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UnitedHealth Group announced a new chief executive Tuesday, a sudden and surprising change following the fatal shooting in December of its UnitedHealthcare subsidiary’s leader.

Andrew Witty stepped down from leading UnitedHealth for unspecified “personal reasons,” the company said. Stephen J. Hemsley, who served as chief executive from 2006 to 2017, will return to the role and remain board chairman. Witty will serve as a senior adviser to Hemsley, the company said in a news release. 

UnitedHealth has been the focus of sharp criticism over the health insurance industry’s practices and has seen its stock plummet in the past year. The Justice Department has investigated its business activities.

UnitedHealth’s shares fell more than 17% Tuesday. The stock, which is part of the 30-company Dow Jones Industrial Average, closed at $311.38 a share, well off its recent high of $630.73 in November.

The company also said that it has suspended its annual outlook for 2025, to include ‘more types of benefit offerings than seen in the first quarter’ and because ‘the medical costs of many Medicare Advantage beneficiaries new to UnitedHealthcare remained higher than expected.’

‘The company expects to return to growth in 2026,’ the statement added.

In December, United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson was fatally shot in what police described as a “premeditated, preplanned targeted attack” in midtown Manhattan as he was walking to an investors’ conference. 

Luigi Mangione, now 27, was arrested after a five-day manhunt at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania.

He faces federal and state charges in New York and Pennsylvania in connection with the shooting. He has pleaded not guilty to the murder and terrorism charges in New York, and not guilty to federal stalking and murder charges. If convicted of federal charges, Mangione could be sentenced to death.

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Microsoft on Tuesday said that it’s laying off 3% of employees across all levels, teams and geographies.

“We continue to implement organizational changes necessary to best position the company for success in a dynamic marketplace,” a Microsoft spokesperson said in a statement to CNBC.

The company reported better-than-expected results, with $25.8 billion in quarterly net income, and an upbeat forecast in late April.

Microsoft had 228,000 employees worldwide at the end of June, meaning that the move will affect thousands of employees.

It’s likely Microsoft’s largest round of layoffs since the elimination of 10,000 roles in 2023. In January the company announced a small round of layoffs that were performance-based. These new job cuts are not related to performance, the spokesperson said.

One objective is to reduce layers of management, the spokesperson said. In January Amazon announced that it was getting rid of some employees after noticing “unnecessary layers” in its organization.

Last week cybersecurity software provider CrowdStrike announced it would lay off 5% of its workforce.

In January, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella told analysts that the company would make sales execution changes that led to lower growth than expected in Azure cloud revenue that wasn’t tied to artificial intelligence. Performance in AI cloud growth outdid internal projections.

“How do you really tweak the incentives, go-to-market?” Nadella said. “At a time of platform shifts, you kind of want to make sure you lean into even the new design wins, and you just don’t keep doing the stuff that you did in the previous generation.”

On Monday, Microsoft shares stopped trading at $449.26, the highest price so far this year. They closed at a record $467.56 last July.

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On Tuesday, Dick Vitale was told the four words he was so desperately waiting to hear.

You are cancer-free.

The longtime ESPN college basketball analyst, who has battled various forms of cancer since 2021, announced on social media that his doctors at Sarasota Memorial Hospital in Florida gave him a clean bill of health after reviewing his scans and bloodwork.

“I can’t believe it. I really am so excited,” Vitale said. “It brought me to tears when he delivered it because as cancer patients, you know that call is nerve-wracking. It’s life-changing. …I’m on cloud nine.”

Since undergoing surgery in the summer of 2021 to remove melanoma, Vitale has endured several different cancer diagnoses and treatments. He announced in October 2021 that he had been diagnosed with lymphoma and later that year, precancerous dysplasia and ulcerous lesions were found on his vocal cords.

Two years later, in July 2023, he was again diagnosed with cancer in his vocal cords, forcing him to undergo radiation treatments and in June 2024, a biopsy of a lymph node in his neck showed cancer.

During that four-year stretch, Vitale had to step away on several different occasions from calling games for ESPN, where he had become one of the faces of not only the network’s college basketball coverage, but the sport as a whole. He missed the entirety of the 2023-24 season before making his much-anticipated return for Clemson’s 77-71 win against Duke on Feb. 8.

