After narrowly winning the top individual honor in football, Matthew Stafford decided to break a bit of news about his future.

In his acceptance speech after winning the 2025 NFL MVP award at Thursday night’s NFL Honors ceremony in San Francisco, the Los Angeles Rams quarterback confirmed he would return for the 2026 season.

“To my four beautiful daughters who I am lucky enough to be sharing the stage with … I am so happy to have you at the games, on the sideline with me, and I can’t wait for you to cheer me on next year when we’re out there kicking (butt),” Stafford said.

‘So, I’ll see you guys next year. Hopefully I’m not at this event, and we’re getting ready for another game at SoFi (Stadium, where Super Bowl 61 will be held).’

Cameras cut to Rams coach Sean McVay, who applauded the remark, and Rams running back Kyren Williams, who smiled and bounced as Stafford continued to speak.

Stafford confirmed to reporters afterward that he had not informed teammates or the coaching staff about his decision prior to Thursday night’s announcement.

‘It’s something I’d been thinking about and honestly talking with my family about, even before the season ended, whether or not they wanted me to continue to play and whether or not I felt like I wanted to keep playing,’ Stafford said. ‘I ended the season on a healthy note and was a part of a great team. I had a bunch of teammates in the crowd, some coaches in the crowd and it just felt like the right thing to do at the right moment. It’s a family decision – I had my girls with me – so it just felt right.’

Stafford, who turns 38 on Saturday, previously had remained noncommittal about his playing future after Los Angeles’ loss to the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC championship game.

McVay said earlier in the week he was keeping his ‘fingers crossed’ for another year from the quarterback.

‘(M)an, is he still playing at an incredible level,’ McVay said. ‘Our hope is that he does (return), but I think with respect to his timetable and ability to be able to communicate with you guys whenever he feels ready to make that announcement, we’ll let him be able to do that.’

Stafford beat out New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye by one first-place vote to take home the first NFL MVP Award of his career.

I’ve learned to celebrate New Year’s Eve with whoever’s next to me.

Before I started covering college football, I celebrated with friends and loved ones and a bit of rum.

Then, my career started taking me on the road.

Several years ago, I found myself in a Jacksonville, Florida, haunt when the ball dropped, a couple of days before covering the only bowl game Jeremy Pruitt would coach for Tennessee. The Vols won a thrilling Gator Bowl against Indiana. The less said, the better about the rest of the Pruitt era.

Two years later, New Year’s Eve took me to the press box at Jerry World, where Alabama beat Cincinnati in a College Football Playoff semifinal on the final day of 2021.

I was back on the trail with Alabama two years later. That New Year’s Eve got sidetracked when my Uber driver wrecked in Los Angeles. On the bright side, Uber comped my ride. The next day, I covered Nick Saban’s final game at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.

In 2022, the year before my eventful trip to California, I typed furiously at Mercedes-Benz Stadium as the new year neared. While others kissed up and down the East Coast, I watched Ohio State’s Noah Ruggles hook a field goal at midnight. Georgia prevailed by a single point.

Georgia’s 2022 playoff win set a high New Year’s Eve bar

Georgia’s 42-41 victory in that CFP semifinal in Atlanta remains the greatest playoff game I’ve ever covered, with apology to this year’s national championship.

But, it wasn’t my favorite New Year’s Eve. That came this past year, when the person next to me on New Year’s Eve was my wife.

No game or press box can compete with her.

I was lucky enough to draw the CFP quarterfinal game between Georgia and Mississippi in New Orleans in prime time on Jan. 1. The Superdome is just a 200-mile zip on I-10 from our house, so I decided to spend Dec. 31 at home and drive to New Orleans on game day.

This allowed for a rare treat: I watched a college playoff game on the couch with my wife.

She doesn’t have a favorite team, and she doesn’t watch much football, but games are more fun with a rooting interest, so she chose to root for “the U.”

Never has someone who deep down cared so little cheered so vigorously as my wife did when Miami’s Keonte Scott scored on a pick-six.

I got a kick out of seeing her newfound (and short-lived) fandom, but I didn’t much care who won that Cotton Bowl. I just wanted to see a good game.

We got one, a 24-14 Miami upset of Ohio State.

Then, we flipped the channel and let drunk Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen entertain us while we rolled dice and sipped cocktails, knowing we’d never catch Cooper or Cohen on the inebriation scale, but cherishing a New Year’s Eve at home together all the same.

