Oct 18, 2020; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones (8) looks to pass against the Washington Football Team at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports
When the final seconds ticked off the clock in Munich, Germany last Sunday, many assumed quarterback Daniel Jones had taken his last snap as a member of the New York Giants.
Jones has failed to live up to expectations after signing a four-year, $160 million deal in 2023 and with an injury guarantee hanging over their heads, it would make sense for the regime of general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll to sit him.
However, speaking with the media on Monday, Daboll appeared to leave the door open for Jones to return as their starter following the bye week. And that’s precisely what Dianna Russini of The Athletic reports may happen.
“At this point from what I’ve been hearing and the conversations I’ve had, Daniel Jones may be staying as the starting quarterback here for a few more weeks,” Russini said on the Dan Lebatard Show. “I’m not sure if this is completely done. We’re going to know more this weekend, though, when they come back from their bye and they meet with their quarterbacks.”
The Giants signed Drew Lock to serve as Jones’ backup during the offseason and they still have Tommy DeVito available on their bench. But with possible concerns about their job security, Russini believes Schoen and Daboll will lean into their own self-interest and return the ball to Jones for the time being.
“You’ve got Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll, despite the vote of confidence from their owner John Mara, it may appear that they’re safe, but we know how this goes,” she said. “Even if the owner says that if they go out there and lose in a really bad way and it’s ugly football it’s going to be really hard to bring those guys back there.
“In the mind of a Brian Daboll and a Joe Schoen, we don’t really know what Drew Lock’s about. I think Daniel Jones may still give them the best chance to win.”
Sending Jones back out there would be a risky gamble for Schoen and Daboll. If DJ were to remain healthy, win a few games and keep fans returning to their MetLife Stadium seats, co-owner John Mara may opt to keep the front office and coaching staff intact. However, that would also likely cost the Giants draft positioning and the chance for a top-tier rookie quarterback.
On the other side of the coin, if Jones were to get injured and couldn’t pass an offseason physical, the team would be on the hook for $23 million in 2025, effectively crippling them financially. There’s also risk if they sit him and neither Lock nor DeVito can keep the team competitive, likely leading to a complete clean-out and reset.
Decisions, decisions.
Netflix’s foray into streaming live sports did not go too smoothly on Friday night.
For weeks, the streaming service had been hyping up their upcoming fight card headlined by Jake Paul against Mike Tyson. All the hype must have worked, because Netflix was overloaded with people wanting to watch the fight, and they were unable to serve all their users.
Multiple users complained about an inability to stream the fight. They were given notices by Netflix where the streaming company blamed users for not having a strong enough internet connection.
The issue really was on Netflix’s end, as they were unable to service the heavy demand of users.
Even users who were able to connect to the fight often saw their stream pause and buffer.
If you were attempting to stream the fight and had trouble, you weren’t alone. Netflix showed it wasn’t ready for primetime.
Nov 28, 2020; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Mike Tyson (black trunks) exits the ring after his split draw against Roy Jones, Jr. (white trunks) during a heavyweight exhibition boxing bout for the WBC Frontline Belt at the Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Joe Scarnici/Handout Photo via USA TODAY Sports
Mike Tyson’s return to the boxing ring Friday to take on Jake Paul was not exactly the most well-received event of the year.
Paul (11-1, 7 KOs) outlasted Tyson (50-7, 44 KOs) over eight two-minute rounds to earn a unanimous decision victory at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Two judges scored the fight 79-73 Paul, while the third gave Paul all eight rounds, 80-72.
While it was fascinating to see the former heavyweight champion back in the ring, many felt uncomfortable watching the fight once Tyson began to struggle. Tyson showed some signs of life early on in the match. But age quickly caught up to the 58-year-old, who significantly slowed down as the bout progressed.
Hall of Fame athletes Magic Johnson and Shannon Sharpe also shared that they were bothered by what they had watched. Johnson went so far as to call the Tyson-Paul fight bad for boxing and admitted he had tuned out of the bout before it had even finished.
Tyson may not have gotten the victory over Paul, but he at least secured a massive bag from Netflix for the unorthodox boxing spectacle. And for what it’s worth, Tyson also got to show his bare-naked butt to the world in the process.
Mike Tyson lost to Jake Paul via unanimous decision during their fight at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Friday night. The legendary fighter was fairly quiet in the ring and threw fewer than 100 punches over the 8-round bout. Tyson also displayed another interesting behavior during the fight and later explained why.
Fans noticed that “Iron Mike” would bite his glove during the match with Paul. That’s something Ariel Helwani asked Tyson about in their post-fight interview.
Tyson said that he has “a habit of biting my glove.”
When asked why, the 58-year-old offered a classic explanation.
“I have a biting fixation,” Tyson said.
Those who are familiar with Tyson’s history know all about his biting fixation all too well.
In 1997, Tyson lost his rematch with Evander Holyfield after infamously biting off a piece of his opponent’s ear. Perhaps nearly 30 years later, Tyson has learned to bite other things while in the ring — such as his own glove.
Mike Tyson had nothing to hide Friday heading into his fight against Jake Paul at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
Tyson sent the internet into a frenzy when he gave a locker room interview just moments before the two would step into the ring. It wasn’t anything that Tyson said that had fans buzzing, but rather his cheeky choice of clothing (or lack thereof).
Tyson was asked to give his prediction for the fight. The 58-year-old said he would be on the right side of a “vicious win” over Paul before walking away from the camera and revealing his exposed behind. You can watch the bold clip below.
The entire thing could have potentially been a planned publicity stunt. But regardless of the moment’s authenticity, the clip showing Tyson’s naked rear went astronomically viral on social media.
Tyson has not fought in a professional boxing match since he lost to Kevin McBride via a corner retirement back in 2005. But for a guy who hasn’t stepped into the ring for real in nearly two decades, Tyson has gotten himself into pretty decent shape to face Paul.
Tyson’s interview was far from the only unusual occurrence of the night. One Tyson-Paul undercard saw the victor hump his opponent mid-fight en route to a decisive victory.
Evander Holyfield ate several virtual jabs Friday after his appearance during the Mike Tyson-Jake Paul boxing event at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
Holyfield was brought on as part of a panel alongside fellow heavyweight boxing legend Lennox Lewis and host Kate Scott. Netflix, the fight’s official broadcaster, struggled with audio issues throughout the early portion of the event.
Scott tried to ask Holyfield a question related to Tyson infamously biting off part of Holyfield’s ear in 1997. However, due to the audio issues, Evander could not hear a word.
The jokes practically wrote themselves. Several fans on X connected the dots and made a handful (earful?) of ear jokes.
Others made fun of Holyfield for looking completely spaced out whenever he was on screen. It’s not completely his fault given that his earpiece didn’t work.
Even Holyfield’s accessory choices weren’t spared. A few joked that Holyfield wore shades due to the event being held in the Dallas Cowboys’ home stadium, which has been dealing with a sunlight issue of late.
Holyfield won both of his fights against Tyson back in the ’90s and will forever be regarded as a heavyweight boxing legend. But he may not be completely cut out for a career in broadcasting.
Fight fans expecting to see some oddities during Friday’s Mike Tyson-Jake Paul boxing event were not disappointed.
Indian boxer Neeraj Goyat (19-4-2, 8 KOs) took on Brazilian YouTuber-turned-boxer Whindersson Nunes (0-2) as part of the Tyson-Paul undercard at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. While Nunes is the known comedian between the two, it was Goyat who decided to play the role of prankster during the bout.
Goyat clinched Nunes with about 40 seconds left in the third round. But instead of waiting for the referee to break it up, Goyat went behind Nunes and shepherded him to the corner. Goyat then gripped the ropes with his gloves and humped Nunes from behind for a few seconds.
The disrespectful act was pretty much symbolic of what Goyat did to Nunes throughout the fight. Nunes ate several vicious combos during the bout and looked completely outmatched by his veteran opponent throughout all six rounds.
To Nunes’ credit, he refused to get knocked out. But Goyat still clearly won the bout via unanimous decision. The judges ruled in favor of the Indian fighter with decisive scores of 59-55, 60-54, and 60-54.
Considering the antics leading up the the Tyson-Paul fight, weird in-ring shenanigans were hardly going to be a surprise.
Nov 27, 2019; Portland, OR, USA; Portland Trail Blazers power forward Carmelo Anthony (00) warms up prior to tip off against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports
Kiyan Anthony is following in his father Carmelo Anthony’s footsteps at Syracuse, and Melo could not be more proud.
On Friday, Kiyan announced his commitment to play college basketball at Syracuse, a place where his Anthony surname is considered royalty. You can read more about Kiyan’s announcement here.
Carmelo posted a minute-long video on his social media accounts shortly after news of Kiyan’s announcement was made public.
“It’s your time now,” the video’s caption read.
Carmelo famously led Syracuse to a national championship as a freshman back in 2003. In his lone season playing for the Orange, Melo averaged 22.2 points, 10.0 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per contest.
Kiyan probably won’t have the immediate impact that Melo had, but the 17-year-old is also considered a pretty solid recruit in his own right. Per 247’s composite rankings, the 6’5″ guard is listed as the top recruit out of the state of New York and ranks 32nd overall in the loaded 2025 recruiting class. He averaged 19.6 points per game on Nike EYBL circuit this past spring.
In July, Kiyan revealed Syracuse was one of six programs on his shortlist of potential schools. The younger Anthony trimmed the list to two earlier this month before opting to go with his father’s alma mater.
Dec 16, 2022; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla watches from the sideline as they take on the Orlando Magic at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla on Friday stayed true to his reputation as the most locked-in coach in the NBA.
Mazzulla spoke to reporters ahead of the Celtics’ Saturday home game against the Toronto Raptors. He spoke openly about avoiding friendly interactions with opposing coaches, believing it could give them a “psychological” edge.
The 36-year-old coach pointed to a recent interaction with former Celtics assistant Charles Lee, who left Mazzulla’s staff in the offseason to join the Charlotte Hornets. With a straight face, Mazzulla explained how Lee managed to weaponize a simple hug in the locker room.
“I told Charles [Lee], when he left, ‘I’m not talking to you during the season. I’m not waving to you during the national anthem, I’m just not doing that.’ … So he breached NBA rules and came into the assistant coach’s locker room and forced me to give him a hug. That could easily be a psychological tell that knocks you off your game competitively. So he knew what he was doing.”
When asked if the hug was at least “nice” for Mazzulla, he sternly answered, “No.”
The scrum of reporters laughed while Mazzulla told his story. But the Celtics coach did not even let out a smirk to suggest he was joking in the slightest.
Where Mazzulla ranks among the NBA’s best active coaches remains up for debate. But what isn’t is Mazzulla’s place as the most quotable coach in the association.
Mazzulla’s mindset obviously works given the championship ring already in his trophy cabinet. Look no further than his off-kilter message to Jayson Tatum in the offseason that has already seemed to pay dividends for the Celtics early in the year.
Dec 16, 2023; Atlanta, GA, USA; Former NFL quarterback Cam Newton watches a game between the Howard Bison and Florida A&M Rattlers in the first half at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
Cam Newton thinks he has received a raw deal from the Carolina Panthers, as the team has not honored him since he stopped playing in the NFL.
After watching a video of several of his former teammates attending the Panthers’ recent game in Berlin, Newton said on his “4th and 1” podcast that he felt erased by the franchise, noting that he had not even been invited to any such alumni events or ambassadorial functions. He accused the Panthers of not embracing his legacy, and suggested the organization was hiding behind the excuse that he has not officially retired from the NFL. Specifically, the former MVP recounted a story from when he hosted a 7-on-7 tournament in Charlotte, and when visiting the Panthers’ facility with his son, he realized that there were no references to him and his tenure anywhere.
“At this particular point in time, the question was, ‘Oh, we don’t know if Cam’s retired.’ News flash: I’m never going to retire,” Newton said. “I know I’ve played my last piece of football. It don’t matter to me to officially retire.
“A couple years ago, I had initiatives that I brought to the forefront to the Carolina Panthers. I said, ‘Yo, I’m really taking this media s–t seriously. … We’re approaching, at this time, it was five years since the 2015 season. I was like, we could do a two-for-one. I can talk to Luke Kuechly. I can talk to Thomas Davis. I can talk to Greg Olsen, unfiltered, in a way in front of an audience that we can just share stories. This could be the perfect way to pass the torch to Bryce Young. I think the fans would like that. Did that get pushed through?
“When I see certain things happen like this, I didn’t even know certain opportunities even existed. Did it hurt my feelings? Yeah, it did. I gave this city everything.”
There is no reason for the Panthers not to fully embrace Newton. He may not officially be retired, and there may be some administrative barriers as a result of that, but the team could presumably square those away.
Newton won MVP in 2015 and led the Panthers to the Super Bowl, though he never quite reached those heights again. His burgeoning media career is another pretty clear indication that he is done playing, even if he will not formalize that.
