Chad Brown is utilizing the “strength in numbers” concept at the 2026 Belmont Stakes as he has three horses in the field. All three are mid-to-long shots, but saddling 33% of the Belmont Stakes 2026 field certainly has its advantages. Emerging Market at 6-1 has the shortest Belmont Stakes odds of Brown’s trio, followed by Growth Equity (12-1) and Ottinho (20-1). A native of Mechanicville, N.Y., Brown will aim for his first Belmont victory at a race track just 15 minutes from his hometown. Claim your exclusive TwinSpires $400 signup offer here with the promo code CBSSPORTS, more than what’s available to the general public:

The 2026 Belmont Stakes has a 7:04 p.m. ET post time on Saturday at Saratoga Race Course. Ahead of Brown’s trio of thoroughbreds on the Belmont Stakes 2026 odds board is the favorite, Renegade (2-1), Chief Wallabee at 3-1 and Kentucky Derby winner Golden Tempo at 9-2. With so much to consider while making your 2026 Belmont Stakes picks, a little expert help can go a long way.

The 2026 Belmont Stakes will be the 158th running of the Test of Champions and, unsurprisingly, the list of winners is overwhelmingly American thoroughbreds. Just nine of the prior 157 Belmont champions were born outside of the United States. Five were British-born, three came from Ireland, and one was from Canada. Victory Gallop (1998) remains the last foreign-born Belmont Stakes champion as the Canadian thoroughbred won by a nose in that year’s race, thus preventing Real Quiet’s bid for the Triple Crown.

Given all the history of the race, there’s a method to picking which horses to focus on for exacta, trifecta and superfecta bets in a Belmont Stakes like this, and SportsLine expert Jody Demling knows what it is. He can help you make the best 2026 Belmont Stakes picks possible.

A fixture in the horse racing world who has been writing about, talking about and betting on races for years, Demling hit the top three finishers in the 2025 Kentucky Derby in the correct order. He also called 11 of the last 22 Preakness winners and predicted the winner of the Belmont Stakes four of the last eight years, including an exacta in 2022 with Mo Donegal and Nest. Anyone who has followed him on horse racing betting sites could be way up.

Now, with the 2026 Belmont Stakes post positions set and odds on the board, Demling is sharing his picks and 2026 Belmont Stakes betting predictions over at SportsLine. Go here to see them.

Claim your exclusive TwinSpires promo code CBSSPORTS $400 signup offer here, higher than what’s available to the general public:

Top 2026 Belmont Stakes expert picks

Here’s a refresher on these types of bets from SportsLine’s Jody Demling:

Belmont Stakes Exacta: Pick the first- and second-place finishers in the correct order. A $2 exacta returned $13.20 at the 2025 Belmont Stakes with Sovereignty and Journalism.

Belmont Stakes Trifecta: Pick the first-, second- and third-place finishers in the correct order. A $1 trifecta returned $13.80 at the 2025 Belmont Stakes with Sovereignty, Journalism and Baeza.

Belmont Stakes Superfecta: Pick the first-, second-, third- and fourth-place finishers in the correct order. A $1 superfecta returned a colossal $40.50 at the 2025 Belmont Stakes with Sovereignty, Journalism, Baeza and Rodriguez.

While Golden Tempo (9-2) is one of the favorites, Demling isn’t including the Kentucky Derby winner in his picks for the 2026 Belmont Stakes. “I still don’t believe he’s the best of this bunch and I don’t think he gets a perfect set up here like he did at Churchill,” Demling told SportsLine. He is building his tickets around an epic double-digit longshot who a legendary trainer is “very high on”, spicing up Demling’s 2026 Belmont Stakes exotics. You can see his picks here. 

How to make 2026 Belmont Stakes bets

Demling has specific recommendations for exacta, trifecta and superfecta wagers so you can cover all your bases at the Belmont Stakes 2026. He’s sharing them over at SportsLine.

