Sports
Cam Newton accuses Browns coach Kevin Stefanski of not wanting Shedeur Sanders to succeed
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Shedeur Sanders made his regular-season debut for the Cleveland Browns during the team’s 23-17 loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday, and it wasn’t the outing he would’ve hoped for in his first real action in the NFL.
Sanders went 4-of-16 for 47 yards, was sacked twice and threw an interception. The Ravens ultimately saw tight end Mark Andrews score a rushing touchdown in the 23-17 victory.
Sanders was critical of himself after the game, but former NFL quarterback Cam Newton said this game backed up an opinion he’s had for quite a while.
Shedeur Sanders of the Cleveland Browns warms up before the game against the Baltimore Ravens at Huntington Bank Field on Nov. 16, 2025 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Jason Miller/Getty Images)
“I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: I do not think Kevin Stefanski wants Shedeur Sanders to succeed in Cleveland,” Newton said on ESPN’s “First Take”. “The reason being is, don’t tell me what he said, don’t tell me what he’s saying. I’m going off of actions – alright? Let’s go off actions.
“The actions is, if I’m Shedeur, or if I’m a Shedeur Sanders fan, I would not want him to take the field because that’s going to consistently be the display we’re going to see. It doesn’t matter if it’s Deshaun Watson, it doesn’t matter if it’s Shedeur Sanders, it doesn’t matter if it’s Dillon Gabriel, it doesn’t matter if it’s Dan Orlovsky, it doesn’t matter if it’s Cam Newton. You need help in Cleveland. When you have a quarterback that’s still making $46 million on your roster, and he’s not healthy, that impacts the talent that’s around him. They are not a good team.”
The Browns are 2-8 this season, and Sanders marks the third quarterback change since the regular season began. At first, 41-year-old journeyman Joe Flacco was leading the way in Stefanski’s offense, but he was benched, leading to rookie Dillon Gabriel taking over.
BROWNS’ SHEDEUR SANDERS OFFERS BLUNT CRITIQUE OF PERFORMANCE IN NFL DEBUT
After Flacco was traded to the Cincinnati Bengals, Gabriel became the full-time starter with Sanders backing him up. It’s been a struggle for Gabriel, who went 7-of-10 passing for 68 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions Sunday before Stefanski turned to Sanders after Gabriel suffered a concussion.
Newton believes Sanders is being set up to fail, saying the Colorado product and son of Hall of Famer Deion Sanders isn’t being given a fair chance to make his mark in Cleveland.
“But this is the thing that really irks me the most… because [Sanders] doesn’t get any reps,” Newton said. “Circa 2015, circa when Cam Newton was the MVP, circa when, hey, my backup for [the] majority of my career was probably the biggest blessing of my career, to have a veteran in Derek Anderson. Ron Rivera still knew, ‘We’re one play away, kid, from you not being available.’”
Cam Newton attends the BET Awards Media House on June 29, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Robin L Marshall/Getty Images for BET)
Sanders was blunt in his postgame press conference while discussing his performance in his first regular-season action.
“I don’t think I played good,” Sanders said. I think there’s a lot of things we need to look at during the week and go and just get comfortable with even throwing routes with Jerry [Jeudy] and throwing routes with all those guys.
“I think that was my first ball to him all year,” he continued. “But other than that, I just think overall, we just got to go next week and understand, so that we have a week to prepare stuff I like to do.”
To Newton’s point, Sanders hadn’t received any first-team reps in practice before this game. He started the season as the team’s third-string quarterback before moving to Gabriel’s backup after the Flacco trade.
Despite the poor outing, Sanders’ confidence isn’t wavering as the Browns move on to next week’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders on the road.
Shedeur Sanders of the Cleveland Browns walks off the field after losing to the Baltimore Ravens 23-16 at Huntington Bank Field on Nov. 16, 2025 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Jason Miller/Getty Images)
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“I still have the same confidence. I’m still me,” he said. “I’ll never go anywhere. You know, just going out there, seeing daylight, that’s all I needed to see how they move out there. Playing against a great defense. You got guys from the Pro Bowl out there, so it’s exciting to see. Okay, this is what it’s like? Alright. This is what it’s like? I’m excited for it. So, you know, I just got to take this one and build on it.”
Stefanski has not named a starting quarterback for the Raiders matchup, though an announcement is expected later this week.
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The Las Vegas Raiders and the Baltimore Ravens made a blockbuster trade ahead of the start of NFL free agency.
Las Vegas is trading five-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Maxx Crosby to the Baltimore Ravens, per multiple reports.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby (98) against the Arizona Cardinals during a preseason NFL game at State Farm Stadium on Aug. 23, 2025. (Mark J. Rebilas/Imagn Images)
The Raiders will receive two first-round picks from the Ravens, including the No. 14 overall pick in next month’s NFL draft, one report said.
