The holidays didn’t just bring wall-to-wall games—they brought judgment day. We break out a ruthless naughty and nice list across the NFL, NBA, and MLB, spotlighting who grew up under pressure and who handed out coal. On the bright side, Caleb Williams erased ghosts with a walk-off moon ball, Drake May steadied New England with road-hardened poise, Jacksonville punched through Denver’s streak, Houston set a defensive standard, and San Francisco resumed feeling inevitable with Brock Purdy and Christian McCaffrey in sync. On the other end, the Ravens coughed up another late lead, the Lions spun out of their feel-good arc, and the Raiders leaned into a quiet tank while players kept fighting.
Christmas hoops reminded us the NBA still owns a stage. The Knicks roared back from 17 down at the Garden behind bench chaos, Tyler Kolek’s chase-down momentum swing, and Jalen Brunson’s closer gene—all the ingredients of a playoff identity. Then Nikola Jokic delivered a 56-16-15 clinic and an overtime scoring record, calmly reminding Minnesota that Denver’s trump card is unmatched. We also dig into the league’s anti-tanking and injury-report tightening—gambling-era guardrails designed to keep the product honest without suffocating real rebuilds.
On the diamond, the Mets traded sentiment for structure, moving Jeff McNeil and reshaping the infield to prioritize defense, flexibility, and reps for the kids. Over on the South Side, the White Sox made a bold bet on Munetaka Murakami’s left-handed thunder, accepting the strikeout risk for a short-term upside swing that warps the corner-infield market. We cap it with a Week 17 betting card that’s a game over .500, built on situational edges and roster realities, not wishful thinking.
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