Breaking
Wealth World News
Archive

2025

Browsing
Politics

Rosie O’Donnell says daughter blames Trump for forcing their family’s move out of America

Rosie O’Donnell says her daughter is holding President Donald Trump personally responsible for their relocation to Ireland and for what she sees as his broader damage to the country.

‘My daughter is now saying, ‘Damn him. Damn Trump,’’ O’Donnell said during an appearance on ‘The Jim Acosta Show.’

She recalled her daughter pounding on a table in anger and stating, ‘He made us move for our own safety … and now he’s destroying the country.’ 

O’Donnell acknowledged the challenge of shielding her child from political upheaval while still confronting the realities of their situation.

‘She lives here. She hears what I’m saying to you,’ O’Donnell said, explaining that her daughter ‘recognizes what’s going on.’ 

The comedian also emphasized, ‘Of me thinking that I have to somehow stand in defiance of him. No, no … I don’t. Somebody can tap me out, you know. Yeah. I did 22 years. I don’t really need to do any more. And I don’t want my kid to be so affected by it.’

Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House for comment.

O’Donnell’s relocated to Ireland after Trump threatened to strip her of U.S. citizenship.

In October, she announced she was applying for Irish citizenship, citing her grandparents’ roots and a self-described ‘self-imposed (political exile)’ in Ireland.

In an interview with the U.K.’s Daily Telegraph, the 63-year-old said, ‘I am applying and about to be approved for my Irish citizenship as my grandparents were from there, and that’s all you need. It will be good to have my Irish citizenship, especially since Trump keeps threatening to take away mine.’

White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson reacted at the time, telling Fox News Digital, ‘What great news for America!’

O’Donnell revealed her international move in March, sharing that she’d relocated to Ireland just five days before President Trump’s 2025 inauguration. 

Sharing the news with her TikTok followers, she called the transition ‘pretty wonderful.’

The feud between O’Donnell and Trump flared again in July, when he took to Truth Social, warning he was considering stripping the comedian of her U.S. citizenship.

‘Because of the fact that Rosie O’Donnell is not in the best interests of our Great Country, I am giving serious consideration to taking away her Citizenship,’ he wrote. ‘She is a Threat to Humanity, and should remain in the wonderful Country of Ireland, if they want her. GOD BLESS AMERICA!’

O’Donnell fired back on social media, asserting that Trump ‘has always hated the fact that i see him for who he is.’

Under the United States Constitution, a president does not have the power to strip the citizenship of someone born in the country, meaning since O’Donnell was born in New York, her citizenship is protected by the 14th Amendment.

The tensions between the two go back nearly two decades, beginning in 2006 when O’Donnell criticized Trump while co-hosting ‘The View.’

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS
Keep Reading
By
Politics

Putin warns Russia ‘ready’ if Europe ‘suddenly wants to wage war with us’ amid Ukraine talks

Russian President Vladimir Putin ratcheted up tensions with Europe on Tuesday, warning that if the bloc sparked a war with Russia, Moscow was prepared to meet it.

Putin also blasted European leaders, accusing them of sabotaging U.S.-led efforts to end the nearly four-year-old war in Ukraine.

‘But if Europe suddenly wants to wage a war with us and starts it, we are ready right away. There can be no doubt about that,’ Putin said, according to The Associated Press.

Putin was responding to a question about Russian media reports that Hungary’s foreign minister warned Europe was preparing for war with Russia. Putin insisted, as he has for years, that Moscow does not seek a war with European nations.

The Russian president made the remarks after speaking at an investment forum and before meeting in the Kremlin with a U.S. delegation led by envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.

It’s not the first time Putin has warned Europe about meddling in the war.

In October, Putin warned that Europe would face a ‘significant response’ if it continued supplying military aid to Ukraine, and he made similar threats in May.

In February 2024, Putin warned that Western military intervention against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could result in nuclear escalation — a statement widely interpreted as a warning to Europe and Western allies.

Putin claimed on Tuesday that European leaders introduced ‘demands that are absolutely unacceptable to Russia’ that effectively ‘blocked the entire peace process.’ He accused them of doing so cynically in order to blame Moscow for rejecting peace.

European leaders have maintained that Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is a stepping stone to a wider war with the 27-nation European Union, which has poured billions of dollars into supporting Kyiv.

Putin said European powers had locked themselves out of peace talks on Ukraine because they cut off contacts with Moscow.

‘They are on the side of war,’ Putin said.

He also suggested the conflict in Ukraine was not a full-blown war, describing Russia’s actions as ‘surgical’ — a restraint, he said, that would not apply in a direct confrontation with European powers, according to Reuters. 

