There are many things that Manchester City and Manchester United have in common - but one thing decisively separates them this season.
Based just five miles apart and united by a shared desire to return to the top of the Premier League, their gameplans are almost diametrically opposed.
The best teams in the world often play in similar ways, as demonstrated in last season's Champions League final between between Paris St-Germain and ******* nal - teams who use similar shapes, look to dominate the ball, and encourage rotations into fixed positions.
But looking ahead to Sunday's Manchester derby, expect to see City boss Enzo Maresca and his United counterpart Michael Carrick field teams teams that play in a totally different way to each other.
In short, City use a rigid structure with players precisely positioned, while United have a more fluid approach that has some positional guidelines but allows players the freedom to roam - here is how it works in detail.

#league #similar

A serious team requires serious stats by which they'll be evaluated. Over the last calendar year, the Chicago Bears have become a serious team led by a serious head coach in Ben Johnson and a serious quarterback in Caleb Williams. Which means that the world of ****** ytics in football will be more relevant for them in 2026 than we have perhaps seen in years past.
While not as robust (or widely utilized) as their counterparts in the baseball world, advanced stats have progressively become more relevant for the NFL and its players in recent years. Pro Football Focus is sort of a driver of this increase, and it's here that we begin our journey into this world.
PFF, as it's known colloquially, ****** igns a grade for every action that a player completes on the field. These grades occur on a scale from +2 to -2, with zero representing the average in between the two ends of the spectrum. These grades don't just occur in a vacuum, either. Positional context and the game situation itself are each taken into account as part of where a given play lands on the scale.

#stats #grades

The Buffalo Bills will open the 2026 NFL season in a place where they have struggled to find success in recent years: on the road against the Houston Texans, who boast one of the league's stingiest defenses.
Since coming to the Bills as the No. 7 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, Josh Allen has led the Bills into Houston four times. And in all four prior matchups, the Bills couldn't pull out the win.
Sunday will mark the third consecutive season where Buffalo has traveled to Houston, and today's edition of Buffalo Rumblinks leads off by sharing the key matchups to watch and positional ***** ysis as the Bills look to snap that streak and begin the season with a big road win over a fellow playoff participant from last season.
Check out the ***** sments below and then let us know your thoughts on the game in the comments section.
Linked below: Breaking down the key story lines to watch, including dissecting the approach new defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard will take to contain the Texans; how Joe Brady can better position Josh Allen and the offense for success against a Texans pass rush that sacked Allen eight times in last year's loss; why starting right tackle Spencer Brown thinks things will go much differently against Will Anderson and Danielle Hunter, two of the game's premier pass rushers, now that both Brown and starting left tackle Dion Dawkins are fully healthy; how Greg Rousseau and Bradley Chubb need to generate more pressure on Texans QB CJ Stroud than the Bills have their last two trips to Houston (one total sack); and more!

#last

Ben Danford shared his honest ******* sment of whether he has a chance of making the Maple Leafs' opening-night roster. Danford aims to build off his experience with the Toronto Marlies last season and take another step toward the NHL.
Toronto selected Danford 31st overall in the 2024 NHL Draft. He has been among the prospects fans have focused on, particularly due to the Maple Leafs' positional need on defense. However, after the Leafs addressed their defense during the offseason, perhaps Danford's chances of making the roster may have decreased.
Still, Danford is eager to get on the ice and make an impression during the Leafs' Development Camp.
Ben Danford said that he is not focusing on things that he has no control over. Instead, he is taking the Maple Leafs' Development Camp one day at a time and is embracing the challenge.
Danford, 20, revealed that he is using the upcoming rookie tournament as an opportunity to gain more confidence. He also shared his honest thoughts on what it will take for him to make the Leafs' roster.

#leafs #honest

1
Manchester United legend Paul Scholes has warned Michael Carrick that he may have a major problem on his hands with Matheus Cunha.
Several United players underperformed in Sunday's stalemate with Everton, but Cunha was the worst of the lot.
From overhit passes and heavy touches to poor positional awareness and glaring misses, his performance was a catalogue of errors. There was simply too much that went wrong.
In yet another game, Cunha didn't appear to have a clear role in the team. Last term, Carrick primarily used him on the left of the attack. But Marcus Rashford's return has seen him pushed elsewhere in the team.

#carrick #scholes #matheus

The San Francisco 49ers waived tight end Brayden Willis Saturday to make room for long snapper Jon Weeks on the active roster.
Per the NFL's transaction wire, Willis went unclaimed. Willis showed positional versatility during the preseason, but he was also a 7th-rounder from '23 with as many regular-season receptions since then as you and I.
That means the team can bring him back to the practice squad and potentially elevate him to the active roster for this upcoming week against the Rams. He's expected to practice with the team after re-joining the practice squad, as he did not leave Australia, per Matt Maiocco.
Willis's best chance to contribute offensively is at fullback. During this past preseason, he lined up at fullback 15 times. Kyle Juszczyk recently returned to practice after breaking his finger. If Juszczyk can't perform his usual duties or gets hurt again, Willis is his logical backup — ***** uming the team would have him on the active roster so he can play special teams.
Juszczyk is entering the final year of his two-year contract. He's 35. It makes you wonder if the 49ers want to keep Willis around to take over for Juszczyk if this ends up being Juice's final year as a Niner. In my opinion, Willis offers more out of the backfield than as a tight end. That was likely part of the reason he was waived.

#willis #juszczyk #roster #team

Chelsea are approaching the final weeks of the transfer window with an unresolved question at their centre. Enzo Fernandez has been linked with a move to Manchester City throughout August, and the commercial logic of selling is not difficult to construct. What is considerably more difficult is justifying strengthening a direct rival at a moment when that rival's most glaring weakness is precisely the position Fernandez occupies.
Fernandez cost Chelsea €120 million in January 2023. He was bought to be the deep-lying conductor of a new-look midfield – the replacement for Jorginho, the organiser around whom creativity would flow. That vision has never been fully realised at Stamford Bridge, and the reasons why are well-documented.
Every manager Chelsea (7.04) has appointed since his arrival has struggled to make a Fernandez-Caicedo double pivot function out of possession. Fernandez is not physically built to cover large central ***** es. His defensive awareness is sharp enough for international soccer, where Lionel Scaloni's Argentina have found ways to manage around his limitations, but has never been sharp enough at club level to survive without significant structural support.
Enzo Maresca's solution last season was to move Fernandez into the left pocket, push a fullback deeper into the midfield beside Caicedo and slow Chelsea's possession game to keep the team compact. It improved the collective structure and allowed Fernandez to play his best soccer at Chelsea, scoring 15 goals across all competitions. But it came at a notable cost, most visibly, the significant dip in Cole Palmer's form.
Xabi Alonso is not going to replicate that approach. His 3-4-2-1 system places Morgan Rogers and Palmer as dual attacking midfielders behind the striker. That is precisely where Fernandez would be best utilised. But Chelsea paid £117 million for Rogers this transfer window to fill that exact role. The positional arithmetic does not work in Fernandez's favour.

#caicedo #rogers #window #difficult

A subtle smile played across Vincent Kompany's face as the final whistle blew at Bremer Brücke late on Wednesday evening. Joshua Kimmich gave a thumbs-up to the travelling fans, whilst Harry Kane glanced down briefly and seemed content in the moment. Then the FC Bayern players high-fived one another and headed towards the away supporters' block.
Job done at VfL Osnabrück. Through to the second round of the DFB Cup. That was exactly what was at stake in FC Bayern's 4–1 win against the newly promoted Bundesliga 2 side. The record cup winners showed composure and poise at a venue where even favourites can sometimes stumble.
Going behind early on due to a wonder goal from Robin Meißner proved to be the perfect stress test (5th minute). A shot that thundered into the top corner sent the stadium into a frenzy, and briefly gave the underdogs hope that they could perhaps cause an upset. But the Munich side remained calm and didn't let that moment unsettle them.
"It flew right into the top corner – congratulations to Robin Meißner on that goal," said Jonas Urbig after the game. The FCB goalkeeper had been given a vote of confidence by coach Kompany and immediately found himself in for a cup night that demanded more than just taking care of business. "The first goal was a stunner. You know, of course, that it can be tricky here, and then a goal like that goes in within the first ten minutes. It was absolutely incredible. But we kept our cool, played a solid second half and are ultimately very happy," concluded Kompany.
The response was crucial. Bayern needed a moment to regroup, but quickly found their way back to their strengths. Their passing and positional play looked composed, they kept up the pressure, and Kimmich's well-thought-out passes consistently added structure to the game. Up front, Kane provided a swift response with his equaliser (18'), before Tom Bischof turned the game around before the break (24').

#gave #briefly

After this year's draft, much of the conversation turned to what else the Colts needed. Unfortunately, it wasn't asking the question, "What player or positional improvement puts us in the Super Bowl conversation" but more along the lines of "If we don't get better at this position, how bad are we are going to suck?". Pierce being hurt saw the biggest area of concern shift from an Edge rusher, to a proven, dependable WR. Swing Tackle was a concern, as was a RB2. I was personally concerned with the inexperience at LB.
Training camp came and eased some of the RB concerns. McGowan was able to impress in practices and looked good in preseason games as well, while showing he could contribute on STs when called upon. Some didn't like the choice for #3 RB, but Giddens has also been in the building for two years and must have gained more confidence that Bentley. We saw some good play out of what will be depth or situational Edge play from our later rookies, even if we never got a glimpse of our starters on the outside. We may still be a pass rusher away from being the best that we can be.
One unforeseen weakness did appear during camp. We discovered that the loss of Pinter left us without a Center who could handle snapping the football. Many tried, but all looked bad in their efforts. It was glaring enough that we had to make a low level deal to bring in an experienced backup. Given that OL players seldom get through a season unscathed, I feel better about our backup Center, without the benefit of ever seeing him play a snap.
As camp ended, we did as hoped by bringing in an experience WR. Some of the shine came off of our new toy, when overserved, crossed paths with a bad choice, to result in an arrest. We may or may not lose Allen for a few games this year, but if it happens, it will likely be manipulated to minimize the loss. This leaves Swing Tackle as the last perceived deficiency to address. Tenuta was not as popular among the coaches as he was with fans, as he didn't make the 53 man roster and had to clear waivers to remain on the practice squad. It looks like we are more willing to move our Guards to Tackle, than to have a true Swing Tackle. We may have to call that position a weakness.

#play

Few among us know NBA basketball like the players who make up that league. And while that may not come as much of a surprise to most fans of the sport, the fact that recency bias can warp the perception of historical greatness ought to not come as much of a shock either given not all of us (NBA stars or otherwise) are scholars of league history.
So when new Minnesota Timberwolves guard LaMelo Ball paid former Boston Celtics forward Jaylen Brown near the top of the mountain when it comes to all-time great Celtics on a recent episode of the semi-eponymous "Ball in the Family" podcast, one can hardly blame him, especially considering he was not all that far from the truth. "I have got to see all the accolades," said Ball (h/t to Yahoo Sports' Gautam Varier) with an understandable caveat, "but if you line up Boston's best players ever, he's in my top five."
Now if you were to say top at his position, that would be a more reasonable argument given the existence of players like Bill Russell, Bob Cousy, John Havlicek, Jo Jo White, Dave Cowens, Robert Parish, Kevin McHale, Larry Bird, Paul Pierce, and Kevin Garnett. There are reasonable arguments to rank him three or maybe even four of those names, but after that it gets tough given all these Hall of Fame players accomplished in Boston. Ball seemed to acknowledge this dynamic, shifting the frame to a more positional one.
"Only two wings is better than him is Paul Pierce and Larry Bird," said the Minnesota guard. Hondo and White would like a word, but to be fair neither looms as large in the lore of the wider league as they ought to. Perhaps most interestingly, Ball also thinks Boston dealt their best player to the Philadelphia 76ers.
"I think Brown's a little better," said Ball. "He's low-key frying Bird ... I don't want to be disrespectful… Bird is baking him too, but he's baking Bird. Bird is baking him, too, but he is also getting to it ... Jaylen Brown has a better chance of guarding him than he has of guarding Jaylen Brown."

