KANSAS CITY, Mo. — It seems football fans everywhere are suddenly on the Chiefs’ bandwagon, enthralled by Kansas City’s record-setting young quarterback and exciting playmakers and hopeful the amiable coach can finally win the big one. Then again, maybe they’re just fans of anybody ...

NEW ORLEANS — One way or another, the NFC Championship between the Los Angeles Rams and New Orleans Saints will be won by a coach named Sean — with an Irish surname — who designs and calls plays for one of the most innovative and productive offenses in the NFL. The ties between the ...

The gumbo the New Orleans Saints are cooking up is flavored with lots of passes from Drew Brees to Michael Thomas, plenty of runs by Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram, and enough dashes of defense to negate the high-powered offense of the Los Angeles Rams. Will that be the proper ...

It will be dark and cold, perhaps absurdly cold, tonight in Kansas City. Arrowhead Stadium will be lit up, though, and the winner of the Patriots-Chiefs game will head to Atlanta for the Super Bowl. Here’s how they match up: WHEN NEW ENGLAND HAS THE BALL: As they have much of the season, ...

SEATTLE — Over the years, scientists have identified dams, pollution and vessel noise as causes of the troubling decline of the Pacific Northwest’s resident killer whales. Now, they may have found a new and more surprising culprit: pink salmon. Four salmon researchers were perusing data ...

The Associated Press FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — It may have been hard to hear him over the noise of the New England fans celebrating an eighth straight trip to the AFC title game, but Tom Brady is feeling disrespected. That’s right: The three-time NFL MVP and five-time Super Bowl champion told ...

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — Although Jared Goff is uncomfortable being overly nosy when he’s around the NFL’s best quarterbacks, he kept a close eye on Drew Brees while they were together at the Pro Bowl in Orlando last year. The most prolific passer in NFL history had no problem sharing ...

MELBOURNE, Australia — Maybe Serena Williams will be tested in the Australian Open’s fourth round, because no one has come close to making her work too hard so far. Playing clean and powerful tennis, Williams overwhelmed 18-year-old Dayana Yastremska of Ukraine 6-2, 6-1 on ...

NEW YORK — A record number of college football players will bypass their remaining years of eligibility to enter the NFL draft. The 135 players forgoing eligibility surpasses the 119 from last year. The NFL released the official list on Friday. There are 103 underclassmen eligible for the ...

DURHAM, N.C. — Top-ranked Duke hopes its team defense doesn’t slip without point guard Tre Jones — for however long he’s out. The Blue Devils were just getting back to playing the kind of tough man-to-man defense that had been their trademark after several years of struggles. Now ...

AMHERST, N.Y. — Coach Nate Oats stood beneath the basket with his arms folded, watching the chaos of his Buffalo players practice at their usual frenetic pace. Arms flailed. Rubber squeaked. And then came the thud of bodies colliding and falling to the court, as backup freshman Jeenathan ...

Wisconsin beats No. 2 Michigan MADISON, Wis. — Ethan Happ and the Wisconsin Badgers finally closed out a tight game. Against No. 2 Michigan, too. Happ had 26 points and 10 rebounds as Wisconsin handed the Wolverines their first loss of the season, breaking away in the final minute for a ...

CHICAGO — If Kris Bryant knows anything about where Bryce Harper is going in free agency, he is staying quiet for the moment. Bryant does know at least one thing that should delight fans of the Chicago Cubs. “The shoulder is perfectly healed. Feels great,” Bryant said. “Everything ...

NOT THEM AGAIN! Sorry America — at least outside of New England — but the team you love to hate is headed back to the Super Bowl. Sure, there are negatives to point out with these Patriots. They haven’t looked much more than mediocre on the road. Their defense is vulnerable, ...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The even-keeled executive with the crisp suit and winning smile stood inside the mostly empty Kansas City Chiefs locker room, his team having just won a home playoff game for the first time in 25 years. He talked about how much it meant to their long-suffering fans. Spoke ...

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — Ndamukong Suh earned multiple All-Pro honors, Pro Bowl selections and tens of millions of dollars during his first eight NFL seasons. The imposing defensive lineman had never won a playoff game, let alone a Super Bowl. When he was free to choose his next team after ...

AUSTIN, Texas — Texas is set at quarterback with Sam Ehlinger, who had a breakout season in 2018. It is the depth chart behind him that has suddenly become a concern for coach Tom Herman as the wave of players exploring their options to move has reached the Longhorns. Experienced backup ...

By John Pye The Associated Press MELBOURNE, Australia — Roger Federer has played here a hundred times and has six Australian Open crowns in his collection of 20 Grand Slam titles. The 37-year-old tennis statesman has developed a loyal following over 20 consecutive visits to Melbourne ...

The Associated Press KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City Chiefs safety Eric Berry and running back Spencer Ware returned to practice Wednesday, raising the possibility that both will be available for their AFC championship showdown with New England. Berry missed most of the season with a heel ...

PITTSBURGH — The Pitt Panthers’ 12-game football schedule for 2019 was unveiled Wednesday by the Atlantic Coast Conference, and it features 11 teams that qualified for the postseason last year. Pitt will host seven games at Heinz Field, including four ACC contests. The home season ...