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Conference tournaments are underway, the first sign that March Madness has arrived! Each of men’s college basketball’s 31 conference tournament champions earns an automatic berth to the 2026 NCAA Tournament, while the other 37 spots are awarded to at-large participants by the tournament’s selection committee. Follow along to see which teams have locked up an auto-bid thus far, as of March 13: This story will be updated throughout the week. Check back for updates.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

NFL free agency started in a big way on Monday, with the Colts re-signing wide receiver Alec Pierce just moments after noon ET. The deal sent shock waves through the league. Pierce had 47 catches for 1,003 yards last season for the Colts, both of which are career highs. That got him $116 million over four years, with a reported $60 million of that guaranteed. It’s essentially a two-year contract for the Colts, and if it goes well, Pierce will likely see the deal through all four years if the salary cap continues to increase. In recent years, an annual salary of $30 million became the barometer for the best receivers in the NFL. The elite players got even more, with Ja’Marr Chase getting more than $40 million annually from the Bengals last offseason. Pierce came up just shy of that, but his production pales in comparison to top receivers who now make less than him. For reference, Pierce is set to make more money than Tee Higgins, Jaylen Waddle, DeVonta Smith, Nico Collins and former teammate Michael Pittman Jr., who was traded to the Steelers on Monday. [2026 NFL Free Agency: The Top 100 Players Available and Potential Fits] Pittman being traded to Pittsburgh means Pierce’s role will likely increase in the Colts’ offense next season. Quarterback Daniel Jones was given the transition tag, while the star of the show will still be running back Jonathan Taylor. As of Monday, March 9, at 2:30 p.m. ET, here are the highest annual salaries among NFL wide receivers, including Pierce’s reported contract with the Colts (data courtesy of Over the Cap):​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

Roughly two-thirds of the way through the 2025-26 men’s college basketball season, a statistical oddity seemed to be emerging: Nearly 50 teams were averaging more than 120 points per 100 possessions — the standard metric used to derive offensive efficiency — as the calendar turned from January to February. Intuitively, the number seemed extraordinarily high — even for a year when there is so much elite-level talent across the sport that NBA commissioner Adam Silver announced the eventual enactment of anti-tanking rules to prevent teams from intentionally losing to improve their draft position. Sure enough, historical data confirmed my suspicion: Only 18 teams had completed the previous campaign with such staggeringly efficient offenses, and even that tally was some 33% higher than any other season in KenPom’s 30-year archive. The average number of teams to eclipse 120 points per possession during that sample size? A measly 4.6 per season, including nine years that featured three or fewer. To soar from that degree of sustained scarcity to more than four dozen such teams seemed like an incredible change in a relatively short period of time. And now, as most conference tournaments are set to begin this week, the number still sits at 48 teams. “That statistic is amazing,” Texas head coach Sean Miller told me last month. “I don’t know if people really understand what you’re saying there. … That’s way, way too much of a change in one season.” To understand the how and why behind this offensive explosion, I spoke to nearly a dozen head coaches whose offenses ranked among the top 25 nationally. Though their answers varied, a handful of common themes emerged that — when pieced together — began to pull back the curtain on what might be remembered as the greatest offensive season in college basketball history, at least statistically. Those coaches identified four distinct pillars that are doubling as potential explanations for this season’s renaissance: offensive-centric roster building, analytically driven shot selection, reimagined offensive rebounding principles and improved on-ball decision-making. To some degree, Houston head coach Kelvin Sampson told me, what we’re seeing right now is the maximization of a process that began during the 1988 Summer Olympics, which was the last time the United States built its basketball team entirely from collegiate players. Led by then-Georgetown head coach John Thompson, the Americans arrived in South Korea with the tournament’s most athletic roster. But despite that advantage, Team USA (bronze medal) played a drastically different style than countries like the Soviet Union (gold) and Yugoslavia (silver), which built their offenses around the premise of “penetrate to pass versus penetrate to score,” as Sampson described it. Superior ball movement sent the American defenders chasing from one side of the 3-point arc to the other until an open perimeter shot was taken. “That’s what got people thinking,” Sampson told me. “And then, in 1992, was the birth of the Dream Team. So we weren’t going to be embarrassed anymore because y’all had y’alls pros, we’re gonna start taking our pros. But in between there, there was a glimpse into the change that basketball was on the verge of making. Their spacing was different than ours, their skill sets were different than ours and I think we learned a lot from there.” Fast-forward a few decades and some of the resulting stylistic changes that gradually worked their way into college basketball are being kicked into overdrive thanks to a confluence of modern factors: From offensive-minded rule changes to the proliferation of analytics. From an influx of experienced European players who are capitalizing on relaxed eligibility rules to a wave of new coaches studying film in leagues beyond the U.S. From lucrative NIL payments that are funneling more talented players toward the sport than ever before to the last embers of COVID-year eligibility that have raised average player ages and maturity levels. All poured gasoline on an already changing flame. In Part 1 of this series, some of men’s college basketball’s keenest minds explain how the modern game is prompting them to reimagine how rosters are assembled. *** *** *** Jon Scheyer, Duke: What you’ve seen in college basketball this year [is] an incredible freshman class. You’ve seen 22-, 23-, 24-year-old pros. You’ve seen a lot more flexibility from a roster construction standpoint. I think coaches have gotten a lot smarter with roster construction. I think that’s something that’s really progressing. I think that allows, obviously, the better talent and the better fit in terms of roster. Matt Painter, Purdue: I don’t know how you quite quantify that, but I think [it’s] just better players. We have some older players, we have some international guys that are coming in their first years that aren’t 17-, 18-year-olds. They’re a little bit older, a