“I’ll always love this sport, and that’s exactly why I say all this. I got to live through what I believe was NASCAR at its best. It wasn’t perfect, but it was real. The drivers drove, the crews built race cars instead of assembling parts, and every Sunday felt like you were about to witness something you’ll never forget,” Mayfield wrote on his Facebook, while sharing Spire Motorsports’ Carson Hocevar’s post about the problems with NASCAR broadcast today.

Fans who grew up during the Winston Cup years would understand what Mayfield meant. He remembers the packed grandstands, roaring engines, and drivers with distinct personalities and driving styles. Teams were constantly trying different things, always searching for the next innovation that would make them faster.

Mayfield doesn’t like what NASCAR teams do today. He continued, “NASCAR has taken away so much of the creativity that used to separate the great teams from the good ones. It used to be about out-thinking and out-working the competition. Now it’s a whole lot more plug-and-play than it ever was.”

Modern Cup cars are built around standardized parts and supplier-controlled components. The system was designed to reduce costs, improve safety, and keep smaller teams competitive. Instead of fabricating nearly every major piece in-house, teams now work within a much tighter technical box.

Mayfield feels that teams have less room to create. When he was racing in the late ’90s and early ’00s, he felt that his team would spend hours experimenting, just to find an edge. That freedom largely disappeared over time. NASCAR began tightening regulations after the early 2000s, especially following major safety reforms and the introduction of more standardized car designs. The current Next Gen platform has taken that even further.

Mayfield also aimed stage breaks and other additions, saying NASCAR has become too focused on creating entertainment instead of simply letting racers race. Whether fans agree or not, it is a complaint that keeps resurfacing.

Mayfield’s point is that NASCAR may have traded too much individuality for parity. When everyone starts with nearly the same toolkit, the personalities, rivalries, and ingenuity that once defined stock car racing become harder to see. As Hocevar said in his lengthy rant on Facebook, Mayfield agrees that fans don’t care too much about the technical side of things.

“Fans don’t care about aero numbers or the latest rule package. They want personalities. They want rivalries. They want to see drivers race each other hard. They want to see a driver willing to use the bumper in the last corner on the last lap to get the trophy,” Mayfield continued.

For a lot of longtime fans, that is the real loss. They miss a version of NASCAR where every team had its own fingerprint, and every Sunday felt like something unexpected could happen.

The post “It Was Real”– Former Driver Slams NASCAR’s ‘Plug & Play’ System, Calling for the Sport’s Return to the Golden Era appeared first on EssentiallySports.

“I just decided that I need to stop getting so frustrated with everything. Like I’d hit a great shot, it’d be a divot, and I would get frustrated. What is going on? Why am I getting these bounces? I just really hate this attitude,” Nelly Korda said in the press conference.

Korda admitted that spiraling over uncontrollable outcomes drained her faster than any loss. Solid shots landing in bad spots became mental traps. So she made a change. Instead of fixating on results, she narrowed her focus to preparation, rest, and effort, the parts she could control.

Her closest call came at the U.S. Women’s Open 2025, where she finished runner-up to Maja Stark at Erin Hills. She later called her approach onto the 18th green that week the shot she most wanted back. Korda said she hit the swing so well only to watch the outcome go the other way.

Two other runner-up finishes and a 14th-place showing at the Chevron reinforced the same pattern. Her performance was there, but the wins were not. Golf analyst Brandel Chamblee even labeled it “the best winless season in LPGA history.”

“I just told myself I’m not going to have this attitude. If you slip back into it when you get a little tired, but you’re like, okay, snap out of it. This is not why you’re doing this,” Korda added in the press conference while answering if her own expectation changed on the golf course since 2025.

That recalibration paid off immediately in 2026. She leaned on her support system, stopped measuring her worth by outside noise, and the results followed. At the Chevron in April, she won by five strokes, the largest margin in 18 years. A month later, she captured her first U.S. Women’s Open in a tight finish at Riviera Maya, her fourth major overall and third leg of the career Grand Slam.

What is Nelly Korda chasing at the AIG Women’s Open?