‘There were moments I wasn’t sure I’d ever sit courtside again,’ he said to the Sarasota Herald-Tribune in advance of his first game back. ‘Long stretches where I had no voice at all. It was a roller coaster — highs, lows, moments of doubt. But through it all, I kept fighting, believing, and praying. The last time I called a game was on April 3, 2023, the national championship, UConn versus San Diego State for ESPN International. That feels like a lifetime ago. But now? Now, I get to do it again.’

Following the latest bit of good news, Vitale has some plans in mind.

“Celebration time tonight,” he said. “I’m going to have a great Italian dinner, man. I feel like I won the national championship.”

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Ohio State women’s basketball coach Kevin McGuff was arrested May 6 in a suspected drunk-driving incident, during which he was found parked in his own front yard, according to a police report cited by the Columbus Dispatch.

Police in Dublin, Ohio said they arrested McGuff on May 6 before later noting he was found in his Toyota Sequoia in an incident report on Tuesday.

Ohio State athletics told the Dispatch, which is part of the USA TODAY Network, that it is aware of the matter and following the situation.

‘This is an ongoing, personal legal matter, and the department will share additional information at the appropriate time,’ said Maria Slovikovski, associate director for communications at the department of athletics.

The report notes another driver called the police after seeing a Toyota Sequoia driving recklessly, hitting multiple curbs and driving partially through a yard. The report also states it took the driver more than two minutes to open the driver’s side door, and the driver denied being under the influence.

McGuff was asked to perform a field sobriety test at the scene and was asked to recite the alphabet from letters D to R. The report noted the instructions had to be repeated three times. He also refused to take a breathalyzer test.

McGuff was eventually taken into custody and charged with an OVI, or operating a vehicle impaired, in Ohio. He was released to his wife at 9:31 p.m., just more than an hour after being taken into custody. Since he refused a breathalyzer test, his driver’s license was also suspended.

McGuff, 55, has been at Ohio State since 2013 and has won four Big Ten regular-season championships. He led the Buckeyes to a Sweet 16 and Elite Eight appearance in back-to-back seasons in 2022 and 2023. He has a 224-109 career record at Ohio State after leaving Washington, where he coached from 2011-13.

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The 2025 PGA Championship is filled to the brim with juicy storylines for golf fans to enjoy.

No matter who you root for, who you follow, or who you want to see win it all, the 2025 PGA Championship is going to provide a myriad of intense rounds from the world’s best trying to dethrone 2024 champion, Xander Schauffele. Here are the pairings and tee times for the first two rounds of this weekend’s major tournament.

2025 PGA Championship pairings, tee times

*All times listed are Eastern

Thursday (Hole 1)/Friday (Hole 10) pairings

7:00 a.m./12:25 p.m.: Luke Donald, Padraig Harrington, Martin Kaymer
7:11 a.m./12:36 p.m.: John Somers, Taylor Moore, David Puig
7:22 a.m./12:47 p.m.: Kurt Kitayama, Nic Ishee, Alex Noren
7:33 a.m./12:58 p.m.: J.T. Poston, Ryo Hisatsune, Tom Johnson
7:44 a.m./1:09 p.m.: Davis Thompson, Bud Cauley, Nico Echavarria
7:55 a.m./1:20 p.m.: Harris English, Michael Kim, Thomas Detry
8:06 a.m./1:31 p.m.: Stephan Jaeger, Chris Kirk, Robert MacIntyre
8:17 a.m./1:42 p.m.: Thorbjørn Olesen, Karl Vilips, Laurie Canter
8:28 a.m./1:53 p.m.: Si Woo Kim, Sam Stevens, Rico Hoey
8:39 a.m./2:04 p.m.: Bobby Gates, Lee Hodges, Ben Griffin
8:50 a.m./2:15 p.m.: Thriston Lawrence, Nick Dunlap, Harry Hall
9:01 a.m./2:26 p.m.: Greg Koch, Marco Penge, Ryan Gerard
9:12 a.m./2:37 p.m.: Dylan Newman, Daniel van Tonder, Victor Perez
12:30 p.m./7:00 a.m.: Michael Kartrude, Sami Valimaki, Jake Knapp
12:41 p.m./7:11 a.m.: Erik van Rooyen, Michael Block, Mackenzie Hughes
12:52 p.m./7:22 a.m.: Lucas Glover, Max Homa, Joaquin Niemann
1:03 p.m./7:33 a.m.: Tyrrell Hatton, Will Zalatoris, Adam Scott
1:14 p.m./7:44 a.m.: Justin Thomas, Dustin Johnson, Collin Morikawa
1:25 p.m./7:55 a.m.: Jordan Spieth, Patrick Reed, Ludvig Åberg
1:36 p.m./8:06 a.m.: Hideki Matsuyama, Wyndham Clark, Tom Kim
1:47 p.m./8:17 a.m.: Bryson DeChambeau, Viktor Hovland, Gary Woodland
1:58 p.m./8:28 a.m.: Sergio Garcia, Daniel Berger, Russell Henley
2:09 p.m./8:39 a.m.: Justin Rose, Cameron Smith, Brian Harman
2:20 p.m./8:50 a.m.: Brandon Bingaman, Davis Riley, Sungjae Im
2:31 p.m./9:01 a.m.: Takumi Kanaya, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Tom McKibbin
2:42 p.m./9:12 a.m.: Keita Nakajima, Timothy Wiseman, Beau Hossler

