Before he chases his first Super Bowl ring, Philadelphia Eagles star Saquon Barkley was reportedly down on one knee giving a ring to his longtime girlfriend, Anna Congdon.
Barkley is now engaged to Congdon, according to People, as he checks off a major life moment ahead of his biggest career game to date as he and the Eagles head to New Orleans to face the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX this upcoming Sunday.
"I can’t be the athlete I am and have the success I have so in my career without the help of her," Barkley told the outlet of Congdon.
The two share two children together, daughter Jada, 6, and son Saquon Jr., 2, and their pre-game ritual of special handshakes and kisses has gone viral in Barkley’s first season with the Eagles.
Barkley and Congdon met at Penn State and have been going strong since 2017. Barkley told People that they will "just sit back and laugh sometimes when [their kids are] over there playing and just smile and think about where everything started."
It started with the New York Giants, who took Barkley second overall in the 2018 NFL Draft after a stellar Nittany Lions career. However, after a rollercoaster six seasons in New York, which ended badly after not getting what he wanted contract-wise, Barkley signed with the Eagles in free agency this past offseason.
Clearly, it was the right move for the running back, as he could have the best running back season of all-time statistically depending on his performance against the Chiefs.
Personally, the move has been something Barkley says his family has loved, with the city of Philadelphia embracing him right away despite being their rival for years.
Barkley and his family were at Lincoln Financial Field sharing quite the moment when green and white confetti rained down on the Eagles after dominating the Washington Commanders, 55-23, in the NFC Championship.
"If I could wrap my arms around this memory, I would…" Congdon captioned an Instagram post of her family celebrating the victory that put them in Super Bowl LIX. Barkley commented, "Love you," with a heart emoji.
It has been quite a celebratory year for Barkley, who led the NFL in rushing yards with over 2,000, and it could continue on his 28th birthday, which just so happens to fall on Super Bowl LIX.
"The best birthday gift you can have is playing in the Super Bowl and the only thing better than that is winning the Super Bowl on your Birthday," he said to People.
Barkley added that he is not focused on his birthday plans at all, hoping to "continue to play at a high level" to help his team beat the Chiefs, a team chasing NFL history as the only squad to win three straight Lombardi Trophies.
Barkley scored three touchdowns for the Eagles in the NFC Championship victory over the Commanders, and he certainly will try to do so again in New Orleans, where his now-fiancee and family will be cheering him on.
How are Dallas Mavericks fans dealing with the trade of their superstar guard Luka Doncic?
Well, some are taking mourning to another level.
Going through it was an understatement for a group of fans that was spotted at American Airlines Center in Dallas hosting a funeral, or perhaps a protest, after one of the most shocking trades in professional sports history.
Yes, it was a funeral as several fans, dressed in black suits, carried a blue coffin to the steps in front of the arena, where Doncic shirts, jerseys and more were spread out.
"Why?!" one of the men carrying the coffin screamed into the area while Wiz Khalifa’s "See You Again" played over a speaker, per Dallas News.
Mavericks fans may not be going to the extreme as this group did on Sunday, but many are still in shock, and even denial, after the trade went down late Saturday night.
The trade sent Doncic and Maxi Kleber to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Anthony Davis, Max Christie and a draft pick. The Utah Jazz were also involved in the deal.
The NBA world could not believe Doncic, the five-time All-Star who was named Western Conference Finals MVP last season during the team’s Finals run while leading the NBA in scoring (33.9 points), was traded by the franchise who took him third overall in 2018. At just 25 years old, Doncic remains one of the key pieces of the game’s future.
Even Doncic appeared slighted by the trade after writing a farewell note to Mavericks fans just hours after the trade, which some believed was a fake on social media when reports dropped, became official.
He did not mention the team’s name at all – only showing love to the fan base.
"Seven years ago, I came here as a teenager to pursue my dream of playing basketball at the highest level," Doncic wrote. "I thought I’d spend my career here and I wanted so badly to bring you a championship. The love and support you all have given me is more than I could have ever dreamed of. For a young kid from Slovenia coming to the U.S. for the first time, you made North Texas feel like home.
"In good times and bad, from injuries to the NBA Finals, your support never changed. Thank you not only for sharing my joy in our best memories, but also lifting met up when I needed it most.
"To all the organizations I’ve worked with throughout the Dallas community, thank you for letting me contribute to your important work and join you in bringing light to those who need it. As I start the next part of my basketball journey, I am leaving a city that will always feel like a home away from home.
"Dallas is a special place, and Mavs fans are special fans.
"Thank you, from the bottom of my heart."
Reaction to the trade was immense when it went down, and Kansas City Chiefs star Patrick Mahomes, who is preparing for potential NFL history this week at Super Bowl LIX, had time to share his "sick" thoughts about it.
"Wait what? I’m sick rn…." Mahomes, a Texas native who was spotted at this past season’s NBA Finals rooting for the Mavericks, wrote on X.
Doncic has not played for Dallas since Christmas after exiting the game with a strained left calf. With the trade, he is now prevented from signing a five-year supermax contract extension that would have been worth $345 million. He can, however, sign an extension with a maximum payout of $230 million.
Mavericks GM Nico Harrison spoke about the trade on Sunday, with his mindset about this shocking trade being a win-now move. Additionally, with the contract looming, Harrison made a judgment call that could alter the franchise – for better or for worse.
"There’s other teams that were loading up," he explained. "He was going to be able to make his own decision at some point of whether he wants to be here or not, whether we want to supermax him or not, or whether he wants to opt out. We had to take all that into consideration and I feel like we got out in front of what could have been a tumultuous summer."
Dallas, without Doncic, dynamic guard Kyrie Irving and Davis not yet in uniform, was embarrassed by the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday night, 144-101, on the road.
The Mavericks are 26-24 on the season, which is good for ninth in the Western Conference.
Across all sports, every new class in their respective Hall of Fame brings about spirited debate. This year for the Pro Football Hall of Fame is no different.
But for one finalist, the circumstances surrounding his place in Canton are more than just a case of championships and stats. His place in the Hall of Fame will likely come down to a tragic case of a murder-suicide.
There are five total finalists for the 2025 Pro Football Hall of Fame senior class, including a coach and a contributor. The players up for vote are Maxie Baughan, Sterling Sharpe and Jim Tyrer.
Of the three, the biggest questions surround Tyrer.
Born in Newark, Ohio, on Feb. 25, 1939, Jim Tyrer is largely considered one of the most dominant offensive tackles of his era.
After playing football at Ohio State, where he was an All-America choice, Tyrer began his 14-year playing career with the Dallas Texans of the American Football League in 1961. His sheer size and strength at left tackle translated to early success on the field, which carried over with the team’s move to Kansas City and the eventual merger with the NFL.
Tyrer was a three-time AFL champion and nine-time AFL All-Star, and he helped the Chiefs win the franchise’s first Super Bowl in 1970. He was a starter in each of his 13 seasons with Chiefs, playing in 180 consecutive games for the third-longest streak in team history.
Tyrer was selected as a member of the AFL’s All-Decade Team of the 1960s and is in the Chiefs’ Hall of Fame. He played his final season for Washington in 1974.
It’s no doubt that Tyrer’s career is worthy of consideration for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but the tragic events that took place on Sept. 15, 1980, have kept his name off the ballot for more than 40 years.
Tyrer was a finalist for the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility and was largely expected to be selected. But in the fall of 1980, that would change.
According to KCTV’s reporting at the time, Tyrer shot his wife, Martha, dead just after 4 a.m. in the bedroom of their home while their four children slept before eventually taking his own life. He was 41 and Martha was 40.
While those closest to the family, including teammates, were shocked by the news, reports would soon surface that there were issues.
ESPN reporter Mark Fainaru-Wada told NPR last week that Tyrer had struggled to find work after his playing career had ended and that the family was experiencing financial struggles. There were also rumors that Tyrer had been dealing with "depression" and "paranoia."
But in the nearly 45 years that have passed and with the development of science with regard to the long-term effects of playing in contact sports, many argue that Tyrer likely suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).
Dr. Doug Paone, who treated Tyrer days before the murder-suicide, told the Kansas City Star’s Vahe Gregorian in December that he is confident that Tyrer had CTE.
"If it walks like a duck, it quacks, it has webbed feet and water goes off its back, it’s not a zebra: It’s CTE," he said. "(Tyrer) would be the poster child for CTE."
At least three of the five senior finalists will be elected to the Pro Football Hall. They will need 80% of the votes from the Selection Committee, who will be allowed to vote for three finalists. If none receive that percentage, then the sole finalist with the most votes will be inducted into the 2025 class.
For Tyrer, the voters appear divided. ESPN spoke to some last month when Tyrer was named a finalist.
"It's morally abhorrent and unacceptable to put a murderer in the Hall of Fame if you have the power to do otherwise," longtime voter Jason Cole told the outlet, adding that he has "incredible compassion for the family."
Cole noted that considering CTE would be "opening up a giant can of worms."
Opposite of that, Gregorian told ESPN that CTE could be used to explain the tragedy that led to Tyrer and his wife’s untimely death.
"I think when you see that this is a man, who had for decades lived a life that was admired by many, that this change in him was caused by [CTE]," Gregorian said, "... I think to me, it says this was because of severe brain damage, not being of a willful act by this person. I don't know, that makes me look at it differently."
The bylaws of the selection process instruct voters not to consider any off-the-field contributions – good or bad – in their decision-making. The class of 2025 will be announced next Thursday at the NFL Honors in New Orleans ahead of Super Bowl LIX.
Paul "Triple H" Levesque was surprised at WWE HQ last week when CEO Nick Khan and legends Shawn Michaels and Undertaker revealed he would be the first member of the 2025 Hall of Fame class.
Levesque will go into the Hall of Fame as a solo wrestler. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame as a member of the D-Generation X tag-team with Michaels, who were both integral parts of the "Monday Night Wars" against World Championship Wrestling in the late 1990s.
He spoke about receiving the honor at the Royal Rumble post-event press conference.
"In business for me, outside of the ring, there’s nobody that I respect more, nobody, than him," he said of Khan. "He’s my partner in all of this. So him doing that for me was incredibly meaningful."
Last week, Khan was addressing the company when Michaels and Undertaker, whose real name is Mark Calaway, interrupted and surprised Levesque with their own announcement.
"From a guy who usually has something to say about everything, I’m speechless," Levesque said on Wednesday. "I’m gonna kill Nick when we leave here. If you see someone flying off of the roof, just ignore it. I don’t really know what else to say."
Levesque was a 14-time world champion in WWE, winning the WWE Championship nine times and the World Heavyweight Championship five times. He had significant feuds with The Rock, Mick Foley, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, Michaels, Undertaker and countless others throughout the duration of his career.
He became WWE’s chief content officer in 2022 and helped usher in a "new era" in the company following the departure of Vince McMahon, his father-in-law, due to sexual misconduct allegations. He has since been the main voice behind the company's creative work.
Levesque’s WrestleMania XX match against Chris Benoit and Michaels, his WrestleMania 22 match against John Cena and WrestleMania XXIV match against Undertaker are considered some of the best in the event's history.
The WWE Hall of Fame ceremony is usually set for the Friday before WrestleMania, which would be April 18. He is the only person in the class so far.
American Olympic sprinter Noah Lyles called out Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill after he won the 60-meter at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix on Sunday.
Lyles crossed the finish line in 6.52 seconds, beating out the Bahamas’ Terrence Jones, Italy’s Marcell Jacobs and fellow Americans P.J. Austin and Trayvon Bromell. After he crossed the finish line, Lyles turned his bib around to the camera.
"Tyreek could never," he said referencing the NFL star wide receiver.
He talked about his challenge to Hill with NBC Sports.
"When you’re ready to actually put some words down, and you’re actually ready to race, see me," he said. "I’m right here. I ain’t going nowhere. But all I know is, your football season’s over. You ain’t got no excuse now."
Hill responded in a post on X. "Get a load of this guy."
He challenged Lyles back in August when the Olympic sprinter won 100-meter gold, but he refused to wager his gold medal in a race. Lyles said he would not even put his medal on the line if Hill wagered his Super Bowl ring, which he won with the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2019 season.
Hill's teammate, Dolphins running back Raheem Mostert, told Fox News Digital in August he believes a few of their other teammates could also hold their own against Lyles in a race.
"I feel like we all could run with him," Mostert said of Lyles. "And I know that Noah Lyles brought up the fact that he would race Tyreek in a 60-yard dash or something like that. Or whatever the case may be. I feel like we all could run that 60-yard dash."
Fox News’ Jackson Thompson contributed to this report.
Shot putter Ryan Crouser parlayed his record-setting third gold medal into an acting gig.
The USA Olympian became the first person to win three golds in the shot put this past summer in Paris, and now he is set to appear in a Super Bowl commercial next Sunday.
"For me as a track and field athlete, [I] never would’ve even thought that a Super Bowl commercial could be a possibility. It’s been great," Crouser said in a recent interview with Fox News Digital.
"I mean, I don't know how much of an acting career I would call it, because I'm kind of playing myself. But no, it was a really fun shoot, a lot of fun out flying out to L.A. Really just a dream come true, and I’m really excited about it."
The Michelob Ultra commercial features Crouser, Randy Moss and Sabrina Ionescu playing pickleball. What makes the commercial great, though, is that Crouser wasn't exactly doing a whole lot of acting while on the court.
"For me, being competitive, it made it pretty easy. The reason I'm good as a professional shot-putter is because I hate losing and [am] competitive by nature," he said. "They had me lined up against a professional pickleball coach, player, and he was just bringing the heat on these serves. And I was trying to return them. It was a little bit of acting, but it was also pretty genuine.
"And I got a $60,000 camera in front of me, so they’re like, "Try to return it, but don’t hit the camera."
Crouser has partnered with Michelob Ultra for some time now, which he calls a "genuine partnership."
"They’ve been great. They do a lot to support Team USA, track and field. They’ve been so supportive of me through the Olympics. I don't drink too much, especially in season, but when I'm out of season, it's a beer that I tend to drink. What I’m doing 24 hours a day, I have to be accountable as a professional athlete. So a high-quality light beer is something that if I do drink, I can bounce back from the next day and have a quality training day. It’s a true genuine partnership, which always makes it so much easier," Crouser said.
As for his camera skills, Crouser gave himself a pat on the back.
"I think I did pretty well," he quipped.
"I’ve played pickleball. It’s a fun weekend activity. As a professional athlete, you have to find that balance between low risk but still fun activities. Nobody wants to be injured, like, skiing as a professional athlete, so pickleball’s a good happy medium. I can see why it’s so popular."
Paul gave his word in a social media post last week.
"This is a message for Saquon Barkley and Saquon Barkley only. If you win the Super Bowl MVP, I think you can do it brother … I will give you one of my Ferraris," Paul said in the video.
In a video where Oz The Mentalist visited the Philadelphia Eagles, Barkley was spotted wearing a shirt from Paul's men's personal care brand, W.
Barkley has dominated all season, much to New York Giants fans' chagrin. After the team opted to move off him, he became the ninth player in NFL history to rush for 2,000 yards in a season. Had he not rested in Week 18, he very well could have broken Eric Dickerson's single-season rushing record.
In 19 games played this season, including the postseason, Barkley has rushed for 2,447 yards and 18 touchdowns, five of which have come in his last two games.
Seven running backs have won the Super Bowl MVP, but it's been almost 30 years since the last one: Terrell Davis in 1997.
Barkley is 30 yards away breaking Davis' record for the most rushing yards in a season including playoff games.
The superstar running back joined the Eagles on a three-year deal this past offseason, and it's proving to be perhaps their best move in recent memory. Out of his 19 games played, he's rushed for 100-plus 12 times and has eclipsed the 200-yard mark twice.
Including the playoffs, Barkley is averaging 128.8 rushing yards per game. So, it's certainly not out of the question that he could break the running back drought.
He'll just have to do it against the back-to-back reigning champion Kansas City Chiefs.
Former NFL quarterback-turned-analyst Dan Orlovsky sat on the ESPN desk for "Get Up" the day after Championship Sunday with his head down.
Taking a breath, he spoke his mind after seeing the Buffalo Bills fall to the Kansas City Chiefs again in the playoffs – four straight times Josh Allen & Co. fell to Patrick Mahomes.
"I think it’s the most haunted organization and might be the most haunted player in the history of the NFL," Orlovsky told his colleagues. "Four straight Super Bowl losses 30-plus years ago, and now four straight losses to Patrick Mahomes when your quarterback plays just as good. Just as good in all those games, and the point differential is only five points."
Does Orlovsky have a point? Are the Bills, and Allen, the most haunted organization and player in the history of the league?
There are 12 teams who have never won a Super Bowl, four of which have never seen the "Big Game" on their schedule: Cleveland Browns, Detroit Lions, Houston Texans and Jacksonville Jaguars.
Of those 12 teams, only two have been to the Super Bowl four times but lost every time – the Bills and Minnesota Vikings. But there’s only one team in the history of the NFL to go to four straight Super Bowls and lose them all, and "Bills Mafia" had to deal with four years of the highest of highs followed by the lowest of lows in terms of fandom.
There were the "Curse of the Bambino" and "Curse of the Billy Goat" for the Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs, respectively, though they snapped those this century with World Series titles. For the Bills, the "Curse of Mahomes" might be the title for this Allen era, but the woes for the organization and fan base started in the 1990 season with an infamous kick.
Super Bowl XXV saw two New York teams, the Bills and Giants, going against each other for the Vince Lombardi Trophy.
In the fourth quarter, Jim Kelly, much like Allen in that they were both bonafide stars at the quarterback position at the time of the Bills’ success, had 2:16 remaining for a game-winning drive. On the team’s final possession, he led his offense down the field, moving the ball quickly with short passes and some runs.
The Bills managed to get in field goal range, where kicker Scott Norwood could attempt a game-winning kick from 47 yards out. But when Norwood connected with the ball, it went wide right, and the Giants ran out the clock to win their second Super Bowl title for the franchise.
The NFC East wasn’t kind to the Bills during this stretch, as they were beaten in Super Bowl XXVI by the Washington Redskins, 37-24, when Buffalo wasn’t able to put up a first-half point in the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis in 1992.
And if that was bad, it was even worse in 1993 when the Dallas Cowboys, led by multiple Hall of Famers in coach Jimmy Johnson, quarterback Troy Aikman, wide receiver Michael Irvin and running back Emmitt Smith, destroyed Buffalo, 52-17.
Kelly and the Bills got off to a hot start after Thurman Thomas scored from two yards out, but it was really all Cowboys from there. Jay Novacek had a 23-yard touchdown catch from Aikman, and a fumble recovered for a touchdown by Jimmie Jones gave Dallas the lead they wouldn’t look back from.
It didn’t help that Kelly got injured in the second quarter and Frank Reich had to take over at quarterback. But for a third straight year, Buffalo went home empty-handed.
These two teams would meet again in Super Bowl XXVIII for a rematch, this time in the Georgia Dome. But a second-half goose egg on the scoreboard led to a 30-13 defeat for the Bills, and Smith won MVP after scoring two touchdowns and rushing for 132 yards on 30 carries.
Four straight years and no hardware is a tough pill to swallow, and what’s worse, the fan base hasn’t been back to the "Big Game" since then.
For his regular-season career, Allen is 4-1 against Mahomes and the Chiefs, and he’s won each of the last four games. That included this season, where Allen broke multiple tackles on a 4th-and-short run to score the game-sealing touchdown in a fantastic performance at home.
But Allen and the Bills have known since the 2020 NFL campaign that Mahomes and the Chiefs are a different animal in the playoffs.
The first meeting was the AFC Championship Game in 2021, where the Bills had a 9-0 lead to start the game, but Mahomes turned up the heat in the second quarter, scoring 21 points that led to a 21-12 first-half finish they wouldn’t look back from.
Mahomes would finish the game 29-of-38 for 325 yards with three touchdowns, while Tyreek Hill had a franchise-record 172 yards on nine catches and Travis Kelce totaled 13 catches for 118 yards and two scores – the most receptions by a receiver in a conference title game.
The Chiefs wouldn’t go on to win that Super Bowl, falling to Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 31-9, at Raymond James Stadium. But it was apparent to the Bills who you had to go through in the AFC to get back to the Super Bowl.
Arguably, one of the greatest postseason football games of all-time didn’t go in the Bills’ favor, and this is perhaps the biggest gut punch of them all in recent years.
Allen couldn’t have played any better in this 2022 AFC Divisional Round game, going 27-of-37 for 329 yards and four touchdowns, all of which went to receiver Gabe Davis, who set a playoff record with his four scores, which came on eight catches for 201 yards.
Davis’ final touchdown at Arrowhead Stadium was supposed to be the dagger in the Chiefs’ hopeful return to the AFC Championship, as there were just 13 seconds left on the fourth-quarter clock when the Bills’ kickoff commenced.
Leave it to Mahomes, though, as he threw a 19-yard pass to Hill, which ran five seconds off the clock, and then Kelce was left wide open for a 25-yard catch-and-run, which was another five seconds. So, with a game-tying field goal at 36-33 on the line for Harrison Butker, he drilled a 49-yard attempt to force overtime.
With the old overtime rules, where a touchdown ends it, the Chiefs took full advantage when they won the coin toss. Mahomes needed just one run and five passes to get into the red zone, where he found Kelce on an 8-yard pass for the win.
Sports fans will tell you where they were and what they were doing for the biggest, and worst, moments of their favorite teams. This is a memory that is truly haunting.
Bills fans had déjà vu last season during the Divisional Round in a game that wasn’t Allen’s best, but there was still a chance to get their own overtime revenge.
In a game at Buffalo this time, the Bills found themselves down three points in the fourth quarter with a chance to drive and at least kick a game-tying field goal to keep hopes alive for a trip to the AFC Championship.
But much like Super Bowl XXV, where Norwood missed his game-winning field goal wide right, Tyler Bass did the exact same. Bills fans at Highmark Stadium couldn’t believe history was repeating itself, as Mahomes and the offense picked up the necessary first down to seal victory.
Mahomes would go on to win back-to-back Super Bowls with an overtime victory over San Francisco, while Allen and the Bills had to wait for another crack in 2024.
That was Allen’s quote after the 32-29 loss in Kansas City in the AFC Championship, marking the fourth straight dropped to Mahomes and the Chiefs. And there were surely some controversial calls, like the Xavier Worthy catch near the goal line that was ruled a catch despite the ball touching the ground during replay review.
But the biggest of them all came in the fourth quarter, when the Bills were up 22-21 over the Chiefs and had a chance to further their lead with another good drive. On 3rd-and-short, Allen whipped a screen to Dalton Kincaid, who scampered forward for what appeared to be a first down. However, he was ruled short despite referees not seeing his knee never touched the ground where he appeared to get tackled.
