Entering the 2026 NFL Draft, the Minnesota Vikings had some real mysteries, especially with no official general manager in the big chair after Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’s termination in January. But through the draft process, Minnesota delivered answers, as the offseason charts a course for minicamp in June.

Minnesota entered the draft with loose ends. Three of them now have much cleaner answers.

Ranked in no particular order, these unsolved mysteries are kaput.

The Vikings Put Punctuation on Their Offseason Plan

Alas, there is clarity.

The Mystery: Would the Vikings Actually Trade OLB Jonathan Greenard?
The Resolution: Yes.

In addition to a negligible 7th-Round pick, the Minnesota Vikings offloaded outside linebacker Jonathan Greenard to the Philadelphia Eagles on the second night of the draft, getting two 3rd-Round picks in return.

Greenard had requested a contract extension from the Vikings, and Minnesota evidently didn’t have the dough on hand after spending too freely during 2025 free agency. Now, the Vikings must find an extra outside linebacker for insurance behind Andrew Van Ginkel or Dallas Turner — or have big plans for Bo Richter or Tyler Batty.

The Vikings are clearly in win-now mode. Signing Kyler Murray suggests a roster poised for a deep postseason run. If truly rebuilding, Minnesota would have simply handed the offense to 23-year-old J.J. McCarthy, letting him mature and develop. The win-now approach makes the decision regarding Greenard particularly puzzling.

Super Bowl contenders always prioritize pass rushers, investing heavily to acquire and retain them via drafts, trades, and free agency. Yet, Minnesota allowed its best pass rusher to leave rather than commit $100 million over four years.

Perhaps the contract demands were excessive, or the team prioritized financial flexibility for other roster needs. Regardless, replacing an elite EDGE rusher is exceptionally difficult. So, all attention now turns to Turner. He must immediately emerge as a game-changer, as the defense desperately requires a primary threat off the edge.

It also makes outside linebacker a top priority for next offseason’s draft. The Vikings can only recover from Greenard’s departure if Turner excels and the front office quickly secures another high-impact player at that position — or Van Ginkel proves to be ageless.

The Mystery: How Many RBs and WRs Would Minnesota Draft?
The Resolution: Just One — in Round 6.

The Vikings extensively scouted running backs and wide receivers before the draft: Jonah Coleman (RB, Washington), Emmett Johnson (RB, Nebraska), Ted Hurst (WR, Georgia State), and Antonio Williams (WR, Clemson), to name a handful.

Surely, the franchise would leave the early-to-mid rounds of the draft with one or two, right? Incorrect.

When the draft ended, the Vikings had Demond Claiborne in the basket from Round 6, and he’s now the one big hope for youth in the running back room. The Vikings also drafted zero wide receivers, nominating last year’s rookie, Tai Felton, for WR3 duty by default. It was the first time in 24 years that the Vikings drafted no quarterbacks, wide receivers, or tight ends in a draft (if one assumes that Max Bredeson is a fullback).

Many expected at least two shiny new playmakers from the draft. Minnesota rolled with a Round 6 flyer in Claiborne, and then that was it.

Our Cole Smith on Claiborne: “Minnesota was able to land speedy running back Demond Claiborne in the sixth round. Alec Lewis of The Athletic went on 9 to Noon and told Allen that some around the NFL refer to Claiborne as ‘Diet Coke De’Von Achane/Jahmyr Gibbs,’ which almost sounds cooler than regular Achane or Gibbs.”

“The Dolphins drafted Achane in 2023, and he has run 544 times for 3,057 yards (an absurd 5.7 YPC average) and 22 touchdowns. If the Vikings can get anything close to Achane in Claiborne, they will have gotten a steal. Minnesota isn’t just trying to build a roster that can win a variety of fights in 2026 and beyond.”

If Claiborne turns into the “next Achane,” fans will be utterly elated.

“They’re trying to change the way they call a football game. That doesn’t mean the Vikings won’t still try to get Justin Jefferson the football. Tyreek Hill caught 238 passes for 3,509 yards and 20 touchdowns with the Dolphins in 2022 and 2023,” Smith continued.

“But a true emphasis on ‘marrying the run to the pass’ may be mandatory moving forward, not just a phrase shared publicly but never put into practice.”

The Mystery: Was It Really as Simple as Drafting Dillon Thieneman in Round 1?
The Resolution: No, that was an unfounded, media-driven theory.

VikingsTerritory understood why Thieneman was a popular mock-draft theory for the Vikings. Minnesota could use a starting safety for the long haul. What we didn’t understand? Why every single mock draft connected Thieneman to Minnesota.