little bit more experienced. And even the ones that are 17-, 18-, 19-years-old, their experiences leading up [to college basketball], of playing against older people, I think really help. T.J. Otzelberger, Iowa State: This is a very old year with the COVID-year still on our books for some. There’s an influx of European talent with skill — and specifically skilled bigs — more skill than we’ve seen. I think there’s a tremendous talent level among the freshmen — probably the best freshman group I’ve seen impacting winning. So I think the No. 1 thing I’d start with is the personnel piece. I think that’s a huge part. Scheyer: You have the ability to build around your best players in a different way. The pool is bigger. Instead of just being able to take high school players, you can take basically anybody in college, European, now the G-League potentially. It’s a hell of an opportunity as a coach. … You’re able to have the right fit and the more ready-made players right away. [NCAA: Final Regular-Season Men’s Top 25 Rankings] Sampson: The young coaches that are coming up in the game are more geared to offense. And they probably build their teams to that end of the court more so now than in the past. It starts with recruiting. [AJ] Dybantsa at BYU and how they built their team around him. [Darryn] Peterson at Kansas and how they built their team around him. [Christian] Anderson and [JT] Toppin at Texas Tech, how they built their team around their guys. Coaches think differently now than they did 30 years ago. It was like Big Ten football was three yards and a cloud of dust with a full backfield. Now, there is nobody in the backfield. It’s all empty. College basketball has kind of followed the same theory. The game is constantly evolving. The game is constantly changing. New coaches are coming in, bringing in new ideas. Grant McCasland, Texas Tech: I definitely, 100 percent, see the game from an offensive [point of view]. I recruit from an offensive standpoint and from a competitive standpoint. Because I do think that you can help people get better defensively. And I think if people love it, you can help them get better offensively, but not at the rate at which you can help someone [on defense]. I do think it’s hard to teach someone to be physical, and it’s hard to teach someone to really put their nose in the middle of it if it’s not their makeup. So it’s almost like skill and physicality is really the X-factor. Todd Golden, Florida: A big thing for us is trying to get guys that we think will be plus-[expected value] players on both sides of the ball. And with that being said, though, gun to head, we would probably err on the side of taking a pro-offensive player than a pro-defensive player. Otzelberger: Teams are seeing more and more correlation [to] whatever their identity is. Some teams are high-volume 3-point shooting teams, and that makes them efficient. Others, like us, put more emphasis on offensive rebounding, maybe, as a way to fill a margin. So I think because there’s more data, I think people are recruiting more [toward] a specific way of doing things or a system. You see the teams that are high-volume 3-point teams, and that’s their model, like a Texas Tech. And then you see teams like, maybe, the Floridas or the Michigan States or the UConns or us that try to put a premium on offensive rebounding and I think recruit to it, develop it, talk about it, coach it. I think there are more specific people who are analytically building their argument that way. Ben McCollum, Iowa: Teams are recruiting to it. I think they’re recruiting shooting, obviously, number one. I do think the transfer portal hurts defense, meaning, I think over time you kind of build some defensive grit, some defensive toughness, and you do that over years and years. Some teams just have plug-and-play guys or guys that come in for a very short amount of time, and there’s not a lot of defensive grit. There’s not a lot of toughness. They just kind of get by defensively. And so naturally, because of that, you’re going to score more, and your efficiency numbers are going to be a little bit better. Brad Underwood, Illinois: We’ve been very, very exact — or trying to be that anyway — in our recruiting. Positional size, very important. Shooting, very important. We look very, very hard at the character piece. We personality-test everybody. And then the other piece is processing and problem-solving. We dove heavy into that part of it in the evaluation process as well and using some other markers out there that we just tried to figure out how guys process and how guys think and basketball IQ tendencies. It’s really become very exact for us in the recruiting game. Pat Kelsey, Louisville: We really, really value skill and shooting. So that really matters. Those metrics that we know fit our offensive style are highlighted and coveted when we’re evaluating and recruiting prospects. Painter: We’ve always had good size. And now we have a great point guard. And I think that’s the recipe. If you’ve got really good big guys, and you’ve got a great point guard, and you’ve got a bunch of guys that can shoot, that balance offensively is the recipe that we look for. Sampson: When you put together your team, the first thing you’re looking at is do we have enough offense? Do we have enough shooting? Do we have someone that can create shots at the end of the shot clock? Can we space the floor and force teams to have to open up their defense to extend to our shooters? And then when the ball gets swung, can we attack the closeout [defender] and get into the paint, and then make the right decision? Miller: Sometimes, when you’re in sports, you look at [how] other industries evolve and adapt and change, but [then you think] what you do doesn’t change, you know what I mean? But I think as you grow in it, and you have more experience, you learn no, in the industry that you’re in, it evolves, grows and changes no different than all the other industries in the world. The last five years — maybe even the last three or four — there’s been so much change in the way the game is played, officiated. So when you look at building your roster, [it’s all about] skill level, versatility, interchangeable parts. Come back on Tuesday for Part 2 in this series, which focuses on the radical changes to offensive shot selection in adherence with modern analytics. In The Blueprint, our in-depth, long-form series takes you inside some of the most amazing stories in sports.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

HOUSTON – It’s not only the ending of the 2023 World Baseball Classic that still lingers with USA manager Mark DeRosa three years later. In the last tournament, Team USA finished as the runner-up in its pool after getting crushed 11-5 in an upset loss to Mexico, which holds the all-time WBC advantage between the teams. In fact, the United States hasn’t beaten Mexico in the WBC since pool play in 2006. That will be on DeRosa’s mind — and the minds of all the holdovers from the 2023 USA squad — when the two countries meet again Monday night in the game everyone has been waiting for in Pool B. “The U.S. has had their hands full with them in this tournament the last couple of installments of it,” DeRosa said. “I certainly haven’t forgotten about it.” In 2023, Mexico and the U.S. finished as the winner and runner-up, respectively, of Pool C in Phoenix. The teams nearly met again in the final. Mexico held a one-run lead on Team Japan in the ninth inning of their semifinal game, but a walk-off double from Munetaka Murakami allowed Japan to advance to face the U.S., where Japan emerged victorious after Shohei Ohtani struck out then-Angels teammate Mike Trout in an enthralling finish to the tournament. There will be plenty on the line again on Monday night in Houston, not only because the winner of the bout between Team USA and Mexico will be in a strong position to win the pool, but also because the loser will have to beat Italy in its final game to have a chance to advance to the quarterfinals. USA, Mexico and Italy have each started Pool B with two wins, while Great Britain and Brazil have gone winless through three games. The U.S. and Mexico are the favorites in the pool. Both teams are oozing with MLB talent. Reigning American League Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal started USA’s last game against Great Britain. Reigning National League Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes will start this one against Mexico’s Manny Barreda. AL MVP Aaron Judge and Kyle Schwarber, who led the NL with 56 home runs last season, have already homered in the tournament. For Mexico, Jonathan Aranda, Alejandro Kirk, Jarren Duran, Nacho Alvarez and Alek Thomas have all already gone deep. Mexico has plated 24 runs through its first two games. Team Mexico manager Benji Gil described the upcoming matchup as “one of the most anticipated baseball events of the year.” “At the end of the day, it’s become a rivalry when maybe it should never have been a rivalry,” said Gil, leaning into Mexico’s underdog status. “Maybe their rival should be Japan, Dominican [Republic], Puerto Rico, but it’s become a rivalry because we’ve had success.” In Mexico’s onslaught against the U.S. in 2023, Joey Meneses broke the game open with his second of two home runs in front of 47,534 fans at Chase Field. Meneses, who is on Team Mexico again this year but has only logged one at-bat through the first two games, knocked in five runs and had three of Mexico’s 15 hits in that offensive barrage. A similarly electric environment awaits the two teams Monday at Daikin Park, home of the Houston Astros, where the two countries will meet again in a highly-anticipated clash of 2-0 teams. “It’s going to be lit,” Thomas said. Mexico also beat Team USA in the first round in 2013 and eliminated the U.S. in the 2006 tournament. This time, though, the U.S. has sent its most decorated pitching staff and roster ever to the competition. And it will have the reigning N.L. Cy Young Award winner on the mound to try to avenge the 2023 loss. If the end result ends up the same again for Mexico, Gil won’t care how decisively his team wins. “We know they’re great,” Gil said. “I mean, they’re great. They’re a great team. But we’re just going to try to be just a tiny bit better. Even if we win by half a run, we’ll take it.”​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

One of the most optimistic times of the year for NFL fans has arrived. Free agency has started with a bang, with several huge deals around the league already completed. We’re grading every notable signing and even a few trades as the deals happen. Did your favorite team make smart moves? Let’s take a look at how we view some of the top signings and trades around the league. [NFL Top 100 Free Agents] QB Malik Willis signs with Dolphins Henry McKenna: Willis will be the highest-paid QB on the open market, signing a three-year, $67.5 million deal with $45 million guaranteed, per multiple reports. The former Packer joins ex-Green Bay defensive coordinator and now Miami head coach Jeff Hafley and Dolphins GM Jon-Eric Sullivan, who also came from Green Bay. The Dolphins will give Willis at least a year to prove himself in an offense that includes good skill players: RB De’Von Achane and WR Jaylen Waddle. Willis will be tasked with doing what he did in Green Bay as a backup. With the Packers, he converted his unique (and raw) gifts into becoming a game manager. Miami will have to turn him into a game-changer. At the combine, the Dolphins were concerned that Willis’ contract would get bloated beyond what they could accommodate, per a source. But at $22.5 million per year, he lands just north of what the New York Jets gave Justin Fields last year. It’ll be fascinating to see how Miami gets under the cap, given they’re about to take on $99 million in dead money from Tua Tagovailoa’s impending release. Ultimately, I like this move. I like Willis. The risks are sizable. But this offseason won’t offer much in the way of young QBs with upside. The Dolphins chased their guy and got him. Grade for Dolphins: A- Colts re-sign WR Alec Pierce Ben Arthur: Pierce’s return is pivotal for a Colts offense that is looking to get back to the explosiveness it displayed at the start of last season. A homegrown talent with plenty of upside, the 25-year-old Pierce had a strong connection with quarterback Daniel Jones, who’s on the transition tag (at least for the time being). Pierce is a deep threat with a growing route tree, but he became more expensive than he needed to be. Indianapolis could’ve extended the former second-round pick before last season or earlier this offseason, when he would’ve been significantly cheaper. Grade for Colts: B- Chiefs sign Kenneth Walker III to three-year deal Eric D. Williams: Running backs matter. Just ask the Chiefs, who grabbed the top back available at the start of free agency. The Super Bowl MVP for the Seattle Seahawks will not get a chance to defend the Lombardi Trophy next season. Instead, he’ll try to help Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid chase another ring. Kansas City needed an upgrade to its running game from the backfield of Isiah Pacheco and Kareem Hunt. The Chiefs averaged just 106.6 rushing yards a contest last year, which was No. 25 in the NFL. And with Mahomes recovering from ACL surgery, the Chiefs now have a bell-cow running back to lean on in Walker. According to reports, it’s a three-year, $45 million deal with $28.7 million fully guaranteed. That’s a heavy investment to fix the running game for Kansas City for a player who had some injury concerns during his time in Seattle. Grade for Chiefs: B Falcons agree to terms with former Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa Williams: With former first-round pick Michael Penix Jr. still recovering from an ACL tear he suffered in November, the Falcons added some insurance with the signing of veteran quarterback Tagovailoa to a one-year deal. While serving as the head coach of the Cleveland Browns, new Atlanta coach Kevin Stefanski drafted a left-handed quarterback in Dillon Gabriel. Stefanski takes over a team with a left-handed quarterback as the team’s projected starter in Penix. And now Stefanski adds another left-handed quarterback in Tagovailoa to serve as the team’s starter until Penix is healthy enough to return. The Alabama product is a good fit in Stefanski’s system, a West Coast-based scheme that leans on running the football and a precision passer in the play-action game. Atlanta has a solid offensive line and one of the best groups of offensive weapons in the league, led by running back Bijan Robinson, tight end Kyle Pitts and receiver Drake London. Yes, Tagovailoa is coming off one of his worst seasons as a pro. He got benched for the last three games of the regular season in favor of rookie Quinn Ewers. Tagovailoa has struggled to stay healthy, missing significant time over his six NFL seasons due to concussion issues in addition to rib fractures, finger fractures and a back injury. However, the Hawaii native has played winning football, posting a 44-32 record, reaching the playoffs once during his time in Miami and making the Pro Bowl in 2023, leading the NFL in passing yards that season. Grade for Falcons: B+ Commanders agree to terms with OLB Odafe Oweh Arthur: The guarantees in Oweh’s reported four-year, $100 million deal will be important. His sack numbers show he’s more than worth this kind of money — he has 21.5 sacks over the past two seasons, including playoffs — but he doesn’t put up the pressure numbers of the top-end edge rushers. According to Pro Football Focus, he had 51 pressures in 2025 (including postseason), which ranked 29th among edge defenders. The uptick in his numbers after getting traded to the Chargers is notable — after joining Los Angeles in Week 6, he generated the sixth-highest pressure rate in the NFL, per Next Gen Stats. But we don’t have a long-term sample size of the former first-round pick being a consistent, every down game-wrecker. Also, Oweh isn’t a major disruptive force in the run game. Grade for Commanders: C+ Panthers sign former Eagles edge Jaelan Phillips McKenna: Phillips has long been an analytics darling, with a propensity to generate as much pressure as anyone. But there are a few reasons why this deal is a major risk for the Panthers. Phillips’ sack numbers have never hit double digits in a single season. He has been at his best in Vic Fangio’s defense (in Miami and Philly), and he won’t have that luxury in Carolina. Phillips also has a long injury history (torn ACL in 2024, torn Achilles in 2023). The Eagles were able to buy him pretty cheap at the trade deadline. That’s not what the Panthers are doing here. When the dust settles in free agency, Phillips is likely to finish in the top 10 (or near it) among pass-rusher salaries — alongside Josh Hines-Allen ($28.3 million) and Nick Bosa ($34 million per year). Anytime you buy into a guy after a meteoric rise, there’s the possibility of regression. That risk feels even bigger with an oft-injured defender like Phillips. Grade for Panthers: C+ Raiders agree to terms with C Tyler Linderbaum on historic deal Williams: Las Vegas significantly upgraded one of its main weaknesses, bringing in an anchor up front to protect the pending addition of quarterback Fernando Mendoza as the No. 1 overall pick. The Raiders signed Ravens free-agent Tyler Linderbaum to a three-year, $81 million deal that includes $60 million in guaranteed money, making him the highest paid center in the league. Last season, Las Vegas allowed a league-worst 64 sacks and struggled to clear running lanes for rookie running back Ashton Jeanty. Linderbaum should help on both fronts as Las Vegas looks to revamp an offensive line around blindside protector Kolton Miller. Las Vegas entered free agency with more than $100 million in salary cap space — the most in the NFL — and should still have more room to make some splashes in free agency. The addition of Linderbaum fills a major hole, giving the Raiders a cornerstone quarterback-center tandem to build around. Grade for Raiders: A- Saints agree to terms with RB Travis Etienne Jr. Arthur: The Saints desperately needed a three-down running back of the future, considering that a declining Alvin Kamara will be out of the picture sooner than later. It’s why Notre Dame’s Jeremiyah Love was widely considered an option for New Orleans with the ninth overall pick. Instead of the draft, the team earmarks the 27-year-old Etienne — a Louisiana native — as its RB1. At $13 million AAV, the former Jag becomes the NFL’s seventh-highest paid running back. Without a clear picture on guarantees, it appears to be a win for New Orleans on paper. That’s lower than what the Chiefs gave Kenneth Walker, who has one fewer 1,000-yard rushing season. Etienne also has more career receiving yards than the Super Bowl LX MVP. A former first-round pick, Etienne looks like a strong running back option to take pressure off second-year quarterback Tyler Shough at a reasonable price. Grade for Saints: A- Cowboys trade for Packers edge rusher Rashan Gary Ralph Vacchiano: The Cowboys needed a pass rusher and Gary cost them a fourth-round pick, which seems like a high price to pay for a player the Packers were prepared to release. Gary, 28, did have 7.5 sacks last season, but they all came in the first seven games of the season. He had zero over the last nine. Still, the Cowboys are banking on the fact that he’s averaged 7.5 sacks over the past six seasons. They’re also willing to take on the two years and $42 million left on his contract because they knew the edge market was going to be more expensive, for far less accomplished players. It’s an expensive risk, but less expensive and less risky than what Dallas expected to find in free agency. Grade for Cowboys: B Colts trade WR Michael Pittman Jr. to Steelers Arthur: The Steelers desperately needed wide receiver help alongside DK Metcalf and got that in Pittman, a two-time 1,000-yard receiver. The former second-round pick is a physical receiver and a yards-after-the-catch threat, so he fits the profile of Pittsburgh’s offense. The 28-year-old Pittman has missed just three games since 2021, making him hugely reliable. The three-year, $59 million contract the Steelers are giving Pittman and the draft compensation involved in the trade — late-round pick swap — are very palpable for someone who projects to be Pittsburgh’s WR2. This is a strong move overall for the Steelers and new head coach Mike McCarthy. Grade for Steelers: A Jets trade for Dolphins S Minkah Fitzpatrick Vacchiano: The 29-year-old Fitzpatrick had a down season in Miami last year after three straight Pro Bowl years in Pittsburgh, but he’s still a perfect fit for the Jets. He’s not the dominant player he was a few years ago, but he’s low-risk, coming at the cost of a seventh-round pick and a three-year, $40 million deal. Embattled Jets head coach Aaron Glenn is taking over the defense and wants smart veterans who can run it. Fitzpatrick fits that profile. He also has much-needed ball-hawk skills, even though he had just two interceptions over the past three seasons. (The Jets had zero interceptions last season, so they’ll take any help they can