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Finally, seven months after Super Bowl LX ended, the NFL has returned. But who will be hoisting the Lombardi Trophy at SoFi Stadium this upcoming Valentine’s Day? As the 2026 NFL regular season kicks off with a rematch of Super Bowl LX on Wednesday, we made our predictions for who will play in and win Super Bowl LXI. The Seattle Seahawks are the reigning Super Bowl champs, but we aren’t too bullish on their chances of repeating. And we don’t think the New England Patriots will return to the Super Bowl this year, either. So, which two teams will go head-to-head in Los Angeles in February? There was only one team that was picked to win the Super Bowl twice among the seven of us, while one of us also predicted that the Dallas Cowboys will return to glory this season. Here are our full Super Bowl picks ahead of the start of the 2026 NFL season. Henry McKenna: Looking at the rosters as they are now, it’s impossible to convince me that the Rams aren’t the most logical and simple selection. There is no team that’s more complete. There is no team that has a better and more proven head coach. Their quarterback, Matthew Stafford, is top three. Their WR1, Puka Nacua, is top three. Their defensive line is No. 1. Their top pass rusher, Myles Garrett, is No. 1. And even looking past their superstars, there really isn’t a weakness on their depth chart. So while I love a few teams to surprise, including the Bengals (simply by getting to the Super Bowl), I can’t convince myself that there is any team more likely to win the Super Bowl than the Rams. They are the runaway favorites, more than any year I can remember since 2007; it’s not even close. Score prediction: Rams 26, Bengals 20 Ralph Vacchiano: Ralph Vacchiano: Sean Payton is on a mission to put right what once went wrong, and it’s probably not best to stand in his way. He had the best team in the AFC last season and home-field advantage in the AFC Championship Game, and if he hadn’t lost quarterback Bo Nix to a broken ankle one week earlier, he almost certainly would’ve been coaching in his second Super Bowl. This year he has an even better team. If he can just have a little better luck and health, no one in the AFC will beat them. As for the Bears, their road will be loaded because they have to survive a bruising division and find a way past the loaded Rams and defending champion Seahawks. But the Seahawks aren’t what they used to be and the Rams have age and extensive travel issues to overcome. The Bears are a young up-and-comer in the NFC. Their team, and quarterback Caleb Williams in particular, also made a remarkable turnaround in Year 1 of the Ben Johnson Era. Now that they understand what he’s doing, Year 2 could be off the charts. Score prediction: Broncos 31, Bears 24 Ben Arthur: With all due respect to the Seahawks, who allowed the fewest points in the NFL last season, the Texans have the best defense in the league. They’re the most feared, at least, with All-Pro and Pro Bowl talent on every level. It was a unit so good that it could’ve dragged Houston to the Super Bowl last year in spite of offensive inconsistencies, but C.J. Stroud’s disastrous, four-interception performance in the divisional round to the eventual AFC champion Patriots was too much to overcome. Stroud may never reach his rookie year heights again, but he should be at least an average starter this season (what he was for most of 2025, by the way) — with a stronger run game and plenty of motivation from his uncertain, long-term future. A Texans team that stays on schedule offensively and maintains its dominance defensively can win the AFC and even take down the mighty Rams, who are as hyped as any team we’ve seen in NFL history. Score prediction: Texans 24, Rams 21 Steven Ruiz: If you’re picking against the Rams, you’re betting on them not being at full strength by the time the playoffs roll around. Given the age or usage of some of their key players, it isn’t a bad bet. But on paper, Los Angeles has the league’s best roster, perhaps its best coach and the reigning MVP at quarterback. The Seahawks have enough to push the Rams even if they’re healthy — which is why I’m predicting another matchup between these teams in the NFC title game — but I can’t say the same for any other team in the league. The AFC is more difficult to predict. I’ll take the Bills, who have everything they need on offense and should improve defensively with new coordinator Jim Leonhard. They’ll beat Baltimore in a surprisingly low-scoring game to make their first Super Bowl in three decades, only to get blown out by the Rams two weeks later. Score prediction: Rams 38, Bills 17 Greg Auman: The battle of Los Angeles! Both L.A. teams competing for a ring in their home stadium is maximum Los Angeles. The Rams have already won a