Category: Sports

BOSTON — The Boston Red Sox released veteran right-hander Walker Buehler in a series of moves Friday that included calling up top pitching prospect Payton Tolle for his major league debut.

The 31-year-old Buehler, a two-time All-Star who won two World Series with the Los Angeles Dodgers, signed a one-year, $21.05 million deal with the Red Sox for 2025 with a mutual option for next year.

But Buehler has struggled, going 7-7 with a 5.45 ERA in 23 games, including 22 starts. Buehler was on pace for career lows in several categories and had recently been sent to the bullpen. He’s 54-29 in 144 starts over eight major league seasons.

Buehler had a rough patch last season coming off a second Tommy John surgery. But he memorably closed out the Dodgers’ 2024 World Series win over the New York Yankees, recording the final three outs in Game 5 two days after pitching five shutout innings as the starter in Game 3.

Tolle, the Red Sox’s second-round pick out of TCU in the 2024 MLB amateur draft, was scheduled to start against Paul Skenes and the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday night. The left-hander had a 3-5 record and 3.04 ERA in 91⅔ innings at three levels in the minors, most recently at Triple-A Worcester.

Boston also recalled utility player Nick Sogard from Worcester and optioned outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia to Worcester.

Matt Wallace is aiming to remain king of the mountains after posting rounds of 65 and 63 on a marathon second day at the weather-disrupted European Masters to sit one shot off the clubhouse lead.

The race to catch up following Thursday’s lengthy fog delays in Switzerland saw defending champion Wallace play 36 holes on Friday, having been unable to start his first round on day one.

The Englishman made 15 birdies and three bogeys across two rounds to reach 12 under par and sit one shot behind France’s Adrien Saddier.

Wallace is chasing a rookie Ryder Cup appearance, with Luke Donald naming his six captain’s picks on Monday September 1, live from 2pm on Sky Sports.

Wallace said: “I had three great nines. I would put it that way.

“The first nine this morning wasn’t very good, but I managed to get it round and then I found something on the back nine. I played really nicely this afternoon.

“I said to myself a few times out there today that I’m the defending champion so let’s try to keep it that way.”

Wallace’s countryman Jordan Smith and South African Thriston Lawrence share third place on 11 under after two rounds, while many groups will either kick off or complete their second rounds on Saturday morning, including Englishman Matt Fitzpatrick.

Who will win the Omega European Masters? Watch throughout the week live on Sky Sports. Live coverage continues on Saturday from 11.30am on Sky Sports Golf. Not got Sky? Get Sky Sports or stream with no contract on NOW.

Nearly a quarter-century ago, former New York Jets linebacker Mo Lewis delivered a hit on Drew Bledsoe that changed the course of NFL history.

Tired of being held responsible by Jets fans for triggering the Tom Brady era and the New England Patriots‘ dynasty, Lewis has unleashed another hit.

Lewis, breaking a long media silence, contends in a soon-to-be-released book that it’s Bledsoe — not him — who deserves the blame for what happened on Sept. 23, 2001. Bledsoe was drilled so hard that it sheared a blood vessel in his chest — he nearly died in the ambulance — creating an opportunity for the unproven Brady.

“[Bledsoe] just signed a $100 million deal to be what type of quarterback? A passing quarterback, correct?” Lewis says in “Brady vs. Belichick,” written by longtime NFL reporter Gary Myers. “Had he not got outside the pocket and ran with the ball, would we be talking about this? Who caused the event? The person who was with the ball.

“Now he’s doing what he didn’t sign up for. He signed up to be a passing quarterback. What do I do? I stop the people with the ball. It’s just another play for me. But it’s a different play for him.”

Bledsoe, never known for his mobility, was trying to run for a first down late in a game eventually won by the Jets 10-3. Lewis chased him down and blew him up along the sideline — a clean but crushing hit that stunned players because of its ferocity. It ended Bledsoe’s run as the Patriots’ quarterback.

Lewis, 55, has avoided the media and team alumni events since retiring after the 2003 season, with several former teammates saying it’s because he feels slighted that fans and media remember him for the Bledsoe hit and not his entire body of work. He was a three-time Pro Bowl selection and a first-team All-Pro in 1998.

Lewis insisted he’s not bothered by any of it.

“It’s really irrelevant to me,” says Lewis, alluding to the fallout from his hit. “It was just another play to me. To you all, it’s a big game-changing, history-changing play. I’ve never gone back to watch the play. If people want to talk about it, I don’t hide from it. But it has no importance to me.”

Lewis says he wasn’t aware of Bledsoe’s condition, and that he didn’t check because he was focused on his job.

“I’m not trying to be an a–hole,” he says. “I’m on the field. I’m not a doctor. I do not know the severity of that hit. It was just another hit. I’m a linebacker. I make tackles. I do not gauge how hard or how soft I hit a person. What you’re trying to do is make me see the future after the hit. I’m telling you, I’m not looking down the line. I’m just trying to stop him from getting a first down. Period.”

As part of the NFL’s celebration of its 100th season in 2019, it conducted a poll to determine the top 100 game changers in league history. Lewis was No. 82.

“He was the guy that actually started Tom Brady’s career,” Herm Edwards, the Jets coach in that 2001 game, says in the book.

Former Patriots assistant coach Pepper Johnson says he was “mad at Drew” because he warned him “not to go one-on-one with this dude.” Johnson and Lewis were teammates on the Jets, and Johnson describes him as “a Scud missile.”

“I painted the scenario for him to run out of bounds,” Johnson says.

ESPN’s 2025 Summer Forecast has answered some of the league’s biggest questions heading into the NBA’s 80th season and gave its predictions for the league’s biggest questions and awards, as well as the East and West standings. They will now round out the forecast with conference champion and Finals winners.

This season, the Oklahoma City Thunder will look to become the first back-to-back champions since 2018 and break the streak of seven straight different champions, but there will be plenty of challengers.

The Cleveland Cavaliers, after boasting the second-best regular-season record last season, only behind the Thunder, will be battling in an injury-riddled Eastern Conference. However, the New York Knicks, after hiring Mike Brown as their new coach this offseason, also have plenty of postseason experience to push even further.

We asked our experts to rank their top choices for the East and West — and the eventual NBA champion — with a first-place vote receiving five points, a second-place vote receiving three and a third-place vote receiving one.

Here are the results:

Who will win the Eastern Conference finals?

1. Cleveland Cavaliers: 98 points

2. New York Knicks: 72 points

3. Orlando Magic: 21 points

4. Milwaukee Bucks: 7 points

5. Indiana Pacers: 3 points

The Cavs aren’t exactly starting the season with momentum, with starters Darius Garland and Max Strus out for extended periods following offseason foot surgeries. But the conference finals are a long way off, and if they are healthy, their full roster should put them as favorites.

One thing that must be considered in the current era is that the Knicks — unlike the Cavs — are currently under the second apron, which gives them significantly more flexibility to add to or adjust their roster during the season. The Knicks are somewhat settled with this current roster, but are in a position to go after a big name if one becomes available before the February deadline. That could be a factor down the line.

After years of staying on the sidelines when it comes to trades, the Magic’s uber-aggressive four-first-rounder deal to get Desmond Bane was quite a gambit. It only makes sense if this Orlando roster is good enough to compete for a conference finals berth. Maybe it is and maybe it isn’t — we’ll have to see in seven months. — Brian Windhorst

Who will win the Western Conference finals?

1. Oklahoma City Thunder: 106 points

2. Denver Nuggets: 50 points

3. Houston Rockets: 35 points

4. Los Angeles Lakers/Minnesota Timberwolves: 7 points

5. Golden State Warriors: 2 points

It’s somewhat of a surprise that the Rockets aren’t the favorite here to stop Oklahoma City in its bid to become the NBA’s first repeat champions since the Warriors. Considering a strong offseason that brought aboard arguably the league’s best scorer in Kevin Durant to play on a roster already teeming with young talent, the Rockets should put up a challenge to the defending champions, who ran away with the votes this summer.

The Nuggets earned the No. 2 spot in this poll based on how they took the eventual champions to seven games in last season’s Western Conference semifinals, not necessarily on their active offseason. They traded Michael Porter Jr. for Cameron Johnson in addition to acquiring Jonas Valanciunas, Bruce Brown and Tim Hardaway Jr.

But there’s something to be said about continuity.

The Thunder made it a priority this offseason to lock up their uber-talented trio of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren. In fact, OKC is set to bring back 14 players off last season’s 15-man roster, making the Thunder high favorites to repeat as Western Conference champions. — Michael C. Wright

Who will win the 2026 NBA Finals?

1. Oklahoma City Thunder: 101 points

2. Denver Nuggets: 36 points

3. Cleveland Cavaliers: 27 points

4. Houston Rockets: 21 points

5. New York Knicks: 11 points

According to our panel, the probability is high that the Thunder will end the league’s streak of seven straight seasons with a different champion. It’s reasonable to believe that Oklahoma City will be an improved team after its title run, based purely on the natural development of its young core’s talent that complements 27-year-old reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

However, the 2023 champion Nuggets are seen as the biggest challenger to the Thunder’s repeat. After pushing Oklahoma City to seven games in the West semifinals, Denver maneuvered this summer to provide Nikola Jokic the deepest supporting cast of his career. The Thunder proved last season that previous experience of a deep playoff run is not a prerequisite to win a championship. The Cavaliers hope to make a similar breakthrough for the East, having kept their core four together despite a disappointing second-round exit following their 64-win regular season.

The Rockets haven’t been out of the first round since trading James Harden five years ago. But adding future Hall of Famer Kevin Durant to the core of a franchise that has made double-digit jumps in the wins category in each of the past two seasons has put Houston into the contenders conversation. — Tim MacMahon

The Scottish FA VAR Review show will be shown on Sky Sports Football this season.

It will be hosted by Gordon Duncan as the SFA’s head of refereeing William Collum looks back at the key incidents from across Scottish football.

The first episode will air on Sky Sports Football on Friday September 12 at 6pm and continue every month throughout the 2025/26 season.

‘An exciting new addition’

Following the announcement, Sky Sports director of football Gary Hughes said: “As the home of Scottish Football, we’re delighted to be able to bring this innovative, behind-the-scenes programme to Sky Sports viewers in collaboration with the Scottish FA.

