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Column: Jaylon Johnson bet on himself — and it paid off. The cornerback is due a big contract, but will it be with the Chicago Bears?

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:17:56 GMT

Credit Jaylon Johnson for acknowledging the elephant in the room — and finding a way to use it as motivation from the beginning.Johnson is the rare NFL player who will emerge a big winner for betting on himself and playing out his contract. He’s not alone, but in an era when teams are motivated to give early extensions with the idea of saving a little money and players love to cash in as soon as possible, Johnson is three games from completing the four-year, $6.46 million contract he signed after being drafted in the second round in 2020.What’s next for Johnson? He likely will sign a contract that makes him one of the higher-paid cornerbacks in the league, and despite some interesting twists in the road — ones that easily could have created acrimony from both sides — it appears the Bears are motivated to get something done.A few Bears players over the years have played out their deals and wound up being rewarded — but not a lot. Linebacker Lance B...

Chicago Bears’ evaluation of ‘ascending’ LT Braxton Jones will play into offseason moves — and his test against Myles Garrett was big

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:17:56 GMT

Chicago Bears left tackle Braxton Jones faced the ultimate test of his development Sunday against Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett, and the second-year player thought he did “an all right job” into the third quarter.In the end, though, Jones said he needed to do more to stop the Browns star.On the Bears’ final drive after the Browns pulled ahead 20-17 with 32 seconds to play, Garrett got around Jones quickly on back-to-back plays to pressure quarterback Justin Fields. The two plays resulted in Fields incompletions, and that set up the final Hail Mary pass that the Browns intercepted to seal the win.“In that fourth quarter, the game is on the line, if we score in that situation we’re going to win the game,” Jones said. “He’s going to do as much as he can to affect that, and he did do that in that last drive. I just think I have to have better sets, be more square. I can see all of the things (on film) I messed up on, but in ...

What chain stores are open on Christmas? Hours for Walmart, Target, CVS and more

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:17:56 GMT

With Christmas right around the corner, you might want to check the list of what stores are open (and closed) twice.From retail to grocery chains, many companies across the U.S. close early on Christmas Eve and shut their doors entirely on Christmas Day — while others opt to cut back hours. But there’s also a handful of businesses that stay open on the holiday.Before you run out the door this Christmas — whether it’s to buy last-minute gifts or simply get out of the house — it’s wise to double-check operating hours, which can range by location. When in doubt, call ahead or look up more specific schedules for spots in your neighborhood online.Here’s a rundown of how major chains are operating this Christmas Day.IS WALMART OPEN ON CHRISTMAS?Walmart will be closed on Christmas Day — and reopen at 6 a.m. Dec. 26.IS TARGET OPEN ON CHRISTMAS?Most Target stores will be closed on Christmas and reopen at 7 a.m. Dec. 26. You can check location hours here.IS COSTCO OPEN...

Ranking QB Justin Fields’ 35 starts for the Chicago Bears

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:17:56 GMT

Here we are again, Chicago, in the home stretch of another losing Bears season with quarterback uncertainty swirling. Justin Fields has three games remaining in his third season and, quite possibly, in his time with the organization.Empowered with the Carolina Panthers’ first-round pick, the Bears currently hold the No. 1 selection in next spring’s draft. That would allow them, if so desired, to reboot at quarterback with the draft prospect of their choice. Or the Bears could continue to stand behind Fields, a dice roll that would require confidence that he would continue to ascend in his development.Before the season, we laid out realistic 2023 goals for Fields across seven categories, setting up a test that could aid in the ongoing evaluation. Now, with Fields completing his 35th career start in Sunday’s dispiriting 20-17 loss in Cleveland, we are diving into his full body of work as a Bear to paint a comprehensive picture of where Fields has excelled and where h...

Column: MLB tweaks its pace-of-game rules — but why stop there? More ideas to save the game, a few seconds at a time.

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:17:56 GMT

Major League Baseball announced some tweaks to its rules Thursday to move the game along and eliminate the dead moments that allegedly cause younger fans to tune out.The boomers who run the game are doing whatever’s necessary to pacify Gen Z and save the game, knocking off seconds of wasted time for the good of all mankind.The pitch clock remains at 15 seconds, but with runners on base it will be reduced from 20 seconds to 18, a two-second time-saver that surely the kids will think is “fire.”Relievers will get only two minutes to get their butts from the bullpen to the pitcher’s mound, shaving 15 seconds off the previous time allowance. That should be enough time for the kids to check out a TikTok video while fidgeting in their seats waiting for the game to continue.According to The Athletic, MLB believes it can take another five minutes off the average game time, which was 2 hours, 40 minutes in 2023, the shortest average since 1985 and about 24 minutes shor...

Howie Carr: A Merry Christmas to a confused President Biden

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:17:56 GMT

Dementia Joe Biden is grabbing some well-deserved r&r this Christmas, so it’s a good time to check in with some of his recent pronouncements.As always, all dialogue guaranteed verbatim.In recent public statements, the nominal leader of the Free World has denounced “Congressman Trump” and lauded “President Harris.” He has mentioned the leader of Canada — “Prime Minister Joe.”He saluted the famous singer, “Diane Warwick,” whose iconic songs include what Joe called “Do you know the way to Jose to San Jose?”Just before Thanksgiving, he presided over the annual pardoning of the two turkeys. Usually it’s an amusing, light-hearted event. This year it was just plain sad:“Even though Liberty and Bell are from Minnesota they’re named for the famous Liberty Bell in Philadelphia and Pennsylvania.”Philadelphia and Pennsylvania — may we quote you on that, Mr. President?The fact checkers in state-run media who got so much overtime when Trump was president have been MIA again these last few wee...

Hearing set for two New Brunswick men whose murder convictions were overturned

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:17:56 GMT

SAINT JOHN, N.B. — A hearing has been set for two New Brunswick men whose 1984 convictions for the killing of a man in Saint John were quashed Friday by the federal justice minister.The co-president of Innocence Canada, an organization that works with the wrongfully convicted, says Robert Mailman and Walter Gillespie are scheduled to appear in the Court of King’s Bench in Saint John on Jan. 4.Ron Dalton says he hopes Crown prosecutors will say during the hearing that there is not enough evidence to support a new trial, and the charges against Mailman and Gillespie will be forever dismissed.Arif Virani announced Friday that he was ordering a new trial for Mailman and Gillespie, who were convicted of second-degree murder in the Nov. 30, 1983 slaying of George Gilman Leeman.Virani said in a news release that he had found a reasonable basis to conclude a miscarriage of justice occurred in the men’s convictions. Dalton says lawyers with Innocence Canada will represent the men...

Man in life-threatening condition from being shot in Vaughan

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:17:56 GMT

A man is in life-threatening condition due to being shot in a plaza in Vaughan on Saturday morning.Police responded to reports of a shooting just before 9:30 a.m. at a plaza at 4040 Highway 7 West.On scene a 34-year-old male in life-threatening condition was taken to a local trauma centre.Anyone who may have witnessed the shooting or anyone who has dashcam or video surveillance is asked to contact police.

Colorado releases additional 5 gray wolves as part of reintroduction effort

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:17:56 GMT

Wildlife officials in Colorado have released an additional five gray wolves in the state, bringing the total so far under a voter-approved reintroduction program to 10.Colorado Parks and Wildlife in a statement Friday said its team had completed an agreement to capture 10 gray wolves in Oregon for release in Colorado as part of an effort to restore a permanent population there. No additional captures or releases are planned for the rest of this year, KCNC TV reported. The agency said it would “continue working to source additional animals until up to 15 wolves have been reintroduced in Colorado by mid-March 2024.” The first five gray wolves from Oregon were released Dec. 18 in Colorado in an event joined by Gov. Jared Polis. Colorado Parks and Wildlife said details of “release events” for the next five wolves were not widely shared to protect the wolves and their location and agency staff. However, the agency said the releases occurred on state-owned lands in Colorado’s ...

Suspect arrested in alleged theft of a Banksy stop sign decorated with military drones

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:17:56 GMT

LONDON (AP) — A man suspected of stealing an artwork by Banksy of a stop sign adorned with three military drones, was arrested Saturday, London police said. A man in his 20s was in custody on suspicion of theft and criminal damage, the Metropolitan police said. The sign was taken less than an hour after the elusive street artist posted a photo of the work on his Instagram page Friday.Video showed a man with bolt cutters climbing up on a bicycle to remove the work from a sign post on a street corner in the Peckham area of south London while another man steadied the bike. The man who cut the sign free then ran off with it in his hand.A voice on a video of the incident could be heard saying, “it makes me so annoyed,” as the man ran away. A witness who only wanted to be called Alex told the PA news agency that the small crowd of people that had shown up to view the work stood around watching in awe as the scene unfolded. “We said, ‘What are you doing? But no one really knew what to do, ...