get in that department.) He’ll help stabilize a secondary that was mostly awful last season, especially after the trade of cornerback Sauce Gardner to the Colts. Grade for Jets: B+ 49ers set to sign veteran Bucs WR Mike Evans McKenna: It’s hard not to love this one. The 49ers offense continues to be a hotspot for the best skill players in the NFL — albeit those at an advanced age. Evans is 32 and not in the same league with Justin Jefferson or Ja’Marr Chase anymore, but he has 11 career 1,000-yard seasons and six with double-digit touchdowns. He’s perfect for this offense. He should return to dominant form in this offense, in part because of how much help he’ll get. It starts with coach Kyle Shanahan, but it extends to quarterback Brock Purdy and running back Christian McCaffrey. At first glance, it’s a big price for the aging star — a three-year, $60.4 million deal — but it’s a deal that’s comparable to what the Rams are paying Davante Adams. The 49ers should plug Evans into their offense in a comparable way. Grade for 49ers: A Travis Kelce re-signing with Chiefs for 14th NFL season Arthur: Kelce returning to Kansas City on a one-year deal, reported to be worth up to $15 million ($12 million base value), is a win for the Chiefs. The future Hall of Fame tight end is 36 years old and has been declining for a few years, but he’s still a productive player in Andy Reid’s offense — as evident last season by his team-leading 851 receiving yards and five receiving touchdowns (tied for the team-high). A $12 million base value puts Kelce’s deal in the top 12 for AAV among tight ends, which is a good rate for Kansas City given the stage of his career, the value to its offense and the interest he surely generated from other teams. An 11-time Pro Bowler, Kelce is positioned to officially retire after the upcoming season. Grade for Chiefs: A- Bears upgrade defensive secondary by signing S Coby Bryant Williams: Chicago adds a defensive playmaker with a Super Bowl pedigree by signing free agent Coby Bryant. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. Selected in fourth round of the 2022 draft by the Seahawks, Bryant arrived in the NFL as a cornerback but successfully converted to safety in 2024. Over the past two seasons, he started 26 games for Seattle, totaling seven interceptions and 139 combined tackles over the period. Chicago has four safeties expected to hit free agency — NFL interceptions leader Kevin Byard, Jaquan Brisker, Elijah Hicks and Jonathan Owens. Bryant provides a versatile defensive playmaker who improves a team expected to contend for the Super Bowl under second-year head coach Ben Johnson. Grade for Bears: A Rams add another CB, sign Jaylen Watson Williams: The Rams have taken a sledgehammer this offseason to the team’s main weaknesses: the defensive secondary. After giving up four picks — including a first-round selection — in a trade with the Kansas City Chiefs for Southern California native Trent McDuffie and signing him to the richest cornerback contract in league history, Los Angeles then grabbed his teammate, Jaylen Watson, in free agency. According to reports, the Rams signed Watson to a three-year, $51 million deal that includes $34 million guaranteed. Los Angeles has four free-agent cornerbacks in Cobie Durant, Derion Kendrick, Ahkello Witherspoon and Roger McCreary. The team has found replacements to upgrade that position group in McDuffie and Watson. However, after allocating money to outside free agents, the Rams might need to turn their attention to star receiver Puka Nacua, who is eligible for a new deal as he enters the final year of his rookie contract. Grade for Rams: B+ Giants sign former Ravens TE Isaiah Likely Vacchiano: With WR Malik Nabers recovering from a torn ACL and Wan’Dale Robinson headed to free agency, the Giants needed weapons for QB Jaxson Dart. Likely, a 6-foot-4, 245-pounder, has plenty of untapped potential, and no one knows that better than new Giants coach John Harbaugh. Likely’s production was always capped in Baltimore, mostly because of the prominence of Ravens TE Mark Andrews. But in limited opportunities, Likely always showed he had reliable hands and could stretch the field. He might have to split the job with TE Theo Johnson. Likely also could see time as a “big slot receiver.” Either way, he didn’t cost a ton (three years, $40 million) and he quickly emerges as Dart’s No. 2 target. Grade for Giants: A- Titans sign former Giants WR Wan’Dale Robinson Vacchiano: Brian Daboll loved the 5-foot-8 Robinson in New York, so it always seemed inevitable that once he landed as the Titans’ OC that he’d bring his favorite slot receiver with him. And the price (four years, $70 million) wasn’t going to stop Daboll, even though Robinson had just one good season in New York. The truth is he’s little more than a slot receiver. He can be a high-volume receiver, but he’s never been the slippery, yards-after-catch guy that Daboll envisioned. And his numbers only went up last season (315 more yards on one fewer catch than in 2024) because No. 1 receiver Malik Nabers got hurt. Robinson will help QB Cam Ward for sure, but it’s hard to imagine he’s worth that money, even if it is a reasonable rate in an unreasonable free-agent market. Grade for Titans: C+ Lions set to sign former Panthers C Cade Mays McKenna: The Lions lost Frank Ragnow before the 2025 season and never quite replaced him — until now. This year, Mays took over the Panthers’ starting center job after an injury to Austin Corbett in Week 3. Mays played well in relief of Corbett, helping the Panthers engineer a run-first identity for Rico Dowdle and Chuba Hubbard. Mays also didn’t allow a sack, per PFF. Mays is 26 years old, and has 52 games of experience. On a three-year, $25-million deal, these should be his prime years of production for an ascending player. Grade for Lions: B+ Giants sign LB Tremaine Edmunds Vacchiano: If there was one position the Giants were desperate to upgrade on defense, it was linebacker. And when they cut veteran Bobby Okereke, it was clear they wanted to get younger, too. The 27-year-old Edmunds fills that need and gives the Giants a strong leader in the middle, who still has the sideline-to-sideline speed to help against the run. He may not be a Pro Bowler anymore, but he’s topped 100 tackles in each of his eight NFL seasons. Also, at three years and $36 million, he’s affordable and came cheaper than he would have in a trade. Grade for Giants: B Bengals agree to terms with former Ravens edge Boye Mafe McKenna: Former All-Pro edge Trey Hendrickson said goodbye to Cincinnati earlier this offseason, so the Bengals are investing in the 27-year-old Mafe. He and the Bengals have agreed to a three-year, $60 million deal that’ll pay him similar to the Bills’ Gregory Rousseau ($20 million/year) and the Cardinals’ Josh Sweat ($19 million/year). For quarterback Joe Burrow’s sake, hopefully this is the first of multiple pieces that fall into place — on both sides of the ball — for Cincy. He spent four seasons with the Seahawks, hitting a career-high nine sacks in 2023. The risk is that Mike