championship there, but the Chargers have a chance to be the story of 2026, with offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel getting Justin Herbert to places he’s never been before. The Rams will be the team to beat all season, so it won’t be easy to beat Matthew Stafford, Myles Garrett and Aaron Donald, but that’s what we’re calling. The Chargers will need to stay healthy in a way they couldn’t last year, but watch out for running back Omarion Hampton emerging behind a dominant offensive line. Score prediction: Chargers 24, Rams 21 Eric D. Williams: The talk nationally all offseason has been about the super team the Rams have built this year. And the Seahawks use that disrespect as motivation to repeat as champions for the first time since the Chiefs accomplished that feat in 2023. Speaking of the Chiefs, Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid rebound from a disappointing season last year to reach the Super Bowl together for the sixth time, but they come up short against Mike Macdonald’s aggressive defense. Score prediction: Seahawks 28, Chiefs 24 Bucky Brooks: The Cowboys finally end their Super Bowl drought behind a dynamic offense and opportunistic defense. Dak Prescott caps off his MVP regular season with a spectacular performance that helps America’s Team secure the world title. Score prediction: Cowboys 31, Texans 24​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

NEW YORK — A few days ago, an imposing 6-foot-7 outfielder appeared at the door to Aaron Boone’s office in the visitor’s clubhouse at Petco Park. Aaron Judge showed up, unannounced, and told the Yankees skipper that he was ready to go. Yankees outfielder Trent Grisham had just been placed on the injured list with a hamstring strain. The club needed help on the field. Judge had been nursing a fractured right rib since the end of May, but he was toward the end of his ramp-up and recovery timeline. Judge believed he was ready to play. Boone said no. There were still a few more boxes the Yankees captain needed to check before being cleared to return, and Boone was not going to risk rushing Judge back because of another player injury. There were people to call, and processes that had to be cleared that had nothing to do with how badly Judge wanted to be back in the lineup, and everything to do with the Yankees making sure he wouldn’t re-injure himself or aggravate the fracture. No amount of hope or anticipation or roster needs would change the plan. So Judge spent the team’s off-day on Monday at Yankee Stadium checking all those remaining boxes. He faced live pitching. He replicated going out to right field and playing defense for a few innings. He ran the bases. Judge came away from it all with no issues. The Yankees were pleased with what they saw. Finally, they gave Judge the answer that he was expecting to receive months ago. On Tuesday at Yankee Stadium, Judge was back after being sidelined for over three months. But he was on a leash, and that bothered him. Judge played six innings and went 0-for-3 before Boone pulled him from the Yankees’ 5-3 win in the series opener against the Rockies. His timing was clearly off as he flew out to center and struck out twice. He expected it, to some extent. These at-bats are equivalent to his spring training build up. And even though Boone warned him before Tuesday’s game that he would be pulled early, Judge was still miffed when it actually happened. Judge and Boone had a long chat on the dugout steps after the sixth inning about it. The eight-time All-Star made it his case to stay in the game. “We got Cam [Schlittler] on the mound, so I’m probably not going to get a lot of action anyway,” Judge said, reiterating his conversation with Boone. “What’s the difference between me standing out there for nine innings or standing out there for six?” His request was denied. Hours later, Judge was clearly still stewing over the manager’s decision. “I feel good. I played half a game. So I’m not too sure what to say about that,” said Judge, who was uncharacteristically peeved and not even trying to hide it. “Obviously, whatever [Boone] says, I’m going to do. But I’m not happy about it.” That was the tradeoff. Judge advocated for skipping a minor-league rehab assignment that would be considered standard for a player who hasn’t seen live pitching since May 31. The Yankees obliged. Better to have Judge’s bat in their lineup than be wasted in minor-league games. In lieu of Judge spending a week wearing a Scranton RailRiders uniform, the Yankees will treat his initial return to the major-league lineup like a rehab assignment. He won’t play full games at the outset. He won’t start every game in their series against Colorado. Every inning he takes right field will be measured against an internal plan built by the team, not by how Judge feels. That plan