The next day, I chronicled Ole Miss fans chanting “Pete! Pete! Pete!” and Trinidad Chambliss spinning, sprinting, passing and otherwise magicking the Rebels to a heroic takedown of Kirby Smart’s Bulldogs, while Lane Kiffin tweeted through it.

Yes, indeed, I drew a great CFP quarterfinal assignment, from the 31st through the 1st.

Why CFP won’t play on New Year’s Eve in 2026

Schedules change, though. Bowls rotate assignments. So, alas, I won’t call this tradition.

Dec. 31 falls on a Thursday in 2026. The CFP doesn’t want to go up against the NFL’s ‘Thursday Night Football.’ So, the CFP will take a one-year hiatus from having a New Year’s Eve game.

This season, one quarterfinal will be on Dec. 30, with three more on Jan. 1. No quarterfinals will be played in New Orleans. The Sugar Bowl has a semifinal on its dance card in mid-January. I suspect I’ll be there.

Don’t know yet where I’ll be on New Year’s Eve. Depends on which quarterfinal assignment I draw.

No matter where I am, I’ll celebrate with whoever’s next to me. Perhaps I’ll find myself next to a fellow sportswriter in a pub, before we cover a game the next day. Maybe, after ‘Thursday Night Football’ ends, the barkeep will flip the channel to see what Anderson and Andy are up to. (I have a guess.) Then, the next day, if we’re lucky, we’ll cover a game as good as the one I covered in 2022 in Atlanta.

That wouldn’t be bad. It just won’t match 2025.

Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network’s senior national college football columnist. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on X @btoppmeyer.

MILAN — As 232 athletes represent the United States at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina while political volatility and unrest divides their country back home, many American Olympians are experiencing ‘mixed emotions.’

‘It’s a little hard. There’s obviously a lot going on that I’m not the biggest fan of,’ American freestyle halfpipe skier Hunter Hess said on Friday, ahead of the opening ceremony. ‘Wearing the flag doesn’t mean I represent everything that’s going on in the U.S.’

Like Hess, U.S. aerials freestyle skier Chris Lillis feels conflicted about wearing red, white and blue. He told USA TODAY Sports that he’s ‘proud to represent our country’ on one hand, while simultaneously being ‘heartbroken’ over Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids and crackdowns taking place across the country. He proves that joy and pride can coexist with uncertainty, but Lillis said his participation shouldn’t be mistaken for complicity.

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‘I love the USA and I think I would never want to represent a different country in the Olympics,’ said Lillis, who won gold in the mixed team aerials event in Beijing in 2022. ‘With that being said, a lot of times athletes are hesitant to talk about political views and how we feel about things. I feel heartbroken about what’s happened in the United States. .. I think that as a country we need to focus on respecting everybody’s rights and making sure that we’re treating our citizens as well as anybody with love and respect.’

Lillis hopes to use the global platform provided by the 2026 Winter Olympics to showcase ‘the America that we’re trying to represent’ beyond the headlines. It’s the same sentiment U.S. hockey star Hilary Knight has carried into her fifth and final Olympic Games. She said the U.S. women’s national hockey is ‘America’s team in the best way’ and chooses to embrace all the good in the country.

‘What we stand for … We just hold on to that,’ Knight said Thursday after Team USA’s 5-1 win over Czechia, a preliminary matchup attended by U.S. Vice President JD Vance. ‘Whatever political climate is going on, we’re just trying to have a positive impact through our play and obviously show up and represent our country to the best of our ability. We are proud Americans, and there is great unity that we can find through sport together.”

Following her short program in the team figure skating event on Friday, reigning world champion Alysa Liu said U.S. Olympians have the opportunity to ‘show what American citizens are and who we are.’

‘I just want us to share stories, because I think we’re all very unique, and I think that’s what it’s about,’ added Liu, who has shared anti-ICE messages to her 354K followers on Instagram.

The Olympic Games promotes respect and inclusion through sports, a motto that two-time Olympic medalist halfpipe freeskier Alex Ferreira hopes can be adopted in the United States: ‘The Olympics represent peace, so let’s not only bring world peace, but domestic peace within our country as well.’

‘The political divide in the United States is very prevalent, and competition sports is always a way to bring people together ‘ added Quinn Dehlinger. ‘I think that this is just a great way to show one country.’

Halfpipe freeskier Birk Irving said competing for the U.S. at his second Games is a ‘special experience’ and noted that he’s representing his own values and the ‘community at home and those that have given us the opportunities to be here.’

Hess added, ‘I’m representing my friends and family back home, the people that represented it before me, all the things that I believe are good about the U.S., I just think if it aligns with my moral values, I feel like I’m representing it.’

Follow Cydney Henderson on X @CydHenderson

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CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy — Lindsey Vonn didn’t need to be at her best. She just needed to get down the mountain.

Vonn is now eligible to do the downhill at the Milano Cortina Olympics, having completed her training run without any issues Friday, Feb. 6. She made a small mistake at the bottom of the course and wasn’t going anywhere close to top speed; her time of 1:40.33 was the 11th-fastest of the day and third-best of the Americans.

But Vonn wasn’t favoring her left knee — the one with that torn ACL — and that counts as a win.

‘Just good skiing, no big risk,’ said Aksel Lund Svindal, the two-time Olympic champion who is now Vonn’s coach. ‘And to me it looked symmetrical. I didn’t see any differences right and left. And I think that’s kind of what we’re looking for today.’

There is another training run Saturday before the downhill race on Sunday, Feb. 8. But skiers only need to do one run in order to race, and Svindal said Vonn’s team will make a decision based on how her knee responds whether to do the second training run.

The initial training run, scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 5, was canceled after heavy snow in Cortina.

Vonn has a torn ACL, bone bruising and meniscus damage in her left knee from a Jan. 30 crash in the final downhill race before the Olympics. She has been doing intensive physical therapy since the crash, and posted a video of herself doing squats, lifting weights and jumping on Thursday, Feb. 5.

She is determined to race in Cortina, one of her favorite places, and Svindal said she’s never wavered from that.

‘Let’s just put it this way: She was the first one that said that she would,’ Svindal said. ‘Everyone else was supporting her but (also saying), `Let’s just take this day by day’ — including, let’s say, people with medical experience. So I think we’re all positive.

‘But she’s awesome,’ he added. ‘She was the first one to say that this is happening, I’m racing.’

Vonn had taken confidence from free skiing on Tuesday, Feb. 3. But those were not race-like conditions, and she acknowledged the training runs would be the true test on whether her knee can hold up.

‘As long as I can keep it stable, as long as I have the brace on, as long as I have no swelling, and my muscles are activating appropriately, I should be OK,’ she said earlier in the week. ‘But I can’t guarantee what it’s going to feel like once I get into some of the big turns. That’s what we’ll have to see after the first training runs.’

Vonn was clearly not going at full speed, but most skiers weren’t because of the soft and slushy conditions. Still, Svindal said he was watching for ‘symmetry,’ — her body looking the same on both the right and left sides.

So long as she has that, the speed will come.

‘The training run today was a bit off. Not bad … slower. But I think that’s what she should do. So that was good,’ Svindal said.

Vonn was in great spirits before the training run, posting multiple photos of herself and the rest of the U.S. women as they headed up the mountain and then again from the start area. During an hour-long delay because of dense fog, she and the rest of the Americans killed time by line dancing.

When she finally got on the course, Vonn didn’t back off. Again, she wasn’t at full speed, but she was aggressive in the turns and didn’t slow down before the jumps. She even took a hard landing off the last roller before the finish line.

Breezy Johnson, who’d started one spot in front of Vonn, was waiting in the finish area, and Vonn gave her a triumphant fist bump.

‘Free skiing is one thing, but it’s easy. Everyone can make a perfect turn when you decide when to make the turn,’ Svindal said. ‘When you are squeezed into a downhill course, it’s something very different and I thought it went really well.’

Vonn is a three-time Olympic medalist whose 84 World Cup wins are behind only American teammate Mikaela Shiffrin and Swedish men’s skiing legend Ingemar Stenmark. She was forced to retire in 2019 because of the physical pain from a series of injuries to her right knee.

But after having a partial knee replacement in April 2024, Vonn felt so good she began contemplating a comeback.

“I retired in 2019 because my body said no more, not because I didn’t want to continue racing,” Vonn told USA TODAY Sports in October. “So I feel like this could be an incredible moment to end this chapter of my life and move forward in a really exciting and peaceful way.”

Cortina was a big part of that.

Cortina has always been one of Vonn’s favorite places. She made her first World Cup podium there, winning a bronze medal in the downhill in 2004, and 12 of her 84 World Cup victories came there.

“It’s such a special place for me,” Vonn said in October. “I don’t think I would have tried this comeback if the Olympics weren’t in Cortina. If it had been anywhere else, I would probably say it’s not worth it.

“But for me, there’s something special about Cortina that always pulls me back.”

Vonn had mixed results after she returned to the World Cup circuit in 2024, but she finished the season with a silver medal in the super-G at the World Cup finals in Sun Valley, Idaho. After a full off-season to train and fine-tune her equipment, the 41-year-old Vonn was unstoppable.

She won this season’s first downhill, in St. Moritz, Switzerland, and another in Zauchensee, Austria. She was on the podium in all five downhill races in the 2025-26 season, and two of the first three super-Gs.

Vonn led the downhill standings, putting her in position to join Mikaela Shiffrin as the only skiers to win nine season titles in a single discipline. She also was second in the super-G standings and sixth in the overall heading into the Olympics.

The possibility of winning another season title even persuaded Vonn to rethink her retirement plans. After last week’s crash, however, Vonn is just trying to get to the starting gate for Sunday’s downhill.

‘That we have a chance,’ Svindal said when asked what he was thinking as he watched Vonn during the training run. ‘Because when she’s that committed, and she knows her body really well from multiple injuries, there is a chance.’

We’re only two days away from Super Bowl 60 in Santa Clara.

The New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks will meet Feb. 8 to decide who will win the Lombardi Trophy. After a week of festivities that included the 15th annual NFL Honors on Feb. 5, Super Bowl opening night, the Pro Bowl Games on Feb. 3 and more, it’s officially time to focus on the league’s annual finale.

USA TODAY Sports will provide the latest updates, highlights, news, quotes and more from Super Bowl week, leading up to Super Bowl 60 on Sunday. All times are Eastern.

Can you trust Madden NFL 26 to predict the Super Bowl 60 winner?

Per a USA TODAY analysis of Madden NFL video game picks dating back to 2004 — the first year publisher EA ran predictions — the simulation generally beats the odds. Madden has correctly predicted 13 of 22 Super Bowls for a 59% success rate, far eclipsing the 48% pick rate of the Vegas line during the same span, per Pro Football Reference. However, that success hasn’t come without its share of rough patches.

– Jared Beilby

Patriots’ Christian Gonzalez reps Colombia at Super Bowl 60

– Chris Bumbaca

Sonny Jurgensen, Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback, dies at age 91

Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Sonny Jurgensen has passed away at the age of 91, the Washington Commanders announced Jan. 6. You can read the full story here.

– Scooby Axson

What makes Jaxon Smith-Njigba elite? Inside Seahawks WR’s route-running prowess

USA TODAY NFL insider Tyler Dragon has spent a lot of time with the Seattle Seahawks late this season while charting the ascendence of the 2025 NFL Offensive Player of the Year. Read here to learn more about how the third-year pro has compiled a record-setting season.

– Tyler Dragon

Jim Schwartz resigns as Cleveland Browns defensive coordinator

Hours after his star player, defensive end Myles Garrett, won Defensive Player of the Year, Browns defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz resigned after getting passed over for the team’s head coaching vacancy, according to multiple reports.

Read the full story here.

– Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz

Matthew Stafford, Drew Brees, Larry Fitzgerald lead NFL Honors highlights

The NFL handed out its annual hardware Feb. 5, with Los Angeles Rams QB Matthew Stafford claiming the league MVP title in one of the closest votes in the award’s history.

The much-discussed 2026 Pro Football Hall of Fame class was also revealed, with Drew Brees, Larry Fitzgerald, Adam Vinatieri, Luke Kuechly and Roger Craig getting the call. Catch up on USA TODAY Sports’ coverage of the night here:

Brees and Fitzgerald (not Belichick and Kraft) headline Hall of Fame class
NFL MVP Matthew Stafford announces he’ll return to play for Rams in 2026 season
Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba named NFL Offensive Player of the Year
Browns’ Carson Schwesinger wins NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award
Tiffany Haddish mispronounces Patriots coach Mike Vrabel’s name at NFL Honors
Christian McCaffrey wins NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award
Mike Vrabel wins NFL Coach of the Year Award ahead of Super Bowl 60
Myles Garrett unanimously wins NFL Defensive Player of Year
Panthers WR Tetairoa McMillan wins NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year
2026 NFL Honors awards: Live updates, results on MVP and more winners

– Eric Larsen

Patriots vs. Seahawks playoff record

The Patriots and Seahawks have met once in the playoffs. That came in Super Bowl 49, a tightly contested game New England won 28-24.

Patriots vs. Seahawks regular-season history

The Patriots and Seahawks have met 19 times in the regular season in NFL history. Seattle has gotten the better of New England across those matchups, posting an 11-8 record.

When did the Patriots and Seahawks last play?

