NFL
The New England Patriots have fired coach Jerod Mayo after one season, beginning another reboot for the franchise just a year after it parted with longtime coach Bill Belichick. Owner Robert Kraft announced the firing in a statement shortly after New England closed its 4-13 season with a 23-16 win over the Buffalo Bills. The win cost the Patriots the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft. Robert Kraft called it “one of the hardest decisions” he's had to make. A former Patriots linebacker who worked as an assistant under Belichick, Mayo started the season with a strong endorsement from Kraft. But he struggled to get the most out of a young roster that included rookie quarterback Drake Maye. Patriots offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt was also fired on Sunday. While more coaching changes are to be expected, Chad Graff of The Athletic added that de-facto GM Eliot Wolf is not expected to be fired.
Aaron Rodgers threw a season-high four touchdown passes to reach 503 for his storied career in what could’ve been his final NFL game to lead the New York Jets to a 32-20 victory over the Miami Dolphins. The 41-year-old Rodgers has said he’s uncertain if he wants to continue playing for a 21st season and it’s unclear if the Jets will want to move forward with him. But became the fifth player to throw 500 regular-season TD passes. The Dolphins needed a victory to keep their playoff hopes alive. But that became moot when Denver routed Kansas City.
Tyreek Hill could be on his way out of Miami. The star wide receiver appeared to indicate after the Dolphins’ 32-20 loss to the New York Jets on Sunday that he might want to play elsewhere next season. Hill said he has to do what's best for him and his family and he's “opening the door” and added “I'm out.” Hill had two catches for 20 yards against the Jets after being listed as questionable with a wrist injury and illness. Coach Mike McDaniel said he was told in the second half Hill was unavailable to play and it wasn't because of a new injury.
Tanner McKee threw for 269 yards and two touchdowns in a game full of backups to help the Philadelphia Eagles tune up for the playoffs with a 20-13 victory over the New York Giants. The NFC East champion Eagles are the No. 2 seed in the conference and will host Green Bay next weekend in a wild-card game. With making a run at the Super Bowl a priority, the Eagles rested their core starters, notably running back Saquon Barkley, quarterback Jalen Hurts, wide receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith and offensive linemen Landon Dickerson and Lane Johnson. Barkley lost his shot at breaking Eric Dickerson’s NFL single-season rushing record.
Bryce Young passed for three touchdowns, ran for two scores and led a 70-yard drive capped by Miles Sanders’ 1-yard TD run on the opening possession of overtime to give the Carolina Panthers a 44-38 win over the Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons’ playoff hopes had already ended minutes earlier when Tampa Bay rallied past New Orleans. Rookie Michael Penix Jr. threw for 312 yards and two touchdowns for the Falcons — both to Drake London, who had 10 catches for a career-best 187 yards. The Falcons finished 8-9 while the Panthers went 5-12. Both teams missed the playoffs for a seventh straight season.
Caleb Williams drove Chicago to Cairo Santos’ 51-yard field goal as time expired and the Bears snapped a 10-game skid with a 24-22 victory over the playoff-bound Green Bay Packers. The Packers lost quarterback Jordan Love and wide receiver Christian Watson to injuries. The 5-12 Bears beat the Packers for the first time since 2018 and ended an 11-game losing streak in this rivalry. Love hurt his elbow and Watson was carted off the field with a knee injury.
C.J. Stroud completed all six of his passes for 50 yards and a touchdown Sunday on the Texans’ opening drive before going to the bench as Houston snapped a two-game skid going into the AFC playoffs with a 23-14 victory over the Tennessee Titans. The Texans also avoided being swept by the team they replaced in Houston. They will host the Los Angeles Chargers in a wild-card game. The Titans' loss combined with New England’s win over Buffalo ends Tennessee's season of misery with the No. 1 pick overall in the NFL draft in April.
Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay intends to bring back longtime general manager Chris Ballard and coach Shane Steichen for another season. Irsay made the announcement in a letter to fans. Indy struggled late in the season and missed the playoffs for a fourth straight year, leading to speculation that both men could lose their jobs. The Colts finished 8-9. Fans chanted “Fire Ballard” during the fourth quarter of Sunday’s 26-23 overtime victory over AFC South foe Jacksonville. Irsay says he understands fans were clamoring for changes but he believes Ballard and Steichen give the Colts the best chance of being successful next season.
Baker Mayfield used his legs and arm to help the Tampa Bay Buccaneers clinch their fourth straight NFC South title while putting Mike Evans over 1,000 yards receiving. Mayfield fired a 32-yard touchdown pass to Jalen McMillan for the go-ahead score and then scrambled 28 yards for a crucial first down on the next drive, leading the Buccaneers to a 27-19 victory over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday. Evans caught a 9-yard pass on the final play of the game to surpass 1,000 yards for the 11th straight season, tying Jerry Rice for the most in NFL history
Mike McCarthy says he absolutely wants to return as the coach of the Dallas Cowboys. Jerry Jones has dropped multiple hints that McCarthy would be back, but the team owner was far from definitive about McCarthy’s future after a 23-19 loss to Washington finished a 7-10 season. Jones says he hasn't yet decided on whether he will extend the coach's contract. The Cowboys were already out of playoff contention before the finale. McCarthy was on an expiring contract after five seasons, including going 12-5 and to the playoffs in each of the previous three years.
Kyler Murray threw for 242 yards and four touchdowns, two to Greg Dortch, and the Arizona Cardinals beat the injury-depleted San Francisco 49ers 47-24. Arizona finished 8-9 to win four more games than last year, but still missed the playoffs for a third straight season. San Francisco lost seven of its final eight to finish 6-11. That's the Niners' worst record since 2018. Rookie Marvin Harrison Jr. had a touchdown catch to finish with eight, tying the Cardinals rookie record held by Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin. Joshua Dobbs threw for 326 yards with two TDs and two interceptions for the 49ers.
The Denver Broncos are back in the playoffs for the first time since winning Super Bowl 50 following the 2015 season. They beat Kansas City's bevy of backups 38-0 for their 10th win, their most since that Super Bowl team. The Chiefs sat several starters, including Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, because they had already secured the AFC's top seed and lone playoff bye. Because Mahomes last played on Christmas Day, it will be at least 24 days before he plays again in the divisional round Jan. 18 or 19. The Broncos head to No. 2 seed Buffalo.
Justin Herbert passed for 346 yards and two touchdowns, and the Los Angeles Chargers secured the fifth seed in the AFC playoffs with a 34-20 victory Sunday over the Las Vegas Raiders. The Chargers closed the regular season with a three-game winning streak under first-year coach Jim Harbaugh. They will visit the fourth-seeded Houston Texans in a wild-card playoff game on Saturday. Las Vegas, which had won back-to-back games, finished 4-13 with coach Antonio Pierce facing an uncertain future. This was the Chargers’ first victory at Las Vegas since 2020 and their first season sweep of their AFC West rival since 2018.
Geno Smith passed for 223 yards and threw his career-best fourth touchdown pass to Noah Fant with 3:19 to play, and the Seattle Seahawks finished their 12th winning season in 13 years with a 30-25 victory over the playoff-bound Los Angeles Rams. Jimmy Garoppolo passed for 334 yards and two TDs in his debut for the Rams, who had already clinched the NFC West title through strength of schedule before they hosted the Seahawks. The Rams rested Matthew Stafford and nearly all of his offensive starters to stay healthy for a home playoff game against Minnesota next weekend.
Jahmyr Gibbs scored three of his franchise-record tying four touchdowns in the second half, and the Detroit Lions beat the Minnesota Vikings 31-9 to win their second straight NFC North title and earn home-field advantage until the Super Bowl. The Lions and Vikings could meet again in two weeks. Detroit will have a much-needed bye for its banged-up team during the first week of the playoffs while Minnesota plays at the NFC West champion Los Angeles Rams next Monday night. Gibbs had 23 carries for 139 yards with a career-high three rushing touchdowns and caught five passes for 31 yards and another score.