So which horses do you take, and in what combinations? Visit SportsLine to get Demling’s picks for exacta, trifecta and superfecta bets for the 2026 Belmont Stakes.

2026 Belmont Stakes odds, futures, horses, post positions

The Detroit Lions have suffered their first significant injury setback of the offseason.

Prior to Thursday’s practice, head coach Dan Campbell announced that rookie wide receiver Kendrick Law has torn his ACL and will miss the entire 2026 season.

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Law was selected by the Lions in the fifth round of the 2026 NFL Draft with the 168th overall pick and was expected to compete for a depth role in Detroit’s wide receiver room.

Tough Break for Lions Rookie

The injury is a disappointing development for the 22-year-old receiver, who entered the NFL after spending time at both Alabama and Kentucky.

Standing 6-foot and weighing 205 pounds, Law brought intriguing athletic traits and versatility to Detroit’s roster. The Lions viewed him as a developmental prospect with upside, particularly on special teams and as a depth receiver.

Now, his rookie season will instead be focused on rehabilitation and recovery.

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What It Means for Detroit

While Law was not expected to have a major role in the offense this season, his injury does impact the team’s overall depth at wide receiver.

The Lions return a strong receiving corps led by Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, Tim Patrick, and second-year receiver Isaac TeSlaa. Detroit also added several young receivers this offseason who will now receive additional opportunities throughout training camp and the preseason.

For Law, the focus shifts toward making a full recovery and positioning himself to compete for a roster spot in 2027.

Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva reached her first Grand Slam final with a dominant victory over Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk at the French Open.

A beaten semi-finalist in 2024, Andreeva was hugely impressive throughout her 6-1 6-3 victory and will await compatriot Diana Shnaider, the 25th seed, or Polish qualifier Maja Chwalinska in Saturday’s final.

The 19-year-old is the fourth-youngest woman to reach the Roland Garros showpiece in the past 30 years, after Martina Hingis, Kim Clijsters and Coco Gauff.

Should she prevail, Andreeva would become the third-youngest first-time Grand Slam champion this century, after Maria Sharapova and Emma Raducanu.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine provided an unavoidable backdrop to the contest, with Kostyuk regularly denouncing the war since it began in February 2022 – and being highly critical of athletes from Russia who have failed to do so.

In keeping with the stance taken by Ukrainian players over the past four years, Kostyuk did not pose for a pre-match photo with Andreeva, and the players did not shake hands afterwards.

Noelvi Marte is running out of chances. But he is getting another one. And Fantasy players should take note, yet again. 

Sure, Marte’s time in the majors has mostly been marked by failure. The former top prospect is hitting just .249 with a .679 OPS in 202 games across parts of four seasons, including a brief stint with the Reds at the beginning of the season, where he struck out 10 times in 11 games while hitting .138 before being sent promptly back to Triple-A. His lack of a real defensive home could be overcome with some consistency with the bat, but he’s just never forced his way into the team’s long-term plans.

But man, is there still a lot of talent here. We’ve seen it in brief spurts in the majors, including when he put up an .837 OPS with a 30-homer pace in July and August of last season. And we’ve definitely seen it in the minors, where he was hitting .369/.409/.575 after his demotion to Triple-A, with eight homers and nine steals in 40 games. 

And the Reds really need Marte to figure it out this time. They sent the struggling TJ Friedl down to Triple-A Wednesday to make room for Marte on their roster, and it looks like that sets him up to play center field in the bigs for the first time ever. It’s asking a lot of the converted infielder, who hadn’t even played the outfield until last summer. It’ll be a high-wire act for sure, and it might be asking too much of Marte to play the most difficult position in the outfield while also trying to establish himself as a real-deal big-leaguer.

But if he proves up to the challenge, there is still obvious difference-making ability here for Fantasy. He remains a premium athlete with at least plus raw power, and he was putting it on display in Triple-A, ranking in the 75th percentile or better in pretty much every power metric. He was also striking out just 15% of the time despite pretty poor swing decisions, and if he can continue to be aggressive without putting himself in too many holes against MLB pitching, he has a chance to be a 20-20 guy, at least. 