The Patriots and Seahawks last met during Week 2 of the 2024 NFL season. Seattle earned a 23-20 overtime victory after Jason Myers made a walk-off 31-yard field goal to cap off an eight-play, 71-yard drive after New England went three-and-out on the opening possession of the extra frame.

How much do Super Bowl 60 tickets cost?

According to Ticketmaster’s official website, the average annual Super Bowl ticket resale prices range from $4,000 to $6,000 before fees.

As of the afternoon of Wednesday, Feb. 4, the average price of the cheapest single ticket across multiple resale websites (StubHub, Ticketmaster, SeatGeek, Vivid Seats, etc.) is $4,785 with all fees accounted for. Last year, the average price of the cheapest tickets from the same resale websites was $3,374, including fees.

When is the Super Bowl?

Date: Sunday, Feb. 8

Super Bowl 60 is set to kick off on Sunday, Feb. 8.

What teams are playing in Super Bowl 60?

Teams: New England Patriots vs. Seattle Seahawks

The New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks are set to play in the Super Bowl this year. The Patriots are the designated home team for the event at Levi’s Stadium.

Super Bowl odds for Patriots vs. Seahawks

The Seahawks remain favored to beat the Patriots in Super Bowl 60 as of Feb. 6, according to the BetMGM NFL odds.

Spread: Seahawks (-4.5)
Moneyline: Seahawks (-235); Patriots (+195)
Over/under: 45.5

MILAN — Early in her short program performance, Alysa Liu didn’t quite land her double Axel, and she made a face because she immediately knew it.

“I can’t believe I did that,” Liu said. “Oopsies,” she thought to herself.

A mistake, but hardly enough to rattle the reigning world champion. 

“One jump landing won’t mean the next few will be the same,” Liu said.

It proved true, as Liu was poised the rest of the way to deliver a solid performance, capping off the first day of the figure skating team event at the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Her emotional routine to Laufey’s ‘Promise’ earned her a score of 74.90, second to Japan’s Kaori Sakamoto with a 78.88 score.

After that double Axel, Liu nailed her back-to-back triple Lutz and triple loop. Fellow American skater Amber Glenn was one of the several teammates near the ice to watch. She threw her head back and put her hand on her chest, seemingly relieved and proud Liu stuck the landings.

When Liu finished her program, the crowd showered her with cheers and her teammates, including Glenn, Ilia Malinin and Andrew Torgashev, waved their American flags and they rooted her on.

“I feel hype. Listen, I feel really good right now,” Liu said about her initial reaction to the performance, although she said she’ll have to watch it to get her true feelings. 

It helps when it’s a program to a song that is so personal to Liu. She mentioned it always “does something to me” and helps her dive deep into the emotions she portrays on the ice.

With the team event nearly halfway complete, Team USA sits in first place in the standings with 25 points. Japan is second with 23 points and Italy is in third with 22. Nine of those points came from Liu, with Madison Chock and Evan Bates capturing the full 10 in the ice dance rhythm dance. The pairs team of Ellie Kam and Danny O’Shea got six in their short program.

The team event also serves as a great indicator for where skaters line up in their discipline. It’s only the short program, but Liu is skating at a podium-worthy level, and capable of winning gold.

She didn’t realize it initially, but it could be some help for the 20-year-old when it’s time to get back on the ice again.

“Lowkey it did,” Liu said.

Atlanta Dream center Brittney Griner and WNBA legend Sue Bird are among the latest list of athletes calling out ICE.

On Thursday, Athletes for Impact, a network of athlete activists, shared an open letter titled ‘ICE OUT.’ Griner, Bird and nearly 60 women’s sports stars endorsed the statement. Among the notable names on the list were New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart, Diana Taurasi, Maya Moore and Megan Rapinoe. College stars Nebraska volleyball player Harper Murray and UCLA basketball guard Kiki Rice were also part of the group.

‘Across Minneapolis and communities nationwide, excessive and illegal federal immigration enforcement has led to fatal shootings, fear and trauma, reminding us how fragile safety becomes when power goes unchecked,’ the statement said.

‘When we say ‘ICE OUT’, we are calling for institutions and policies that uplift communities, not ones that fuel fear and violence.’

‘We’re so fueled by hate right now instead of love, so I wanted to have a simple message of ‘Abolish ICE,’ which means having policies to uplift families and communities instead of fueling fear and violence,’ Stewart said after speaking out against ICE.

‘It hits a little bit home for me because I’m from there,’ Dallas Wings guard Paige Bueckers, a Minnesota native, said.

‘What’s going on is not OK. We hope and pray there’s a change in direction from where this is heading.’