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5-time NFL Pro Bowler announces his retirement

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5-time Pro Bowler Terron Armstead is calling it a career.

The standout left tackle is retiring after 12 seasons in the NFL, according to NFL Network reporter Ian Rapoport. He last played for the Miami Dolphins.

The 33-year-old spent the first nine years of his pro career with the New Orleans Saints. The third-round selection out of Arkansas-Pine Bluff became the Saints’ full-time starting left tackle in his second season.

Armstead came into his own in 2018, earning himself a 2nd-Team All-Pro selection and the first of three Pro Bowl nods in a Saints uniform.

The Dolphins signed Armstead away from the Saints in 2022, offering the O-lineman a five-year deal worth $75 million with $43.37 million in guaranteed money. Armstead earned two more Pro Bowl selections in Miami while also taking a leadership role in his three years with the team.

Armstead dealt with several minor injuries throughout his career but enjoyed his healthiest campaign yet in 2024. He tied his career high with 15 games played and was as effective as ever on the field.

Pro Football Focus gave Armstead an 89.4 grade for his final season, which ranked fourth in the entire NFL among offensive tackles.

Stephen A. Smith makes embarrassing Cade Cunningham mistake

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Stephen A. Smith’s ball knowledge continues to deterioriate.

The ESPN personality Smith was roasted on social media Saturday for the embarrassing mistake that he made in a post to his X page. Smith was reacting to Florida’s comeback win over Auburn in the Final Four and shouted out Gators star Walter Clayton Jr.

But in an attempt to give praise to Clayton by comparing him to Detroit Pistons star Cade Cunningham, Smith had a major whiff and referred to Cunningham as “Wade Cunningham.”

“Ladies and Gentlemen, just in case you did not know: this brother from @GatorsMBK, his name is Walter Clayton Jr, and he is something special,” Smith wrote. “This brother is the real deal. Reminds me of @DetroitPistons big time guard Wade Cunningham.”

Smith’s post promptly sparked comedy hour on X from users joking about his “Wade Cunningham” mistake.

Wade Cunningham is actually the name of a former professional race car driver, which was one of the other jokes that Smith sparked there.

Clayton, a 22-year-old combo guard who was a First Team All-American this year, came up big for Florida against Auburn, scoring a game-high 34 points on eight three-pointers. As a result, the Gators were able to rally from a nine-point deficit in the second half and clinch a national championship game berth in an electrifying scene.

But in just one post about the game, Smith managed to both divert attention away from Clayton’s big performance and diss the Pistons star Cunningham all at once. The NBA All-Star Cunningham is having a superb year of his own with 25.7 points and 9.2 assists per game to lead Detroit to a remarkable playoff-berth clinching after losing 65-plus games in back-to-back seasons. Nevertheless, he still became the latest NBA casualty of a brutal Smith mistake.

Ian Eagle had very appropriate call when Florida beat Auburn

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CBS announcer Ian Eagle delivered a very fitting call when Florida beat Auburn in their Final Four game at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, on Saturday.

The Gators came back from down by 8 at halftime and down by 4 with 12 minutes left to win the game 79-73 and advance to the NCAA Tournament championship game. Upon Florida winning, Eagle utilized a humorous play on words.

“A return to national prominence for the Gators. Florida will play for the national title. And what Todd Golden and the Gators will be looking for now is a chompionship,” Eagle joked.

The Gators and their fans have their famous “chomp” they do as a rallying/celebratory gesture, so the play on words worked in that situation.

Florida won back-to-back championships under Billy Donovan in 2006 and 2007. They’re hoping to win their first since then and third overall. This will be their first time back in the championship game since 2007.

Walter Clayton Jr. led the way on Saturday with 34 points, while Alijah Martin scored 17.

Fans all said the same thing about Alijah Martin’s viral Final Four dunk

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Several fans felt like Florida guard Alijah Martin’s dunk Saturday looked pretty familiar.

Florida and Auburn were deadlocked at 57 midway through the second half of their NCAA Tournament Final Four matchup at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. Martin picked off an errant pass intended for Tigers star Johni Broome.

Without a single defender ahead of him, Martin had a clear runway for takeoff. The Florida senior started his gather from beyond the three-point line and leaped from well beyond the restricted circle for the slam.

Here’s another angle of the dunk.

Fans on X could not help but compare Martin’s dunk to Michael Jordan’s CGI-assisted dunk from the 1996 blockbuster “Space Jam.”

The 23-year-old athletic freak put on a solo dunk contest in the middle of the Final Four. He somehow topped himself a few possessions later, posterizing two Auburn defenders in transition to give Florida a 66-63 lead.

Martin also had himself a quality game beyond the dunks. He tallied 17 points on 6/10 shooting to go along with 3 rebounds in Florida’s 79-73 victory over Auburn.

Florida’s win also means Martin’s high-flying act is coming to a national championship game near you.

Wayne Gretzky, Alex Ovechkin combined for great photo after tying goal

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Wayne Gretzky and Alex Ovechkin combined for a great photo to celebrate the Washington Capitals star tying “The Great One” on the career goals list.

Ovechkin on Friday scored two goals to give his Capitals a 5-3 win over the Chicago Blackhawks. The two goals gave Ovi 894 for his career, which tied Gretzky.

Gretzky was in attendance for the game, explaining that he wanted to continue the hockey legacy by properly passing the torch to Ovechkin. He took a photo inside the Capitals’ changing room that the team shared on social media. Both men were touching the puck that tied Gretzky’s record and smiling in the photo.

Gretzky is 64 and Ovechkin is 39, so the two really are a generation apart. The photo helps show the 25-year difference in age from the previous record holder to the man who is about to break it. The photo also helps contextualize where Ovi is in his career. The 12-time All-Star has thinning hair, with white on the sides and in his beard. He’s been through a full career and is still going strong.

Even though Ovechkin has 894 goals, he’s still over 1,200 assists behind Gretzky in that department. Gretzky still has a comfortable lead of over 700 assists over second place on the list, with no active players anywhere near catching him. In fact, Gretzky has more career assists than any player has career points! Even with Ovechkin tying him for goals, Gretzky’s hockey legacy is still very well intact.

Dodgers now using Shohei Ohtani Decorte gesture as celebration

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Shohei Ohtani did an interesting gesture after slugging a walk-off home run to win the game on his bobblehead giveaway night on Wednesday, and it has now become a thing among the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Ohtani was batting for his Dodgers with one out and the game tied at 5 in the bottom of the 9th against the Atlanta Braves. The Dodgers DH sent an opposite field shot that sailed out to win the game 6-5.

As he approached home plate, Ohtani did a pinching motion with the thumb and index finger on his right hand and dragged it across his face. The celebration apparently was in response to some of his Dodgers teammates mocking him over the gesture he does in an advertisement for a skin care product from Decorte.

Here is a look at the commercial.

The only thing missing was Ohtani doing the wink.

But here’s the thing: this has caught on and become the Dodgers’ new celebration gesture. In the past, Dodgers players would wave their arms back and forth. They’ve since replaced that with the Ohtani Decorte face wipe. Take a look:

The people at Decorte have to be loving this. The gesture Ohtani did in one of their commercials has now become the celebration for the Dodgers. You can’t buy that type of publicity.

Phillies’ Bryson Stott held in-game baby gender reveal for a friend

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Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Bryson Stott helped out a friend on Saturday by taking part in an in-game baby gender reveal.

Stott wore a pink armband to the plate during his first at-bat of Saturday’s game against the Los Angeles Dodgers. According to Phillies broadcaster Tom McCarthy, that to announce that Stott’s friend Ryan Stevens is going to have a baby girl.

Stevens has been customizing cleats for Stott since 2023. According to a 2024 profile by Santiago Ortiz of Billy Penn, Stevens has customized over a dozen cleats for Scott since then. The visibility allowed Stevens to works with other Philadelphia athletes, including Tyrese Maxey of the 76ers.

Stevens really hit the big time in February, when Eagles safety Cooper DeJean wore his custom shoes during Super Bowl LIX.

For Stott, this is not necessarily anything new. He has fully embraced custom equipment when given the chance during his MLB career.

Stott ultimately grounded out in the plate appearance and wound up going 1-for-3 in a 3-1 loss, but he certainly created a highlight for his friend. Perhaps he got the idea from Austin Reaves, who pulled off a similar gesture recently for his brother.