“Every month, viewers will be able to hear and see what goes on in the VAR room and why the big decisions were made.

“We’re confident it will be an exciting new addition for viewers of the Scottish Premiership alongside our comprehensive coverage of the league.”

The Scottish FA’s commercial director Brendan Napier added: “It’s fantastic to be able to extend the reach of the ‘VAR Review’, which has brought unprecedented levels of access and reemphasises our commitment to transparency.

“It’s the first content of its type that the Scottish FA has produced with direct views from the Scottish FA’s head of refereeing, William Collum, offering insight on key match incidents involving VAR.

“It’s our ambition to continue to evolve communications around VAR and this partnership with Sky Sports is another progressive step.”

CINCINNATI — Amid all the headlines and chatter surrounding the Cincinnati Bengals‘ summer and training camp, the three biggest names on the roster were noticeably absent.

Instead, quarterback Joe Burrow and wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins had a relatively nondescript build-up to the regular season.

No big offseason haircuts or comeback stories. No contract drama. Just three guys getting ready for one of the biggest years of their careers.

At the end of the season, Cincinnati’s star offensive trio wants to be in the conversation that matters — winning a Super Bowl. By completing a full offseason together, Burrow and Co. have crossed off a major box that is needed for a team that has built everything around them.

“We’ve got tremendous players. Any time they can be healthy, walk on the field together and continue to put that stress on the other team, it gives us a lot of confidence as a team,” Bengals coach Zac Taylor said.

Having all three available at full strength has not been a luxury Cincinnati has enjoyed in previous summers.

Last year, Chase did not participate in training camp as he awaited a contract extension that didn’t arrive until after the season. That compounded problems as Burrow, who sported a blond buzz cut, was working his way back from a season-ending wrist injury in 2023.

Once the 2024 season started, it took a few weeks for the Bengals to find their rhythm, but by then they were 0-3.

Even though Burrow was an MVP finalist, Chase won the receiving triple crown — most receiving yards (1,708), catches (127) and receiving touchdowns (17) — and Higgins posted a career-high 10 TDs, it wasn’t enough to keep Cincinnati from missing the postseason for the second consecutive year.

“Ja’Marr barely practiced at all before the first game last year,” Burrow said in July. “That was tough gameplan wise, timing wise, rhythm wise.”

This offseason, the Bengals quickly made sure there was no contract drama with Chase or Higgins this year. They each earned long-term contracts worth a grand total of $276 million.

At NFL league meetings in Florida, Bengals executive vice president Katie Blackburn said keeping those receivers with Burrow could be a major advantage.

“There’s no guarantee, obviously, but that is something that is an important thing,” Blackburn said in April. “Them having that consistency and familiarity should be a strength.”

Nobody in the NFL leans on their passing attack more than the Bengals. In 2024, Cincinnati led the league in passing yards per game (272.9) and had the largest share of yards that were gained by the pass at 74.7%, according to ESPN Research.

It’s fitting given the investments into Burrow, Chase and Higgins. Those three are the only veterans who will be under contract in 2028. And according to OverTheCap.com, that trio will earn a combined $90.4 million in cash this year, with Higgins actually making the most at $35.9 million.

When the Bengals signed those contracts, they also did their part to make sure their star offensive players spent a lot of time together this offseason. Higgins and Chase each had $100,000 workout bonuses included in their respective contracts, which added an incentive for them to participate in voluntary offseason workouts.

Higgins and Burrow were both drafted in 2020, with Chase being drafted a year later. To increase the likelihood that Higgins could stay as part of the trio, he hired Chase’s agent, Rocky Arceneaux, who finalized their respective contracts.

“I know Tee’s been on a different journey than I have with two different boats we’ve been in,” Chase told ESPN in July. “But we just basically added our boats together now and just learning from each other, building with each other.”

Chase and Higgins have not spoken often to local reporters this summer. Higgins has enjoyed the first offseason in years without having to worry about a contract, a source told ESPN this summer, adding that the chemistry with Burrow and the offense was reminiscent of 2021, the year the Bengals went to the Super Bowl.

Even with a relatively low-key build-up to the Sept. 7 opener against the Cleveland Browns, it’s been impossible to miss how well that trio has meshed in the preseason.

“It’s always better, in terms of being able to start fast, when you have all your guys out there on the field,” Bengals linebacker Logan Wilson said. “As an offense, they’re picking up where they left off last year.

“And I think they’ve only gotten better from where they were last year at this point in training camp.”

Manchester United winger Jadon Sancho is on the radar of Tottenham Hotspur, while Newcastle have joined the race to sign Barcelona attacking midfielder Fermín López. Join us for the latest transfer news, rumors and gossip from around the globe as the window closes on Monday, Sept. 1.

Transfers homepage | Done deals | Men’s grades | Women’s grades

TOP STORIES

– Sources: Newcastle on verge of signing Woltemade in £64.9m deal
– Sources: Tottenham set to sign Simons after €60m fee agreed
– Sources: AC Milan agree €42m transfer for Chelsea’s Nkunku

TRENDING RUMORS

– Tottenham Hotspur are considering a move to sign Manchester United winger Jadon Sancho as a replacement for Son Heung-Min, says the Manchester Evening News. Sancho, 25, is out of favor at United and has been linked with a host of clubs from Serie A, most notably Roma, though his club could take the option to extend his contract by another year to protect his transfer value. United signed Sancho from Borussia Dortmund for €85 million in 2021, but are now looking to move him on for around €25m.

– Newcastle have joined the race to sign Barcelona attacking midfielder Fermín López, according to El Chiringuito. As they close on an €80m deal for VfB Stuttgart and Germany striker Nick Woltemade, the Magpies are prepared to make an offer worth €100m to sign the 22-year-old Fermin and are willing to quadruple his salary. Previous reports have indicated that the Blaugrana would be willing to accept €90m for the transfer of their La Masia academy graduate, who has been capped by the Spain senior national team on two occasions. He has also recently been linked with Chelsea.

– PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma could soon get his move to Manchester City, as the European champions have lowered their demands over his fee to €30m, according to RMC Sport. Donnarumma, 26, is set to leave Paris after the club signed Lucas Chevalier as his replacement, but has a contract which expires in 2026. City are waiting on Éderson to depart for Galatasaray before moving for the Italy international, but this one could rumble on until January.

– Juventus are keeping tabs on the situation of Chelsea striker Nicolas Jackson, says Gianluca Di Marzio. The Bianconeri are keen to add a forward before the transfer window closes, and they have lined up a move for the 24-year-old as a potential alternative if they fail in their pursuit of Paris Saint-Germain‘s Randal Kolo Muani. It is reported that Bayern Munich are leading the race for Jackson amid reports that a loan deal to the Allianz Arena has been agreed.

– Al Ittihad midfielder N’Golo Kanté is looking to return to Europe, according to L’Equipe. The 34-year-old’s representatives are reportedly in talks with Ligue 1 sides Monaco and Paris FC, who have “not closed the door” on a potential swoop for him. Kante made the switch from Chelsea to Saudi Arabia in the summer of 2023, but despite scoring four times in 31 Pro League matches last season, he is yet to secure a call up to the France senior national team this year.

CONFIRMED DEALS

– West Ham have signed midfielder Mateus Fernandes from Southampton for a fee of £8m, plus £2m in add-ons.

– Shakhtar Donetsk have signed 18-year-old Brazilian attacking midfielder Isaque Silva from Fluminense for €10m.

– Australia and Tottenham winger Hayley Raso has signed a contract with Eintracht Frankfurt until 2027 for an undisclosed fee.

EXPERT TAKE

ESPN’s resident scout Tor-Kristian Karlsen on what Nick Woltemade could bring to Newcastle.

In his breakthrough season, Woltemade scored 10 Bundesliga goals after January and then exploded onto the international scene with a sensational European Under-21 Championship for Germany where he finished as the tournament’s top scorer (6 goals), registered the most assists (3) and key passes (3.0 per 90 minutes).

His all-round offensive abilities are impressive but standing taller than Sesko at 6-foot-6, Woltemade is notably less mobile, which limits his threat in transitional moments. Also, curiously for someone of his size, he won just 33% of his aerial duels in 2024-25 — which is 17% lower than Sesko (50%).

That said, Woltemade’s recent goal return and remarkable shot accuracy (62% of his efforts land on target) suggest he could make a real impact.

OTHER RUMORS

– Liverpool are preparing to go “all-in” to sign Newcastle striker Alexander Isak. (Fabrizio Romano)

– Talks are ongoing between Liverpool and winger Cody Gakpo over a new contract, (Eindhovens Dagblad)

– Newcastle set to make a third bid of £60m to sign Wolves striker Jorgen Strand Larsen, but it will be rejected. (Telegraph)

– Discussions are continuing between former Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy and Serie A side Cremonese over a free transfer. (Corriere dello Sport)

– After Real Madrid midfielder Dani Ceballos put the brakes on a move to Marseille, he can either stay, move to another club, or “wait for the miracle” that boyhood club Real Betis find a way to sign him. But Betis would struggle to make a deal work financially, both in terms of wages and a transfer fee, as they work elsewhere trying to bring back Antony from Manchester United. (Diario AS)

– Atletico Madrid would only accept an offer of over €42m to sign midfielder Conor Gallagher, with Tottenham interested. (Marca)

– Tottenham are also interested in Manchester City defender Nathan Ake, 30. (GMS)

– Aston Villa have made a €15m offer to sign Paris Saint-Germain attacking midfielder Marco Asensio, which is short of PSG’s €20m valuation. (L’Equipe)

– Villa are also looking at West Ham’s Lucas Paqueta, 28, as a potential replacement for Morgan Rogers should he leave Villa Park, but any deal is expected to require an offer worth at least £60m. (Footmercato)

– Wolves are in advanced talks with Genk regarding a move to sign striker Tolu Arokodare. (Mirror)

– West Ham are closing in on signing two midfielders, with the Hammers hopeful of getting deals over the line for Southampton’s Mateus Fernandes and Monaco’s Soungoutou Magassa. (Guardian)

– Negotiations between Lyon and Villarreal are underway over the signing of signing Georgia international striker Georges Mikautadze. (L’Equipe)

– Free agent defender Cesar Azpilicueta is set to sign for Sevilla, with a medical scheduled on Friday. He has agreed to a one-year contract. (Diario AS)

– A loan deal has been sanctioned by Tottenham Hotspur for 18-year-old defender Luka Vuskovic to join Hamburg. (Daily Mail)

– Clubs in the MLS, as well as Wrexham, have seen their interest in defender Andrea Carboni dismissed by Monza. (Nicolo Schira)

– Bournemouth are closing in on a move to sign AC Milan defender Alex Jimenez. (Gianluca Di Marzio)

– Talks are ongoing between Leeds United and Brighton regarding a loan move for attacking midfielder Facundo Buonanotte. (Ben Jacobs)

– An enquiry has been made by Lyon for Internazionale striker Mehdi Taremi. (Fabrizio Romano)

– Multiple Premier League clubs as well as Sevilla are interested in Eintracht Frankfurt midfielder Junior Dina Ebimbe. (TEAMtalk)

Eberechi Eze’s journey to becoming an Arsenal player was one that began with the tears of a 13-year-old and one that culminated in an on-pitch unveiling at the Emirates.

