Maybe you’ve heard the joke somewhere along the way.It goes like this: How many hipsters does it take to change a lightbulb?Answer: It’s a really obscure number. You’ve probably never heard of it.If anything can heal this divided nation of ours, it might be hipster jokes. Surely, we all can set aside our differences and chuckle at the people who obsess over skinny jeans and artisan soaps.But let’s be honest. There is something kind of intriguing about hipsters. There is something appealing about the notion of discovering something before it becomes mainstream.For some, it’s a band. For others, it might be a dive bar or a taco spot that is a well-kept secret.Can someone be an NFL hipster, then?Sure, why not? Let’s give it a try.Lame-stream take: The AFC North is the toughest division in football.Super cool-person hipster take: The NFC North is actually the toughest division in football. (It’s a really obscure division, you’ve probably never heard of it.)In all seriousness, the NFC North in 2024 could be the football equivalent to saying you followed the Foo Fighters back when they played tiny clubs.Think about it. Every single team in this division could be sneaky good this season.The Detroit Lions already have announced themselves to the league. Detroit went 12-5 last season to win the NFC North for the first time since 1993. They won a postseason game for the first time since 1992.This year, the Lions could be even better.The same is true for the Green Bay Packers, who finished second in the division last season. Jordan Love finished the season significantly better than how he started it, and the Packers’ trajectory is pointed upward as the franchise embraces life after Aaron Rodgers.How about the Vikings and Bears, who finished tied for third in 2023?Start with the Bears, who no longer resemble the laughingstock that languished on Chicago’s lakefront for the last however many years.Top pick Caleb Williams has all the physical tools to become the franchise’s best quarterback since — not even joking — Sid Luckman, who played from 1939-50. He also has unconstrained confidence, which should serve him well in a city that is looking for him to be the savior.The Bears used to bring in rookie quarterbacks and surround them with shoddy offensive linemen and catching-impaired receivers, but that is not the case anymore. Williams steps into a great situation with D.J. Moore, Keenan Allen and first-round pick Rome Odunze at receiver, and he has solid blocking in front of him and dual-threat running backs behind him.How about the Vikings? Sure, Kirk Cousins chased the Kohl’s cash all the way to Atlanta, but Minnesota nabbed Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy with the No. 10 pick. If McCarthy can be a cheaper version of Cousins – which is entirely possible – the Vikings could thrive with a tremendous supporting cast that includes Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, T.J. Hockenson and former Packers running back Aaron Jones.Yes, it’s easier to argue that the AFC North is tops in the NFL. The Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers certainly pose a solid foursome.It’s tough to poke holes in the Ravens, but are we really sure the Bengals, Browns and Steelers are as vaunted as they once were? Are those who champion the AFC North as the league’s best more focused on the recent past instead of the near future?Because if you want to know the next big thing, we’re telling you, it’s the NFC North.Now where did we leave our fedora?
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West Ham manager David Moyes has openly ruled out the possibility of Declan Rice leaving the club in the January transfer window. His words at the press conference ahead of his team s Premier League encounter with Brentofrd on Friday were quite clear on that.
There will be no chance Declan leaves in this window, if that s what you re talking about, he said.
Rice s stock has risen to great heights over the last couple of seasons. Still only 23 and a 39-cap international, a regular starter for England under Gareth Southgate, Rice combines formidable physical ability with great understanding of the game and maturity which significantly belies his age. In the past few windows he was heavily linked with Chelsea and Manchester United, and more recently with Liverpool.
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Liverpool are expected to bid for Athletic Bilbao duo Nico Williams and Oihan Sancet at the end of the season.
Williams is one of LaLiga s brightest young stars, with the 20-year-old winger having already earned seven senior caps for Spain, including four appearances at the World Cup in Qatar.
Attacking midfielder Sancet, 22, netted a hat-trick in a 4-1 win over Cadiz on Saturday to take his tally of LaLiga goals this season to seven.
Williams in particular received heavy interest during the January transfer window, but Bilbao will reportedly be faced with tough decisions about both players at the conclusion of the campaign.
TOP STORY – PREMIER LEAGUE SIDES TAKE A LIKING TO BILBAO PAIR
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Jeffrey Schlupp s strike proved decisive as 10-man Crystal Palace defeated Bournemouth 1-0 to rise up to fifth in the Premier League.
Palace s night seemed to be going from bad to worse when, after Mamadou Sakho received a straight red card for a high lunge on Adam Smith in the 20th minute, the Eagles lost Patrick van Aanholt to injury.
But Van Aanholt s replacement Schlupp – who scored in Saturday s 2-0 win at Burnley – was ultimately the difference, as he struck home at the culmination of a fine run in the 76th minute.
Aaron Ramsdale should have done better with Schlupp s shot, though Bournemouth s goalkeeper made a vital stop from James McArthur s long-range effort to keep the Cherries in contention.
2 Jeffrey Schlupp has scored in consecutive …
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola wants Kevin De Bruyne to return to the basics to re-discover his best form after a recent dip by his own standards.
The two-time Premier League Player of the Season missed two games recently due to illness and has not been his lively and proactive normal self when on the field.
The Belgian struggled for impact against Newcastle United in Saturday s 2-0 win, turning the ball on occasion, before being replaced near the hour by Bernardo Silva.
De Bruyne had found some form with a brilliant strike in City s 3-0 FA Cup win at Bristol City last week but Guardiola said he had a passive first half.
Kevin, always the standards of Kevin are the sky, Guardiola said.
Everyone knows his level. In one week he has an oppor…
Portuguese heavyweights Sporting CP have reached an agreement with Croatian side NK Rijeka over a winter transfer deal for midfielder Josip Misic, .
The Leoes have long been tracking the talented 23-year-old who enjoyed a fantastic year with his club.
Misic made 19 league appearances for the reigning Croatian champions this season and was even rewarded with a Croatia debut in 2017.
Young Croatian can operate in a number of positions in the centre of the park and will be a valuable option for manager Jorge Jesus who will put Misic in rotation with William, Battaglia, Bruno Fernandes, Palhinha, Wendel and out-of-sorts Petrovic.
According to reports from Ojogo, Sporting CP have already reached an agreement with both the player and his club over a €3 milli…
Competition: La Liga
Market: Deportivo La Coruna to beat Levante
Odds:
La Liga is back this weekend with yet another interesting round of games as the competition continues to simmer away nicely. The table has remained incredibly tight which means that a single victory can quite often see a side rise a number of places in the league, and with this in mind, Deportivo La Coruna host Levante on Saturday.
Deportivo La Coruna have been struggling massively this season and they are in real danger of being relegated this campaign. After 20 games they have won four, drawn four and lost 12, while they have scored 22 goals and conceded 44 times. In their last five they have only managed to draw once, losing the other four. This has seen the side onto 16 …
Phil Jagielka wants his England team-mates to repeat the heroics on show against Spain in 2011 against Brazil on Wednesday.
The 30-year-old Everton centre-back was pivotal in shutting out the world and European champions in a friendly meeting in November 2011, and Jagielka is determined to claim another important result when the five-time World Cup winners Brazil travel to Wembley.
This is a high stakes game, he told reporters.
That Spain game wasn t make or break but because we won and kept a clean sheet it turned into a massive positive.
It s a similar situation now. Whether I get to play, or someone else, it is about gaining experience from a great test.
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Norwich City midfielder Bradley Johnson has signed a new deal with the Premier League club, extending his contract to the middle of 2016.
Norwich City midfielder Bradley Johnson has signed a new deal with the Premier League club, extending his contract to the middle of 2016.
Johnson, 25, joined the Carrow Road outfit in July 2011 on a free transfer from Leeds United, where he had been for three years.
The Englishman has made 57 appearances for Norwich, scoring three goals, and has missed just one league game this season.
He told the club s official website: As soon as I heard that the club wanted to sit down and sort a new deal I just wanted to get it done and I m delighted that it has.
I think I m playing the best football of my career and I …
Freddie Ljungberg identified belief as the key to a turnaround that ended a seven-game Premier League winless run for Arsenal after they beat West Ham 3-1.
With Ljungberg having overseen a draw with Norwich City and a home defeat to Brighton and Hove Albion in his first two games since replacing Unai Emery on an interim basis, it looked as if he was set for further disappointment when Angelo Ogbonna put West Ham ahead in the 38th minute.
Arsenal lost Hector Bellerin in the warm-up on Monday and Kieran Tierney suffered a shoulder injury in the first half, but the Gunners bounced back from those setbacks and a lifeless first-half display to get back to winning ways against their London rivals.
Gabriel Martinelli s first Premier League goal levelled matters and Nico…
Lucien Favre saluted goalkeeper Roman Burki and the rest of his squad after Borussia Dortmund squeezed through to the Champions League s last 16.
A nerve-jangling 2-1 home win over Slavia Prague and Inter s late loss to Barcelona saw Dortmund finish second in Group F on Tuesday.
Tomas Soucek cancelled out Jadon Sancho s opener before Julian Brandt restored the Bundesliga side s lead just after the hour.
Julian Weigl s subsequent dismissal for two bookable offences led to a tense finale, but Burki brilliantly denied Milan Skoda and Abdulla Yusuf Helal to secure all three points.
Everyone, without a single exception, played a part in this win, Favre said.
It was a crazy match. Constant chances. We had to win this game – it s what we were aiming …