A victory at Royal Lytham & St. Annes this week would complete her career Grand Slam. She has already won the Chevron, the Women’s PGA, and the U.S. Women’s Open; the AIG Women’s Open is the missing piece. Links golf courses could complicate that pursuit in ways traditional parkland courses rarely do.

Korda has a complicated relationship with links golf. She was runner-up at St. Andrews in 2024, leading by two strokes late before Lydia Ko birdied the final hole. That remains her best finish at the championship. Links conditions, including firm turf, low-running shots, and unpredictable bounces, also put extra stress on her wrist compared to a typical LPGA Tour event.

Even so, she arrives with a different mindset than in 2025. Her focus on process rather than frustration may be the key to finally conquering links golf and completing the Grand Slam.

The post ‘Really Hate This Attitude’: Nelly Korda Gets Brutally Honest About Her Biggest On-Course Struggle appeared first on EssentiallySports.

If you’re playing fantasy this year, it’s likely that your draft is going to take place in the coming weeks, so it’s about time for you to get a head start on your research.

We’ve done everything from position rankings to a mock draft on EssentiallySports, but today we’re talking superlatives. Who’s the biggest sleeper, best rookie, and more at every position? Read on to find out.

Quarterback

Biggest Sleeper: Jared Goff

Jared Goff has finished as the QB10, QB9, QB7, and QB6 in the last four years, but he’s being drafted as the QB16 in fantasy football right now. He doesn’t have rushing upside like some of the other top guys, but you could get a starting quarterback going as a backup in fantasy, so he’s definitely the biggest sleeper.

Biggest Bust: Justin Herbert

Justin Herbert hasn’t recorded a top-9 fantasy football finish in any of the last four seasons. He’s one of the biggest names in the sport, but when it comes to fantasy production, he’s not all that great. He also has a stretch where he played the Seahawks, Broncos, Chiefs, Rams and Texans with a bye week in the middle. I wouldn’t bother drafting him this year.

Best Rookie: Fernando Mendoza

No rookie quarterback is projected to start Week 1 of this season, and only one of them – Fernando Mendoza – is set to see any game time at all this year, barring any injuries. But even Mendoza probably won’t see the field until midseason, and by then you’re making a playoff push with a guy making his first start in Week 10. I’d just avoid all the rookies this year.

Safest Pick: Josh Allen

Josh Allen has finished as the QB1 or QB2 in fantasy in each of the last seven seasons. He doesn’t get hurt, has huge rushing upside, and just got a shiny new WR1 in D.J. Moore. I don’t see a world where he doesn’t finish as the QB1 or QB2 again, so he’s easily the safest pick.

Riskiest Pick: Lamar Jackson

Lamar Jackson has played 15+ games four times in his career (excluding his rookie season, where he played 16 games, but didn’t start until the second half of the year), finishing as the QB10, QB4, and QB1 twice during those four years. However, he also has three seasons where he’s played 13 or fewer games, and in those years, he’s never finished better than the QB14. You’ve got just over a 50/50 shot of him finishing the season healthy, but if he does, he has QB1 upside.

Running Back

Biggest Sleeper: Derrick Henry

Derrick Henry is being drafted as the RB13 in fantasy football, but over the past seven seasons, Henry has finished as a top-eight running back six times, including four top-five finishes. The only year he didn’t finish in the top-8 was 2021, when he played eight games due to injury. I know he’s 32, but Father Time still hasn’t collected Henry, and I don’t think it’ll happen this year, given he just ran for 1,595 yards and 16 touchdowns nine months ago.

Biggest Bust: De’Von Achane

As much as I hate to say it, because I love De’Von Achane and he’s been on four of my five fantasy teams over the past two years, I think he’s going to bust this year. He’ll probably still finish as a top-15 to top-12 running back, but the Miami Dolphins‘ offense is going to be awful this year, so unless he catches 100+ passes, he’s not going to get enough work on the ground to have another RB5 finish, like the last two years.

Best Rookie: Jeremiyah Love

I’m not a fan of where Jeremiyah Love is being drafted, but I do think he’ll be the best rookie running back. He’s in a backfield that has four guys that could be starters, and while he’s clearly the RB1, he’s going to split carries. Plus, the Cardinals‘ offensive line is not very sturdy, so he’s going to have to make a lot happen on his own to finish as a top-10 back. But he’s still clearly the top rookie.

