Final regular-season games loom large in determining conference championship matchupsHOUSTON (AP) — For a second straight season, the Houston Texans will be without Tank Dell to end the regular season and for the playoffs after the dynamic receiver suffered another major injury. Dell sustained what coach DeMeco Ryans called a “significant” knee injury on a 30-yard touchdown catch in Houston’s loss to Kansas City on Saturday . Though the team hasn’t officially ruled him out for the season, it seems unlikely that he’ll be able to return after he was hospitalized overnight following the injury. Ryans said Sunday that Dell had been released from the hospital and was heading back to Houston. He added that he was still being evaluated to see what the next steps would be. This injury comes after Dell fractured his fibula in Week 13 against the Broncos last season and had surgery on it the following day. “It’s tough to see guys get injured, the work that guys put in, how much they put their bodies on the line to play this game,” Ryans said. “It’s deeper than football. We are talking about real people who have real emotions and real feelings who are going through a tough time right now. Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone involved in that situation.” The AFC South champion Texans will have to regroup quickly with a visit from the Ravens coming on Christmas Day. Dell’s injury is another blow to a team that was already missing Stefon Diggs after the four-time Pro Bowl receiver sustained a season-ending knee injury in Week 8. RELATED COVERAGE Seahawks’ loss to Vikings sends their playoff chances tumbling Cook scores 2 TDs and Bills defense forces 3 turnovers in Buffalo’s 24-21 win over Patriots Cardinals fall short of playoffs for 3rd straight season with loss to lowly Panthers Dell ranks second on the team with 51 receptions for 667 yards and three touchdowns behind Nico Collins, who has 909 yards receiving and six scores. Tight end Dalton Schultz has 482 yards receiving and two touchdowns and running back Joe Mixon 291 yards receiving and a touchdown grab. But with Dell and Diggs out, the Texans are thin at receiver. John Metchie, who has just 182 yards receiving this season, could fill in for Diggs this week, but his status is uncertain after he missed Saturday’s game with a shoulder injury. “There is a chance John could be back,” Ryans said. “I think he’s progressing, so we’ll see where he ends up on Wednesday.” Other options at the position are veteran Robert Woods, who has just 143 yards receiving this season, and Xavier Hutchinson, who nine catches. Quarterback C.J. Stroud, one of Dell’s closest friends, was distraught after Dell’s injury and remained upset after the game. He said it will be difficult for the team to bounce back after losing Dell to a serious injury again. “The easy answer is to tell you something to make everybody feel nice, but it’s not the truth right now,” he said after the game. “The truth is that it’s not easy seeing your brother go down like that. (Sunday) we’ll have to get recovery, get ready for Wednesday because it’s another big-time opponent. The Ravens are a great team. It’ll be a playoff atmosphere on Christmas Day.” What’s working Stroud distributed the ball well Saturday, completing passes to six different players. Dell led the way with six receptions for 98 yards and Collins had seven receptions for 60 yards while being double-teamed often. With teams likely to place even more emphasis on stopping Collins with Dell out, Stroud will need to continue to spread the ball around against the Ravens. What needs help The Texans continue to struggle in the red zone and converted just 1 of 3 opportunities Saturday. This comes after they were also 1 of 3 in a win over the Jaguars in Week 13 and converted just 2 of 4 chances in a loss to the Titans in Week 12. “We had our opportunities, and it just comes down to as simple as guys being in the right spot,” Ryans said. “We just have to make the plays. We have to finish and that’s all it comes down to.” Stock up LB Christian Harris had seventh tackles and a sack against the Chiefs in his second game of the season after missing the first 13 with a calf injury. His sack was Houston’s 46th of the season, which ties a franchise record that was set last season. Stock down K Ka’imi Fairbairn missed an extra point Saturday. He’s been excellent from long range this season, making 13 field goals longer than 50 yards. But has struggled on shorter kicks, missing two from less than 30 yards before Saturday’s PAT miss. Injuries S Jimmie Ward injured his foot Saturday and could miss the rest of the season. ... G Shaq Mason injured his knee against the Chiefs and will likely miss Wednesday’s game. Key number 10 — Dell’s touchdown Saturday was the 10th of his career, tying Hall of Famer Andre Johnson for most TD catches by a Texans through their first two seasons. Next steps The Texans look for their first win over Baltimore since 2014 after five consecutive wins by the Ravens, including a 34-10 victory in the divisional round of the playoffs last season. ___ AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nflPost-World War II toylands tempted baby boomers
For former President Jimmy Carter who died on Sunday at his home in Plains, Georgia, at the age of 100, there will be two public observances—one in Atlanta and another in Washington, D.C., followed by a private interment, The Carter Center said in a statement. Why It Matters Carter was the longest living president in U.S. history. What to Know President Joe Biden said in a Sunday statement that he "will be ordering an official state funeral to be held in Washington D.C." Details of the state funeral, which is a formal ceremony with traditions of lying in state, processions, religious services, military honors, and national mourning, will be released by the Joint Task Force-National Capital Region. State funerals are typically a week to 10 days of events, with three stages, as outlined by the task force: "Stage I includes ceremonies within the state in which the president, former president, or president-elect was in residence. Stage II includes ceremonies within Washington, DC, and Stage III includes ceremonies in the state in which the authorized individual has chosen to be interred." Last year, Biden said at a fundraiser that Carter "asked me to do his eulogy" when the time came. Newsweek has reached out to the White House for comment via email on Sunday. The last presidential state funeral was held in 2018 for former President George H.W. Bush , who died from a form of Parkinson's disease at age 94. His funeral took place at the Washington National Cathedral, which has hosted four state funerals. The 39th president is survived by his children, Jack, Chip, Jeff, and Amy, 11 grandchildren , and 14 great-grandchildren. His wife, former first lady Rosalynn Carter, passed away last November. She was buried in Plains, Georgia, and Carter will rest in peace next to her. The couple was married for 77 years, the longest marriage in presidential history. In lieu of flowers, the Carter family requests contributions to The Carter Center, which can be completed online . Tributes will be collected in the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Enduring Hope Fund, according to the website. What People Are Saying Biden and first lady Jill Biden said in a statement on Sunday: "Today, America and the world lost an extraordinary leader, statesman and humanitarian. Over six decades, we had the honor of calling Jimmy Carter a dear friend. But, what's extraordinary about Jimmy Carter, though, is that millions of people throughout America and the world who never met him thought of him as a dear friend as well...We will miss them both [Rosalynn and Jimmy Carter] dearly, but take solace knowing they are reunited once again and remain forever in our hearts." Chip Carter, the former president's son, said in a statement released by The Carter Center on Sunday: "My father was a hero, not only to me but to everyone who believes in peace, human rights, and unselfish love. My brothers, sister, and I shared him with the rest of the world through these common beliefs. The world is our family because of the way he brought people together, and we thank you for honoring his memory by continuing to live these shared beliefs." President-elect Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social on Sunday : "The challenges Jimmy faced as President came at a pivotal time for our country and he did everything in his power to improve the lives of all Americans. For that, we all owe him a debt of gratitude. Melania and I are thinking warmly of the Carter Family and their loved ones during this difficult time. We urge everyone to keep them in their hearts and prayers." Former President Bill Clinton and former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a joint statement on X, formerly Twitter, on Sunday: "Hillary and I mourn the passing of President Jimmy Carter and give thanks for his long, good life. Guided by his faith, President Carter lived to serve others—until the very end...I will always be proud to have presented the Medal of Freedom to him and Rosalynn in 1999, and to have worked with him in the years after he left the White House." What Happens Next Details of the public observances will be released in the coming days. "The final arrangements for President Carter's state funeral, including all public events and motorcade routes, are still pending," The Carter Center said in its statement. Updated 12/29/24, 6:06 p.m. ET: This article has been updated to include Biden's statement.The California Legislative Analyst’s Office projected a dismal fiscal outlook for the Golden State as Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) is anticipated to pour millions of dollars into fighting the Trump administration. The non-partisan budget watchdog released an analysis this week showing that while the state has managed to reduce its budget deficit by a massive amount since last year, the deficit is estimated to climb back up to a staggering $20 billion by 2026. “We anticipate the Legislature likely will need to address deficits in the future, for example by reducing spending or increasing taxes. In our view, this year’s budget does not have capacity for new commitments, ongoing ones,” the LAO’s report reads. FIVE DEMOCRATS IN PRIME POSITION TO BE FACE OF THE PARTY IN 2028 LAO analyst Gabriel Petek warned that state expenditures are growing by roughly 2.3% more than they have in previous years. He said expenditures are outpacing revenues by nearly 2%, making additional spending by California officials and agencies unwise. The LAO’s warnings come as Newsom pledged to do everything in his power to stop President-elect Donald Trump’s Republican agenda from touching California after he won the election earlier this month, signaling that pricy lawsuits are on the horizon. California sued the Trump administration more than 120 times between 2016 and 2020 during his first term in office. But with lawsuits coming at a heavy expense and the state headed toward a $30 billion budget deficit by 2027, California Republicans are pushing back against Newsom’s anti-Trump agenda. "California has a $2 billion deficit that’s projected to explode in the next few years, and Newsom’s solution is to spend another $100 million on lawyers to fight President Trump," the California state assembly’s Republican leader, James Gallagher, told the Washington Examiner. "You can’t lead the ‘resistance’ when you can barely pay the bills. It’s too bad Newsom is more focused on chasing headlines for his 2028 presidential run than actually running the state." BIDEN TO USE LAME-DUCK SESSION TO ‘TRUMP-PROOF’ LEGACY Newsom has had a rocky year steering fiscal matters over the past few years. During fiscal years 2021 and 2022, California generated unexpectedly high budget surpluses , largely because the “stock market was on fire.” “California gets a lot of tax revenue from stock market capital gains, and it kind of turbo-charged our revenue growth in those years,” Petek said. Lawmakers responded to the revenue gains by funneling expenditures into a host of one-time or temporary state programs. However, relying on an unpredictable and uncertain stock market for revenue rather than building a strong underlying economy promoting small businesses and job growth didn’t go so well for the Golden State. Downturns in the stock market in 2022 put California in a vulnerable fiscal situation, pushing lawmakers to reconsider the previous investments made into state programs. HOW KAMALA HARRIS PLOWED THROUGH $1 BILLION “We had slower revenue growth than we had had before, and we couldn't afford all of those temporary commitments that had been made based on the prior revenue anticipated revenue growth,” Petek reflected. Facing a $68 billion budget deficit this year, the California legislature slashed expenditures and many “temporary commitments” over the spring of 2024, resulting in an adjusted budget deal announced in June with a projected deficit of $2 billion. While the state’s fiscal situation appears far better at first glance now than it did at the start of the year, the Legislative Analyst's Office's latest report shows that California’s underlying economy is weak, setting it up for a lackluster fiscal outlook and massive budget deficit increases down the road. “We're seeing declining consumer spending. We're seeing an unemployment rate that's ticking up and very anemic, job growth, and the job growth we are getting is entirely attributable to government and healthcare, and so that is not a foundation on which our office can project comfortably that we're going to have robust revenue growth going forward,” Petek said. HOW ELON MUSK HELPED WILL TRUMP BACK TO THE WHITE HOUSE He warned that California’s move to expand commitments in recent years such as expanding its Medicaid program, which is called Medi-Cal, to cover noncitizens, has put it on a troubling path where expenditures outweigh revenues by concerning margins. “Our advice to the legislature is that they should conduct oversight of programs and take a take stock of what their main priorities are, and try to, you know, work on addressing that misalignment,” the LAO analyst concluded. California’s Democratic lawmakers have met the budget warnings with pledges to "show restraint with this year’s budget.” "It’s not a moment for expanding programs,” Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas said. With both sides of the aisle promising to make trims, it remains to be seen if Newsom will be successful in his pledge to combat the Trump administration with a barrage of costly lawsuits. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER As lawmakers consider the LAO's dismal fiscal outlook, Newsom visited Washington, D.C., earlier this month to lobby the Biden administration for funds as he seeks to target the incoming Trump administration. "Governor Newsom will advocate for key priorities to advance the health and well-being of all Californians — including disaster funding, the approval of state health care initiatives aimed at improving access to health and mental health care for Californians, and crucial climate waivers," his office said.
The former Rivers State Governor, Dr. Peter Odili, on Friday commended Governor Siminalayi Fubara, for stopping the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, from turning the state into his private estate. Odili, according to a statement issued on Saturday by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Nelson Chukwudi, spoke at an event he organized for Fubara and his family in Port Harcourt. Fubara and Wike, his predecessor, fell out last year over an alleged bid for control of the state’s resources. The bad blood between the former allies has split Rivers into two camps with personalities in the state, including members of the state House of Assembly and leaders of thought queuing behind the two men. READ ALSO: Wike claims he removed Secondus as PDP National Chairman for Fubara Odili in his remark at the event commended Fubara for the sterling leadership qualities he has demonstrated since he assumed office in May last year. He said: “It is now over 12 months, since the 25th October 2023, when a fierce existential fight, though unnecessary, was waged against Governor Fubara over the soul of Rivers State. “Governor Fubara confronted the challenge, prevented the quest by one man to capture the state as a private estate, emancipated Rivers people, steadied governance, and made civil servants and Rivers people happier as it used to be.” Wike in 2022 credited Odili for his success in politics. The duo had since fallen out over political differences. Opinions Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs. As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake. If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause. Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development. Donate Now