exists because how he feels has never been the problem. If it was up to Judge, he would’ve continued to play through his injury and avoided missing any time at all. “He’s been champing at the bit,” Boone said, and it wasn’t a compliment. It was a small reveal of how difficult it has been for Boone and the Yankees to keep Judge sidelined despite his readiness and impatience to play. Even now, with Judge single-handedly bringing the electricity back to the Bronx, the return everyone wanted comes with more restriction than freedom. Even Hal Steinbrenner, the Yankees owner, wanted to be in the loop before Judge was cleared to go. Unlike his dad, George, Steinbrenner is not known to meddle in baseball operations. He typically stays out of day-to-day decisions, preferring to leave that up to Boone and longtime Yankees general manager Brian Cashman. But, on Monday, after Judge took live at-bats, played the field, ran the bases, and was cleared to return by the team strength and conditioning coach, Brett McCabe, and the rest of the training staff, Boone called Cashman and Steinbrenner and asked them to weigh in on the decision. Boone said Steinbrenner wanted to be in the loop, which underscores how much the Yankees have riding on Judge. He is essential to their goal of going all the way, and he knows it. Of course, the back-to-back reigning American League MVP’s instinct was to go out there and play. The team needed him, he felt he was ready. What’s the problem? But the Yankees are walking a delicate tightrope, even if they won’t admit it. Judge has been “asymptomatic” for several weeks now, according to Boone. In other words, he doesn’t feel any pain or restriction when he’s going through baseball activities. And yet, the Yankees would still prefer Judge to be careful in right field, particularly on diving catches, since that’s how he fractured his rib in the first place. “I’d like him to be cautious with that stuff, and he will,” Boone said. “And the one thing, even though he probably got hurt doing something like that, if you really watch over the last several years, he’s done a good job of learning how to reign it in and not do things in certain situations. So he is aware of those things, probably even more hyper-aware of them now, obviously. The one thing is, watching him move out there, he’s moving really well, albeit avoiding certain things.” Is it realistic to expect Judge, who has built his reputation on giving maximum effort, to actually change that wiring? Can he really dial it back? “I hope I’m playing every day,” Judge said. “But I’m not the manager. So you have to talk to him. Hopefully I can play more than six innings.” The reality is, the Yankees need a still-easing-in Judge to be the three-time MVP Judge to catch Tampa Bay in the division race. The Rays (86-58) lead the AL East by four games, with New York (82-62) right behind them, trying to avoid another wild-card series against the Red Sox and earn a bye week before the ALDS instead. The stakes are already high, and they’ll only get higher in October. So, on a nightly basis, Boone will be fighting against the urge to keep Judge in the lineup for just one more at-bat, weighing whether one more swing will be the one that wins them the game, or potentially re-injures him. Boone said the Yankees are going to be smart about how they handle that balance, but it’s not like talking to Judge about their processes will be helpful. It’s hard to imagine Judge will say anything except he’s feeling good enough to go out there and play. Even back in May, when Judge knew something was wrong, he played through the injury because of how many other players were sidelined at the time. Now, at least, the Yankees have the luxury of a full-ish roster on the position-player side. Besides Grisham (hamstring strain) and Giancarlo Stanton (calf strain), who could both potentially come back at some point this year, the Yankees lineup is set for the postseason. Judge’s presence in that lineup is a requirement for the Yankees to go back to the Fall Classic, and even though Judge alone is not going to carry the offense, he certainly has a ripple effect. While he was out, the Yankees offense struggled mightily to generate runs. Since June 2, which is the date Judge officially went on the IL, New York has ranked 26th in the majors in runs scored (341) and slugging percentage (.385), and 29th in batting average (.227) and batting average with runners in scoring position (.216). From Opening Day to May 31, the Yankees ranked fourth in the majors in runs scored (305), second in slugging (.436), 13th in batting average (.243) and seventh in batting average with runners in scoring position (.270). When Judge is in the lineup, he makes everyone around him better. He offers protection, forcing opposing pitchers to attack the zone against hitters