Let’s hope the Reds really give him a chance this time — he wasn’t in the lineup Wednesday, but should be out there soon. They should. It might be one of the last chances he really gets, but this is a team that wants to make the playoffs and needs a big boost in their outfield and in the lineup, especially with Elly De La Cruz nursing a hamstring injury. If he hits the ground running this time, Marte should be a fixture in the Reds lineup the rest of the way; if he doesn’t, it might be time for a change of scenery, and at least the Reds will know where they need to shop when the deadline gets here. 

Either way, he’s getting the opportunity and remains a very talented player. For those of us in categories leagues, Marte is worth taking the chance on, just like it’s worth the Reds giving him another chance. Let’s see what he can do with it this time. 

Now, here’s what else you need to know about from Wednesday’s action around MLB: 

Thursday’s top waiver-wire targets

Here’s who we’re looking to add coming out of Wednesday’s action: 

Sam Antonacci, 2B, White Sox (54%) – I think Antonacci is just a good hitter. He makes a ton of contact, and while he doesn’t have huge power, he isn’t a total slap hitter either, as he showed with a pair of doubles amid his four-hit game Wednesday. With merely average pop and a spray-it-to-all-fields approach, Antonacci isn’t likely to be much of an over-the-threat power hitter, but the batting average is real – he’s hitting .291, and his .310 xBA suggests it isn’t a fluke – and he might be a 30-steal guy who gets to a 90-run pace now that he’s cemented in the leadoff spot. It all looks a lot like what we were hoping Luke Keaschall could be before the season, and it might not be much different than what someone like Nico Hoerner gives us. 

Troy Melton, SP, Tigers (41%) – You certainly can’t argue with the results, as Melton has gone at least seven innings in consecutive starts and has allowed just four runs in 20.2 innings total since coming off the IL after his eight-inning, two-run outing Wednesday. He still isn’t missing enough bats, though, and that’s the main thing keeping me from fully embracing him as a breakout right now. The biggest issue right now is the four-seam fastball, which looked like an above-average swing and miss pitch as a rookie but has generated a whiff on just about 14% of swings so far, a pretty poor rate. You can live with it if he keeps managing hard contact like he has, but I’m not as excited as I would have expected to be about Melton at this point – and the fact that his velocity was down another tick on his four-seamer (now nearly 2 mph down from last year) doesn’t help his case, either. It’s still fine to add him for a matchup against the Twins next week, but I’m keeping my expectations in check for now. 

Mick Abel, SP, Twins (47%) – Hey, remember him? Abel put together a couple of excellent starts in a row in April, peaking with a 10-strikeout gem against the Red Sox on April 14, and we haven’t seen him since. He went on the IL with right elbow inflammation after that start and has had a fitful process coming back, but is on the right track now; he’ll throw a live batting practice session Thursday, and if that goes well, he could be cleared to go on a rehab assignment. We’re probably still a few weeks away from seeing Abel back in the majors, but if you’ve got an IL spot to play with, he’s a viable target in all leagues, just in case that early-season apparent breakout turns out to be legit. 

Kyle Manzardo, 1B, Guardians (23%) – Manzardo has been a pretty big disappointment this season, but that may be starting to change. He started his eighth straight game Tuesday, and he homered for the second straight, going 3 for 4 as the Guardians edged the Yankees. It’s his fifth homer in his past 13 games, though his strikeout rate is also spiking in that stretch, which is concerning. Still, Manzardo nearly got to 30 homers last season, and I still think that kind of upside is here, especially since he’s been hitting lefties better this season. He probably only matters as a corner infielder right now, but for a cheap injection of power, he’s pretty interesting. 

