Carpool Karaoke brought out the holiday spirit as James Corden was joined by Mariah Carey and other well-known friends. But don’t forget the classics, Christmas with Run DMC and Chanukah with Adam Sandler never disappoint. Holiday cheer was dampened, however, with the news of George Michael’s death at age 53.
As the country gathered to spend time with family and friends, the sports world treated fans to several Christmas gems.
National Football League (NFL)
The NFL shifted most of its schedule from its traditional Sunday games to Saturday giving Santa time to deliver the goods.
You get a car, and you get a car, and you get a car…In his best Oprah imitation, Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott gave his offensive linemen All Terrain Vehicles for helping him earn Pro Bowl honors as a rookie.
Courtesy: TMZ
Speaking of gifts, Von Miller, the Denver Broncos superstar, reigning Super Bowl MVP and Madden ’17 pitchman with all the moves, gave every player on the Oakland Raiders, San Diego Chargers, and Kansas City Chiefs a bottle of wine for the holidays. That’s over 200 bottles to opponents he tries to destroy twice a year.
Cleveland Browns fans were ready to write off St. Nicholas but changed their tune Saturday as the team (1-14) won for the first time this season beating the struggling San Diego Chargers.
The NFL’s top ranked teams, the Dallas Cowboys, New England Patriots and Oakland Raiders continued winning and look good. Oakland will be limping into the playoffs, literally, as they lost star quarterback Derek Carr to a broken leg.
On Christmas day two bitter rivals clashed and delivered cheers and tears. In a furious fourth quarter comeback, the Pittsburgh Steelers scored three touchdowns to beat the Baltimore Ravens. In the process, the Steelers won the AFC North and eliminated the Ravens from playoff contention.
In the Christmas nightcap the Kansas City Chiefs beat the defending champion Denver Broncos, eliminating Denver from the playoffs. (This despite receiving Von Miller’s wine gift in the locker room before the game). In a scrooge-like act with the game out of reach, Chiefs defensive end Dontari Poe was inserted on offense and threw a touchdown on the goal line in the game’s waning minutes. Big Deal?!…At 360 pounds, Poe became the heaviest player to ever throw a touchdown – by 100 pounds.
Courtesy: Kansas City Star
Down and out…with Denver eliminated, this is the first season since 2003 in which neither defending Super Bowl team (Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers) made the playoffs.
College Football
In an annual ritual, this week serves up over 20 Bowl games featuring college football’s top teams, but two games matter most. On New Year’s Eve, students, alums and fans will be showing up to the party thrilled or dejected after they watch their squad play in the national semifinals.
Here is the Dec 30th schedule:
#1 Alabama vs. #4 Washington (3pm ET)
#2 Clemson vs. #3 Ohio State (7pm ET)
The winners play for the National Championship on January 9th.
National Basketball Association (NBA)
The NBA gave fans plenty to cheer about on Christmas Day with four of the league’s top teams and the MVP frontrunner all in action.
The marquee game was a rematch of the last two NBA Finals. The Cleveland Cavaliers completed the feel-good weekend the Browns started and beat the Golden State Warriors 109-108. Four-time MVP LeBron James outplayed two-time defending MVP Steph Curry in leading the Cavs to victory. The teams meet again January 16th but everyone is looking forward to the “real” rematch in the NBA Finals come June.
Russell Westbrook continues to dazzle and is running away with the league MVP. The Oklahoma City Thunder guard led his team to a Christmas Day win and continues to average a triple double (double digits in points, rebounds and assists). Rare?? Very. It has only happened once in NBA history, in 1962. That year John F. Kennedy was playing Santa at the White House.
Soccer
Perennial English Premier League powerhouse Manchester United is disappointing this year sitting in sixth place and outside the Champions League qualifying. Striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic gave fans some holiday cheer, though, making Christmas Snow Angels in his skivvies.
National Hockey League (NHL)
The Ohio miracle continues as the Columbus Blue Jackets have won 12 in a row and own the NHL’s best record. In case you missed it, yes, there is professional hockey in Columbus.
Don’t forget your hat and gloves…In a fun throwback, the NHL has two outdoor matchups this weekend:
Detroit Red Wings @ Toronto Maple Leafs (Jan 1, 3:00pm ET)
Chicago Blackhawks @ St. Louis Blues (Jan 2, 1;00pm ET)
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To all our great readers, thank you for your support. We wish you a joyous New Year! See you in 2017.
Remember at TINK Sports we watch the games so you don’t have to.
See you next time…
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