Safest Pick: Jahmyr Gibbs

I know, I know. Picking the RB1 as the safest pick isn’t fun, but it’s hard to see a world where Jahmyr Gibbs isn’t a top-three running back in fantasy. He’s finished as the RB1 and RB3 the past two years, lost his biggest competition in the backfield, and plays in one of the most potent offenses in the NFL. I think he’s a much safer pick than Bijan Robinson, which is why he’s going No. 1 overall in a lot of drafts.

Riskiest Pick: Christian McCaffrey

Everyone always says Christian McCaffrey is injury-prone, and while that was true early in his career, since arriving in San Francisco, he’s only had one injured season in four years, which for a running back isn’t bad. However, he touched the ball 413 times last year (not including the playoffs), is 30 years old, and plays for the 49ers, who always lose stars to injury. He’s either going to be a top-three RB or will miss 10+ games. There’s no in between.

Wide Receiver

Biggest Sleeper: Mike Evans

I don’t get why we’re all sleeping on Mike Evans in fantasy football. He’s coming off the board as the WR26, but he’s clearly the WR1 on one of the most potent offenses in the league. Brock Purdy has never had a receiver like Evans to throw to, so he’s going to see a healthy amount of targets and probably go for 1,000+ yards and 8+ touchdowns.

Biggest Bust: Drake London

This isn’t even me hating on Drake London, but why is a guy who has one 1,000-yard season under his belt in four years and has very suspect quarterback play with Tua Tagovailoa and Michael Penix (both of whom are hurt) going in the late first/early second round? It makes no sense to me. He’s going to be a solid fantasy WR, but he should be going in round three or four, not round one or two.

Best Rookie: Carnell Tate

Carnell Tate is the third-best rookie receiver in terms of talent, in my opinion, but he’s the one in the best position to succeed right away as a rookie. Jordyn Tyson has to compete with Chris Olave, and Makai Lemon has to compete with DeVonta Smith. Tate just has to compete with Wan’Dale Robinson. He’s going to build a connection with Cam Ward this offseason and be Tennessee’s WR1 by Week 1.

Safest Pick: Amon-Ra St. Brown

Amon-Ra St. Brown is as big of a sure thing as there is in fantasy football. He’s finished as the WR3 in each of the last three seasons and is the clear WR1 in one of the best offenses in football. Pretty easy choice for the safest pick.

Riskiest Pick: Malik Nabers

Nobody really knows what is going on with Malik Nabers’ knee. Will he be ready for Week 1? And if so, will he be 100 percent? And what are the chances of re-injury? There are a ton of question marks around him, but if he’s healthy, he could be a top-eight fantasy wideout.

Tight End

Biggest Sleeper: Juwan Johnson

Juwan Johnson finished last season as the TE8 in fantasy football after catching 77 passes for 889 yards and three touchdowns. He built a strong connection with Tyler Shough, which should only strengthen this offseason, and even though there’s some more competition in the Saints’ TE room, there’s no reason he should come off the board as the TE20. He’s easily one of the biggest steals in the entire draft.

Biggest Bust: Harold Fannin

This one is a bold take, and it has nothing to do with Harold Fannin as a player, but the Browns just drafted two rookie receivers in the first two rounds that are going to take some of his targets, and I just don’t trust Cleveland’s quarterback play. He’ll be a top-10 TE, but I think he’ll be closer to TE10 than TE5, where he’s currently being drafted.

Best Rookie: Kenyon Sadiq

There really wasn’t a question here. Kenyon Sadiq was a first-round pick for a reason. He’s a freak athlete and lands in an offense where he should be one of the top receiving options on his team. Eli Stowers could be a threat, but he has Dallas Goedert in front of him, while Sadiq has no one.

Safest Pick: Trey McBride

Another boring pick, but the right one for the safest pick. Trey McBride was so much better than every tight end in fantasy last year, and his production really picked up when Jacoby Brissett took over. And guess who is under center again this year: Jacoby Brissett. Easy pick.

