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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

Laura Wagner

Elder Wisdom

Blow Off The Stink

Dave McKenna

A view of RFK stadium during a football game

A Dead Fan’s Notes

Albert Burneko

A grizzled prospector sits in front of a hovel in an old black-and-white photo

This Is So Stupid

In My Day You Couldn’t Fake-Die For Two Years Without Real Commitment

An image of Colts owner Jim Irsay standing in front of the Washington Monument. On each side of him are two rockers with guitars. Irsay is leaning on the tree and singing, yup, Bob Dylan's "Blowin in the Wind." There's text confirming this in the lower left corner, like you used to see in music videos all the time.

Killin’ Dylan: The Fascinating Horrors Of Jim Irsay’s “Blowin’ In The Wind”

<p>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 <em>Point B</em>. Handsomest man in the world.</p>


Drew Magary

Tobias Ludvigsson of Sweden, Clement Davy of France, Lars Van Den Berg of Netherlands, Kevin Geniets of Luxembourg, Valentin Madouas of France and Team Groupama - FDJ - Yellow Leader Jersey and a general view of the peloton passing through the feed zone area during the 82nd Skoda Tour Luxembourg 2022, Stage 3 a 188,4km stage from Rosport to Diekirch on / #skodatour / September 15, 2022 in Diekirch, Luxembourg

Cycling

Bicycle! Bicycle! Bicycle! I Want To Ride My Bicycle!

(From L to R) Roger Riffard, Lise Granvel, Armand Babel, Jean-Pierre Dutour, Catherine Sotha, Romain Bouteille, Leo Campion, Jacques Prevert and Jacques Barbier look at the IBM computer which will find the title of the new play written by Romain Bouteille (4thR with glasses), on November 13, 1965 in Paris. (Photo by - / AFP) (

Here Is How The Defector Staff Uses Social Media

Felix Kent

A tourist practices with a paddleboard during a sunset in Philippine's Boracay island on April 24, 2018, ahead of its closure. - Police with assault rifles patrolled entry points to Boracay island on April 24 just days before a six-month shutdown and clean-up of one of the Philippines' top tourist attractions. (Photo by NOEL CELIS / AFP) (Photo credit should read NOEL CELIS/AFP via Getty Images)

A Middle-Aged Person Takes Up A Hobby

Jack Crosbie

For Your Consideration: Diet Coke For Breakfast

Ray Ratto

After A Great Deal Of Serious Debate, We Have Figured Out What Makes A Great Sports Town

My Weird Australia Thing

TELFORD, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 20: A Japanese Bantam is seen at the National Poultry Show on November 20, 2016 in Telford, England. The annual event continues to grow with around 7000 entries this year from all around the world. (Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images)

And So, After All These Years, We Meet Again, My Greatest Enemy: Chicken

WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 2: A model of COVID-19, known as coronavirus, is seen ahead of testimony from Dr. Francis Collins, Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), during a US Senate Appropriations subcommittee hearing on the plan to research, manufacture and distribute a coronavirus vaccine, known as Operation Warp Speed, July 2, 2020 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. (Photo by Saul Loeb-Pool/Getty Images)

COVID-19: The Drew Magary Review

<div class="author-header-content">
<p>Charles P. Pierce is a writer at <em>Esquire</em> and the author of four books, most recently <em>Idiot America</em>, and has been a working journalist since 1976. He lives near Boston with his wife but no longer his three children.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
</div>
<div class="author-header-shares"></div>


Charles P. Pierce

The Coach Who Made Fencing Fun

An old-timey photo of some kids gardening in New York City

Grow A Little Herb Garden

A picture taken on February 13, 2022 shows a cup of espresso coffee at the historic Gran Caffe Gambrinus in Naples, Italy. - A shot of dark, velvety coffee is more than just a quick caffeine hit: Italy's espresso is a prized social and cultural ritual the country considers a national heritage worthy of Unesco status. Gran Caffe Gambrinus is a historic cafe, pasticceria, and gelateria that opened in Naples in 1860. (Photo by Alberto PIZZOLI / AFP) (Photo by ALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP via Getty Images)

Coffee: A Delayed Love Story

The Little Font That Could

circa 1955: Portrait of a teenage girl lying on a sofa with a bottle of ginger ale and a telephone. A box of popcorn sits in front of her.

The Drunkest Generation

Defector At The Movies

Down With Sympathetic Villains

American vaudeville actor Ray Bolger (1904 - 1987) prepares for the opening of WJZ-TV by the American Broadcasting Company at the Palace Theater in New York City, 10th August 1948. (Photo by Graphic House/Archive Photos/Getty Images)

The Best Time To Watch A Movie Is First Thing In The Morning

A group of teenagers having fun in a convertible car in the 1950's. (Photo by FPG/Getty Images)

Life Lessons

This Is Not Actually An Endorsement Of Ditching Your Childhood Friends


<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Amy Schneider is a software engineer, cat owner, and Jeopardy champion who posts about her experiences on Twitter @Jeopardamy. She used to have a podcast, and odds are she will again some day.</p>


Amy Schneider

How I Got Smart

A graveyard near a steelmill in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Life's Rich Pageant

Can Andy Corren Do My Obit When The Time Comes?

Julien Ingrassia traditionally drinks from a shoe as he celebrates his 8th World title on November 21, 2021 after the ACI Rally Monza 2021

Racing

The Lottery In Secaucus


<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Dan McQuade was a founding member of Defector. He died in January 2026.</p>


Dan McQuade

A bowl of candy. It's orange. It has a bunch of regular-sized Hershey and Kit Kat bars in it.

Giving Out Big Candy Bars On Halloween Was Worth The Money

<p>Nicholas Russell is a writer from Las Vegas.</p>