Stephen Kolek, SP, Royals (48%) – Kolek has had a bit of an up-and-down season, but he’s been very good in two of his past three starts, sandwiched around a pretty rough one. Wednesday saw him strike out a season-high eight batters, in large part thanks to a slider that generated seven whiffs on 12 swings. Kolek generally doesn’t miss a lot of bats, though leaning into that slider more could help change that, as it has a 40% whiff rate for the season; he upped his usage of the pitch from 11% to 20% in this one. That’s an interesting wrinkle for a guy with excellent control, and if he can inch up even closer to average in his strikeout rate, Kolek might be pretty useful for Fantasy.

Wednesday’s standouts

Bo Bichette, SS, Mets – We’ve had a few false starts from Bichette this season, including a two-game stretch in mid-May where he homered three times, had five hits, and looked like he was finally turning it on. He followed that up with 14 straight games without an extra-base hit – a streak that is still alive. Which is to say, I have no idea if Bichette’s four-hit game Wednesday against the Mariners is going to be another failure to launch or the actual start of his turnaround. But I will continue to say this much: I do think the turnaround is coming at some point. Bichette’s expected wOBA over the past 100 plate appearances is .358, actually slightly better than last season’s mark, so I just don’t buy that his skill set has totally collapsed. I’m still buying Bichette stock. 

Chase Burns, Reds vs. KC: 6 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 9 K – At this point, the only real question for Burns is whether the Reds are likely to limit his workload at some point this season. Well, there are also questions about whether he’ll stay healthy (which exists for every pitcher), as well as about how he’ll hold up as his innings continue to pile up (a question with no real answer until we see it). But as for the workload, I don’t really think it’s likely to be too much of an issue – teams tend to prefer to limit young pitchers from jumping more than around 50 innings from one season to the next, and Burns only got to 111, including the postseason. Burns is on pace for around 170 innings if he ends up making 30 starts, so even allowing for some wiggle room, I do think we’re likely to see some kind of limitations for Burns at some point, especially since the Reds still very much have to plan for him pitching in the postseason. But I don’t think that means we’re going to see him shut down or pulled from the rotation, or anything like that. Some outings where he’s pulled from starts after five innings if the Reds have an early lead? Or perhaps a skipped start or two once Hunter Greene is healthy? Yeah, I could see that. It won’t likely change Burns’ outlook much, but it is one potential limitation he could be facing the rest of the way that some of the other pitchers in the top 20 of the rankings won’t. 

Gerrit Cole, Yankees vs. CLE: 5.1 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 2 K – We’re three starts in, and it’s kind of been all over the place for Cole. His first start saw him allow just two hits over six shutout innings, but with just two strikeouts; then he tossed 6.2 shutout innings in his next one with 10 strikeouts; and then there was this one. This is his first truly bad start, but it’s also now the second time in three with two strikeouts, and he generated just three swinging strikes Wednesday. I don’t really have a good explanation for why Cole hasn’t been consistently missing bats, because his stuff certainly doesn’t seem much worse than it did when he pitched in 2024 and had a 25% strikeout rate. I’m inclined to just chalk it up as one of those weird things that happens in a small sample size, especially since both of his low-strikeout games came against teams that rank in the bottom five in strikeout rate, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t concerned. Which is a bummer given how good he was two starts ago. I just don’t know who Cole is yet, as he comes back from Tommy John surgery. 

George Kirby, Mariners, vs. NYM: 4 IP, 9 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 5 K – We’re going on more than a year of Kirby’s control taking a step back, and while that was a reasonable tradeoff when it came with a career-best strikeout rate, it’s harder to be excited about Kirby when he has both a career-worst walk rate and a career-worst strikeout rate. His four-seamer has lost some of the run he added to it last season, but hasn’t gained back any of the ride he had prior to 2024, leaving it somewhere in the middle, and less effective as a swing-and-miss pitch than ever before. Kirby has never been a huge bat-misser, but you could live with that when he was limiting walks at a historic rate. Now? Well, he hasn’t looked like a top-15 starting pitcher in a while, and I’m not sure I have a ton of confidence in him getting back to that level. 

