UFL Week 1 By The Numbers: Battlehawks put on a show, while Kalen Ballage runs wild
Week 1 of the 2025 UFL season is in the books, and there was no shortage of must-see moments this weekend.
The St. Louis Battlehawks , Arlington Renegades , Michigan Panthers and DC Defenders came out victorious, while the Houston Roughnecks , San Antonio Brahmas , Memphis Showboats and defending champion Birmingham Stallions lost.
None of the losing teams scored more than 12 points, while the winning squads scored an average of 27.
Here are the numbers to know after Week 1.
0: St. Louis put on a show on offense in the Friday night opener on FOX, scoring 31 points against Houston. Perhaps even more impressive was the fact that they had zero punts or turnovers across their nine total drives.
3: De'Veon Smith only received three carries in Arlington's win over San Antonio, but he made each of them count. He finished with three carries for 3 yards and three touchdowns, tying the UFL single-game record for rushing scores.
4-0: Continuity mattered in Week 1. Teams that started a quarterback who was on their roster last season went undefeated, while the teams that started a new signal-caller who was added in the offseason went 0-4.
6: Down 20-12 in the final minute, the Showboats were driving inside the Panthers' 25-yard line when Michigan's Kai Nacua stepped up and shut down Memphis' comeback hopes with the first pick-six of the season. Nacua, who earned All-UFL honors last season, took the ball back 80 yards to seal the win for Mike Nolan's crew.
8: The Defenders brought the pressure under interim head coach Shannon Harris in their upset win over the Stallions. They certainly lived up to their name with eight sacks on Sunday, with seven coming in the second half. They also held Birmingham QB and 2023 USFL MVP Alex McGough to 0-of-8 passing with an interception in the second half.
33: Wade Phillips' San Antonio defense allowed 33 points in its opener in Arlington, which is more than double what the unit allowed on average last season (league-best 15.3 points per game).
77: Former Arizona State RB Kalen Ballage made a big splash in his debut with the Renegades, setting a league record for the longest rush with his 77-yard run in the second quarter against the Brahmas on Saturday. He broke the record that was set less than 24 hours prior by St. Louis' Jarveon Howard when he ran for a 74-yard score on Friday.
273: St. Louis set a new single-game UFL record with 273 rushing yards vs. Houston. The Battlehawks were led by their powerhouse RB tandem of Jacob Saylors (16 carries for 98 yards and one score) and Howard (13 carries for 115 yards and one score), with QB Manny Wilkins chipping in with 43 yards on the ground and two rushing touchdowns.
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Yahoo
14 minutes ago
- Yahoo
2025 NBA Draft: Why all eyes are on Victor Wembanyama, the Spurs and the No. 2 pick
Victor Wembanyama is a 7-foot-5 alien who warps the court on both ends and might be the most important draft pick since LeBron James. The San Antonio Spurs have one job: don't screw it up. The modern blueprint is crystal clear: space the floor, play with pace and surround your star with shooters and decision-makers. Instead, they're on track to stack three shaky-shooting ball-handlers like it's still 2005. Last year, San Antonio drafted Stephon Castle, who won Rookie of the Year. At the deadline, they traded for De'Aaron Fox. And now they're expected to take Dylan Harper with the second pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, a 6-5 lefty who thrives with the ball in his hands. That's potentially adding three shot-creators in 12 months with not a reliable jumper between them. Advertisement San Antonio's vision is obvious: give Wemby playmakers so he doesn't have to do everything himself. But in today's NBA, it's not just about who can create, it's about who can space the floor. This is the pick that will define the direction of the Spurs, either clarifying their identity or blurring it even further. The situation in San Antonio Here are the shooting numbers for Castle, Fox, and Harper, via Synergy Sports — Fox's entire NBA career; Castle's NBA and college games; and Harper's college and high school games since 2023: Fox hasn't become a great shooter in eight NBA seasons. He's increased his volume from 1.1 catch-and-shoot 3s per game in his first two years to 3.2 in his last two, but the percentages haven't budged: 35.5% then, 35.2% now. Still below the league average of 37.2%. Advertisement And it's not just from deep. From midrange to the line, Fox has always been streaky. These flaws made his acquisition a gamble for San Antonio. But the low cost of expendable assets made him more than worth it. All-Star caliber players who actually want to play for the Spurs are hard to come by. Early returns were underwhelming, though. In 210 minutes together, Castle and Fox got outscored by 10.5 points per 100 possessions. In their 33 minutes with Wemby: minus-12.3. It's a small sample, but the results were ugly before Fox's season was ended by surgery to repair a tendon on his left hand. Still, Fox's arrival takes the pressure off Castle to be a full-time lead guard. Castle, for his part, had a strong rookie year. He looked like the Swiss Army knife scouts promised by defending, cutting, making the extra pass and overall looking like the NBA's new Andre Iguodala. Castle flashed playmaking upside, and he didn't need the ball to contribute. But he shot just 28.5% from 3, which mirrors his college numbers: Though Castle is still only 20, his shooting has always been the primary concern about his future going back to youth levels. If Castle doesn't become a reliable shooter at some point in his career, it'll make it more difficult to get him minutes if the Spurs have more options to handle the ball. Advertisement Harper's form looks fine and he's confident. He even hit 36.8% of his catch-and-shoot 3s as a freshman at Rutgers, which isn't all too bad. But the rest of his profile is loaded with red flags. These aren't the numbers of a sure-thing shooter. An even closer look at Harper's 3-point misses adds more cause for concern. I watched all 104 of Harper's misses at Rutgers and he didn't just miss short or long. He missed in every direction. On dribble jumpers, 26.5% were short and 14.7% were either air balls or blocked, pointing to rhythm issues, lower-body power inconsistencies and a low release point. On catch-and-shoot attempts, 22.2% of his misses went left and 19.4% went right, revealing directional instability even on his cleanest looks. In total, 24 of his 104 misses either hit the backboard, air-balled or were blocked, while nearly one-third sprayed left or right. Harper is clearly still searching for his shot. Advertisement The Spurs could bet he steadily improves, but if so it's more of a hope than a plan. The case for Harper Harper's appeal is related to the way he lived in the paint at Rutgers, finishing 67.5% of his shots at the rim. He doesn't blow by you with blazing speed, but he's got a herky-jerky, keep-you-guessing handle where every move sets up the next. There's a craft to him with the way he splits pick-and-rolls and manipulates defenders that makes him look more like an NBA veteran than a 19-year-old incoming rookie. And he doesn't need a screen to get into the paint either. With a beefy frame and elite body control, Harper barrels downhill at will. Defenses knew he was coming — 47.4% of his shots came in the paint — and they still couldn't stop it. On his drives inside, he's not a genius-level passer, but he's composed, accurate and tough to speed up. Harper doesn't cough up the ball despite a high degree of difficulty in his reps. He's capable of making every pass on the floor, and his feel should only improve over time. (Taylor Wilhelm/Yahoo Sports Illustration) Harper compares himself to Cade Cunningham, which makes sense since they're both jumbo guards with an all-around offensive skill set and defensive versatility. Much like Cunningham, Harper looks like a future starter at a minimum, and maybe much more. But one difference is this: Cade went first overall to a team that cleared the runway for him. San Antonio already has Castle, Fox and Wemby. There's no runway left. But Harper's path to stardom likely requires space, touches and shooters around him, not sharing a clogged paint. Advertisement And that's the paradox. Harper's talent justifies the pick. His fit makes it risky. If San Antonio takes him, it is effectively copying the Oklahoma City and Indiana blueprint with multiple playmakers and positional flexibility. But those teams work because they surround their stars with players who can either shoot, slash or process quickly enough to keep defenses honest. And their stars can play that way too. San Antonio's potential perimeter trio wouldn't check all of those boxes. They're more slashers, not spacers who stretch defenses. None scares you without the rock, and each of them has his respective issues with it, too. The Thunder and Pacers show players can improve their shots. Tyrese Haliburton dropped in the draft because of concerns about his form, and now he's hitting game-winners in the NBA Finals. Andrew Nembhard entered the league as an unpolished shooter and is in the middle of a playoff run making nearly half of his 3s. In Oklahoma City, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, Lu Dort and basically the entire roster have improved. Of course, it helps when you hire Chip Engelland. In 2022, the Thunder poached the NBA's most respected shot doctor after he spent nearly two decades in San Antonio. Since then, Oklahoma City's shooting has trended up. San Antonio's has flatlined. Jeremy Sochan is just as suspect of a shooter as he was at Baylor. Keldon Johnson has regressed. Devin Vassell has smooth mechanics and touch, but even he's never cracked 40% from 3. The Spurs used to be the league's gold standard for skill development. Now no one's getting better as a shooter except for Wemby himself. But in his two seasons, the Spurs have ranked 28th and 20th in 3-point percentage. Advertisement Is having three guards with iffy jumpers really the best way for the Spurs to optimize Wembanyama? Is it best if your second-, third- and fourth-best players all have erratic jumpers? Because this isn't just about skill sets overlapping in the backcourt, it's about how they impact the generational player they're supposed to elevate. The Wemby fit We've yet to see Wembanyama surrounded by four shooters. We haven't even seen him run two-man actions with a competent partner. Inverted pick-and-rolls. Quick slips into space. Dribble handoffs. Stuff that would weaponize his passing and make life easier for everyone. Wemby averaged just 4.8 handoffs per game this past season. For comparison: Domantas Sabonis led the league at 21.1. Rookie Alex Sarr logged 8.1. Even Zach Collins, Wemby's own backup, had more at 4.9. It's absurd that this is true. Yes, Wemby is often the receiver of a handoff. But with his vision, shooting and ball-handling, he should be initiating more of those actions in an ecosystem that provides him space to go to work. The whole point of adding shot-creators is to get Wembanyama easy shots in the paint. No surprises there: Wemby shot an absurd 79% at the rim last season. He's a cheat code in the paint. But he took only 3.2 restricted area attempts per game. That's the same volume as Lauri Markkanen, Rui Hachimura and Jonathan Kuminga. You know who else took more? Jeremy Sochan. Yes, Sochan had 5.1 per game. Sochan had more rim attempts than Wemby. What are we doing here? Advertisement The problem is obvious: there's no room. Sochan can't shoot (career 29% from deep) and the rest of the perimeter isn't any better. So even though Wemby can shoot, he has to for the offense to breathe. The Spurs have added creators, but they haven't added spacing to open lanes for Wemby. The paths forward The Spurs are at a crossroads. Their actions say they want to win now. Their roster says they're not ready. And Wembanyama's rookie contract clock is ticking. So, what should they do? Option 1: Draft Harper, keep Fox and Castle In 2022, the Kings chose Fox over Tyrese Haliburton. Not because Haliburton was worse, but because they didn't think the two could coexist. Maybe they were right. Trading Haliburton for Sabonis helped end a 16-year playoff drought. Advertisement But in hindsight, they acted too fast. Now Haliburton is clearly the better point guard and running one of the best offenses in the league, and the Kings are still trying to figure out what their post-Fox future looks like. The lesson isn't don't choose. The lesson is don't choose before you have to. That's the case for keeping the trio intact. Draft Harper. Let it breathe. Give the coaching staff a year or two or three to figure out who works best with Wemby. Castle's cutting, Harper's slashing, Fox's speed all bring value. Maybe it works. And on defense, it should. Castle was already guarding top options as a rookie. Harper has the size and instincts to be switchable. And when Fox is locked in, he's a defensive playmaker fighting through screens and picking up steals. If the Spurs stick with all three, they could smother perimeter scorers and funnel everything to the league's best rim protector. But Wemby is such a dominant paint protector that he can erase defensive breakdowns. What he can't do is manufacture spacing for himself on the other end. So there'd be more pressure for them to figure it out on offense no matter how good the team's defense becomes. And that concern is shared for the guards, not just Wemby. Harper projects best as a lead initiator with shooting around him, not as the third wheel on a team that can't space the floor. There were better lottery outcomes for him. And if Harper is the pick, what happens to Castle? He's not a shooter. He's not running the offense. So is the reigning Rookie of the Year now a low-usage cutter who doesn't space the floor? It's unclear how Castle's development tracks next to Fox and Harper. Advertisement This option doesn't just assume internal development. It assumes internal compliance that no one pushes for touches, for usage, for clarity. It assumes Wemby will keep deferring while the team figures itself out. San Antonio has a pile of extra first-rounders and zero albatross deals, so it can patch holes on the fly if things sour. So they could take Harper and wait. But if they're wrong, they won't just waste touches. They'll waste time. Option 2: Trade Castle If San Antonio believes Harper has higher long-term upside as a lead initiator, they could explore the idea of moving Castle while his value is sky-high. He's the reigning Rookie of the Year. He's young, versatile and scalable. And he plays with a maturity beyond his years. But if his jumper never comes around, and Fox and Harper are ahead of him on the ball, his role could get squeezed quickly. Advertisement Maybe the Bucks would prefer Castle and picks over Harper in a deal for Giannis Antetokounmpo. Maybe the Celtics bite on a Castle-Vassell-picks package for Jaylen Brown. Maybe another young star becomes available. Option 3: Trade down Teams like the Jazz, Wizards, Pelicans and Nets all need initiators. Maybe one of them would offer a haul to move up for Harper. Looking at the history of trade downs, usually a team would give up their own first and one future first. But considering Harper's upside, perhaps the Spurs could haggle for much more. The Nets, holding the No. 8 pick and a mountain of future firsts plus Cam Johnson, are the most interesting trade partner. Harper is a local kid with star potential, and the Nets have a clean slate he could grow with. If the Spurs want to pivot toward shooting, Johnson plus picks is a logical foundation. Advertisement In that range, Duke wing Kon Knueppel, Arizona forward Carter Bryant and Washington State wing Cedric Coward would all be strong fits. They bring shooting and versatility, which is exactly what the current Spurs core lacks. The question: Are any of them worth passing on Harper's ceiling for? Option 4: Trade out of the draft for a star The Spurs might not need another teenager. They already have youth like Wemby, Castle, Vassell, Sochan and a war chest of future picks even after adding Fox. So maybe the next move is to skip the draft entirely and chase a star. Right now, the Giannis whispers persist. They've also been linked to Kevin Durant. Around the league, sources say the Spurs have explored packaging the 14th pick with a player to upgrade the roster. Whether that upgrade is marginal or massive depends on who shakes loose, but it's clear San Antonio isn't waiting around. So if Giannis actually is available, maybe San Antonio's willing to put Harper on the table. Advertisement Option 5: Trade Fox Fox signed up to be Tony Parker to Wembanyama's Tim Duncan. But the Spurs weren't planning on drafting another primary ball-handler months later. Plans change. There's a case to move Fox before he signs a four-year, $229 million extension — or even a cheaper hometown discount deal. He turns 28 later this year. He's made just one playoff appearance. He still doesn't have a reliable jumper. And for a guard who lives off speed, any athletic slippage could get ugly fast. And even if he ages gracefully and ends up being by far the most expensive of three quality shot-creators, he won't come close to having the trade value he holds right now. San Antonio has one last window to sell high. Advertisement Harper, on the other hand, is 19 with real long-term upside. Castle is younger, cheaper and easier to fit in because he's a far better cutter and defender than Fox. It's not as if Fox and Wemby made a great first impression. Granted they ran only 46 pick-and-rolls together, but they scored a measly 0.77 points per play. A full training camp might help, but maybe not if the team's shooting situation doesn't improve. Plus Castle and Harper also need touches. Fox/Wemby simply might not be the high-usage combo the Spurs envisioned. If moving Fox were on the table, the logical targets are the teams that were connected to him at the deadline: Miami Heat: Fox for Duncan Robinson, Haywood Highsmith, Nikola Jović, the No. 20 pick and unprotected firsts in 2030 and 2032. Fox upgrades Miami's point guard spot, while San Antonio gets picks and three shooters, including a young piece in Jović. Brooklyn Nets: Fox for Cam Johnson and draft capital. Johnson spaces the floor and fits the timeline. Houston Rockets: Fox (plus Malaki Branham and Blake Wesley) for Fred VanVleet, Jabari Smith, the 10th pick and future firsts. FVV gives the Spurs a vet, while Smith would be a fascinating fit next to Wemby. Other playmaking-needy teams like the Bulls, Magic, Suns, and Timberwolves could emerge as dark horses. Phoenix is especially interesting. If the Spurs really want Durant, Fox's salary helps make the math work. Keldon Johnson, Harrison Barnes or Devin Vassell could be added to build a separate bigger deal. Advertisement But there's real risk here. Fox is a known commodity as an All-Star in his prime, capable of carrying an offense, capable of making Wemby's life easier today. Harper is unproven. If his jumper never levels up or his fit with Castle overlaps too much, San Antonio may have traded a sure thing for a question mark. You don't get many chances to pair a young superstar with a reliable point guard who actually wants to be there. If Harper doesn't hit, the Spurs will spend the next five years trying to replace what they already had. When San Antonio traded for Fox, it was trying to make the playoffs. Instead, both Fox and Wemby got hurt. The team cratered. And the lottery gave it an unexpected gift. Don't waste the alien If the Spurs keep loading up on guards with questionable jumpers, they're doing it around a star who should be the gravitational center of the entire offense. Instead, they're building a roster that pulls him to the perimeter while everyone else clogs the lane. Advertisement It's not that Castle, Fox and Harper are bad players. It's that together, they risk becoming a well-intentioned mess. Add inconsistent shooters like Sochan and Johnson, and the Spurs look like a roster that needs less of a tweak and more of an overhaul. Maybe keeping all three guards works. Maybe Castle becomes a league-average shooter, maybe Harper becomes a star and maybe Fox finds his ideal role. But that's a lot of maybes, and this isn't the kind of decision you get to re-do. The Spurs don't just have a top pick. They have a rare opportunity to choose a direction and not waste Wemby's prime untangling a roster that never fit. Advertisement Because we've seen this before. Kevin Garnett in Minnesota. Anthony Davis in New Orleans. Generational bigs held back by years of mismatched rosters and delayed decisions. The cautionary tales are clear. So is the counterexample — and the Spurs know it better than anyone. Tim Duncan's prime was maximized because San Antonio built with precision. Shooting. Defense. Clarity. Manu Ginóbili didn't need the ball to impact the game. Tony Parker could bend defenses without dominating possessions. Everyone fit around Duncan, and San Antonio always evolved with the times as the NBA changed. And because of that, it lasted two decades. Wembanyama deserves that kind of infrastructure. And right now, it feels like the Spurs are building a roster better suited for 2005. But the blueprint has never been clearer: surround your generational star with players who space the floor, make quick decisions and elevate him without always needing the ball to do it. Do that, and Wembanyama changes the sport. Don't, and years from now we'll talk about how the Spurs landed an alien and built a roster that made him look human.
Newsweek
34 minutes ago
- Newsweek
Phillies Bullpen Plans for Deadline 'Contingent' on Aaron Nola's Health
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. The Philadelphia Phillies know they must add to their bullpen at the trade deadline. How they go about adding to it is still up in the air with over a month to go before July 31. There are plenty of options for them in hopes of continuing to compete in the National League East, but Matt Gelb of The Athletic reveals a lot of it comes down to Aaron Nola's health. PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - MAY 14: Aaron Nola #27 of the Philadelphia Phillies walks to the dugout after being removed from the game in the top of the fourth inning against the St. Louis Cardinals during... PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - MAY 14: Aaron Nola #27 of the Philadelphia Phillies walks to the dugout after being removed from the game in the top of the fourth inning against the St. Louis Cardinals during game two of a doubleheader at Citizens Bank Park on May 14, 2025 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Cardinals defeated the Phillies 14-7. More"An MRI discovered a stress reaction in one of Nola's right ribs. He will be shut down from throwing for at least two weeks," wrote Gelb. "That timeline makes it unlikely that Nola throws another pitch for the Phillies before the All-Star break. It's a setback that could affect how the Phillies approach the trade deadline. Mick Abel, the rookie elevated to the rotation, has become even more important. The front office has entertained the idea of fortifying the relievers later this season by bumping a starter or two to the bullpen. But all of that is contingent on a healthy and effective Nola." Nola has been durable for most of his career to this point, which makes the timing of his injury even more significant. The Phillies have lost nine of their last 12 games and are beginning to lose ground in the NL East race. There's no timeframe on when Nola could return, and manager Rob Thomson pointed out when the injury occurred is unclear. "I have no idea," Thomson told reporters, per Gelb. "Because he doesn't really remember the moment that it happened. He just woke up one day, and it was sore." Philadelphia must make a decision soon on Nola as the deadline will be here sooner rather than later. President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski won't want to potentially lose out on high-leverage relievers and squander a shot at the National League pennant and a World Series trophy. More MLB: Red Sox $123 Million 'Outcast' Once Again Linked to Padres Ahead of Deadline
Associated Press
36 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Aaron Rodgers says his decision to play in Pittsburgh this season was 'best for my soul'
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Aaron Rodgers doesn't need to keep doing this. He knows that. The four-time NFL MVP's decision to return for a 21st season and to do it in Pittsburgh was not about trying to prove something to himself, the New York Jets or anyone else. The game has given a lot to him. Stardom. Wealth. A title. Relationships that will last long after he decides to stop playing. The next seven months — if they are indeed the last seven months of a career that almost certainly will end with a gold jacket and a bust in the Hall of Fame — are about trying to pay it forward while finding peace in the process. Standing in front of a sea of cameras more suited for the week ahead of a conference championship game rather than what Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin calls 'football-lite' in June, the 41-year-old Rodgers made a compelling case that the coda he is trying to author in Pittsburgh is about something deeper. 'A lot of decisions that I've made over my career and life from strictly the ego, even if they turn out well, are always unfulfilling,' Rodgers said Tuesday after the first day of Pittsburgh's mandatory minicamp. 'But the decisions made from the soul are usually pretty fulfilling. So this was a decision that was best for my soul.' And one the Steelers believe is best for business, one of the reasons they put no pressure on Rodgers during the spring as he dealt with off-the-field issues that he's said included having multiple people in his inner circle battle cancer. Rodgers said those issues 'have improved a bit,' clearing the way for him to join Tomlin and a team that has bounced from one quarterback to another since Ben Roethlisberger retired at the end of the 2021 season. While Rodgers is hardly a long-term solution, he believes he has enough left to help a club that has gone nearly a decade without winning a playoff game. The path from the second Tuesday in June to late January and beyond is a long one, and Rodgers balked when asked if he could help Pittsburgh get over 'the hump.' He pointed out it was simply Day 1, with all the awkwardness that comes with it. Rodgers couldn't 'stand' the new helmet he was forced to don after the model he'd worn for the last 20 years was finally banned by the league. He didn't know many of the names of the other 88 guys who joined him on the practice fields on a day All-Pro outside linebacker T.J. Watt skipped in hopes of landing a new contract. It took all of one step outside the locker room for him to immediately get lost. And yet, there was a familiarity to it all. He's known Steelers quarterbacks coach Tom Arth since Arth made a cameo appearance alongside Rodgers as a player in Green Bay in 2006. Rodgers then rattled off a list of people he's come across with Pittsburgh ties (which includes former Packers coach Mike McCarthy) and then added with a smile that he has 'a lot of Yinzers' in my life, a colloquialism for Western Pennsylvania natives. None of those names, however, convinced Rodgers that Pittsburgh was the right choice. That was all Tomlin. The two stayed in contact over the last two-plus months following Rodgers' semi-undercover visit to the team facility in March, producing what Rodgers called 'some of the coolest conversations I've had in the game.' 'He's a big reason I'm here,' Rodgers said. 'I believe in him.' The feeling is mutual. Unlike last year, when there was a quarterback competition — at least in practice if not in spirit — between Russell Wilson and Justin Fields, there is not one this time. While Rodgers, wearing a white jersey with the No. 8 on it and a towel unfurled over the front of his black shorts, mostly stood and watched while Mason Rudolph, rookie Will Howard and Skyler Thompson took the reps there is no mystery about who will work with the starters when Pittsburgh arrives for training camp at Saint Vincent College in late July. The last few groups of quarterbacks, from Wilson and Fields to Rudolph (during his first stint) to Mitch Trubisky to Kenny Pickett, never missed a practice or an OTA. They are also not Rodgers. 'I trust that whatever issues or learning curve things that he needs to get through will be handled during the down period of the summer for sure,' Tomlin said. Rodgers, who has worked out with recently acquired DK Metcalf in recent months, hopes some of the Steelers' skill position players can join him in Malibu, California, sometime between when minicamp opens on Thursday and they report to Rooney Hall on July 23. If they do, maybe they'll get a chance to meet Rodgers' wife. Rodgers was spotted wearing what looked like a wedding band in a picture the Steelers shared when he signed his contract. Rodgers confirmed Tuesday that he was married 'a couple months' ago but declined to get into details. The revelation, made late in his 13-minute session with reporters, hints at the many layers to Rodgers that extend far beyond the field. He's not afraid to express his views about many topics, from vaccines to politics and beyond. Yet there was none of that on Tuesday. There was only his firm belief in why he's here, and the optimism that this perhaps final chapter of his career will be rooted in joy. 'It's hard to think of anything in my life that's positive that wasn't impacted by directly or indirectly by playing this game,' he said. 'So (I) just want to give love back to the game, enjoy it, pass on my knowledge to my teammates, and try and find ways to help lead the team.' ___ AP NFL:
