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Teofimo Lopez is one of the most divisive figures in the sport, but is he harming his own brand?
Lopez is a two-weight world champion, having won titles at 135 and 140. He has beaten some of the biggest names in the sport, overcoming the likes of Vasiliy Lomachenko and Josh Taylor. However, he also followed it up with some lackluster performances, including a dull win over Sandor Martin. Meanwhile, he was also involved in one of the biggest upsets in the sport when he lost to George Kambosos Jr. in 2021.
However, it is Lopez’s conduct outside of the sport that has divided the fanbase. He was accused of making derogatory, racist remarks towards Terence Crawford, who is one the best P4P fighters out there. That will not help Lopez secure the biggest fights with the biggest paydays, something he has been calling for.
Teo defeated Arnold Barboza Jr. in his last fight in a Riyah Season event. However, Lopez may have damaged his relationship with the Saudis. He referred to Turki Alalshikh as a ‘Dicktator,’ which will not help his cause in getting the biggest bouts. While Lopez may think being controversial will increase the eyeballs on him, the reality is that he is not the biggest ticket seller.
He failed to sell out a fight against Josh Taylor in his hometown. Oscar De La Hoya has reached out to Lopez to offer him a deal, but Teo must first rebrand if he wants to gain the respect of the boxing public, who did not hold back on their criticism.
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NFL analyst says teams should be 'extremely scared' of this franchise in 2025
While the Philadelphia Eagles, Detroit Lions and Washington Commanders have garnered a lot of attention lately, there is one NFC team that has quietly been flying under the radar. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost a one-score game to the Lions in the divisional round in 2023 and followed that up with another one-score loss to QB Jayden Daniels and the Commanders last season, proving how close they have been to the ultimate prize in the two seasons with Baker Mayfield under center. In an appearance on ESPN's "Get Up" Tuesday morning, analyst and former player Ryan Clark offered high praise for Mayfield and what the Buccaneers are capable of. "Baker Mayfield is a top-10 quarterback in this league," Clark said. "Baker Mayfield is a football player. And when I say that, I know people at home are gonna be like, 'Duh, he gets paid to play football.' No, not all quarterbacks are seen as football players. Not all quarterbacks are embraced in the locker room as one of us." Clark sees the Buccaneers as a team the rest of the league should be paying attention to because of who they have returning and the close calls in the playoffs the last two seasons. "This is a team that's been on the cusp the last two years," Clark said. "Now you think about some of the pieces they've added, the confidence in their quarterback and the way that he plays, and Todd Bowles with another year to understand winning at a high level at the head coach position. This is a team you better be extremely scared of because they're stacked and they're confident." Mayfield has been sensational during his time with the Buccaneers. Although he did throw 16 interceptions, Mayfield accounted for the third-most passing yards (4,500) in the league last season and has thrown the most TD passes (69) in the last two seasons, per StatMuse. To add even more incentive for Mayfield, the team restructured his contract, which is set to expire after the 2026 season, to include $30M in guaranteed salary for that season. The Buccaneers return a lot of production on both sides of the ball, in addition to bringing in first-round draft pick Emeka Egbuka, who topped 1,000 receiving yards twice at Ohio State and accounted for 26 total TDs. While Tampa Bay allowed the 17th-most points per game (22.7) last season, it returns the majority of its defensive production. On top of that, the offseason acquisition of veteran LB and two-time Pro-Bowler Haason Reddick, who agreed to terms on a one-year deal, should be a welcomed addition for a franchise that had some question marks on defense last season. The Buccaneers are projected to have the sixth-easiest schedule in the NFL this season and have the best chance to win the NFC South for the fifth consecutive season, according to ESPN Analytics. If Mayfield can cut back on his turnovers and the defense can create more pressure on opposing QBs, the Buccaneers could be a threat in the NFC once again as they look to put their recent nail-biting losses in the postseason behind them.