Putin’s comments come as Witkoff and Kushner press for peace between Ukraine and Russia.

On Sunday, Witkoff — a central figure in negotiating the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas — joined Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Kushner in Florida to meet with Ukrainian negotiators. Rubio described the meeting as ‘very productive.’ In a statement, Rubio said the goal is ‘not just the end of the war.’

Last week, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned that Moscow could reject the White House’s peace framework if it does not uphold the ‘spirit and letter’ of what Trump and Putin agreed to at the Alaska summit in August. He said that if the ‘key understandings’ were watered down, the situation would become ‘fundamentally different.’

Despite Lavrov’s comments, Putin showed interest in Trump’s effort to end the war, calling the drafted plan a starting point. 

‘We need to sit down and discuss this seriously,’ Putin told reporters, according to the AP.

He characterized Trump’s plan as ‘a set of issues put forward for discussion,’ rather than a draft agreement.

Fox News’ Andrea Margolis, Sarah Tobianski, Kyle Schmidbauer and Ashley Carnahan as well as The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS
Keep Reading
By
Politics

Experts dispute Nigerian government’s claims amid congressional probe of escalating attacks on Christians

House appropriators and foreign affairs leaders convened a rare joint briefing Tuesday as part of a broader congressional investigation into what lawmakers and experts describe as escalating and targeted violence against Christians in Nigeria.

The session — led by House Appropriations Vice Chair and National Security Subcommittee Chairman Mario Díaz-Balart, R-Fla. — is feeding into a comprehensive report ordered by President Trump on recent massacres of Nigerian Christians and potential policy steps the U.S. could take to pressure Abuja to respond.

Trump directed Congress, led by Reps. Riley Moore, R-W.Va., and Appropriations Chairman Tom Cole, R-Okla., to probe Christian persecution in Nigeria and produce a report for the White House to review. He has floated the idea of taking direct military action against Islamists who kill. 

Vicky Hartzler, chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, told lawmakers that ‘religious freedom [is] under siege,’ citing the abduction of more than 300 children and attacks in which ‘radical Muslims kill entire Christian villages [and] burn churches.’ She said violations are ‘rampant,’ ‘violent,’ and disproportionately affect Christians, who she argued are targeted ‘at a 2.2 to 1 rate’ compared with Muslims.

Hartzler said Nigeria has taken some initial corrective steps — including reassigning about 100,000 police officers from VIP protection details — but warned the country is entering a ‘coordinated and deeply troubling period of escalated violence.’ She recommended targeted sanctions on Nigerian officials ‘who have demonstrated complicity,’ visa restrictions, blocking U.S.-based assets, and conditioning foreign and humanitarian aid on measurable accountability.

She also urged Congress to direct the Government Accountability Office to conduct a review of past U.S. assistance and said Abuja should retake villages seized from Christian farming communities so widows and children can return home.

Dr. Ebenezer Obadare of the Council on Foreign Relations offered the sharpest challenge to the Nigerian government’s claim that the violence is not religiously motivated. He said the idea Boko Haram and other militant groups target Christians and Muslims equally is a ‘myth,’ arguing the groups ‘act for one reason and one reason only: religion.’ Any higher Muslim casualty count, he said, reflects geography, not equal targeting.

Obadare described Boko Haram as fundamentally opposed to democracy and said the Nigerian military is ‘too corrupt and incompetent’ to dismantle jihadist networks without strong external pressure. He urged the U.S. to press the Nigerian government to disband armed groups enforcing Islamic law, confront corruption inside the security forces, and demonstrate genuine intent to curb religious violence. He added that Washington should insist Nigerian officials respond immediately to early warnings of impending attacks.

Sean Nelson of Alliance Defending Freedom International added that Nigeria is ‘the deadliest country in the world for Christians,’ claiming more Christians are killed there than in all other countries combined and at a rate ‘five times’ higher than Muslims when adjusted for population. He said extremists also target Muslims who refuse to embrace their extreme ideology, which he argued further undercuts Abuja’s narrative that the crisis is driven mainly by criminality or local disputes.

With a population of more than 230 million, Nigeria’s vibrant and often turbulent cities and villages are home to people of strikingly diverse backgrounds. The nation’s roughly 120 million-strong Muslim population dominates the north, while some 90 million Christians are centered in the southern half of the country.

Nelson urged tighter U.S. oversight of assistance to Nigeria, including routing some aid through faith-based organizations to avoid corruption. He called for greater transparency in how Abuja handles mass kidnappings and ransom payments and said sustained U.S. and international pressure is essential because ‘without transparency and outside pressure, nothing changes.’