Logan Webb, Giants @MIL: 7 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K – Webb diversified his arsenal a bit more in this one, and it helped keep the Brewers off balance. He can be a frustrating pitcher over the course of the season because he’s constantly tinkering and seemingly losing the feel for certain pitches, so there’s always an element of experimentation involved with Webb. But the end result is usually a ton of volume and good enough ratios, and I still tend to think that’s where we’ll end up here in the long run, despite how frustrating things have been for him this season. This was a good first step to getting back on track, though we’d certainly still like to see him missing more bats. 

Max Meyer, Marlins @WAS: 7 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 7 K – When you have a big-time breakout like Meyer, who finally stumbles, I always want to see how they respond. Meyer was tagged for five earned runs in his previous start, but he bounced back in a big way against a Nationals offense that hasn’t exactly been pushovers lately. What’s worth noting here is that Meyer’s slider still wasn’t at its best in this one, just like in the previous outing, but the sweeper was able to pick up the slack this time around. It’s hard to envision a version of Meyer who succeeds without his slider at its best in the long run, so I imagine getting that pitch back to being his best swing-and-miss weapon will be a focus between starts. It’s nice to see him find some success without it, but that probably won’t be sustainable. 

Taj Bradley, Twins vs. CHW: 4.2 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 5 BB, 5 K – You have to wonder if Bradley just isn’t 100% right, as he has given up eight runs in 8.2 innings since going on the IL with a pec injury. Or maybe that is wishful thinking, because the alternative is we’re starting to see him regress after looking like a breakout through the first month-plus of the season. Bradley’s velocity was fine Wednesday, but he just couldn’t throw strikes consistently enough. The good news is he still generated 15 swinging strikes, so the stuff is still causing hitters some issues, a good sign. I’m not panicking yet, but Bradley’s issue has always been consistency, and I am worried he just ran hot for a month and is still the same frustrating guy he’s always been. Another poor start and we’ll have to really start to worry. 

Spencer Arrighetti, Astros vs. PIT: 4 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 3 K – If Arrighetti isn’t going to miss bats, I don’t really see what there is to get excited about. Sure, it’s a 1.94 ERA even after this bad start, but with a now below-average strikeout rate and terrible control, just like last season. He’s been surviving off weak contact so far this season, but that’s not something I have a ton of faith in Arrighetti sustaining, so I think this is just the start of his regression. If anyone is buying, I’d be trying to sell Arrighetti right now, because I do not think he’s even a top-75 SP right now. 

Nick Martinez, Rays vs. DET: 4 IP, 9 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 1 K – Even against good matchups, sometimes these things blow up in your face. Martinez has been remarkably useful all season long, but we have enough of a track record here to know it wasn’t going to last – he’s a good pitcher in spurts, but it rarely lasts. His 2.29 ERA and 1.19 WHIP are still good, but the lack of strikeouts and 4.15 xERA limit how much you can truly rely on it. He could be useful against the Red Sox next week, but with the Dodgers likely looming after that, Martinez doesn’t look like the kind of pitcher you need to keep around. 

Walbert Urena, Angels vs. COL: 6 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 7 K – This was a pretty solid start, but the limitations are still hard to miss. Urena throws hard, but he doesn’t miss many bats with his fastballs, typically leaving his changeup as his only reliable swing-and-miss pitch. That can work for him some days, but his iffy command and control make it hard to depend on. Urena kind of has the Jose Soriano starter kit, but he either needs the sweeper to take a step forward as a swing-and-miss offering or for his control to level up before he can be viewed as much more than interesting. 

