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Good morning! Programming note: No Pulse on Dec. 25. Enjoy the day!
While You Were Sleeping
Jags rising, Jets crumbling
Turns out the combination of a Super Bowl coach and an uber-talented young quarterback can be a winning recipe. Jacksonville saw its playoff chances jump to 54.9 percent with its easy 19-3 handling of New York.
Meanwhile, Jets fans were chanting for former Gray Cup champion Chris Streveler midway through the third quarter.
- The bust buzz surrounding Zach Wilson just got louder. He’s done in New Yorkin fact, writes Zack Rosenblatt.
- Trevor Lawrence, on the other hand, looks like a legit playoff quarterback. In some gross weather, Lawrence tossed for 229 yards and scrambled for 51 more, adding a rushing score. Jacksonville has now won three straight and five of seven.
Elsewhere around the league, a pivotal Christmas Eve could swing playoff hopes in both conferences.
- Detroit’s red-hot run heads to Carolina, where a fourth straight win would boost the Lions’ playoff odds to 72.3 percent.
- The Seahawks are clinging onto hope after losing four of their past five. An upset of the Chiefs would boost Seattle’s odds by 27.9 percent.
- washington, which lost its tiebreaker to the Lions way back in Week 2, needs an upset over San Francisco to raise its playoff odds to 68.9 percent and maintain its edge.
- Do the Patriots have hope? After last week’s viral failures, another loss would tank their playoff odds to just 8.9 percent.
Crystal Ball
Bold NBA predictions for the new year
Heading into the final week of the year, now feels like a better time than ever to roll out some bold NBA predictions for 2023. Here are a few fun highlights.
- The Kings will snap the league’s longest playoff drought, Sam Amick prophesied. Sacramento would snap a 16-year drought.
- Detroit will win the Wembanyama sweepstakes. With 2021 top pick Cade Cunningham done for the season, the tank is on.
- Toronto will trade one of their core guys, Eric Koreen forewarned. Despite a foursome of Fred VanVleet, OG Anunoby, Pascal Siakam and Scottie Barnes, the Raps have a losing record and are staring down some expensive extensions.
Some honorably notable mentions: Nikola Jokić will win a third consecutive MVP award, the Nets will win a playoff series, the Lakers will make the Play-In. Read up.
Rankings, Explained
World Cup winner, but no. 2 in the world?
(Photo: Yukihito Taguchi / USA Today)
Brazil, not Argentina, checked in as No. 1 in FIFA’s updated world rankings Thursday, despite the Argentines’ win Sunday in the World Cup final.
Yes, the same Brazil that lost in the quarterfinals. (And people complain about the AP Top 25.)
The Athletic‘s Ed Mackey explained why Argentina are just No. 2 in great detail. The key points:
- FIFA’s rankings algorithm assigns points for every game played in FIFA-recognized competitions. Brazil had nearly a 68-point lead in the rankings in October — which is the primary reason they’re still No. 1. Argentina closed the gap to about two points after the World Cup.
- While matches are weighted on their importance, there are no bonus points for trophies.
- Winning a match on penalty kicks is worth fewer points than winning in regular or extra time. Kinda like this one. Two of Argentina’s knockout wins (over Netherlands and France) came on penalties.
Runner-up France moved up to third, while Belgium — which was eliminated in the group stage — dropped from No. 2 to 4. The US rose three spots to No. 13, just above Germany and Mexico.
Serious Matters
Trevor Bauer’s suspension reduced
Trevor Bauer’s 324-game suspension for violating the league’s joint domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy was reduced to 194 games by an arbitration panel Thursday.
Bauer’s suspension remains the longest to be handed down under that policy since it went into effect in 2015.
Bauer will be reinstated Friday and the Dodgers have 14 days to decide whether to add him to the roster or release him. Additionally, the arbitrator will dock his salary for the first 50 games.
Briefs
Minshew mania returns
The Eagles officially named Gardner Minshew starting quarterback for Saturday’s game against the Cowboys, as Jalen Hurts will miss his first game of the season because of a shoulder injury. One of the best backups in the league, Minshew has thrown 41 touchdowns to just 12 interceptions in four seasons (22 starts). Philadelphia needs to win just one of its final three games to clinch the NFC’s No. 1 seed.
A recruiting double flip
Five-star safety Peyton Bowen appeared to be a coup for Oregon on Wednesday when he flipped from Notre Dame to the Ducks at a signing day ceremony. But the Denton, Texas, native completed a double flip Thursday, spurning Oregon and signing with Oklahoma instead. “As I reflect on yesterday’s whirlwind I recognize that I made some mistakes that I regret and will learn from,” Bowen wrote. “Navigating this process has been a roller coaster.” Uh, yeah.
Pulse Picks
(Top photo: Dustin Satloff/Getty Images)
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