The Kansas City Chiefs were left with one major decision before completing their 53-man roster cuts before heading into the regular season. Patrick Mahomes is still the starting quarterback despite his injury setback, with Justin Fields as the backup. The final roster spot was decided for the third-string quarterback spot.

After trading for Fields from the New York Jets, it was unclear whether there would be room for another quarterback.

Assistant general manager Mike Bradway suggested keeping three quarterbacks was possible; it would come down to Garrett Nussmeier and Chris Oladokun. Nussmeier was a seventh-round pick out of LSU, while Oladokun is a veteran quarterback with five seasons in the league. Nussmeier was allowed to showcase his skills in the preseason finale after Oladokun left the game due to concussion protocol. He completed 22 of 34 passes for 198 yards against the Seattle Seahawks; he finished the preseason with 370 passing yards.

On Aug. 30, the Chiefs announced their 53-man roster with Nussmeier securing his spot as the third-choice quarterback. With three quarterbacks, the Chiefs waived Oladokun, who had spent four seasons with the team.

This decision comes in part because of Mahomes’ health after he recovered from ACL and LCL injuries he suffered last December. Mahomes did not play in any preseason game as he focused on recovery and progressing through training camp. As of now, Mahomes is expected to start Week 1.

The Chiefs open the regular season against division rivals the Denver Broncos on Sept. 14 on Monday Night Football.

Aaron Donald is returning to the NFL post-retirement. He is returning to the Rams for the first time since 2023 and is eager to get back on the field.

He believes he hasn’t missed a beat and is ready to compete at a high level. When asked, he responded with a firm “yes” and said “100%” when asked if he can still be himself.

The three-time defensive player of the year will join forces with another all-time talent in Myles Garrett. The two defensive lineman in their prime together would have been unfair and unheard of. It remains to be seen whether Donald’s confidence will translate into the same level of play he brought before retirement, but the upside of what Donald could bring should definitely excite Rams fans.

Donald looks forward to working alongside all the talent that the Rams have on defense. “I already thought it was a stacked D-line,” he said during a visit with the media.

Whether Donald will play week 1 is still up in the air. The Rams play the 49ers in Australia to open their season, and Coach Sean McVay declined to comment on Donald’s timetable. He did say that the Rams were “excited to have him back.”

The Rams are one of the Super Bowl favorites, and it is tough to see this addition hurt the team more than it could help. Even if Donald plays at 75%, it is an upgrade over almost anyone in the league at that position. The game in Melbourne is the first time the NFL heads to Australia for a regular-season game and would be an awesome spot for Donald to return, but the team isn’t rushing him back, and when he returns, it will be when he is fully ready to go.

Venus Williams, 46, is out of the US Open after losing in straight sets to Sofia Kenin. The match started at 12:13 a.m. local time, the latest start time in the tournament’s history.

She lost 6-2, 7-6 (6) and had a handful of set points in the second set that she could not capitalize on. It was not an uncompetitive loss like some of her other losses over the past year, but it wasn’t pretty either.

The delay stemmed from the five-set bout between Mariano Navone and Novak Djokovic, in which Navone pulled off the upset. The start was six minutes later than the previous start-time record, set in 2024.

Williams, who received a wild card into the event, has received wild cards throughout the year at many tournaments. She has now lost 15 consecutive matches in singles and hasn’t picked up a victory in over a year. Her last win came in July 2025, and many people are questioning whether she should keep playing and whether these tournaments should keep giving her wild cards.

The road for Venus Williams at the US Open is not over yet. She will play doubles with her sister, Serena Williams. The sister duo has won the US Open doubles title twice, including as teenagers in 1999. Serena recently returned from retirement after being away from the sport. Serena just played mixed doubles with Carlos Alcaraz, and they picked up a win in that tournament before losing in the second round. The Williams sisters played doubles in Cincinnati and lost in the first round.

As her career winds down, Venus’s timetable is unknown, but she hasn’t won a US Open match since 2019 and would need a wild card to get another opportunity. The US Open would probably give her one for her farewell tour if she chooses, but there is no guarantee.

Last year, the US Open decided to format its mixed doubles championship differently than it ever had.

Instead of holding the competition alongside the other doubles and singles championships, they moved it outside the standard fortnight and into fan week. Fan week takes place the week before the main draws begin, with exhibitions and fan events all leading up to the Sunday start.

Many tennis fans don’t watch much of the mixed doubles draw in most tournaments because it is just a lot of tennis with all the other draws going on, and for the same reason, many singles players and stars don’t play mixed doubles if they are already playing in the other draws.

