In their shocking lime green Color Rush uniforms, the Seattle Seahawks hosted the Minnesota Vikings on “Monday Night Football” to cap off Week 14. It was an ugly, ugly game. Even some of the big winners were losers. In the end, the Seahawks did enough to prevail on a night where it was all about scratching and clawing your way to the victory. In the process, Seattle improved to 8-5 on the season and is very much alive in the NFC Playoff race. With the loss, Minnesota dropped to 6-6-1 and appears to be pretty much toast. These were the biggest winners and losers from the action. Winner: Seattle’s run game is strong On a cold night in Seattle, with both teams struggling offensively, it was Seattle’s run game that made the difference. The Seahawks have been terrific at pounding the rock all year. On Monday night, the big guys up front were moving bodies on a regular basis, opening up running lanes. Chris Carson and Rashaad Penny both had big runs. So did Russell Wilson. In the end, the Seahawks piled up 214 yar

If there was any lingering doubt, Bryce Harper to the New York Yankees is not happening. Yankees general manager Brian Cashman shot down that talk on Monday by saying that the team was already loaded with outfielders and weren’t interested in him as a first baseman. Cashman confirmed that the Yankees have had discussions about Manny Machado, but Harper appears to be a non-starter. It’s not a huge shock. For all the rumors, the Yankees simply don’t have a need, and they’re not biting on his agent’s attempts to talk him up as a first baseman.  It's not clear where, but Harper will be landing somewhere other than New York.

The Seahawks’ 2012 ascent to the NFL’s contender ranks involved a third-round rookie piloting a playoff return. Over in Indianapolis, Bruce Arians received NFL Coach of the Year acclaim for his work replacing a cancer-stricken Chuck Pagano. Seattle zoomed to the NFC’s No. 1 seed in each of the next two seasons. Ron Rivera of the Panthers and Arians, respectively, earned Coach of the Year honors. Although the Seahawks made the playoffs in six of his first seven seasons with the team, Pete Carroll has never won this award. He will be deserving this year, even if it again eludes him. Carroll’s 2018 work may exceed his performance during Seattle’s climb and subsequent apex, but the ninth-year Seahawks coach is again up against stiff competition. Matt Nagy revitalizing the Bears will probably generate more votes. Andy Reid turning a second-year quarterback into the MVP front-runner may as well. Though, by the traditional «who has done the most with the least» criteria, what is transpiring in Seattle should be con

Where we look at the best (and worst) of NFL Week 14, all in one place. Best Game - Baltimore Ravens vs. Kansas City Chiefs The NFL is certainly an offensively-dominate league, but here’s Exhibit A (see below for Exhibit B) for why defense is still important when the weather turns cold. The Ravens didn’t stop the Chiefs offense, but they held them to 24 points through regulation and 5.3 yards per play. Baltimore even had several chances to win in regulation. Ultimately though, the Chiefs came through with big plays, including two fourth-down conversions, to score the game-tying touchdown and send the game into overtime. Harrison Butker hooked a field goal wide right at the end of regulation, but he didn’t miss again in overtime. The Chiefs defense then stopped the Ravens to win, 27-24. Patrick Mahomes may have moved back in front in the MVP race. He went 35 of 53 with 377 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Tyreek Hill battled through multiple injuries to lead the Chiefs with eight catches and 139 yar

There were a lot of really tight contests around the league in NFL Week 14. With just a month left in the season, competition is ramping up, and it’s glorious. With the playoffs a month away, it’s not surprising. The pressure to come up big either creates diamonds or crushes people, and we saw some of both happen (and a fat-man touchdown) this weekend. These were the biggest winners and losers from NFL Week 14. Winner: Derrick Henry was The Juggernaut Nobody could stop Henry Thursday night as the Tennessee Titans took down the Jacksonville Jaguars to improve to 7-6 on the season. Henry ripped off an NFL record-tying 99-yard touchdown run in the middle of the second quarter. In the process, he stiff-armed A.J. Bouye into oblivion and broke multiple other tackles en route to the end zone (watch here). And that was just his starters. All told, Henry romped for 238 yards and an astonishing four touchdowns. Meanwhile, many fantasy football owners were in agony during the first week of the playoffs, having left th