like Ben Rice and Cody Bellinger who typically precede Judge in the order. And even now, while Judge’s timing is off, the best plan of attack for opposing pitching staffs might be to walk him and take their chances against the batter after him. Which is why, more than anything, the Yankees just need Judge to play it safe. Just like a few days ago in San Diego, when Judge told Boone he was ready to give the team his all, Boone and the Yankees have to continue to hold firm. Right now and in the weeks ahead, Judge needs to be managed as much for his instincts as for his health. Hence, the leash. “He was not real pleased with me taking him out,” Boone said. “The ultimate competitor in him wants to be out there because he’s done a lot of work to prepare, to be ready to play. And I know in his mind he feels he is very much ready to play and go the distance. But, it’s my job to be smart here. Especially these first several games.”​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

The cold war brewing on the bayou has temperatures running hotter than a stovetop. Five days after SEC commissioner Greg Sankey took the stand in Baton Rouge, the SEC amended a complaint in an Alabama federal court Tuesday morning, disclosing the league will hold a meeting this week to “decide whether to terminate” LSU as a member of the SEC over its attempts to add former professional athletes to its football roster, per court documents. The unprecedented move squarely addresses the seriousness of the proceedings between the league and stakeholders in Baton Rouge that range from campus to the Governor’s mansion and escalates a fight that has only grown in hostility in recent weeks. “The SEC and its member universities have the right to establish, through agreed-upon governance procedures, the rules under which they voluntarily compete and to expect those rules to be followed,” the league said in a statement provided on Thursday. “A commitment to those rules, and to the core principles of the Southeastern Conference, is an essential element of SEC membership.” The clash between league and member has seen a dispelling of pearl clutching across the SEC, replacing it with almost daily haymakers stiffer than what Lane Kiffin’s Tigers hit Clemson with on Saturday night in Death Valley, while this week has the potential to further ramp up the hostilities. But before going there, let’s backtrack. How we arrived here is its own tale. The NCAA instituted a new-look eligibility statute this summer that will allow athletes five years to play five seasons in their respective sport, compared to the flood of waivers and other inconsistencies under the former five years to play four seasons stipulation. The line drawn by college sports’ governing body was between the 2022 and 2023 high school classes — the former having to complete their careers under the old rules. That decision has led to myriad court cases across the country, while also opening the door — particularly in the case of LSU — for athletes who had previously signed contracts with professional teams to attempt to return to college for an extra year of eligibility. The Louisiana of this all played out across a pair of court proceedings: One that involved more than 30 athletes, including former Ole Miss football players Dae’Quan Wright and Xzavian Harris, and another centered on former men’s basketball All-American RJ Luis. Wright, Harris and Luis had each signed contracts with professional teams and, under rules spelled out by the SEC and other leagues across the country, would be unable to return to college sports. That is, until a Louisiana judge issued a ruling on Thursday that paved the way for LSU to, in fact, add those players without threat of punishment from the SEC. “Today, justice was served to the SEC like a cold cup of gumbo,” said the plaintiff’s attorney, Tony Clayton, on Thursday night. “And that judge forced them to eat it.” The SEC — at least as of Tuesday — doesn’t appear inclined to eat what Clayton is serving. The filings released publicly this week reveal what has been felt behind closed doors for months: that the league wants to enforce its own rules and create its own arm of self-governance, but pushback has created an almost untenable position. There are many main characters here. Sankey. Kiffin. LSU brass. Even Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry is involved. All have helped create a narrative befitting of a John Grisham novel. The filing on Tuesday called into question Kiffin’s motives and puppetry behind the scenes in attempting to bring back Wright and Harris, despite their professional contracts. It alluded to a consensus that the league’s presidents had concerns with senior leadership at the university, the way it has handled legal proceedings in Baton Rouge and that, specifically, President Wade