#bird #jaylen #league

Manchester United looked very good in the second half against Ipswich Town on Sunday, but the side's goals did not come from the forward line. Harry Maguire, Bruno Fernandes and Kobbie Mainoo were the driving force behind the three goals, with the captain recording his first hat-trick in five years.
The front three of Matheus Cunha at striker and Marcus Rashford and Bryan Mbeumo on the flanks did not look poor. Cunha **** isted Bruno's first goal and Mbeumo finished an odd chip for the fifth and final goal, meanwhile Rashford had two excellent chances denied by the goalkeeper and last-ditch defending. There was balance, but it was still evidently a solution to a personnel problem.
Amad's preseason injury made the right wing options limited to Mbeumo, despite the Cameroonian's emergence as a good No. 9 option this season. Benjamin Sesko missed the entire preseason but has been fit enough to make appearances off the bench. Cunha, who typically played on the left last season, played as a No. 9 for Brazil at the World Cup and fit there with Rashford as a natural option on the left.
The options aren't bad for Michael Carrick to choose from. All three players have been flexible positionally in their careers and offer a balance of qualities. Rashford looked particularly comfortable playing with Luke Shaw again and he made a good effort out of possession to stay involved as well. He didn't get the goal his performance might have deserved, but overall it was a good homecoming.
Cunha was the only real odd fit, operating similarly to Bruno Fernandes and dropping into similar areas. It allowed the No. 10 to make good runs beyond the striker, but Cunha's lack of striker presence was felt at times, especially in the first half.

#striker

The Pittsburgh Steelers finalized their initial 53-man roster, but keeping four quarterbacks, Aaron Rodgers, Mason Rudolph, Will Howard, and Drew Allar, came with severe systemic trade-offs.
On a recent episode of the "Locked on Steelers" podcast, host Christopher Carter of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette sounded the alarm on how ****** ding signal-callers has severely compromised positional depth across the rest of the team.
"If you keep four quarterbacks, it's going to leave some holes somewhere that you're going to have to fill," Carter explained. "And lo and behold, they kept four quarterbacks and there are some serious holes that got to be filled."
The structural crunch is felt most acutely on the offensive line and in the secondary. The Steelers enter the regular season carrying just three active offensive tackles: starting left tackle Troy Fautanu, likely starting right tackle Dylan Cook, and rookie Max Iheanachor.
With Jack Driscoll relegated to short-term injured reserve, Pittsburgh lacks a true, proven swing tackle.

#steelers #holes

NFL All-Overpaid team: Zay Flowers, Deshaun Watson headline players with worst contracts originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The NFL is all about value.
As a salary-capped league, front offices only have so much flexibility to work with each season. And while that salary cap has skyrocketed over the years, now at $301.2 million per team for the 2026 season, markets have been dictated by positional value. Superstar quarterbacks and pass rushers come at a premium, running backs have been seeing somewhat of a financial resurgence after years of struggles, while special teams players are usually given whatever is left over.
Like any sports league, however, there are some players who don't provide their franchises the kind of value their significant contracts would indicate, especially compared to their positional peers. Whether due to injuries, poor performance or off-the-field issues, an inflated contract can handicap an NFL team, and there are plenty of them across the league.
Here's a look at The Sporting News' All-Overpaid team entering the 2026 NFL season.

#sporting #players #value

Back in March, the Green Bay Packers got a little creative with addressing one of their more notable roster needs. With the 2026 NFL Draft looming and linebacker high on their priority list, Green Bay traded interior defensive lineman Colby Wooden to the Indianapolis Colts for linebacker Zaire Franklin.
The trade allowed the Packers to focus on other positional needs in the NFL Draft while also giving them a former Pro Bowl linebacker to pair with Edgerrin Cooper. Meanwhile, the Colts added a former fourth-round pick who had a career-high 50 tackles in 17 games played in 2025 (16 starts).
Indianapolis Colts defensive tackle Colby Wooden (96) practices during the team’s minicamp Thursday, June 11, 2026, at the Indiana Farm Bureau Football Center in Indianapolis.
In addition to giving Green Bay a Pro Bowl-caliber linebacker, the trade reunited Franklin with current Packers defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon, who was with the Colts early in his career. Obviously, he made the initial 53-man roster and is projected to be a starter in Green Bay.
Wooden, on the other hand, was released by Indianapolis on Sunday. CBS Sports declared it one of the most surprising cuts of the day while declaring the Green Bay the winner of the trade before the season even begins:

#colts #linebacker

Well, this is something to wake up to. According to The Athletic's David Ornstein, overnight Tottenham Hotspur and Everton reached an agreement to essentially swap attackers — bringing Ilman Ndiaye to Spurs, with Richarlison returning to Everton heading the other direction. This is NOT a true swap deal; these will be treated as separate transfers.
In yesterday's post-match press conference, Spurs head coach Roberto De Zerbi essentially told us that Richarlison asked to leave Spurs for a new challenge. I just didn't realize it would all go down so quickly. According to Paul Joyce of The Times, Ndiaye will cost Spurs about £60m, with Richarlison heading the other direction for a fee of £35m, making the outlay a lot lower than most transfers that Spurs have brought in this summer.
Ndiaye, 26, is a French fooballer who has declared for and plays international football for Senegal. He's been used primarily on the left wing for Everton, but can also play centrally or on the right. He's NOT a striker but could be implemented as a #10 if needed. Ndiaye likes to be on the ball and frequently prefers to take on and dribble past his defenders, which frequently turns into touches in the penalty area and shots. He likes to cut inside from the flank and is also comfortable receiving the ball deeper as a ball progression outlet. His acquisition means that Spurs will essentially only have three first team strikers on the books — Omar Marmoush, Dominic Solanke, and Dane Scarlett — but Ndiaye will fortify Spurs' attacking midfield options. His preferred position at Everton will put him in competition with Mathys Tel and Savinho, but his positional flexibility means he could be an ***** et elsewhere as well. He's also a willing presser and capable of putting in defensive work to make tackles. Despite maybe hinting otherwise yesterday, I'm kind of a fan of this deal.
As for Richarlison… well, I'm sad. He's probably my favorite Spurs player (non-Sonny edition) of this era. He's a vibes guy who always seemed to lift the mood, and it's clear he loved Spurs. But it's just as clear that he's not happy here anymore, and as his career starts to wind down a return to the club that lifted him to stardom feels like the closing of the circle. Everton fans love him as much as we do, and I can't begrudge them, or him, this move. It feels like the right choice.
What do you think of this deal? Can Spurs get it across the line before the window closes on September 2?

#everton #ndiaye

Hull City look to be moving with real purpose in the transfer market. According to GFFN, citing Fabrizio Romano, the club have reached an agreement in principle with Eintracht Frankfurt for Jean-Mattéo Bahoya. The next step is simple enough, the player must decide.
That matters, because Bahoya is not short of options. Everton have also been linked, and when a 21-year-old French attacker with Bundesliga experience becomes available, interest tends to follow. Hull, though, have put themselves in position. That is the key point here.
Bahoya is primarily a left winger, but modern recruitment is about more than one fixed role. He can operate across the front line and offers the sort of positional flexibility Premier League squads need. For a promoted club, that has obvious value. You do not always buy specialists, you buy players who can solve several problems at once.
Photo: IMAGO
His numbers are respectable rather than spectacular. After joining Frankfurt from Angers in January 2024 for €8m, he made 33 appearances in all competitions in his first full season, scoring three goals and adding four ***** ists. In 2025-26, he featured 37 times, with four goals and four ***** ists. Those are not elite outputs, but they suggest development, availability and trust from coaches in a demanding environment.

#goals

NFL cuts tracker 2026: Live roster news, updates, notable cuts for all 32 teams originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
We are just days away from the return of NFL football — but first, all 32 teams have some decisions to make.
Over the last few months, each squad has shaken its roster up, entertaining positional battles and welcoming in some fresh faces through free agency and the draft. But the time for roster debates is no longer; the official roster cut-down mark arrives Sunday at 6 p.m. ET.
MORE:SN's NFL preseason power rankings | Biggest fallers in preseason
By that point, every team must have its 90-man offseason roster trimmed down to 53 players for the regular season. Additionally, each club can carry up to 17 practice squad members (with one being an international player), a likely outcome for most of the notable roster cuts.