Andrew Alvarez, SP, Nationals vs. MIA: 4.2 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K – There was some pretty interesting stuff going on with Alvarez in this one. Not enough to make him worth adding in all formats, or even in most 15-team mixed leagues. But Alvarez missed a good amount of bats Wednesday, including 10 whiffs on his slider and curveball on 27 swings, carrying over trends we saw from him in his time in the bullpen. Those are legitimate swing-and-miss pitches for Alvarez, but the fastballs have been a lot less effective, and it’s hard to survive against major-league hitters throwing breaking balls 65% of the time or more. So Alvarez is more of a name to watch right now, especially since we haven’t seen him finish even five innings yet. But there are some interesting skills to keep an eye on here, certainly. 

Kuldeep Yadav (Photo by @BCCI on X)

NEW DELHI: India spinner Kuldeep Yadav says his attention is firmly on Test cricket as he prepares to spearhead the team’s spin attack in the one-off Test against Afghanistan.Despite a disappointing IPL 2026 campaign with Delhi Capitals, where he picked up only 10 wickets and the team missed the playoffs, the early exit has given him valuable time to switch gears and focus on the longer format. The left-arm wrist-spinner, who has taken 76 wickets in 17 Tests, believes his primary responsibility is to deliver breakthroughs for the team. “As an attacking spinner, I want to get breakthroughs for the team regularly, and that’s my only mindset. My focus is fully on playing red-ball cricket,” the spinner said on JioHotstar’s “Follow the Blues” segment.Kuldeep admitted that moving from T20 cricket to the demands of Test matches is never easy. He used the extra time after the IPL to prepare specifically for red-ball cricket and get accustomed to the different challenges it presents.“It is tough when you switch from IPL cricket to red-ball cricket. Preparation becomes very necessary. Luckily, I have time. I practised for at least 10 to 15 days and got the feel of the red ball,” he added.He explained that patience and consistency are far more important in Test cricket than in T20s, saying, “Bowling in Test cricket is different. In T20, you are always attacking. You always think about going after the batter. But in Test cricket, the batter has a lot of time.”Kuldeep also stressed the importance of having a strong spin attack, especially with major Test assignments against Australia, Sri Lanka and New Zealand coming up, adding, “I believe that if you have a quality spin attack in your team, you can break the game open in any situation.”With Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel rested, Kuldeep will have added responsibility in Afghanistan Test. However, he is confident that youngsters Harsh Dubey and Manav Suthar are ready for the challenge.“The preparations have been going well for the Afghanistan Test match. We have had two net sessions so far. Yes, Jaddu bhai is not there. He is a regular in Tests. We will also miss Axar Patel. But the preparations have been good,” he revealed. Kuldeep praised the young spinners for their domestic experience and red-ball exposure. He added, “They might lack international experience, but when it comes to preparation and match awareness when it comes to red-ball cricket, they are absolutely on top because they have been playing regularly.” He believes their recent involvement in India A tours and domestic tournaments has prepared them well for the international stage.

The last thing the Minnesota Vikings will do this summer is trade Justin Jefferson, but that didn’t stop Bleacher Report from dreaming big this week, pounding home a Jefferson trade theory from a Buffalo Bills perspective.

Fresh off the steam of two colossal NFL trades — Myles Garrett to the Los Angeles Rams and A.J. Browns to the New England Patriots — BR Alex Kay decided it was reasonable to ship Jefferson east.

Vikings Have No Practical Path to Move Jefferson

BR: Jefferson to Bills Would Be Like Garrett to LAR

Kay sized up five bombastic NFL trades, and Jefferson to Josh Allen’s team made the cut.

He explained, “Buffalo Bills receive: WR Justin Jefferson. Minnesota Vikings receive: 2027 first-, second- and fourth-round picks, 2028 third- and fifth-round picks. Dealing Jefferson in exchange for a massive amount of capital would position the Vikings to land one of the coveted quarterback prospects set to be available in the 2027 draft.”

“With a slew of high-end signal-callers set to enter the league next offseason, Minnesota can’t afford to miss out if it wants to return to prominence in the brutally tough NFC North. A team all-in on winning a Super Bowl this coming season would be the ideal suitor for Jefferson. The Buffalo Bills would be an intriguing choice after they came up painfully short last season.”