Thursday (Hole 10)/Friday (Hole 1) pairings

7:05 a.m./12:30 p.m.: John Parry, Justin Hicks, Ryan Fox
7:16 a.m./12:41 p.m.: Andre Chi, Patrick Fishburn, Seamus Power
7:27 a.m./12:52 p.m.: Max McGreevy, Sahith Theegala, Sepp Straka
7:38 a.m./1:03 p.m.: Brooks Koepka, Rickie Fowler, Shane Lowry
7:49 a.m./1:14 p.m.: Phil Mickelson, Tommy Fleetwood, Jason Day
8:00 a.m./1:25 p.m.: Jon Rahm, Patrick Cantlay, Matt Fitzpatrick
8:11 a.m./1:36 p.m.: Corey Conners, Min Woo Lee, Rasmus Højgaard
8:22 a.m./1:47 p.m.: Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele, Scottie Scheffler
8:33 a.m./1:58 p.m.: Tony Finau, Nicolai Højgaard, Max Greyserman
8:44 a.m./2:09 p.m.: Andrew Novak, Keegan Bradley, Maverick McNealy
8:55 a.m./2:20 p.m.: Akshay Bhatia, Denny McCarthy, Sam Burns
9:06 a.m./2:31 p.m.: John Catlin, Garrick Higgo, Jesse Droemer
9:17 a.m./2:42 p.m.: Eugenio Chacarra, Rupe Taylor, Justin Lower
12:25 p.m./7:05 a.m.: Keith Mitchell, Bob Sowards, Adam Hadwin
12:36 p.m./7:16 a.m.: Eric Cole, Eric Steger, Cam Davis
12:47 p.m./7:27 a.m.: Austin Eckroat, Brian Bergstol, Jacob Bridgeman
12:58 p.m./7:38 a.m.: Niklas Norgaard, Byeong Hun An, J.J. Spaun
1:09 p.m./7:49 a.m.: Patrick Rodgers, Nick Taylor, Dean Burmester
1:20 p.m./8:00 a.m.: Joe Highsmith, Cameron Young, Aaron Rai
1:31 p.m./8:11 a.m.: Tom Hoge, Matthieu Pavon, Taylor Pendrith
1:42 p.m./8:22 a.m.: Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen, Patton Kizzire, Matt McCarty
1:53 p.m./8:33 a.m.: Tyler Collet, Jimmy Walker, Richard Bland
2:04 p.m./8:44 a.m.: Jason Dufner, Michael Thorbjornsen, Shaun Micheel
2:15 p.m./8:55 a.m.: Rafael Campos, Ryan Lenahan, Matt Wallace
2:26 p.m./9:06 a.m.: Jhonattan Vegas, Elvis Smylie, Brian Campbell
2:37 p.m./9:17 a.m.: Kevin Yu, Larkin Gross, John Keefer

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Of the 272 NFL games each season, more than 50 are played in prime time. The ratings in those windows are big deals to the league’s broadcast partners (and the league itself). Prime-time matchups almost singularly (aside from the Monday night doubleheader) command the attention of the entire fan base.

