Kansas City Chiefs win — but some of their fans in Las Vegas lost a heartbreaker
Kansas City Chiefs punter Matt Araiza intentionally tiptoed out of the end zone Saturday to surrender a safety, which added meaningless points to the scoreboard but shook the gambling world. Araiza's end zone surrender — which put the finishing touches on Kansas City’s 23-14 playoff victory over the Houston Texans — settled wagers from Las Vegas to cyberspace in a play gamblers call a "backdoor cover."
The Lions and Commanders put on a slugfest for the ages. Here are the wildest highlights.
Saturday’s Divisional Round tilt between the Detroit Lions and Washington Commanders — a 45-31 upset win by Jayden Daniels and Co. — had a little bit of everything...and those plays all happened in only the first half! The teams traded big play after big play, particularly in the second quarter, when they combined for 42 points. The Lions started the stretch of thrills with a touchdown pass from Jared Goff to Sam LaPorta. Goff made the throw as he fell to the ground because of an almost-sack, and LaPorta finished the play with a slick one-handed grab.
No debate: The 12-team College Football Playoff was a success
With just one game to go to close out the 2024-25 college football season, we’ve seen enough to call it: The inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff has been an undeniable success. There are minor issues that need to be addressed or tweaked, but the overall format change has been a net positive for the sport. More teams were in Playoff contention throughout the final month of the season than ever before, which meant more meaningful games played each Saturday down the stretch. College football still got its usual, spirited debate about which teams should get the final spots in the bracket. And there were 11 CFP games instead of three at the end of the season — with four of those games played in electric campus environments. Interest in the sport has been strong all season long, with 11 regular-season games topping 9 million viewers. First-round CFP games averaged 10.6 million viewers, the quarters averaged 16.9, and the semifinals (played on Thursday and Friday nights) averaged 19.2. With Monday night’s national championship matchup featuring two of the bluest of blue bloods in Notre Dame and Ohio State, the title-game audience is also expected to be massive.
Coco Gauff pays tribute to TikTok at Australian Open, sees silver lining
Coco Gauff celebrated her Australian Open victory over Belinda Bencic with a nod to TikTok as the popular app was made unavailable for Americans back home. Gauff wrote on a camera lens "RIP TikTok USA" with a broken heart after defeating Bencic, 5-7, 6-2, 6-1 to move to the quarterfinals of the first Grand Slam event of the season. Gauff had more than 750,000 followers before the app was cut off.
Novak Djokovic refuses interview with Australian broadcaster over criticism, finds support from Elon Musk
Novak Djokovic moved to the Australian Open quarterfinals on Sunday with a straight-set victory over Jiří Lehecka in the fourth round of the tournament. But Djokovic’s dominance was overshadowed by what happened when he left the court. Djokovic refused to speak to Australia’s Channel 9, the official broadcaster of the tournament for the host country, over journalist Tony Jones’ remarks about the Serbian star.
NHL suspends Oilers' Connor McDavid 3 games for cross-checking opponent in the head
Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid has been suspended three games for cross-checking Vancouver Canucks forward Conor Garland in the head. Late in the Canucks' 3-2 win over the Oilers on Saturday, McDavid and Garland got tied up in a scrum.
5 most infamous fan moments in sports
The controversy surrounding Philadelphia Eagles fan Ryan Caldwell for berating a female Packers fan during a game is just the latest incident of scandalously unruly fan behavior in sports. Other deranged fans have engaged in physical altercations with athletes, with one incident even resulting in the stabbing of an athlete.
American tennis star Taylor Fritz pledges to donate Australian Open prize money to LA wildfires relief fund
American tennis star Taylor Fritz is the latest athlete to contribute to the relief funds for the wildfires in the greater Los Angeles area. Fritz, 27, said on Thursday that he is donating the prize money he earned for his first-round victory at the Australian Open – about $82,000 – toward the relief funds.
WWE, TNA Wrestling announce multi-year partnership
WWE and TNA Wrestling on Thursday announced a joint multi-year partnership which would open the door for talent to perform for either company. Talent from WWE’s NXT may appear on TNA’s "IMPACT" and vice versa. Superstar wrestlers could also appear on select WWE premium live events and TNA pay-per-views in the future. The phenomenon had already occurred at several points in 2024.
American tennis pro Danielle Collins thanks Australian Open fans for ‘paying my bills’ after getting heckled
American tennis pro Danielle Collins isn’t making any new friends in Australia this week, and she’s fine with that. Collins, a finalist in the 2022 Australian Open, advanced to the third round of this year’s Grand Slam after defeating Australia’s own Destanee Aiava on Thursday, but her victory was met with a harsh reaction by the home crowd.