There was no intel from credible insiders or the team itself that it was “in” on Thieneman. The draft community simply thought Thieneman kind of looked like Smith, and with Smith perhaps retired, they collectively said to themselves, “Hey, this is a good fit — the Vikings will draft the guy who plays the same position and kinda looks like the other guy.”

That’s not a good formula for accurate mock-drafting, and in the end, Minnesota passed on Thieneman in favor of DT Caleb Banks from Florida.

Vinicius Jr scores twice as Real Madrid beat Espanyol 2-0 to keep Barcelona waiting to win the La Liga title, which they could now do when the two rivals meet in next Sunday’s El Clasico.

MATCH REPORT: Espanyol 0-2 Real Madrid

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Wu Yize overcame ringing phones, a protester and the efforts of Shaun Murphy to build a healthy overnight lead in his first World Snooker Championship final.

A female protester briefly interrupted play early in the match, at least one audience member was kicked out after phones rang with the players down on the shot on multiple occasions and Murphy failed to live with a barrage of scoring in the evening session as the 22-year-old Wu acclimatised nicely to the biggest match of his life.

Perhaps having been all but knocked out as Mark Allen lined up a simple winning black in their semi-final has given Wu a free hit at the title or perhaps the fearlessness of youth – a trait Murphy himself has cited as key to his own Crucible success at the age of 22 back in 2005 – is spurring him on but there is no indication of the Chinese wonderkid being overawed.

From 4-3 down, he won six of the next eight frames to build a 9-6 lead before the pair split the final two of the day to leave the younger man 10-7 to the good and needing seven more frames for victory when play resumes at 1pm on Monday.

Wu made eight 50-plus breaks, including his first century in a Crucible final in frame 10, with a remarkable display of long potting and clever break-building that has defined his impressive run to the showpiece.

No player knows how they will cope with the pressure of trying to get over the line in a World Championship final until they are actually there but the young superstar has at least given himself a great chance of finding out as he aims to match the exploits of compatriot Zhao Xintong – who became the first Chinese world champion 12 months ago.

The first session of the final was just as notable for drama off the table as on it, with a female spectator jumping over the front-row barrier to try and enter the arena, and referee Rob Spencer expertly using his skills from his previous career as a police officer to restrain her.

Ostensibly protesting about the TV licence, she was swiftly ejected by security officials, becoming the second spectator in as many days to be kicked out – joining the audience member who idiotically shouted out “never forget the Epstein files” at the start of Saturday night’s deciding frame between Wu and Allen.

In the final, Spencer also had to admonish the crowd on multiple occasions for leaving their mobiles on during play – with Murphy seemingly distracted during the second frame by a ringing phone, causing him to miss a pot on the green and throw the rest down in disgust. At the end of that frame, Spencer addressed the audience, saying: “Make sure your phones are on silent or switched off. Don’t be the person that has to be thrown out.”

Spencer then gave an even stricter warning after the mid-session interval in the evening’s play, stating: “I don’t want to have to keep doing this at the start of every single session but what’s going to happen from now on, so we’re all clear, is if a phone goes off, and the security team see who it is, you will be asked to leave.”

That didn’t stop a phone alarm going off at the start of frame 15 when Murphy was about to pot the green, and Spencer duly demanded the individual be removed from the Crucible, with the rest of the crowd clapping that decision.

On the baize, Wu had opened up a 3-0 lead in a nervy start from Murphy but the 2005 champion finally got going, with breaks of 85, 90, 77 and 109 pulling him 4-3 ahead before Wu rallied with a decent crack at a maximum but an important frame win even when that fell by the wayside.

He carried that momentum into the evening’s session as runs of 82, 89 and his first century of the final thanks to a fluked pink for a 103 saw him win four of the opening five frames for a three-frame advantage. From there, Murphy hit back to split the final four but he will still need a monumental effort on Monday to deny snooker’s newest star.

Not since Mark Selby in 2014 has a player trailing after the opening day gone on to win the World Championship final but the score in that match was also 10-7, as the “Jester from Leicester” ultimately downed great rival Ronnie O’Sullivan for his first title.

Selby’s good friend Murphy will need to take solace and inspiration from that day but the prospect of Wu in full flight will take some stopping.

Oleksandr Usyk could be persuaded to amend his three-fight plan, potentially shifting his focus away from a clash with the winner of Fabio Wardley vs Daniel Dubois.

The Ukrainian outlined his exit strategy in March, shortly after it was announced that he would collide with Dutch kickboxer Rico Verhoeven on May 23.

This represents Usyk’s first outing since July, back when he became a three-time undisputed champion by stopping Dubois in the fifth round.

Since then, he has vacated his WBO title but still holds the IBF, WBA and WBC belts as he gears up to defend the latter against Verhoeven at Egypt’s Pyramids of Giza.

After that, the 39-year-old has expressed his desire to face the winner of Wardley-Dubois, which takes place at Manchester’s Co-op Live Arena on May 9.

Wardley was elevated from ‘interim’ to full WBO world champion following his 11th-round triumph over Joseph Parker, who suffered the upset defeat in October.

Should he emerge victorious next Saturday, then the 31-year-old has made it no secret that he will be targeting a potential undisputed showdown with Usyk.

There is a good chance, however, that the WBC will order Usyk to defend his heavyweight title against Agit Kabayel, who holds the sanctioning body’s ‘interim’ belt.

At the same time, The Ring’s Mike Coppinger has reported that Turki Alalshikh is keen to negotiate a fight between the pair in Kabayel’s home nation of Germany.

Turki Alalshikh plans to sit down with Oleksandr Usyk to discuss a Ring Magazine heavyweight title fight against Agit Kabayel later this year in Germany if Usyk defeats Rico Verhoeven on May 23 at the Pyramids of Giza, The Ring’s @MikeCoppinger has learned. pic.twitter.com/etrhMhSRVi

— Ring Magazine (@ringmagazine) May 3, 2026

Having not fought since his third-round finish over Damian Knyba in January, Kabayel’s next outing is likely to take place in the second half of this year, regardless of whether it involves Usyk.

Inhoi Hur stepped off the 18th hole at Namseoul Country Club thinking he was in a playoff. 

Minutes later, he walked away two shots short of it. 

What happened may be one of the wilder rules penalty sequences you’ll hear. At the GS Caltex Maekyung Open Golf Championship in South Korea, an event co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour and the Korean Tour, Hur was given a two-stroke penalty after Sunday’s final round due to a moment that occurred a day earlier, according to the Asian Tour — and the infraction dropped him from a tie for first to a tie for third. 

The incident has been further reported by Tom Hobbs of the Flushing It X account (story here), Ryan French of the Monday Q Info website (story here) and Josh Ball of the South China Morning Post (story here), and it’s here where you should read those stories. Below is some of what they’ve reported: 

– The moment came during Saturday’s third round and on Namseoul’s par-4 seventh hole, where Hur hit a tee shot right and potentially out of bounds. He then hit a provisional, which Hobbs reported finished in the fairway.   

– A spotter found the first ball and, believing it was out of bounds, picked it up. 

– Members of Hur’s gallery believed the ball was in play, according to Hobbs and French. Things became heated; French’s story reported that Hur’s gallery believed a playing partner’s caddie had picked up the ball. An official was called. 

– After a lengthy talk, the official determined that Hur could treat the ball hit as the provisional as if it were his original ball. His next shot, then, would be his second. He finished with a par on the hole. 

– In Hobbs’ account, one player said this of what happened: “It’s f***ing bulls**t. He basically got a mulligan.”

– Then came Sunday’s final round, where Hur started tied for 11th. He then shot a 64, the day’s lowest round, and Hur, Minhyuk Song and Mingyu Cho all finished tied for first.  

– Before the playoff, officials determined that Hur would be retroactively penalized the two shots. From there, Hur missed the playoff, and Song won it. 

Hobbs’ story included a statement from Hur’s wife, and an email sent from the Asian Tour to players explaining what happened. Those are below. 

Statement from Hur’s wife:

Email from the Asian Tour:

Mike Tyson has given his immediate reaction to David Benavidez’s punishing beatdown of Gilberto Ramirez, which culminated in a stunning sixth-round finish at Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena.

The pair squared off for Ramirez’s WBO and WBA cruiserweight belts, with Benavidez jumping up from 175lbs in pursuit of three-division world championship glory.

And he did so with remarkable dominance, despite his unfamiliarity with the division and weighing in at 3lbs below the 200lb limit.

Determined to prevent Ramirez from hearing the final bell, as many had predicted, ‘The Monster’ shifted the complexion of their fight with a fourth-round knockdown.

This was the first time Ramirez had been floored in his career, to which he responded by picking himself off the canvas and continuing his forward-motion attacks.

While his tenacity was commendable, it ultimately led to him suffering a swelling on his right eye, which swiftly inspired Benavidez to go through the gears and force an emphatic sixth-round stoppage.

In doing so, the 29-year-old has cemented himself as one of the most elite fighters in this sport, while affording himself several options between cruiser and light-heavyweight.

Speaking with Fight Hub TV, heavyweight legend Tyson expressed his appreciation for Benavidez’s performance after watching at ringside.

“Great fight. He fought great tonight.”

Another familiar face in attendance was former undisputed super-middleweight king Canelo Alvarez, who Benavidez called out shortly after getting his hand raised against Ramirez.

The reigning WBC light-heavyweight champion has long accused his Mexican rival of ‘running scared’, but is evidently unwilling to quit banging the drum for their potential encounter.

Former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson was taken to hospital from Old Trafford on Sunday after feeling unwell shortly before the club’s Premier League clash against Liverpool.

The 84-year-old departed the stadium more than an hour prior to kick-off, with sources indicating the move was precautionary rather than an emergency. Ferguson, a regular presence at United matches, had earlier been seen interacting with guests at the venue.

Precautionary move before kick-off

Ferguson was escorted for medical attention as a safety measure, with early reports suggesting no immediate cause for alarm. The decision to transfer him to hospital was taken swiftly to ensure proper assessment, given his age and medical history. Sources described the situation as controlled, reinforcing that it was “purely precautionary” and not linked to any serious incident during the day.

Familiar presence at Old Trafford

Despite stepping away from managerial duties in 2013, Ferguson continues to be closely associated with Manchester United, frequently attending matches both home and away. He is often seen in the directors’ box, maintaining a visible connection with the club he managed for 27 years. His presence remains symbolic of the club’s most successful era.

Health history and recovery

In May 2018, Ferguson underwent emergency surgery following a brain haemorrhage, a life-threatening condition that required intensive treatment. He later made a full recovery and has since resumed public appearances, including regular visits to Old Trafford. There has been no indication that the current incident is related to that past medical episode.

Personal and club developments

Ferguson has experienced significant personal changes in recent years, including the passing of his wife, Lady Cathy, in 2023. The loss was widely felt across the football community. Additionally, his formal ambassadorial role at Manchester United ended following structural changes under new ownership, though his association with the club remains strong.

Awaiting further updates

No detailed medical update has been released following his admission. However, those close to the situation remain confident that Ferguson’s condition is stable and that he will be discharged soon.

Man Utd youngster Kobbie Mainoo netted a late winner to secure a 3-2 win against Liverpool in the Premier League.

Manchester United youngster Kobbie Mainoo described his spell out of the team during Ruben Amorim’s tenure as “difficult”. Mainoo slipped down the pecking order at United during Amorim’s time in charge.

Amorim could not find a way to fit Mainoo into his system, experimenting with him as a No.10 and as a striker, and he eventually pitted the academy graduate against Bruno Fernandes in a deeper midfield role.

Mainoo submitted a request to leave on loan in the final week of last summer’s transfer window. However, the request was denied, and he continued to struggle for game time until Amorim was sacked amid rising tensions with the board in January.

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Michael Carrick reinstated Mainoo to the starting team as one of his first acts following his appointment. The Stockport-born youngster has since been key in United’s success, and he scored the winner against Liverpool on Sunday afternoon to officially secure a return to the Champions League.

After the Liverpool win, Mainoo was asked what he thought about his situation under Amorim. “It was difficult, of course, anytime you’re not playing football,” he told Sky Sports. “I just tried to look forward as much as possible and to keep my head down.”

The midfielder praised Carrick, adding: “He’s played a huge part in it, all the confidence he gives all the players. You want to follow him and fight for him and die for him on the pitch.”

Mainoo also discussed the team’s performance: “Happy to turn it [the season] around, it’s a credit to all our players and the manager as well. We still need to finish the season strong, this is not enough for us.

“It’s never an easy game against Liverpool, glad to come out with a win. Liverpool are a good side, we didn’t come out as sharp as we should have but we came away with a win.

“It was a huge goal for us to get Champions League, but the season isn’t over yet, we’re not letting our foot off the gas.”

Mainoo’s new contract was announced a few days before the Liverpool game. The youngster was among the lowest earners in United’s dressing room, having last signed a contract at 17, but he has been rewarded with improved terms to tie him down for another five years.

The midfielder’s contract situation at Old Trafford had rumbled on for a while. In 2024, Mainoo was close to signing a new deal, but talks stalled and hit a more significant snag when Amorim was appointed.

“It’s a blessing, happy to commit my future to the club I’ve been at all my life,” said Mainoo of his new deal.

Sky Sports, HBO Max, Netflix and Disney+ with Ultimate TV package

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The UCLA Bruins scored 11 runs in the final three innings of Sunday’s game to defeat the Michigan State Spartans 13-11.

UCLA was behind eight runs in the seventh inning, following Michigan State’s relentless hitting from the early to middle stages of the game. But a leadoff hit-by-pitch for second baseman Aiden Aguayo sparked a resurgence that ultimately swayed the momentum back towards UCLA.

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Michigan State reliever Tommy Szczepanski walked three consecutive UCLA batters after the hit-by-pitch on Aguayo to bring in a run. A bases-loaded groundout from first baseman Mulivai Levu scored another, then a chopping RBI-double from right fielder Payton Brennan made the score 10-5 with runners on second and third.

UCLA continued to string together a series of hits that cut away at Michigan State’s lead, such as a two-RBI double from centerfielder Will Gasparino lofted to shallow right field and an RBI single from catcher Cashel Dugger. UCLA’s lead was 10-7 going into the bottom of the seventh.

Michigan State left fielder Nick Williams responded with a solo home run to right field that provided an insurance run for the Spartans. 

But in the eighth inning, UCLA left fielder Dean West answered with a shot to right-center field that climbed Michigan State’s outfield hill and permitted a triple with shortstop Roch Cholowsky next at the plate. Cholowsky grounded a ball to short stop that resulted in a throwing error to score West.

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A walk from Levu brought UCLA third baseman Roman Martin to bat with two runners on base. Martin drove a 1-2 pitch to the left center wall to score Cholowsky and make it an 11-10 game.

Brennan took the plate again with Bruins on second and third. He lifted a sacrifice fly ball to left field that allowed Levu to reach home and tie the score 11-11.

UCLA pitcher Zach Strickland retired three straight in the bottom of the eighth to pave the way for the Bruins to take the lead in the ninth.

With Aguayo on second and West on first, Cholowsky entered the batter’s box for UCLA. Cholowsky lined the first pitch out of the reach of Michigan State’s left fielder. Aguayo rounded third and scored to give UCLA the lead 12-11.

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Levu tacked on another run to give UCLA a two run lead before they sent closer Easton Hawk to finish the game. 

With a runner on first, Hawk caught a line drive hit back towards him and tossed it to first to get the double play. He then forced Michigan State’s final batter into a ground out to secure the comeback victory for UCLA.

This triumph established UCLA as the Big Ten Conference regular season champions. They remained an undefeated 24-0 in the conference with eight consecutive sweeps.

The Bruins’ overall record reached 43-4 and they keep their road record perfect at 15-0.

UCLA will return to Los Angeles to face Loyola Marymount University for their last away game of the road trip on Tuesday before hosting Oregon next weekend.

Gujarat Titans skipper Shubman Gill on Sunday said they didn’t want to take the match so deep but was happy after securing two points against table-toppers Punjab Kings in an IPL 2026 match on Sunday. After restricting PBKS to 163 for 9, PBKS reached 167 six with a ball to spare. “Would have liked to not take it as deep as we did. But two points! We always knew this is not the kind of wicket where we can chase it in 15-16 overs. If someone is set, they should go deep,” said Gill during the post-match presentation.

“Length balls weren’t coming. Important for the batter who was set — lucky for us, Washy finished it off. It was all about the kind of situation we are in, and the best batter (on sending out left-handers),” Gill said.

PBKS skipper Shreyas Iyer was a little dejected, and thought 163 was a defendable total.

“I personally thought it was a great score. New ball was doing a bit at the start. Their bowlers made best use of the surface, the way they were hitting the deck. We lost four wickets in the powerplay, just to get to 160 from there was a phenomenal effort.

“With the new ball, I thought we would be able to hit line and length and be accurate and get wickets, but it didn’t work out. Kudos to the effort, attitude and approach. We missed on hitting the hard lengths, I think. Hitting over midwicket wasn’t easy on this wicket, there was variable bounce,” he said.

Iyer said his side misfired in the execution.

“In terms of execution, we fell short. We’re still top of the table, we’ll take positives from that…. Shows the character of the bowlers, wanted to win, didn’t click (today.

“Excited for the opportunity (in Hyderabad next). Boys putting in hard yards. If the character is high, attitude is right, results will come eventually,” he said. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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