Instead of a challenge coming from the Bills’ sideline, they moved quickly to get Allen set up for a quarterback sneak. When the ball was snapped, Allen got stuffed, but not before he seemed to cross the line to gain with the football.
Once again, though, the refs called him short, turning it over on downs. Five plays later, Mahomes rushed in for the second time in the game and a two-point conversion gave them a seven-point lead.
Allen, though, with ice in his veins, tied the game with a 4th-and-goal pass to Curtis Samuel, and the Bills’ defense got the stop they needed to force just a field goal for the Chiefs, who now owned a 32-29 lead.
Enough time was on the clock, and Allen had the ball again late in the game with the ability to tie the game or take the lead. But on 4th-and-5 at the two-minute warning, the Chiefs’ blitz had Allen scrambling, though he was able to heave a pass downfield to Kincaid. The tight end had a shot at making it a miraculous throw-and-catch effort, but it bounced off his arms and the Chiefs would go on to win.
Considering how great Allen and the Bills are, and the fact that they beat the Chiefs in the regular season, one would think Buffalo would pull one of these out.
But when Bass missed the field goal wide right this past season, the Bills tied the New Orleans Saints during their 2017-21 stretch with the most regular-season wins in a five-year stretch (58) without a Super Bowl appearance.
As for Allen, the last three Chiefs matchups in the postseason have resulted in 752 total passing yards and 179 rushing yards for a total of 931 yards with a 68.12% completion rate and nine total touchdowns with no turnovers.
So, despite averaging 310 yards per game over the last three meetings with the Chiefs in the playoffs and not turning the ball over, the Bills have not been able to win.
"Sometimes you run into a Michael Jordan," Marshall said. "Sometimes you run into a Tiger Woods in their prime, and you got to deal with it."
Allen’s post-game response this year said it all: "To be the champs, you got to beat the champs."
The only thing he and the Bills can do is keep grinding, work on their fundamentals and execution and hope the Chiefs can somehow make those one or two mistakes that can flip the game in their favor.
Because what fans and experts alike can see is that Kansas City is buttoned up in those clutch moments while the Bills haven’t had things go their way.
Is it because they’re haunted by a ‘90s stretch that could have a curse on them now? Or is it, like Marshall said, the wrong era to go against someone like Mahomes, who has already entered the conversation as the best quarterback of all-time?
Whichever school of thought you fall into doesn’t matter. At the end of the day, the Bills have gotten so close, and yet they’re on the outside looking in for the past 31 years.
Super Bowl LIX will put a cap on an incredible 2024 season that featured a ton of different storylines, beginning with the offseason acquisition that set fans up for the championship.
Saquon Barkley left the New York Giants and signed with the Philadelphia Eagles to bolster the offense and give them the firepower they needed to propel them to an NFC Championship victory over the Washington Commanders. The Eagles are set for a Super Bowl rematch against the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Chiefs powered through an offseason of tumult, and it started right after the Super Bowl during their parade. A shooting at the parade left one dead and shook up players and fans alike. Separately, the organization saw a handful of players have run-ins with law enforcement, including wide receiver Rashee Rice.
With the pressure back on Kansas City, the Chiefs still managed to find themselves going for NFL history.
Here’s what NFL fans need to know about the game.
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Super Bowl LIX will take place on Feb. 9 at 6:30 p.m. ET.
The Chiefs will take on the Eagles in the Super Bowl. It is a rematch from Super Bowl LVII.
Super Bowl LIX coverage will be on FOX beginning at 1 p.m. ET and continuing on through the night. FOX Deportes will have the Spanish-language broadcast of the Super Bowl. Rodolfo Landeros will be the host/reporter for the game. Adrian Garcia-Marquez is doing play-by-play along with analysts Jessi-Losada and Jaime Motta.
Tubi will also stream the Super Bowl on its platform live in 4K. Viewers will be able to watch the game when they sign up via email registration. There will be no Multichannel Video Programming Distributor authentication or credit card sign-up needed to be able to watch it.
A second stream on Tubi will also include the Tubi Red Carpet event, hosted by Olivia Culpo at 3:30 p.m. ET, and the FOX Deportes Spanish language feed.
Kendrick Lamar will perform at halftime. He entered the national spotlight last summer with his lyrical feud against rapper Drake. Lamar’s song "Not Like Us" became the song of the summer and was heard blaring on stadium surround systems across sports.
Lamar has won 20 Grammy Awards in his career. It will be his second Super Bowl halftime performance. He joined Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, 50 Cent and Mary J. Blige on stage in Inglewood, California, for Super Bowl LVI.
Five-time Grammy Award winner Jon Batiste will sing "The Star-Spangled Banner" before the game begins.
The Louisiana native studied at Juilliard and put out albums such as "Times in New Orleans," "Jazz is Now," "Social Music" and, most recently, "Beethoven Blues."
The Super Bowl will be held in New Orleans at Caesars Superdome, the home of the Saints. New Orleans was initially supposed to host Super Bowl LVIII but the coronavirus pandemic and the NFL expanding its schedule from 16 to 17 games caused a conflict with the city’s Mardi Gras celebrations. The game went from Feb. 11, 2024, to Feb. 9, 2025.
It’s the 11th time New Orleans will have the game.
The Chiefs, somehow, never managed to score at least 30 points in the regular season, and yet Kansas City finished the regular season 15-2. The team received a bye in the playoffs and topped the Houston Texans and Buffalo Bills on their way to the Super Bowl.
Philadelphia had a season filled with ups and downs, and whatever issues teammates had with each other appeared to be put in the past. The Eagles captured their second division title in three years with a 14-3 record.
The Eagles took care of the Green Bay Packers, Los Angeles Rams and the Commanders before the game.
