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This is Defector, a new sports blog and media company. We made this place together, we own it together, we run it together. Without access, without favor, without discretion, and without interference.

Defector

Ray Ratto

MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN - OCTOBER 04: Craig Counsell #30 of the Milwaukee Brewers before the game against the Arizona Diamondbacks during Game Two of the Wild Card Series at American Family Field on October 04, 2023 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images)

Managers Matter

Jae Towle Vieira [they/them] works as a producer for Normal Gossip. Their fiction has been published in The Normal School, New England Review, Carve Magazine, Passages North, Fairy Tale Review, and elsewhere.

Jae Towle Vieira

Normal Gossip logo with cartoon characters gossiping

Podcasts

The Secret Family Recipe That Would Not Die

Giri Nathan

Iga Swiatek lifts the WTA Finals trophy in Cancun

Tennis

Iga Swiatek Is Back Where She Started

Dan McQuade was a founding member of Defector. He died in January 2026.

Dan McQuade

An old-timey black and white photo of a man in a house showing off a vacuum to a housewife. It's from 1953. And I've photoshopped the head of Connor Stalions onto the salesman’s head crudely. It is in color, unlike the rest of the photo, and the head is clearly held on with scotch tape.

College Football

Report: Connor Stalions Was Low-Rated Online Seller Of Used Vacuums, Which He Stored On His Porch, Annoying His Neighbor Jeff

Felix Kent

CAMBRIDGE, MA - AUGUST 30: A gate in front of Harvard Yard at Harvard University on August 30, 2018 (Photo by Scott Eisen/Getty Images)

Life Lessons

How They Keep The Gates

Kathryn Xu

SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 7: Anthony Duclair #10 of the San Jose Sharks skating with the puck against the Philadelphia Flyers at SAP Center on November 7, 2023 in San Jose, California. (Photo by Andreea Cardani/NHLI via Getty Images)

The Flyers Ruined Our Stink-Off

Billy Haisley

The LED board shows the VAR check which disallows a Tottenham Hotspur goal for offside during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea FC at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on November 06, 2023 in London, England.

Soccer

VAR Turned A Great Match Into The Worst And Weirdest Game Of The Season

Maitreyi Anantharaman

Milaysia Fulwiley of South Carolina looks on during the Aflac Oui Play match between South Carolina and Notre Dame at Halle Georges Carpentier on November 06, 2023 in Paris, France.

College Basketball

I Vant To Vatch Fresh Blood

Kelsey McKinney

Staff Writer
Find me on Signal @DefectorChris.19

Chris Thompson

A perfect iced drizzle cake, presented on the show.

Chefector

The Not-So-Great Defector Bake Off Wastes Time, Thyme In Botanical Week

Lauren Theisen

Mikhail Sergachev grabs the stick of Auston Matthews

The Leafs Are As Nerve-Racking As Ever

Columnist. Author of many <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Drew-Magary/e/B001JS8R52/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_book_1">fine works of literature</a>, including Point B. Handsomest man in the world.

Drew Magary

Long Beach, CA - July 29:Billy the Puppet, from the "SAW" horror film franchise, making its first public appearance, as part of the "SAW X" film promotion and exhibit inside Midsummer Scream, a Halloween and horror convention, at Long Beach Convention Center, in Long Beach, CA, Saturday, July 29, 2023. The latest installment of the series follows serial killer Jigsaw, as he exacts revenge against con artists. The gathering, from Friday through Sunday, features all things Halloween and in the horror genre, with many attendees dressing up as their favorite characters, across TV, film, comics and animation. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

Funbag

I Would Not Make A Good Jigsaw Killer

attends the 2016 ESPYS at Microsoft Theater on July 13, 2016 in Los Angeles, California.

There’s One Way To Fix The All-Star Game

Tom Ley

College Football: Ohio State Julian Fleming (4) in action, runs with the football vs Michigan at Ohio Stadium. Football analyst Connor Stalions and head coach Jim Harbaugh present in the background. Columbus, Ohio, November 26, 2022. In this photo edit, Stalion has been made black and white.

The Connor Stalions Affair Now Features A Double Agent

Samer Kalaf

The Namedropping podcast logo, a coffee cup with a scratched-out name

Names For Revolutionaries, With Edward Onaci

A screenshot on ESPN+ of a player from IUPUI going up for a dunk, you can see the surrounding

The First Day Of Men’s College Basketball Is A Festival Of Goofy Games And Useless Information

Patrick Redford

Ausar Thompson dunks during a game against the Suns.

The Pistons Have A Unique Disruptor In Ausar Thompson

Barry Petchesky

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - FEBRUARY 15: Flaco, a Eurasian eagle owl that escaped from the Central Park Zoo, continues to roost and hunt in Central Park, February 15, 2023 in New York City, New York. (Photo by Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty Images)

Birdfector

Flaco Has Flown Free

Anthony Edwards #5 of the Minnesota Timberwolves shoots a three point basket during overtime against the Boston Celtics on November 6, 2023 at Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The Wolves Can Do Damage When Anthony Edwards Gets Serious

Max Verstappen and Lando Norris talk in the cool down room after the Brazil GP.

Racing

Lando Norris Is Tantalizingly Close To A Win

Albert Burneko

A Bored Ape Yacht Club, uh, ape, whose eyes I have crudely blacked out, with blood running in rivulets from his empty eyesockets.

The Machines

When Blindness Hits A Hundred Bucks A Share, Then Who Will Be Laughing, I Ask You, “Doctor”

Luis Paez-Pumar

Luis Diaz of Liverpool celebrating after scoring the equalising goal during the Premier League match between Luton Town and Liverpool FC at Kenilworth Road on November 05, 2023 in Luton, England.

Luis Díaz Delivered For Liverpool As Search For Kidnapped Father Continues

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - NOVEMBER 5: Damone Clark #33 of the Dallas Cowboys gets into an altercation with Jason Kelce #62 of the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on November 5, 2023 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

It’s Impossible To Be Mad About A Victory Over The Cowboys

Francisco 'Isco' Alarcon of Real Betis celebrates a goal during the Spanish league, La Liga EA Sports, football match played between Real Betis and CA Osasuna at Benito Villamarin stadium on October 29, 2023, in Sevilla, Spain.

Isco’s Career Renaissance Is Better Late Than Never

Commuters board a Piccadilly Line underground train in Stratford.

Crosswords

The Crossword, Nov. 6: Group Hug

Hamilton Nolan is a journalist based in New York City. Subscribe to his work at <a href="https://www.hamiltonnolan.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.hamiltonnolan.com/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1687350200913000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0naFbUVOe-5ZgtPDtIM3gz">HamiltonNolan.com</a>.

Hamilton Nolan

Trevor Lawrence #16 of the Jacksonville Jaguars walks onto the field after the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Acrisure Stadium on October 29, 2023 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Jaguars beat the Steelers 20-10.