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Steelers reporter shares big claim about how Aaron Rodgers has looked in training camp
Quarterback Aaron Rodgers spent the bulk of the spring as an unsigned free agent and, thus, only began officially practicing with Pittsburgh Steelers teammates during the team's three-day mandatory minicamp in June. During a Monday appearance on Pittsburgh radio station 102.5 WDVE, Steelers reporter Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette addressed how Rodgers looked during his first few training camp practices with the club. "His release is just astonishing to watch," Dulac said about Rodgers, as shared by Ross McCorkle of Steelers Depot. "Everybody knows about it, and when you see it in person, you see it every day in practice, you just marvel at it. To me, he's the greatest thrower of the football I have ever seen, even at 41 (years old). That flick of that wrist and that ball comes out, it's moving and it is something to see." Rodgers was with the New York Jets when he suffered a torn Achilles four offensive snaps into the 2023 regular-season opener. He was then slowed by a nagging hip issue, injuries to both his knees, a low ankle sprain and a serious hamstring problem as the 2024 Jets went 5-12. According to Pro Football Reference, Rodgers finished last season ranked 28th in the NFL among qualified players with a 48.0 adjusted QBR and 26th with a 43.9 percent passing success rate. That said, he was also eighth with 3,897 passing yards and tied for seventh with 28 passing touchdowns. Rodgers and Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson endured some struggles during training camp sessions last summer before the two allegedly "never saw eye-to-eye" during the season. It sounds like Pittsburgh fans should be encouraged by how Rodgers performed in recent practices. "That guy can get rid of the ball as quick as anybody," Dulac added. "He made three throws in seven-on-seven (drills) the other day that the cumulative total I bet couldn't have exceeded 2.1 seconds. And two of those were for touchdowns." Rodgers wants to finish his career "the right way" and help the Steelers notch at least their first playoff win since January 2017. As of Monday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook had Pittsburgh at -150 betting odds to miss the playoffs for the upcoming season.
'Wilt Chamberlain Punched Me And Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Ignored Me': NBA Veteran On First Meeting With Lakers Legends
Wilt Chamberlain and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar are two centers who have etched their names in NBA history books for their successes, most prominently with the Lakers. They both won their first championships with another team, but their second rings were both in a Lakers uniform. Wilt Chamberlain had an extroverted and extravagant lifestyle, while Kareem Abdul-Jabbar always valued his privacy and was very selective about his interactions with others. Recently, in an interview on the Rich Eisen Show, the four-time NBA champion John Salley recalled his first meetings with the two NBA legends. “I met Wilt Chamberlain, who hit me in my stomach. Wilt had this thing. He was like, 'Take a picture.' If you’re standing there, I was told, do not loosen up around Wilt; he will try you somehow." “And so, I'm sitting there, and then it hit me in my stomach. He was, ‘Oh, you got a good core.’ And I was like, Oh, yeah,” said Salley while imitating the voice and expression of a man in excruciating pain. After discussing that Wilt Chamberlain was only two or three inches taller than Salley, he goes on to describe his first meeting with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. He explains how, even as a celebrity, he would feel starstruck while meeting celebrities bigger than him. “People don't realize when you're a pro, a lot of guys go around and act cool. Man, I would let you know. Man, you Wilt Chamberlain, oh my boy! I saw Kareem, and Kareem didn't talk to me.” “He had nothing to say. He talked to my brother Ron, but he goes like ‘I don't talk to rookies.’” Salley was not very surprised to get this response from Abdul-Jabbar, as his reputation was that he liked to keep to himself. Wilt Chamberlain and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar walked so players like LeBron James and John Salley himself could run, in terms of player empowerment. They were among the first players in the league to request a trade themselves to play in bigger market teams (coincidentally, both landed in the Lakers during different eras). John Salley eventually became the first NBA player to win a championship with three different NBA teams (Pistons, Bulls, and Lakers). Unfortunately, Wilt Chamberlain and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar were never teammates on the Lakers. Their playing time only overlapped for four years (1969-1973), where they played as rivals against each other before Chamberlain eventually retired, just two years before Abdul-Jabbar eventually joined the Lakers. Even if Chamberlain technically punched him and Abdul-Jabbar ignored him, Salley got a memory of a lifetime when he met these two legends.
Raiders' Pete Carroll has cryptic comments on bizarre Christian Wilkins situation
There have been a couple of different theories floated about why the Las Vegas Raiders made the shocking decision to cut star defensive tackle Christian Wilkins, but head coach Pete Carroll has no interest in sharing the real motive. The Raiders released Wilkins on Thursday, which was barely a year after they signed him to a four-year, $110M contract in free agency. Initial reports suggested Wilkins and the team were at odds over how the 29-year-old's foot injury was being handled, but the story has since taken a bizarre turn. ESPN's Adam Schefter said on Monday that there was an incident between Wilkins and a teammate in the locker room that Wilkins viewed as playful, but his teammate did not take it that way. Tashan Reed of The Athletic reported that the incident took place in a meeting room at the Raiders' facility last week and was investigated by the team's human resources department. On Tuesday, a reporter asked Carroll about the alleged incident. The 73-year-old coach refused to get into it. "I have no comment to make,” Carroll said, via The Athletic. “We made a decision on what we’re doing, and we’re moving with it. We’ll see how that all unveils itself in time.” The last part of Carroll's comment is interesting. Carroll may have been saying time will tell how the decision to cut Wilkins will turn out for the Raiders, or he may have been insinuating that more information will come out at some point. Raiders defensive tackle Adam Nelson was also asked about Wilkins on Tuesday. Nelson responded by encouraging people to seek therapy if they are struggling with something in their life. Wilkins had 17 total tackles and a pair of sacks in five games with the Raiders before he suffered his season-ending foot injury.
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