#cuts #teams #preferred

Celtic are in advanced talks to send winger Michel-Ange Balikwisha to Belgian Pro League club K.A.A. Gent on loan, according to Sky Sports reporter Anthony Joseph. The structure of the deal includes an option for Gent to sign him permanently for around £3.5 million. Balikwisha, 25, has received permission from Celtic to fly to Belgium and complete a medical.
The DR Congo international was brought in from Royal Antwerp for £5.5 million, but the Scottish champions have now deemed him surplus to requirements. His representatives had been searching for a suitable destination for several weeks.
Balikwisha's time at Celtic has been nothing short of a disaster. The Congolese winger arrived from Antwerp last summer with genuine expectations, only to post 0 goals and 0 ****** ists across 14 appearances throughout the 2025/26 season. He hasn't touched the pitch once in the current 2026/27 campaign.
Those numbers tell a brutal story. In the Scottish Premiership, he failed to register a single shot on target, his dribble success rate sat at a miserable 44%, and he contributed just 2 key passes all season. A ghost, in every statistical sense.
The tactical direction under the Celtic manager Martin O'Neill has moved firmly against wide players who lack structural discipline. Balikwisha's profile, an individualistic, flair-driven attacker, simply didn't fit the system's demand for pressing intensity and defensive positional awareness.

#scottish #ange

The Baltimore Ravens have waived undrafted rookie cornerback Lardarius Webb Jr. as they continue trimming their roster, according to Brian Wacker of The Baltimore Sun.
Webb's arrival in Baltimore created one of the Ravens' most compelling offseason stories. His father, Lardarius Webb Sr., spent his entire nine-year NFL career with the organization, recorded 15 interceptions and helped Baltimore win Super Bowl XLVII.
The younger Webb signed with the Ravens after completing his college career at Wake Forest. He recorded 36 tackles, two tackles for loss, one sack and seven pass breakups during his final college season.
Webb continued making plays during the preseason despite limited opportunities. The 5-foot-9, 177-pound cornerback finished with two solo tackles, one forced fumble and one pass breakup. His ability to play outside, in the slot and on special teams gave him some positional flexibility.
Baltimore's depth at cornerback created a difficult path to the initial 53-man roster. Nate Wiggins, Marlon Humphrey and Chidobe Awuzie lead the group, while T.J. Tampa, Bilhal Kone, Keyon Martin and fifth-round rookie Chandler Rivers entered the final weekend competing for reserve roles.

#tackles #roster

With roster cuts approaching, this isn't necessarily a prediction of exactly what the Ravens will do. It's how I would construct Baltimore's initial 53-man roster based on preseason performance, positional value, roster flexibility, and the likelihood of certain players making it through waivers.
QB: Lamar Jackson, Tyler Huntley
RB: Derrick Henry, Justice Hill, Adam Randall
WR: Zay Flowers, Rashod Bateman, Ja'Kobi Lane, Devontez Walker, LaJohntay Wester, Elijah Sarratt
TE: Mark Andrews, Josh Cuevas, Matthew Hibner, Durham Smythe

#lamar #tyler #justice

The Indianapolis Colts close out the preseason at home against the Detroit Lions on Saturday, and whether it's for playing time or a roster spot, several positional battles are still taking place late in training camp.
Before roster cutdowns take place on Sunday, given what we've learned over the last month of practices and games, let's predict the winner of each positional competition.
Both players have flashed, and both have had their struggles. I do think Richardson has had the better overall preseason, and his ability to extend plays has been a differentiator.
Winner: Richardson
Giddens has missed most of camp with a hamstring injury. Bentley has stood out in the passing game, an element the Colts could use more of out of the backfield.

#place

With training camp in the rearview, the Tennessee ***** ans are about ready to fully turn their attention to the season opener against the New York Jets. Just two hurdles remain: the preseason finale against the Chicago Bears on Saturday and the cut-down to 53 on Sunday.
This past week, head coach Robert Saleh and ***** istant general manager Dave Zeigler discussed the week and noted that a few roster spots remain up for grabs. But what are those? And who are those in contention?
While some players like Julius Chestnut appear to have locked up a roster spot as the fourth running back or Kylen Granson as the fourth tight end, others are still fighting for the final spots, and the final roster breakdown will be dictated by the final positional breakdown.
Here is a breakdown of what ***** ans Wire believes could be those final spots.
The ***** ans are five deep, but will have some decisions to make at receiver. Bryce Oliver is a special teams ***** et, which could give him an advantage, but Xavier Restrepo is making a strong push. With Wan'Dale Robinson going down with a potential concussion, Restrepo could be in-line to gain some extra snaps in the preseason finale and could have a golden opportunity to cement his case.

