Kinney | Stats & Stories

The boss called Joe Fagnano into his office. The undrafted Ravens quarterback had been told “no news is good news,” so he figured this might be goodbye. With Lamar Jackson and backup Tyler Huntley both injured, Baltimore is turning to its third quarterback. Tomorrow night, Fagnano makes his first NFL start on Thursday Night Football. Here's the whole thing. Nobody drafted Fagnano this spring. He didn't get a free-agent deal right afterward, either. Baltimore gave him a rookie minicamp tryout. Before he could worry about making the team, he had to earn the chance to keep practicing with it. He did. Then he led the NFL with 509 passing yards in the preseason. General manager Eric DeCosta had called him in to tell him he'd made the 53-man roster. “No … are you serious?” “You played too good, man,” DeCosta told him. That's a hell of a meeting to walk out of. He'd earned his place. Now came the waiting behind Jackson and Tyler Huntley. And here's the part I love. At home, his wife, Lydia, reads out plays while they run through them in their living room. His receivers have noticed his homework, too. Zay Flowers says Fagnano knows the playbook by heart. Then came Sunday in Buffalo. He'd spent the week imitating Josh Allen for Baltimore's defense, with little practice alongside his own starting offense. Jackson got hurt. Then Huntley got hurt. Suddenly, it was his turn. And it was rough. He threw an interception and lost a fumble. Even during that game, though, veteran defensive lineman Calais Campbell came over to encourage him. As Fagnano recalled it, Campbell had seen him work in practice and wanted him to know: “I know you can play.” Derrick Henry was behind him, telling him he had his back, too. Tomorrow against Jacksonville, Fagnano gets his first NFL start. This time, he's had a few days to prepare knowing he'll take the opening snap. And I keep thinking about Lydia in that living room, reading those plays to him. “She probably knows the playbook just as well as us at this point,” he said.

Kirk Cousins helped pay for Christmas presents for 60 families at a Minneapolis shelter. When one little girl opened hers, she shouted, “Thank you, Mommy!” He was right there on the video call, listening. The Vikings announced a trade to bring Cousins back from Las Vegas today. And this is a part of his time in Minnesota worth coming back to. He and his wife, Julie, started helping families at People Serving People in 2019. Halloween was coming, and the shelter hadn't received many donated costumes. Cousins took about 50 kids shopping at Party City and paid for their choices. Then everyone headed to the Vikings' practice facility, where he changed into Buzz Lightyear and threw passes to the kids. Eleven-year-old Maioki Caldwell picked a zombie cheerleader. She had her reasons. “I like cheerleaders.” “And I like candy.” The next year, the party moved online, and the Cousins foundation helped pay for it again. By Christmas, Kirk and Julie were helping the parents do some shopping of their own. The money went directly to the shelter's families. Mom and Dad got to pick the presents. Think about how much you stop getting to choose when you lose your home. You still know your kid. You know which dinosaur he's going to lose his mind over. You want to be able to give him that. Six-year-old Edison opened his velociraptor while Cousins watched over a video call. “It has a moveable toe claw!” His dad, Edward, had picked it out. On another call was Sasha, a mom of four who hadn't been able to do much for the holidays for the past two years. Now she got to choose gifts for her children and watch them open them. One of her daughters tore into the wrapping paper and started thanking Mommy. Over and over. Cousins had helped make that possible. And when he spoke, he gave her mom the credit. “Mom did a good job, didn't she? She knows you guys well.”

Sal Stewart’s dad quit coaching basketball because he missed one of his son’s baseball practices. This was a man who’d wanted his kid to play basketball. He ended up leaving the sport himself so he could be there while his son played something else. On Monday, that son became the Cincinnati Reds’ National League Rookie of the Year. Dad hadn’t needed a scout to tell him what was happening. He was there in the batting cages and out on the field, watching Sal hit. The basketball coach was starting to realize he might be raising a baseball player. “I realized I had a problem on my hands,” he joked. And this kid could make a long day even longer. His mom remembered Sal having a bad game as a boy and wanting his dad to take him for more batting practice afterward. The game was over. Sal wasn’t done. His parents picked him up from school, took him to practice, went home to make food, then headed back out. When he reached the majors in September 2025, Sal brought up that routine himself. “Forget about the money. The time and the effort.” That first week, he hit his first big league home run with about 30 friends and family members there. Sal waved his arms to get the crowd going. The TV broadcast cut back and forth between him and the people who’d come to see him. Watching his son in Cincinnati, Dad remembered bringing little Sal along to the gym with him. Now he was watching a major leaguer celebrate his way around the bases. Months later, Sal described their relationship this way: “My Dad is my everything in my life, my best friend.” Then came Monday’s rookie award. And when Sal talked about what made him proudest of his season, he picked the fact that he’d played all 162 games. His teammates could count on him being there every day. I keep thinking about his dad hearing that.

Yaxel Lendeborg was crying at his own going-away party. Today, he's one of Golden State’s most exciting young talents. Back then, his mom had found him a chance to play college basketball, and he was begging her to let him stay home with his friends. Mom wasn't changing her mind. See, Yaxel wasn’t thinking about a basketball career yet. He liked playing with his friends, then heading home to play video games. His mom was already making calls, sending emails and trying to get coaches to give her son a look. One night, he stayed up gaming until 4 a.m. At 7, she was in his room shaking his pillow. “WAKE UP!!! We gotta go!” She got him into the old minivan and drove him to a basketball camp near New York. He hadn't even known she'd signed him up. At the end, they called his name among the camp's top performers. Cool. Now he could go home and play Call of Duty. Except Mom was still over by the bleachers, talking to college coaches. Then came the announcement in his room. “Arizona Western. Junior College. For basketball. You leave in two weeks. Get packin’.” He cried. All his friends were here. He didn't want to go to Arizona. Mom invited those friends over, baked a cake and threw him a send-off without asking him. He was crying like a baby, trying to smile through it for his friends. He cried in the minivan on the way to the airport, then on the plane. In Arizona, he didn't know anybody. Even missing Dominican food had him crying. Basketball gave him something familiar to get back to. He settled into playing in Yuma, and a few years later, he transferred to UAB. Becoming a Division I player felt so big to him that he couldn't imagine things getting any better. Then other schools started calling. Texting. Even sending letters with actual stamps. Mom used to chase coaches for him. Now they were trying to get hold of her son. And this time, he had his own questions. He wanted a coach who could help him get better and reach the NBA. He chose Michigan. By then, he could help pay Mom's bills and buy her a new Jeep. That old minivan still hadn't officially been retired. And with his games on TV, Mom was getting a little recognition herself. She'd walk into Chipotle and hear: “Hey, aren’t you Yaxel’s mom?!” Free burritos. Extra guac, too. Of course she had to call her son about that. “Yax, guess what?!?!? I’m a famous mom now.”

Sampson James was one of Indiana's most highly rated football recruits. A few years later, he was sleeping on the streets of Austin with an old IU backpack. He was 25. The bag was faded and ripped, and he'd been carrying it since 2020. Back in high school, he was a four-star running back from Avon, Indiana. He'd committed to Ohio State before changing his mind and choosing the Hoosiers. As a freshman in 2019, he ran for 118 yards and a touchdown in a win at Purdue. Across the rest of his two seasons at Indiana, he ran for 253 yards. He transferred to Purdue in 2021 and never played in a game there. Then, in 2023, he went back to Indiana and tried again as a walk-on. No football scholarship this time. He didn't get back into a game. After school, he worked in warehouses, hardware stores and restaurants. Eventually, he lost his job and his place to stay. By June 2026, he'd spent months without a home. He still had that backpack. One day, Jasper Steinmetz was out walking his dog on a trail in Austin when he spotted it. “I saw the Indiana University athletic backpack, and since I had just graduated from Indiana, we had that commonality,” Jasper said. He went over and said something. Two guys from the same school, a long way from Indiana. “He told me he went to IU as well. So I was like, wow, that's amazing, go Hoosiers,” Sampson said. “He was able to grasp and understand me and come to a point of understanding.” Jasper looked up Sampson's name later. That's when he found out about the football. He bought him four sandwiches and a Sprite. But he didn't leave it at lunch. In June, Jasper started a fundraiser. Within four days, people had given more than $17,000. Former Indiana players Mike Katic, Peyton Hendershot, Aaron Casey and CJ West all put money in. Jasper helped Sampson apply for an apartment and open a bank account. The money paid for clean laundry, a haircut, new shoes, a toothbrush and toothpaste. The everyday stuff you need when you're trying to get going again. Then came somewhere to live. “We just prepaid a bunch of rent and got him everything that he needed for the apartment,” Jasper said. With the rent covered, Sampson had some room to figure out his next step. Somewhere to sleep while he did it. Later, the two of them walked back along the trail where Jasper had first noticed that worn-out backpack. “Now that all these people donated and you got the apartment, they really want to see you succeed,” Jasper told him. “Oh yeah, and I'm big on not letting them down.”

Mirra Andreeva says not having a driver's license won't be a problem if she wins the car at the WTA Finals, because she knows how to drive. Interviewer: “Are you saying you've driven without a driver's license?” 😂 Mirra: “No, I am not saying that. I am not saying that at all. I have not driven. I just believe in myself that I can drive the car without a driver's license. “But I will not do that. I will only do that when I get the license.” 😂😂😂

Tenerife will financially support Jesús de Miguel’s one-year-old daughter until she turns 18, following his death on Tuesday. That’s wonderful by the club, very classy A beautiful way to stand by his family. Rest in peace, Jesús. 💙

In May 2025, Luka Dončić’s personal training team told him: no basketball for a month. Try selling that to this guy. Last night, the Lakers star dropped 53 on Portland. He’s averaging 40.1 points through his first nine games this season. Luka and Wilt Chamberlain are the only players ever to average 40-plus points through their first nine games of a season. That’s a hell of a two-man list. So, here’s what happened. On April 30, Minnesota knocked the Lakers out in the first round. The day after elimination, he’d texted his manager, Lara Beth Seager, asking to start training immediately. He was healthy, but physio Javier Barrio wanted him rested. Luka wasn’t sold. “I can’t be without basketball.” So he lifted weights and played pickleball and padel. Losing still annoyed him. “But I didn’t lose much.” Of course he had to get that part in. June’s first shootaround was scheduled for 45 minutes. He made his first shot and stayed an hour before Barrio persuaded him to stop. Then Seager got another text. Three smiley faces.

Damian Lillard was stopped at a red light when his daughter asked whether she’d still have to get on a plane to see him. She was four years old. He’d just signed another NBA contract. Dame played the Lakers in a Portland jersey on Friday night. When he signed to come home in July 2025, he couldn’t play at all. Here is the whole thing. He’d spent his first 11 NBA seasons in Portland. By 2023, the Blazers were building around younger players, and Dame wanted a shot at a championship. He asked for a trade and ended up alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo in Milwaukee. That’s a pretty good basketball reason to leave. Having your kids a plane ride away is a hell of a thing to live with. Then, in the 2025 playoffs against Indiana, he tore his left Achilles. He needed surgery. That July, the Bucks let him go. Portland signed him anyway, knowing it could be another year before he was ready. He could work his way back with his kids nearby. “It never felt right not being home,” he said. All three kids went with him to sign the deal. On the drive home, he stopped at that red light, turned toward his daughter and explained what was happening. “Wait, so, like, we don’t have to get on an airplane to Milwaukee no more?” He told her they didn’t. She had one more question. “So you’re gonna be at your house in Portland the whole time?” He said yes. “What!?”

The 49ers visited a young fan with heart failure to make his final wish of meeting the team come true. David sadly passed away shortly after the visit. Thank you to the players for being there for him. Rest easy, David. 💔🙏 Football is more than a sport

Zaire Williams thought Austin Reaves was Luka Doncic: “50 BALL!” Reaves: “I’m the wrong white person.” 🤣🤣

CARLOS ALCARAZ AND MATCH POINTS: A STORY OF COMEBACKS! 🔥 At 23, the Spaniard has just won his 7th match after saving at least one match point in his career. ✅ 2022 - Barcelona (SF) vs De Minaur ✅ 2022 - Roland-Garros (R2) vs Ramos-Viñolas ✅ 2022 - US Open (QF) vs Sinner ✅ 2023 - Cincinnati (SF) vs Hurkacz ✅ 2025 - Roland-Garros (final) vs Sinner ✅ 2026 - Laver Cup vs Fritz ✅ 2026 - Paris (QF) vs Fritz

“It’s just down the street. Why can’t we go?” Five-year-old Sunny Thornton wanted her mom to take her to see Alex Ovechkin on opening night in Washington. You can understand why. At last year’s opener, she’d walked in holding the captain’s hand. That was her first Caps game. Ovi had a jersey for her, and I love that four-year-old Sunny came prepared for her end of the trade. She gave him a friendship bracelet. A few hours later, there they were on the red carpet, Sunny in her silver tiara and Ovi stopping along the way to sign autographs. This year, her mom, Katie, had to explain why they couldn’t go. Sunny was in the hospital getting treatment for leukemia. So she made Ovi a little video to wish him luck. After the Caps won, Ovi sent her a video back. Katie remembers what he wanted Sunny to know. He was sorry he’d missed her. He’d won that one for her. On Thursday, Sunny finally got to go see her friend. Look at the two of them out on the Caps’ practice ice. Sunny’s in her purple dress. Ovi’s crouched down behind her, grinning, and this time he’s holding both her hands.

Incredible, Best recovery/winning shot I’ve ever seen 👏👏

Before his first NFL start, Joe Fagnano took off his helmet to give his wife a hug and Kiss “Love you! Have fun!” This is special and sweet🥹❤️

Klay Thompson’s older brother Mychel heard screaming from the next room. Klay had gone in there on crutches, and Mychel was afraid he’d fallen and hurt himself again. He opened the door and found his little brother yelling at his laptop. Turns out, the guy on the other end was motivational coach Tony Robbins. With Klay coming back to Chase Center in a Miami jersey tonight, I keep thinking about one thing Robbins taught him. Klay tore his left ACL in the 2019 NBA Finals. Before he could play another game, he tore his right Achilles. After surgery, the guy who used to go off on solo bike rides needed his brother or his childhood buddy Seth Tarver to help him heat up food in the microwave. Klay could still challenge those two to a Super Smash Bros. tournament, though. And he did. Klay had asked to work with Robbins after that second injury. One exercise he described later was about as simple as it gets. He’d look in the mirror and yell, “I’m a F---ing Warrior.” In January 2022, on the eve of Klay’s first NBA game in 941 days, Mychel was at Chase Center practicing with him. When a reporter asked what he expected from his brother’s first night back, Mychel said, “I don’t cry often, but I might shed a tear.” The next night Klay dunked on Cleveland. Five months later he had another ring with Golden State. Warriors fans know what a good screen can do for that man. Last night in L.A., Miami trailed the Clippers by two with 3.3 seconds left in overtime. Bam Adebayo set the screen, and Giannis Antetokounmpo found Klay all by himself in the left corner. His eighth three gave him 30 points and Miami a 117–116 win. Tonight at Chase Center, it’s Golden State’s turn to guard him. I figure you can still call the guy a Warrior and spend the night yelling for somebody to please stay with him in that corner.

Baltimore Ravens linebacker Trenton Simpson once turned down a pair of Kobe sneakers from his dad. His dad was an Army Ranger serving overseas. This was his son’s answer: “I don’t want the shoes anymore, I just want you to come home.” Tonight, Baltimore hosts Jacksonville on Thursday Night Football. It’s the Ravens’ Salute to Service game, and his dad plans to be in the stands. Here is the whole thing. His father, Timothy, kept getting sent overseas. Trenton once went two years without seeing him. So his mom, Dionna, helped him learn the playbook and took him out to play catch. She recorded his games so he could send the highlights to his dad. That’s a long way to watch your kid grow up. Father and son stayed in touch on Facebook, talking football, basketball and those Kobe sneakers Trenton liked. Timothy tried to keep those conversations light. Timothy later put it this way: “How do you tell a kid you can’t come home?” Around the time he started high school, Trenton wrote his dad a long letter. He needed guidance, and he wanted his father back in America. When Timothy came home, he applied for a job at Fort Bragg that would keep him off the battlefield. He got it, then promised he wouldn’t miss anything his son wanted him there for. And he showed up, including for Trenton’s games at Clemson. Here’s the part I love. These days, when Timothy visits for Ravens games, he stays at Trenton’s place and makes him breakfast. In Week 4 against Tennessee, Trenton made his first NFL interception. Dad was in the stands. After the win, they went home together. Trenton tossed his dad the ball.

Victor Wembanyama dropped 52 points, grabbed 24 rebounds and blocked 8 shots against Dallas last night. The Spurs won 112–111. Less than 2 years ago, he was scared he might never play basketball again. Go back to February 2025. A blood clot in his right shoulder had ended his season. He later admitted he’d feared it could take basketball away from him altogether. This week, he described what changed afterward: “Life is so short, I don’t even wanna waste it being somebody else, you know?”

The 2026 WNBA Finals MVP Gabby Williams bangs the drum at the valkyries championship parade