Sunday’s Week 14 NFL action was about as crazy as it gets. From the Miracle in Miami to Amari Cooper’s brilliant performance in Big D, we were treated to a whole heck of a lot of drama. The early-afternoon slate included Baker Mayfield and the Browns making a major statement in a win over the reeling Panthers. Meanwhile, the Cowboys pretty much ended the NFC East race with a win over the defending champions later in the afternoon. These are among the top takeaways from one of the most eventful Sunday’s of NFL football we’ve seen in some time. Rams offense exposed in a big way The Chicago Bears’ recipe for success Sunday night against a one-loss Los Angeles Rams team was pretty obvious. Their Vic Fangio-led defense focused primarily on stopping Todd Gurley, forcing Jared Goff to pretty much go it alone. The end result was an offensive performance from the Rams that we have not seen since the Jeff Fisher days. Goff competed 20-of-44 passes for 180 yards with four interceptions in the 15-6 loss. Meanwhile, Gurl

The Golden State Warriors are close to seeing all five of their All-Stars on the court together. After missing the past 11 games with a toe injury, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr announced on Sunday that Draymond Green will return for Monday’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves. This is a huge deal for the two-time defending champs. Golden State posted a very pedestrian 6-5 record with Green sidelined. While he’s not anywhere near a go-to scoring option, Green makes everything tick on both offense and defense. Having him back while in the midst of a three-game winning streak will only benefit the Warriors. This news comes on the heels of reports that All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins will return from a torn Achilles sometime after Christmas. At 18-9, Golden State now boasts the best record in the Western Conference and is tied with Philadelphia for the second-best record in the Association.

You know those last-second desperation hook-and-ladder type plays teams run on the final play of the game that never work? The Miami Dolphins ran one of those on Sunday and somehow scored to beat the New England Patriots on the final play of the game. The Dolphins had a 1st-and-10 from the 31 with seven seconds left down 33-28. Ryan Tannehill completed a pass to Kenny Stills around the 46. He pitched back to DaVante Parker around the 45, who pitched to Kenyan Drake at midfield. Drake started to run and then looked to make a pitch himself before realizing he had some blocking down field and few defenders. He made a break for the end zone and was able to score to win the game. Asked about the miracle touchdown after the game, Drake had a great answer. “To tell you the truth, I just kind of blacked out. It worked to perfection.” The miracle play will have a huge impact on the playoff picture. The Patriots drop to 9-4 and lose ground in the battle for home field in the AFC, while the Dolphins go to 7-6 and impro

Washington Redskins quarterback Alex Smith is dealing with an extremely difficult set of circumstances stemming from his gruesome broken leg. The details of the initial injury were brutal, as Smith suffered a compound fracture and a spiral fracture. Things have only gotten worse from there, however, as Smith is dealing with an infection stemming from surgery. On Saturday, shocking news emerged that Smith has undergone upward of a half a dozen surgeries already due to the infection. Doctors have had to remove infected tissue and the plate that was inserted to help his broken bones heal. Then on Sunday morning, Jay Glazer of Fox Sports reported that Smith’s complications could in fact be career-ending. If Smith were to never play football again, he’d still be paid $31 million guaranteed due to the way his contract with Washington was structured. So, he’d be financially secure. Still, we’d love nothing more than to see him receive some miraculous healing and get the chance to play the game he so obviously loves

Bay Area native CC Sabathia doesn’t want to see the Raiders leave Oakland, but he gets it. The New York Yankees pitcher is a fan and doesn’t want to see his city lose one of its professional teams. However, speaking as a pro athlete who’s played at the Coliseum many times, he’s well aware that the venue is, in his words, “disgusting.” The anecdotal evidence about the Coliseum backs Sabathia up here. The Raiders never managed to land a new Bay Area stadium, and should find a much nicer environment when they move to Las Vegas.