The road to the Super Bowl in the NFC will go through Motown. The Detroit Lions secured a No. 1 seed with a 31-9 victory over the Minnesota Vikings. Jahmyr Gibbs scored four touchdowns to help the Lions clinch the NFC North, earn a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs. The Vikings missed an opportunity to overtake Detroit for the top spot and ended up with the fifth seed. They’ll play on the road against the No. 4 seed Los Angeles Rams next Monday night. The Denver Broncos and Tampa Bay Buccaneers captured the NFL’s final two playoff spots in Week 18.
NHL
Filip Chytil scored twice, Jonny Brodzinski, Will Borgan, Reilly Smith and Vincent Trochek added goals, and the New York Rangers beat the Chicago Blackhawks 6-2. The Rangers won for the second time in three games and are 2-5 over their last seven games. The Blackhawks lost for the sixth time in seven starts. The Blackhawks took an early lead on Tyler Bertuzzi’s 14th goal of the season, set up by Connor Bedard. Chicago’s Wyatt Kaiser scored his first NHL goal late in the second period.
Bo Hovart scored his second goal of the game on a breakaway 3:10 into overtime and the New York Islanders snapped a three-game skid with a 5-4 win over the Boston Bruins. Anders Lee scored twice, and Ryan Pulock had a goal and an assist for the Islanders. Ilya Sorokin made 26 saves for New York, which won for just the third time in nine games. Hovart fired a wrister that slipped between Jonas Korpisalo’s pads for the winner. David Pastrnak scored twice, and Cole Koepke and Justin Brazeau added goals as the Bruins lost their fourth straight game.
Morgan Rielly scored 2:25 into overtime and the Toronto Maple Leafs extended their winning streak to four games with a 3-2 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers. Rielly converted a feed from Auston Matthews for his fifth goal of the season and first in two months. Matthew Knies and Oliver Ekman-Larsson also scored for Toronto. Dennis Hildeby finished with 30 saves. Tyson Foerster and Scott Laughton scored for the Flyers, who closed out a six-game, 10-day trip. Ivan Fedotov made 22 saves.
Sebastian Aho’s goal at 1:30 in overtime led the Carolina Hurricanes to a 4-3 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday night. Aho added two assists. Seth Jarvis had two goals and Jalen Chatfield also scored for the Hurricanes, who improved to 3-0 against Pittsburgh this season. Dustin Tokarski had 16 saves for the Hurricanes. Kevin Hayes, Michael Bunting and Erik Karlsson scored for the Penguins. Alex Nedeljkovic stopped 26 shots for Pittsburgh.
Not many players will have as good a day that Frank Vatrano had on Sunday. Vatrano agreed to a three-year contract extension through the 2027-28 season with Anaheim and then had two goals and an assist in the Ducks 4-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning. The 30-year-old Vatrano is in his third season with Anaheim. He has 11 goals and 12 assists this season. A person with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press that the contract will pay Vatrano $3 million in each of the next three seasons, and he will make another $9 million in deferred salary beginning in 2035. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the Ducks don’t announce financial details of their contracts.
NBA
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 33 points and 11 rebounds, and the Oklahoma City Thunder pulled away from the Boston Celtics 105-92 for their franchise-record 15th straight win. The Thunder, who improved to 30-5, have not lost a game that counted in the standings since Dec. 1. Their loss to the Milwaukee Bucks in the NBA Cup final does not count on the team’s record. Jayson Tatum had 26 points and 10 rebounds for the defending NBA champion Celtics. Jaylen Brown scored 21 points, but he went scoreless in the second half.