Macdonald is probably the best defensive coach in football. If he couldn’t get double-digit sacks out of Mafe, then who will? But relative to Mafe’s age, past production and the market, the deal makes a lot of sense for the Begnals. Grade for Bengals: A- Titans reach terms with CBs Cor’Dale Flott and Alontae Taylor, DL John Franklin-Myers Arthur: In the first several hours of free agency, the Titans remade their defense in the image of Robert Saleh. Franklin-Myers, a key part of the Broncos’ defensive line success over the past couple seasons, rejoins his former Jets head coach to give All-Pro Jeffery Simmons legitimate help in the pass-rush department. And Tennessee gets two new starting cornerbacks in Flott and Taylor. With 14.5 sacks since the start of 2024, Franklin-Myers was going to land big money. So $21 million AAV is fair market rate for the former fourth-round pick, who can play multiple spots on the D-line. Saleh’s history indicates a reluctance to blitzing — he wants to generate pressure with the front four — so Franklin-Myers fits that vision perfectly. According to NFL Network, Tennessee committed $74 million fully guaranteed between Flott and Taylor. That’s doable for the Titans, who entered free agency with over $90 million in cap space, but it’s still a hefty price tag. That says a lot about how bad the outlook was for the Titans’ cornerback room — the L’Jarius Sneed deal a couple years ago was a disaster — and how the team views the CBs in this year’s draft. Grade for Titans: B​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

Washington, D.C. — INDYCAR drivers are known to focus on the track ahead of them, but there will be plenty for them — and fans — to look at when they race Aug. 23 in the nation’s capital. Federal, city and INDYCAR officials announced plans for the Freedom 250 Grand Prix course, a 1.66-mile, seven-turn circuit with a start-finish line on 3rd street with the U.S. Capitol (less than a half-mile away) in the background. The number of laps for the race is still to be determined. Cars will go north on 3rd Street and take a left on Pennsylvania Avenue, where pit lane will also be located. The 0.4-mile frontstretch along Pennsylvania Ave. will then have drivers turn left onto 9th Street and wind their way through the National Mall. They will take a left on Constitution Avenue and then a right on 7th Street down to Independence Avenue, where they will curve left onto Maryland Street to 3rd Street. Within the course will be the National Gallery of Art, the National Archives and the Smithsonian. The area of the National Mall will be open and free to fans. “This circuit is unlike any other street race we’ve seen,” said two-time INDYCAR champion and current series points leader Josef Newgarden in a news release. “You’ve got a high‑speed section down Pennsylvania Avenue that will reward commitment and precision, mixed with technical corners around 9th Street that will demand respect.” [MORE INDYCAR: 4 Takeaways From Josef Newgarden’s Win at Phoenix] Buildout of the course will begin in the summer with the roads expected to remain open and accessible most of the time during the build. Washington-based live events production company Harbinger will coordinate logistics and the fan experience. Monumental Sports & Entertainment, owner of the Washington’s NHL, NBA and WNBA teams, will oversee marketing, sponsorships and corporate hospitality. The event was made possible by an executive order issued by President Donald Trump, which allowed for accelerated permitting and any work that needs to be done to complete the course. “The story of America is one of vision, courage, perseverance — and speed,” said U.S. Chief of Protocol Monica Crowley, President Trump’s representative for America’s 250th. “What better way to showcase our exceptional American spirit than by hosting the Grand Prix in our nation’s capital during our 250th birthday year.” The race, as are all of the INDYCAR events, will be televised on FOX. It will be the 15th race of an 18-race schedule. “This is so much more than another sporting event on the calendar,” FOX Sports CEO and Executive Producer Eric Shanks said in a news release. “It’s a unique opportunity to celebrate the creativity, ingenuity and competitive spirit that helped build America. “The Freedom 250 Grand Prix, racing through a monument-filled course in the heart of Washington, D.C., will be a centerpiece of the celebrations honoring our nation’s 250th birthday. FOX Sports is incredibly proud to help bring this historic moment to fans across the country.”​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

The Fanatics Flag Football Classic is going stateside, and it might have an Olympic-like feel. Tom Brady and a handful of current NFL stars of past and present will compete in the Fanatics Flag Football Classic, which will now be held at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles. The Fanatics Flag Football Classic will still be held on Saturday, March 21, after switching events, but Team USA Football will now participate in the event, according to a release. With Team USA Football being added to the event, the Fanatics Flag Football Classic will now feature three 12-player teams. Brady and Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts will captain Founders FFC, which will be coached by Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton. Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels and Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow will captain Wildcats FFC, which will be coached by San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan. Those two teams will draft their rosters from a pool of 24 players on Wednesday, March 18. NFL icon Rob Gronkowski, Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, Cleveland Browns edge rusher Myles Garrett, NFL star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. and WWE star Logan Paul will be among the pool of players drafted from that group. New Tennessee Titans head coach Robert Saleh will serve as a defensive specialist for both teams. Drew Brees and Larry Fitzgerald, who were both just voted for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, will serve as commissioners for the event. The IFAF Flag Football World Champion U.S. Men’s National Team will make up the third roster in the event. That team will be captained by Aamir Brown and Darrell “Housh” Doucette and coached by Jorge Cascudo. Brady invited the U.S. Men’s National Team to participate in the event after it asked to be included in a social media post this past week. “I like the sound of that @usafootball – DM me and we’ll get it set up. Just know there’s no turning back,” Brady wrote in a social media post. The event will serve as a precursor to flag football making its Olympic debut in the 2028 Summer Olympics. In fact, the Fanatics Flag Football Classic will be held in the same stadium where flag football will be played at for the upcoming Summer Games. The Fanatics Flag Football Classic will also be played with the same rules as flag football will be played during the 2028 Summer Olympics. There’ll be two 15-minute halves with a running clock on a 50×25 yard field. Each team can only have five players on the field at a time. All three teams will participate in a round-robin tournament. After those three games are played, the top two teams will advance to the championship. The Fanatics Flag Football Classic will air live on FOX, FOX One and Tubi at 4 p.m. ET on March 21. The event will also be streamed internationally on the Fanatics YouTube channel. Actor and comedian Kevin Hart will serve as the host alongside actor and comedian Druski.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