Free agent shortstop Manny Machado’s market is strong as we move toward the MLB Winter Meetings. According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, six teams have registered their interest in Machado. Three of them — the Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees, and Philadelphia Phillies — are known commodities. Rosenthal adds, however, that at least three other teams have voiced their preliminary interest. While some believe they know where Machado will land, they’re all just guesses, especially with so many unknown suitors lurking. He’s exceedingly likely to get one of the two biggest deals handed out this winter, rivaling only Bryce Harper’s.

The Giants‘ opponent Sunday, Washington, will be dealing with a greater volume of injury replacements, but the Big Apple’s NFC team will be missing its biggest star. Odell Beckham Jr. will not play in Week 14. The Giants ruled out Beckham for their Redskins rematch because of a bruised quadriceps.  Although Beckham practiced this week on a limited basis, the Giants are sitting him for the first time this season. New York’s 4-8 record may well be contributing to the decision. This season has not gone well for Big Blue, but Beckham has enjoyed a productive slate after an ankle injury wiped out most of his 2017 season. He has five 100-plus-yard performances and exited Week 13 with 1,052 receiving yards, six receiving scores and two touchdown passes. Here’s the latest from the Eastern divisions: In addition to three 2018 arrests, Redskins linebacker Reuben Foster was briefly detained by Santa Clara, California, police this year, A.J. Perez of USA Today reports. In October, police were dispatched to Foster’s plac

Josef Martinez scored once more as Atlanta United won the MLS Cup by beating the Portland Timbers. Atlanta United was crowned MLS Cup champions in just its second season after a 2-0 win over the Portland Timbers on Saturday. Josef Martinez and Franco Escobar scored either side of halftime at a sold-out Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. It capped a fine campaign for Gerardo Martino's men, who were largely in control throughout against the Timbers in the coach's final game in charge. The season finale took a while to get going, with Martinez having a penalty shot turned down in the opening stages. Darlington Nagbe and Miguel Almiron — the latter forcing a good save from Jeff Attinella — had opportunities for Atlanta before the opener. Michael Parkhurst's sliding tackle saw the ball fall to Martinez, the prolific MLS MVP calmly rounding Attinella before opening the scoring six minutes before halftime. Portland looked for an immediate response, and Jeremy Ebobisse had a header saved by Brad Guzan before the brea

Oklahoma Sooners quarterback Kyler Murray was named the 2018 Heisman Trophy winner during a ceremony on Saturday night in New York. Murray beat out fellow finalists Tua Tagovailoa and Dwayne Haskins to become the 84th Heisman Trophy winner. He is also the seventh Heisman Trophy winner from the Oklahoma program, joining Billy Vessels, Steve Owens, Billy Sims, Jason White, Sam Bradford and Baker Mayfield. Murray actually went back-to-back with Mayfield, who won for Oklahoma in 2017. Murray, a junior, put on an offensive show all season for Oklahoma. He completed 70.9 percent of his passes for 4,053 yards, 40 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He also rushed for 892 yards and 11 touchdowns. Murray helped Oklahoma to a 12-1 season, avenging his one loss to Texas with a 379-yard, 3-touchdown effort in the rematch in the Big 12 Championship Game. He received 2,167 total points, beating out Tagovailoa, who had 1,871 points and Haskins (783).

The New York Giants will try to win their fifth game of the season Sunday against Washington without star receiver Odell Beckham Jr. Beckham has been dealing with a bruised quad this week. He did not travel with the club and was ruled out of the Week 14 game with the injury. Obviously this is a huge blow to Big Blue’s offense. Beckham is one of the best receivers in the game, and he leads the Giants by a huge margin in catches (77), receiving yards (1,052) and touchdown receptions (six). Heck, he’s also thrown two brilliant touchdowns (like this one). In addition to his impact for the Giants, the absence of Beckham will affect fantasy football playoffs in a big way. So, make your roster moves accordingly, or suffer the consequences. Back to the Giants, we should expect this decision to mean more Saquon Barkley, along with an increased workload for receiver Sterling Shepard.