The USTA moving the mixed doubles draw to a fast format (sets that are first to four instead of six) and during fan week has attracted singles stars and has drawn more eyeballs on the event. This also makes the US Open a full-blown three-week event, unlike any other Grand Slam.

However successful as last year’s event was, it did come with one issue. The problem with the inaugural run was that only one team in the 16-team draw was made up of doubles specialists. If you watch tennis, you learn quickly that singles and doubles are two completely different sports.

Many great doubles players aren’t great singles players, and vice versa. Many doubles specialists were upset that singles players took their spot. Singles rankings were how you qualified, and plenty of teams had never played with their partner before or played much doubles at all in the past. Doubles specialists practice week in and week out with the same partner, mastering their craft as a team.

This was highlighted when the singular doubles specialist team in the draw won the whole thing. Andrea Vavassori and Sara Errani are an Italian duo who have each won multiple Grand Slams. They opened casual fans’ eyes to just how different doubles and singles are. En route to their title, they defeated some of the best singles players in the world.

In the final, the pair beat six-time singles grand slam champion Iga Swiatek and her partner, two-time grand slam finalist Casper Ruud. Keep in mind Errani and Vavassori are two players that probably wouldn’t win more than a game against these stars in singles. Errani has not won a main draw singles match in over two years and is unranked, while Vavassori is ranked 613 in the world in singles. Swiatek was the reigning ladies’ Wimbledon champion when this took place.

This year, the draw has been expanded to get the best doubles specialists in the tournament. An eight-team qualifying draw begins today, filled with doubles specialists. Two teams will move on to the 16-team main draw that starts tomorrow, still primarily filled with singles players.

The change sets the event up for massive success, with all the eyeballs on it, while not completely taking spots away from doubles players. Some of the biggest names in the sport, such as Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz and Serena Williams, will be playing in the event.

Adding more doubles specialists will also be great for the sport, as it will continue to highlight how good these doubles athletes are. Doubles doesn’t get the same recognition as singles on TV, but it is very popular recreationally and is entertaining to watch when it is available to the casual fan.

The favorites to win the event will undoubtedly be the doubles specialists, but there are some primary singles players in the event that know their way around a doubles court, so there is always potential for an upset.

Fan week at the US Open will continue until Saturday, and the main singles draws will begin on Sunday.

A family rift has erupted at the top of the Los Angeles Lakers, as Jeanie Buss publicly opposes her siblings’ plan to sell the family’s remaining ownership stake in the team.

The Deal at the Center of the Dispute

Five of the six Buss siblings — Joey, Jesse, Jim, Johnny and Janie — support selling the family’s remaining 17.8% stake in the Lakers to Bob Iger and Josh Kushner for roughly $12.5 billion. The sale would push Iger and Kushner’s combined ownership from about 65% to around 83% of the franchise, following their earlier purchase of Mark Walter‘s controlling stake.

Why Jeanie Is Fighting the Sale

Jeanie Buss is the lone holdout, and her opposition centers on control rather than money alone. NBA rules require a team governor to hold at least 15% ownership, and losing the family’s stake would strip her of the governor role she’s held since 2017 — a position she’s occupied since her father, Dr. Jerry Buss, died in 2013. Through attorney Adam Streisand, Jeanie argues a 2017 court order requires her approval as co-trustee of the family trust before any sale of the remaining shares can proceed, calling any vote to sell “a breach of trust, breach of fiduciary duty” and “in contempt of court.”

The Other Side

The five siblings backing the sale pushed back publicly, saying in a joint statement that they’re ready to “exit gracefully while we still can.” Their support triggered a tag-along clause forcing a family vote on the transaction.

A Family With a History of Conflict

This isn’t the Buss family’s first internal battle. Jeanie fired brother Jim from his basketball operations role back in 2017, and siblings Joey and Jesse were dismissed from front-office positions in late 2025 after initially opposing the sale of majority control to Mark Walter — a deal Jeanie ultimately cast the deciding vote to approve.

What’s at Stake

Beyond family politics, the outcome could affect Lakers president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka, a Jeanie ally, and comes as star Luka Dončić approaches free agency in 2028. Any sale would also require NBA Board of Governors approval, and Kushner would first need to divest from the Miami Heat.

The New York Giants made two notable roster moves on Tuesday, signing running back Najee Harris while releasing wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster.

Why the Giants Needed Harris

The move comes after running back Dante Miller suffered a preseason groin injury, leaving the Giants short on depth in the backfield, according to the team’s official site. Harris steps in as a proven veteran presence, standing 6’1″ and weighing 242 pounds, with 71 career games and 68 starts under his belt and a career average of 3.9 yards per carry.

