Breaking down every region of the bracket, plus major NFL, MLB stars are on the move
It was a busy Monday in the NFL and MLB, and we get NCAA Tournament action tonight

Happy Tuesday morning, everyone. If you haven't already, go fill out a men's bracket. Then fill out a women's one. Need help? Read on.
Let's get right to it.
This is the article version of the CBS Sports HQ AM morning newsletter. To sign up and get this in your inbox, fill out the information below.
Good morning to everyone but especially to...

THE LOS ANGELES CHARGERS AND THE JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS
The NFL's legal tampering period opened yesterday, and teams wasted no time agreeing to deals with pending free agents. Two teams that earned high marks on the first day were the Chargers and the Jaguars.
We'll start with the Chargers, who are having the one of the best offseasons in the NFL, writes NFL expert Jordan Dajani:
- Dajani: "The Chargers are having just as impressive of an offseason as anyone, finding a way to retain wide receiver Mike Williams and trading for pass rusher Khalil Mack. We are only one day in, but it's safe to say that success carried into free agency. The Chargers landed the best cornerback in the class in J.C. Jackson, who reportedly agreed to a five-year, $82.5 million deal with $40 million guaranteed."
Los Angeles also added defensive linemen Austin Johnson and Sebastian Joseph-Day to help a porous run defense. With Justin Herbert still on his rookie deal, I love that the Chargers continue to go all-in.
On the other side of the country, Trevor Lawrence is also on his rookie deal, and the Jaguars are doing all they can to help their young quarterback. Jacksonville's moves yesterday to boost Lawrence's supporting cast included:
- A monster deal for wide receiver Christian Kirk
- Adding Brandon Scherff, one of the best offensive linemen available
- Evan Engram joining the tight end room and Zay Jones joining the wide receiver room
You can keep track of every move with our...
Honorable mentions
- Karl-Anthony Towns scored 60 points last night, a Timberwolves record and most by any player this season.
- Tyreke Evans signed with the Bucks' G-League affiliate.
And not such a good morning for...

FERNANDO TATIS JR. AND THE SAN DIEGO PADRES
After a 99-day lockout, everyone was excited to get to Spring Training and hit the ground running. As it turns out, it's all going to get underway without the best player on the Padres and one of the league's biggest superstars, shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. He will be out up to three months with a fractured wrist that may require surgery.
The issue may date back to a December motorcycle accident, but during the lockout players were not able to communicate with teams or medical staffs. It's a brutal development for the Padres, writes our MLB expert Mike Axisa:
- Axisa: "The injury is devastating news for a Padres team looking to rebound from a tremendously disappointing 2021. San Diego went into last season as a World Series contender and instead went 79-83. They lost 34 of their final 46 games. Manager Jayce Tingler was let go after the season and the Padres hired Bob Melvin away from the Athletics to replace him."
Sportsline's projections agree with Axisa's assessment: Should Tatis Jr. miss roughly half of the season, San Diego's playoff probability drops from 66% to 54%. It also adds to Tatis Jr.'s already-considerable injury history. Since 2019, he has played in just 273 of 384 possible regular season games (71%).
Tatis Jr. is entering the second year of a 14-year, $340-million contract. He's an electric talent on the field -- he finished third in MVP voting last season and fourth in 2020 -- but keeping him there has been difficult.
Not so honorable mentions
- The Nets were fined $50,000 for allowing unvaccinated Kyrie Irving in their home locker room.
- South Carolina fired men's basketball head coach Frank Martin.
Previewing all four regions of the NCAA Tournament, First Four games 🏀

If you're like me, you've spent the last day-and-a-half tearing your hair out about your NCAA Tournament bracket. And that's before even making a single pick. Then comes the second-guessing. Fun times!
Anyway, we're here to help with our experts breaking down and picking all four regions: West | South | Midwest | East
Meanwhile, everyone loves a Cinderella story, especially if you predict it in your bracket. College basketball expert Kyle Boone is here to help with four potential Cinderellas, including the hottest team in the country:
- Boone: "What is there to say of South Dakota State? This team won 30 games on the season, is riding a 21-game winning streak and has not lost since Dec. 15. It is the best 3-point shooting team in the entire sport -- a feat that last season Baylor claimed and rode to a national championship. ... They're my Cinderella pick out of the Midwest and I've got them upsetting Providence in every bracket I've done since Selection Sunday."
Want more help? We have you covered:
- The First Four starts tonight. We have expert picks and candidates to make a deep run.
- Our experts' entire brackets
- Odds to win it all

Ready to nail your bracket picks? The SportsLine Projection Model simulated the entire NCAA Tournament 10,000 times. It crushed its March Madness picks last year, beating over 92% of all CBS Sports brackets for the second time in three tournaments. The same model has produced brackets that have nailed 17 first-round upsets by double-digit seeds.Here are SportsLine's brackets this year:
- SportsLine's optimal bracket features a No. 5 seed in the Elite Eight and has identified a No. 14 seed who delivers a first-round shocker. Find out who those teams are right here.
- The upset bracket simulates the madness even more, and it's calling for some stunners. There's a double-digit seed in the Final Four and plenty of other upsets you have to see right here.
Matt Olson headed to Atlanta to replace Freddie Freeman headlines big MLB moves ⚾

Just days after the lockout ended, the reigning champs are making moves. All-Star first baseman Matt Olson is headed to Atlanta as part of a blockbuster trade between the Athletics and the Braves. While it now looks like Freddie Freeman will end up elsewhere, the Braves did a great job finding his replacement, writes MLB expert R.J. Anderson:
- Anderson: "For any of this to be acceptable to the Braves fan base, if it is acceptable at all, there had to be two conditions met. One, the Braves had to win last year's World Series to generate that aforementioned goodwill. And two, the first baseman replacing Freeman had to be really good. Olson, as it turns out, is really good. He might even outproduce Freeman heading forward."
As for Freeman, four teams appear in on the 2020 NL MVP. Elsewhere in MLB...
- The Reds traded All-Star outfielder Jesse Winker and Eugenio Suarez to the Mariners.
- Andrew McCutchen is headed to Milwaukee.
Cameron Smith captures 2022 Players Championship, $3.6M prize ⛳

Cameron Smith's fourth-round scorecard had a lot of circles, and his bank account now has a lot of money. The 28-year-old Aussie made a TPC Sawgrass record-tying 10 birdies as part of a final-round 66 to win the 2022 Players Championship by a stroke.
With the win Smith takes home $3.6 million, the most prize money ever for an individual event.
Smith birdied five of his first six holes before bogeying his next three. He then birdied 10, 11, 12, 13 and 17 before a bogey on 18 dropped him to 13-under for the tournament. When runner-up Anirban Lahiri's chip on the 18th hole ended up slightly off-line, the Aussie could finally celebrate the biggest win of his career. With the win, Smith...
- Joins Scottie Scheffler and Hideki Matsuyama as the only players with multiple PGA Tour wins this season
- Is the fifth Australian to win The Players and first since Jason Day in 2016
- Jumps to sixth in the Official World Golf Rankings
It could be the start of a big spring for Smith, writes our golf scribe Kyle Porter.
- Porter: "With the biggest event of the first quarter of the year behind us, it's a good time to remind everyone that there's one other place Smith has starred before. In three of his last four starts at the Masters, he's finished in the top 10 (including a T2 in 2020). ... With the way he's been playing and what he accomplished this week, Smith will surely be one of the favorites."
What we're watching Tuesday 📺
⚽ UEFA Champions League: Ajax vs Benfica, 4 p.m. on Paramount+
⚽ UEFA Champions League: Manchester United vs Atletico Madrid, 4 p.m. on Paramount+
🏀 First Four: (16) Texas A&M Corpus-Christi vs (16) Texas Southern, 6:40 p.m. on truTV
🏀 First Four: (12) Indiana vs (12) Wyoming, 9:10 p.m. on truTV
