An unmistakable swell of noise began to reverberate around Crisler Center with a little over a minute remaining on Sunday afternoon, the legions of Michigan faithful understanding that another iteration of the rivalry with Michigan State was about to go their way. The Wolverines’ lead swelled to seven before the last-ditch foul fest began. They added 11 more points from the free-throw line to ensure that nothing about the waning moments invited doubt. And when Michigan star Yaxel Lendeborg got subbed with 54.5 seconds remaining — having already poured in a game-high 27 points, his second-highest scoring output of the season — he lifted his jersey toward the adoring crowd and screamed in delight. Everything about the conclusion of the Wolverines’ eventual 90-80 victory that pushed their record to an incredible 28-2 overall and 19-1 in the Big Ten would feel oh, so sweet. Here are my takeaways: 1. Dusty May and Michigan have seized control of the in-state rivalry With an 83-71 win over the seventh-ranked Spartans on Jan. 30, coupled with Sunday’s victory in which Michigan never trailed over the final 12 minutes, the Wolverines might finally be turning the tide of a rivalry that has favored Michigan State for the entirety of the 21st century. Led by Hall-of-Fame coach Tom Izzo, whose tenure in East Lansing has now spanned the careers of six counterparts at Michigan — from Steve Fisher and Brian Ellerbe, to Tommy Amaker and John Beilein, to Juwan Howard and Dusty May — the Spartans largely owned their maize and blue neighbors. Michigan State entered this weekend having won 33 of the last 50 games against the Wolverines and hadn’t endured a multi-game, regular-season sweep by Michigan since the 2013-14 campaign, a streak that is now over. Even Beilein, who is among the candidates for greatest coach in program history, finished with a 9-14 record against Izzo. Though Michigan State won both of last year’s meetings, the offseason brought what felt like a potential changing of the tide. May and the Wolverines dominated the transfer portal by luring stars like Lendeborg, Morez Johnson Jr. and Aday Mara to the program, all of whom are potential first-round picks in the 2026 NBA Draft. Michigan was reportedly among the rarified air of college basketball’s $10 million club — a small collection of teams with the highest-priced rosters in the sport. May and his staff embodied the modern approach. Fast-forward to the present and Michigan is unquestionably among the best three or four teams in the country, entrenched as a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament thanks to a dominant regular season that was the best in program history. The Wolverines had more size than Michigan State, more speed, more athleticism, more depth and more high-end talent. In some respects, it’s a credit to Izzo that both matchups finished as closely as they did considering just how brutally Michigan dismembered most of its Big Ten foes. Fans can spend the next few months contemplating if this represents a legitimate changing of the in-state guard. 2. Yaxel Lendeborg’s perimeter shooting is vital for Michigan without L.J. Cason When backup point guard L.J. Cason suffered a torn ACL during Michigan’s victory over then-No. 10 Illinois last month, the Wolverines lost their most potent perimeter shooter off the bench. Cason, who originally committed to May at Florida Atlantic before flipping to Michigan, was shooting a team-best 40.2% from beyond the arc among players with at least 20 attempts. He’d made at least two 3s in 10 different games, including a season-high four triples during a victory over Minnesota on Feb. 24 that clinched at least a share of the Big Ten title for the Wolverines. Without Cason’s scoring punch and perimeter potency, the inconsistent 3-point shooting from Lendeborg, the presumptive Big Ten Player of the Year, comes under an even more intense microscope. Lendeborg entered the game with Michigan State having attempted 4.4 triples per game, though he was only making 32.1% of them. He endured a particularly unsightly stretch from Dec. 21 through Feb. 11 — 14 games — in which he only made nine of 50 attempts, a lowly 18% clip. What Lendeborg did on Sunday, making five of his six attempts from beyond the arc and eight of 12 shots overall, is exactly what Michigan will need sans Cason in the postseason. It marked the third consecutive outing and sixth game in the last seven when Lendeborg buried at least two 3-pointers. He exceeded 20 points for just the third time since Dec. 13. 3. Bench production remains concerning for Michigan State as the postseason nears The game was tied 61-61 with 11:01 remaining when the disparity in bench production between Michigan State and Michigan reared its ugly head. In that moment, the Spartans had only manufactured six bench points, all of which were scored by backup guard Kur Teng on perimeter jumpers. His fellow reserves on head coach Tom Izzo’s bench — Cam Ward, Denham Wojcik and Jesse McCulloch — had combined for zero points on 0-for-2 shooting. In some respects, this is a narrative that has followed Michigan State all season, considering the Spartans rank 171st nationally in bench points at 21.7 per game. It was clear that Izzo’s core four of Jeremy Fears Jr. (22 points), Jaxon Kohler (23 points), Carson Cooper (19 points) and Coen Carr (six points) could largely be counted on for consistent production night in and night out. But any contributions from the other Spartans were flickering at best and absent at worst — even as the calendar turned to March. The difference between Michigan State’s uncertainty and the firepower at May’s disposal quickly became apparent down the stretch. Over the ensuing four minutes, Michigan surged in front courtesy of a 10-3 spurt in which every point was supplied by someone off the bench. Roddy Gayle Jr. (15 points) sliced down the right side of the lane for a short bucket. Trey McKenney (12 points) buried two 3-pointers and added two free throws in between. And suddenly, in what felt like a flash, the Wolverines built a three-possession lead that they never surrendered. Nobody from the Spartans’ bench contributed another field goal. By game’s end, Michigan had finished plus-21 in bench points. 