NFL

Ravens fire head coach John Harbaugh

18 seasons is a long time. It’s an extremely long career for a player, and perhaps even longer for a head coach, especially with one franchise. Inevitably, things got stale between the Ravens and Harbaugh, but that’s normal. Heck, the marriage between team and coach lasted longer than most actual marriages. Both sides got what they wanted — a Super Bowl — out of the relationship, and now they’ll move on.

What’s next is unknown. What we do know, however, is that both the Ravens and Harbaugh will be highly sought after. Baltimore, thanks in part to Lamar Jackson, instantly becomes the best head-coach opening in the NFL. The Ravens’ roster is in a slight transition period, but the team is ready to win. It also doesn’t hurt that Baltimore is a stable organization. Eric DeCosta will probably nail the upcoming hiring of Harbaugh’s replacement — even if the firing was a mistake.

Harbaugh’s next few days and weeks will be hectic. I don’t expect him to cash a check and sit out the 2026 season, but he’ll surely be selective in choosing his next job. The Giants appear to be the favorites to land his services, and that makes sense. These are fluid situations, though, and Harbaugh will certainly interview with at least a couple of prospective clubs. Regardless, the franchise that hires him will have struck gold.

This decision by Baltimore is dumbfounding, even in the event of staleness and possible friction. Harbaugh is worth fighting for, and now another team will have the Super Bowl champion fighting for them. This is a massive mistake — and loss – for the Ravens.

Grade: C-

Commanders fire offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury

It’s not completely clear whether this parting was mutual, but what matters is that Washington wanted to move on.

Don’t feel bad for Kinsgbury, though, as he’ll likely be in demand for some of the current — and future — offensive coordinator openings. The door isn’t closed for him to serve as an NFL head coach again, but the possibility of that happening in 2026 feels dim.

A lot can change in a year, and the Commanders’ vibes are a great example. Washington was riding high off an NFC Championship Game appearance in 2025, hoping to aim even higher in the future with the hotshot duo of Kinsgbury and Jayden Daniels. This season was a crash and burn for the whole organization, however, and it’s now hastily kicking Kingsbury to the curb.

The decision feels rash. Sure, there’s documented evidence of Kingsbury’s offense declining in success rate as seasons and years progress, but he’s a bright mind on that side of the football. His pedigree shouldn’t be taken for granted, yet it feels the Commanders are doing just that.

Now, entering Year 3, Daniels will need to learn a new offense. I don’t like where this is headed.

Grade: B-

Cowboys fire defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus

The Cowboys don’t do a lot of things well. They’re overridden with drama. They can’t advance deep in the playoffs. They do, however, excel at cycling through defensive coordinators. We could go back ages, but in recent memory, Dallas is set to hire its fourth defensive play caller in four years.

That’s bad, but at least the departure of Dan Quinn after the 2023 season was due to the Commanders hiring him as head coach. The same can’t be said for Mike Zimmer (2024) and Eberflus.

The Eberflus hiring was quizzical at the time, and it looks even worse after the Cowboys allowed an NFL-high 511 points this season. The Micah Parsons trade can be blamed ad nauseam, but there are other roster and organizational deficiencies holding Dallas back defensively.

The next defensive coordinator for the franchise will have his work cut out. Hopefully, this time around, he’ll be afforded the gift — at least two years — of time. With Jerry Jones in charge, don’t count on it.

Grade: A-

Lions fire offensive coordinator John Morton

I was surprised that Dan Campbell reached outside — at least somewhat — of the organization to hire Morton last year. Yes, Morton served as a senior offensive assistant for Detroit in 2022, but promoting from within to replace Ben Johnson felt sensible.

As it turns out, arguably nobody was right. Campbell certainly wasn’t, as hiring Morton flopped to the point that the head coach took over offensive play-calling duties late in the season. I was probably wrong too. The direction of the next Lions offensive coordinator likely will be a new voice, not somebody already in the building.

No matter what happens, the next hire will be faced with a blessing and a curse. Detroit boasts a talented group of offensive playmakers, though some recent attrition along the offensive line could play a diminishing role in the unit’s success. Regardless of the personnel, the pressure will be the curse. The Lions are in win-now mode, and struggles on offense won’t be tolerated.

Grade: A-

Commanders fire defensive coordinator Joe Whitt

Kliff Kinsgbury’s dismissal was more surprising, but Whitt’s departure was more necessary. Washington sported an incredibly old — and injured — defense this season, so light struggles would’ve been forgivable. The struggles, however, were major at times, as the Commanders fell well short of preseason expectations.

The defense in Washington ultimately is controlled by and falls upon Dan Quinn. For Whitt, that made him an easy target for the franchise’s upcoming reshuffling on that side of the ball.

Grade: A-

NBA

Cavaliers 120, Pacers 116

This game was decent! Unfortunately, I was barred from watching the finish due to technical difficulties for FanDuel Sports Network Ohio. This is 2026, so errors like that are unacceptable.

Cleveland played this contest without Donovan Mitchell, out due to planned rest. Normally, the deficit the Cavaliers faced last night would’ve been erased by Mitchell, likely in the fourth quarter. Instead, the team had to turn in a different direction, but the final result was all the same.

Beating a limping 6-31 Pacers team is no cause for celebration, however. Darius Garland had a good night, though, and was mostly responsible for Cleveland prevailing.

Garland finished with 29 points, two rebounds and six assists.

You have to look hard to find positives about the 2026 Pacers, a franchise in one of the most obvious transition seasons ever. Last night, Jay Huff had arguably the game of his career, tallying 20 points on just 10 shots. Huff had Jarrett Allen on skates at times.

Wizards 120, Magic 112

These Wizards felt like an all-time bad team earlier in the season, but a recent 6-4 stretch has erased that notion. Now, Washington is a somewhat fun story that’s building something. Still, the Wizards need the ping pong balls to bounce their way in May. A top-three pick would do wonders for this organization.

I caught precisely zero of this game. (Spoiler alert: it’s impossible to watch every game of every day and don’t believe anyone that tells you otherwise. They’re lying.)

I did notice, though, that Washington’s lead for most of the game was larger than the final score indicates. That, of course, makes last night even more impressive.

The Magic have some problems to shake off. January in the NBA is the time to do that, so at least Orlando has the calendar working for it. Unfortunately, the team’s starting lineup was not working hard yesterday, as the unit was benched throughout the Magic’s comeback effort.

In the end, Orlando went out with a whimper. Paolo Banchero and Anthony Black combined for just 20 points.

Grizzlies 106, Spurs 105

The end of this contest was hectic. De’Aaron Fox offered some good and bad, and somehow Jeremy Sochan attempted the biggest shot of the night for the Spurs, an open corner three late in the game. The probability of Sochan’s shot going in felt low as it left his hands, and that’s to be expected for a player shooting 26.9% from deep on the year.

Cam Spencer’s performance raised my eyebrows, as he posted 21 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. The guard also hit the go-ahead shot for Memphis. How good are the Grizzlies at identifying unheralded gems?!

The Spurs are still working Victor Wembanyama back into the equation. He was limited to just 21 minutes yesterday, but still scored 30 points and grabbed five rebounds. Wembanyama is a top-ten player, at worst.

Timberwolves 122, Heat 94

This game received national-TV treatment on NBC, but it wasn’t worthy of such acclaim. Minnesota’s starters had no problem dispatching the Heat, as the unit combined for 85 points. Anthony Edwards had 26 of those on 18 field-goal attempts.

For Miami, Bam Adebayo limped to a 3-of-11 line, culminating in just seven points.

The Heat face the Bulls in Pacers in their next two games, so the opportunity to bounce back is there.

Lakers 111, Pelicans 103

The Pelicans’ court last night spooked me, as it looked more suited for Halloween than early January.

LeBron James wasn’t scared of New Orleans yesterday — well, no NBA teams and players are these days — as the 41-year-old posted 30 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. A normal, less-aggressive night from James probably would’ve been enough, since Luka Doncic also dropped 30 points.

Marcus Smart looked banged up at the end of this contest, so his status could be something to monitor. Los Angeles faces the Spurs in San Antonio tonight.

The 8-30 Pelicans shouldn’t feel good about their record, but they have to be feeling good about rookie Derik Queen. Yes, the process of trading for Queen was bad. Surrendering an unprotected first-round pick was bad. No, that’s not an indictment on Queen, a phenomenal young big.

Queen flirted with a triple-double in this loss, recording 10 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists. Queen wasn’t the star of the show for the Pelicans, however, as Trey Murphy exploded for 42 points. If the Pelicans trade Murphy in the next eight or so months, they better receive a haul. I don’t trust Joe Dumars to handle those negotiations, and Pelicans fans shouldn’t either.

NCAAB

Ohio 86, Massachusetts 83

This was a decent game to kickoff the evening. In a tilt of two evenly matched MAC teams, the result was expected.

Javan Simmons had a great game, as his bruising, unorthodox scoring style overpowered the Minutemen. Jackson Paveletzke’s passing (10 assists) was the cherry on top.

For Massachusetts, it was a tough night for Marcus Banks. The guard is normally looking to get himself good looks, but Ohio defended him well. The Bobcats shaded towards Banks and offered quick closeouts on his catches. The result was a 6-of-16, 14-point game.

(2) Michigan 74, Penn State 72

I didn’t foresee a game this close. After all, Penn State ruled out promising freshman point guard Kayden Mingo before the contest, prompting many, like myself, to expect a blowout. For that, the Nittany Lions deserve credit, as Bryce Jordan Center is a hard place to win.

As hard as it may be, though, Penn State is now 0-4 in Big Ten play. It might take a while too for the Nittany Lions to earn their first conference victory, as they travel to fifth-ranked Purdue on Saturday.

Michigan got through this game, but it wasn’t pretty. The Wolverines’ performance was littered with bad turnovers and shaky rebounding.