Deadspin > Sports News Without Fear, Favor or Compromise

Can you technically rebuild something if you never built anything in the first place? It’s just a “build” then, right? This being the Buffalo Sabres, it’s even arguable that anything gets constructed in the first place. It’s just that building in your neighborhood that’s been four or five different restaurants or bars…Read more...

Andrew Wiggins’ refusal to take the COVID-19 vaccine — as reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, and backed by ESPN’s reporting — is a near-perfect intersection of inanity.Read more...

The Carolina Panthers are back, y’all. Be it by popular or unpopular demand, this team looks good. Former third overall pick Sam Darnold looks like a professional football player in his first two starts for the Panthers. A change of scenery — namely, getting the hell away from the New York Jets — seems to have done…Read more...

We here at Deadspin have written numerous times about how dominant Tennessee Titans halfback Derrick Henry was in high school. He was a football boogeyman, the type of guy coaches would tell their players about as a scary story when sitting around the campfire. He put up video game numbers every week. Clearly, it…Read more...

Sha’Carri Richardson has had an interesting three months, to say the least.

Any wrestling fan could be excused for having their brains scrambled by the sight of Kenny Omega and Bryan Danielson staring at each other from across the ring before actually engaging. It was not something we’d ever conceived of actually happening, and even when we knew it was going to happen months ago, it’s still…Read more...

Tonight, on Thursday Night Football — the third day of the week that the NFL is trying to conquer — the worst sports league when it comes to handling crises will showcase one of its most problematic teams, whose even-more problematic quarterback will be the main topic of discussion despite not being on the field and…Read more...

Parity? Now there’s a name I haven’t heard in years. *Long draw from a cigarette*Read more...

Considering the constraints (some of them self-imposed, admittedly), it’s kind of amazing how often the A’s can reinvent themselves and put together a window of contention. The problem is those windows don’t tend to lead anywhere.

Penei Sewell is a beast. I can’t say it any simpler than that.Read more...

While I do love the image of Roberto Luongo stalking the rafters in the Rogers Arena in a dark robe, perhaps slung over half his face (and Luongo himself might be tempted to actually act this out given the goofball he is) it’s not quite that simple. It’s not even totally the fault of either Luongo or the Canucks, as…Read more...

Welcome to this MLB edition of “Is This cheating?” During the sixth inning of the Blue Jays-Rays game on Monday, Tampa Bay outfielder Kevin Kiermaier ran through a hold sign from third base coach Rodney Linares. Kiermaier had just hit a single to the third baseman Jake Lamb, who proceeded to throw the ball into foul…Read more...

When August began, the Mets were in first place in the National League East, which was the fifth-best record in the Senior Circuit. The Padres were right ahead of them, holding the second wild-card position as the Giants and Dodgers battled at the top of the West. And the Reds, though seven and a half games behind…Read more...

If I were the cynical sort (perish the thought!), I might suggest that MLS realizes its main stream of income, expansion, might be drying up in the coming years. That’s if you go by the “MLS is a Ponzi scheme” theory, which one has to admit has some legs. Charlotte and St. Louis join the league in the next two years,…Read more...

As NBA training camps open next week, while most of the sports world is focused on college football and the NFL, the leading story around the league has centered on the drama in Philadelphia with Ben Simmons. However, there’s something else people should still be discussing — COVID-19.Read more...

Philadelphia 76ers coach Doc Rivers is trying to do more damage control than Olivia Pope.Read more...

Former No. 1 overall pick Baker Mayfield may not have the golden touch when passing the ball, but he showed the world last Sunday that he is one tough son of a gun. During the second quarter of the Browns’ 31-21 win over the Houston Texans, Mayfield launched a pass that was intercepted, but during the return, Mayfield…Read more...

Travis Kelce, Darren Waller, George Kittle. Those are the only three tight ends that most agree are at the top of the position. There are a few people out there who believe Kittle’s solid two-year stretch of 2018 and 2019 overshadow his greater flaws as a pass-catcher. There are those who believe Travis Kelce isn’t a…Read more...

During Randy Moss’ Hall of Fame career, he was known for running his mouth (too much sometimes) and backing it up on the field. Moss would raise his outside hand on go routes, signaling to his quarterback that he was open. Sometimes Moss would throw up the signal before he’d even run past the unlucky soul tasked with…Read more...

The growth of women’s soccer in this country took another step forward with the announcement that the USL, which runs the second tier league on the men’s side, will form a second-tier women’s league in 2023, the USL Super League (are we seriously going with this term now? Whatever.)

It’s easy to get lost and spin out with the amount of bad news every day, so you have to take the nuggets of light where you can find them. A world-class dipshit like Zac Rinaldo being told to fuck right off by an NHL team and sent straight to the minors because he’s an anti-vax giblet is one of those times.

Where does Max Scherzer to the Dodgers rank among MLB’s best deadline deals?Read more...

After trouncing the defenseless Detroit Simbas on Monday Night Football, Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers head west for a showdown with the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday night. The Niners are one of seven remaining undefeated teams in the NFL after Week 2, with three of those teams residing in the NFC West.Read more...

It’s been a minute since we’ve heard from Iman Shumpert in the sports world.

The NFL opened up the lower range of the number spectrum this year, allowing players all over the field to wear uniforms 1 through 19. So, how’s it going? It bothers Tom Brady a bit to see defensive players wearing single digits, we know that, but not too many even are. It’s still a fresh thing, and players are…Read more...

The 2021 NFL Draft class will be a focal point of the league for years to come. The class included five quarterbacks who have a chance to make a significant impact on their respective franchises this season and beyond.

It’s rarely a good sign when you have to make two attempts at a public relations statement.

Watching Derrick Henry run the ball all over opponents looks and feels like a live-action video game. Henry has rushed for 240 yards this season, and 201 have come after contact. Joe Mixon of the Cincinnati Bengals is second in rushing with 196 yards. Henry has been the beast back of the league the past couple of…Read more...

The thing most people don’t understand about racism is that it goes beyond hating someone based on the color of their skin. It’s also about a power dynamic that gives the “hater” the ability to be detrimental to their victims.

You can always be sure that when a division or league comes up mediocre, the St. Louis Cardinals will be there to just barely rise above the muck. It’s their oeuvre.Read more...

Perhaps it’s the feeling of invincibility an organization gets when it’s won a Super Bowl. The afterglow, as fresh as it is, probably doesn’t lead to a lot of scrutiny from within. Fuck, the Astros did it, even before they won a World Series, and then a couple years later didn’t see a problem picking up Robert Osuna.…Read more...

Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens finally figured out a way to jump over the hurdle that had been Patrick Mahomes and his Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday Night Football, 36-35.

It’s a Trash Talking Tuesday, and today I’m trashing the New York Jets.Read more...

It’s a long-held courtesy that you shouldn’t cheer for injuries. This hasn’t always been held up, as anyone in Philadelphia knows. But in general, fans don’t applaud when players leave the field hobbling, even if it ends in a conclusion they most definitely want. Especially when it’s a player on their team.

The LA Clippers will finally have their own arena in Inglewood within the next few years, free from the taunting glare of those 17 Lakers championship banners hanging from the rafters of Staples Center. Even with all the money and resources Steve Ballmer is pouring into this franchise, it will never be enough in the…Read more...

Sometimes, heartbreak is a necessary evil.Read more...

The 2021 NFL season is still in its infancy, but we’re finally starting to get a clear picture of which teams are about that action and which teams are not.

On Sunday, the Seattle Seahawks pulled a Dennis Schröder by fumbling away what appeared to be a guaranteed victory at halftime. Coming out of the locker room for the second half, the Seahawks held a firm 24-9 lead over the Titans. At least that’s what the Seahawks and their fans figured, for a while.Read more...

The Padres were the story of the weekend, as the implosion of a team that was most people’s second favorite tends to be. Fights in the dugout, late-inning meltdowns, and a sweep at the hands of the Cardinals that leaves them three and a half games back of the wildcard with just 13 games to go (and three teams to…Read more...

For sure, all eyes will be on Aaron Rodgers tonight.Read more...

This Los Angeles Chargers squad is good.Read more...

There was an energy shift last night in Baltimore.

The 2021 NFL season is in its infancy stages and we are learning a lot about certain teams. Many teams have a chance to make some things shake this year, and others...uh, do not.

New York Jets rookie quarterback Zach Wilson had his “Welcome to the NFL” moment in Week 2 against the New England Patriots. Bill Belichick’s defense claimed four interceptions against Wilson and the Jets while allowing the young QB just 210 yards passing. At one point in the game, Wilson’s completion total equaled…Read more...

After an instant classic in Week 1 on Monday Night Football, the Week 2 matchup of Green Bay and Detroit is sure to be a letdown by comparison. Well, that is, for anyone who isn’t a Packers fan. This division game against an inferior Lions squad should be more than enough to help get Aaron Rodgers and the Packers back…Read more...

Many people around the NFL were really excited about Najee Harris and the potential that the running back out of Alabama brought with him to the Steelers.

It’s been a pretty woeful start for Leicester City in the Premier League this season after being the surprise package the past two. While both ended in final-day heartbreak, as they missed out on the Champions League at the final hurdle, they were still fun to watch as they sparred with and bloodied all the big scary…Read more...

Resident homer and Florida Gators legend Tim Tebow reminded everyone why everything about his schtick will always and forever be better suited for the college football platform.

Notice a flurry of sportsbook commercials during last week’s season-opening games? Of course you did, because they were, shall we say, quite frequent — it was more than $20 million worth of advertising, to be specific.

Manny Machado has been to the playoffs four times, and in all three stops he’s made in his career: Baltimore, Los Angeles, and San Diego.