Riskiest Pick: Kyle Pitts

Everyone’s been waiting for the Kyle Pitts breakout, and it kind of happened last year, but there’s a lot of uncertainty in Atlanta’s quarterback room right now. There’s a world where he finishes as the TE2 again, like he did last year, but he could also easily fall out of the top-10.

The post Fantasy Football Superlatives: Biggest Sleeper, Best Rookie & More at Every Position appeared first on EssentiallySports.

Schefter reported that both running backs have been engaged in contract talks this offseason with their respective teams, seeking long-term deals for themselves. Furthermore, appearing on the Pat McAfee Show, Schefter was asked whether the two players were “waiting on each other.” Schefter agreed, and then dove deeper into the situation.

“I think they absolutely play into each other,” Schefter said. “My guess would be that Bijan goes first, but again these things are subject to change, and I think both of them, when they sign their deals, well, Bijan will probably become the highest paid when that deal gets done and then Gibbs will probably want to be right wherever Bijan is and let’s see how it evolves.

“But both running backs are tremendous players and very important to their teams; they know their value, and I don’t know if we are going to see them on a practice field doing very much of anything until those contracts get done.”

The highest-paid running back in the league right now is Super Bowl LIX champion Saquon Barkley with the Philadelphia Eagles. The 2-year, $41.2 million extension he signed last season hands him a $20.6 million AAV. If the Falcons want to keep Bijan Robinson around, they’re going to have to top that number.

Since being drafted 8th overall in 2023, Robinson has posted two straight Pro Bowl seasons (2024 and 2025) and earned himself both First-team and Second-team All-Pro honors last season. Two straight seasons of 1450+ rushing yards and 820 receiving yards last season have made his case the strongest among the two. His 93-yard rush against the Los Angeles Rams last December led the league, further cementing his stock as an offensive cornerstone for Atlanta.

Atlanta has already exercised the 5th-year option worth $11.32 million on his rookie contract this offseason, but given the training camp holdout, that number will not be enough. Spotrac projects his market value at 3-years, $56.61 million, with an average salary of $18.87 million per year. But the Falcons would have to give him a bigger number if he wants to top Barkley’s $20.6M average. And if Jahmyr Gibbs is waiting for Bijan to get the bag, the Lions would have their work cut out for them, too.

The case for Jahmyr Gibbs

Gibbs is the back who has unlocked head coach Dan Campbell’s run game for the last two seasons. The 12th overall pick out of the 2023 Draft has earned a Pro Bowl nod in all three of his NFL seasons, and also tied as the rushing touchdowns leader in 2024 with 16 scores. He has maintained at least 1200+ rushing yards in the last two seasons, and has been almost as effective as Robinson as a receiver last season (616 yards, 5 touchdowns).

Just as Atlanta did with Robinson, Detroit has exercised the 5th-year option worth $14.2M on Gibbs’ rookie deal, but just like that option, his market value is slightly higher than Robinson’s. For Gibbs, Spotrac projects a 3-year, $60.48 million deal with a yearly average of $20.16 million.

For now, both Atlanta and Detroit face the same math: two of the league’s best young backs sitting out on principle. Adam Schefter’s framing of their negotiations being interlinked means neither team can move in isolation – Atlanta setting the market pushes Detroit’s number higher, and every day Bijan Robinson stays unsigned adds leverage for Jahmyr Gibbs.

History suggests these standoffs could dissolve into new deals before the regular season kicks off – especially when a player’s upside is clear. The Falcons have already shown this offseason that they can get deals done, locking up TE Kyle Pitts and WR Drake London to multi-year extensions this June. The question now isn’t whether Robinson and Gibbs get paid, but who signs first, and how much closer that number lands to Barkley’s bar. Every missed practice rep until then will keep adding pressure on both front offices to close the gap.

The post Falcons’ Bijan Robinson & Lions’ Jahmyr Gibbs Hold-In on First Day of Training Camp as Star RBs Seek New Contracts appeared first on EssentiallySports.

