Patrick Mahomes sees season end with torn ACL, same is feared for Micah Parsons; Philip Rivers nearly gets win

Plus Indiana's Fernando Mendoza wins Heisman Trophy, and we've got some MLB free agency moves

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Good morning, everyone. Carter Bahns here with you to recap a highly newsworthy weekend, specifically in the football world. The first real snow of the season hit this weekend in southern New England and kept me planted in front of the TV, and the timing could not have been much better, if you ask me. I was locked into the Heisman Trophy ceremony Saturday night and all the critical Week 15 action in the NFL, so that's where we'll start in this morning's newsletter.

Let's jump in.

🩼 Five things to know Monday

1. Patrick Mahomes' season is over with a torn ACL, and the same is feared for Micah Parsons. The injury bug made an unwelcome appearance during Week 15 in the NFL, striking two superstars just hours apart. First, Mahomes landed awkwardly while trying to extend on a late-game play as the Chiefs fought to salvage their season. It was later revealed that he tore his left ACL. Parsons went down with a non-contact injury that left the Packers fearing that their defensive leader will have the same fate as Kansas City's quarterback. Mahomes' exit effectively ended the Chiefs' postseason chances as the 16-13 loss to the Chargers added insult to injury.
2. Philip Rivers owns the feel-good story of the weekend. Picture this: You're an NFL quarterback, who put up Hall of Fame numbers over a 17-year career before retiring. Then five years later, with little prep, at the age of 44 you come back and nearly defeat a Super Bowl contender. That, my friends, is a summary of Rivers' story. Some might say that the Colts "new" quarterback was on the "wrong" end of a 18-16 decision, but the current high school football coach also gave some post-game remarks that might inspire others to overcome any obstacle in life.
3. Fernando Mendoza is the 2025 Heisman Trophy winner. Strike that pose, Fernando! You're the first Indiana player to win college football's most prestigious award. Mendoza racked up 643 of the more than 900 available first-place votes after leading the nation in passing touchdowns and guiding the Hoosiers to their first undefeated season. Diego Pavia finished second with about half as many voting points while Jeremiyah Love and Julian Sayin rounded out the finalists. Looking ahead to next season, Sayin has a shot to return to the ceremony while Arch Manning, Jeremiah Smith, Marcel Reed and Jayden Maiava also stand among the early contenders.
4. Sherrone Moore faces one felony charge and two misdemeanors as the fallout from his firing continues. Two days after Michigan fired him for cause, Moore was charged with home invasion in the third degree -- which is a felony -- stalking and breaking and entering or entering without breaking. The former Wolverines coach allegedly broke into the victim's house, grabbed two butter knives and kitchen shears and threatened to harm himself while blaming the victim for "ruining his life." In the wake of his firing, Michigan authorized a law firm to investigate the athletic department's handling of the situation.
5. Kenley Jansen and Jorge Polanco headlined a wave of post-Winter Meetings free agency deals. Jansen is headed to the Tigers on a one-year, $11 million deal that includes a club option for 2027. He needs just 24 saves to become the third member of the 500-save club and could do so with his fifth team. Polanco's deal is a two-year, $40 million contract with the Mets. He projects to split time as a designated hitter and first baseman. The flurry of moves on the heels of MLB's Winter Meetings also includes the Cardinals bringing Dustin May on board on a one-year deal and the Diamondbacks reuniting with Merrill Kelly on a two-year, $40 million contract.

🏀 Do not miss this: Winners and losers from loaded college basketball weekend

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Tommy Lloyd and Nate Oats are unafraid of scheduling marquee non-conference matchups, and their head-to-head battle was one of the biggest of the year. No. 1 Arizona destroyed No. 12 Alabama in an uber-impressive 96-75 victory to highlight a weekend stacked with entertaining showdowns.

Cameron Salerno, Kyle Boone and David Cobb identified the 15 biggest winners and losers from the weekend. You can read their takeaways on each of the teams, but for brevity's sake, here are some of them:

• Winner: Kentucky shows signs of life with a 72-60 win over Indiana
• Winner: Melvin Council has his moment for No. 19 Kansas with Darryn Peterson out
• Loser: Divine (Ugochukwu) intervention kills Penn State as No. 9 Michigan State halts an upset bit
• Winner: No. 8 Gonzaga vs. No. 25 UCLA lives up to the hype
• Winner: Rick Pitino takes down Iona, his former team
• Loser: West Virginia squanders a big lead against Ohio State
• Loser: Florida State meets its match vs. UMass
• Loser: Creighton's freefall continues

Don't expect any changes in the top 10 when the AP Top 25 rankings come out later today. But a few significant shakeups will be in store beyond that range. Cobb foresees Vanderbilt and North Carolina moving up, among others.

🎠 Coaching carousel spins with firings, a hiring and a retirement

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The Sherrone Moore firing could spark a domino effect if Michigan hires a sitting high-profile coach. In the meantime, vacancies throughout the rest of the sport continue to fill up. Here is an overview of the biggest moves and developing situations on the college football coaching carousel from another active weekend:

• Utah: Kyle Whittingham will step down after 21 seasons atop the Utes program. Morgan Scalley, previously named coach in waiting, is in line to inherit the position.
• Washington State: The Cougars will make Kirby Moore a first-time head coach. Missouri's offensive coordinator returns to the Pacific Northwest, where he shined during his playing days as a Boise State wide receiver.
• Michigan: The Wolverines could make a splash with a big-name hire, but while multiple candidates have been floated as names to watch, none have committed to the job. Kenny Dillingham, Jedd Fisch and Kalen DeBoer each addressed the speculation that they are in the running.
• North Carolina: Bill Belichick made a significant change to his staff ahead of Year 2 with the firings of offensive coordinator Freddie Kitchens and special teams coordinator Mike Priefer.

Michigan and Missouri State are the only open head coaching jobs heading into the first week of the College Football Playoff and bowl season.

🏈 NFL playoff picture starting to come into focus

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We've reached the point on the NFL calendar where the highs are astronomically high and the lows are devastatingly low. Seasons are made and broken this time of year, and we saw that come to fruition when, for instance, the Chiefs lost their quarterback and playoff aspirations while the Broncos extended their winning streak and inched closer to the AFC's first-round bye.

Here's everything you need to know from Week 15:

• Winners: The Eagles earned an "A+" grade on our Week 15 report card for finally putting everything together in a 31-0 shutout of the Raiders. Perhaps this is the kind of get-right game that can send them surging into the playoffs. Josh Allen is also a winner for leading another comeback and defeating the Patriots as the Bills kept their AFC East title hopes alive. And the Denver took advantage of New England's loss by extending its winning streak to 11 games and jumping into sole possession of the AFC's top seed.
• Losers: It was a bad day in the state of Ohio as both teams lost by a combined 55-3. The Bengals were shut out by the Ravens, 24-0, and the Browns lost, 31-3, to the Bears. Scoring wasn't a problem for the Lions, but their defense struggled to get off the field. They saw their postseason hopes dwindle as the Rams handed them a 41-34 defeat. And Sunday night, the Cowboys' playoff odds were all but extinguished after a 34-26 home loss to Vikings.
• Injuries: A few big-name players outside of Patrick Mahomes and Micah Parsons also suffered injuries. For the Bears, Rome Odunze was a surprise omission from the lineup as he aggravated a foot injury during warmups. And speaking of receivers, the NFL's touchdown leader in that category, Davante Adams left early for the Rams with a hamstring issue.
• Clinchers: The Chiefs will watch the playoffs from home for the first time since 2014 as the second-longest postseason streak in NFL history came to a stunning end. The Vikings and Bengals are also knocked out of playoff contention, which brings to mind the 2026 NFL Draft order. (Why we even have a mock draft!) Conversely, the Rams and Broncos clinched playoff berths.

👍👎 The best (and not-so-best) of the rest

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• The Spurs upset the Thunder to punch their ticket to the NBA Cup championship game. They will square off against the Knicks Tuesday after New York defeated the Magic in the other semifinal.
• John Cena's legendary wrestling career came to an end when he tapped out against Gunther in WWE Saturday Night's Main Event.
• Joe Burrow clarifies some of his recent comments, and expresses confidence in the Bengals' front office.
• Kristaps Porziņģis will reportedly miss the next two weeks due to a lingering illness.
• Navy erased a nine-point deficit in the second half to complete a 17-16 win over Army and secure the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy.
• T.J. Watt will not play for the Steelers on "Monday Night Football" after undergoing surgery to repair a partially collapsed lung.
• With WNBA CBA negotiations ongoing, Caitlin Clark made a plea for compromise.
• LaNorris Sellers is nearing a deal to return to South Carolina for the 2026 season.
• Angel Reese plans to honor her contract and return to the Sky despite a tumultuous end to the 2025 season.
• The Wild acquire top-tier defenseman Quinn Hughes in a blockbuster trade.
• In another NHL trade, the Oilers are attempting to solve their goaltending issues by adding Tristan Jarry.
• Manel Kape knocked out Brandon Royval at UFC Fight Night and called for a title fight with flyweight champion Joshua Van.
• Jaxson Dart had another injury scare, but the Giants insist they are not changing their game plan for the rookie quarterback.
• NBA trade season is open as the majority of 2025 free agent signings are eligible to be moved as of today.
• Ex-Nebraska coach Scott Frost sued his former employer and seeks $5 million in damages for alleged mishandling of his buyout.
• The Big 12 is close to finalizing a private equity deal that would raise up to $500 million conference members. Utah announced its own PE deal last week.
• Transfer speculation abounds, but Liverpool manager Arne Slot said he expects Mohamed Salah to return to the club after his international duties.
• Tom Brady, 48, is convinced he would be physically able to pull a Philip Rivers and return to the NFL -- if not for a rule preventing him from doing so.
• Josh Allen is going to be a dad. He and Hailee Steinfeld announced they are expecting a baby.
• Do you believe in miracles? Notre Dame signee Noah Grubbs completed a miraculous Hail Mary touchdown pass to win the Florida 7A state championship.

📺 What we're watching Monday

⚽ AFC Bournemouth at Manchester United, 3 p.m. on USA Network
🏀 Pistons at Celtics, 7 p.m. on NBC Sports Network
🏒 Panthers at Lightning, 7 p.m. on NHL Network
🏈 Dolphins at Steelers, 8:15 p.m. on ESPN
🏀 Rockets at Nuggets, 9:30 p.m. on NBC Sports Network