For a sum of £67.5m, Arsenal signed a player they let go from their academy over a decade ago. When he found out he would be released by Arsenal as a youngster, Eze recalls having to train while crying throughout the session as his dream of representing the Gunners was crushed.

Having sat down with Eze in May, after his FA Cup heroics clinched Crystal Palace’s first major honour, it was clear that faith and a family-borne resilience kept him going.

It wasn’t the only setback a young Eze had to face. Fulham, Reading, and Millwall also overlooked him, unable to unlock and foresee the talents of the now England international as the 27-year-old was forced to take the long way home.

Queens Park Rangers offered Eze an opportunity, before Crystal Palace took a punt on one of the Championship’s finest and provided a stage in the top flight.

And now, after etching his name into folklore at Selhurst Park, the Emirates finally awaits as the redemption arc nears realisation in Arsenal’s new-look attack.

The long way home

Palace’s unlikely yet historic FA Cup triumph confirmed what fans of the club already believed – Eze could be relied upon to lead the club to great things.

Eze himself knew that it would happen. For him, it was only a matter of timing.

On the day of Palace’s trophy parade, he sat with the same confidence he takes to the pitch.

When Eze signed for the club from QPR, he walked into a dressing room that had the likes of Wilfried Zaha, Andros Townsend and Christian Benteke.

All three, in their own right, contribute to a team capable of surviving in the Premier League. Becoming Palace’s marquee man formed the basis of any overarching ambition Eze had, but it had to begin with humbly learning from his elders. It was those role models who Eze paid homage to as the foundation of Palace’s current success.

The groundwork was laid for a new Palace player to spearhead the side as they all moved onto pastures new, and it was a mantle Eze picked up with both hands.

With Premier League survival continuing to be the Palace’s primary goal under both Roy Hodgson and Patrick Vieira, Eze initially struggled for consistency, with injuries providing an obstacle.

However, the FA Cup proved to be Eze’s coming of age. He spurred Palace on, scoring in both the semi-final and final. The back end to the 2024/25 season saw Eze perform at his very best, displaying a consistency that will have impressed Mikel Arteta and Arsenal.

How will Eze fit in at Arsenal?

What made Eze a joy to watch was the unpredictability he brought to SE25. It’s that x-factor Arsenal have perhaps lacked, coming up short in their attempts to fend off the competition for the Premier League title.

Arsenal have been said to have developed an overreliance on Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard, who have proved dependable sources of goals and assists. This is reflected heavily on the pitch with Arsenal’s biasing the right-hand side during attacks.

While various patterns born out of this area have unravelled defences and produced key attacks, an obvious foil for opposition defences is to gamble and double up in that area of the pitch.

Aware of this, Arsenal have negotiated means of ensuring Saka remains a threat; however, the predictability in attack means Arteta’s free-flowing attacking side of perhaps a couple of seasons ago has become a team commended for their strong foundations, but at times failing to excite in attack.

As one of the league’s chief creators from his favoured left-hand side, Eze adds a new dynamic to Arsenal attacks. Should Eze fill in on the left, which many have predicted, he’ll become another vessel for Arsenal attacks, creating a balance that could unnerve the staunchest of defences.

It’s also important to note, though, that at Palace, Eze was seldom used as a traditional touchline winger. In Glasner’s system, he was what’s best described as a ‘left 10’ when in possession. As a left 10, Eze offers Arsenal what they don’t have in any of their current options off the left.

In attack, Eze’s athleticism, along with his desire to get and stay on the ball and operate primarily in the half space, frees up further opportunities for a left-back to maraud forward to create overloads. But his distinct confidence on the ball means beating players one-on-one is also an option.

Defensively, the discipline of Glasner’s 3-4-2-1 will have readied Eze for the demands of Arteta’s fluid 4-3-3. As with his Austrian counterpart, a willingness to take up defensive positions off the ball, cover space and support your full-back are among Arteta’s non-negotiables. Eze fits that bill too, as one of last season’s leading attacking players when it came to winning the ball back in the defensive and middle third of the pitch.

And so the title?…

The redemption story to this point appears far too perfect for Eze’s story to close with simply signing a deal at Arsenal. Rejection was just the beginning with Eze deliberately navigating himself back to where he felt he belonged.

He said he’d do “anything possible to win the Premier League” back in May. The FA Cup win just whetted his appetite for more.

The Emirates is primed and ready for Arsenal’s new No 10. But whether he will be the difference maker in Arteta’s long-awaited hunt for a league title remains to be seen.

The only time Baisangur Susurkaev didn’t have a smile on his face two weeks ago was for a few moments on a Tuesday night in Las Vegas — when his team tried to tell him he wasn’t allowed to eat a steak.

Susurkaev had just scored a first-round knockout on “Dana White’s Contender Series” and earned a UFC contract. Naturally, he was in the mood to celebrate, so he went straight from the UFC Apex to Herbs & Rye steakhouse. But when the waiter came to take Susurkaev’s order, his team reminded him the UFC was working furiously to book him a fight at UFC 319 in Chicago on Saturday — four days later.

“I told him he should probably order salmon,” Susurkaev’s manager, Jamie Gall, told ESPN this week. “If the UFC did get him a fight, he would have to make weight on Friday. He looked so sad that I told the waiter, ‘OK, give him a steak, but no salt, no butter, don’t even use oil. Just cooked meat.’”

But Gall still felt bad. The 24-year-old from Chechnya in Russia, who had been working as a food delivery driver less than a month before, had just achieved his dream of signing with the UFC, and all he wanted was a proper steak.

Gall phoned her business partner, Dave Martin, who had been in contact with the UFC all night about a potential opening on the UFC 319 card, and asked for an update. The UFC hadn’t responded to his recent messages, Martin told Gall, and it was getting late.

“Let him eat,” Martin conceded.

Gall found the waiter and ordered it all — the butter, the salt. Throw in an order of fries.

But when the team returned to the Palace Station hotel after the meal, Martin called back. The UFC had a fight for Susurkaev in Chicago.

On the morning of Tuesday, Aug. 12, Susurkaev was a struggling fighter from Chechnya living and training in South Florida who had only fought twice in the past three years. Four days later, he walked to the Octagon in front of a sold-out United Center crowd and submitted his opponent in the second round to become the first person to win a “Contender Series” bout and a UFC debut in the same week. “I haven’t been this excited about a guy in a very long time,” UFC CEO Dana White declared after Susurkaev’s “DWCS” win.

Susurkaev’s run will go down as one of the single greatest weeks in UFC history. Here are the behind-the-scenes details that show how Susurkaev came to this moment, and contextualize how impressive it is.

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Tuesday, Aug. 5

Susurkaev has nearly given up on MMA multiple times over the past two years.

He took a risk and moved to the U.S. from Chechnya in 2023, after several of his MMA sponsors dropped out of the business because of economic changes resulting from the Russia-Ukraine War.

“When the war started, there was less money being invested into fighters,” Susurkaev told ESPN. “So, for me it was, ‘Am I going to stay and find work or am I going to try?’ It was my best friend who told me I had to do it. After hearing his words, I knew I had to try.”

Susurkaev and his older brother, Tamerlan, a former professional fighter, traveled to the U.S. and started training at Kill Cliff MMA. Tamerlan initially wasn’t supposed to go to the U.S. but decided he had to be in his brother’s corner as his coach, just as he had been in Chechnya.

When the two had enough money, they lived in a hotel across the street from the gym in Deerfield Beach, Florida. When money ran short, they slept in a car in the hotel parking lot or on one of the lounge chairs next to the hotel’s pool.

Susurkaev’s talent was immediately apparent. Kill Cliff is home to some of the best fighters in the world, including former champions Kamaru Usman, Robbie Lawler and Rashad Evans, and Susurkaev blended in just fine on the mats. There were times he would spar with another middleweight at Kill Cliff, return to his hotel, play the UFC video game and recognize the face of a fighter he had just rolled with.

“I don’t watch fights,” Susurkaev said. “So we would go to choose our players [in the video game] and I would say, ‘Who is this? I sparred with him today. Who is this guy?’”

The issue he ran into was a lack of fights. Gall and her partners at MAG Agency struggled to find him opportunities. Between 2024 and the first half of 2025, Susurkaev only fought twice — at Las Vegas promotion Borroka’s inaugural event and Fury FC.

Susurkaev came close to abandoning his dream again because of the lack of work, even packing his bags to leave on several occasions. His team saw it weighing on him.

“He was great in the gym, but you could tell he was struggling in life,” Lawler told ESPN. “He wouldn’t be at practice. I would ask where he was, and you could just tell stuff was weighing on him. I didn’t ask him personally because I didn’t have that relationship with him, but he was never getting fights and I’m sure that wasn’t easy on him.”

His management team had tried and failed to secure him a spot on this year’s season of “Dana White’s Contender Series” until the UFC reached out on Aug. 5 to ask if Susurkaev was available to fill in for a middleweight who had pulled out of an Aug. 12 matchup. The timing was perfect. Susurkaev had just spent the past month in California as a main sparring partner for UFC star and fellow Chechen Khamzat Chimaev, so he was in fighting shape.

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Tuesday, Aug. 12

The first week of Season 9 of “DWCS” will go down as one of the worst episodes in the series’ history. The UFC fielded five fights and awarded only two contracts, the fewest of any episode in more than three years.

The bright spot was Susurkaev, who scored a walk-off, front-kick knockout three minutes into the first round.

“My guy,” White said to Susurkaev, as he announced Susurkaev’s contract at the end of the show. “You are an absolute killer. I love everything about you. We’re going to be seeing you [in the UFC] very soon.”

As White spoke, Susurkaev held up four fingers on his right hand, signaling four days until the UFC pay-per-view event in Chicago. He had told Gall before the Tuesday event that he planned to earn a contract and fight on the same card as Chimaev, who was challenging Dricus Du Plessis for the middleweight championship in the main event. He was so adamant about fighting on the card that he refused to sign a Nevada State Athletic Commission document that restricts training and competing for a minimum of seven days after a sanctioned event to medically recover. Eventually, he did sign, and the suspension was waived.

Susurkaev was already scheduled to be in Chicago to cheer on Chimaev, well before any of this. He met Chimaev in Chechnya in 2022 and shared the training room with him that year. They stayed in touch, and when Chimaev decided to hold the final month of his UFC 319 camp in Huntington Beach, California, he invited Susurkaev to join him.

“He is a big motivation for me and everyone in Chechnya,” Susurkaev said. “In Russia, if you fight for the UFC, you’re a superstar. And he has reached an unbelievable level. I saw this with him, and it became my dream.”

The UFC informed Susurkaev that it had booked him a UFC fight the same night he knocked out Murtaza Talha in the first round with a kick to the liver. He verbally agreed to make his UFC debut four days later against an opponent to be determined. He didn’t find out he would be up against fellow newcomer Eric Nolan until Wednesday morning, on his flight to Chicago.

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Wednesday, Aug. 13

Susurkaev reunited with his sparring partner, Chimaev, at the UFC 319 fighter hotel in Chicago, where the two Chechens found themselves at the center of attention.

“It was very strange for me,” Susurkaev admitted. “There were cameras every minute, you know? I was ready for everything when it came to fighting, but not being famous. In the hotel, guys wanted pictures with me. It was big, big attention.”

Chimaev invited Susurkaev to his room that evening to offer his congratulations — and his credit card. The UFC had added Susurkaev to its news conference lineup the following day, and Chimaev wanted him to look good.

“He said, ‘Go to the store, and buy everything you want,’” Susurkaev said.

By the end of the night, Susurkaev had a new $8,000 wardrobe. Chimaev even loaned him a designer watch, as a finishing touch to the news conference ensemble.

“All my life, I’ve never had more than $100, $200 of clothes,” Susurkaev said. “I felt like I was rich walking out with those clothes.”

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Saturday, Aug. 16

Despite the indulgent meal on Tuesday night, Susurkaev made weight on Friday morning, and his first walk to the UFC Octagon on Saturday night played out like one extended celebration. He smiled all the way from the tunnel to the Octagon — and continued to smile once the fight started. It was impossible to miss his older brother, Tamerlan, by his side for the walk-in, because he was literally leaping into the air.

“I couldn’t believe it,” Tamerlan said. “I couldn’t believe that it was real. It felt like we were living in a PlayStation game. It was too much. I couldn’t even take it all in.”

Susurkaev submitted Nolan in the second round to earn the first submission victory of his career. His postfight interview in the Octagon with Joe Rogan aired live on ESPN and has been viewed more than 100,000 times on YouTube. Later that evening, Chimaev dominated Du Plessis to become a UFC champion. It’s hard to say there will ever be a bigger evening for Chechen MMA.

“In my village, it was crazy, crazy,” Susurkaev said. “Like we had won a war or something like this. So many people, meeting in fields, watching in big rooms. It’s a good time for all of us in Chechnya.”

The early parallels between Chimaev and Susurkaev are impossible to ignore. Chimaev made his UFC debut in 2020 on Fight Island in Abu Dhabi and won White over by asking to fight twice in 10 days. Susurkaev one-upped him by doing the same in four days.

If you visit Susurkaev’s Instagram page, his bio now reads, “DANA’s favourite fighter,” and includes his record, 10-0. He changed the record before making his walk at UFC 319 because he was so certain he would win. Talent and belief have never been a problem for Susurkaev. And now, after one of the greatest weeks in UFC history, opportunity shouldn’t be either.

The quickest way to make a boring, redundant soap opera more exciting is a shocking twist ending. After months of publicly flirting with the idea of trading star edge rusher Micah Parsons, Jerry Jones and the Dallas Cowboys talked themselves into the most unexpected of moves Thursday afternoon — shipping Parsons to the Green Bay Packers for two first-round picks and defensive tackle Kenny Clark. It would be the most stunning trade of the year for just about any other city in America besides Dallas, which has now seen its sports teams deal away two young cornerstones in Parsons and NBA standout Luka Doncic in a matter of eight months.

Like Doncic, Parsons is the sort of young superstar at a critical position who isn’t supposed to ever hit the market. Organizations pray that they’ll land someone as impactful in the draft as Parsons. Even while missing four games last season with a high ankle sprain, the Penn State product became the second player in NFL history to rack up 12 or more sacks in each of his first four seasons. The only other one to do that is another player Packers fans came to love: Reggie White.

The Packers hope Parsons becomes the third in a series of defensive stars who were underappreciated by their prior teams before joining Green Bay and firmly establishing themselves as no-doubt Hall of Famers. White and Charles Woodson, Parsons’ predecessors in that designated role, joined as free agents later in their careers after they had turned 30. Parsons just turned 26. This is a player entering his prime. Getting what Parsons has proved to be is a coup. But there’s a chance the Packers get an even better version of the star edge rusher.

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This is a trade as opposed to a free agent acquisition, though. And a Packers team that has typically loathed giving away draft picks just shipped two first-rounders to the Cowboys in the hope that it has finally landed the defensive difference-maker it has sought for years. There’s a lot to discuss here from the Packers’ side. But first, as I try to sort through the various questions emanating from this trade, there’s one I keep getting over and over again:

Jump to:
What were the Cowboys thinking?
Did the Cowboys get enough in return?
Is this a steal for the Packers?
Are the Packers now atop the NFC?

What are the Cowboys thinking?

I’d tread carefully in attempting to occupy the same headspace as Jerry Jones, who has handled this process with all the deftness and precision of the final offensive snap in any recent Cowboys playoff loss. Jones will surely be happy to come out and tell us why he traded Parsons in the weeks to come, either directly or through other members of the media. He might even be telling the truth.

If I’m being realistic, I suspect that there was probably some combination of factors that led to the move. (And no, it wasn’t the possibility of Parsons getting hit by a car.) Three arguments come to mind as the most likely from the Cowboys’ perspective. You’ll have to decide how convincing they are for yourselves.

1. Jones believed he had been betrayed and decided to take a stand against a player (and an agent) on principle. In the various reports between Parsons’ trade request and the consummation of this Packers deal, it became clear that there was a disconnect between the team and player. According to Jones, the owner thought he had agreed on the framework of a deal with Parsons sometime during the spring. In his trade request, Parsons characterized this as an informal discussion — one that took place without his agent, David Mulugheta.

Jones responded by essentially blaming Mulugheta for the conflict between the two parties. Jones told former Cowboys legend Michael Irvin that he went to Parsons’ agent with the terms of the deal he believed they had negotiated in March, only for Mulugheta to allegedly respond by telling Jones to “stick it up [his] ass.” (According to ESPN’s Ryan Clark, Mulugheta denies that claim.)

I don’t want to accuse any of the parties involved of being untruthful or exaggerating, but it’s very clear that there are some very large egos involved in these discussions. Jones is an 82-year-old billionaire. Parsons is an elite player. Mulugheta is one of the most notable and significant agents in the league. These are three people used to getting their way without much pushback from others involved.

Did Jones eventually just decide that renegotiating the deal he believed he had made with Parsons would give any Cowboys player ammunition to push back and change their mind if they agreed to a deal they didn’t like? Did Jones spend so much time publicly discussing the idea of trading Parsons that he eventually talked himself into it? Or did a person of immense power and privilege get challenged and decide that he wasn’t willing to back down, even if it meant trading away a core franchise player?

2. The Cowboys decided they couldn’t win with their existing roster construction if they paid Parsons. If there was a little bit of Option No. 1 with regard to Jones’ ego in this trade, the most prominent discussion behind the scenes regarding Parsons and the Dallas roster had to be about what would happen in the years to come.

This goes back to a question I had last season before the Cowboys paid receiver CeeDee Lamb and extended quarterback Dak Prescott on what is still a record-setting contract. On their prior deals in 2021-23, the Cowboys were paying Prescott, Lamb and Parsons an average of just under $48 million per season combined. During that run, Lamb and Parsons were on rookie contracts, while Prescott was playing out a four-year, $160 million extension.

With Prescott and Lamb earning massive raises in 2024 and Parsons seemingly set to land one on his own, that price was going to go up dramatically. As it turns out, their three new deals are going to combine to average $141 million per year, a near-nine figure jump per season. If the Cowboys couldn’t win a Super Bowl with their three top players making $48 million, how were they going to do it after that price tag nearly tripled?

Though the cap will go up in the years to come, Dallas’ Big Three was set to take up more than 50% of the NFL’s cap in terms of average salary. (That doesn’t mean that the three players would actually eat up half of the Dallas budget given how the league handles accounting and how the Cowboys structure their contracts, but it’s a reasonable shorthand for how significant their deals are relative to the broader NFL.) For context, the average salaries of the top three deals for the Eagles last year came in at just over 42% of the cap.

Over the past decade, I can’t find a team that had its top three players’ average salaries amount to more than 50% of the salary cap. The closest might be 2022, when the Rams had Aaron Donald, Cooper Kupp and Matthew Stafford combine to represent 48.5% of that year’s cap. All three got hurt and the Rams went 5-12.

That Rams team isn’t an aberration. The 2021 Chiefs (47%) lost in the AFC Championship Game and promptly traded away their fourth-biggest earner, wide receiver Tyreek Hill. Their top three by salary were Patrick Mahomes, Chris Jones and Frank Clark. The 2022 Packers (46.5%) went 8-9 and then traded away their most expensive player, Aaron Rodgers. The only other teams above 45% were the 2023 Chargers and 2022 Raiders — both of which had losing records and followed their disappointing years by making changes to their cores.

We’ll never know if the Cowboys could have built a Super Bowl contender around market-value deals for their three stars, but I don’t think anybody would have argued that it would be easy. The Cowboys have traditionally been a (very good) draft-and-develop organization, and they landed all three of their standouts with their own picks. But the returns post-Parsons in the draft haven’t been as consistent.

And yet, it’s tough to say that Dallas clearly couldn’t see a future with its big three intact before the trade. If what Jones says is true and he did agree to the framework of a deal with Parsons in March, that contract would have surely come in somewhere around $40 million per season, before Myles Garrett and T.J. Watt extended the market. While $7 million more per year isn’t an insignificant sum, the Cowboys were pretty clearly willing to pay Prescott, Lamb and Parsons a staggering amount of money. I’m not sure the difference between what the Packers paid Parsons and what Jones might have been able to get away with in March was enough for the Cowboys’ owner to throw in the towel.

3. Jones believed the Cowboys could be disappointing on defense, even with Parsons in the lineup. Echoing the same logic the Bengals might have been using as they negotiated a deal with Trey Hendrickson, Jones and the Cowboys had very recent evidence that Parsons alone wasn’t a guarantee of a great defensive season. In 2024, the Cowboys ranked 29th in EPA per play and points allowed per possession. They allowed opposing teams to score touchdowns on 75% of their trips to the red zone, the fifth-worst rate allowed by any defense in a single season since 2000. Perhaps Jones figured: If the Cowboys could be so bad with Parsons on the field for most of the season, was it really worth $47 million more per year to keep him around?

Of course, there are 10 other players on defense, and I’m not sure I’d pin many of those problems on Parsons. Just about every offense the Cowboys faced last season was very clearly focused on stopping him. The Dallas defense under Mike Zimmer was second in sack rate and first in turning pressures into sacks because of both Parsons himself and the sheer amount of attention teams paid to him. Zimmer brought along plenty of his A-gap pressure packages to create mismatches, but the most success the Cowboys had on defense last season came when the veteran coordinator used the threat of Parsons to manipulate and then attack opposing pass protections.

Over the past four years, the Cowboys were the league’s best defense with Parsons on the field by EPA per play. Across 1,039 snaps, those same Cowboys immediately became the league’s worst defense by the same metric when Parsons was on the sidelines or inactive. Acknowledging that every team is going to get worse when its best player isn’t playing, I’m not sure anything I can tell you is going to be more instructive than those figures. The best defense in the league with Micah Parsons … and the worst defense in the league without him.

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Did the Cowboys get enough back in the trade?

One of two things appear to have happened Thursday. One is that the Cowboys simply decided they were done negotiating with Parsons and traded him for the best offer they could find by the end of the day. ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Dan Graziano and Todd Archer reported earlier in the day that the Cowboys were at least willing to listen to potential Parsons trade conversations for the first time, which seems to hint toward this being the most likely scenario. If the Cowboys were going to add a player before the start of the season as part of this trade, they would naturally want him in the building for a week of practice if possible.

The other argument, I suppose, is that the Cowboys didn’t believe they could land this much in a deal for Parsons and got blown away by what they were offered for their best defender. On a much smaller scale, for example, the Broncos might have wanted to hold onto wide receiver Devaughn Vele heading into the season. When the Saints called up old pal Sean Payton and offered a fourth-round pick for the 27-year-old Vele, though, the Broncos coach decided it was too good of an opportunity to pass up.

I’m not sure I buy the blown-away theory as true. Though Jones said Thursday night that he believed trading Parsons and amassing draft picks was in the best interest of the Cowboys and gave them the best chance of winning games, that shouldn’t have been a conclusion they only came to this week. There was never a chance Parsons was getting dealt for anything short of this sort of package, and the Cowboys shouldn’t have had any trouble landing a deal like this for Parsons in March, when Jones thought the best thing for the Cowboys was signing Parsons to a new deal.

We’ve seen teams trade two first-round picks as the primary compensation for talented young players toward the end of their rookie contracts. That includes the Rams’ 2019 trade for Jalen Ramsey, Seattle’s move for Jamal Adams in 2020, and the last end-of-summer swap for a cornerstone pass rusher, when the Bears sent two first-rounders to the Raiders for Khalil Mack just before the 2018 season began.

The Mack deal is the closest comparable to this trade. Heading into Mack’s fifth-year option, the Raiders landed two first-round picks, a third-round selection and a sixth-round pick for their top player. In return, the Bears took home Mack and a second-round pick. Without discounting selections in future years, the Bears sent a tad over two first-round picks of pure draft capital to land him.

Though Mack had a Defensive Player of the Year title under his belt before that move, the Cowboys had a reasonable case to expect more for their star player. Parsons has been a star from the moment he stepped onto the field, whereas Mack was inconsistent as a rookie (four-sack campaign) before making a huge leap in Year 2. Parsons is more than a year younger now than the 27-year-old Mack was when he was shipped to the Bears, which matters a lot to many NFL franchises as they evaluate talent and trade value.

No team pays more attention to age than the Packers, who have fielded the youngest team in football over the past two seasons and have had a general distrust for anyone even approaching 30, let alone over it. GM Brian Gutekunst has moved on from the likes of Davante Adams, David Bakhtiari and Jaire Alexander over the past few years as they’ve approached or turned 30. When Green Bay has made signings from outside the organization, it has been for some of the younger free agents on the market — like 26-year-olds Xavier McKinney in 2024 and Nate Hobbs in 2025.

It’s probably no surprise then that the Packers were willing to part with Clark as part of this deal; he is months away from turning 30. I’ll get to the Packers’ side of this swap in a moment, but for the Cowboys, adding Clark is a suggestion that they think they can be competitive and even potentially better on defense with him than they were with Parsons.

There’s no doubt that Clark is a very good run defender. Per the FTN Football Almanac, he ranked 18th in stop rate and 27th in rush yards per tackle among defensive tackles. Clark also ranked 21st in ESPN’s run stop win rate among interior linemen. For a team that ranked last in the NFL in EPA allowed per designed run last season and was run over by these very Packers on the ground in their most recent playoff game, you can understand why the Cowboys believed Clark could be a very useful player to add to their interior.

He’s also a reminder of how missed draft picks can cause teams problems. The Cowboys used their 2023 first-round pick on nose tackle Mazi Smith in the hope that he would be able to plug their issues with the run, only for the 24-year-old to underwhelm in his first two pro campaigns. If the Cowboys had hit on the Smith pick, they probably wouldn’t go over the top to get Clark as part of the Parsons deal. We’ll never know if that would have been enough to keep Parsons in Dallas, but it would have made a deal less pressing.

At the same time, though, Clark managed only one sack and five knockdowns in his first season under new Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley. Clark admitted after the season that he suffered a foot injury in the Week 1 loss to the Eagles and played through it during the season before undergoing surgery. But Hafley’s defense was supposed to put the veteran in a position to penetrate and create pressure more often. Instead, he was really a nonfactor against the pass.

Matt Eberflus’ defense typically plays its best football when it has a 3-technique who can create havoc on the interior, with DeForest Buckner being a good example in Indianapolis. The Bears never landed that player while Eberflus was Chicago’s coach, and that’s one of the reasons he’s now the defensive coordinator in Dallas. With the Cowboys, though, Osa Odighizuwa is ticketed to be that 3-technique. Clark will return to playing more nose tackle in Dallas, and though he can be valuable in that role, it’s not the spot he was so excited to play before the 2024 season.

The Cowboys will pay Clark $2.3 million in 2025, and the veteran tackle is owed $41.5 million between 2026 and 2027, none of which is guaranteed. It would hardly be a surprise if Clark pushed for a new deal as part of the trade, but one year removed from his last contract, he might need to show up with a big season in 2025 to get Jones to pull out his checkbook for another extension.

Frankly, while the Cowboys needed to upgrade their run defense this offseason, there were plenty of ways to do that and hold onto Parsons. They could have signed Clark’s former teammate T.J. Slaton Jr., who led all interior linemen in run stop win rate. He signed a two-year, $14.1 million deal with the Bengals. Teair Tart, who was excellent for the Chargers last season in a situational role, re-signed in Los Angeles for one year at $4.5 million. It’s not quite trading Doncic away to improve team defense, but there were more reasonable and cost-effective ways to address a legitimate weakness.

Before the trade, my belief was that the Cowboys needed to land more than two first-round picks to justify trading Parsons. They got that sort of package in the long run, but I would have liked to have seen even more to explain moving on. Given his age and contract, Clark wouldn’t have landed more than a midround pick if the Packers had decided to shop him this offseason.

And now, having waited to trade Parsons until the final week of the preseason, the Cowboys have plugged one hole and opened another. Their top edge rusher is Dante Fowler Jr., whose 10.5-sack campaign with the Commanders a year ago was more than he totaled in 2022-23 in his prior stint with the Cowboys. Marshawn Kneeland had zero sacks in 11 games as a rookie, and Sam Williams is coming off of a season lost to a torn ACL. Jones used a second-round pick on edge defender Donovan Ezeiruaku this year, and though Dallas probably would have liked to work the rookie in as a situational pass rusher, there’s now more on the 21-year-old’s plate than he could have imagined.

One of these young players has to take a step forward for the Cowboys to field a reliable pass rush in 2025. And without Parsons, that dominant sack rate and pressure-to-sack rate from 2024 is likely to collapse, creating a new problem for Eberflus’ unit.

I admit that I’m a little surprised there weren’t other teams willing to top this offer. One obvious team comes to mind. Lions general manager Brad Holmes came from the Rams, who were wildly aggressive in adding superstar players like Parsons and believed the late-first-round picks they were likely to send in return were overvalued. Plus, the Lions have one of the most complete rosters in the NFL, and their biggest question mark on defense is across from Aidan Hutchinson.

Maybe Detroit thought it wouldn’t be able to afford Hutchinson and Parsons together, especially with Hutchinson’s market now likely to rise as a result of the Parsons deal. But if there was any team in the league that could have seen adding Parsons as the all-in move to win a title, wouldn’t it have been the Lions? (And now they will be facing a tougher division after the trade.)

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Is this a steal for the Packers?

Not necessarily. Nothing seems more fun for fans than trading picks that represent unknown players for guys who are stars right now, but those recent trades involving multiple first-round picks have a very mixed success rate. Ramsey won a Super Bowl with the Rams, which helps make that one a victory, but he was gone after four years for a third-round pick and Hunter Long. Mack lasted four years in Chicago, and after a first-team All-Pro nod in his debut season, he wasn’t really the same again.

Laremy Tunsil was perfectly fine in Houston, but the Dolphins turned that 2019 trade into a bevy of first-round picks when the Texans had a disastrous year and sent the third pick to Miami — which redirected it to San Francisco for three more first-rounders as part of the Trey Lance deal. Adams was a major disappointment in Seattle. Quarterback deals are an entirely different species, but although the Matthew Stafford deal worked out well, trades for Deshaun Watson and Russell Wilson turned into disasters for their new franchises.

That combination of first-round picks and what is almost always a market-resetting contract sets the bar for success almost impossibly high. Before the start of this offseason, the top of the edge rusher market was Nick Bosa‘s contract, which came in at $34 million per season. At that point, Bosa was the only edge rusher in the league making more than $28.5 million per year, meaning the 49ers star was already a meaningful outlier relative to the rest of the players at his position.

Since then, the top has blown off. Myles Garrett‘s new four-year deal averaged $40 million per season, while T.J. Watt‘s $41 million contract took the price for edge rushers up even further. Though I suspect there’s some fluff in Parsons’ contract, the early reports suggest that his new deal with the Packers is for four years and $188 million, averaging a whopping $47 million per year. That’s 38% more than what Bosa was making and way above the average salary of the second-largest edge rusher contract (Josh Hines-Allen) heading into the 2025 league year.

Even that, though, undersells how much Parsons costs the Packers. All of those players signed extensions to stay with their existing teams. The Packers sent two first-round picks to the Cowboys as part of the deal. Obviously, they hope and expect those selections will be late in the first round, though history tells us that teams making that assumption usually fall on their face and end up sending something more significant.

Those picks have surplus value. Though they’re not sold for cash, we’ve seen franchises eat money as part of deals for players such as Brock Osweiler, Ryan Tannehill and, more recently, Brian Robinson Jr. solely for the purpose of landing more or superior draft capital as part of a trade. We know draft picks are an inexact science, but the opportunity to land a potential starter or even a superstar for a fraction of their market value over four years is incredibly valuable. Heck, the Cowboys just got four years out of Parsons for a total of $17 million, or roughly half of what Bosa got paid for one season of football.

By trading those two first-rounders to the Cowboys, the Packers are incurring the opportunity cost of missing out on potential starters and roster contributors on below-market deals. We’ll never see who they would have picked, of course, but they’ll need to fill their roster in other ways, either by signing free agents or by using other draft picks that are less likely to pan out in place of those potential first-rounders.

Ben Baldwin’s non-quarterback draft value chart attempts to place a number on what each pick in the draft is worth. If we operate conservatively and assume that the Packers will send the 24th pick in the 2026 and 2027 drafts to the Cowboys, without any future draft discounts, that’s an additional $18.2 million per year in opportunity costs that the Packers are assuming by making this trade. You can quibble with the figure, of course, but one thing I can say for sure is that valuing the picks as being worth $0 is wrong.

You have to include the value of what it took to acquire Parsons as part of these numbers. And with the cost of those picks added on top of his deal, Parsons will cost the Packers more than $65 million per season over the next four years. The four-time Pro Bowler will make more, at least implicitly, than any other player in the game — his old teammate Prescott included — and twice as much as Bosa, who was the highest-paid edge rusher in the NFL a few months ago.

It’s an incredible amount of resources to pour into one player. And just like the Cowboys, the Packers will believe this is a problem that they might not have needed to address if their draft picks had lived up to expectations. After signing Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith in free agency before the 2019 season, Gutekunst started to build for the future by using his first-round pick that year on edge rusher Rashan Gary and his 2023 first-rounder on Lukas Van Ness.

Gary has emerged as a solid two-way defender, and he made the Pro Bowl last season. But he has yet to top 10 sacks in a single season. Gary has at least lived up to expectations, but Van Ness — drafted just before the likes of Will McDonald IV and Christian Gonzalez — has only seven sacks over his first two years and hasn’t been able to command starting snaps. If the Packers had drafted McDonald, who had 10.5 sacks and 24 knockdowns last season for the Jets, would they feel the need to make a move for Parsons?

In terms of their broader roster construction, though, you can understand why the Packers would believe they’re in a position to take this sort of plunge. Gutekunst has done an excellent job of building through the draft and creating a roster that generates plenty of surplus value from players on rookie deals. The Packers are very disciplined, and as we’ve seen, they are more than comfortable moving on from players when Gutekunst believes they’re no longer producing what their salaries would suggest.

What Green Bay doesn’t have, though, is star power. Gutekunst has hit a lot of singles and doubles, and there’s still plenty of time left to evaluate many of the players on his roster. But the Packers didn’t have many players who projected to be among the best at their position in 2025. Outside of Gary, their two other Pro Bowlers a year ago were McKinney and Josh Jacobs, both of whom were signed in free agency. Though I’m still plenty optimistic about Jordan Love and think Edgerrin Cooper has All-Pro potential, the Packers didn’t have a player like Parsons.

With Love and Parsons combining to average $102 million per season at the top of the roster, the Packers will have to make some tougher choices in the years to come. The writing might have already been on the wall at receiver after Gutekunst used picks on Matthew Golden and Savion Williams this April, but it’s difficult to imagine the Packers retaining the likes of Jayden Reed, Romeo Doubs or Christian Watson on second contracts. It would hardly be a surprise if the Packers move on from 29-year-old center Elgton Jenkins after the season, a decision that would save the team $20 million in 2026, albeit at the expense of their most versatile lineman.

At the same time, NFL teams aren’t built solely on surplus value, and you’re not going to win a Super Bowl just by virtue of having 53 decent players on rookie deals. There are a few players in the league who are force multipliers — who not only have a significant impact themselves but also a meaningful one on the players around them. Getting one of those guys usually means drafting them and holding on to them for as long as possible, because they don’t come up for trades in the prime of their careers and almost never hit free agency. There’s no choice but to pay a premium for them, but they’re the only players who have a realistic shot of being the best guy on the field for a team that wins the Super Bowl.

Though I’ve dismissed those arguments for players such as Adams and Montez Sweat as part of trades in the past, it’s much easier to see that case for Parsons. Since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970, Parsons is one of 33 players to make it to the Pro Bowl in each of his first four seasons. Twenty-two of those players are eligible for the Hall of Fame, and 14 of those 22 are enshrined in Canton. Most of the 11 who aren’t yet eligible are locks to join them. How often do you have a chance to trade for a 26-year-old who appears to be better than a 50-50 shot to make it to the Hall of Fame one day?

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Does the trade turn the Packers into the best team in the NFC?

It’s entirely possible. Keep in mind that advanced metrics were already fond of what the Packers did last season, when they finished third in the NFC North behind the Lions and Vikings. DVOA pegged the Packers as the third-best team in the NFL behind the Ravens and Lions, even while Green Bay went from Love to Malik Willis early in the year for two starts because of a knee injury. ESPN’s Football Power Index also had the Packers third in the league at the end of the regular season behind the same teams (with the 1-2 order switched). Things didn’t end well in a postseason loss to the Eagles, but that did include a series of unfortunate injuries and a fumbled opening kickoff that probably should have been ruled Packers’ ball. (Yes, the Eagles were still the better team.)

The Packers might have already projected to be the best team in the North in 2025, given that the Lions and Vikings went a combined 15-3 in one-score games last season (that won’t happen again). The Vikings were the oldest team in the league and are starting over again at quarterback. I wouldn’t fault anybody for picking the Lions, who will obviously be healthier on defense in 2025, but they did lose both of their well-regarded coordinators. Per ESPN BET‘s odds, the Packers are now co-favorites to win the division with the Lions (+185), which seems fair to me.

Parsons obviously changes what the Packers are capable of doing on defense. Hafley has a chess piece he can move anywhere around the formation. Though Parsons has no trouble playing as an edge rusher and looping around tackles, he’s devastating when attacking guards and was extremely effective last season when Zimmer lined him up in the A-gap as part of his Mug fronts, both directly rushing and as part of twists and games.

Assuming the back injury that plagued Parsons during the preseason magically heals on the flight to Green Bay, I would also expect the star defender to make an immediate impact. Remember that Mack held out for the entire preseason, was traded to the Bears days before the start of the season and then absolutely terrorized Aaron Rodgers and the Packers in the first half of his first game with Chicago (sack, forced fumble, fumble recovery and a pick-six). The Bears eventually blew a 20-0 lead and lost the game, but it’s entirely reasonable to suggest that Mack’s best game in a Bears uniform was his first one.

There are two pressing concerns for the Packers’ defense. Parsons might help one and hurt the other.

On paper, the clear weak spot for the Packers is at cornerback, where they moved on from Alexander after years of waiting for their top corner to get healthy. They will play plenty of three-safety looks and signed Hobbs away from the Raiders in free agency, but there’s some uncertainty about how he’ll fit. Hobbs was best in the slot with the Raiders, but he’ll likely play on the outside when the Packers have two cornerbacks on the field this season. His passer rating allowed as the nearest defender in coverage was north of 100 when Hobbs started the play as an outside corner with the Raiders, up more than 11 points from where it landed out of the slot.

Parsons doesn’t play cornerback, but a defensive back’s best friend is heavy pass pressure. The Packers ranked 23rd in QBR allowed when their pass rush didn’t get home last season, but with Hafley rarely sending extra rushers at the QB, they also ranked only 22nd in pressure rate. Adding Parsons means the Packers can stick with rushing four or fewer guys, which appears to be their preferred defensive philosophy. It will also help that CB depth chart, which features Keisean Nixon and Carrington Valentine alongside Hobbs, from being stuck in coverage for too long.