Since that win, Joe Burrow has not looked back. Now, one of the most hyped 2027 draft prospects, Texas Longhorns QB Arch Manning’s story, is being compared to Burrow by the co-hosts of the Bussin’ with the Boys podcast.

“A lot of people talk about Joe Burrow’s run in 2019, sure, but they talk about the year prior there was a moment that created Joe Burrow…” noted co-host Sherman Young. “There was a similar moment when Texas played Michigan,” Sherman further added. “Arch Manning (was) on the sideline, and he mouthed, ‘I’m just going to stop giving a f***,’ and then he went off on Michigan after… People are saying that Arch might have that Joey B mentality this year.”

Arch Manning’s start to the 2025 season wasn’t noteworthy, similar to Burrow’s 2018 campaign. He suffered a 14-7 loss at Ohio State in the opener, with his stat line reading 17-of-30 for only 170 yards. Then, against the Florida Gators, he threw two interceptions in a 21-29 defeat.

However, he recorded 300+ passing yards in three of his last five regular-season games. Then came the 2025 Cheez-It Citrus Bowl game against the Michigan Wolverines.

The Longhorns were down 24-27 in the 4th quarter with around 11 minutes on the clock when the camera panned to a battered Arch Manning shutting off everything else around him.

Facing a 4th and two, Manning scrambled for 15 yards to secure a 1st down. He then threw a 30-yard TD pass to WR Kaliq Lockett before faking a handoff on the next drive and running clear of Michigan’s defense to score a 60-yard TD, effectively winning the game for Texas. He deservedly won the Citrus Bowl MVP for the 42-27 win.

Arch Manning has no shortage of names that he’s touted in the media to live up to. And now Joe Burrow, the QB with the highest career pass completion rate in NFL history, is one of them. But what exact moment did Burrow’s collegiate career take an upward turn?

The moment Joe became ‘Joe Burrow’

In the 2019 Fiesta Bowl matchup between LSU and UCF, Burrow threw an interception with the score at 7-3 to UCF. The interception resulted in a 93-yard six-pick return. But what happened off-the-ball would change the course of the game.

UCF’s DT Joey Connors delivered a borderline legal blindside block to Burrow that sent the QB sprawling on the field. UCF’s Nate Evans picked up a taunting warning for further antagonizing the defenseless Burrow, who got a cut on his neck.

Evans would go on to regret it as the LSU #9 went on to pull off a 40-32 comeback to end UCF’s 25-game unbeaten streak.

”I didn’t really think about the hit too much after it happened,” Burrow said after the game. ”It hurt for a second, I got right up and went on to the next play.”

Joe’s stat line at the end of the game read: 21-of-34 for 394 yards, four TDs that included a spectacular 22-yard passing TD to sophomore WR Justin Jefferson.

What followed that incident was a 15-0 unbeaten run to win the title the next season, which included only 2 occasions where he scored less than 300 passing yards. He threw for 5,671 yards, 60 TDs, for a 76.3% pass completion rate that season, earning the No. 1 Draft pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Arch Manning will be looking to tap into that Burrow mentality and pull off his 2019-LSU equivalent with Texas in 2026 in an effort to be picked 1st overall in next year’s draft.

The post Arch Manning Earns Elite Joe Burrow Comparison Amid 2027 NFL Draft Buzz appeared first on EssentiallySports.

“I started saying this last year, but 40 is my next milestone,” Larson told Matt Weaver of Motorsport.com. “I want to get there and then evaluate if I want to keep going or be done. It all depends on where my kids are in their lives and interests.”

The Sprint car dream that Larson had is no longer his goal. He is already considered one of the greatest of his generation.

“As far as competing for a Sprint Car championship, I would say right now in 2026, that I have changed my mind on that,” Larson continued. “I feel like I have accomplished a lot since I made those comments. I’ve been able to win three Knoxville Nationals, three Chili Bowls and a Kings Royal. All the other races.

“I just don’t know what a championship would add to my career, so I’m just not into the idea now. And as I said, I think my kids are going to be busy doing their own racing by that time, so do I really want to commit to an 80 to 90 race schedule?”