Ironically, Jefferson ended up with the Vikings because of a WR trade to the Bills in 2020: Stefon Diggs.

“While they did trade for DJ Moore to bolster an undermanned receiving corps, they failed to land a true needle-mover to pair with star QB Josh Allen. An Allen-Jefferson battery could put up historic numbers akin to what Randy Moss and Tom Brady accomplished with the 2007 New England Patriots,” Kay continued.

“It would cost the Bills a haul of future picks to bring the tandem together, but doing so would give the club perhaps its best shot yet at a championship.”

Fun — but Not Realistic

The spirit of Kay’s article was dream trades … hypothetically — and that’s fine. Vikings fans can stand around and imagine a Bijan Robinson trade all day if they’d like. That’s what daydreaming is for. But Jefferson to Buffalo this summer or Robinson to Minnesota anytime soon simply are not realistic. Minnesota has no incentive to subtract its best player; neither does Atlanta.

In fact, new Vikings general manager Nolan Teasley said Wednesday that his team is competing for a Super Bowl as early as now. The Vikings are not in a rebuild mode or anywhere close to it. Therefore, if Minnesota is “in it to win it” in 2026, trading Jefferson just doesn’t move the needle.

It would’ve been like the New York Knicks trading Jalen Brunson last October.

The Money Doesn’t Work

Trading Jefferson this summer would be a financial disaster for Minnesota, costing them approximately $70.5 million in dead cap. Such a move is typically reserved for players who are underperforming, who are forcing a trade, or who are creating significant locker-room issues. Jefferson, however, is none of these; he remains a top-tier talent, the cornerstone of their franchise, and a reliable asset for the team’s future.

That financial reality alone makes any trade speculation premature, even before considering the on-field implications. A trade only becomes financially viable after June 1, 2027, when the financial impact would decrease to roughly $19 million (but with more hitting the books in 2028). Even then, the Vikings would require an exceptionally compelling reason to ponder such a move.

Until then, any discussion of trading Jefferson is baseless. While Minnesota can explore options for linebackers and centers in free agency, for example, trading Jefferson this summer is an entirely different proposition.

A Jefferson trade is virtually impossible for now.

Beware of 2027 Jefferson Trade Takes, Though

The real worry emerges a year from now.

Consider the Damian Lillard drama in Portland. For years, NBA analysts urged him to leave, but he remained loyal, carrying imperfect teams until he finally reached his breaking point. That should serve as a warning for Minnesota. Elite players typically preach patience, but only until the team gives them too many reasons to quit.

It places the spotlight squarely on the Vikings’ quarterback plan. Jefferson cannot be chasing 1,000 yards in December while the rest of the season drifts into discussions about draft order. Minnesota needs Kyler Murray, J.J. McCarthy, or both to make the offense dangerous enough to genuinely contend.

McCarthy received a full season tryout and ended up at the bottom of the league in efficiency while battling three injuries. That performance opened the door for Murray. It’s likely Murray’s turn in September.

Trading Jefferson now would be an unholy decision. A Vikings 2026 finish sans the playoffs would open a can of worms on the topic.

Dustin Baker is a novelist and political scientist. His second novel, The Invaders , is out now. So is … More about Dustin Baker

After blitzing out Dave Allen last month, Filip Hrgovic looks set for a second consecutive outing on British soil, expected to collide with Moses Itauma next.

Now, after recently facing the imposing Croatian, Allen has provided a prediction for that proposed fight.

Hrgovic suffered a first career defeat when he lost to Daniel Dubois by stoppage in a bid for the IBF Interim heavyweight title; a loss which ultimately cost him world honours, with ‘Triple D’ elevated to full world champion soon after.

However, ‘El Animal’ has since bounced back, with last month’s three-round beatdown of Allen marking three wins over British opponents within a 13-month spell and teeing up a fifth straight clash against an opponent from the UK.