Harris’s Path to New York

A former first-round pick, Harris was drafted 24th overall by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2021 and earned a Pro Bowl selection while rushing for more than 1,000 yards in each of his first four NFL seasons. He signed with the Los Angeles Chargers in 2025 but tore his Achilles in Week 3 against Denver, ending that season prematurely. The Giants signing gives him a fresh opportunity to prove he’s fully recovered.

A Familiar Face for the Coaching Staff

Giants head coach John Harbaugh is no stranger to Harris, having faced him repeatedly during his time coaching in the AFC North. “I felt like the hair on the back of my neck stood up when I saw him,” Harbaugh said, describing Harris as “a downhill runner, physical runner.”

Harris’s Mindset Heading In

A two-time national champion and Doak Walker Award winner at Alabama, Harris made clear he’s motivated to reestablish himself after the injury. “I have a lot to prove as somebody coming back from a torn Achilles,” he said.

What It Means for the Roster

Releasing Smith-Schuster clears a spot as the Giants pivot toward shoring up their running game rather than their receiving corps, underscoring how significant Miller’s injury was to their roster planning. With Harris now in the fold, the Giants add a physical, experienced ball carrier just as the season approaches — a low-risk, potentially high-reward addition if he returns to form.

Golden State Warriors rookie forward Yaxel Lendeborg wasted little time establishing his competitive edge, throwing some pointed trash talk at Phoenix Suns forward Dillon Brooks during a livestream over the weekend.

On his Kick stream Saturday, a fan asked Lendeborg whether he was excited for his eventual matchup against Brooks, one of the NBA’s most notorious instigators. He didn’t hesitate. “Am I excited for the Dillon Brooks matchup? I’m finna give Dillon Brooks belt, man. Stop playing, bruh,” Lendeborg said, using slang for thoroughly dominating an opponent.

The comment quickly circulated across social media and NBA outlets, adding another layer to an already spicy rivalry between the Suns forward and Golden State.

Brooks has built a reputation over the years as one of the league’s most disliked and combative players, with a particularly pointed history against the Warriors. During Golden State’s 2026 playoff run, Brooks made it clear he hoped the Warriors would advance past the Clippers so his Suns could face them, naming Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and head coach Steve Kerr as the primary reasons he wanted the matchup.

Phoenix ultimately delivered on that wish, eliminating Golden State from playoff contention last season, adding extra motivation to what’s already a heated dynamic heading into 2026-27.

Lendeborg, the 11th overall pick out of Michigan in this year’s draft, has quickly developed a reputation for candid, unfiltered commentary since arriving in the league. He’s previously admitted he once disliked both Curry and Green before joining the Warriors, remarks that reportedly irritated Green, who has said he’s looking forward to training camp so he can help rein in the rookie’s outspoken tendencies.

On the same stream where he called out Brooks, Lendeborg also laid out his own expectations for his rookie season, setting a personal bar of roughly 15 points, six rebounds and three to four assists per game, and saying anything below that would represent a disappointment by his own standards.

The 23-year-old’s confidence stems in part from a standout Summer League performance, where he averaged 14.8 points, 6.8 rebounds and 4.0 assists while leading the Warriors to the Summer League championship, earning him MVP honors for the event.

Fans won’t have to wait long to see whether Lendeborg backs up his words. The Warriors and Suns are scheduled to meet twice early in the 2026-27 regular season, first on Oct. 24 in Phoenix and again on Nov. 2 at Chase Center in San Francisco.

St. Louis Cardinals rookie outfielder Joshua Báez etched his name into the MLB record books on Saturday, becoming the first player in league history to hit a home run in each of his first three career at-bats. His historic debut powered the Cardinals to an 8-4 win over the Chicago Cubs.

A Record-Breaking First Game

Báez, 23, wasted no time making an impact. His first career home run came on the very first pitch he saw in the majors, a blast off Cubs pitcher Matthew Boyd that landed an estimated 449 feet away in the left-center field bleachers. He wasn’t done there — Báez went on to hit two more home runs later in the game, each on a different pitch and to a different field, completing an unprecedented three-for-three power display in his first big-league appearance.

How It Compares to MLB History

Before Saturday, only two players had ever homered in each of their first two major league at-bats: Bob Nieman of the St. Louis Browns in 1951 and Keith McDonald, who did it for the Cardinals themselves in 2000. Neither carried the feat into a third at-bat. Báez’s performance surpasses both, giving the Cardinals a second entry in that exclusive club and a new franchise and MLB milestone in the process.

