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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

David Roth

October 16, 1972 Sports Illustrated cover and signed limited edition Wilt Chamberlain sports porcelain figurine on display during the press preview at Sotheby's Auction House on August 01, 2023 in Los Angeles.

Podcasts

Radicalized, Sleepy, And Sick Of Brock Purdy

Dallas Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy seeming to look side-eyed at The Distraction logo at upper left, in a photo taken before the team's Wild Card loss to the Green Bay Packers.

There Is Some Crying In Football, With Ray Ratto

Tua Tagovailoa makes a semi-Jim Face during warm-ups before the Dolphins' Week 18 loss to the Buffalo Bills.

Pantsless On New Year’s Eve, With Rohan Nadkarni

Michael Penix Jr, seen here pointing at The Distraction logo at upper left during Washington's win over Texas in the Sugar Bowl on 1/1/2024.

Wolfgang Amadeus Penix Jr.

Jalen Hurts #1 of the Philadelphia Eagles looks on in the first half at Lumen Field on December 18, 2023 in Seattle, Washington.

Yelling At An Infant About Fake Punts, With Dan McQuade

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

We Must Do Something About The Dog Lobby

Shohei Ohtani smiling in the dugout during an Angels game on September 17 of 2023.

Infinite Bonilla Mode

Romancing The Bellhop

A man wears a bootleg Bart Simpson t-shirt—black, with the words Ay Carumba (sic) in heavy metal font over an image of Bart displaying GUD and BAD finger tattoos—on the streets of Bangkok, in 2018.

Professor Frink Is Real, And Strong, And My Friend, With Matt Selman

Dog Day Afternoon At The Salon

Irish boxer Katie Taylor exulting after defeating Chantelle Cameron in a title bout in Dublin on November 25, 2023.

Great Irish Champions, With Dave McKenna

All The Razzle Dazzle Money Can Buy

Mark Sanchez looking forlorn after a Jets game on October 31, 2010.

Gratitude, Triumph, And The Butt Fumble, With Jasper Wang

What Horrors Await In The Weedsgiving Basement?

Aaron Barrett and Derek Gibbs of Reel Big Fish perform at Southampton University on March 5, 2011.

When Ska Was King, With Rob Harvilla

In Search Of The Momfluencer’s Apprentice

Giri Nathan

Samer Kalaf

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

A Stumble Of Keriths, With Kerith Burke

New Vikings quarterback Joshua Dobbs exults after leading his team to a comeback win against the Falcons in Atlanta.

A Dad’s Guide To Joshua Dobbs Mindset

The Secret Family Recipe That Would Not Die

Names For Revolutionaries, With Edward Onaci

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

LAS VEGAS, NV - JULY 8: Sphere displays the In Season Tournament visuals on its exterior, the largest LED screen on Earth, during the 2023 Las Vegas Summer League on July 8, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. 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 2023 NBAE (Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images)

The NBA In-Season Tourney Is A Recipe For Blindness, With Ray Ratto

The Bachelorette Ultimatum

Named By The Stars, With Naveen Farrani

Evan Carter of the Texas Rangers celebrates in the clubhouse after beating the Astros in Game 7 of the ALCS.