Leaning into playing coverage at the expense of blitzing, the Packers allowed just 14 plays of 30 yards or more last season, one behind the Bills for the best mark in football. There’s a story the Packers can tell themselves: If they can keep opposing teams from hitting explosive plays and force them to slowly march down the field, Parsons will inevitably either draw a holding penalty, take down the opposing quarterback or create a pressure for somebody else. I’d argue that’s a little too simplistic, but if Parsons can steal a drive or two each game, that’s an incredibly valuable player.

The downside is one that the Packers saw firsthand. Though I don’t think Parsons is some awful liability against the run, he’s clearly a much less imposing player there than he is in the passing game. Per the FTN Football Almanac, Parsons ranked 68th among edge rushers in stop rate against the run and 81st in yards per run stop. And his 21.7% run stop win rate ranked 76th among edge defenders with 300 snaps or more last season, although he was 40th by the same metric the prior season.

Adding Parsons to the existing roster wouldn’t have singlehandedly sunk Green Bay’s run defense. In combination with the departures of Clark and Slaton, though, there’s suddenly a void in the interior of Green Bay’s line. Karl Brooks will assume a larger part of the rotation alongside Devonte Wyatt with Clark leaving, but Brooks’ ascension means there’s now less depth behind the third-year pro. Undrafted free agent Nazir Stackhouse made the 53-man roster, and he might be in line to see meaningful snaps at the nose this season. It’s easier to find a nose tackle than a franchise edge rusher, but the Packers probably need to find some help on the interior to keep their run defense sound as the year goes along.

Realistically, without the Parsons addition, the Packers were probably going to take a step backward on defense this season. They forced 31 takeaways in 2024, the fourth-highest total of any team. McKinney, who led the team with eight picks, had just nine in his first four years with the Giants combined. The Packers weren’t merely a turnover-driven creation — they were ninth in the league in points allowed per possession on drives that didn’t end in takeaways. But outside of Cooper playing a full season and the arrival of Hobbs, there weren’t many reasons to think they were going to make a leap forward on defense in 2025.

Now, that seems entirely possible. For years, even while the offense has ranged from solid to spectacular, the defense has been a perennial disappointment. Gutekunst has stuffed the unit with first-round picks, and coach Matt LaFleur eventually gave in to fan sentiment and replaced Joe Barry with Hafley, who looked to be a much better coordinator in his first season with the Packers. Green Bay was fourth in EPA per play on defense last season. It’s not wild to imagine a world where Parsons pushes the Packers to the top of the charts this season.

And yet, would that be enough? Even Parsons at his unblockable best wasn’t enough to inspire Dallas into a deep playoff run, in part because the Cowboys didn’t have enough around their three top stars. Gutekunst is making a huge bet that he has already done enough to justify going over the top for the sort of transcendent star his team lacked.

And Jones, surprisingly, has decided that the sort of glamorous superstar his franchise became known for targeting, acquiring and retaining over his past 30 years in charge might not be someone the Cowboys want to hold onto long-term. It’s a stunning decision from the Cowboys, and unlike their brethren on the NBA side, it’s one that can’t be bailed out or softened by a draft lottery.

Coco Gauff wiped away a flood of tears after a litany of service errors to defeat unseeded Croatian Donna Vekic 7-6 (7-5) 6-2 to labour into the third round of the US Open.

Gauff has teamed up with biomechanics specialist Gavin MacMillan and although she is still adjusting to a retooled serve, Gauff had to battle hard to edge out Vekic in a dramatic evening session encounter.

“Honestly, today was a tough match for me. But I’m just happy with how I was able to manage. It’s been rough couple weeks,” Gauff said during her on-court interview, before pausing as she began to cry.

“You guys bring me so much joy I’m doing this for myself but also for you. No matter how tough it gets inside, you can do it.”

Both players struggled for rhythm in the first set under the primetime glare of Arthur Ashe Stadium, Gauff reined in her unforced errors on serve just enough to clinch it via a tie-break.

The 2023 champion had wept into her towel during a break in play after being broken in the ninth game and later practiced her delivery when Vekic was receiving treatment from the physio for a right arm problem.

After a combined 16 double faults in the opening set, both players eventually composed themselves but it was Gauff who pulled away to build a 3-1 lead.

The American, who had also laboured in her first round match against Ajla Tomljanovic, capitalised on a string of errors from Vekic to break to love once more before securing victory, avenging her third-round loss to the Croatian at last year’s Paris Olympics.

Gauff also paid tribute to legendary Olympic gymnast Simone Biles, adding: “I saw her and she helped me pull it out. I was thinking ‘if she can go on a six inch beam and do that with all the pressure of the world, then I can hit the ball in this court’. She’s an inspiration.”

Venus claims first Grand Slam victory for four years

Venus Williams rolled back the years with an impressive performance and she agreed to team up with Canadian Leylah Fernandez in the opening round of the women’s doubles..

Facing sixth seeds Lyudmyla Kichenok – who won the title last year with Jelena Ostapenko – and Ellen Perez, 45-year-old Williams and Fernandez fought back from a first-set deficit to claim a 7-6 (7-4) 6-3 win.

It is Williams’ first win at a major since beating Mihaela Buzarnescu in singles at Wimbledon four years ago, while her last slam doubles victory came with her sister Serena at the French Open back in 2018.

“Thank you to my partner, best partner I’ve ever played with outside of Serena,” said a beaming Williams.

The American won 14 Grand Slam titles alongside Serena, with the most recent coming at Wimbledon nine years ago.

Asked about Fernandez’s approach, Williams said: “I couldn’t believe it, it was 10pm. I was thinking to myself, ‘I’m not very good at doubles’.

“I really don’t know what I’m doing, I just try really hard. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to be back here.”

Fernandez is best known for having lost to Emma Raducanu in the singles final here four years ago and she made a little-and-large combination with Williams that turned out to be very effective.

“I don’t think we came in with a plan,” said the Canadian, who is 23 years younger than Williams.

“We tried to figure things out in the beginning. It was a great atmosphere, a lot of fun. I’m just honoured to be sharing a court with Venus.

“It was nerve-racking, exciting. The night before I was shaking. Once we started, everything started flowing so it was good.”

Watch the US Open in New York, live on Sky Sports or stream with NOW and the Sky Sports app, giving Sky Sports customers access to over 50 per cent more live sport this year at no extra cost. Find out more here.

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton said Thursday that the team got “good news” on wide receiver Marvin Mims Jr.’s groin injury and that the third-year veteran should be on track to play in the Sept. 7 season opener against the Tennessee Titans.

Mims left Wednesday’s practice with the injury, walking off the field with the Broncos’ medical staff about halfway through the team’s on-field work. Mims was taken for an MRI as well as some additional tests.

“On Marvin, good news, he’ll be back to practice,” Payton said Thursday. “We have a bonus practice Monday, and he’ll be at work Monday. So, we’re fortunate.”

Mims has spent much of training camp and the preseason among the starters on offense, as he, Courtland Sutton and Troy Franklin have spent the most snaps at receiver with quarterback Bo Nix. Mims, who lined up at running back at times last season, finished with 39 receptions for 503 yards and six touchdowns.

He also made his second consecutive Pro Bowl as a returner, leading the league at 15.7 yards per punt return.

Payton has consistently talked about trying to get more snaps for Mims in the offense because of his ability to create explosive plays after the catch. He had eight catches for 103 yards, including an acrobatic touchdown catch that sent the game to overtime in the Broncos’ Dec. 28 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.

Mims said earlier during this training camp that he hoped “that game, maybe, opened the coaches’ eyes a little bit, or made them feel more comfortable; I can do more. I want to do more, I want to earn those opportunities.”

Mims was the Broncos’ second-round pick in the 2023 draft.

An influx of young talent is helping to transform the WNBA. Rookie All-Stars Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese made an immediate impact last season, and 2025’s first-year players have followed suit. Paige Bueckers, Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen were named All-Stars this summer, while No. 2 pick Dominique Malonga has been setting WNBA production records as a teenager.

The six All-Stars younger than age 25 this year are the most since 2011, and the 2024 (two) and 2025 drafts (three) have already produced as many or more All-Stars as the total between 2021 and 2023 (Aliyah Boston and Rhyne Howard).

Ranking these young players required making some hard calls, particularly at the top, where Boston, Bueckers and Clark have all shown MVP potential. We’ve put them in order based on their expected peak value rather than current production — meaning Malonga, the league’s youngest player at age 19, gets extra credit for her upside relative to players whose performances are more consistent right now.

To be eligible for ESPN’s 25 under 25, players must have played in the WNBA already, so stashed draft picks such as Juste Jocyte — taken No. 5 by the Golden State Valkyries with their first rookie draft pick — aren’t eligible.

With that in mind, let’s run down the brightest young talent in the WNBA.

Due to injuries, she has been limited to 13 games this season, averaging 16.5 points, 8.8 assists and 5.0 rebounds. But when healthy, Clark’s impact is enormous: She stretches the floor with her shooting range, pushes the pace and picks defenses apart with her passing. The 23-year-old brings an unmatched excitement factor every time she’s on court, and her confidence spreads to the whole team. She is also the biggest draw on the road of any WNBA player, so her effect on the entire league is huge. — Michael Voepel

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Expectations were high for Bueckers entering the pros, with one GM telling ESPN, “She’ll be a Hall of Famer.” In Year 1, she has largely lived up to the hype and is on pace to join Clark as the only players to average 19 points and 5 assists in their rookie season.

Bueckers’ efficiency has mostly carried over from UConn, with her 46.6% field goal shooting the best of any guard averaging at least 16 points in the league. She has shown the midrange game still has a place in modern basketball, even in 2025. Her crowning achievement came last week when she became the first player to drop 40-plus points in a game on 80% efficiency. — Alexa Philippou

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3. Aliyah Boston, Indiana Fever, C/F, 6-5

The Fever began their rebuild well before Clark arrived in Indianapolis. The 2024 No. 1 pick, Boston is just as crucial to the Fever’s success as Clark and has been a major factor in keeping the team afloat this season as it navigates injuries.

Boston is averaging a career-best 15.2 points — fourth best among players under 25 — and shooting an efficient 54.6% from the floor, third best in the same group. She has a franchise-record 15 double-doubles this season, fourth most in the league. Boston’s facilitating has always been a strength, especially in tandem with Clark.

And Boston can still level up. Her rookie year was focused on playing in the post. Last season was about evolving the pick-and-roll with Clark. During the offseason, Boston focused on conditioning, and this summer she has become a bigger part of the offense. Next up is taking more 3s and becoming more of a three-level scoring threat and floor spreader. — Kendra Andrews

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There are no regrets about the Storm passing on a pair of rookie All-Stars to take Malonga. Growing over the course of her first season in the United States, the No. 2 pick has blossomed in August, averaging 13.5 PPG and 7.4 RPG on 60% shooting. Malonga’s athleticism allows her to make plays no other player her size can make, and she also displays incredible touch as a shooter.

Given Malonga would be entering her second college season if she were American, she has years of development ahead. That gives Malonga, whose three 20-point games are the most ever by a WNBA teenager, MVP potential. — Kevin Pelton

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After shattering rebounding records as a rookie, the biggest question surrounding Reese was how she could evolve and grow in her sophomore year. She spent much of the Unrivaled season working on her shooting, and it shows: Her scoring and efficiency have improved this season in the W.

But Reese’s biggest offensive jump has come in her playmaking. She’s averaging 3.7 assists per game, top 5 among all forwards and the most among WNBA players under the age of 25. She excels at passing in the post, a nod to her chemistry with Kamilla Cardoso, and better understands how her presence down low opens up her teammates more.

On defense, her rebounding is as good as ever. She leads the league at 12.2 boards per game, and just 25 games in has already tied her rookie record as the fastest player in WNBA history to reach 300 rebounds in a single season. — Andrews

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The No. 3 pick of this year’s draft has blown away expectations for her rookie season, emerging as Washington’s go-to scorer after the Brittney Sykes trade, as well as a legitimate perimeter stopper. More of a role player alongside the Notre Dame backcourt of Hannah Hidalgo and Olivia Miles, Citron is averaging more points (15.2) in the W than she did as a college senior (14.1) but has maintained her efficiency, shooting 42% on 3s and 88% from the line. Citron’s .608 true shooting percentage ranks in the WNBA’s top 10. And at 21, she’s younger than the typical college product. — Pelton

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The No. 3 pick in the 2024 draft, Cardoso has improved her stats from her rookie season across the board, averaging 13.4 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.3 assists. The 9-28 Sky have struggled and will miss the playoffs for the second year in a row. But at 24, Cardoso has shown the kind of progress a young post player needs, which bodes well for a long career. — Voepel

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Onlookers were calling Jackson pro-ready since her days at Tennessee, and since arriving as the No. 4 pick in 2024, she has shown why. She can be a matchup nightmare for opposing defenders and at her best is a prolific bucket getter and stellar shot creator, already boasting eight 20-plus point games for the Sparks since mid-June. The more efficient and consistent she can be offensively, and if she can stay steady on defense, the more Jackson will further establish herself as one of the best young talents in the game. — Philippou

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9. Cameron Brink, Los Angeles Sparks, F, 6-4

Brink was one of the more difficult players for our panel to assess given she has played in only 26 games over two years and is still making her way back to full form following a June 2024 ACL tear. But it was easy to see why she went No. 2 in the 2024 draft, particularly shining on the defensive end as an elite rim protector. While she’s still getting her feet back under her after returning to the floor in late July, her 3-point shooting (20-for-44, 45.5%) has excelled, a good sign for her offensive development. — Philippou

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10. Kiki Iriafen, Washington Mystics, F, 6-3

The No. 4 draft pick in April, Iriafen turned 22 this week. She was an All-Star after showing how quickly she adapted to the pro game, especially her ability to rebound at an elite level. She is averaging 12.9 points and 8.7 rebounds and has started every game for Washington. She and rookie teammate Sonia Citron look to be the key factors for the Mystics in rebuilding. — Voepel

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Lacan was the Sun’s 2024 first-round pick though she didn’t debut in the WNBA until this July. But 20 games in, she has been worth the wait. The 21-year-old Frenchwoman boasts an astounding plus-20.3 net rating for the Sun, and her two-way impact has revitalized a team that had just two wins prior to her arrival. (The Sun have won seven games since.) Her defensive prowess has translated immediately — her 2.4 steals per game are tied for the most in the league — and she’s a standout facilitator, already recording a 14-assist, 0-turnover game earlier this month. — Philippou

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12. Saniya Rivers, Connecticut Sun, G, 6-1

The Sun have had a rocky year, but it’s easy to see the promise of their young core, including this 2025 first-rounder. The former NC State standout and No. 8 pick has established herself as a stellar defender (1.6 SPG, 0.9 BPG) with the potential to be a perennial All-Defensive Team selection. Her offensive game (8.3 PPG, 41.4% FG, 32.3 3FG%) has room for growth, but she has shown bright spots with her facilitating (including a handful of games with six or more assists) and scoring that the Sun can build off of. — Philippou

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Akoa Makani moved from Cameroon to France as a child and has played professionally there for several years. At 24, she made her WNBA debut this season and started 32 games as a key part of the new-look Mercury. Most WNBA fans didn’t know much about Akoa Makani but have watched as she has adjusted well to the league. She is averaging 8.4 points, 2.6 assists and 2.2 rebounds. — Voepel

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When we last saw Horston in the WNBA — she tore her ACL during Athletes Unlimited play in April which has sidelined her this season — she had received votes for both Most Improved Player and Sixth Player in 2024. After playing heavily at power forward as a rookie in 2023, the versatile Horston shifted to the wing and shot 57% on her 2s. The Seattle bench has missed that punch, plus Horston’s ability to rack up steals and blocks. Whether she can improve on a 25% career 3-point shooting will define Horston’s upside. — Pelton

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After averaging less than four points in her first two WNBA seasons with Las Vegas and Atlanta, Rupert is scoring 9.0 points per game on 46.3% 3-point shooting — the third-best mark among players under 25 — which gives the Valkyries a big body to stretch the floor. Part of her growth has come from more playing time with Golden State. But she also developed her finishing ability around the rim with the French national team for the 2024 Olympics. — Andrews

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Paopao’s slide to the second round of this year’s draft has paid off for the Dream, who have plugged her into their guard rotation after trading away their first-round pick. A national champion at South Carolina in 2024, Paopao has contributed to Atlanta’s rise in the standings by shooting 42% from 3-point range. Only Citron has been more accurate among rookies this season. — Pelton

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17. Janelle Salaun, Golden State Valkyries, F, 6-2

Salaun is another player whose impact and potential can be better measured by looking at her career overseas. In the 2024-25 season with Famila Schio in Italy, she helped the team win the domestic cup and the league championship and was named Finals MVP, averaging 13.2 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.2 steals over the five-game series for the league championship. With the Valkyries, she has been a staple in the starting lineup and a reliable scorer. Her dependability and availability have been two of her strongest attributes; aside from the three games she missed competing in EuroBasket, she has appeared in every WNBA contest this season and suited up for all 30 games with Famila Schio. — Andrews

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18. Aneesah Morrow, Connecticut Sun, F, 6-1

She averaged a double-double (20.5 PPG, 12.3 RPG) in college, spending two years at DePaul and two at LSU. Undersized in the WNBA, she is now adjusting her skill set. Still, Morrow has started 16 games for the Sun and is averaging 7.5 points and 6.4 rebounds. Look for the 22-year-old to improve her perimeter shooting — she is at 26.7% from 3-point range — as she progresses as a pro. — Voepel

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Edwards got buried in the rotation in Washington, but she had enough moments in her rookie season that should make the Sun excited about her potential. She averaged 7.6 points and 5.6 rebounds in 21.8 minutes and started 17 of 34 contests last year. Her averages are down this season, but she remains incredibly efficient. Playing time and usage haven’t boomed since her arrival in Connecticut, but it’s easy to believe she has more growth in her, given time and opportunity. — Andrews

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Miller is another tricky player to assess since she hasn’t yet found a steady role in the league. She was drafted No. 2 in 2023, highly regarded for her athleticism and versatility, and averaged 12.1 points as a rookie with Minnesota. But she saw minimal time there the past two seasons, after being hampered by injuries and falling out of the rotation. After being traded last month, she has the opportunity to regain her footing in Dallas and brings a different look to the wing with her size compared to several of her undersized teammates. — Philippou

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21. Aziaha James, Dallas Wings, G, 5-9

A fixture in the Wings’ rotation in July, James averaged 9.4 PPG to rank sixth among rookies that month. James has faded in August, in part because she has shot 28% from the 3-point line. A 34% 3-point shooter during her last two seasons at NC State, James has room for improvement. That and her superior size give her the nod over fellow Dallas rookie JJ Quinerly, whose season ended this week because of an ACL sprain. — Pelton

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22. Carla Leite, Golden State Valkyries, G, 5-9

Leite averages just 7.3 points for the Valkyries, playing 17.8 minutes off the bench, but her play in Europe suggests she has a much higher offensive ceiling. This year she was named Finals MVP after leading French club Villeneuve d’Ascq to a EuroCup championship in April, averaging 20.5 points, 6.0 assists and 2.5 rebounds. — Andrews

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23. Awak Kuier, Dallas Wings, F, 6-6

The No. 2 pick in 2021 has yet to make a big impression stateside, averaging 2.6 PPG in three seasons in Dallas. Since last appearing for the Wings in 2023 at age 22, however, Kuier has shown dramatic development in Europe. Kuier averaged 16.8 PPG and 6.3 RPG for Umana Reyer Venezia in EuroLeague play last year, ranking third in scoring behind WNBA All-Stars Brionna Jones and Emma Meesseman. — Pelton

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She was the 19th pick in April out of Florida State and has been a good fit as a reserve for the injury-plagued Fever. Timpson has another former Seminoles star, Fever veteran forward Natasha Howard, to learn from. Timpson, 22, is averaging 2.7 points and 2.1 rebounds. Her playing time has fluctuated a lot, but she has shown promising moments. It will be a big offseason for her to grow her game. — Voepel

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25. Laeticia Amihere, Golden State Valkyries, F, 6-3

After being drafted No. 8 in 2023 by Atlanta, Amihere has found a home with Golden State. She had her first stint with the team during training camp, where she averaged 12.5 points on 60% shooting in 17.4 minutes. She was waived but rejoined the team in June and has been a steady role player since. — Andrews