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Good morning! Throw a first-pitch strike today.

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Randomness: Here’s a confusing snapshot in time

The longer I cover sports, the more I think about memory. In every sports season, we remember the winner, the runner-up, a wild play or two and maybe a collapse if it was spectacular enough. So many games, so many stories get swept into a hard drive of things we just forget about. Each week provides a snapshot that will likely fade from memory in weeks or months, at best.

This week of NFL football was no different, and it proved how little we know about this sport. Consider our first-place teams as of this moment:

The AFC’s list is particularly jarring, and I don’t think many of us believed any of those teams would be in their spots before this season, much less all of them at the same time. And that’s with AFC North leader Pittsburgh getting crushed last night by the Chargers.

According to our playoff simulator, the Patriots and Colts are the top two contenders for the AFC’s No. 1 seed, as if we’re back in 2004, but instead of Tom Brady and Peyton Manning duking it out, it’s Drake Maye and Daniel Jones. Sure. Reality! The NFC is a little more believable, but who thought the Commanders, Vikings and Falcons would be a combined 10-18 through 10 weeks?

A few spare thoughts from our delightfully random Sunday:

• The 4-5 Ravens are totally winning the AFC North, by the way. Baltimore won its third straight with a convincing victory in Minnesota. If Lamar Jackson stays healthy, I don’t see how they end up anywhere but first.
• The NFC South is hilarious. The only team to win yesterday was the lowly 2-8 Saints, who looked pretty decent behind Tyler Shough in a 17-7 win at Carolina. The Buccaneers fell to those juggernaut Patriots, while the Falcons stumbled against those juggernaut Colts.
• Two games, Lions-Commanders and Seahawks-Cardinals, ended within minutes of each other, and both had a 44-22 score. Can we get a scorigami rating on that? Detroit and Seattle are threatening the NFC hierarchy.
• **We should also talk about the 6-3 Bills. **Their 30-13 loss in Miami yesterday will either be a blip we forget during a playoff run or the true signal of their downfall this year. What a weird game.

Still, somehow, we did not cover everything. Read our full takeaways for more.

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Serious Matters: Guardians pitchers face decades in prison

Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz, Guardians pitchers currently on paid leave, have been indicted on a litany of charges related to illegal gambling allegations that could land both in prison for 60-plus years, according to documents unsealed yesterday. In a time of frequent sports betting scandals, this rises near the top.

We can never pretend to know anyone’s financial situation, but I also find myself dumbfounded reading these stories and thinking about how *stupid *it all seems on the surface. Consider:

• **Clase, according to the evidence released yesterday, is the most egregious case. **He allegedly engaged in a betting conspiracy two years ago with co-conspirators, just after he signed a guaranteed five-year, $20 million contract. He was the best closer in baseball. And, as authorities presented, he consistently “fixed” pitches (yes, you can bet on pitches) so others could make tens of thousands on one-pitch wagers. He was even profiting as he blew saves. Just look at this pitch, which bettors wagered $18,000 would be a ball:

• There are numerous instances like this. After nearly two seasons of alleged rigged pitches, Clase, now 27, recruited his teammate Ortiz, 26, to the operation last season, and two ensuing starts saw irregular betting patterns.

• According to the indictment, bettors made more than $400,000 off Clase’s alleged rigged pitches. Ortiz’s number was more than $60,000, though both pitchers likely made just a fraction of those totals themselves. Clase made $4.5 million last season, Ortiz $782,600.It just all feels astounding. If both are convicted on all charges, they’ll face 65 years in prison.

You can read all the evidence here, and some of the videos and text messages included are jaw-dropping. We’ll have more on this as it unfolds.

Let’s keep moving:

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News to Know

****Atlanta lands NWSL franchise ****The NWSL will award its 17th franchise to Atlanta, sources told The Athletic, for a record fee of $165 million. The owner will be AMB Sports + Entertainment, a group backed by Falcons owner Arthur Blank. Also in NWSL action yesterday, Gotham FC pulled a massive playoff upset over No. 1 seed Kansas City in extra time.

****Tagliabue dead at 84 ****Paul Tagliabue, the former NFL commissioner who oversaw massive league growth, died yesterday morning at 84, the league announced. Tagliabue served as commissioner from 1989 to 2006, morphing the NFL from a competitor in the pro sports landscape to the premier operation in the United States and beyond. Read more on his accomplishments.

More news

• Ohio State is still No. 1 in the AP Top 25. We’ll see if the Playoff committee agrees tomorrow. See the full AP rankings.
• President Donald Trump made an appearance at the Commanders-Lions game yesterday. Mostly boos, but some cheers
• **Steph Curry **missed his third straight game last night with a lingering cold. Ouch.
• Basketball legend Lenny Wilkens died yesterday at 88, the NBA announced. His legacy is unmatched.
• **Arkansas forward Trevon Brazile **apologized for hitting a Michigan State student with a towel after Saturday’s game. See the incident.
• The New York Rangers called up top prospect **Gabe Perreault **as their offense founders. Read more on Perreault.

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What to Watch

📺 NBA: Wizards at Pistons** **7 p.m. ET on Peacock One of my favorite early season NBA traditions is looking at the standings and wondering what’s real. Detroit is tied atop the Eastern Conference right now at 8-2. Is that real? It could be, as this team flashed talent last year and finished sixth in the standings. Take an early look.

📺 NFL: Eagles at Packers** **8:15 p.m. ET on ABC and ESPN Two of the NFC’s best teams get to provide some take-worthy fodder here. Both have looked awful at points this year and, at others, like Super Bowl favorites. Nestle in for this.

Get tickets to games like these here.

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Pulse Picks

**Kyle Tucker **is MLB’s top free agent as winter approaches. We had MLB officials forecast where he’ll land.

Victor Oladipo’s career can be defined by both his limitless potential and his body’s betrayal of that potential. He’s not done yet — and he had to learn how to walk again just to get back. Make time for Jared Weiss’ exclusive interview this morning with one of basketball’s most interesting stories.

Here’s a friendly reminder to tune into CJ Moore’s weekly men’s college basketball top 25, which is always more than just a ranking. Watch out for Arizona this week.

On that note, Sabreena Merchant is doing the same thing on the women’s side. USC is impressing, even without JuJu Watkins.

Bob Gibson would’ve been 90 years old yesterday. Jason Jones has a nice look back at one of baseball’s most influential careers.

Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: The list of our favorite college football catches ever, inspired by Omar Cooper.

Most-read on the website yesterday: The inspirational story of Miriam Payne and Jess Rowe, who rowed the Pacific Ocean.

Nov 10, 2025

Connections: Sports Edition

Spot the pattern. Connect the terms

Find the hidden link between sports terms

Chris Branch is a senior writer for The Athletic’s daily newsletter. Before joining The Athletic, he covered the Phillies for The News-Journal and worked as a content strategist for various industries. He graduated from LSU, where he worked for The Daily Reveille. Follow Chris on Twitter @cbranch89