Rousse and athletics director Verge Ausberry have “no meaningful control” over the football program and Kiffin. It also took issue with prodding from LSU’s enigmatic lightning rod of a head coach during halftime of the Tigers’ season opener on Saturday. “Imagine if we’d have had pro players,” Kiffin told ESPN’s Holly Rowe as he headed for the locker room with a 31-3 lead. The filing cited Kiffin’s comments as justification for Tennessee President Donde Plowman to conduct a special meeting Thursday to “consider the termination of LSU’s membership in the SEC, whether LSU renounces its intention to roster and play professional players on its football team, or not,” per court documents. The broader question, one that looms over LSU’s ongoing game of chicken with the SEC, however, is where would the Tigers even go? Sources who spoke with me on Tuesday suggest the Big Ten would have little interest in the Tigers given the way recent weeks have played out. There is also the necessary relationship between commissioners Tony Petitti and Greg Sankey that would almost certainly be soured over such a move amid talks of College Football Playoff expansion and other looming conversations. Sentiments in the ACC and Big 12, however, are squarely mixed. “I am sure it would be a mixed reaction by ADs in the room,” said one Big 12 source. “But if we didn’t, I guarantee some other conference would.” “I think you’d have to for stability and revenue,” added an ACC source. “But it would be utter chaos.” There is, of course, the independent route. LSU athletics reported more than $120 million in revenue annually since 2015 and pushed past almost $200 million or more since 2022, per the Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database. The school also reported at least $60 million in donor contributions each year since 2022. But for the kind of national brand that is Notre Dame, Ohio State or even USC, LSU remains inherently regional and tied to a state of just 4.5 million people. Is that enough to entice a television partner to grant the Tigers a deal on par with the Fighting Irish’s $50-ish million they receive annually from NBC? “The question isn’t if the Big 12 is a landing spot for LSU,” said another industry source. “But the real question is does LSU think they’re better than the Big 12 and ACC?” Based on Tuesday’s filings and Wednesday’s looming hearing, we might actually get an answer.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

Tuesday, in a traditional NFL game week, is a day off. We’re here to help you through that, as the last word wrapping up the weekend was and the first look at what’s still ahead. Each week, we’ll take you inside the league, making the extra call, researching a wild stat and introducing the names and faces that will shape the 2026 season in success and struggle. And while we’re introducing things, the NFL will have 21 new offensive coordinators this season, a testament to the boom-or-bust nature of the job, where you’re either hot enough to become a head coach or ordinary enough to get fired. The middle ground is a thin strip of land, such that every NFL team will play more than half its schedule against new offensive coordinators. As if starting a season in Australia weren’t challenge enough, the San Francisco 49ers will play 15 of 17 games against new offensive coordinators: their first eight opponents and their final seven. The Las Vegas Raiders, Los Angeles Chargers and New England Patriots have 14 such games as well, and especially early in the season, it’s that much harder to prepare, not knowing exactly what an opponent’s offense will actually look like. To appreciate the full range of which way a new offensive coordinator can go, consider the Seattle Seahawks. Their new offensive coordinator in 2024, Ryan Grubb, got fired and is now back in college football at Alabama. His replacement, Klint Kubiak, parlayed a Super Bowl championship into becoming head coach of the Raiders. The new offensive coordinator you’re perhaps least likely to have heard of before is Seattle’s Brian Fleury, a defensive assistant as recently as 2019 and the 49ers’ tight ends coach the last four years. Game prep for Week 1 games can often mean pulling tape from a coach’s previous stops, sometimes even in college, to better anticipate what’s coming. Then you have games like Cardinals-Chargers, where Arizona has a new head coach in Mike LaFleur and a new offensive coordinator in Nathaniel Hackett going up against a first-time defensive coordinator in Los Angeles’ Chris O’Leary, who spent 2024 as the Chargers’ safety coach and was defensive coordinator at Western Michigan last year. “With a lot of new faces calling plays in the league, you approach it like early games on your schedule,” O’Leary told me. “You use old film in the early parts of the year to see what they’ve