bringing and making the best...Read more...

It's hard to know whether the ads or the halftime show has become the bigger attraction of the Super Bowl. It feels like the combination of the two has made the game ancillary. Certainly, nothing exemplifies the bombast and ridiculousness of the occasion more than the halftime show, with a two-hour show's worth of...Read more...

Super Bowl LVIII week is upon us, as we're merely days away from the showdown between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers. For a couple of decades now, we've had Super Bowl simulations played out via EA Sports' John Madden Football video game. It's been a crapshoot, in large part, with some years getting it...Read more...

Of all the pop culture to come out of Las Vegas, very little of it has been flattering. From Nicky Santoro killing a guy with a ballpoint pen to Clark gambling away the Griswald family savings, and the Sin City graphic novels in between, it's very difficult to overlook the city's unsavory history - unless you're a...Read more...

They got rid of Jim Trotter. They moved the Commissioner's annual Super Bowl press conference to Monday - and made it invite-only. They thought they did everything they could to protect Roger Goodell. They thought wrong.Read more...

If there's a surer sign that baseball has had a winter of discontent, at least for everyone outside the LA metro area, it's that the highest payroll in the American League Central belongs to the Kansas City Royals. That's after they inked star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. to an 11-year extension that's worth $288 million....Read more...

The Kansas City Chiefs allowed Kadarius Toney to board their charter flight to Las Vegas for the Super Bowl. With only one game remaining on the schedule, the Chiefs have no reason to limit the pool of players available to play on Sunday. Even if that player disputed the reason he was listed as inactive for the team's...Read more...

Chris Mad Dog" Russo is largely a loveable relic from the sports radio past. He's strident, over the top, and plays into this character that he created 40 years ago. While doing his What are you Mad about," segment on ESPN's First Take, Russo has admitted that it's stupid and his antics are ridiculous. His loud and...Read more...

LeBron James sure does love stringing Knicks fans along. It wouldn't be a pre-agency year for the all-time scoring champ if he weren't using the Knicks as leverage. In 2010, the Knicks thought they had him. Donnie Walsh had Mike D'Antoni installed as head coach, the cap room to Carmelo Anthony, the foundation of...Read more...

The San Francisco 49ers will play in the franchise's eighth Super Bowl on Sunday in hopes of joining the Pittsburgh Steelers and New England Patriots as the only franchises with six Lombardi trophies. It's such a historical game for many reasons on both sides, but for the Niners, there's so much on the line,...Read more...

Travis Kelce didn't miss too much on Grammy night 2024. Los Angeles is not the most fun place to be when an atmospheric river is parked over it like the alien ship in Independence Day. Gloomy and wet is not how Southern California is usually described. While there would have certainly been a damper put on the party...Read more...

(Content Warning: This article contains allegations of sexual assault, sexual coercion, and sexual harassment)Read more...

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For fans who tend to skip over much of the NBA regular season, you've probably missed the recent uprising in talk about Kawhi Leonard having a claim in the MVP conversation. Most years, Leonard's numbers are great. But since he blossomed into a star toward the end of his run in San Antonio, The Claw" has rarely...Read more...

What to do when the name most associated with your company is accused of being one of history's greatest monsters, as well as completely biffing the first meeting with the media after said accusations? Well, if you're WWE and billions of dollars strong, apparently you call on one of the biggest stars in the world to...Read more...

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 sometimes, even with two...Read more...

(Update, 3:15 pm, EST): ESPN's Adam Schefter is reporting that new Commanders head coach Dan Quinn has said Bieniemy will not return to Washington's staff.Read more...

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 Mavericks winning...Read more...

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 include current players Dr...Read more...

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."Read more...

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 the league and more...Read more...

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 the Super Bowl...Read more...

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 Mike Shanahan won...Read more...

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 was expected that...Read more...

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 Trae Young, if not...Read more...

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.Read more...

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.Read more...

I just want to start this off by saying, I'm dedicating this piece to Carl Weathers, and if Shooter McGavin tries to claim otherwise, I will rattle off a stream of obscenities that'll make Lee Trevino shake his head from Garland, Texas.Read more...

In any drug kingpin story worth watching, there's inevitably the scene where a policeman gets threatened or flat-out killed as a warning or retribution. Usually, it precedes and prompts the anti-hero's downfall. SEC commissioner Greg Sankey more or less sent the NCAA a hand-written note with the names and addresses of...Read more...

It is now official that Carter Hart, Cal Foote, Michael McLeod and Dillon Dube are facing sexual assault charges in London, Ontario for an incident that took place in June of 2018 after an event honoring the 2018 Canadian World Juniors team. Alex Formenton, who plays in Europe, was also charged. All five have denied...Read more...

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 the century. The...Read more...

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 MoreRead more...

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. - Carron J. Phillips ...Read more...

(UPDATE, 11:20 am, Feb. 1): ESPN is reporting that Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn has been named Commanders head coach.)Read more...

Carl Weathers, the actor who starred in the Rocky franchise, Predator, and The Mandalorian, died on Feb. 1, according to Variety. He was 76.Read more...

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.

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 first major acquisition of the Boston Red Sox offseason is...Theo Epstein?Read more...

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.

The Los Angeles Lakers earned their most impressive win of the season Thursday night, while the Boston Celtics arguably ceded their worst loss. With LeBron James and Anthony Davis sidelined with injuries, Austin Reaves and Co. handed a fully staffed C's team their third home defeat of the season, 114-105. Joe Mazzulla...Read more...

New Mexico State forward Robert Carpenter was issued a flagrant foul 2 and subsequently ejected after punching Liberty forward Shiloh Robinson in the face during the first quarter of the Aggies' 79-73 home overtime win.