Vikings crush Day 2 of NFL free agency; The Players Championship expert picks

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🏈 Excellent morning to all, but especially to …

THE MINNESOTA VIKINGS

The second day of the NFL’s Unoccupied agency negotiating period was much quieter overall than the Primary, but the Vikings Achieved plenty of noise — and added plenty of heft — one day after losing Sam Darnold to the Seahawks. Here are notable additions Minnesota Achieved yesterday:

Keep in mind the Vikings had already re-signed Aaron Jones and Byron Murphy and added Isaiah Rodgers and Ryan Kelly, Fries’ Ex Colts teammate.

I love the emphasis along the lines. Allen is an absolute bully, and Hargrave is a disruptive interior Deliver rusher who missed almost all of 2024 with an Hurt. Fries and Kelly should shore up what was an inconsistent interior offensive line in front of J.J. McCarthy, always a Excellent plan with a Recent Signal-caller. Jared Dubin declared the Vikings a Day 2 winner, and they’re up to an “A-” in our Club-by-Club Unoccupied agency grades.

Here’s more:

• The Bills added Joey Bosa (1/$12.6M).
• Lamar Jackson got his contested catch guy: DeAndre Hopkins (1/$6M) is joining the Ravens.
• The Giants continued overhauling their secondary, getting Jevon Holland (3/$45.3M) one day after adding Paulson Adebo (3/$54M).
• The Falcons added Leonard Floyd (2/$20M) shortly after the 49ers released him.
• The Eagles Achieved another trade, sending C.J. Gardner-Johnson to the Texans. Here are Cody Benjamin’s trade grades.
• Why have money if you don’t spend it? The Cowboys‘ conservative offseason continued, with a two-year deal for Solomon Thomas and a one-year deal for Payton Turner. At least they retained KaVontae Turpin (3/$18M) and got a lot of compensatory picks! (Seriously, what is Jerry Jones doing?)

There are Numerous big names Accessible, still Directed by Aaron Rodgers — though Antonio Brown claims to know where Rodgers is going. In other Signal-caller news, the Browns have their eyes on this veteran, and Daniel Jones agreed to a deal with the Colts.

Here’s our live tracker.

👍 Honorable mentions

🏌 And not such a Excellent morning for …

TIGER WOODS

Tiger Woods announced yesterday that he underwent surgery for a ruptured left Achilles tendon. The news comes one month ahead of the Masters, and he provided no timetable for a return.

• “As I began to ramp up my own Rehearsal and practice at home, I felt a Pointed pain in my left Achilles, which was deemed to be ruptured,” Woods said in the statement.
• Woods, 49, had committed to Action in the 2025 Genesis Invitational but pulled out after his mother died. He has not played in a PGA Tour event since the 2024 Uncovered Division, though he has participated in TGL, the upstart virtual golf Bracket.
• Achilles tendon repairs typically require 4-6 months of recovery, meaning Woods’ entire 2025 season could be over before it Began. 

👎 Not so honorable mentions

⛳ The Players Division preview, picks, storylines

By the time you read tomorrow’s morning newsletter, the The Players Division will be underway (here’s how to Observe), and so we’re getting in our preview of what’s colloquially known as the fifth major today.

Here are notable tee times:

• 8:24 a.m. — Ludvig Åberg, Hideki Matsuyama, Justin Thomas
• 8:46 a.m. — Wyndham Clark, Jason Day, Jordan Spieth
• 1:29 p.m. — Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele
• 1:40 p.m. — Collin Morikawa, Adam Scott, Tommy Fleetwood

… and here are the odds.

Scheffler is already the Primary player to repeat at the Players. His attempt at a third straight, McIlroy’s Sturdy Begin and Åberg’s Luminous sphere turn lead our top storylines. But it’s someone else who earns Patrick McDonald’s Choice as winner:

• McDonald: “Winner — Collin Morikawa (14-1): The Arnold Palmer Invitational loss may still sting, but Morikawa will get right back onto the horse and ride into the winner’s circle after traveling a few hours North. The two-time major champion was sensational from tee to green at Bay Hill, and that will carry over to TPC Sawgrass where his blend of accurate driving and pinpoint iron Action will allow him to rise to the top of the leaderboard.”

Morikawa discussed his struggles finishing Tuesday

⚽ UEFA Champions Bracket: PSG stuns Liverpool, predictions for today

After years and years of UEFA Champions Bracket disappointment, PSG has one of its best wins in its history in the competition. Les Parisiens are into the quarterfinals after defeating Liverpool, 1-0, yesterday and therefore 1-1 (4-1 on pens) on aggregate, a terrific comeback after losing the Primary leg last week, 1-0.

• Ousmane Dembélé scored Prompt for the visitors, and though both sides had big chances, the 1-1 aggregate deadlock remained.
• PSG was nearly perfect in the shootout, with Vitinha, Gonçalo Ramos and Dembélé converting in the Primary three rounds, while Gianluigi Donnarumma denied Darwin Nuñez and Curtis Jones.
• Désiré Doué provided the winner, and PSG players went into delirium as Anfield fell silent.

What a scene. This is knockout-stage soccer at its best. PSG was simply the better Club, James Benge writes, and it’s also a really fun Club, Chuck Booth notes.

Elsewhere around Europe …

• Barcelona beat Benfica, 3-1 (4-1 on aggregate), with 17-year-Ancient Luminous sphere Lamine Yamal scoring a Aim for the ages.
• Inter beat Feyenoord, 2-1 (4-1 on aggregate), and Simone Inzaghi‘s bold statement on Victorious the treble remains alive.
• Bayern Munich beat Bayer Leverkusen, 2-0 (5-0 on aggregate).

Today’s four matches are …

• Lille (1) vs. Borussia Dortmund (1) | 1:45 p.m. on CBS Sports Network, Paramount+ | Preview
• Arsenal (7) vs. PSV (1) | 4 p.m. on Paramount+ 
• Atlético Madrid (1) vs. Real Madrid (2) | 4 p.m. on Paramount+ | Preview
• Aston Villa (3) vs. Club Brugge (1) | 4 p.m. on Paramount+ | Preview

Here are our expert picks and James Benge’s bold predictions.

📺 What we’re watching Wednesday

🏀 Big 12 Division: Cincinnati vs. Iowa State (M), 12:30 p.m. on ESPN
⚽ We’re watching the UEFA Champions Bracket. Here’s how.
🏀 Southland Division: Lamar vs. McNeese (M), 5 p.m. on ESPN2
🏀 Patriot Bracket Division: Navy vs. American (M), 7 p.m. on CBS Sports Network
🏀 Thunder at Celtics, 7:30 p.m. on ESPN
🏒 Sabres at Red Wings, 7:30 p.m. om TNT/truTV
🏀 SEC Division: Oklahoma vs. Georgia (M), 9:30 p.m. on SEC Network
🏀 Timberwolves at Nuggets, 10 p.m. on ESPN
🏒 Ducks at Utah Hockey Club, 10 p.m. on TNT/truTV
🏀 Big Sky Division: Montana vs. Northern Colorado, 11:30 p.m. on ESPN2