Sports
Rams' Matthew Stafford prepares to be Ford Field tough: 'I’m the bad guy coming to town'
Team events. Wardrobe changes for photo shoots. Media days.
Those were the few times Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford can recall being in the visitors’ locker room at Ford Field in Detroit, where he spent his first 12 NFL seasons playing for the Lions.
But Sunday, before an NFC wild-card game, the visitors’ locker room is where Stafford will prepare for his first game in Detroit since he was traded to the Rams in 2021.
Stafford indicated Wednesday that muscle memory would not kick in and lead him to the home locker room.
“I hope I don’t end up in the wrong one,” he quipped. “But I do know it’s the same tunnel — both the home team and visiting team come out of the tunnel.
“I think we have a little side alley we’ve got to take, at least that’s how it used to be.”
Despite a crowd that is expected to be extremely loud, Stafford is expected to be comfortable in a venue where he developed into one of the most prolific passers in NFL history.
Stafford, the No. 1 pick in the 2009 NFL draft, played in 165 games for the Lions. He passed for 45,109 yards and 282 touchdowns, with 144 interceptions.
The Lions made the playoffs in 2011, 2014 and 2016, but lost wild-card games each time.
Now the Lions are hosting a playoff game for the first time in 30 years.
“It’s an amazing city and an amazing group of fans,” Stafford said. “The organization does a heck of a job, and I know they’re going to be excited.
Detroit Lions fans have been psyched about their team’s prospects all season.
(Charlie Riedel / Associated Press)
“It’s going to be a great atmosphere, probably one of the best we’ve played in in a long time. … It’s going to be a cool experience for those people, and really, everybody involved in the game.”
Stafford remains popular in Detroit. He appreciates how he and his family were embraced and he still is close to many people in the city.
Stafford has no illusions about how he might be received, however, when he takes the field.
“I’m not expecting anything,” he said, adding, “The biggest thing for me is go experience whatever that experience is going to be. … I’m not a stranger to the situation, and understanding that I’m the bad guy coming to town.”
After the 2020 season, Stafford and the Lions agreed that it was time to move on.
Rams coach Sean McVay and general manager Les Snead jumped at the opportunity to rid themselves of quarterback Jared Goff in a deal that sent Goff, two first-round draft picks and a third-round pick to the Lions for Stafford.
Stafford led the Rams to a Super Bowl title in 2021. In 2022, he sat out a midseason game because of a concussion and then suffered a season-ending spinal injury.
This season, Stafford played through a hip injury suffered during an overtime victory at Indianapolis, and a right-thumb injury that forced him to sit out a Nov. 5 defeat at Green Bay.
Stafford still earned Pro Bowl recognition with a second-half performance as the Rams won seven of their last eight games. During one five-game stretch, he passed for 14 touchdowns, with one interception.
In 15 games — Stafford was held out from the Rams’ 21-20 victory Sunday over the San Francisco 49ers — he passed for 24 touchdowns, with 11 interceptions.
Goff also has played well, passing for 30 touchdowns, with 12 interceptions, for a Lions team that finished 12-5 and won the NFC North.
McVay reiterated Wednesday that Goff “has done a great job” for the Lions and that he “did a lot of really good things here for the four years that we were together.”
But McVay acknowledged missteps in how Goff learned of the trade for Stafford.
“Could it have been handled better on my end?” McVay said, “Absolutely. … He deserved better than the way it all went down. I’ll acknowledge that. And I think he knows that too. And I’m not afraid to admit to those things.”
McVay and Goff “are good,” Goff told reporters in Detroit on Wednesday.
“We had our differences there at the end, but he’s a great coach,” Goff said. “He’s done a lot of great things and, you know, he’s a guy that taught me a lot.”
Stafford and the Rams defeated the Lions in a 2021 game at SoFi Stadium, but the stakes are higher this time around.
That Ford Field is the site for the game is beside the point for a Rams team that defied the expectations of most outside the Rams organization, Stafford said.
“I’m excited to go play anybody, anywhere, in the playoffs,” he said. “We were a team that at the beginning of the season nobody gave us a chance to be in the position that we’re in.”
Sports
Chargers’ Justin Herbert gushes over Madison Beer in heartfelt birthday tribute: ‘Changed my life forever’
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Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert gushed over 27-year-old singer Madison Beer in a heartfelt birthday tribute on social media, offering fans a rare glimpse into the couple’s relationship.
The two-time Pro Bowl quarterback, who normally shies away from the public eye, posted a series of photos to his Instagram Stories on Thursday.
Justin Herbert of the Los Angeles Chargers warms up prior to a game against the Philadelphia Eagles at SoFi Stadium on Dec. 8, 2025 in Inglewood, California. (Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images)
“Happy birthday to my favorite person of all time,” Herbert wrote in a post that showed the couple on the sidelines of one of his NFL games. “I love you so much. You’ve changed my life forever.”
In another photo appearing to show the couple out to dinner, Herbert wrote, “I am the luckiest guy alive…”
Herbert, who turns 28 later this month, shared another photo of the “Make You Mine” artist petting goats and captioned the photo, “My goats.”
The couple was first linked together in August when they were spotted together on the set of one of Beer’s music videos in Los Angeles. Herbert and Beer were photographed in October on the sidelines of a Chargers game at SoFi Stadium, seemingly confirming the dating rumors.
Quarterback Justin Herbert of the Los Angeles Chargers and singer Madison Beer attend an NBA game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Minnesota Timberwolves at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 24, 2025. (Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
The same month, Herbert went viral after blocking a rogue basketball from hitting Beer when the two sat courtside at a Los Angeles Lakers game.
Herbert signed a five-year, $262.5 million extension with the Chargers in July 2023. Despite proving himself to be one of the elite young quarterbacks in the NFL, Los Angeles’ offensive struggles have seen the team fall short in back-to-back playoff appearances.
Quarterback Justin Herbert (10) of the Los Angeles Chargers blocks a basketball from hitting Madison Beer as they attend a basketball game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Minnesota Timberwolves at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 24, 2025. (Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
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The team’s offensive coordinator, Greg Roman, was fired in January and replaced with former Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel, who is regarded as one of the top offensive minds in football.
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Sports
Shohei Ohtani’s second-inning grand slam propels Japan to a rout in World Baseball Classic opener
The last time Shohei Ohtani was seen wearing a World Baseball Classic uniform with “Japan” across his chest, he was striking out Mike Trout of the United States on a ninth-inning, full-count slider to give his country a victory in the championship game three years ago.
So much has happened in Ohtani’s life between then and now. He has a wife and a daughter, a new interpreter, a new Major League team, two World Series championships and three more Most Valuable Player awards.
Yet unforgettable WBC memories continue. This time, he delivered from the batter’s box instead of the pitcher’s mound.
In the second inning of Japan’s WBC opener against Chinese Taipei on Friday at the Tokyo Dome, Ohtani smacked a hanging curve a few feet over the right-field wall for a grand slam, triggering an offensive onslaught that resulted in a 13-0 victory.
“I thought it might land as an out, so above all, I really wanted to get the first run on the board,” Ohtani told reporters afterward.
Ohtani led off the game with a double and singled in his second at-bat of the second inning, when Japan put up a WBC-record 10 runs. He added a run-scoring single in the third inning, giving him five runs batted in.
In 2023, Ohtani hit and pitched Japan to the WBC title, batting .435 with eight RBIs and allowing only two earned runs in 9 2/3 innings on the mound. This year, he will only bat, saving his pitching for the Dodgers, who begin their quest for a third consecutive World Series title in three weeks.
Japan’s starting pitcher Friday was a decorated Dodger nevertheless. Yoshinobu Yamamoto, MVP of the 2025 World Series, threw 2 2/3 scoreless innings, walking three and striking out two while giving up no hits.
His command wasn’t pinpoint — he threw 53 pitches, 33 for strikes — but it is still spring training, even though the atmosphere was electric for Japanese players competing in front of a crowd of 42,314 that included actor Timothy Chalamet and superstar Bad Bunny.
“I know there will be some tough battles ahead, but if the fans and the team can unite and everyone can help build the excitement together, it will really encourage us,” Ohtani said.
Sports
Russell Wilson escalates feud with Sean Payton, labels Broncos coach ‘classless’
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Russell Wilson and Sean Payton spent just one NFL season together, but tension lingered after a rocky year.
And it appears the tension that built up from that tumultuous stretch continues to linger.
Wilson’s interview on the “Bussin’ With the Boys” podcast, recorded before last month’s Super Bowl between Seattle and New England, recently resurfaced.
In the interview, Wilson doubled down on his October comment labeling Payton “classless,” saying he felt slighted by his former coach’s remarks.
Head coach Sean Payton of the Denver Broncos talks to quarterback Russell Wilson on the sideline during an NFL preseason football game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium Aug. 11, 2023, in Glendale, Ariz. (Ryan Kang/Getty Images)
“[When] you’ve been on the same side or this and that, and I got the same amount of rings as you got, meaning Sean, right?” said Wilson, who won a Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks as Payton did coaching for the New Orleans Saints.
“I got a lot of respect for him as a play-caller, this and that, but to take a shot, I don’t like. I don’t think it’s necessary, you know, I mean, especially when I’m not even on your own team anymore. So, for me, there’s a point in time where you have to, I’ve realized, I’ve stayed quiet for so long. There’s a there’s a time and place where I’m not.
“I know who I am as a competitor, as a warrior, as a champion, too, and, you know, I’ve beaten Sean, too. You know, like we’ve been on the same place and the same thing. And so, it’s not a matter of disrespect. Just don’t disrespect me.”
Sean Payton and Russell Wilson of the Denver Broncos during an a game against the Minnesota Vikings at Empower Field at Mile High Nov. 19, 2023, in Denver, Colo. (Ryan Kang/Getty Images)
After a rocky one-year stint with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2024, Wilson joined the New York Giants last offseason. However, he was relegated to a backup role after just three games.
Rookie Jaxson Dart quickly showed promise once he had the chance to start, but his season was briefly derailed by injury. Jameis Winston — not Wilson — stepped in for Dart in a handful of games. Dart threw three touchdowns in a Week 7 matchup with the Broncos, nearly pulling off an upset in what was eventually a close loss.
After the game, Payton said Dart provided a “spark” to the Giants’ offense.
“I was talking to [Giants owner] John Mara not too long ago, and I said, ‘We were hoping that that change would have happened long after our game,’” Payton said.
The New York Giants’ Russell Wilson attempts to escape a sack by Dallas Cowboys defensive end James Houston (53) in the first half of a game Sept. 14, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Payton also said the Broncos would have faced less of a challenge had Wilson been under center.
“Classless … but not surprised,” Wilson responded in a social media post. “Didn’t realize you’re still bounty hunting 15+ years later though the media.”
Despite last season’s struggles and chatter about his football future, Wilson does not appear ready to call it quits in 2026.
“I wanna play a few more years for sure,” he said. “I think, for me, I’ve always had the vision of getting to 40, at least. I think the game is different. Quarterbacks, we get hit. It’s not, you know, we get hit hard, but … there’s certain rules. I mean, back in the day when I started, bro, it was you just get [clobbered].
“I mean, so I feel like the game allows you to, you know, live a little longer, I guess. I feel healthy. I feel great. But I think, more than anything else is, do you love the game? Do you love studying? Do you love the passion for it all? Do you love the process? Do you love the practice? Do you love — everybody loves the winning part of it, but it’s process. There’s a journey that you got to be obsessed with. And that part I’m obsessed with.”
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