Dodgers’ strategy for Shohei Ohtani’s pitching return revealed

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The Los Angeles Dodgers are determined to play it very safe with Shohei Ohtani’s return as a pitcher.

During Saturday’s game between the Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies in Philadelphia, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports provided some context around how the Dodgers are approaching Ohtani’s return to the mound. According to Rosenthal, the biggest factor the Dodgers care about is Ohtani’s availability for the postseason.

“The Dodgers are being intentionally deliberate with (Ohtani’s) process coming off a second major elbow surgery,” Rosenthal said. “The goal: to get Ohtani ready for the postseason.”

To be clear, this does not mean the Dodgers will not bring Ohtani back as a pitcher until October. It does mean the team will be very cautious in when he is brought back, and all of the focus will be on his playoff availability. That may limit how much the Dodgers use Ohtani on the mound until then.

Ohtani has begun through bullpen sessions as he works his way back from his Aug. 2023 UCL surgery. The team has not put a specific timeline on his return to game action, with manager Dave Roberts simply saying it will be “a while” before that happens.

Until that point, Ohtani will just keep hitting. He has already authored one dramatic moment this season, and was hitting .324 with three home runs in nine games entering play Saturday.

Roberto Clemente’s son calls out disrespectful move from Pirates

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Roberto Clemente’s son is not happy with the Pittsburgh Pirates for a disrespectful move they made regarding Clemente’s legacy.

The X account for the Pittsburgh Clothing Co. pointed out Saturday that the Pirates had covered up the special logo honoring Clemente that had previously been on the right field wall at PNC Park. The logo has been replaced by an ad for cocktail brand Surfside.

The change did not sit well with Roberto Clemente Jr. He reposted the photo, simply adding a disapproving “WOW.”

Clemente played right field for the Pirates during his legendary career, and the team has always used that corner to pay tribute to him. The right field wall at PNC Park is 21 feet high in his honor, representing Clemente’s uniform number. The number has also featured prominently around the out-of-town scoreboard. It still does, but is much smaller than it was in previous iterations.

That part of the outfield wall at PNC Park has been used as ad space before. The specific logo in question had been in place since at least the 2022 season, as seen in videos from Opening Day that year. It was still present at the end of last season and can be seen in highlights from the Pirates’ home finale in 2024.

Clemente is regarded as perhaps the greatest player in franchise history, hitting .317 with 3,000 career hits. He died at 38 on Dec. 31, 1972, in a plane crash while delivering supplies to earthquake-stricken Nicaragua.

Pirates fans have long disapproved of owner Bob Nutting and have long accused him of being unwilling to spend money on players or turn the moribund franchise around. The decision to replace a tribute to Clemente with a wall ad will only reinforce that perception among critical fans.

Carmelo Anthony reacts to potential honor from Knicks

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Carmelo Anthony on Saturday weighed in on talk of a huge honor he might receive from the New York Knicks.

Anthony was asked about the possibility of the Knicks retiring his number. The former Syracuse star said he would be “ecstatic” if the team decided to grant him the honor, but they should not bother if they have to think about it too hard.

“I would love to see that,” Anthony said, via Zach Braziller of the New York Post. “For me, it’s like, ‘Why wait?’ If you got to think about it then cool, just let it be.

“I don’t know man, to be honest with you. A lot of surprises are happening right now around me, so I’m trying to stay in the moment, and if that’s one of the surprises, then I would be ecstatic about that. I would love to see that jersey hung up.”

Anthony was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame this week, which led to the subject of his Knicks tenure being revisited. Two years ago, it was reported that there were some within the Knicks organization who feel strongly that the team should retire his No. 7.

Eight Knicks players have had their numbers retired, with Patrick Ewing the most recent to receive the honor in 2003.

Anthony spent parts of seven seasons with the Knicks, averaging 24.7 points per game and making six All-Star teams while a member of the organization. However, he never came particularly close to winning a championship, or even having much playoff success. There will be some debate over whether that justifies such a huge honor from the franchise, though Anthony himself does not appear interested in the debate.

Giants WR addresses criticism of Shedeur Sanders’ workout

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One NFL wide receiver addressed some criticism of Shedeur Sanders’ Pro Day workout.

Sanders’ Colorado Pro Day film was scrutinized Friday, with some fixating on the double-taps and hitches in the quarterback’s throws. New York Jets safety Andre Cisco suggested this would be an issue for Sanders in the NFL, arguing that he and other defensive backs would try to use Sanders’ taps as a tell and break early on receivers to get interceptions.

Giants wide receiver Darius Slayton felt differently, however. Slayton was critical of defensive backs who thought the tap would be a tell and said Sanders would be “fine” in the NFL even with the hitch.

“I promise he can pat the ball and be just fine. (If) DB’s was so good at breaking on ball pats they’’’d all have 8+ picks a year,” Slayton wrote on X. “Same guys that fall for a 2 man dagger concept and give up the dig on 3rd & long every season all season long talkin bout a ball pat what a joke.”

Slayton added that defensive backs would not even be able to see what Sanders is doing behind the line, as the quarterback is only 6’1″.

Slayton could very easily be one of Sanders’ future teammates, and he seems to have ample confidence in the Colorado quarterback’s abilities. There are definitely some knocks on Sanders, but there is enough on his tape that quarterback-needy teams will be tempted into picking him high up in the draft.

The Giants made Slayton a fifth-round pick in 2019 and he has carved out a solid role in the team’s offense in his six seasons with the team. Despite the team’s quarterback issues, he caught 39 passes for 573 yards in 2024, and could see those numbers rise with Russell Wilson throwing to him next season.

Jose Altuve has yet another shaky moment in outfield

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Jose Altuve is still experiencing plenty of growing pains in the outfield (no pun intended).

The Houston Astros star Altuve cost his team during Saturday’s game against the Minnesota Twins with another blunder defensively. Altuve had a ball hit to him in left field by Minnesota’s Ty France during the fourth inning with runners on first and second base and nobody out. He played the ball off the bounce and attempted to fire it back into the infield quickly to hold lead runner Byron Buxton of the Twins at third base.

Unfortunately for Altuve, he bobbled the ball on the transfer from his glove, and it squirted away from him. As a result, Buxton was able to score standing up. Here is the video.

Altuve was charged with an error on the play, which proved very costly as the Twins went on to score five more times in the inning to take a 6-1 lead.

The former AL MVP Altuve, 34, was a career-long second baseman but moved to left field this season in order to accommodate Houston’s new infield additions (including Christian Walker and Isaac Paredes). But he was already pretty terrible at the position in spring, whiffing on balls at the wall and even making mistakes on routine fly balls.

Now that it is the regular season, Altuve continues to bumble his way around in left field. Though Altuve did hit a leadoff homer to start off Saturday’s game against the Twins, he also posted a five-strikeout performance (a.k.a a platinum sombrero) against Minnesota the game before that.

Keith Hernandez tries to clarify his crude remark caught on hot mic

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Keith Hernandez is trying to explain himself for something that he can’t just blame on Roger McDowell this time.

The New York Mets legend and television color commentator Hernandez was caught on a hot mic during a game broadcast on SportsNet New York this week making a crude remark. As the Mets were playing the Miami Marlins in extra innings on Wednesday, an irritated Hernandez could be heard angrily muttering about “piss-poor hitting.”

You can see the video here.

On Friday, Hernandez appeared with Gregg Giannotti and Boomer Esiason on WFAN and attempted to clarify his hot-mic remark, saying that it was not directed at the Mets.

“It was intended for the Marlins,” Hernandez said of his crude comment. “I know the Mets left a runner on third as well but … to me it’s just a lost art, I just see it year in and year out, a basic inability to make an adjustment at the plate when a sacrifice fly is in order, particularly when it wins a game late.

“It’s just a pet peeve of mine,” added Hernandez. “I mean, it’s the easiest RBI in the world. Get it done.”

For Hernandez, who was referencing the ghost runner that starts on second base in extras, his comment came right before the beginning of the 11th inning after both the Mets and the Marlins had failed to score in the 10th. Because it was a home game for them, the Marlins were the last team to bat right before Hernandez’s “piss-poor hitting” remark, so his explanation here is at least believable.

The jab by Hernandez, now 71, also could have applied to the Mets, who are currently in the bottom half of MLB in runs scored this season. But at least there are far worse things that Hernandez, who has had his fair share of doozies on the air before, could have said on the hot mic there.

Opposing fanbase takes funny shot at Nico Harrison during game

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Nico Harrison isn’t just getting clowned by his own team’s fans any more.

The Dallas Mavericks general manager Harrison was targeted in a hilarious way during his team’s game on Friday against the Clippers in Los Angeles. The Clippers’ brand-new arena, the Intuit Dome, has become famous for its specifically-dedicated area for home fans directly behind the basket (which is nicknamed “The Wall” because of how many uninterrupted rows of seating it has).

During Friday’s game against Dallas, “The Wall” featured a priceless sign. The sign depicted Clippers forward Nicolas “Nico” Batum alongside Harrison in a way that read, “Nico Batum > Nico Harrison.” Take a look below.

“The Wall” at Intuit Dome has had many other creative taunts for opponents before (usually displayed while they are shooting free throws). But that one might have been its best work yet, especially since the Clippers went on to blow out the Mavericks 114-91.

Harrison has become a reviled figure within the Mavericks’ fanbase for orchestrating the extremely unpopular trade of franchise star Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers in February. He is also detested by many other opposing fanbases as well for essentially having gifted Doncic to perhaps the league’s single most hated team in the Lakers.

But the Batum > Harrison sign was actually pretty tame compared to what Harrison has gotten in the recent past. The Mavericks executive was reportedly getting death threats in the immediate aftermath of the Doncic trade, and he continues to have fans calling for his job (including some who have done so directly to his face).

Notable team cancels private workout with Shedeur Sanders

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A notable team canceled a scheduled private workout with former Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders on Saturday.

The Tennessee Titans are calling off their private workout with Sanders, according to Jim Wyatt of the team’s official website. The decision was made mutually after the Titans and Sanders’ camp met up following Colorado’s Pro Day.

As Wyatt notes, the Titans were in attendance for Sanders’ Pro Day, and also have years of tape on the quarterback. It is highly unlikely that they are going to see anything new just by watching Sanders work out for them one more time.

On the other hand, this could be seen as another indication of where the Titans are leaning with the No. 1 overall pick. The conventional wisdom suggests the Titans prefer Miami’s Cam Ward to Sanders, and the organization has dropped some other hints that would back that up.

Sanders would undoubtedly think the Titans are making a mistake if they go with Ward. There is plenty of buzz, however, that he will still land in the top three, even if Tennessee doesn’t select him.

Fastest man in baseball pulls off shocking feat

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The minor league prospect known as the fastest man in baseball pulled off perhaps his most ridiculous feat yet in a game Friday night.

Tampa Bay Rays outfield prospect Chandler Simpson added another play to his highlight reel while playing for the Durham Bulls on Friday. In the bottom of the seventh, Simpson hit what looked like a routine ground ball to Sugar Land Space Cowboys first baseman Collin Price, but he was able to essentially outrun the ball to first base.

The most impressive thing about the play is that Price is putting in plenty of effort. He does take a moment to start moving once he fields the grounder, but upon realizing how hard Simpson is running, he starts hustling himself.

Regardless of what Price was doing, few players would even run this hard on a routine ground ball in a 12-0 game. Simpson did, and he got an incredible highlight out of it.

Simpson reached base three times in Durham’s 15-1 victory. He already has four stolen bases in six games this season after stealing 104 bags across two levels of the minors in 2024.

Simpson proved in spring training that he can take advantage of his game-changing speed against MLB-level opposition. If the Rays need a bit of speed on their roster, he might make it to the majors this season.

Wayne Gretzky explains why he wanted to be there when Alex Ovechkin breaks record

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Alex Ovechkin on Friday scored two goals in his Washington Capitals’ 5-3 win over the Chicago Blackhawks at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. The two goals gave him 894 for his career, which tied Wayne Gretzky for the most ever.

Gretzky was in attendance as Ovi tried to surpass him in the record books, and The Great One had an explanation for his decision. Gretzky told reporters after the game that he was there because he wants to help pass the torch.

“The integrity of the game … when I was breaking Gordie Howe’s record, he was there. And I said two years ago that if Alex gets close to my record, I’ll be here. That’s the National Hockey League. From (Jean) Beliveau to (Gordie) Howe, (Bobby) Orr, (Mario) Lemeiux, (Mark) Messier — you pass it down,” Gretzky said.

“I hope — and you guys might not believe me — if somebody breaks Alex’s record, I hope Alex is there to shake his hand. But right now I hope Alex enjoys it. And he deserves all the credit and accolades he’s getting.”

Gretzky loves hockey and has been a great ambassador for the sport and for the NHL. He is concerned about continuing the legacy of the game, which is why he was there for Ovechkin, and why he hopes Ovi will do the same when the time comes.

The real incredible part of the whole thing is how similar their stats are. Gretzky scored his 894th goal in 1,487 career games. Ovechkin got there in 1,486 games. That’s amazing.

New favorite emerges to draft Travis Hunter

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Travis Hunter is emerging as the most likely choice for a new team in the NFL Draft.

There is a growing belief around the NFL that Hunter will go No. 2 overall to the Cleveland Browns, according to Jeff Howe of The Athletic. Howe notes that the Browns have been high on Hunter throughout the pre-draft process, and have not seen anything to dissuade them from that stance.

Jason Lloyd of The Athletic had previously reported that the Browns “genuinely like” Hunter. They believe the player’s two-way prowess could allow him to fill two needs at once.

Notably, Cleveland GM Andrew Berry said during the NFL Combine that the Browns view Hunter as a wide receiver first. NFL teams are mixed on how they evaluate Hunter, but many teams view him as a better fit at cornerback. Few doubt that Hunter has the talent to pull double duty, but many are skeptical that he can handle both positions at a high level.

The Browns might be the best landing spot for Hunter based on his stated preference to play on both sides of the ball. Cleveland could use a cornerback and a wide receiver. If they are seriously willing to let Hunter do both, it could be beneficial to both of them, albeit risky.

As much as the Browns like Hunter, there remains some uncertainty about his landing spot. The team was rumored to be leaning in a different direction at No. 2 not long ago, but that may not be the case.

LeBron James roasted Austin Reaves over lob pass

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LeBron James turned back the clock a bit Friday night against the New Orleans Pelicans by linking up with Austin Reaves for a lob. Despite that, the Los Angeles Lakers star had some regrets about the play after the game.

James completed the lob with roughly four minutes to go in the fourth quarter. It came off a turnover and a behind-the-back move Reaves used to free himself up for the pass.

James crashed Reaves’ postgame media availability to joke about how much of a challenge it was physically to complete the play. After Reaves cracked a joke about how he chose to throw a “lob to a 40-year-old,” James jumped in.

“That dumba– lob set me back three days,” James could be heard saying.

Reaves enjoyed the back-and-forth and admitted that he regretted not having the chance to play with James earlier.

“I told him on the bench, I wish I had played with him about ten years ago, because I would have threw the craziest lobs,” Reaves said.

At age 40, James cannot get up for a lob pass quite as easily as he could have earlier in his career. As an added concern, he had already hurt his thumb earlier in the contest, but this particular play came off perfectly.

James scored 27 points with eight assists in a 124-108 victory. Reaves actually bested him with 30 points, and when that happens, the Lakers are tough to beat.

Mets fans sent clear message to Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

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New York Mets fans have launched their own effort to try to convince Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to join the team if and when he becomes a free agent.

Mets fans had a notable reaction Friday when Guerrero was introduced with the rest of the Toronto Blue Jays prior to New York’s home opener at Citi Field. While Toronto players were otherwise booed or met with indifference, Guerrero received notably loud cheers from Mets fans.

The implication is clear: Mets fans would love to see Guerrero play for them in 2026 and beyond. There is no doubt that he noticed the reception, too.

There are some reasons Guerrero might be a fit for the Mets. The team obviously has shown a willingness to spend big money on free agents, and that is what it would take to land the star first baseman. It should also be noted that Guerrero’s half-brother is part of the Mets organization.

The Mets’ problem is they might never get the chance to make their pitch to Guerrero. The Blue Jays remain determined to re-sign him, and might manage it before the end of the season. That might leave the Mets and 28 other teams out in the cold.

Guerrero would bolster any lineup he winds up in. The 26-year-old hit .323 last season with 30 home runs and 103 RBIs.

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