The practice of projected NFL draftees skipping their bowl games has become more commonplace in recent seasons, but West Virginia quarterback Will Grier looks set to be the first prominent quarterback to hop on the train. The school announced Saturday morning that Grier would not appear in the Camping World Bowl and would instead focus on preparing for the NFL draft, with the quarterback issuing a statement of thanks to Mountaineers fans. Grier simply doesn’t want to risk injury ahead of the NFL draft in what is becoming an increasingly common sentiment. In fact, one prominent player didn’t even try to come back this season for the same reason after succumbing to injury. It won’t make the NCAA or bowl sponsors happy, but Grier probably won’t be the last big name to opt against playing in one of the lesser bowl games.

It’s getting to be crunch time in the NFL, with Week 14 upon us. Some teams basically need to win out to make the playoffs now, so things are getting tense for certain teams. Others are probably in the playoffs either way, but they’re either playing well and want to keep it going or are playing a bit poorly and want to turn it around before it’s too late. Everyone has at least some incentive — even the league’s worst teams. Here’s a look at 15 key questions that we’ll be keeping in mind during this week’s action. 1. Can Jared Goff avoid the pressure from Khalil Mack and the Bears? On Sunday night, Jared Goff faces a pass rush comparable to his own team’s, as Khalil Mack leads the Bears against the 11-1 Rams. This will be a genuine test for Goff. Few teams have been able to successfully slow down the Rams’ passing offense, but if the Bears can create a lot of pressure, they might just have what it takes. They’re on the road, too, so this is a particularly dangerous game for the Rams in what is a potential pla

Former Green Bay Packers head coach Mike McCarthy thanked loyal fans with a full-page ad on Friday, just a few days after being fired from his position. McCarthy said: “It’s hard to articulate the impact this job had on me and my family,” McCarthy wrote. “From the beginning, Green Bay has welcomed me with open arms. I met my beautiful wife Jessica here and raised our family of 5 children who will always call Green Bay home. Thank you for the immense outpouring of love our family received this week and throughout our time here. This speaks to the quality of folks in the State of Wisconsin. Coach Lombardi said it best. ‘Green Bay is all about Faith, Family and Football.’ “There is an unmistakable pride that runs through the bloodline of all Green Bay Packers, and that is why it’s not the bricks … but the Packers people and the pride they have for this organization that I will miss the most." The Packers made offensive coordinator Joe Philbin the interim head coach and will be actively searching for a long-term

The Houston Rockets can’t seem to break out of their funk in a season where they were one of the favorites in the Western Conference, and at least one player appears to be pointing the finger at the team’s coaching staff. Following Thursday night’s 118-91 loss to the Utah Jazz, which was Houston’s sixth in its last eight games, veteran guard Eric Gordon shared some of his frustrations with Kelly Iko of The Athletic. One comment in particular probably won’t sit well with Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni. “I’m just not having fun, man. I’m just not. This sucks,” Gordon said. “Even the times where I have good games. We’re just not using some guys the right way. Are we gonna make the right sacrifices? Do we have the right attitude?” It’s hard to interpret Gordon’s assertion that the team is “not using some guys the right way” as anything other than a criticism of the coaching staff. The Rockets certainly have the personnel to compete, but they have been unable to string wins together. Iko offered a theory as to what

The Bears expect to have quarterback Mitchell Trubisky under center when they face the Rams on Sunday, as Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times writes. Chicago has struggled with Chase Daniel at QB for the last two games, and Trubisky’s return is expected to give them a boost.  Daniel was sharp in a Thanksgiving win over the Lions, but the Bears were upset by the Giants last weekend in a close contest. Daniel is regarded as one of the better backup QBs in the NFL — despite his lack of actual playing time in recent years — but things just didn’t click for Chicago with Daniel at the helm. “I think it’s a transition for our own players on offense,” head coach Matt Nagy said on Thursday. “All of a sudden you have a new teacher, right? A substitute teacher comes in, and it’s a different voice and you’re trying to figure out, ‘Do I like this teacher or not?’ ” Trubisky, 24, threw for 20 touchdowns against nine interceptions before a shoulder injury took him out of action. Of course, his six-TD, zero-INT performa