As the NFL starts releasing its marquee games of the 2025 season, here are 18 prime-time games – one for each week of the season – and we’ve done the work for the league (although it may be too late) by pointing out the nighttime matchups the public most wants to see.

(For the purposes of this exercise, ‘prime time’ means ‘Thursday Night Football’ (Prime Video), ‘Sunday Night Football’ (NBC/Peacock) and ‘Monday Night Football’ (ESPN/ABC/Disney).

Week 1 ‘SNF:’ Detroit Lions at Washington Commanders

Starting strong in a rematch of last year’s divisional round bout that ended with the Commanders throttling the Lions in Detroit. Dan Campbell’s Lions wouldn’t have to wait long for a shot at redemption. And the world would receive an early look at Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels, which is never a bad thing.

Week 2 ‘MNF:’ New England Patriots at Miami Dolphins

Instead of playing in the South Florida September heat, let the day pass by and let the Dolphins and the Patriots receive some relief from the elements by kicking this AFC matchup off in prime time. Patriots first-year head coach Mike Vrabel will look different in Patriots blue compared to his Tennessee Titans garb, but he’ll also look right at home since he played there. Plus, always good to get the Dolphins on early before the usual end-of-season drop-off.

Week 3 Prime Video: Buffalo Bills at Cincinnati Bengals

The Bengals’ Joe Burrow against the Bills’ Josh Allen is an underrated quarterback rivalry. And you know what plays great in prime time? This is a nice opportunity for Amazon to get away from its usual intra-division matchups.

Week 4 ‘MNF:’ San Francisco 49ers at Seattle Seahawks

Two teams who are hoping to look different than they did in 2024. Going to the NFC West for a fun prime-time watch is admittedly risky. But having a look at Sam Darnold in Seattle and figuring out whether the 49ers can return to the form that made them the taste of the NFC – when healthy – for a considerable stretch (contemporaneously holding that distinction with the Philadelphia Eagles).

Week 5 ‘SNF:’ Lions at Eagles

And speaking of those Eagles, here they are again. It would be odd if they hadn’t been on prime time once more before this point following the season kickoff on Sept. 4 against the Dallas Cowboys. Detroit on the schedule twice in five weeks with Mike Tirico and Cris Collinsworth on the call? Now that’s something to look forward to.

Week 6 ‘MNF:’ Green Bay Packers at Chicago Bears

The Bears, as my colleague Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz pointed out, are one of the teams that should receive more prime-time games this season. First-year head coach Ben Johnson should have some sea legs by then, and after he called out Packers head coach Matt LaFleur during his introductory news conference, the duo’s first meeting should be prime-time viewing.

Week 7 ‘TNF:’ Washington Commanders at New York Giants

Are the Giants moving in the right direction after a buzzy offseason? This would go a long way to finding that answer with Daniels and the Commanders coming to town on a short week.

Week 8 ‘MNF:’ Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers

Who knows what Aaron Rodgers is thinking at this point. But if he and the Baltimore Ravens’ Lamar Jackson are division rivals in one of the most recognized and respected brands in football, the AFC North, then at least one of those faceoffs has to be in prime time.

Week 9 ‘SNF:’ Eagles at Kansas City Chiefs

Super Bowl rematch is always going to get the prime-time treatment.

Week 10 ‘Prime’ TNF: Dolphins vs. Los Angeles Rams

People forget the Rams came the closest to upsetting the Eagles during last season’s run to the Lombardi Trophy. They should be in the mix again in 2025.

Week 11 ‘SNF:’ Atlanta Falcons at Minnesota Vikings

Quarterbacks Michael Penix Jr. and J.J. McCarthy were taken two picks apart in the 2024 draft. This would be a rematch of the 2023 college football national title game, when McCarthy’s Michigan Wolverines defeated Penix’s Washington Huskies.

Week 12 ‘TNF:’ Tennessee Titans at Jacksonville Jaguars

The Titans and Jaguars playing on a Thursday is a ritual by this point. But this year, there is the intrigue of the top two picks of the 2025 draft – Cam Ward and Travis Hunter, respectively.

Week 13 ‘MNF:’ Arizona Cardinals at Houston Texans

Cardinals signal-caller Kyler Murray and his Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud can be two of the most-electrifying players in the league. If Murray is healthy and Stroud regains some of his rookie-season form, a fun fireworks show on a Monday night is always appreciated.

Week 14 ‘SNF:’ Denver Broncos at Los Angeles Chargers

As the season enters the final stretch, let the playoff feels arrive with this AFC West matchup. Both are trying to dethrone the Chiefs in the division. But first they’ll have to outduel each other.

Week 15 ‘TNF:’ Carolina Panthers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Bucs’ run in the NFC South doesn’t always receive the proper recognition. It’s a make-or-break year for Bryce Young. What could be a division race kicks off Week 15.

Week 16 ‘MNF:’ Ravens at Bills

A rematch of last year’s AFC divisional round bout. Allen vs. Jackson. Yes please.

Week 17 ‘SNF:’ Bears at Lions

Nobody is saying the Bears are going to overtake the Lions in the NFC North this season. But it’s also fair to have playoff expectations for this Chicago roster. Their mettle will be revealed in a late-season date at Ford Field.

Week 18 ‘SNF:’ Bengals at Ravens

This is more of a ‘what do we want to see of massive consequence for game no. 272?’ I present to you a fantasy of mine for the 2025 season – the Ravens and Bengals prey on their AFC North foes, the Steelers and Browns and enter the final week of the season in a battle for first place. The winner retains a high seed (perhaps the No. 1 seed?) while the loser has to go on the road for the wild-card round (unless the proposal on behalf of the Lions, which would give home-field advantage to the team with a higher winning percentage, passes before then).

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U.S. Soccer on Tuesday revealed two brand new kits for the U.S. women’s and men’s national teams, both of which involved design input from players.

In a press release accompanying the kit reveal, U.S. Soccer said that Nike athletes Kellyn Acosta, Lynn Biyendolo, Naomi Girma, Sophia Wilson, DeAndre Yedlin, and Walker Zimmerman — each of whom has dozens of USWNT or USMNT caps — were involved in designing the kits, dubbed ‘Brilliant’ and ‘Heartbeat,’ respectively.

The ‘Brilliant’ kit is a USWNT-only edition, honoring the 40th anniversary of the women’s program. It features a star-based pattern, and will carry four stars above the U.S. Soccer crest to commemorate the team’s four World Cup triumphs.

‘To me, the kits represent the USWNT mentality of always pushing forward,” said Biyendolo, who helped the USWNT to a gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics, via press release. ‘I know I can speak for my teammates when I say that every time we put on the uniform, it brings a great sense of pride. When we represent our country, our team and ourselves, we know we are doing so while standing on the shoulders of giants. The ‘Brilliant’ kit is just another way to honor our past and the women who played before us.’

‘This collection represents Nike’s deep commitment to women’s soccer as an undeniable force that continues to elevate the game globally,’ added Maggie Gauger, Vice President/GM of Nike North America Women’s Business. ‘The refreshed designs honor the brilliance of the U.S. Women’s National Team — celebrating 40 years of legacy, resilience, and groundbreaking achievements both on and off the pitch.’

The USWNT will debut the ‘Brilliant’ kit later this month, when they host China in St. Paul, Minn. on May 31. The USMNT will carry on with its existing lighter kit, while both teams will begin wearing the predominantly navy blue ‘Heartbeat’ kit as their darker option. The USMNT’s first match in that kit will be a June 7 friendly against Turkey in East Hartford, Conn.

The kit launch has come as part of a mini-capsule that includes an all-red warm-up jersey and a pre-game anthem jacket in navy, red, and a lighter shade of blue.

USWNT new kit for 2025: Check out the ‘Brilliant’ jersey

USMNT and USWNT debut new ‘Heartbeat’ kit for 2025

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The U.S. State Department has determined and certified Cuba as a ‘not fully cooperating country’ (NFCC) for not helping with counterterrorism efforts after the island nation failed to turn over at least 11 fugitives in 2024 to U.S. custody.

State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce made the announcement on Tuesday that the certification, which falls under Section 40A of the Arms Export Control Act, will result in the prohibition on the sale or license for export of defense services to Cuba.

‘In 2024, the Cuban regime did not fully cooperate with the United States on counterterrorism,’ Bruce said in a statement. ‘There were at least 11 U.S. fugitives from justice in Cuba, including several facing terrorism-related charges, and the Cuban regime made clear it was not willing to discuss their return to face justice in our nation.’