The Eagles had a 10-point lead at halftime of Super Bowl LVII, and it appeared the team was going to win their second championship in franchise history. But Kansas City outscored Philadelphia 24-11 in the second to win the game, 38-35.
Conversation around the game went from Harrison Butker’s 8-yard field goal for the win to the defensive holding call on Eagles cornerback James Bradberry. The penalty helped set up the field goal and the win.
Patrick Mahomes had three touchdown passes, including one to Travis Kelce, in the win.
A Chiefs win will cement the team in the annals of NFL history. Should Kansas City top Philadelphia, the Chiefs will become the first team in the Super Bowl era to win the title three straight times.
Two NBA stars are reportedly on the move Sunday, hours after the Dallas Mavericks traded Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis earlier in the day.
The Sacramento Kings, Chicago Bulls and San Antonio Spurs were finalizing a deal involving De’Aaron Fox and Zach LaVine, ESPN reported.
Fox was traded to the Spurs and LaVine was traded to the Kings in the deal, according to the report. The Bulls will reportedly receive Zach Collins, Tre Jones, Kevin Heurter and a 2025 draft pick.
The Kings guard is two seasons removed from his first All-Star appearance. He was averaging 25 points, 6.1 assists and five rebounds with the team before he was dealt. He has played for the Kings since the 2017-18 season.
LaVine, a two-time All-Star, had been with the Bulls since the 2017-18 season as well. He was mostly injured during the 2023-24 season but bounced back and played in 42 games this season. He’s averaging 24 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game.
Fox will now pair up with Spurs phenom Victor Wembanyama. The Spurs are 21-25 this season and are about three games behind the Golden State Warriors for 11th in the Western Conference.
LaVine will team up with Domantas Sabonis. The Kings are two seasons removed from their playoff run in 2023. Sacramento has seen changes this season and the Fox trade appeared to be the end of it. The team fired head coach Mike Brow and replaced him with Doug Christie.
The Kings are in 10th in the West with a record of 24-24. Chicago is in 10th in the Eastern Conference with a 21-28 record.
San Antonio will also receive Jordan McLaughlin and the Kings will receive Sidy Cissoko, three first-round picks and three second-round picks.
Kansas City Chiefs star Justin Reid is extra motivated to play in Super Bowl LIX.
Reid could be a part of history if the Chiefs win their third straight, as no other NFL team has won three consecutive Super Bowl titles since the NFL and AFL began playing each other in the 1960s. But this year’s game means a little more.
The star safety was born in Prairieville, Louisiana, about 65 miles northwest of New Orleans where the game will be held. He starred at Dutchtown High School before he committed to Stanford and played three years with the Cardinal.
He told the Kansas City Star he bought as many as 30 Super Bowl tickets for his friends and family to watch him play against the Philadelphia Eagles. The average Super Bowl ticket price has been around $7,900, according to StubHub.
"We’re excited to play, and we’re chasing glory," he told the newspaper. "But we’ve got to win just for me to break even."
The Kansas City Star noted that participating players receive two tickets and can purchase more. In Super Bowl LVII, players could buy up to 13 more tickets. After that, it’s back to the secondary market.
Reid and the Chiefs do receive a bonus if they win the game. They reportedly received $164,000 for their win last year.
The defensive back signed with the Chiefs before the 2022 season after four years with the Houston Texans. He signed a three-year, $31.5 million deal. He’s made $9.99 million this season.
This year, he had 87 tackles and two interceptions as Kansas City finished the regular season 15-2 and earned a first-round bye.
He had five tackles against the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Championship and seven tackles against the Houston Texans in the divisional round.
The Dallas Mavericks were far from energized in their first game since the team traded Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers and acquired Anthony Davis.
The Mavericks allowed the Cleveland Cavaliers 91 points at halftime and lost the game 144-101.
"Everyone was just locked in even with the trade and everything that was going on today," Cavs star Evan Mobley said after the game. "We started hot and kept our foot on the gas."
Sam Merrill added nine 3-pointers for Cleveland. The Cavaliers made 16 3-pointers in the first half and finished with 26 in total.
"We were at 80 (points) with like four minutes left, and I was like, ‘Man, let’s try to get 100,’" Merrill said. "But these games aren’t always easy. I’ve been a part of games where everyone is out, and it’s a close game because it’s hard to have the right mindset in a game like this.
"It’s such a credit to the starters to come out and play the right way and communicate and defend and share the basketball. To get out to that big lead and then the bench guys come in and keep it going. I’ve been a part of some 80s but 90 (at halftime) is crazy."
It was the closing of a wild day for the Mavericks. Dallas woke up, and its five-time All-Star was abruptly traded to the Lakers.
Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison defended the deal before the game.
"I understand why [fans] would be shocked, initially," Harrison told the Dallas Morning News.
"But I do believe that we positioned ourselves to win now and also win in the future. And that’s ultimately the goal and why we’re here. It’s one of those things where it’s my job to make the tough decisions that put our goals first and foremost."
Doncic’s $207 million extension is set to expire this year, and he was due for a supermax that was worth over $340 million. Plus, he was soon able to opt out of any other deals. So, Harrison wanted security. Now, he’s not eligible for the supermax anymore.
"We really feel like we got ahead of what was going to be a tumultuous summer, him being eligible for the supermax and also a year away from him being able to opt out of any contract," Harrison said. "And so we really felt like we got out in front of that. We know teams, they’ve had it out there, teams have been loading up to try to sign him once that comes available."
Doncic thanked fans for their support while he was with Dallas. He did not mention the Mavericks in his goodbye message.
Fox News' Ryan Morik and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
Luka Doncic penned a farewell letter to Dallas Mavericks fans on Sunday, hours after the team traded him to the Los Angeles Lakers in a blockbuster that shook the NBA world.
The Lakers acquired Doncic and Maxi Kleber in a deal for Anthony Davis, Max Christie and a draft pick. The Utah Jazz were also involved in the deal.
Doncic is a five-time All-Star and five-time First Team All-NBA. He’s averaging 28.1 points per game.
He was the face of the Mavericks since the team acquired him in the NBA Draft from the Atlanta Hawks. The 25-year-old is among the up-and-coming stars who are expected to be the face of the league – if not already are. It’s why the trade itself was incredibly stunning.
Doncic thanked the fans for their support. He made no mention of the team itself.
"Seven years ago, I came here as a teenager to pursue my dream of playing basketball at the highest level," Doncic wrote. "I thought I’d spend my career here and I wanted so badly to bring you a championship. The love and support you all have given me is more than I could have ever dreamed of. For a young kid from Slovenia coming to the U.S. for the first time, you made North Texas feel like home.
"In good times and bad, from injuries to the NBA Finals, your support never changed. Thank you not only for sharing my joy in our best memories, but also lifting met up when I needed it most.
"To all the organizations I’ve worked with throughout the Dallas community, thank you for letting me contribute to your important work and join you in bringing light to those who need it. As I start the next part of my basketball journey, I am leaving a city that will always feel like a home away from home.
"Dallas is a special place, and Mavs fans are special fans.
"Thank you, from the bottom of my heart."
Doncic will now team up with LeBron James and the Lakers as they pursue another NBA championship.
"Grateful for this amazing opportunity," he added in a post to his Instagram Stories. "Basketball means everything to me, and no matter where I play the game, I’ll do so with the same joy passion and goal – to win championships."
The University of Iowa women’s basketball program immortalized Clark’s career forever as they officially retired her No. 22 jersey and hung it in the rafters of Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Clark stood with her family as the number was raised to the top of the facility.
Clark then got to watch the Hawkeyes stun No. 4 USC for one of the biggest wins of their season. Lucy Olsen scored 28 points and Addison O’Grady had 13 in the 76-69 win. Iowa opened the game on a 17-1 run but were down at halftime before righting the ship and pulling off the victory.
Olsen and O’Grady had 23 of Iowa’s 25 fourth-quarter points.
JuJu Watkins, who is set to be the next women’s basketball star, led the team with 27 points, five rebounds and three assists. She was 8-of-22 from the field and played 40 minutes.
But it wasn’t enough for the Trojans to hold off Iowa.
Clark, who became college basketball’s all-time leading scorer while leading Iowa to back-to-back national championship appearances, spoke about her jersey retirement before the game.
"I feel like I already have those butterflies in your stomach when you walk in here," Clark said during a pregame press conference. "Not so much for a basketball game now, but obviously just to be around everybody and to enjoy this environment. I don’t have to go and compete for 40 minutes, even though I wish maybe I could. I think it will definitely be a little bit more emotional that I don’t have to compete."
A sellout crowd of 14,998 attended the game. Former Iowa coach Lisa Bluder and former teammates Kate Martin and Gabbie Marshall were in attendance. Indiana Fever coach Stephanie White and comedian David Letterman were also at the game.
Clark reflected on the winning Iowa did while she was at the press conference.
"The winning came because of the great culture that we had," she said. "And for me, I hope that’s the thing that always stays intact, and I know it will, because of the great coaching staff we have and the type of players that they are here.
"We had players that were selfless. We had players that didn’t care how many points you were going to score. They’re going to do whatever they could for your teammates. They were going to hold their teammates accountable. And I think that’s a lost art in college these days, and you don’t always see that."
Added one more, "Dressing like John Fetterman should not be an option for professional golfers on the tour. Frankly, it should not be an option for any golfers playing at Pebble Beach."
Day entered the day seven strokes back of leader Sepp Straka – the crowded leader board also features Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose, Shane Lowry, Tom Kim, Lucas Glover and Cam Davis.
The former World No. 1 has one win within the last seven years, taking home the 2023 Byron Nelson – he won eight events from February 2015 through May of the next year, including the PGA Championship and Players Championship.
"The Star-Spangled Banner" was once again booed in Canada ahead of a sporting event.
The latest anti-American display took place at the Scotiabank Arena before the Toronto Raptors took on the Los Angeles Clippers. Fans booed the American national anthem as a 15-year-old female sang it. A mix of boos and cheers were heard before she received a resounding applause for the Canadian national anthem, "O, Canada."
The theme of Canadians booing the American anthem began Saturday night as the Ottawa Senators and the Calgary Flames hosted NHL games.
The boos seemingly occurred as President Donald Trump followed through on his promise to place tariffs of 25% on imports from Canada and Mexico and 10% on imports from China. Any energy resources from Canada would be hit at a 10% rate.
In a statement obtained by Fox News Saturday, the Trump administration said the order is in response to an "extraordinary threat posed by illegal aliens and drugs, including deadly fentanyl, (that) constitutes a national emergency."
Ahead of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announcing his resignation, Trump said he would "love" if Canada could become the "51st state."
Trudeau has since lamented the tariffs that the Trump administration has levied.
In a fact sheet released by the White House on Saturday, the U.S. is implementing tariffs against Canada, Mexico and China to hold them accountable "to their promises of halting illegal immigration and stopping poisonous fentanyl and other drugs from flowing into our country." This "extraordinary threat," the White House said, "constitutes a national emergency under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act."
However, Trudeau claimed that "less than 1% of fentanyl and less than one% illegal crossings into the United States come from Canada."
FOX Business’ Christopher Guly and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
The NFL’s most famous football family is poised to expand its footprint in the professional ranks when Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning finally declares for the draft.
And there appears to be another Manning waiting in the wings after Arch – Peyton’s son, Marshall. The younger Manning was seen throwing the football around to some NFL stars while they were at the Pro Bowl Games.
Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor described him as "the future" in a video posted to the Colts’ social media account. Manning threw passes into the end zone to Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase among others who were gathered in Orlando, Florida, for the game.
"Marshall Manning, man, the future right here," he said. "You are all seeing it at the 2025 NFL Pro Bowl Games. The future’s right here."
Arch is the son of Peyton’s older brother Cooper, making him and Marshall cousins.
Peyton and Cooper are the sons of Archie Manning, the former New Orleans Saints quarterback. He played about 11 years for the Saints as well as the Houston Oilers and Minnesota Vikings. His three sons, including Eli, all played football in some capacity.
Cooper was never able to play pro football, but Peyton and Eli both starred in the NFL. Each won two Super Bowl titles before they retired.
Eli Manning was named a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in his first time on the ballot. Peyton is already a Hall of Famer.
Former Major League Baseball Commissioner Fay Vincent died on Saturday at the age of 86 due to bladder cancer.
Vincent was baseball's commissioner from 1989 to 1992, taking over for Bart Giamatti after his sudden death just eight days after he banned Pete Rose from baseball.
Vincent played a major role in Rose's punishment, having been the deputy commissioner to Giamatti.
He became the commissioner on Sept. 1, 1989, and presided over the league during that year's World Series between the Giants and Athletics that was halted due to the deadly earthquake in the Bay Area.
Vincent was commissioner during the owners' lockout of 1990, and he handed down a permanent suspension to New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, who was reinstated by Vincent's successor, Bud Selig.
As baseball commissioner, Vincent angered owners by becoming the first management official to admit the collusion among teams against free agents following the 1985, ‘86 and ’87 seasons. He also divided expansion fees among both leagues and attempted to force National League realignment, changing the divisions of four teams.
"Mr. Vincent served the game during a time of many challenges, and he remained proud of his association with our national pastime throughout his life," the current commissioner, Rob Manfred, said in a statement.
In one of his lasting acts as commissioner, he chaired an eight-member committee for statistical accuracy, which removed the asterisk that had been next to Roger Maris’ entry as the season home run leader and deleted 50 no-hitters. The group defined a no-hitter as games of nine innings or more that ended with no hits.
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was like the rest of the sports world on early Sunday morning when he learned the Dallas Mavericks traded Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Lakers acquired the five-time All-Star, Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris for Anthony Davis, Max Christie and a 2029 first-round draft pick. The Utah Jazz were also involved in the trade, acquiring Jalen Hood-Schifinio and a future second-round pick.
He was far from the only one who was shocked over the deal.
Doncic had been out of the Mavericks’ lineup since Christmas when he exited the game with a strained left calf. He is now prevented from signing a five-year supermax contract extension that would have been worth $345 million. He’s still eligible for a lucrative extension with the max being $230 million.
"There’s other teams that were loading up," Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison said Sunday. "He was going to be able to make his own decision at some point of whether he wants to be here or not, whether we want to supermax him or not, or whether he wants to opt out. We had to take all that into consideration and I feel like we got out in front of what could have been a tumultuous summer."
Doncic is only 25 and has been one of the top players since Dallas acquired him in a draft day trade with the Atlanta Hawks in 2018.
He’s averaging 28.6 points, 8.7 rebounds and 7.8 assists per game. He finished third in NBA MVP voting last year.
Caitlin Clark has become one of the most polarizing figures in all of sports over the last year-plus.
Her popularity reached a peak nearly two years ago when she and Angel Reese duked it out in the national championship – and then, she became a household name.
Clark set numerous records in her senior year, including becoming the NCAA's all-time leading scorer, and parlayed it all into becoming the No. 1 overall pick.
But then came the culture wars that she found herself in the middle of, with many, including WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson, saying that her race played a role in her popularity.
Clark was the victim of some hard fouls and trash talk throughout her rookie season, but it didn't seem to faze her, as she set plenty of records in Year One.
Clark returned to Iowa on Sunday to see her No. 22 go into the rafters, and she was asked about the criticism she's received recently.
"I think it’s just life. Everybody goes through some of the things that I’ve gone through, a lot of people go through a lot worse. I just try to remind myself every single day how grateful I am to be in the position I am, I want to treat everyone the same way that I would want to be treated. It speaks to the way I was raised and my parents raised me. There’s gonna be good days, there’s gonna be bad days. But it’s just, you go with the flow. I think having a good circle around me, a small circle around me of people that I really trust that I can always count on and lean on is what’s been so important for me over this past year," Clark told reporters on Sunday.
"But also, I’ve said this before, I feel like one of my greatest skills is I really don’t care. Like, I don’t. I don’t care. I believe in myself, I’m confident in myself, I’m confident in my teammates, I try to instill that in them, I’m confident in the coaching staff of whatever team I was on, whether that was [at Iowa], whether that’s at the Fever now. You just rely on those people. Nobody gets to step inside your locker room… Everybody thinks they know everything and have an answer, but that’s just not reality. That goes for all of professional sports, that goes for all of you as well and people in life."
As Clark's rookie season progressed, there were allegations of racism from both Fever and Iowa fans, a claim made by the aforementioned Reese.
But Clark's appearances in games brought historic viewership to both the college and pro levels. The final three games of her college career were the most-watched women's college basketball games ever. She also had several of her regular-season games draw more viewers than WNBA playoff games, and her WNBA matchups with Reese were some of the most-viewed WNBA games ever.
WNBA teams even had to move to larger arenas simply because of the ticket demand Clark drew; the Fever sold 90 times more tickets this past year than in 2023.
Clark was named the Rookie of the Year for her historic campaign during which she set the record for the most assists in one season in league history. She carried the Fever to a playoff appearance after a slow start, and she quickly became a double-double machine. She even set a single-game record with 19 assists. She also became the first rookie to record a triple-double, registering two of them.
She received the most votes for the All-Star Game and was just the fifth rookie in league history to make the All-WNBA first-team.