The 28-year-old Crosby had 10 sacks last season and has reached double digits four times in his seven seasons.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive tackle Jonah Laulu (96) and defensive end Maxx Crosby (98) celebrate during the second half of an NFL football game against the Houston Texans in Houston, Texas, on Dec. 21, 2025. (Ashley Landis/AP Photo)
The Raiders last appeared in the playoffs back in 2021 but have gone 7-27 over the past two seasons. They have the No. 1 pick in the 2026 draft, which is expected to land them Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza.
The Ravens, meanwhile, are entering a new era, after firing longtime head coach John Harbaugh and replacing him with former Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter.
Maxx Crosby of the Las Vegas Raiders sniffs smelling salts during an NFL game between the Las Vegas Raiders and Denver Broncos at Empower Field At Mile High on November 20, 2022 in Denver, Colorado. (Michael Owens/Getty Images)
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Two top City Section baseball teams, El Camino Real and San Fernando, faced off Friday in a pitcher’s duel that went eight innings.
Senior Ray Pelayo of San Fernando kept throwing strikes, keeping El Camino Real off balance for 7⅔ scoreless innings with eight strikeouts and one walk. But then came a balk that scored the winning run in El Camino Real’s 1-0 victory.
Hudson December threw six scoreless innings for El Camino Real and Andrew Katzman struck out three in two scoreless innings.
South Torrance 4, El Segundo 3: In a battle of unbeaten Pioneer League teams, South Torrance (6-0) received a walk-off single from Owen Rhodes in the bottom of the seventh. El Segundo tied it 3-3 in the top of the seventh on a two-out, three-run home run by Chase Mattoon. Issac Orozco struck out nine in five innings and also homered for the Spartans.
Crespi 3, Saugus 2: Justin Kim had two RBIs for the Celts.
Sylmar 7, Legacy 1: Rickee Luevano threw a two-hitter with nine strikeouts.
Sierra Canyon 12, West Ranch 1: Isaias Tirado hit a three-run home run and four pitchers combined to give up five hits.
Mater Dei 15, Rockwall-Heath (Texas) 1: Ezekiel Lara had three hits and five RBIs in Texas. Earlier, the Monarchs gave up seven runs in the third inning of an 8-1 loss to Rockwall-Heath.
St. John Bosco 1, Gahr 0: Star closer Jack Champlin got a strikeout to end the game, finishing two shutout innings of relief. Champlin drove in the game’s only run with an RBI double in the sixth inning. Julian Garcia struck out six with no walks in five innings for St. John Bosco.
San Juan Hills 11, Cypress 0: Garrett Gandolfo threw five scoreless innings with seven strikeouts and Clay Riggs contributed three RBIs for San Juan Hills.
Santa Margarita 1, Damien 0: Warren Gravely IV had the only RBI in the Eagles’ win. Tyler Unter struck out six in five shutout innings.
Garfield 9, Cleveland 7: Omar Martinez had three hits and Victor Alvarez drove in three runs for Garfield. Joshua Pearlstein finished with three hits for Cleveland.
Palos Verdes 8, West Torrance 0: Kai Van Scoyoc struck out nine in five innings and Asher Friedman had a home run and a double for Palos Verdes.
Valencia 12, Chatsworth 0: An eight-run second inning helped lead the Vikings to a five-inning win.
Bishop Amat 13, Gardena Serra 2: Joaquin Ortiz finished with three hits and four RBIs.
Corona Centennial 19, Eastvale Roosevelt 3: Devin Bishop and Emiliano Castaneda each hit home runs for Centennial.
Servite 6, Anaheim Canyon 1: Mickey Cabral went three for four and Cole Grothues struck out three in 2⅓ innings of scoreless relief.
Corona Santiago 5, Crean Lutheran 4: Jonathan Thorton delivered three hits and two RBIs for the Sharks.
Fullerton 1, Chaparral 0: Garrett Wrightman threw four innings of scoreless relief and Caleb Brown had an RBI double in the third inning for Fullerton.
Edison 11, Tesoro 7: Ben Wilson hit a grand slam and finished with five RBIs for Edison.
El Dorado 10, Granada Hills 4: Lorenzo Favela hit a three-run home run to lead El Dorado.
Ayala 7, San Dimas 1: Caleb Trugman struck out nine with zero walks in a complete game.
Loyola 14, Venice 1: Wyatt Clougherty had three hits and Luca Marucci contributed three RBIs for Loyola.
Softball
Norco 5, Torrance 0: Coral Williams struck out 10 in six innings. Leighton Gray and Rae Logue hit home runs.
Garden Grove Pacifica 4, Anaheim Canyon 2: Natalia Amezquita had a two-run single for Pacifica.
Orange Lutheran 7, Perry 1: Mia Scott had four RBIs for the Lancers.
Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 15, Culver City 0: Ellayne Tellez-Perez had three hits and five RBIs.
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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