‘The Cuban regime’s refusal to engage on this important issue, as well as other recent circumstances of non-cooperation on terrorism-related law enforcement matters, made efforts to cooperate on counterterrorism issues futile in 2024,’ she continued.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio not only certified Cuba as an NFCC, he also re-certified Iran, Syria, Venezuela and North Korea as NFCCs.

In January, the Biden administration lifted Cuba’s designation as a state sponsor of terrorism, reversing a move made by the Trump administration in 2021.

Former President Joe Biden said at the time that the Cuban government ‘has not provided any support for international terrorism during the preceding six-month period’ as well as ‘provided assurances that it will not support acts of international terrorism in the future.’

Cuba was given the designation in January 2021, shortly before Biden took office. At the time, the U.S. Embassy in Cuba accused the country of ‘repeatedly providing support for acts of international terrorism in granting safe harbor to terrorists.’

The designation returned the Caribbean nation to a list that it was on from the Reagan administration to that of former President Barack Obama. In 2016, Obama became the first U.S. president to visit Cuba since 1928.

The Obama administration attempted to normalize relations in 2015 but encountered resistance from President Donald Trump, whose administration recently argued that Cuba has failed to cooperate on counterterrorism.

State Department officials said Cuba refused to extradite 10 suspects wanted in Colombia for a police academy bombing that killed 22 people and injured dozens more. 

Authorities also accused Cuba of harboring multiple American fugitives, including Joanne Chesimard, also known as Assata Shakur. She was convicted of killing New Jersey State Trooper Werner Foerster in 1973.

In the summer of 2017, Trump imposed travel and financial restrictions on Cuba while blasting as ‘one-sided’ Obama’s 2016 deal with the regime.

Fox News Digital’s Andrea Margolis contributed to this report.

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McDonald’s announced a plan to hire 375,000 employees across the U.S. this summer.

The plan, announced on Monday, is one of the fast-food chain’s largest hiring pushes in years, according to a news release. It goes hand in hand with McDonald’s goal to open 900 new restaurants in the U.S. by 2027 and its plan to serve more customers during summer months.

Joe Erlinger, McDonald’s president for the U.S., met with Department of Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer at a location just outside of Columbus, Ohio, to announce the news. The hiring will be across McDonald’s company-owned and franchised locations, according to a company spokesperson.

The news comes amid the Trump administration’s push for businesses to invest more in the U.S. The White House reported that it secured more than $5 trillion in new investment promises in the U.S. during Trump’s first 100 days in office.

Those investments include a $500 billion plan in manufacturing by Apple, and $500 billion investment plans announced by Nvidia and by a coalition of companies including SoftBank and Oracle.

Earlier this month, McDonald’s reported its worst quarterly sales for the U.S. since the height of the pandemic in 2020.

The restaurant company reported U.S. same-store sales fell 3.6%, the largest three-month drop since Q2 2020, when they plunged 8.7%. Forecasts had been for a decline of just 1.7%.

McDonald’s executives told investors during a call that the reason for the decline was that ‘people are just visiting less,’ adding that traffic among middle-income diners fell by “nearly double digits” alongside an ongoing drop-off among low-income ones. As an example, they said more people appear to be skipping breakfast entirely to cut back on spending, or eating breakfast at home.

The fast-food chain has over 38,000 locations in over 100 countries, and is aiming for 50,000 by 2027.

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When it comes to scheduling, the NFL is hardly a meritocracy.

Spotlighting the top teams can be one of the driving factors for the league as it pieces together the intricate puzzle of a 272-game regular season. But an operation intent on attracting the most viewers doesn’t rely solely on records from the previous year to determine who should receive the most exposure in marquee broadcasts. Still, while the league might not budge from repeatedly featuring its biggest markets and most visible organizations, several franchises are due for a downtick in promotion.

With the schedule set to be released Wednesday, here are five NFL teams that deserve fewer prime-time games this year than they received last season:

New York Jets

Maybe it’s unfair for Aaron Glenn and Darren Mougey to have to pay for the sins of the previous regime. That’s sure to be a recurring theme for the Jets this season, however, and the trend applies here as well. No team was more overexposed last season than New York, which tied with the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers for the most prime-time slots initially granted with the league maximum of six. And while Aaron Rodgers’ torn Achilles in the 2023 opener could be blamed for sending that season sideways, last year went awry thanks to downright dysfunction too pervasive to escape.