Díaz-Balart criticized the Biden administration for reversing the Trump administration’s designation of Nigeria as a ‘country of particular concern’ in 2021, arguing the change has had ‘clearly deadly consequences.’ Lawmakers on the Appropriations, Foreign Affairs and Financial Services committees signaled additional oversight actions in the months ahead as they prepare the Trump-directed report to Congress.

Hartzler noted that Nigeria has recently begun taking several steps that could signal a shift toward confronting the crisis more directly. She pointed to President Bola Tinubu’s decision to pull about 100,000 police officers from VIP bodyguard assignments and redistribute them across the country, calling it ‘a promising start after years of neglect.’ She said the move reflects growing recognition inside Nigeria’s political leadership that the violence has reached an intolerable level.

She also highlighted comments last week from Nigeria’s speaker of the House, who acknowledged the country is facing a ‘coordinated and deeply troubling period of escalated violence.’ Hartzler said that acknowledgment — coupled with a push from the Nigerian House majority leader for more intensive legislative oversight — suggests the government may finally be admitting the scale and severity of the attacks.

Even with these developments, Hartzler warned the measures are far from sufficient. She emphasized that the Nigerian government must show clear intent to ‘quell injustice,’ act quickly when early warning signs of attacks appear, and commit to transparency and accountability if the recent steps are going to amount to meaningful progress.

The Nigerian Embassy did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS
Keep Reading
By
Politics

Johnson points to Obama-era drone precedent as Congress probes deadly Caribbean strike

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., doesn’t want to get ahead of impending investigations into a deadly Sept. 2 strike on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean, but argued that there is a precedent for such strikes dating back to the Obama administration.

Both congressional Republicans and Democrats have raised concerns about the nature of the two strikes on the suspected drug vessel, with chairs of the House and Senate Armed Services committees announcing that they planned to delve into rigorous oversight of the situation.

It all comes after a report from The Washington Post said Secretary of War Pete Hegseth green-lighted a second strike on the vessel to take out any remaining survivors. The White House later confirmed on Monday that Hegseth did authorize the second strike, but that Adm. Frank Bradley, the head of U.S. Special Operations Command, ordered and directed it.

In the aftermath, there have been calls to release unedited footage of the strikes, and for lawmakers to get a fulsome briefing on what exactly happened three months ago.

When asked if unedited video should be released of the strikes to Congress and the public, and, if the footage showed that the survivors were defenseless, if that would amount to a war crime, Johnson said that he wouldn’t ‘prejudge any of that,’ and he noted that both the Senate and House Armed Services panels would hold hearings to review the incident.

The top House Republican noted that he was playing catch-up on the developments, given that he spent much of Monday campaigning in Tennessee for Tuesday’s special election to replace former Rep. Mark Green, R-Tenn.

‘My assessment of this, my understanding, is that most of the people that have looked at this, at least, in a preliminary review, say that the admiral who ordered the second strike was — thought it was necessary to complete the mission,’ Johnson said. ‘He’s a highly decorated, highly respected admiral in the Navy. And, he made that call.’

‘And so, you know, we’re going to have to look at that,’ he continued. ‘I’m sure Congress has a right to look at it. I don’t know how much of the tape should be released, because I’m not sure how much is sensitive with regard to national security and all that. I haven’t had a chance to review it, so I’m not going to prejudge it.’

Johnson then turned his focus to former President Barack Obama and argued that under his administration, few questions were asked about the slew of drone strikes authorized by the then-president.

‘One of the things I was reminded of this morning is that under Barack Obama, President Obama … I think there were 550 drone strikes on people who were targeted as enemies of the country, and nobody ever questioned it,’ Johnson said. ‘And second, secondary strikes are not unusual. It has to happen if a mission is going to be completed.’

‘So I haven’t reviewed the scope of the mission,’ he continued. ‘I haven’t reviewed that particular strike. I don’t know what went into the admiral’s decision matrix, but it’s something that Congress will look at, and we’ll do that in the regular process in order.’

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS
Keep Reading
By
Sports

Teammate: Skaggs informed him Angels staffer was source for opioids

After six weeks of testimony from the plaintiffs, the Los Angeles Angels began their defense in the wrongful death lawsuit brought by the family of deceased pitcher Tyler Skaggs by calling a former player to testify.

CJ Cron, who had two stints with the Angels, testified on Monday, Dec. 1, that Skaggs informed Cron he could acquire opioids from Angels communications employee Eric Kay, according to The Athletic. Cron testified he eventually paid cash to Kay and received the pills in the Angels clubhouse.