The victor of Itauma-Hrgovic is expected to move on to a shot at the heavyweight throne, but despite his recent one-sided defeat, Allen picked 21-year-old Itauma to come out on top, on his TikTok account. 

“It’s a great fight, it is a big step up, I think. I think that Franklin was a good fight but Hrgovic is another step up again, a lot more danger.

“Hrgovic, I think, is a world-class fighter. I think that he is very, very, very good, but I think that with Itauma’s speed and variation, I think that Itauma wins. I think that he is that special.”

It is believed that Itauma vs Hrgovic will take place on Saturday, August 8, at the O2 Arena. However, an alternative date has also been suggested for what would be Itauma’s toughest test to date.

As the 2026 FIFA World Cup is set to kick off across the North American continent, hosted by the US, Canada and Mexico, Oliver Farry is pleased to welcome Thando Sibiya, Sports Presenter and Journalist. While the tournament was initially met with great fanfare: an expanded 48-country tournament hosted by three countries, Sibiya warns that the “deplorable issues” and multiple controversies risk “killing the ambiance” and keeping football fans and country supporters away. From exorbitant ticket prices to Donald Trump’s hard-line immigration policies, many fans will now be forced to follow their team from their home country. This could very well be ‘one of the least anticipated World Cups of this era’, laments Sibiya.

The Philadelphia Phillies and San Diego Padres wrap up a three-game set when they meet on Thursday’s MLB schedule. The Phillies (32-29) won the first two contests of the series, both by 3-2 scores. The Padres (32-28) have now dropped four in a row for the third time this season, which ties for their longest losing streak of the year. Zack Wheeler (4-1, 2.27 ERA) will take the ball for Philly, countered by San Diego RHP Lucas Giolito (2-0, 4.97 ERA).

First pitch is set for 1:05 p.m. ET from Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. The Phillies have won six straight versus San Diego dating back to last season. Philadelphia is the -191 favorite on the money line (risk $191 to win $100) in the latest Padres vs. Phillies odds, while the over/under for total runs is 8. Before making any Phillies vs. Padres picks, or MLB predictions, be sure to see the Padres vs. Phillies predictions and betting advice from SportsLine’s proven computer model. 

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The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every MLB game 10,000 times and enters Week 11 of the MLB season on a red-hot 17-5 run (77%) on all top-rated MLB picks. It also excelled at making home run prop picks in 2025, returning nearly 30 units of profit. Anybody following its MLB betting picks at sportsbooks and on betting sites could have seen strong returns.   

Now, the model has set its sights on Padres vs. Phillies and just locked in its picks and MLB predictions. You can head to SportsLine now to see the model’s picks. Here are several MLB odds and betting lines for Phillies vs. Padres:

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Top Phillies vs. Padres predictions 

After 10,000 simulations of Padres vs. Phillies, the model is going Over 8 combined runs. For over/under betting, the pitchers on the mound indicate there could be plenty of runs on the scoreboard. Wheeler is coming off his worst outing, allowing 4 ER and 4 HR last Friday. As for Giolito, he also gave up 4 ER in his last start, and that came in just 2.2 innings. He’s also been roughed up by Philadelphia’s best hitters as Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber and Trea Turner have combined for five homers across just 27 ABs versus Giolito.

The model projects each of those three Phillies to have at least 1.5 total bases, while several Padres batters will have impressive games as well. Fernando Tatis Jr., Jackson Merrill and Xander Bogaerts are all forecasted to score at least 0.5 runs. With both teams projected to score more than 4 runs, on average, the value is backing the Over in this contest. Get the Phillies vs. Padres money-line pick at SportsLine.

How to make Padres vs. Phillies picks

After simulating every pitch of Phillies vs. Padres 10,000 times, the model also says one side of the money line has all the value. You can get that pick at SportsLine. 

So who wins Padres vs. Phillies, and which side of the money line has all the value? Visit SportsLine now to see which side you need to jump on, all from the model that has crushed its MLB picks, and find out.