The Path to the Majors

Báez earned his call-up after a standout run in Triple-A, where he led all hitters in the league with 34 home runs, including four separate multi-homer games. That power surge made him one of the most closely watched prospects in the Cardinals’ system heading into his debut, and Saturday’s performance suggests the hype was warranted.

Why It Matters

A three-home-run debut of this magnitude is exceedingly rare in professional sports, let alone baseball, where rookies often need time to adjust to major league pitching. Báez’s instant impact gives the Cardinals a jolt of power in their lineup and signals he could be a fixture in St. Louis for years to come. As the season progresses, all eyes will be on whether he can sustain the kind of production that made his first game an instant piece of baseball history.

Las Vegas Raiders rookie quarterback Fernando Mendoza made an impressive first appearance in an NFL uniform Thursday night, completing 10 of 16 passes for 97 yards and a touchdown during the Raiders’ preseason opener against the Arizona Cardinals.

Mendoza played four drives in the Raiders’ 27-14 loss to the Cardinals, giving Las Vegas fans an early glimpse of the No. 1 overall pick’s potential. His touchdown pass went to second-year wide receiver Jack Bech.

The performance was notable historically as well. Mendoza became the first No. 1 overall pick since Baker Mayfield in 2018 to throw a touchdown pass in his preseason debut.

Fernando Mendoza Shows Poise in Raiders Debut

Mendoza’s numbers were solid, but his composure appeared to attract even more attention. Raiders coach Klint Kubiak described the rookie as an “ascending player” after the game, while emphasizing that Mendoza still has plenty to learn as he adjusts to professional football.

The rookie was not completely satisfied with his performance. Following the game, Mendoza acknowledged that he needed to improve his timing and anticipation and said he planned to study the film closely. He even expressed disappointment that he had not done enough for his teammates, despite producing a touchdown on his first NFL preseason appearance.

That self-criticism did not appear to diminish the Raiders’ enthusiasm about his development.

Kirk Cousins Remains Raiders QB1

Despite Mendoza’s encouraging debut, veteran Kirk Cousins remains the expected starter entering the regular season. Cousins played only one series against Arizona and led the Raiders to a touchdown before giving way to the rookie.

That makes Mendoza’s preseason opportunities particularly important. The Raiders can give their highly drafted quarterback meaningful repetitions without immediately placing him under the pressure of starting an NFL regular-season game.

Mendoza entered the league after a spectacular college career at Indiana, where he won the 2025 Heisman Trophy and became the first overall selection in the 2026 NFL draft. His first preseason performance will inevitably fuel speculation about how quickly he could challenge Cousins for the starting job.

For now, however, the Raiders appear determined to develop him methodically.

The loss to Arizona ultimately matters little in the preseason. For Las Vegas, the bigger story was seeing its prized rookie handle his first extended taste of NFL action — and Mendoza gave the Raiders plenty of reason to remain excited about his future.

Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman appears to have avoided a serious injury after a frightening fall into the Kansas City Royals’ dugout Wednesday night.

Freddie Freeman Takes Frightening Fall Against Royals

The incident occurred during the eighth inning of the Dodgers’ 4-2 victory over Kansas City at Dodger Stadium. Freeman was chasing a foul popup off the bat of Royals infielder Isaac Collins when he tumbled down the dugout stairs while attempting to make the catch.

The veteran first baseman remained down briefly as trainers from both teams rushed to check on him. Freeman eventually returned to the field and finished the defensive inning, but he was replaced by a pinch-hitter in his next at-bat and did not return to first base.

Dodgers Injury Update on Freddie Freeman

The encouraging news for Los Angeles is that Freeman does not appear to have suffered a major injury.

Freeman is listed as day-to-day with total-body soreness. He reported soreness in several areas, including his knees, shoulder, hand and wrist, but remained in good spirits following the incident.

Freeman also emphasized how fortunate he was to avoid a potentially much more serious outcome. He did not hit his head during the fall, which proved to be a crucial factor in limiting the severity of the incident.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the club was fortunate Freeman escaped without a more significant injury. His availability for the team’s next game will depend on how his body responds.

Will Freddie Freeman Play Against the Brewers?

The Dodgers now turn their attention to an important four-game series against the Milwaukee Brewers, with Freeman’s status one of the team’s biggest storylines.

Freeman was uncertain about whether he would be able to play in the series opener.

The timing is significant for Los Angeles. Freeman has been productive at the plate recently, batting .417 over his previous 19 games entering Wednesday’s contest, according to Reuters.

The Dodgers ultimately completed a three-game sweep of the Royals, with Shohei Ohtani hitting a two-run homer in the 4-2 victory.

For now, Dodgers fans have reason to breathe easier. What initially looked like a potentially devastating injury instead appears to be a painful scare, with Freeman considered day-to-day as Los Angeles prepares for its next major test.

Blake Snell struck out 10 batters over six innings of one-run ball Tuesday night in his return to the Dodgers’ rotation, more than three months after his last MLB appearance, as Los Angeles beat the Kansas City Royals 5-4 in 10 innings on a Max Muncy walk-off hit.

Snell allowed just three hits and a walk, retiring his first 10 batters in order and striking out the side in the first inning on three different pitches — a changeup, a four-seamer and a curveball. He ran into his only trouble in the fourth, allowing a run on back-to-back singles and a Salvador Perez sacrifice fly, but shut the door from there. He finished with 84 pitches, well beyond the 75-80 pitch target the Dodgers had set for him, and picked up a no-decision.

“That’s the Snell that we’re used to seeing,” Muncy said after his game-ending hit sealed the win.

A Tough Road Back

The outing marked just Snell’s second appearance of the 2026 season. He opened the year on the injured list with lingering shoulder fatigue, returned briefly in May, then landed back on the IL after loose bodies were discovered in his pitching elbow. He underwent a NanoNeedle Scope procedure to remove them, a surgery that expedited his recovery but still kept him sidelined until August.

Manager Dave Roberts credited Snell’s growth since his rocky May 9 season debut, when he allowed five runs in three innings. “Coming back from rehab and to kind of feel your way into the middle of a season is very difficult,” Roberts said. “I do think that he learned from the first one. We needed to win tonight, and we needed to win a series, and it started with him.”

Salt Lake City Silver Lining

Snell said a difficult final rehab start in high-altitude Salt Lake City — where he allowed three runs, four walks and two homers in 3 2/3 innings — ultimately sharpened his command by forcing him to adjust his pitch shapes. “To have that start and be that frustrated pitching… to be able to come here and just pitch and know I can throw a curveball where I want, whenever I want, and a fastball — that felt way better,” Snell said.

It was the seventh double-digit strikeout start by a Dodger this season, and Snell said his surgically repaired arm now “feels as good as it has in years.”

The Los Angeles Lakers are being sold to former Disney CEO Bob Iger and Thrive Capital co-founder Josh Kushner for more than $12.5 billion, a record price for a professional sports franchise. The deal comes just 14 months after billionaire Mark Walter bought a controlling stake in the team from the Buss family at a then-record $10 billion valuation.

Kushner and Iger, who is also an adviser at Thrive Capital, approached Walter with an aggressive offer on Sunday, and the deal came together quickly. The pair had previously been involved in NBA expansion discussions tied to Las Vegas before pivoting to pursue the Lakers instead.

“As lifelong NBA fans, we are deeply honored for the opportunity to become stewards of the Los Angeles Lakers,” Iger and Kushner said in a joint statement, adding that their “long-term commitment is to build on that foundation, compete at the highest level, and serve this extraordinary team, its fans, and the city of Los Angeles.”

Walter Nets $2.5 Billion Profit

Walter, who purchased the team from the Buss family in 2025, is set to walk away with a roughly $2.5 billion profit after owning the franchise for just over a year. “Owning the Los Angeles Lakers has been one of the great honors of my life,” Walter said in a statement, thanking Jeanie Buss, the Buss family, players and staff. “The Lakers belong to Los Angeles, and I have every confidence the best is still ahead.”

The sale comes as Walter and Guggenheim Partners face an investigation from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Manhattan and the Securities and Exchange Commission over potential insurance fraud, though it’s unclear whether that scrutiny factored into his decision to sell.

A Franchise in Transition

The ownership change lands during a turbulent offseason for the Lakers, who lost superstar LeBron James in free agency after eight seasons when he signed with the Philadelphia 76ers. The team still features Luka Dončić as its cornerstone as it heads into a new ownership era under Iger and Kushner.

Bryce Young found himself in the middle of a training camp scuffle during the Carolina Panthers’ Monday practice, according to The Athletic‘s Joe Person, who reported the quarterback “took offense” after safety Lathan Ransom tried to hit running back Jonathon Brooks on a run play.

What followed was a “big fight” that saw Young and cornerback Mike Jackson jawing at each other — a confrontation that reportedly continued for several minutes. An offensive lineman also got pulled into the fray at some point, and Person indicated someone took a hit to the head during the melee.

Person added that after practice wrapped, Young, Jackson and safety Nick Scott had a lengthy conversation to smooth things over. Scott later addressed the incident in his post-practice press conference, chalking it up to the natural physicality of camp.

“At this point in camp, there’s just a level of physicality that naturally happens,” Scott said. “We haven’t seen a different color in a long, long time… that’s part of the game. You want it. But at the same time, there’s that aspect of protecting the team and guys that you’re going to need on Sunday.”

Scott pushed back on the idea that the scuffle was a bigger deal than it looked, saying it was “starting to turn into something bigger than it is.” He added: “This is not like the sitcom of the Panthers. We’re having fun. Camp is going really well.”

Canales Praises “Physical, Competitive” Practice

Head coach Dave Canales opened his own press conference by calling Monday a “fantastic practice,” using words like “physical,” “competitive” and “passionate” to describe the session. Asked directly whether he had an issue with the play that sparked the fight, Canales declined to weigh in.

“We’re not out here practicing for a different sport,” Canales said. “Our sport’s physical… but we can do it the right way.”

Young did not hold a formal press conference Monday. The Panthers’ starters are next scheduled to play in the preseason opener at Buffalo on Saturday, Aug. 15, the first game at the newly built Highmark Stadium.

Aaron Donald conducted an official workout with the Los Angeles Rams on Wednesday, a session the league’s transaction wire formally classified as a tryout and one that head coach Sean McVay treated with a mix of humor and genuine optimism about a potential return.

The three-time Defensive Player of the Year, who hasn’t played since retiring after the 2023 season, worked out at the Rams’ facility using team equipment, which required the session to be reported to the league since he wore a helmet.

Donald did not wear pads. Asked afterward whether the workout amounted to a tryout, McVay didn’t hold back his enthusiasm, telling NFL Daily reporters, “Best tryout we’ve ever had,” and adding, “I think he could make the team.” McVay had signaled last week that no formal decision from Donald would arrive during training camp but described the situation as “trending upwards.”

Speculation about a possible Donald comeback has built steadily since June, when the Rams acquired reigning Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett in a trade with Cleveland. Donald has said the move got him thinking seriously about rejoining the franchise where he spent his entire ten-year career, which included a Super Bowl title following the 2021 season and ten Pro Bowl selections. He was spotted running conditioning drills at the team’s Woodland Hills facility as early as mid-July, fueling further speculation ahead of Wednesday’s more formal workout.

Should Donald return, he’d join a defensive line already featuring Garrett alongside Kobie Turner, Braden Fiske, Poona Ford and Byron Young — a group that would immediately rank among the most talented fronts in the league. It remains unclear how much can be read into a non-padded workout for a 35-year-old defensive tackle, and no timeline has been set for an official decision from Donald on whether he intends to return for the 2026 season.

George Lombard Jr. and his younger brother, Jacob, delivered a baseball rarity this week, each hitting a home run during their respective professional debuts on the same night, roughly 1,200 miles apart.

George Jr., 21, was called up by the New York Yankees and homered in the Bronx against the St. Louis Cardinals, becoming the 14th player in franchise history to go deep in his MLB debut and the second-youngest Yankee ever to debut at the major league level, trailing only Derek Jeter.

Hours earlier, 18-year-old Jacob had already homered in his own professional debut for the Single-A Jupiter Hammerheads, the Miami Marlins organization that selected him 14th overall in this year’s draft, against the Palm Beach Cardinals. Both brothers connected in their second at-bat of the night, and both home runs carried a 33-degree launch angle with nearly matching exit velocities — 100.2 mph for George and 99.9 mph for Jacob.

Their parents, Judy Lombard and former major leaguer George Lombard Sr., now a bench coach for the Detroit Tigers, had originally planned to travel to Florida for Jacob’s debut before their younger son urged them to go watch George Jr. in New York instead.

The family ended up split between two states in real time: from the stands at Yankee Stadium, Judy and George Sr. watched Jacob’s home run unfold on their phones before witnessing George Jr. do the same thing in person minutes later. “Just the fact that he’s worked his whole life for this and that day had come, there was no words,” Judy said afterward, describing the emotional weight of watching both sons reach the milestone within the same hour.

Jacob, speaking from Florida, said he and his brother had talked before the game, with George Jr. mostly encouraging him to settle his nerves.

“More than anything, he was kind of telling me to calm down and play my game,” Jacob said, noting it was his first competitive appearance in a couple of months after signing with Miami. The dual debuts cap a whirlwind year for the Lombard family, with George Jr. rising through the Yankees’ system to reach the majors while Jacob became a first-round talent straight out of the 2026 draft.

Patrick Mahomes opened the Kansas City Chiefs‘ training camp this weekend with a blunt self-assessment, telling reporters he’d fallen short of his own standard in the weeks before a torn ACL ended his 2025 season.