#finale

Over the last year, Nick Maggiulli has come to what he calls an unsettling realization: The upper-middle class is caught in a trap, and many of them don't even realize it.
The chief operating officer of Ritholtz Wealth Management has spent the better part of a year building the case in pieces on his blog, Of Dollars and Data—first arguing private school isn't worth the cost despite its price tag, then that premium travel experiences have grown crowded while remaining expensive in "The Death of the Amex Lounge." He previously talked to Fortune about his book, The Wealth Ladder, and his growing belief "something weird's going on" with the upper-middle class in the U.S. economy.
In an April essay, he pulled the threads together and gave the phenomenon a name: the "upper-middle-class trap," in which people earning roughly $200,000 to $400,000 a year are working more and relaxing less to buy products and services of declining quality.
His evidence includes new single-family homes shrinking in average size by 12% between 2014 and 2024, even as the price per square foot surged 74%, according to LendingTree data. A home near a public elementary school with a top GreatSchools rating costs 78.6% more than a comparable home in the surrounding county. Homebuyers who win bidding wars end up worse off: One study found their purchases produced 6.9% lower annualized returns than homes bought without competition. In higher education, the number of college applicants has jumped 78% since 2015 even as acceptance rates at elite schools have collapsed, driving tuition and private-school costs up roughly twice as fast as overall inflation.
The mechanism Maggiulli describes is a "financial arms race": Every individual decision is rational, but collectively the competition for the same scarce positional goods lowers everyone's quality of life while draining their bank accounts.

#even #maggiulli

When roster turnover hits an NFL unit, leadership voids rarely linger unfilled for long. Following the free-agency departure of veteran guard Isaac Seumalo to the Arizona Cardinals, the Pittsburgh Steelers' offensive line found itself searching for a new anchor in the meeting room.
Third-year guard Mason McCormick has stepped directly into that void.
Speaking on teammate Cameron Heyward's podcast, "Not Just Football with Cam Heyward," starting tackle Troy Fautanu explained how the dynamic inside the positional unit shifted once Seumalo departed. He noted that it forced younger players to mature at an accelerated pace.
"I think just the dynamic switched when we lost Isaac to the Cardinals and someone had to step up," Fautanu shared during the episode. "I really think Mason did a really good job at being the vocal one out of all of us, just because that's who he is. That's the kind of person that he's always been and we needed that from the room."
McCormick's transition into a primary vocal presence reflects the rapid maturation required across Pittsburgh's front five. Despite entering only his third NFL season, McCormick is suddenly viewed as one of the established foundational pillars in a young, talent-heavy room.

#mccormick

LAS VEGAS—Outside of winning, the goal for the Las Vegas Raiders in this final preseason game was simple: find solutions.
With many positional battles coming down to the final days of the preseason, this marked the last opportunity for players to prove just where they fit into the Raiders' plans for 2026. Everything from starting jobs to roster spots was on the line, forcing the Raiders to leave everything out on the field.
While the Raiders would come out on the losing end of an 18-12 kicking battle against the San Francisco 49ers, they were able to get some questions answered about themselves.
First off, Klint Kubiak poured cold water on the idea of naming a starting quarterback for Week One. However, the performances from the game against San Francisco would suggest what the decision will be.
Kirk Cousins put together a performance that Fernando Mendoza described as "ruthlessly efficient," going 8-for-11 with 51 passing yards. Meanwhile, Mendoza himself ended up struggling with a 7-for-14 line for 57 yards. The first overall pick was also charged with an interception that deflected off the hands of Jalen Nailor to 49ers linebacker Tatum Bethune and two sacks.

#everything #final #preseason

Fall camp is underway in Norman, and the Oklahoma Sooners are less than two weeks away from kicking off the 2026 regular season. After a 10-win season in 2025 that resulted in a trip to the College Football Playoff, the focus has been on taking the team from good to great under head coach Brent Venables.
With the offseason drawing to a close, it's time to take a look at each position on OU's roster to see where things stand heading into the season. After players from last year's team left via the transfer portal or exhausted eligibility and the Sooners replenished the roster via the portal and high school recruiting, there are plenty of new faces looking to make an impact and returning names looking to take a step forward.
Positional Preview: Quarterback
Positional Preview: Running Back
Positional Preview: Wide Receiver

#positional #preview #Sooners #looking

The Atlanta Falcons may not be all that talented compared to the competition, at least if we're going by the new positional rankings from ESPN which have them placed 30th at quarterback and just 26th overall.
Where the Falcons are best they are truly special, though.
The latest evidence here is the top-25 players under 25 years old from Mike Jones at The Athletic, where two Atlanta stars made the cut and another earned an honorable mention.
Naturally, superstar running back Bijan Robinson ranked highest, coming in at No. 9 on his list, one spot below Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua and one ahead of Colts cornerback Sauce Gardner.
"One of the best all-around weapons in the league, Robinson last season topped the 1,400-yard rushing mark for the second straight year, and he added 820 receiving yards on 79 catches. Robinson edged out Christian McCaffrey in all-purpose yards (2,298 to 2,126) to lead all offensive players."

#robinson #espn #mike

The Chicago Bears are visiting the Cincinnati Bengals for a Week 2 preseason game on Saturday at Paycor Stadium, which comes on the heels of Thursday's joint practice.
While it's expected that most of the starters won't be playing -- after Zac Taylor confirmed so for the Bengals and the presumption that Ben Johnson will also rest his -- there's still plenty to watch in this exhibition game as players fight for jobs and roster spots, as well as continuing positional battles and rookie performances.
Bears Wire is bringing you live updates, scores and highlights from the game. Follow along.
Watch Bears vs. Bengals on Fubo (free trial)
Date: Saturday, August 22, 2026

#bengals #stadium

Since their opening practices of OTAs last season, Matthew Stafford and Davante Adams have been in sync, using their veteran and positional perspectives to dial up the NFL's highest-scoring connection in 2025.
While Stafford and Adams were elite in 2025, their start in the regular season was a bit rocky because they had to adjust to each other after having limited reps. At the same time, they were attempting to figure out the opponent. It didn't help that Stafford missed training camp with a back issue, leading to Adams working with Jimmy Garoppolo during camp and joint practices.
This year, both players have been full participants, with head coach Sean McVay expressing his thoughts on the duo.
"We were literally just [talking about] that," McVay said of their strong connection. "It's awesome because obviously you could see about midway through the season they got really comfortable, but you don't take for granted how important that rapport is. No matter how great you are, you've got two great players. You've got to be able to get those reps, and repetition is the mother of learning.
"They've got a great feel. I think today was a really good day for those guys being able to connect against tight, sticky coverage. It's been awesome, but they're two outstanding people, outstanding players, and it's really fun to watch them take some ownership and even just be a fly on the wall and listen to their dialogue and what they're thinking. I love what I've seen from those guys."

#season #really

In my day job, I am an English professor. This is relevant because in my hobby of writing about football, I frequently encounter people who forget that words mean things. ESPN just released a ranking of NFL positional groups that includes this statement: "you would be surprised by what you can learn sitting down and objectively grading and/or ranking each positional unit of all 32 teams."
This is probably true. The author of the article should try it some time. "Objectively," per Merriam-Webster, involves "evaluation with a basis in observable facts rather than feelings or opinions." He then proceeds to just rattle off a bunch of rank lists without actually providing any criteria for how the lists were composed. To be clear–this is an author writing to the standard of "trust me bro" and vibes, and it says a lot about the state of ESPN and sports journalism in general.
Because a detailed ***** ysis of everything wrong with the article would take framing and ***** ysis that exceeds what the low quality of its argumentation deserves, I am simply going to focus on three Bears-centric rankings that make me wonder whether or not the author was even bothering.
ESPN ranks Chicago's running back room as 24th in the NFL. In 2025, Chicago had the 4th-best rushing attack in the league by EPA/run, and it was one of only ten teams in the league that had positive value in EPA per run. Not only was Chicago third in total rushing yards, it was one of only three teams in the league with two running backs (Swift and Monangai) with at least 25 attempts in the top twenty in terms of success rate and EPA per rush. Those two were 12th and 21st in terms of yards per carry in terms for backs with at least 50 rush attempts, and 3rd and 19th in terms of total EPA.
Either would be the basis of a rushing attack above 24th in the league, and Chicago has both of them. By any objective standard, Chicago has a 1-2 punch at running back that is near the top of the league. If the concern is that Chicago's third running back is going to bring down the rest of the group, we would need to believe that 23 teams in the NFL have third-string running backs sufficient to make up the difference over this pairing.

#author