Kay is serving a 22-year sentence for providing Skaggs an oxycodone pill laced with fentanyl that resulted in the pitcher’s July 2019 death. Skaggs’ family is seeking $120 million in future earnings plus other damages from the Angels, claiming they knew or should have known that Kay was providing drugs to Skaggs.

Cron, a first baseman and designated hitter, testified that Skaggs informed him Kay could provide pills, likely after Cron mentioned he was playing through pain. Cron previously testified in a similar fashion at Kay’s criminal trial in Texas.

The Angels traded Cron to Tampa Bay before the 2018 season; according to The Athletic, Cron testified that Skaggs delivered him 15 oxycontin pills at Tampa Bay’s team hotel when the club played the Angels in May, and Cron paid Kay in cash later at Angel Stadium.

Cron also texted Skaggs in July 2018 before the Angels visited Tampa Bay.

‘Get as many blues from EK as you can, I’ll pay you however much.’

Replied Skaggs, in a reference to Kay’s struggles with addiction: ‘Lol he is off them. Text him.’

Cron testified that his text to Skaggs was in jest.

The Angels, per The Athletic, are scheduled to call orthopedist Neal ElAttrache, who performed Skaggs’ 2014 Tommy John surgery, and club president John Carpino to the witness stand this week. Skaggs’ mother, Debbie Hetman, testified that she informed ElAttrache of Skaggs’ 2013 Percocet addiction. The trial is scheduled to conclude Dec. 12.

This post appeared first on USA TODAY
Keep Reading
By
Sports

PWHL home openers show league continues to grow

The PWHL expanded to eight teams for the 2025-26 season, adding franchises in Vancouver and Seattle.
Attendance for the league’s original six teams grew by 6.6 percent at their home-openers compared to the previous year.
The PWHL’s average attendance per game already surpasses that of the American Hockey League, the NHL’s top affiliate.

Year over year, the PWHL continues to grow. 

It didn’t take long for the league to show that growth in the 2025-26 season, with attendance up across the league’s now eight home-openers.

Not only did the league expand on the ice this season, adding the Vancouver Goldeneyes and Seattle Torrent, but the PWHL continued to grow off the ice as well, adding to its fan base.

Across its Original Six franchises, five of six teams saw attendance grow on opening night, representing a 6.6 percent increase. 

American markets, in particular, saw an uptick with the reigning-champion Minnesota Frost adding more than 1,100 fans for their banner-raising night. 

While the Boston Fleet and New York Sirens continue to trail the pack with the league’s lowest average attendances, they saw the most significant year-over-year increases in attendance at their home-openers. In New York, the Sirens welcomed 23 percent more fans in year two, despite playing at the Prudential Center on the same day as the NHL’s New Jersey Devils. The Fleet saw the largest increase, watching home-opener attendance balloon by 35.5 percent from 2024-25 to 2025-26.

Expansion teams pushing women’s hockey attendance to new heights

While the Original Six showed positive growth, a pair of record-setting openers for the league’s two newest teams stole the show at Vancouver’s Pacific Coliseum and Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena.

On the opening night at Vancouver’s Pacific Coliseum, the league’s first and only venue where a team is the primary tenant, the Goldeneyes drew a sold-out crowd of 14,958. The mark was a new record for the PWHL for attendance at a permanent home venue. With their own venue, the Goldeneyes became the first PWHL team to play their home-opener with their logo painted at center ice.

It was another new step for the Goldeneyes and their fan base, who immediately embraced the team and league.

‘You know that when you walk into the Pacific Coliseum, you’re coming to see the Goldeneyes, and I think that’s something that’s so special,’ Goldeneyes forward Sarah Nurse told reporters. ‘It’s something that the fans have really embraced. To see the amount of jerseys and merch in the stands – I took a second to look around the entire arena, and it just seemed like everybody had a piece of Goldeneyes merch.’

Vancouver’s home venue record lasted less than a week, however, as the mark was quickly broken at Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena for the Torrent’s home opener. Seattle not only surpassed Vancouver’s home venue mark, but it also set the new American professional women’s hockey attendance record (14,288), surpassed the arena’s previous women’s hockey mark set during the 2022 Rivalry Series (14,551) and broke the all-time American women’s attendance record for an indoor game set in 2017 by St. Cloud State and the University of Wisconsin (15,359).

Seattle’s attendance of 16,014 raised the bar for the PWHL.

‘It’s super special. A lot of inaugural (experiences), but there’s something about Seattle that is just so special,’ Seattle Torrent captain Hilary Knight told reporters. ‘I don’t know if it’s the rich history of women’s sports, how you all have started a movement well before we even got here, to the icons and the legends that have graced this arena. We could feel the love…the big takeaway is how special this was. A dream come true, pinch me moment.’

In the past, players have pointed to markets such as Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto as having the most difficult buildings to play in due to large and loud crowds. Opponents immediately took note in Vancouver and Seattle of the crowd factor.

‘It’s fun to play in buildings like this when fans are engaged and loud,’ said Minnesota Frost veteran Kelly Pannek following their game in Seattle. ‘It’s great that they have a new team and set a new record, and it’s fun to see all the other markets in the U.S. compete to try to one-up that mark. Even if it’s not the crowd cheering for you, it’s so fun to play in a sold-out arena.’

Will another league-wide record fall? 

In 2024-25, the PWHL drew 653,415 fans across its 90-game regular-season schedule, averaging 7,260 fans per game.

In comparison, the highest average attendance since 1962 for the AHL, the NHL’s top farm league, is 5,982. The AHL set that mark in 2015-16.

Already the second-most attended hockey league in North America behind only the NHL, the PWHL will again break its own records this season with a now 120-game schedule, featuring 30 games in Seattle and Vancouver combined.

Last year, a large chunk of the PWHL’s attendance came on the PWHL Takeover Tour, drawing sold-out crowds in markets like Vancouver and Quebec City, with the total attendance across nine games reaching 123,601. 

This season, the Takeover Tour has expanded to 16 games in Chicago, Detroit, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Calgary, Hamilton, Halifax, Washington, Denver and Dallas. Seattle and Vancouver were venues in 2024-25 but have become permanent fixtures in the league. 

With more games in bigger venues and an early increase already in the books, the PWHL continues to grow its footprint and fan base.

For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.

This post appeared first on USA TODAY
Keep Reading
By
Sports

Will Jayden Daniels play Week 14? Latest injury news on Commanders QB

The Washington Commanders have been without Jayden Daniels for the last three games because of an elbow injury. Could that change in Week 14 against the Minnesota Vikings?

Daniels has made slow-but-steady progress in his attempt to return from a dislocated left elbow. The second-year quarterback returned to the practice field ahead of Week 13. He hasn’t yet been cleared for contact, but once he is, he may have a chance to return to that lineup.

Naturally, if Daniels is able to return, the NFL’s reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year would provide Washington’s offense a boost. It would also mark an improbably short comeback from an injury that many initially feared would knock him out for the season.

Here are the latest injury updates about Daniels and his status for Week 14 and the rest of the 2025 NFL season.

When will Jayden Daniels return?

The Commanders have not provided a definite timeline for Daniels’ return. His status for Week 14 remains in question, as Washington coach Dan Quinn revealed during a Nov. 1 media availability the second-year quarterback had not yet been cleared for contact.

‘He’s still going through that process of the functional testing,’ Quinn told reporters. ‘I’ll have a better sense as we go through the week.’

Quinn then told reporters the team wouldn’t have a concrete update on whether Daniels will potentially be able to play the team’s Week 14 game against the Minnesota Vikings until Friday.

Daniels originally returned to the practice field ahead of Washington’s Week 12 game against the Denver Broncos. Quinn made it clear the 24-year-old was ‘unlikely to play’ but characterized his participation as a good sign.

‘Man, it’s good to get started and get the return to play going,’ Quinn said at a Nov. 24 media availability. ‘That’s a big deal for us.’

Quinn has made it clear he believes ‘it’s important’ for Daniels to play again in 2025, if he’s healthy enough to do so. The second-year quarterback is in agreement with his coach.

‘If I’m healthy, and I’m ready to go, I want to be out there,’ Daniels told reporters on Nov. 25.

Who is Commanders backup QB?

Mariota, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft out of Oregon, has posted a 1-5 record across six starts in place of Daniels. The 32-year-old has completed 63.2% of his passes for 1,359 passing yards, nine passing touchdowns and six interceptions while adding 248 yards and a score on the ground.

Mariota has a 35-45 career record across 80 starts. Before the 2025 season, he had not started an NFL game since he went 5-8 across 13 starts with the Atlanta Falcons in 2022.

Commanders QB depth chart

Daniels is one of four quarterbacks in the Washington organization. Below is a look at the pecking order within the unit:

Jayden Daniels (injured)
Marcus Mariota
Josh Johnson
Sam Hartman (practice squad)

Johnson, 39, has backed up Mariota in Daniels’ absence. The veteran has played for an NFL record 14 different teams since being selected in the fifth round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He has a career record of 1-8 and last made a start for the Baltimore Ravens in 2021.

Hartman signed with the Commanders as an undrafted free agent out of Notre Dame in 2024. He hasn’t yet played a regular-season snap at the NFL level.

This post appeared first on USA TODAY
Keep Reading
By
Sports

11 biggest NFL field goal fails: Where does Younghoe Koo rank?

The New England Patriots routed the New York Giants in front of a national television audience on ‘Monday Night Football’ at Gillette Stadium on Monday, Dec. 1.

The win was the streaking Patriots’ 10th in a row as New England owns the NFL’s best record after Week 13.

However, what fans might remember most from the Patriots’ 33-15 win over the Giants might be a real unfortunate moment for New York’s kicker, Younghoe Koo. It is arguably the biggest blooper of the 2025 season, and among the NFL’s biggest field goal blunders.

Here we’ve listed some of the all-time NFL field goal fails:

11. Younghoe Koo kicks FieldTurf

Down 17-7, the Giants already were in a bad way at Gillette Stadium against the Patriots. Koo lined up for a 47-yard attempt that could have trimmed New England’s lead down to seven. Instead, Koo’s boot came up short. Literally. He kicked into the artificial surface inches behind the ball. Giants holder Jamie Gillan had to pick up the ball and scramble. He was tackled for what will go into the record books as a sack.

10. Joe Nedney vs. Bears in 2005

They don’t call it the Windy City for nothing. On a mid-November afternoon at Soldier Field, Chicago lived up to its moniker as high winds wreaked havoc on the Bears’ matchup with the San Francisco 49ers.

Sporting a 3-0 lead in the final seconds of the first half, 49ers head coach Mike Nolan sent Joe Nedney out to attempt a 52-yard field goal. What the heck, right? What’s the worst that can happen? Well, the worst did happen. Nedney’s kick into a stiff wind pushed the ball well off target and into the arms of the Bears’ Nathan Vasher. Vasher collected the ball 8 yards deep in the end zone, eluded 49ers pursuers and scampered for an unlikely touchdown. After Vasher had one of the longest plays in NFL history, the Bears would go on to win, 17-9.

9. Lane Kiffin has Sebastian Janikowski attempt 76-yarder

Kiffin has been in the news lately for yet another ugly coaching exit. Two days before Al Davis had seen enough from his young head coach, the polarizing Kiffin sent Sebastian Janikowski out to attempt a 76-yard field goal during a game in Week 4 of the 2008 season. It did not go well. Davis fired Kiffin, and who can forget the press conference announcing the dismissal in which Davis used an overhead projector like a 1980s-era science teacher?

8. Cody Parkey double-doink in 2018 playoffs

NBC analyst Cris Collinsworth made ‘double doink’ part of NFL lexicon after the Bears’ Cody Parkey missed a 43-yard field goal attempt in an NFC wild-card playoff loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. Parkey’s kick hit the uprights, then the crossbar before landing in the end zone.

‘The Bears’ season is going to end on a double doink,’ Collinsworth said during the game broadcast.

Parkey had made a habit of hitting the uprights, including four times in a game against the Detroit Lions.

7. Blair Walsh in 2015 playoffs

Walsh – who was a Pro Bowl kicker during the 2012 season – was put on the spot in a 2015 wild-card playoff game against the Seattle Seahawks. The game was played outdoors at TCF Bank Stadium – normal home to the Minnesota Golden Gophers football team – in the season before the team’s new stadium, TCF Bank Stadium, opened. In below-zero temperatures, the Seahawks and Vikings had played a low-scoring game. Minnesota, however, managed to get Walsh into position to move the team onto the divisional round, setting up the kicker for a game-winning 27-yard field goal attempt. Instead, Walsh missed badly and Seattle prevailed, 10-9.

6. Mike Vanderjagt in 2005 playoffs

The 2005 Indianapolis Colts were on a real heater. The team opened the season 13-0 before finishing 14-2. The Colts hosted the Pittsburgh Steelers in an AFC divisional playoff game at the RCA Dome in what would be a memorable playoff showdown. After falling behind 21-3 to the Steelers, the Colts had rallied and down 21-18 had put kicker Mike Vanderjagt into position to tie the game. Instead, Vanderjagt missed badly on a 46-yard field goal attempt, and to top it off got penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct after the play.

Nearly three years earlier, Vanderjagt went on a cable TV show in Toronto and criticized future Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning and Colts coach Tony Dungy for a lack of competitiveness. Asked about Vanderjagt’s comments, Manning said ‘our idiot kicker who got liquored up and ran his mouth off.’

The 2005 playoff was Vanderjagt’s last game with the Colts. The Steelers, meanwhile, went on to win Super Bowl XL.

5. Tony Romo botches snap in 2006 playoff

The Seahawks defeated the Cowboys, 21-20, in an unforgettable wild-card playoff game in Seattle. The game is known primarily for a botched hold by Tony Romo on what would have been a go-ahead field goal in the game’s final minute. Cowboys kicker Martin Gramatica lined up for a 19-yard field goal with 1:19 remaining in the game. Romo was the holder (back when quarterbacks would occasionally take part in such plays). The snap from center slipped through Romo’s hands. The quarterback then picked up the ball and attempted to scramble for the end zone, but was tackled for no gain on what was a fourth-and-1 play.

4. Garo Yepremian in Super Bowl VII

About the only imperfect aspect of the Miami Dolphins’ perfect 1972 season was a crazy play on a blocked field goal attempt by kicker Garo Yepremian in Super Bowl VII against Washington at the L.A. Coliseum. Yepremian lined up for an attempt that if made, would have put the Dolphins up 17-0 in a 17-0 season. Instead, the kick was blocked, Yepremian picked up the football and tried to throw a pass. It was instead deflected into the hands of Washington’s Mike Bass who raced 49 yards for a touchdown. The Dolphins still won, 14-7, but Yepremian’s play lives in pro football infamy.

3. Billy Cundiff in 2011 AFC title game

The Baltimore Ravens and New England Patriots met in a hotly contested AFC championship game that came down to the final seconds. Trailing 23-20 with 15 seconds remaining in the game, the Ravens sent kicker Billy Cundiff out for a game-tying 32-yard field goal attempt. Cundiff missed badly and the Patriots would go on to play in Super Bowl 46.

Adding to Baltimore’s misery was that Cundiff’s kick didn’t even need to happen. Two plays earlier, Ravens receiver Lee Evans couldn’t hold onto a Joe Flacco pass in the end zone. After Evans’ drop, Cundiff sealed the Ravens’ fate at Gillette Stadium.

2. Gary Anderson in 1998 NFC title game

The Minnesota Vikings were up 27-20 against the surprising Atlanta Falcons in the NFC championship game, and were in position to ice the game. With just over two minutes remaining, Vikings kicker Gary Anderson lined up for a 39-yard field goal attempt that would have given the Vikings a 10-point lead and nearly assured the team’s first trip to the Super Bowl since the mid-1970s. Instead, Anderson – who had made 39 consecutive field goals before this kick (no missed field goals or extra points during the entire 1998 season) – missed wide left. The Falcons had new life, marched down the field and scored the game-tying touchdown. In overtime, the Falcons kicker – Morten Andersen – booted the winner (a 38-yarder) and the Falcons were a stunning Super Bowl entrant.

1. Scott Norwood in Super Bowl 25

One of the greatest Super Bowls ever played ended on a missed field goal. Scott Norwood’s miss is a tempting butterfly effect debate. What would have happened had he made the kick? Instead, the Buffalo Bills went on to lose four consecutive Super Bowls. In an epic clash with the New York Giants, the Bills moved into position to win the game in the final seconds. Norwood’s 47-yard attempt sailed wide right and the Giants held on for a hard-fought 20-19 win.

This post appeared first on USA TODAY
Keep Reading
By
Sports

Dillon Brooks trash-talks LeBron as Suns end Lakers’ win streak

Dillon Brooks delivered an impressive performance in the Phoenix Suns’ 125-108 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday, Dec. 1, ending the Lakers seven-game win streak and finishing the night with some trash talk.

In a game where the Suns’ star player, Devin Booker, exited after only 10 minutes due to a strained right groin, Brooks stepped up significantly. He scored 23 points in the first half and finished the game with a total of 33 points, making 15 of his 26 shots from the floor during his 33 minutes on the court.

Brooks was not shy about provoking the crowd at Crypto.com Arena and LeBron James with his trash talking and celebratory gestures that mirrored James’s own celebrations. At one point, Brooks did an exaggerated shoulder shrug aimed at James, which appeared to upset the Lakers’ fans.

‘He likes people that bow down,’ Brooks said after the game. ‘I don’t bow down to him. So, that either entices him or it aggravates him – either-or.’

After their victory over the Lakers, the Suns have won seven of their last 11 games and improved their record to 13-9. Brooks is averaging 22.3 points per game this season for the Suns.

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast.Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

This post appeared first on USA TODAY
Keep Reading
By
Sports

New York Jets invest $1 million to start college flag football league

Mya De Jesus came to flag football through a bit of backdoor. Now, the senior at Harrison (New Jersey) High might be looking at a scholarship in the sport.

‘The flag football coach, he had seen me play basketball and he was like, ‘I need you to try out,’ ‘ said De Jesus, who also plays point guard on the basketball team. ‘I’ve never heard of flag, had no idea what it was … I’m like, ‘OK, whatever, we’re just gonna do it.’ And I just fell in love with it. It’s just such a fun game. I feel like anyone that plays it will just love it.’

De Jesus plays running back and linebacker for her high school team, where she ran for 510 yards and seven touchdowns on offense and had 49 tackles on defense as a junior last spring. De Jesus was already getting recruited to play in college, but thanks to the New York Jets, flag football will have its first official conference in the spring of 2026.

The Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) will launch a women’s flag football league with a $1 million investment from the Jets through the Betty Wold Johnson Foundation. The league will begin play in the spring of 2026, starting in February. The season will kick off with a media day at MetLife Stadium on Feb. 27, 2026. Fifteen universities in the Northeast will compete in 7-on-7 flag football from February through April. The top six to eight teams will advance to a playoff tournament at MetLife Stadium in May.

It’s the next logical step for flag football which, as of late 2025, is sanctioned in 17 states as a varsity high school sport, with many more states in various stages of pilot programs. The numbers continue to grow as the flag football gains popularity and recognition. 

‘One of the beauties of adding this sport is every college already has a field,’ ECAC commissioner Dan Coonan said. ‘They already have locker rooms, so there’s there’s not really a much infrastructure they need. There’s not a whole lot of equipment.

‘If you’re looking to add women’s opportunities, it’s pretty easy to go from zero to 60 on it.’

The Jets were in on flag football early. They started programs to grow the sport in New York and New Jersey in 2011. They have since created more than 260 teams in three countries, giving opportunities for nearly 7,000 girls to play flag.

‘We reached out to a couple of different groups, and when we found the ECAC and what their model is in the number of schools that they have in their relationships with, we thought it was the perfect opportunity for us to grow the game,’ said Jesse Linder, Jets vice president of community relations.

‘It’s also to kind of push the NCAA and push the institutions that, ‘Hey, this is coming. The Olympics are coming.’ We need to get on board so that these girls have a spot to get ready for the next step. The other thing, too, is the only way that the sport is really going to grow in the exponential level … is to have those scholarships, right?’

Callie Brownson, who coached in the NFL most recently with the Cleveland Browns, played tackle football for the D.C. Divas in the Women’s Football Alliance (WFA) for eight seasons. She is working with the ECAC and Jets as a flag football advisor.

‘The first time I watched a high school (flag football) game in 2020, just the passion and the excitement and the attachment to it,’ Brownson said. ‘That’s how I felt when I played and when I was around the sport and it was it was inspiring to me.

‘I remember saying, ‘Whatever’s needed for me for this to grow, I’m all in.’ … Football is a part of our culture, I know I would have loved to have played flag football or any kind of football besides Powder Puff (in high school).’

The opportunities are just getting started for players like De Jesus, thanks in part to the Jets.

‘If the Jets didn’t help my high school, we definitely wouldn’t have had flag as early as we did,’ De Jesus said. ‘Our neighboring town, Carney, they just started this year. We have four years on these teams that are just starting, which I think is pretty cool.

‘(The Jets) promote flag football so much and they’re one of the teams, they’re not just doing it for publicity, they actually really care about the teams and put a lot of hard work and dedication into it.’

ECAC women’s flag football schools

School, Name, Location, Division

Allegheny College, Meadville, PA, Division III
Caldwell University*, Caldwell, NJ, Division II
Dominican University, Orangeburg, NY, Division II
Eastern University, St. Davids, PA, Division III
Fairleigh Dickinson*, Teaneck, NJ, Division I
Franciscan University, Steubenville, OH, Division III
Kean University, Union, NJ, Division III
Long Island University, Brooklyn, NY, Division I
Mercy University, Dobbs Ferry, NY, Division II
Mercyhurst University, Erie, PA, Division I
Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, Division III
Mount St. Mary’s University, Emmitsburg, MD, Division I
Union College*, Schenectady, NY, Division III
Penn State Schuylkill, Schuylkill Haven, PA, Division III
Sweet Briar College*, Sweet Briar, VA, Division III

*Will begin play in spring 2027

This post appeared first on USA TODAY
Keep Reading
By