“I feel like I wasn’t playing my best football at the end of last year before I got hurt,” the 30-year-old quarterback said. He pointed to specific fixes rather than vague resolutions, naming better pocket navigation, sharper offensive management and quicker decisions to release the ball so teammates can make plays downfield. Mahomes framed the injury layoff as an unexpected opportunity to isolate those habits, saying the enforced pause “helped me focus on those little things” as he works to return to form.

The three-time Super Bowl winner suffered the knee injury during a Week 15 matchup last December, a blow that knocked Kansas City out of playoff contention and sidelined its franchise quarterback for months of rehabilitation. Since then, Mahomes has leaned on a support network of players who’ve walked the same recovery path, including Tom Brady, former Chiefs safety Tyrann Mathieu and tight end Zach Ertz, who tore his own ACL just a week before Mahomes did.

Photos and video from the offseason chronicled the milestones along the way — first, a leg brace during light workouts in March, then full-practice reps two months later.

Coach Andy Reid, who has repeatedly urged caution against rushing the recovery, indicated camp will run at full intensity regardless of Mahomes’ rehab timeline. “I don’t think he’s going to take it light on anybody, including me,” Mahomes said of his coach’s approach. Reid struck a similarly measured tone about the season opener, telling reporters the team has “a pretty good feel that he’s in a good place” but stopping short of guaranteeing Mahomes suits up in Week 1.

Even with camp underway, Mahomes has been candid that the injury may not be something he simply leaves behind. He’s said the toll from the torn ACL could linger for years, a reality he’s approaching with a mix of confidence and realism. Multiple outlets covering the team’s arrival in St. Joseph, Missouri, for camp reported Mahomes has completed early workouts wearing a protective brace without setbacks, a signal his rehab remains on track heading into the preseason. Still, both player and coach have avoided declaring the comeback complete, describing it instead as a process that continues week to week.

LeBron James is heading to the Philadelphia 76ers for his 24th NBA season, agreeing to a two-year, $8 million deal that represents a stunning financial step down from the roughly $53 million he earned last year with the Lakers.

The 41-year-old announced the move himself on X, framing it less as a business transaction than a personal reckoning.

“I still truly love this game, and I have more to give,” James wrote, adding that the weeks leading up to his decision gave him rare space to reflect. “I’ve never been able to have no clue what to do and take real time to just think.”

His new contract starts just under $3.9 million this season, close to a veteran’s minimum salary, with a player option attached for year two.

The exit from Los Angeles wasn’t entirely James’s call. The Lakers had signaled they were ready to build their future around Luka Dončić rather than continue centering the roster on their longtime star, according to reporting on the situation.

James’s longtime agent, Rich Paul of Klutch Sports, described the move to Philadelphia as free of the pressure that shaped James’s earlier career choices. “This is the first time that LeBron James is making a decision pressure-free,” Paul said. “He’s won already. He’s made good on his promise — he won in L.A. This is strictly for his happiness.”

Philadelphia’s pitch got help from inside the locker room. Star guard Tyrese Maxey, also a Klutch client who has called James a “big brother,” reportedly took a lead role in recruiting him personally, alongside center Joel Embiid and newly acquired forward Jaylen Brown. Maxey greeted the news with an exuberant round of Instagram stories, while Brown marked the occasion on X with a simple “#throwtheballup.”

James’s arrival caps a remarkable offseason build for the 76ers, who landed Brown in a blockbuster trade with Boston before adding James on top of it — giving Philadelphia two former Finals MVPs in the span of a single summer alongside Embiid and Maxey. Whether the aging superstar has enough left to meaningfully lift a team already reshaping itself around a new core remains an open question, but for a player who has spent parts of two decades chasing championships in Miami, Cleveland and Los Angeles, the move reads as much like a victory lap as a basketball decision.

Norwegian Football Federation president Lise Klaveness says she plans to seek her board’s approval for an ethics complaint against FIFA, reviving objections to the governing body’s decision to lift a suspension handed to USMNT forward Folarin Balogun during this summer’s World Cup.

Balogun was sent off during the Americans’ round-of-32 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina after stepping on an opponent’s ankle, drawing an automatic one-match ban that would have kept him out of the round-of-16 matchup against Belgium. FIFA reversed course before that game, however, clearing Balogun to play by invoking Article 27 of its disciplinary code, which allows the organization to “fully or partially suspend the implementation of a disciplinary measure.”

The reversal came only after President Donald Trump personally phoned FIFA president Gianni Infantino to press the issue. Balogun ultimately featured in a 4-1 loss to Belgium that ended the U.S. run.

Klaveness told The Times of London that the episode “should not have happened” and pressed Infantino to publicly own up to the mistake. “When you bend a rule like this, you’re on a slippery slope that will put the whole game at risk,” she said, adding that the decision was “influenced from external forces and did not have the proper process.”

She went further, framing the reversal as a dangerous precedent for how far political leaders should be allowed to reach into the sport: “If you start to adapt in such a way towards state leaders and state politics, you will move your behavior and the organization’s behavior, and also the red line of what states’ leaders should interfere with. And that happened.”

Rather than filing a standalone challenge, Klaveness intends to fold the Balogun matter into an existing complaint the Norwegian federation has already lodged with FIFA’s ethics committee — one originally centered on Infantino’s decision to hand Trump the organization’s inaugural Peace Prize. She plans to bring the expanded complaint to her federation’s board for sign-off at a meeting scheduled for August 6.

Bryson DeChambeau‘s turbulent week at the Open Championship took an unexpected political twist after he was reported to have invoked President Donald Trump’s name while contesting a rules penalty with tournament officials at Royal Birkdale.

The controversy stems from a two-stroke penalty issued during Friday’s second round, after officials determined DeChambeau had flattened down long grass behind his ball on the fifth hole, effectively improving his stance for the shot. The American reacted with fury, at one point walking the R&A’s head of governance and a senior referee back to the spot where the infraction occurred to plead his case.

When the ruling body wouldn’t budge, chief executive Mark Darbon was pulled into the dispute back at the scoring area. It was during that exchange that DeChambeau suggested he might call Trump if officials refused to reverse the call. No evidence has emerged that such a call ever happened, and Darbon later told the BBC plainly: “No, I have not received a call from President Trump.”

The connection between the two men isn’t far-fetched. DeChambeau sits on Trump’s council for sports, fitness and nutrition, has played rounds of golf with him, and visited the White House as recently as May. He’d previously praised Trump as someone who could “inspire” Team USA ahead of last year’s Ryder Cup at Bethpage, where the two shared a friendly moment.

The penalty dropped DeChambeau out of second place, and his frustration didn’t end there — after his third round Saturday, he marched straight to Darbon’s office demanding to see his second-round scorecard, a request the R&A chief declined.

Rory McIlroy weighed in publicly, backing officials and saying the penalty was fully justified.

DeChambeau avoided reporters for the remainder of the tournament, ultimately closing with a tied-14th finish, several shots adrift of eventual champion Ryan Fox. It stood as his strongest major result of the year despite the drama surrounding it.

He hasn’t left the UK empty-handed in terms of golf plans, teeing it up this week at LIV Golf’s event at the JCB Golf and Country Club.

Spain claimed its second World Cup title, and first since 2010, with a 1-0 extra-time win over Argentina on Sunday at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Ferran Torres broke the deadlock in the 106th minute, capping a match in which Spain dominated play, outshooting Argentina 20-3.

Argentina played the final stretch a man down after Enzo Fernández picked up a second yellow card in second-half stoppage time. President Donald Trump, who attended the match, presented the trophy to the Spanish squad.

The result was decisive, but it was Argentina’s conduct after the final whistle that dominated the conversation Monday.

Leandro Paredes ignited a brawl in the moments after the loss, shoving Spain’s Eric García by the throat and flooring him, then wrestling Barcelona teenager Gavi to the ground and shoving his face before appearing to kick at him. Other players from both sides waded in before order was restored. Paredes was shown a red card after the whistle for his role in the incident.

The scene drew swift condemnation from pundits across networks. “It’s a disgrace,” Gary Neville said on ITV, adding that Argentina’s conduct had been “a disgrace the last few games.”

On the BBC, Alan Shearer was blunter still: “Paredes threw two or three haymakers into someone’s face. He went for them. There is no place or space for that.”

Former England goalkeeper Joe Hart called the behavior “disgusting,” while Wayne Rooney said the team should have “been graceful and got out of there,” calling the display “really poor.”

Social media reaction was similarly scathing. Soccer analyst Aaron Cikaya wrote that the brawl was “straight thuggery” dressed up as “passion.”

Argentina compounded the damage by skipping its media obligations entirely. The entire squad bypassed the mandatory mixed zone, walking straight to the team bus without a single player addressing reporters — a breach of FIFA’s media requirements. “Stay classy, Argentina!” the LA Times’ Kevin Baxter wrote on social media.

Amid the fallout, Lionel Messi was singled out for the opposite reason. The Argentine captain, whose international future is now uncertain after the loss, shook hands with every Spanish player before leaving the field, earning praise for showing grace in defeat even as his teammates did not.