Aaron Rodgers, 41, has not been the same player he once was during his tenure with the Jets as the teams sits at 4-11 after not being able to close out tight games.
Green Bay Packers fans could have gotten a jump start on wrapping Christmas gifts for their loved ones as their team dominated the New Orleans Saints on Monday night, 34-0.
The Saints’ defense had no answer for Packers running back Josh Jacobs and as they inched closer to the red zone on each drive, they still came away with no points. The struggles coupled together turned into a demoralizing late-season loss for a season that was already finished.
The Packers looked good early and often on their way to clinching a playoff spot.
Jacobs’ rushing attack helped get Green Bay on the board on its first drive. It ended with a Jordan Love 2-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Dontayvion Wicks. Then, Jacobs was rewarded with a touchdown of his own on the team’s second drive of the game.
Before anyone knew it, Green Bay was up 21-0 and the halftime whistle sounded. Aside from a two second-half field goals, it was all the Packers needed to win the game and improve to 11-4.
Love was 16-of-28 with 182 passing yards and a touchdown pass.
Jacobs, Emanuel Wilson and Chris Brooks each had a rushing touchdown. Jacobs led everyone with 68 rushing yards. Jayden Reed had three catches for 76 yards. Wicks had three catches for 13 yards.
Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler finished 15-of-30 with 153 passing yards and an interception. He led the team with 28 rushing yards. He was sacked three times. New Orleans only ran the ball 20 times.
Jordan Mims had five catches, leading the team, but only had 16 yards. No other player had more than two catches. Foster Moreau had 33 receiving yards to lead the team.
It’s been a really competitive NFC North. The Packers have one of the best records in football but find themselves in third place in the division because the Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings are both 13-2. Both teams have also wrapped up playoff spots.
Green Bay has one more win than the Washington Commanders, which give them the No. 6 seed in the playoffs if the regular season ended Monday night. The Packers clinched a playoff spot.
The Saints have suffered through a coaching change and a plethora of injuries to most of their key players. If they had been a little luckier, they could have been in the NFC South division race with the Atlanta Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
For now, the Falcons still hold the key to the playoff berth.
If all goes right — meaning enough goes wrong on the field these last two games (vs. the Colts and at the Eagles) — the Giants will select first in the 2025 NFL Draft.
The Bucks are having a hard time understanding why on Wednesday they won’t be one of the 10 teams playing on Christmas Day -- viewed as one of the NBA’s signature days on the league calendar.
Recent success has led to people calling on the Jets to run it back with Aaron Rodgers in 2025. Rodgers is having one of the best seasons a Jets quarterback has ever had (a low bar for sure).
Philadelphia's Joel Embiid was ejected for arguing with officials after a charging foul and had to be restrained by coaches in a chaotic first half Monday night against the Spurs that also saw Andre Drummond tossed and then un-ejected upon review.
The Cleveland Cavaliers have been red hot to start the 2024-25 season, and center Jarrett Allen underscored that statement with an impressive trick shot before Monday night’s game tipped off.
The Cavaliers’ matchup with the Utah Jazz was delayed because of an issue with one of the rims at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse. Allen had some fun trying to make sure he stayed warmed up before the tip.
Allen went to halfcourt and took a backward shot. He sunk it, and the crowd in the arena went wild.
The All-Star center is averaging 13.2 points and 10.1 rebounds per game for the Cavaliers this season. He’s averaging one steal and nearly one block per game as well. He earned Defensive Player of the Year votes last season.
He’s in his fourth full season with the Cavs. He was acquired in the middle of the 2020-21 season from the Brooklyn Nets as part of the blockbuster deal that saw James Harden head east in a trade that included the Houston Rockets.
Cleveland has been one of the bright spots in the NBA this season. The Cavaliers jumped out to 15 straight wins to begin the year and have kept up that pace even with four losses on the year. Going into the game against Utah, the team had only lost once in December.
The Cavaliers hoped to start a little Christmas break on top of the Eastern Conference and in good spirits as the rush toward the postseason truly began this week. The Cavaliers have three days off before they begin a four-game road trip starting with the Denver Nuggets on Friday.
Florida Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk had to be helped off the ice and taken to the locker room following a first-period collision with Tampa Bay's Nikita Kucherov in Monday's 4-0 loss, but he later returned in the second period to a standing ovation.
For it was exactly 51 weeks earlier — Dec. 30, 2023 — when Knicks fans received one of the first stunning bits of news they’d gotten since the Knicks had begun working their way back into the fabric of the city.
Quinn Ewers? OK. Arch Manning? Why not. Bevo? No, thanks.
The Texas Longhorns’ beloved mascot Bevo XV will not be making the trip to the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl in the next round of the College Football Playoff as the team plays Arizona State.
Peach Bowl organizers made the announcement on Monday.
"We love all of the great traditions of college football and no doubt Bevo is one of the best, but the unfortunate reality is there simply is not enough room on the sidelines of Mercedes-Benz Stadium," their statement read.
"With the constraints of the stadium and prioritizing the safety of Bevo, the players, all the network cameras, support staff, cheerleaders, and photographers, we unfortunately will not be able to have Bevo on the field at the CFP Quarterfinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl"
The Peach Bowl is set to take place at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. It was the site of the SEC Championship between Texas and Georgia. Bevo was barred from the event as well.
Bevo had a little tiff with Georgia’s mascot Uga in the past. The mascot broke through a barricade at that year's Sugar Bowl and nearly trampled the dog and onlookers at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.
Texas is coming off of a 38-24 first-round victory over Clemson. Ewers was 17-of-24 with 202 passing yards and a touchdown pass. Jaydon Blue and Quintrevion Wisner each ran for more than 100 yards.
Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Umpires Association came to a tentative agreement on a new five-year collective bargaining agreement Monday.