4. Physicality and extracurricular activity contribute to sloppy start [Jeremy Fears T’d Up For Kick Toward Groin] During an early media timeout, May paused for a sideline interview in which he was asked about the “chippy-ness” that marred the opening 10 minutes on Sunday afternoon. May, who hardly minces words, told the reporter that he hoped an actual game of basketball would break out at some point — a stark contrast to the veritable wrestling match he’d witnessed thus far. By then, Fears had been assessed a technical foul at the 14:24 mark for kicking his right leg backward into the groin of counterpart Elliott Cadeau. It marked the second time in as many rivalry games against Michigan that Fears, who leads the nation with 9.1 assists per game, was embroiled in controversy. His aggressive hacking of Lendeborg on a fast break drew an intentional foul during the first matchup between these teams. He also made an identical kick-back move into the groin of Minnesota’s Langston Reynolds earlier this season. A sign in the Michigan student section read “Jeremy Fears DPOY — Dirtiest Player of the Year.” There were additional technical fouls doled out to Mara for shoving an opponent while battling for an offensive rebound and to McKenney for slapping the ball away during an attempted in-bounds pass by the Spartans. The referees seemed to visit the monitor every few minutes for a video review, with both coaching staffs appealing for flagrant fouls at one point or another. When the hubbub and hostility finally settled, there had been nine fouls called on Michigan State and eight on Michigan in the opening half. The Wolverines enjoyed a plus-four advantage in free-throw attempts and made all 12 shots they took from the line. A corner 3 by Nimari Burnett with 15 seconds remaining gave May’s team a one-point lead at the break. 4½. What’s next? There wasn’t much at stake for Michigan beyond fierce, in-state pride for Sunday’s finale. The Wolverines had already secured the outright Big Ten regular season title by defeating then-No. 10 Illinois on Feb. 27 — which assured them of the No. 1 seed in this year’s conference tournament — and they’ve already assembled a résumé strong enough to land on the top line of the NCAA Tournament bracket. Still underway, however, is their back-and-forth battle with top-ranked Duke to be the No. 1 overall seed come Selection Sunday. A head-to-head loss to the Blue Devils last month dims Michigan’s chances unless Duke stumbles during the ACC Tournament this week. For Michigan State, though, the scenarios were more nuanced. Izzo and his team knew they would enter the conference tournament no worse than the No. 3 seed, but the Spartans still had multiple paths toward earning the No. 2 seed based on what unfolded at Crisler Center and in several other games around the league. But a victory by No. 9 Nebraska over Iowa on Sunday evening allowed the Cornhuskers to leapfrog Michigan State in the pecking order. Izzo’s team will be the 3-seed in the Big Ten Tournament.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

It didn’t take long for star cornerback Trent McDuffie and the Los Angeles Rams to come to terms on an extension agreement. Just four days after agreeing to a trade for McDuffie, the Rams and the cornerback have agreed to a four-year, $124 million extension with $100 million guaranteed, ESPN reported Sunday. The deal will make McDuffie the highest-paid cornerback in NFL history, setting the records for total value, guaranteed money and average annual value for a cornerback contract. The $31 million average annual value of McDuffie’s contract eclipses the $30.1 million average annual value of Indianapolis Colts star Sauce Gardner’s contract. Gardner also previously had the richest contract for a cornerback in terms of total value ($120.4 million), while Houston Texans star Derek Stingley Jr. previously had the most guaranteed money for a cornerback ($89.02 million). [Trent McDuffie Trade Grades: F Them Picks 2.0? Rams Rightly Bring Back Mantra] The Rams agreed to trade for McDuffie from the Kansas City Chiefs on Wednesday, giving up four draft picks in order to get the deal done. One of those picks was Los Angeles’ first-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft (No. 29 overall). It also gave up its third-round pick in the 2027 NFL Draft. However, the Rams still hold a first-round selection in the 2026 draft, owning the 13th overall pick, thanks to a trade they made with the Atlanta Falcons last offseason. McDuffie, 25, has been one of the NFL’s top cornerbacks since the Chiefs selected him in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft. He helped Kansas City win back-to-back Super Bowls in his first two seasons and is a two-time All-Pro. However, McDuffie was entering the final season of his rookie contract and hadn’t signed an extension. As a result, some speculated that he would be a trade candidate this offseason, especially as Kansas City looks to reshape its roster following its disappointing 6-11 season. McDuffie was among those impacted in the Chiefs’ down season. He missed five games due to a knee injury. He was still productive, though, allowing 37 receptions on 55 targets for just 342 yards and three touchdowns this past season, per Pro Football Focus. McDuffie has allowed just 6.6 yards per attempt when targeted in coverage over his career as well, per PFF. McDuffie should be a major boost to a Rams secondary that was largely mediocre in 2025, and arguably the biggest reason why they fell short of winning a Super Bowl. The Rams ranked 19th in passing defense, and allowed Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold to throw for 346 yards in the NFC Championship Game. Even though the Rams and McDuffie agreed to an extension on Sunday, the trade still can’t be made official until the start of the new league year on Wednesday.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

Tyler Reddick dominated the first three races of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season, winning the Daytona 500, at Atlanta and at Circuit of the Americas in Austin. But he wasn’t able to make it four in a row when the series went to the desert on March 8. The Winner Is … Ryan Blaney wowed at Phoenix Raceway, getting into Victory Lane for his first win of the 2026 season. It was also the first win for manufacturer Ford this year, and the win completed a Team Penske sweep in the Desert Double after Josef Newgarden won Saturday’s INDYCAR Phoenix race. How The Race Was Won With fewer than 10 laps to go, Blaney passed Ty Gibbs — who was looking for his first Cup Series win — for the lead and pulled away from the field to take the checkered flag. Blaney’s best lap on the day was 27.75 miles per hour. He led 28 laps after starting fifth. His victory in Phoenix was the 18th of his career. One Big Moment Joey Logano captured the pole for Phoenix, but his day ended early after he made contact with AJ Allmendinger with just 58 laps to go in the race. Top-10 Results 1. Ryan Blaney2. Christopher Bell3. Kyle Larson4. Ty Gibbs5. Denny Hamlin6. Bubba Wallace7. William Byron8. Tyler Reddick9. Michael McDowell10. Erik Jones What’s Next The next race is the Pennzoil 400 presented by Jiffy Lube on March 15 (4 p.m. ET, FS1).​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports