Mickey Togs

Another big game for Joe Flacco was another big night for the Cleveland Browns.

Joe Flacco threw for 309 yards with three touchdowns and a single interception Thursday in a 37-20 Cleveland win over the New York Jets. 

The win was the fourth straight for the Browns, who improved 4-1 with Flacco at quarterback. They improved to 11-5 to secure their spot in the postseason.

In a game that featured two of the top defenses in the league, the offenses exploded for 51 points in the first half. Both clubs put together quick opening-drive touchdowns, but it was the Browns that kept up a more prolific scoring pace.

Things did cool down in the second half as neither team was able to add to their total in the third quarter and managed just a field goal apiece in the fourth. 

Flacco finished his night 19 of 29, while Jets QB Trevor Siemian was 32 of 45 for 262 yards, a touchdown and an interception.

From here, the Browns will wrap up the regular season with a trip to Cincinnati to face the Bengals. As for the Jets, they’ll also finish the year on the road as they’ll take on the Patriots in New England.

The Cheesecake Factory celebrates the 2023 holiday season with the arrival of the new Peppermint Stick Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake.

You can enjoy the festive cheesecake by the slice and as a whole 10-inch cake.

As part of the holiday celebration, The Cheesecake Factory is featuring a special holiday gift card offer online and in its restaurants nationwide.

New Peppermint Stick Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake can be found at  participating locations nationwide.

The Philadelphia Eagles improved to 11-4 on the season with a 33-25 win over the rival New York Giants. Tommy DeVito’s run as the New York Giants’ starting quarterback is done. For now, at least.

In an effort to “try to spark the team” according to Giants head coach Brian Daboll, the Giants replaced DeVito with backup Tyrod Taylor in the third quarter of Monday’s game against the Philadelphia Eagles. 

DeVito struggled to move the offense in the first half while completing 9 of 16 passes for 55 yards without a touchdown. The first half marked six straight quarters for the Giants without a touchdown following last week’s 24-6 loss to the New Orleans Saints.

“It is a business. It’s your job. I respect it,” DeVito told reporters postgame. “There’s no feelings one way or another.”

DeVito started six games this season in relief of injured starter Daniel Jones. He entered Monday’s game having completed 64% of his passes for 147.4 yards per game with eight touchdowns and three interceptions. He helped lead the Giants to three straight wins, including a Monday night upset of the Green Bay Packers in Week 14, developing a cult following in the process.

But New York’s offense has struggled to move the ball since, and a spiraling Giants team at the end of a disappointing season is moving in another direction.

On a cloudy and cool afternoon in East Rutherford, New Jersey, the New York Jets defeated the Washington Commanders, 30 – 28.

The first half saw the Commanders collapse under an avalanche of ineptitude as the Jets took a commanding 27 – 7 lead into the locker room. 

Just when the Jets looked like they were going to put the final nail in the Commanders’ coffin, Trevor Siemian threw an interception. A few plays later QB Jacoby Brissett had the Commanders in the end zone and suddenly we had a football game with the score Jets 27, Commanders 14, as the momentum shifted to the Commanders.

Four minutes later the Commanders finished off another drive with a touchdown run and took a one point lead at 28 – 27. It was a stunning and humiliating turnaround, with the Jets vaunted defense unable to stop a mediocre Commanders offense.

Trevor Siemian drove the Jets just far enough for Greg Zuerlein to kick a game winning 54 yard field goal with five seconds left on the clock. 

With the win the Jets bring their record to 6-9 on the season. 

Hulk Hogan, 70, is officially off the market for the third time as the WWE icon married girlfriend Sky Daily, 45, in Florida. 

The newlyweds tied the knot in an intimate ceremony in Clearwater, Fla. with their closest family members present to witness the joyous occasion.

The pair held their special day at their place of worship — Indian Rocks Baptist Church — with their pastor, Aaron Filippone, officiating the wedding.

Daily donned an elegant white wedding dress courtesy of Rue de Seine’s bridal gown collection with 18-karat white gold earrings encrusted with 4-karat diamonds with a matching bracelet and necklace.

Hogan wore a traditional black tuxedo with a simple white corsage.

The couple exchanged rings to cap off the memorable day.

The yoga instructor and the superstar wrestler had been dating for over a year.

Starbucks has four new Holiday Cold Foams inspired by the flavors of beloved Starbucks holiday beverages.

The cold foams combine festive flavors with Starbucks signature vanilla sweet cream to top off any drink with a merry twist.

Here’s a closer look at the Holiday Cold Foam flavors:

• Peppermint Chocolate Cream Cold Foam: Peppermint-flavored syrup and chocolate malt powder blended with Starbucks signature vanilla sweet cream.
• Sugar Cookie Cream Cold Foam: Sugar cookie-flavored syrup blended with Starbucks signature vanilla sweet cream.
• Chestnut Praline Cream Cold Foam: Festive flavors of caramelized chestnuts and spices blended with Starbucks signature vanilla sweet cream.
• Caramel Brulée Cream Cold Foam: Rich caramel brulée sauce blended with Starbucks signature vanilla sweet cream.

The Jets were outplayed and out-coached in every aspect of the game and suffered a humiliating 30-0 defeat to the Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium.

The Jets (5-9) were officially eliminated from the playoffs with the loss and wins by the Browns and Texans. They have now missed the playoffs for 13 straight seasons, the longest drought in North American sports.

It is the first time the Jets have been shut out since Sept. 26, 2021, when the Broncos beat them 26-0. Dolphins defensive coordinator Vic Fangio was the head coach of Denver that day.

Quarterback Zach Wilson was under siege in the first half behind an offensive line that played an atrocious game. He exited the game just before halftime with a head injury. Wilson had no chance to duplicate his performance against the Texans last week as he was under pressure every time he dropped back and was sacked four times. Wilson was 4-for-11 passing for 26 yards and had a fumble.

Trevor Siemian replaced Wilson and did not fare any better, getting sacked two times and going 14-for-25 with 110 yards with two interceptions.

The Jets have now lost in Miami eight straight times. Their last victory here was in the 2014 season finale, which was Rex Ryan’s final game as Jets coach. This was the largest margin of defeat for the Jets since Oct. 24, 2021, when the Patriots beat them 54-13.

The New York Giants lost to the New Orleans Saints, 24-6, on Sunday. The loss broke the Giants three-game winning streak and left them with a 5-9 record. The Saints are 7-7.

One week after the Giants did not allow any sacks for the first time this season, quarterback Tommy DeVito was sacked seven times and hit on nine other dropbacks.

Leading 7-6 at the half, New Orleans scored 17 points on its first three possessions of the second half to stretch their lead to 24-6 early in the fourth quarter. The game was basically over at that point.

“Collectively just not good enough,” said head coach Brian Daboll. “Nothing was where it needed to be today. Just overall not good enough.”

DeVito said the Giants “didn’t play with enough swagger.”

The Packers came into Monday night’s game against the Giants with a perfect record in the month of December dating back through the past 16 games they have played in that time span, but that was all spoiled as they hit the road to face the Giants.

In a game that was uneventful overall at the beginning, there was plenty of back and forth there toward the end as the Giants pulled off the 24-22 victory over the Packers in the final seconds with a field goal.

The Packers had turned things around from a 2-5 start to the season to 6-6 with a very real chance of making a strong postseason run, though they have suffered a bit of a setback at this point.

Though things looked bleak for New York at the end of the contest with just seconds remaining, QB Tommy DeVito led the team down the field to finish the job.

DeVito spoke on what he told his teammates in the huddle during that last drive after the game. The message was simple.

“Let’s go win the game. It’s on us. It’s on the offense.”

Shohei Ohtani is moving just 31 miles for his next work address, but also into another stratosphere.

The most closely followed free agency in MLB history concluded Saturday when the two-way star reached agreement with the Dodgers on a 10-year contract worth a record $700 million. 

Ohtani announced his decision in a statement.

“To all the fans and everyone involved in the baseball world, I apologize for taking so long to come to a decision,” Ohtani said. “I have decided to choose the Dodgers as my next team.”

Ohtani’s deal includes “unprecedented” deferrals — including the majority of his salary, according to sources — allowing the Dodgers the financial flexibility for other moves.

Ohtani, 29, had no shortage of suitors, including at one point the Mets. 

Ohtani, with the Angels, won his second American League MVP award last season after posting a .304/.412/.654 slash line with 44 homers and 95 RBIs in 135 games.