This wasn’t a definitive yes on staying in the Cup Series. If he retires after his current deal expires, it’s still on par with his original timeline. What’s changed is the reason. And for Larson, that’s a big shift. In 2018, after winning the Chili Bowl Nationals in Tulsa, he stated that he would place the event ahead of the Daytona 500, which many drivers in the country consider almost as important as winning a National Championship.

“I guess, to my heart, whatever, however you want to describe it, Chili Bowl just personally means a little bit more. I’m not the only person…” Larson had said to ESPN in an interview a few days later.

Larson remained passionate about the Cup Series throughout, and insisted that he would not have remained had he simply treated it like a “job”, like many in the NASCAR community accused him of doing. Larson’s desire to push himself has simply gone down a notch.

Larson attempted The Double in both 2024 and 2025, competing in the Indy 500 and the Coca-Cola 600, a feat only Tony Stewart had previously completed. He failed both times and later admitted that the logistics, along with the physical wear and tear, were too much for him to ever consider attempting it again. It was a sign that the two-time Cup Series champion had begun prioritizing himself.

Larson has continued to compete in dirt events, winning multiple races in High Limit Racing, the series he co-founded with multi-time national sprint car champion Brad Sweet in 2022. This year alone, he has already won four races in the series. That said, he told Weaver that he doesn’t want to keep such a hectic schedule forever.

Having found more stability away from the track, Larson intends to carry that balance into the later stages of his career.

Family Is Now the Deciding Factor for Kyle Larson

Larson is the defending Cup Series champion, but he is going through an incredibly tough stretch. He hasn’t been to Victory Lane in 46 races, with luck doing him no favors either. Just last weekend at the Brickyard 400, he was showing real pace before a tire puncture sent him spinning into the barriers, ending his race.

It is the longest winless drought ever by a defending NASCAR Cup Series champion. Yet, Larson doesn’t sound like someone looking for escape.

“I just feel like I have a really good balance in my schedule this year and I’m enjoying that,” Larson added in the same interview with Weaver. “But you never know, and six or seven years down the road, things might change.”

Larson has three children, with Owen (11) and Audrey (8) already racing. He has become increasingly involved in helping them develop behind the wheel. And as they grow older—with his third child, Cooper, now three years old, also likely to take up racing—Larson wants to spend even more time helping them improve.

Taking part in nearly 100 races a year doesn’t leave much room for that. Perhaps sticking to just a Cup Series schedule will. But that’s a decision Larson will only have to make when his future is up for reassessment. Maybe in 2031.

The post Kyle Larson Clears the Air on Retirement Timeline With Honest Family Confession appeared first on EssentiallySports.

“For sure. That’s sometimes how she goes. It’s about putting yourself in that position. You can’t control what others are doing, but she’s doing something right to always be there and be relevant, to be in the hunt. It’s kind of like Sam Burns. He’s been in the hunt a lot during major championships; hasn’t got it done. Eventually he will. You can’t get discouraged; it has to be encouraging,” Nelly Korda said in a press conference ahead of the AIG Women’s Open 2026 when asked if Hull should just keep banging on the door.

“She’s such a great personality. I think it would be great for her to do obviously on kind of home soil, too. She’s an amazing player. Funny personality for sure. I enjoy playing with her any time.”

Hull has five runner-up finishes without a major win. The first of them came at the 2016 ANA Inspiration (now Chevron Championship), where she finished runner-up, losing by one shot to Lydia Ko. Since then, she finished runner-up at the 2023 U.S. Women’s Open, 2023 AIG Women’s Open, 2025 AIG Women’s Open, and 2026 U.S. Women’s Open.

Charley Hull herself admitted that this was becoming a little frustrating for her. Speaking ahead of the AIG Women’s Open, she admitted that, “Five second-place finishes in majors kind of hurts.” She also revealed that when she arrived at the event last year and saw the photos of past champions, she wished it had been her.

Burns, 30, finished runner-up at the 2026 U.S. Open, one shot behind Wyndham Clark with a total of 277. The week prior, he placed third at The Open, two shots behind Ryan Fox. Despite multiple close calls, analysts believe Burns is on the verge of a breakthrough. Korda’s message is that Hull should view her near-misses the same way, signs she is consistently in contention.

Korda is not just randomly giving out advice to Charley Hull. She herself is planning to follow the same.

Nelly Korda’s Own Approach

Korda admitted she also once struggled with frustration herself. In 12 starts this season, she has four victories, most recently at the U.S. Women’s Open, and three runner-up finishes.

“I just decided that I need to stop getting so frustrated with everything,” she explained. “Like I’m having a great shot, be in a divot, and I would get frustrated. What is going on? Why am I getting these bounces? I just really hate this attitude. It’s draining. I told myself, I’m not going to have this attitude. You slip back into it when you get tired, but you snap out of it. You’re here to try your best, control what you can control.”

By focusing on resilience, Korda has turned frustration into fuel and now offers Hull the same mindset as she chases her first major title at the AIG Women’s Open 2026.

The post ‘You Can’t Get Discouraged’: Nelly Korda Offers Crucial Advice to Charley Hull as AIG Women’s Open Challenge Looms appeared first on EssentiallySports.

Michael had texted Si Woo, asking him to join him for dinner at a restaurant he frequented. Si Woo agreed, put the location on Google Maps, and drove. As the restaurant was 1.5 miles away from his hotel, he thought he was heading in the right direction. He didn’t have Canada in his mind at all. Following the instructions, he somehow made a turn and reached a tollgate. He hadn’t realized something was wrong until this point. 

“Then, as soon as I got into the tunnel, I was like, ‘Oh, this is Canada,’” Si Woo told the reporter in broken English. I went to immigration. I told my situation. And then I went to the parking garage office. I was so freaking out [because] I couldn’t speak English very much. So he thought I was a weird guy. So the guys just came at me, searching my car. And somehow, I got out of it.”

Michael first posted about the incident on X, revealing that eight border patrol officers stopped and questioned Si Woo as he returned from the Canadian side. Naturally, the reporter asked whether the 31-year-old had told them he was in town to play Rocket Classic. Si Woo Kim confirmed he had, adding that the officers even asked him if he would win on Sunday. His response drew a laugh: “If you let me through, I can.” 

Despite the unexpected detour, Si Woo eventually made it to dinner 90 minutes later. He was heading to Daebak Korean BBQ in Southfield, Michigan, all along, making his navigation mishap a little more understandable. The restaurant sits just 19.5 miles from the U.S.-Canada border crossing. It’s a drive of roughly 26 minutes, meaning one wrong turn was enough to send him to Canada.

Both Michael and Si Woo will tee off at the Rocket Classic on July 30. The 145-player field will compete for a $10 million purse at the Detroit Golf Club. Interestingly, though, Si Woo’s troubles in Detroit will only get worse thanks to the tournament. Ahead of the event, the course has undergone substantial renovations to make it more challenging.  

The tougher setup is fitting for what marks the last edition of the Rocket Classic. Rocket Mortgage announced last month that it would end its partnership with the PGA Tour. Whether the challenging course or his eventful start to the week will continue to trouble Si Woo Kim remains to be seen.

The post ‘The Guys Came at Me’: Si Woo Kim Breaks Down What Happened After 8 Border Agents Questioned Him appeared first on EssentiallySports.

“We’re staying the course with league protocol, club protocol, relative to what we’re advised to do. He’s been fantastic working away from the building, and we’ll continue to do that and monitor it,” Payton said on Wednesday. “We’re supportive and yet very much aware of the seriousness of these type of things. But pretty much what I said in the spring, you know, there’s a schedule, and a course to this, and that’s what we have to follow.”

Cooper is not scheduled to be arraigned until August 31, by which point the Broncos will have already completed both training camp and the preseason. As a result, it remains unclear how the situation will be resolved before then.

The latest development gained momentum almost two months after Cooper’s first arrest on June 4, 2026. Per reports, the incident took place at Cooper’s residence in Parker, Colorado, where he and his girlfriend were involved in an argument, which ultimately escalated into a physical confrontation over their cell phones. Police documents state Cooper’s girlfriend accused him of infidelity and took his cellphone before throwing it across the room.

On June 11, another arrest was made after Jonathan Cooper reportedly violated the protection order and harassed the protected party through repeated telephone calls. Soon after, the Broncos released a statement, citing that the team is “disappointed to learn of Jonathon Cooper’s arrest on Thursday and continue to review this matter.”

As part of the legal troubles, the Broncos excused Cooper from the mandatory minicamp. But now that the 28-year-old has reported to training camp, it can be concluded that the league is allowing Cooper to practice until a final resolution arrives. While the NFL is expected to suspend the LB ahead of the season, that decision may also depend on the final resolution.

The post Sean Payton Explains Reason Behind Keeping Jonathan Cooper With Broncos Amid Legal Issues appeared first on EssentiallySports.

And New York has emerged as one possibility. Brian Windhorst said James “doesn’t seem like he’s going to live in Philadelphia full time,” adding that “it seems like he’s going to live at least part time in New York.” Shams Charania was even more open-ended: “Will he live in Philly? Will he live in New Jersey? Will he live in New York? Will he take a chopper back and forth? We don’t know those answers yet.”

That possibility comes with a staggering price tag. Front Office Sports did the math on a potential helicopter commute, noting, “It’s only about 45 minutes by helicopter, and Blade lists one-way charters from East 34th Street to Penn’s Landing near the 76ers’ arena for around $4,000 to $10,000.” FOS added, “Double the price for a round trip, then multiply that by Philly’s 41 home games, and LeBron would spend between $363,000 and $791,000 before practices. Keep in mind that’s almost a quarter of his 76ers’ salary this year.”

The comparison is striking because James’ first-year base salary is only about $3.9 million, with a player option worth roughly $4.1 million for Year 2. After making more than $52.6 million with the Lakers last season, his new salary represents a year-over-year reduction of roughly $48.7 million, or 92.6%.

James has made clear why he was willing to leave that money behind. “I’m not going for money. I’m not going for family. What am I really playing for at this point?” he wrote after choosing Philadelphia. “I still want to sacrifice. I still want to work. I still want to grind. I still want to compete, to win and to have a chance at the feeling of winning another championship.”

If James ultimately chooses New York, though, he would hardly be inventing the Sixers’ long-distance commute.

LeBron could follow a Sixers commute once made by Redick and Chamberlain

J.J. Redick already tested a version of that lifestyle during his two seasons in Philadelphia from 2017 to 2019. His family remained in DUMBO, Brooklyn, while Redick regularly drove roughly 100 miles between New York and the Philadelphia area, with trips lasting around 90 minutes to two hours. He also kept an apartment near Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station for back-to-backs and late nights. “I got used to it in L.A.,” Redick told Sports Illustrated in 2017. “The traffic in L.A was pretty bad.”

Wilt Chamberlain took the arrangement even further. While playing for the 76ers from 1965 to 1968, Chamberlain continued living in Manhattan and running his Harlem nightclub, Big Wilt’s Smalls Paradise, while commuting to Philadelphia by train and car. The arrangement became so embedded in his Sixers tenure that Philadelphia moved its practices to the afternoon to accommodate his roughly 90-minute train ride from New York.

The commute hardly stopped Chamberlain from dominating. He won three consecutive MVP awards with Philadelphia from 1966 through 1968, while the 1966-67 Sixers went 68-13 and beat Boston 4-1 in the Eastern Division Finals before winning the NBA championship. Alongside Hal Greer, Chet Walker and Billy Cunningham, Chamberlain helped end the Celtics’ run of eight consecutive titles.

Philadelphia has now gone 43 years without another championship, but the market believes this roster has a legitimate chance to change that. The Sixers opened the offseason around +6000 to +7000 to win the 2027 title before shortening to +2000 to +2500 after the Jaylen Brown trade. James’ arrival then sent them all the way to +900 to +1000, with the +900 price tying New York for the shortest championship odds in the Eastern Conference.

Whether James ultimately follows Redick and Chamberlain down the New York-to-Philadelphia route remains unresolved. But if he does, Chamberlain left quite the precedent: three MVPs, one championship and proof that an unconventional commute does not have to get in the way of making history in Philadelphia.

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