done historically and also see what those teams have done in the past to make their current roster of players successful. “As the season goes on, you have film from earlier in the season that you put a heavier emphasis on, but still watch that old tape to have a big picture of what those playcallers like to do and their tendencies.” Want an underdog to root for in 2026? Try nearly any defending division champ. Finishing in first place means a first-place schedule, and while that’s only three games out of 17, it sets up a default expectation of regression for the best teams of last season. Of eight defending division champs, just one is the oddsmakers’ favorite to repeat: the Philadelphia Eagles, who are still predicted to finish a game ahead of the Dallas Cowboys (via projected win totals). But four other division champs — the Denver Broncos, Chicago Bears, Pittsburgh Steelers and Carolina Panthers — face the third-best odds out of four teams to win their divisions, so even finishing second is seen as overachieving. If it seems like overreaction, it really isn’t. Of the eight 2024 division champs, only one (Eagles) pulled off the repeat, and only two out of eight (Houston Texans and Los Angeles Rams) improved on their 2024 record. Add up the win totals for the 2024 division champs, and those teams combined to win 21 fewer games in 2025, an average drop of 2.6 wins. The idea that the NFC East is the lone source of continuity is amusing in itself, in that the Eagles’ repeat last year ended a run of different teams winning the division every year from 2005 to 2024. I’ve had international datelines as an NFL writer, but none of them across the International Date Line, as the 49ers and Rams are in Australia this week. You can get jet lag just from doing the math on what time it is there. Their game will be broadcast from Melbourne with an 8:35 p.m. ET kickoff Thursday, but will go in the history books as a Friday game because local time for kickoff is 10:35 a.m. Friday. “I feel like I’m in the future,” 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said Monday, trying to understand calling home to talk to his family, which is somehow the day before. Stranger still: Even though the game will be kicked off in the morning down under, it will qualify officially as a “prime time game,” according to the Elias Sports Bureau, which recognizes a prime time game as any that has its kickoff at 7 p.m. ET or later. The NFL generally avoids Friday games except for recent forays into Black Friday as an expansion of Thanksgiving games. It’s the first time either the 49ers or Rams have played on a Friday in nearly 40 years, and both of their last two Friday games were against each other, with Joe Montana leading San Francisco to wins over Los Angeles in pre-Christmas regular-season finales in 1984 and 1986. Which NFL head coaches have the best record in Week 1 games? Only 11 out of 32 have a winning record as head coaches in Week 1 — another 11 have never won an opener as head coach, though six of those are guys making their debut this week. The best? The Chargers’ Jim Harbaugh is 6-0 and the Eagles’ Nick Sirianni is 5-0, with the Rams’ Sean McVay close behind with a 7-2 record in Week 1. After those, the coach whose Week 1 record is most improved from their overall record is Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles, who has a .452 winning percentage for his career, but a 6-2 (.750) mark in season openers. Most curiously bad Week 1 coach? That might be the Patriots’ Mike Vrabel, who has a .586 win percentage overall but is 2-5 for his career in Week 1 and has to go across the country to face the Seahawks on Wednesday. And temper your expectations for new head coaches in their first year on the job. Last year, those coaches went 1-6 in Week 1, with the Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen getting the lone win. This year’s rookie coaches are good for at least one win, unless the Raiders and Miami Dolphins manage to tie with Kubiak and Jeff Hafley squaring off in their first games as head coaches. Of the rest, only the Baltimore Ravens’ Jesse Minter, opening against the Indianapolis Colts, is favored to win. One of the more obscure but fun streaks you can keep an eye on this week: The Bucs have gotten a touchdown from a rookie receiver in Week 1 in each of the last three seasons: Trey Palmer in 2023, Jalen McMillan in 2024 and two from Emeka Egbuka last year. Can Ted Hurst, a third-round pick from Georgia State with a promising mix of size and speed, keep that streak going this week as they face the Bengals in Cincinnati? Just remember that nobody gets touchdowns from rookie receivers in Week 1 wins like the Bucs do. Since 2023, they have four, and the rest of the NFL has … three of them, total.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports