Defending Tour de France champion Tadej Pogačar extended his lead at this year’s race with a second straight stage win in the Pyrenees during Stage 13 of cycling’s most prominent race.

Pogačar, the favorite to repeat as champion, tightened his hold on the yellow jersey by posting the best time in Friday’s individual time-trial in the mountains after a dominant performance 24 hours earlier to put himself back in the overall lead.

Pogacar was 36 seconds faster than rival Jonas Vingegaard on the 10.9-kilometer (6.77 miles) course Loudenvielle to Peyragudes that featured an uphill climb of 664 meters. Vingegaard had the second-best time in Friday’s race.

It was Pogačar’s fourth stage win at the 2025 Tour de France and pushed his overall lead for the yellow jersey over Vingegaard to 4 minutes, 7 seconds heading into another mountain stage on Saturday, July 19. Pogačar is trying to win his fourth Tour de France.

Here’s a look at the complete stage 13 results and 2025 Tour de France standings after Friday, July 18, as well as what’s coming up for cycling’s biggest race:

Stage 13 results

Here are the final results of the 10.9-kilometer Stage 13 individual time-trial from Loudenvielle to Peyragudes in the French Pyrenees at the 2025 Tour de France on Friday, July 18 (with position, rider, team, time):

Tadej Pogačar, UAE Team Emirates XRG, 23 minutes
Jonas Vingegaard, Team Visma/Lease a Bike, 23 minutes, 36 seconds
Primoz Roglic, Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, 24:20
Florian Lipowitz, Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, 24:56
Lucas Plapp, Team Jayco Alula, 24:58
Matteo Jorgenson, Team Visma/Lease a Bike, 25:03
Oscar Onley, Team Picnic Postnl, 25:06
Adam Yates, UAE Team Emirates XRG, 25:15
Lenny Martinez, Bahrain Victorious, 25:21
Felix Gall, Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team, 25:22

Tour de France 2025 standings

Tadej Pogačar, Slovenia: 45 hours, 45 minutes, 51 seconds
Jonas Vingegaard, Denmark: 45:49.58 (4 minutes, 7 seconds behind)
Remco Evenepoel, Belgium: 45:53:13 (7 minutes, 24 seconds)
Florian Lipowitz, Germany: 45:53.21 (7 minutes, 30 seconds)
Oscar Onley, Great Britain: 45:54.02 (8 minutes, 11 seconds)
Kevin Vauquelin, France: 45:54.06 (8 minute, 15 seconds)
Primoz Roglic, Slovenia: 45:54.51 (8 minutes, 50 seconds)
Tobias Johannessen, Norway: 45:56.27 (10 minutes, 36 seconds)
Felix Gall, Austria: 45:57.34 (11 minutes, 43 seconds)
Matteo Jorgenson, USA: 46:00.06 (14 minutes, 15 seconds)

2025 Tour de France jersey leaders

Yellow (overall race leader): Tadej Pogačar, Slovenia
Green (points): Jonathan Milan, Italy
Polka dot (mountains): Tadej Pogačar, Slovenia
White (young rider): Remco Evenepoel, Belgium

Who’s wearing the rainbow jersey at 2025 Tour de France?

In addition to the four traditional colored jerseys at the Tour de France, the reigning world road race champion wears a rainbow-colored jersey. It’s white with five colored stripes – blue, red, black, yellow and green (same as the colors of the Olympic rings) – and is currently worn by Tadej Pogačar of Slovenia.

2025 Tour de France next stage

Stage 14 of the 2025 Tour de France is a 182.6-kilometer course on mountain terrain in the French Pyrenees from Pau to Luchon-Superbagnères on Saturday, July 19.

The 2025-26 Premier League season is nearly here, with what is widely regarded as the world’s best soccer league ready for another pressure-packed campaign.

Teams like Arsenal and Manchester City expect to give them a stiffer challenge this time around. The Gunners lost momentum late in the season, while Man City badly missed key midfielder Rodri (who is healthy again after a torn ACL suffered in September 2024). Chelsea, meanwhile, are hoping the Club World Cup is proof that they’re back in the mix after a few down years.

Here are championship odds for every Premier League team heading into this season:

Premier League 2025-26 title odds: Power rankings for all 20 teams

Odds courtesy of BetMGM as of Friday, July 18.

Favorites

Liverpool: +200
Arsenal: +240
Manchester City: +300
Chelsea: +800

Liverpool won the Premier League last year, and oddsmakers currently have them as narrow favorites to repeat. The Reds bolstered their squad by adding Florian Wirtz in a $145 million transfer from Bayer Leverkusen and went back to the German side to sign Jeremie Frimpong as a replacement for Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Arsenal and Manchester City, who finished second and third last season, respectively, are close behind. The Gunners ran out of steam down the stretch, while Man City endured an abysmal mid-season run before coming on strong in April and May. Chelsea, coming off of a Club World Cup triumph, will be hoping that Cole Palmer can keep them in the title race despite a physically demanding summer.

In with a shout

Newcastle United: +2800
Manchester United: +3300
Tottenham Hotspur: +5000
Aston Villa: +6600

Within this quartet are two groups: Newcastle and Aston Villa have seen higher investment in their squads in recent years and deserve to be seen as contenders to claim a top-five place (and the Champions League entry that comes with it). A title is still a ways away, but they’re progressing.

Manchester United and Tottenham, on the other hand, are historically big clubs who currently seem to be a mess. The Red Devils have spent the last few years lurching from one crisis to another, while last season the Spurs managed to confuse by a) winning the Europa League and b) finishing an embarrassing 17th in league play. The ambition is there in both cases, but the stability is not.

Can they do it again?

Nottingham Forest: +20000
Brighton & Hove Albion: +25000
Bournemouth: +25000

If you can’t help but throw a couple of bucks on a longshot, these are the smart bets. This set of teams all finished in the top 10 last season, surprising observers with confident, consistent displays.

Forest was a particular shock, going from the edge of relegation in 2023-24 to missing a Champions League place by a single point last year. They’re the aggressive spenders here (which is reflected in their shorter odds), while Brighton and Bournemouth are much more focused on long-term sustainability.

Hoping to avoid relegation

West Ham: +50000
Brentford: +50000
Fulham: +50000
Crystal Palace: +50000
Wolverhampton Wanderers: +50000
Everton: +50000
Leeds United: +75000
Burnley: +100000
Sunderland: +100000

The Premier League is a tough place, and for most of this group, simply staying in the top flight will mark a major achievement. Well-run clubs like Brentford, Fulham, and Crystal Palace have punched at a higher level in recent years, but no one realistically expects them to vie for a place in the Champions League.

Wolves and Everton have both survived recent relegation scares and are expected to be nervously looking over their shoulders once again. Meanwhile, the longest shots are (as is virtually always the case) Leeds, Burnley, and Sunderland, the three sides promoted up from the Championship. That trio are among England’s ‘yo-yo’ clubs, going up and down between the top two divisions with regularity, and staying up would spark major celebrations.

Through two days at The Open Championship, a familiar name stands solo atop the leaderboards.

Scheffler had the best round of any golfer on Friday, July 18, moving up five spots in the leaderboard to take first in the standings from Royal Portrush Golf Club in Northern Ireland.

Here’s a look at how Scheffler scored in the second round of The Open Championship, putting him in a solid position heading into the final 36 holes:

Scottie Scheffler score today

Scheffler shot a 7-under 64 in the second round of The Open Championship on Friday, July 18. Following an opening-round score of 3-under 68, he is now the clubhouse leader at 10 under par through two days of competition.

First round score: 3-under 68
Second round score: 7-under 64
Total score: 10 under par

Here’s how Scheffler fared on each hole on Friday, which included a whopping eight birdies.

Par for hole and round score in parentheses

Hole 1 (4): 3 (1 under)
Hole 2 (5): 5 (1 under)
Hole 3 (3): 3 (1 under)
Hole 4 (4): 4 (1 under)
Hole 5 (4): 3 (2 under)
Hole 6 (3): 2 (3 under)
Hole 7 (5): 4 (4 under)
Hole 8 (4): 4 (4 under)
Hole 9 (4): 4 (4 under)
Hole 10 (4): 3 (5 under)
Hole 11 (4): 5 (4 under)
Hole 12 (5): 5 (4 under)
Hole 13 (3): 2 (5 under)
Hole 14 (4): 4 (5 under)
Hole 15 (4): 4 (5 under)
Hole 16 (3): 2 (6 under)
Hole 17 (4): 3 (7 under)
Hole 18 (4): 4 (7 under)

Scottie Scheffler major championships

Scheffler has three major tournament wins, having won the Masters in 2022 and 2024 and the PGA Championship in 2025.

His best finish at The Open Championship came in 2024, when he finished tied-for seventh. He also finished tied-for second at the U.S. Open in 2022. Scheffler, 29, still needs major titles at The Open Championship and the U.S. Open to achieve the career Grand Slam.

ATLANTA — In this era of Major League Baseball’s expanded playoff field, one concept rings even truer: If you’re over .500, you’ve got a chance.

Yet in the National League, nine teams can make that claim, more than double the four American League squads taking that distinction into the symbolic start of the second half.

The next two-plus months will shake things out, and with the division leads frontrunners Philadelphia (a half-game), Chicago (one game) and Los Angeles (5 ½ games) hold, nothing’s guaranteed.

“It’s a spicy division this year, that’s for sure,” says Milwaukee Brewers closer Trevor Megill of the NL Central, where his club lurks a game behind the Cubs. “The Cubs have a fantastic product out on the field this year and so do some other teams in our division.

“It’s going to come down to that last game.”

Slim as some margins are, we’ll give those leaders a pass and break down the half-dozen clubs aiming to run them down – or at least fight off the others for one of three wild-card spots:

Milwaukee Brewers: Grit and grind

Standing: 56-40, one game behind Chicago in NL Central, four-game lead for wild card spot.

What’s their deal?: They’ve once again outkicked expectations, with manager Pat Murphy guiding a wild mix of youth and veterans and All-Star pitcher Freddy Peralta helming a rotation that has unleashed touted rookie Jacob Misiorowski for five starts – with the baseball world suddenly captivated by what may come next.

Before the trade deadline: Nine of 12 games against playoff contenders Seattle, the Los Angeles Dodgers and, from July 28-30, the first-place Cubs.

Why the Brewers?: “The way the Brewers run themselves and the research they do on people, personalities – that goes into a lot of what we’re seeing right now. Power of friendship, right? We’ve got a college-minded coach at the helm and I think a lot of our guys are just that gritty, tough, and we go and get after it. I think that’s our biggest strength: A lot of guys that like each other and a lot of guys willing to put their body on the line every night.” – Megill

New York Mets: Help has arrived

Standing: 55-42, half-game behind Philadelphia in NL East, 2 ½-game lead for wild card spot.

What’s their deal?: An encouraging July got even brighter when injured pitchers Sean Manaea and Kodai Senga made their returns in their final series of the first half, with Senga pitching four scoreless innings at Kansas City. Juan Soto has shaken the new-team blues, with 12 homers and a .312/.450/.642 line in his last 35 games after going .229/.367/.430 in his first 62.

Before the trade deadline: Nine of 12 games against NL contenders Cincinnati, San Francisco and San Diego.

Why the Mets?: “We’ve got talent, we’ve got grit, we’ve got chemistry – those are all things you need to win ballgames. We’ve shown some obviously really great moments of consistency. But we haven’t been perfect. We’ve had some injuries, but we’re getting a ton of guys back. When you combine talent and attention to detail and grit, it makes for a winning ballclub.” – Pete Alonso

San Diego Padres: A road hurdle ahead

Standing: 52-44, 5 ½ games behind Los Angeles in NL West, half-game lead for wild card spot.

What’s their deal?: Injuries have slowed them much of the year, with sophomore Jackson Merrill struggling after a pair of IL trips, pitcher Yu Darvish making his season debut just before the All-Star break and Michael King out until August with shoulder irritation. Manny Machado is playing like an MVP. The bullpen produced three All-Stars.

Before the trade deadline: A 10-game road trip to Washington, Miami and St. Louis, followed by a three-game showdown against the Mets.

Why the Padres?: “We have the confidence and we’re going to have a good second half. We’re motivated to make the playoffs.” – Robert Suárez

San Francisco Giants: Time to get offensive

Standing: 52-45, six games behind Los Angeles in NL West, half-game out of wild card spot.

What’s their deal?: It’s torture all over again, as the pitching staff’s 3.50 ERA ranks third in the majors but batters rank 26th with a .678 OPS, stirring memories of their 2010 champions’ knack for winning close games. Rafael Devers has two homers and a .656 OPS in 25 games as a Giant, and along with Willy Adames must adjust from hitter-friendly climes to Oracle Park’s batter-killing conditions, though both will benefit from Matt Chapman’s return.

Before the trade deadline: A six-game trip to Toronto and Atlanta and three at home against Pittsburgh.

Why the Giants?: “We’re getting Willy going, we got Chappy back, and if we can get Raffy going as well, that’s great. Once we get our hitters going, we’re going to be pretty hot. We play the most one-run games in baseball and I think that sets us up for success in the playoffs. There’s a lot of close games. Our pitchers and our hitters are comfortable in those situations.” – Robbie Ray

St. Louis Cardinals: Might as well win the whole thing

Standing: 51-46, 6 ½ games behind Chicago in NL Central, 1 ½ games out of wild card spot.

What’s their deal?: Written off for 2025 after a much-ballyhooed franchise “reset” and a winter spent failing to trade Nolan Arenado, the Cardinals that remained comprised a pretty good squad. Sonny Gray has pitched like an ace, Brendan Donovan – a 3-WAR player in the first half – has led their band of versatile position player pieces and DH Ivan Herrera has returned from injury after posting a .924 OPS in 43 games.

Before the trade deadline: A six-game trip to Colorado and Arizona followed by a big four-game set at home against San Diego. Loser sells to the winner?

Why the Cardinals?: “I think it’s a group that’s not afraid of anything. People learning how to go about their business in the big leagues and learning about who they are and that’s what makes us scary. We just did all the things we had harped on in spring training: Taking care of the baseball, having quality at-bats, sticking to a team approach while also sticking to our individual approaches. I think our expectations were completely different than the ones set on us.” – Donovan

Cincinnati Reds: Youth movement, veteran guide

Standing: 50-47, 7 ½ games behind Chicago in NL Central, 2 ½ games out of wild card berth.

What’s their deal?: The rotation ranks sixth in the NL with a 3.88 ERA but has had injury setbacks. All-Star Elly De La Cruz racked up 3.6 WAR while hitting 18 homers with 25 steals. Emilio Pagan solidified the closer role, posting 20 saves by the break. Manager Terry Francona just notched his 2,000th career win.

Before the trade deadline: A six-game trip to the Mets and Nationals, followed by three with Tampa Bay.

Why the Reds?: “We’re a young team. I think we’re getting closer to finding our true identity. I truly believe we have a good young core and have a good set of veterans to help the younger players. And our manager. I think that was a really good move for us. Brings in that calmness with firmness. I think we’re going to continue to work, continue to show up and the results will show.” – Abbott

Cleveland Guardians pitcher Luis Ortiz had his non-disciplinary paid leave extended through Aug. 31 amid an investigation into gambling-related offenses, Major League Baseball said Friday.

Ortiz was placed on leave on July 3, and it was later determined that the league was looking at Ortiz for his possible involvement in gambling while pitching for Cleveland.

‘We have been informed of the extension and will fully cooperate with the investigation,’ the Guardians said in a statement.

The investigation centers on two pitches that Ortiz threw: one on June 15 against the Seattle Mariners and a game with the St. Louis Cardinals on June 27. There was unusual betting around prop bets surrounding those pitches, both sliders, against Mariners outfielder Randy Arozarena and Cardinals catcher Pedro Pages.

Ortiz, 26, is in his first season with the Guardians after being acquired in a trade with the Pittsburgh Pirates in December. He is 4-9 with a 4.36 ERA and 96 strikeouts in 16 starts this season.

Cleveland (46-49) starts its second half Friday at home against the Athletics, and sits 12 games back in the AL Central behind the Detroit Tigers.

Bill Belichick and Robert Kraft are waging their war in the court of public opinion – and neither side is winning.

It has been less than two years since Belichick departed his post as the New England Patriots head coach after winning six Super Bowls in what’s considered to be arguably the NFL’s best dynasty. At the time, it was billed as a mutual parting of ways.

The evidence suggests that the parting was far from mutual, however, with repeated sparring in the media following the bitter divorce.

Belichick renewed the war again on July 16 in a statement to ESPN.

“As I told Robert multiple times through the years, I took a big risk by taking the New England Patriots head coaching job,” Belichick told ESPN. “I already had an opportunity to be the head coach of the New York Jets, but the ownership situation (there) was unstable.’

The coach claimed he was urged to remain with the Jets, rather than accept the job in New England.

“I had been warned by multiple previous Patriots’ coaches, as well as other members of other NFL organizations and the media, that the New England job was going to come with many internal obstacles,’ Belichick said. ‘I made it clear that we would have to change the way the team was managed to regain the previously attained success.”

The statement, which seemingly came out of left field, was in apparent response to something Kraft had said a week earlier on the ‘Dudes on Dudes’ podcast with former Patriots, Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski.

Kraft was asked to name his best decision as owner and responded by talking about Belichick – appearing to indicate that hiring the coach was the answer.

‘Well, the one that got questioned the most was in ’99,’ Kraft said. ‘I gave up a No. 1 draft pick for a coach who had only won a little over 40% of his games. But getting Bill Belichick to come to the Patriots in 1999 was a big risk, and I got hammered in the Boston media. But he was with us for 24 years, and we did OK.’

Belichick seems to have taken issue with being called a ‘big risk’ by Kraft, but the owner isn’t wrong. Trading a first-round pick for a coach with a 36-44 record was far from a safe move.

New England took a leap of faith, knowing they could’ve handed a top draft pick over to a bitter rival in their own division.

It was the latest chapter in a saga that already saw Belichick omit Kraft from his book and an Apple TV documentary about the Patriots, which portrayed the coach as the bad guy.

The duo went on to experience 24 years of success together, something neither side wants to let go of now. Recent history shows that they were better off together anyway.

Kraft’s Patriots fired Belichick’s successor, Jerod Mayo, after one season with a 4-13 record. Belichick, on the other hand, has become unrecognizable in his post-Patriots life. Between various media appearances and the ongoing circus surrounding his relationship with 24-year-old Jordon Hudson, the 73-year-old is far from the person NFL fans knew for over two decades.

Now Belichick is in the college ranks, set to make his debut as the head coach at the University of North Carolina in the fall.

It’s his latest attempt to move on in his football life, while trying to prove he can still coach at a high level.

Once known for his cut-up hoodies and intimidating sideline demeanor, the ruler of the ‘Evil Empire’ could’ve opted to walk away and ride into the sunset to await his moment of enshrinement at the Hall of Fame.

Belichick ran his Patriots teams on the idea that they would move on from players a year early, rather than a year late. That seems to be the same concept Kraft employed to move on from the long-time coach.

The previous unflappable, stoic coach finally met his match.

And he’s not going down without a fight.

All the NFL news on and off the field. Sign up for USA TODAY’s 4th and Monday newsletter.

In July, every NFL team can fantasize about a playoff appearance, no matter how remote the possibility. And almost annually, at least one of the most far-fetched visions somehow comes to fruition.

The NFL’s playoff picture is hardly static, with at least four new teams joining the field every year since 1990. And with the likes of the Houston Texans in 2023 and Washington Commanders last season jumping all the way from an early draft pick toward additional on-field work in January, there’s an established path for even. But there are multiple avenues for teams to make it to that point, and there’s always a good deal of uncertainty involved in determining who can actually complete the trek.

With that said, here is USA TODAY Sports’ ranking of last year’s non-playoff teams from least to most likely to crash the postseason:

18. Cleveland Browns

Credit the Browns for taking the first steps to clean up the biohazard that is the Deshaun Watson era. But while the full toll of one of the costliest personnel moves in NFL history is understandably massive, the short-term outlook is similarly grim given the organization’s insistence on maintaining flexibility for a more extensive potential reset in 2026. None of the four options in the quarterback competition can be called dependable, and there’s insufficient support for the team to minimize the ask of the passing attack, much as Kevin Stefanski might like to. Success for Cleveland this fall hinges on further embracing the transition ahead, meaning the bottom line might be ugly for a bit.

17. New York Giants

Any reason to doubt the Giants is as valid as the next. Start behind center, however, where the primary question seems not to be whether Russell Wilson can revive the offense but rather how long he’ll last before giving way to first-rounder Jaxson Dart. And with a 36-year-old who has been a magnet for sacks – Wilson’s 133 in the three years since he left Seattle are the most of any passer in that span – working behind one of the league’s shoddiest offensive lines, it might not take long for the operation to fall apart. A robust pass rush boosted by Abdul Carter’s arrival seems sure to create havoc, but there’s only so much the group can do to compensate for deficiencies elsewhere. Even if Big Blue shows signs of early progress, a treacherous schedule that brings six matchups with playoff teams in the first eight weeks seems bound to serve as a harsh reality check.

16. New Orleans Saints

A manageable NFC South helps save the Saints from a last-place finish here. Even with New Orleans forced into somewhat of a reboot after Derek Carr’s retirement, an organization that has refused to take a short-term hit for a long-term gain still seemed to resist a rebuild, leaving the roster in an uneven spot for first-year coach Kellen Moore. Despite the outsized veteran presence, there’s little reason to believe either second-round rookie Tyler Shough or second-year passer Spencer Rattler can provide the kind of consistency behind center needed to elevate this outfit.

15. New York Jets

14. Carolina Panthers

After coming out of the other side of Bryce Young’s early-season benching with tangible reason to feel good about the 2023 No. 1 pick, Carolina finally looks to be freed from a cycle of resets. Stability should serve this unit well, with Young even better equipped to attack downfield thanks to his growing confidence in navigating the pocket and the arrival of first-round receiver Tetairoa McMillan. But prioritizing the signal-caller’s development entailed an opportunity cost, as two Day 2 picks at edge rusher (second-rounder Nic Scourton and third-rounder Princely Umanmielen) serve as the primary assistance for a unit that ranked 31st in pass-rush win rate. Even with Derrick Brown back to set the tone along the line, a defense that yielded a league-worst 31.4 points per game last year looks liable to render much of the offense’s progress moot.

13. Las Vegas Raiders

The Silver and Black might have a strong argument for the claim of the offseason’s most improved team. But for all the progress made in solidifying key posts with coach Pete Carroll, general manager John Spytek and quarterback Geno Smith, pushing past the middle of the pack in the AFC will prove to be a tall order given the dearth of building blocks beyond Maxx Crosby and Brock Bowers. Even with electric rookie Ashton Jeanty igniting a dormant running game and better luck on the turnover front after tying for the second-worst differential last year (-16), there’s simply too much ground for Las Vegas to make up on the rest of the hypercompetitive AFC West for this group to factor into the playoff chase at the end of the season.

12. Tennessee Titans

Any hopes of a rapid turnaround in Tennessee likely hinge on Cam Ward giving the offense a respite from the backbreaking sacks and turnovers that led predecessor Will Levis to the bench. But as he works alongside arguably the league’s worst collection skill-position talent and a defense short on difference-makers, it will be difficult for the No. 1 pick to thread the needle between providing enough of a spark for the attack and avoiding coach Brian Callahan’s wrath by trying to do too much. A forgiving schedule and division in flux could prove advantageous, but one offseason isn’t sufficient to transform a roster that even first-year general manager Mike Borgonzi admitted has ‘a lot of holes.’

11. Indianapolis Colts

No one could rightfully call Indianapolis’ offseason a true shake-up, but this was hardly the stay-the-course approach that has been the throughline of Chris Ballard’s tenure. Signing Daniel Jones allows the team to pivot immediately from Anthony Richardson amid what seems to be some buyer’s remorse, or at least frustration with the quarterback’s stunted development. The Colts went the other way on defense, opting for a more dynamic scheme under Lou Anarumo after Gus Bradley’s static ways wore thin. Still, there’s not much to suggest that the Colts can keep up with the Texans or any of the AFC’s other playoff threats given their ho-hum core.

10. New England Patriots

9. Miami Dolphins

In clinging to a roster overly reliant on its premier talent, the Dolphins have to hope for plenty of things to hold together. When they do, Miami can be a handful, as Mike McDaniel boasted the league’s second-highest scoring offense in 2023. But rampant schematic and spending issues have intersected to create several deficiencies – an inability to control games up front, stalling out in short-yardage and red-zone scenarios and a track record of coming up short against top competition – that the organization has only addressed through modest measures. And when Tua Tagovailoa misses substantial time due to injury, as he has in three of the past four seasons, everything comes undone pretty quickly. If things break their way, maybe the Dolphins can continue to keep teams off balance with the creativity of their perpetual-motion machine of an offense. Even then, a defense that ranked fourth in yards allowed could be headed for a hefty regression given the emerging crisis at cornerback.

8. Chicago Bears

There’s little question that a new day is ahead in Chicago, with a franchise that has been out of alignment for nearly two decades now appearing to be in sync with its Ben Johnson-Caleb Williams pairing. The most pressing question is how quickly will the various new parts find their groove in working together? Chemistry and culture can’t be microwaved, so there could be some friction as the roster tries to move on from rampant dysfunction and a new coaching staff finds its footing. Above all, the competition in the NFC North is too formidable for Chicago to simply take the division by storm. Staying in the wild-card hunt isn’t out of the question if Williams makes a substantial leap, but optimism here should center on what’s possible down the line rather than what could be at hand right away.

7. Jacksonville Jaguars

Anyone in search of a longshot candidate to surge all the way into the postseason might want to take a closer look at Jacksonville. If first-year coach Liam Coen can unlock Trevor Lawrence’s true abilities after two years of stunted growth from the quarterback, the Jaguars should be plenty threatening thanks to emerging superstar Brian Thomas Jr. and two-way threat Travis Hunter. Coen’s work with the Buccaneers demonstrated he can transform a rushing attack in little time, though Jacksonville’s offensive front might not be up to the task of leading the charge. A defense that ranked 31st in expected points added allowed per play and last in pass rush win rate has a long way to go before it can provide any consistent backing, but maybe a group that still has high-end talent in a few key spots can generate more turnovers after corralling a league-worst nine in 2024. With the AFC South somewhat fluid, a significant jump is possible.

6. Dallas Cowboys

With Brian Schottenheimer’s appointment as Mike McCarthy’s replacement producing tepid external reactions, the Cowboys enter training camp with perhaps the organization’s lowest profile in years. Maybe that’s best for all involved. New energy from on high could revitalize a group that won 12 games in each of the three seasons prior to last season’s unraveling. An offensive rebalancing also might bear fruit for a beefed-up run game as well as a passing attack that shouldn’t be as reliant on CeeDee Lamb thanks to George Pickens’ arrival. If Dak Prescott bounces back from his season-ending hamstring avulsion and stays healthy, Dallas has the makeup of a group that should at least stay in the playoff conversation late into the campaign.

5. Seattle Seahawks

As the only team on this list that missed out on the playoffs via tiebreaker in 2024, Seattle would have been a natural candidate to run things back for Year 2 of Mike Macdonald’s tenure. Instead, the coach chose to massively reshape the team to his liking, installing a run-oriented attack under new coordinator Klint Kubiak while swapping in Sam Darnold for Geno Smith. Leaving the reins to Darnold, who has largely reflected his surroundings in previous stints elsewhere, represents a sizable risk given the shortage of perimeter playmakers and the offensive line’s continued vulnerability to interior pressure. Perhaps a working formula can emerge given how much Macdonald is willing to pin on his chaos-inducing defense. But this is a lot of change for one outfit to stomach, and it’s not immediately clear it’s all for the better – at least for the immediate future.

4. Atlanta Falcons

The overcrowded bandwagon emptied out as Atlanta posted its seventh consecutive losing season, but full-on abandonment of this group seems premature. While Kirk Cousins shouldered the brunt of the blame for failing to lift what seemed like an otherwise playoff-ready supporting cast, the defense proved to be the team’s undoing, giving up 30 or more points four times during a critical 2-6 season-ending stretch. New coordinator Jeff Ulbrich could push a younger unit somewhere closer to average in several categories, though things could unravel quickly if a pass rush that has been absent for long stretches remains missing. Higher highs and lower lows are likely in store for an offense helmed by Michael Penix Jr. given the second-year quarterback’s aggressiveness and erratic ball placement, but he doesn’t have to force things with Bijan Robinson and Drake London at his disposal. Atlanta clearly expects to be in the postseason mix given its offseason plan of attack, but even more scrutiny – particularly on the widely ridiculed move to give up next year’s first-round pick to secure edge rusher James Pearce Jr. at No. 26 overall in April – will follow if it falls short.

3. Arizona Cardinals

General manager Monti Ossenfort and coach Jonathan Gannon largely resisted making splashy, all-in moves during the first two years of their rebuild. After doubling their win total in 2024, the Cardinals finally got the green light for a major investment on defense. Signing Josh Sweat and re-upping Baron Browning changes the complexion of the pass rush, as a unit that previously depended on creating pressure from a variety of sources – 12 players had at least two sacks last season, but none had more than five – now boasts high-end threats off the edge. Dalvin Tomlinson, Calais Campbell and first-round rookie Walter Nolen III make the Cardinals far more imposing up front, with 2024 first-rounder Darius Robinson essentially serving as a bonus addition after missing the bulk of his rookie season with a calf injury. Kyler Murray and Marvin Harrison Jr. will be under pressure to foster a better connection after the two seemed out of sorts, but a ground game that ranked second in yards per carry (5.3) is unlikely to waver. With a favorable schedule that serves up just one playoff team before the Week 8 bye, Arizona could surprise many with an early surge in the standings that facilitates a postseason push.

2. Cincinnati Bengals

In one sense, forking over massive extensions to star receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins in March might have seemed like a sizable shift for a historically frugal franchise. But the moves also served as Cincinnati doubling down on a distinct team-building approach that it believes will lead back into the postseason. Yes, there’s still a massive burden placed on Joe Burrow to compensate for an offensive line that remains shaky and an underdeveloped defense that needs to grow up fast under new coordinator Al Golden. But this is a formula that has worked for the Bengals and allowed them to compete with the AFC’s best. Things might get dicey if extended standoffs with NFL sack king Trey Hendrickson and first-round edge rusher Shemar Stewart bleed into the season, as another slow start could be in store with five playoff teams on the docket from Weeks 3-7. If Hendrickson gets back into the fold, however, Cincinnati might have a strong argument to be bumped to No. 1 given its established contender credentials.

1. San Francisco 49ers

An immediate swing back to Super Bowl contender status can’t be counted on given the widespread attrition since this organization reached the grand stage in 2023. But it’s entirely reasonable that one of the NFC’s best systemic setups would gravitate back toward the postseason standard it has become accustomed to under Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch. So long as Christian McCaffrey returns to form and last year’s catastrophic run of injuries proves to be anomalous, an offense that ranked ninth in EPA/play will continue to vex most opponents. Robert Saleh’s return as defensive coordinator should fuel the turnaround of a defense that fell apart in a hurry, though several new starters must step up in critical spots. And after last year’s schedule offered little respite, this year’s much softer edition brings just four matchups against teams that made the postseason last year – and none against squads that posted more than 10 wins. There are holes to be patched, without question, but San Francisco’s resurgence could materialize just as quickly as its downturn did.

INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark has been absent from the early WNBA All-Star Game festivities, not participating in the orange carpet on Thursday night or media availability on Friday morning.

The WNBA announced on Thursday that Clark would not play in the All-Star Game on Saturday (8 p.m. ET, ABC) at Gainbridge Fieldhouse because of a right groin injury sustained against the Connecticut Sun on Tuesday.

Fever teammate, guard Kelsey Mitchell, said even without Clark on the court, her presence will still be felt.

‘Caitlin is going to be Caitlin guys, trust me.’ Mitchel said Friday morning. ‘She is going to be coaching. You will definitely see the competitive nature. But her body deserves what it deserves, from a break standpoint.

‘This weekend will still be about what her and other individuals have brought to this league.’

Clark, who is a team captain, was supposed to participate in the 3-point contest at 8 p.m. ET Friday night. She has been replaced by Fever teammate Lexi Hull. Her replacement for the All-Star game is Washington Mystics guard Brittney Sykes.

Team Clark coach Sandy Brondello said she plans to let Clark do as much coaching as she wishes.

‘Obviously, it’s unfortunate about Caitlin not being in this game,’ Brondello said Friday. ‘But she is still going to have a great impact on this team. I will give the coaching hat to her and much as she wants. We will play around with it a little and have fun.

‘You have seen it with the Fever, she’s been very active on the sideline when she wasn’t playing, so we will utilize that as well.’

Fever teammate Aliyah Boston said they are all supporting Clark, who has missed time this season with left quad, left groin and now a right groin injuries. She has missed 11 of the Fever’s 23 games.

‘Just continuing to be in her corner and cheering her on,’ Boston said. ‘The biggest thing as a player and a competitor, it’s super hard when you have to sit out.

‘(She knows) we got your back, take your time, but we got you.’

Team Clark’s Sabrina Ionescu said she has been sharing her experience with Clark. The New York Liberty guard fought though her share of injuries during her sophomore season in the league.

‘The second year, I had three to four soft tissue injuries that I was dealing with,’ Ionescu said Friday. ‘You look back and it is kind of blessing in disguise. You are able to learn and grow and understand the game more. It is all part of your journey.’

Clark did appear at a couple of brand activations later Friday. She did a pop-up event with Wilson near Gainbridge Fieldhouse to sell her signature basketballs and showed up at the State Farm booth at WNBA Live.