Darius Garland scored 25 points and Jarrett Allen had 19 points and 11 rebounds as the NBA-leading Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Charlotte Hornets 115-105, extending their winning streak to 10. Donovan Mitchell had 17 of his 19 points in the second half and Evan Mobley added 17 for Cleveland, which won for the 18th time in 19 home games and is 31-4 overall. All 10 victories in the Cavaliers’ streak have been by double digits, a franchise record. LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller paced Charlotte with 24 points apiece.
Marcus Mariota threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Terry McLaurin with 3 seconds left, lifting Washington to a 23-19 victory over the Dallas Cowboys and clinching the sixth seed in the NFC playoffs for the Commanders. Mariota threw for two scores and ran for a TD after replacing Jayden Daniels. The Commanders sat their dynamic rookie quarterback at halftime since playoff seeding was the only thing on the line. Washington will play at NFC South champion Tampa Bay in the wild-card round next Sunday night. Brandon Aubrey kicked four field goals for the Cowboys in the first regular-season start for QB Trey Lance since Week 2 of 2022.
Brice Sensabaugh scored 27 points and Collin Sexton added 20 afor the Utah Jazz in a 105-92 win over the Orlando Magic. Sensabaugh shot 11 for 19 from the field including 5 of 6 on 3-pointers in 28 minutes off the bench. Johnny Juzang, Kyle Filipowski and Svi Mykhhailiuk scored 12 points each for Utah, who have won two in a row. Walker Kessler grabbed 17 rebounds. Jett Howard led Orlando with a career-high 21 points. Wendell Carter Jr. had 15 points and Cole Anthony added 12 points in his first start since the final game of the 2022-23 season.
LeBron James scored 30 points to become the NBA’s career leader in 30-point games, surpassing Michael Jordan’s record during the Los Angeles Lakers’ 119-102 victory over the Atlanta Hawks. James hit an 18-foot jumper midway through the fourth quarter to secure the 563rd 30-point game of his 22-year career, passing the record set in 2003 by his childhood idol. Austin Reaves scored 20 points, and Anthony Davis had 18 points and 19 rebounds. Trae Young had 33 points and nine assists for the Hawks, who lost their second straight at the midway point of a six-game road trip.
Malik Monk had 26 points and 12 assists, Domantas Sabonis contributed 22 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists, and the Sacramento Kings dominated the Golden State Warriors 129-99 for their fourth straight win despite playing without leading scorer De’Aaron Fox. The Kings never trailed, led 75-51 at halftime and didn’t look back — with many frustrated home fans heading early for the Chase Center exits. Stephen Curry scored 26 to go with seven rebounds after resting the first night of a back-to-back Saturday against the Grizzlies.
HOCKEY
Teddy Stiga scored on a breakaway at 8:04 of 3-on-3 overtime to give the United States a 4-3 victory over Finland on Sunday night in the world junior hockey championship game. The Boston College forward beat goalie Petteri Rimpinen through the leg pads to end it. The Americans avenged a 4-3 overtime loss to Finland in group play, overcoming a two-goal deficit in the second period to win their second straight title and seventh overall. Boston University teammates Brandon Svoboda and Cole Hutson scored late in the second period to tie it. Svoboda cut it to 3-2 with 2:22 left on a deflected shot, and Hutson fired a wrist shot from the slot past Rimpinen with 29 seconds remaining. Boston College’s James Hagens also scored.
PGA TOUR
Hideki Matsuyama is off to a record-breaking start to the new PGA Tour season. The Japanese star made an 8-foot birdie putt on the final hole at The Sentry to break the tour's record to par. He finished at 35-under par, breaking by one the record set three years ago at Kapalua by Cameron Smith. Matsuyama also set the PGA Tour mark with 35 holes at birdie or better for a tournament. It added to a three-shot victory over Collin Morikawa. Matsuyama now has three big wins in the last 10 months. Kapalua is his 11th career PGA Tour title.
MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Iona 74 Siena 73
UConn 87 Providence 84
WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Florida State 85 Syracuse 73
Richmond 82 UMass 52
UConn 83 Villanova 52
© 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved.
