CULTURE

Footer Column 2

Footer Legal

Footer Main

Nav Bar

OTHER

SPORTS

Subscribe, at any level, to play

Thanks for your interest in Defector Crosswords!

Become a subscriber today to get unlimited access

Thanks for reading!

Plans start at $8/month.

Subscribers enjoy unlimited, ad-free browsing.

Register to continue

Or click here to subscribe for unlimited, ad-free access!

Our gift to you: This year's post is unlocked. Register your email to get even more free articles.

Welcome to the 2025 Hater's Guide!

Just register your email:

This blog is free to read.

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

Olympique de Marseille's Portuguese coach Andre Villas Boas gives a press conference at the French L1 football club training camp in Marseille, southern France, on January 26, 2021. (Photo by Christophe SIMON / AFP) (Photo by CHRISTOPHE SIMON/AFP via Getty Images)

Soccer

What In The Hell Is Going On At Marseille?

Trading Nolan Arenado Was Somehow Not The Most Humiliating Part Of Dick Monfort’s Week

Matthew Stafford, quarterback of the Detroit Lions, stands on the field before the game against the Green Bay Packers at Ford Field on December 13, 2020 in Detroit, Michigan. Stafford has his back to the camera, all that's visible is his hat and his jersey.

There Is No Logic To Be Found In The Matthew Stafford And Nolan Arenado Trades

HOUSTON, TEXAS - JANUARY 03: Deshaun Watson #4 of the Houston Texans in action against the Tennessee Titans during a game at NRG Stadium on January 03, 2021 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)

Deshaun Watson Has Had Enough, But I Sure Haven’t

Curt Schilling sitting in the dugout while with the Red Sox, thinking about how much everyone else sucks.

Curt Schilling’s Cooperstown Tragedy Is The Purest Farce

Plaques in the main hallway identify inductee classes in the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum July 25, 2004 in Cooperstown, New York. (Photo by A. Messerschmidt/Getty Images) *** Local Caption ***

The Hall Of Fame’s Problem Is Baseball

Hank Aaron, seen here laughing at a Mets/Braves game.

Henry Aaron Did It All, All The Time

TOKYO, JAPAN - JANUARY 22: A woman and a man wearing a face mask view the Olympic Rings on January 22, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. With just six months to go until the start of the Games, it has been reported that the Japanese authorities have privately concluded that the Olympics could not proceed due to the ongoing Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic. Spokesmen from the IOC and Japanese government have since rejected the report. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images)

Olympics

The Tokyo Olympics Could Be Off? Good.

SALT LAKE CITY, UT - NOVEMBER 8: Pac 12 commissioner Larry Scott talks to the media before an NCAA football game between Utah Utes and the Oregon Ducks on November 8, 2014 at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by George Frey/Getty Images)

College Football

The Pac-12 Was Doomed To Fail And Larry Scott Still Managed To Disappoint

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - JANUARY 18: Andrew Wiggins #22 of the Golden State Warriors brings the ball up court during a 115-113 Warrior win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Martin Luther King Jr. Day at Staples Center on January 18, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2021 NBAE (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)

For The First Time, Andrew Wiggins Is Fitting In

Firing Jared Porter Is The Easy Part

Quarterback Chad Henne #4 of the Kansas City Chiefs scrambles against the defense of the Cleveland Browns late in the fourth quarter of the AFC Divisional Playoff game at Arrowhead Stadium on January 17, 2021 in Kansas City, Missouri.

One Tackle Has Forced Us All To Thoroughly Discuss Chad Henne

James Harden #13, Kevin Durant #7, Joe Harris #12, and Jeff Green #8 of the Brooklyn Nets walk onto the court during the second half against the Orlando Magic at Barclays Center on January 16, 2021 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. The Nets won 122-115. James Harden #13, Kevin Durant #7, Joe Harris #12, and Jeff Green #8 of the Brooklyn Nets walk onto the court during the second half against the Orlando Magic at Barclays Center on January 16, 2021 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City.

The Nets Are Trying To De-Knick New York

SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA - JANUARY 11: Defensive coordinator Robert Saleh of the San Francisco 49ers looks on during the NFC Divisional Round Playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings at Levi's Stadium on January 11, 2020 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)

Sometimes You’re Damned If You Do And Damned If You Detroit

GLENDALE, ARIZONA - DECEMBER 28: Former Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Urban Meyer looks on during the College Football Playoff Semifinal between the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Clemson Tigers at the PlayStation Fiesta Bowl at State Farm Stadium on December 28, 2019 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Ralph Freso/Getty Images)

Urban Meyer Is A Flashy Hire By A Desperate Owner

HOUSTON, TEXAS - JANUARY 10: James Harden #13 of the Houston Rockets leaves the court following the 120 -102 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers at Toyota Center on January 10, 2021 in Houston, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)

James Harden Is A Net, No Matter How Kyrie Irving Fits The Plan

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - JANUARY 03: Head coach Matt Nagy of the Chicago Bears looks on from the sidelines against the Green Bay Packers during the first quarter in the game at Soldier Field on January 03, 2021 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

The More The Bears Stink, The More They Stay The Same

LOS ANGELES - SEPTEMBER 22: Head coach Tom Flores of the Los Angeles Raiders and his crew stand on the side lines during the game against the San Francisco 49ers at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on September 22, 1985 in Los Angeles, California. The 49ers won 34-10. (Photo by George Rose/Getty Images)

If It’s Tom Flores’s Time To Make The HOF, Who Cares What Help He Gets?

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - JANUARY 01: The Ohio State Buckeyes celebrate after defeating the Clemson Tigers 49-28 during the College Football Playoff semifinal game at the Allstate Sugar Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Superdome on January 01, 2021 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

The Invisible Championship

7 Jul 1991: Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda yells during a game against the Atlanta Braves at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California. Mandatory Credit:

Tommy Lasorda Was The Showman Who Couldn’t Turn It Off

Senator-elect Tommy Tuberville, a Republican from Alabama, stands for a photo at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on November 9, 2020. (Photo by Stefani Reynolds / POOL / AFP) (Photo by STEFANI REYNOLDS/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Politics

It Took Tommy Tuberville Four Days To Prove Himself One Of America’s Worst Senators

So Much For The Feel-Good Browns

ORCHARD PARK, NEW YORK - JANUARY 03: Tua Tagovailoa #1 of the Miami Dolphins looks to pass against the Buffalo Bills during the first quarter at Bills Stadium on January 03, 2021 in Orchard Park, New York. (Photo by Timothy T Ludwig/Getty Images)