The new leadership appears to be setting the right tone by trying to shoot for a steady rise rather than a rapid ascent, but the results might not be particularly flashy. A home date with the Pittsburgh Steelers could be ripe for a standalone spot given the potential reunion with Rodgers. But the league should otherwise give the public a break from Gang Green fatigue and allow Glenn to begin building without much fanfare.

Miami Dolphins

The 70-point performance that Miami posted against Sean Payton’s Denver Broncos in September 2023 feels far removed. While Mike McDaniel can still be a masterful play-caller, as evidenced by his ‘cheat motion’ move taking the league by storm, the book on his teams has been fairly straightforward. While the Dolphins have frequently raced past overmatched opponents, they’re just 1-12 in their last 13 games against teams with a winning record heading into the matchup. An uneven roster could take additional hit with the expected trade of cornerback Jalen Ramsey, and Tyreek Hill’s discontent doesn’t augur well for a group that continues to put more on Tua Tagovailoa’s shoulders. Maybe a few early-season spotlight games would be reasonable for Miami, but an outfit with this little staying power shouldn’t sniff the five prime-time matchups it was granted last spring.

Cleveland Browns

The NFL took a major leap of faith in handing the Browns four prime-time windows in 2024. At least Cleveland didn’t skimp on the entertainment factor in two of those games, as it delivered a surprising ‘Thursday Night Football’ upset of the Steelers in the driving snow and followed by Jameis Winston putting together one of the wildest outputs of the season (497 yards, four touchdowns, three interceptions) in a Monday night loss to the Broncos. By the end of the year, however, the league had seen enough and used the ‘Thursday Night Football’ flex for the first time ever to banish the Browns’ matchup against the Bengals to a Sunday afternoon kickoff.

Now, unless Shedeur Sanders defies odds to emerge from a four-way quarterback competition, Cleveland doesn’t present provide a compelling reason for anyone outside of AFC North fandom to tune in. With the Browns seemingly setting their sights on 2026 for a full reboot and separation from the Deshaun Watson era, maybe it’s best if everyone else also punts on any expectations for the organization in the upcoming season.

New York Giants

Like their MetLife Stadium co-habitants, the Giants have been disproportionately pushed on the masses for some time now. Despite signaling a clear downward trajectory after losing Saquon Barkley, Big Blue was given three prime-time games last season, as well as a standalone window in for the Berlin game and the Thanksgiving showcase. The results were brutal: New York fell in all five.

With the Thanksgiving snoozer against the Cowboys delivering the highest ratings of the regular season – and fourth-best numbers ever for a game on the holiday – it’s unlikely that one of the league’s most prominent brands will be pushed aside in scheduling matters. But if there were ever a time for the NFL to do so, this would be it. Russell Wilson’s post-Seattle Seahawks tour has been rife with disappointment, and the veteran signal-caller sizes up as uninspiring endpoint to the franchise’s desperate search for a solution behind center. And with general manager Joe Schoen publicly declaring that Jaxson Dart shouldn’t sniff action anytime soon as a rookie, an offense with a subpar supporting cast might be stuck with a quarterback who recently has been unable to rise above his surroundings. Malik Nabers and the souped-up pass rush are legitimate draws, but they can only do so much to compensate for the roster’s rampant shortcomings.

New Orleans Saints

Rebuilds are often necessary but seldom captivating. New Orleans has been resisting one for years, instead repeatedly trying to claw its way to the middle. But an aging roster and a rash of injuries left the Saints with a 5-12 mark last season that stands as the franchise’s worst record since 2005. And with the NFL’s youngest coach in Kellen Moore taking the helm and, more importantly, Derek Carr retiring, the time for a wide-scale reset appears to have finally arrived.

Yet New Orleans remains in somewhat of a liminal state, with the organization not yet fully embracing the tearing down nor building back up of its roster. That means the NFL might be left to sell second-round quarterback Tyler Shough and a group that was outscored 93-23 in three prime-time outings last season. Tossing the team anything more than a single ‘Thursday Night Football’ showing somewhere in the midseason doldrums represents a substantial risk.

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