Subscribe
Share
Share
Embed
The A.J. Brown trade between Philadelphia and New England remains stalled over compensation as the June 1 deadline arrives. The Giants addressed the Jaxson Dart–Abdul Carter political controversy publicly. Carolina advanced to the Stanley Cup Final a
Your go-to source for daily sports updates! Tune in every day for quick, punchy rundowns on the latest in sports. From game highlights to breaking news, we've got you covered in just a few minutes. Perfect for the fan on the go!
Welcome to The Sports Hangover Daily, I'm Michael Benatar. Today on the show: the A.J. Brown trade deadline is Monday and nobody's blinking, Dart and Carter face the media in New Jersey, and Carolina is heading to the Stanley Cup Final after destroying Montreal. Let's get into it.
Alright, Monday is June first. That's the date everyone in New England and Philadelphia has been circling for months. After June first, the Eagles can split A.J. Brown's forty million dollar cap hit across two years instead of eating it all at once. So the trade makes financial sense starting Monday. The problem? These two sides still can't agree on the price.
Josina Anderson reported Thursday that the Eagles and Patriots have "grappled" over the trade compensation. Philly wants a first-round pick in twenty twenty-seven. New England doesn't want to give up a first. And right now, nobody's budging.
The Eagles have already moved on. They drafted Makai Lemon out of USC in the first round. They added Dontayvion Wicks, Hollywood Brown, Elijah Moore. A.J. Brown is not in their plans. He knows it. Everyone knows it. But Philly is still trying to squeeze a first out of this because they know New England is desperate. Drake Maye just led that team to the Super Bowl and lost to Seattle twenty-nine to thirteen. The Patriots are one elite weapon away from thinking they can get back. And Brown is that weapon.
But I'm starting to wonder if the Patriots are playing this smarter than we think. If you're New England, why panic? Philly has zero leverage after Monday. Brown's not showing up to Eagles OTAs. He's not in their plans. Every day that passes, the Eagles' asking price should drop. The Patriots offering a second and a pick swap instead of a straight first isn't disrespectful — it's smart. I think this gets done by Wednesday. But it's not gonna cost a first. Philly's gonna blink.
Over in East Rutherford, the Giants finally addressed the Jaxson Dart situation publicly. Dart and Abdul Carter both spoke to reporters Friday, and honestly, it went about as well as you could hope. Carter said he and Dart talked it out privately. They were seen embracing before the pressers. The team held a meeting Tuesday where Dart and several leaders addressed the locker room.
But Carter's quote was the one that stuck. He said, "Stand on what you believe in, but it can't be a problem when I stand on what I believe in." That's a mature response from a guy who had every right to be upset. Dart appeared at a rally for a Republican congressman on May twenty-second and introduced the president. Carter posted a critical response on social media the next day. Look, this stuff is always awkward in a locker room. But it sounds like both guys handled it like adults. The question is whether it lingers into the season. Right now I'd say no. But Week four after a two-game losing streak? That's when locker room fractures show up.
Also in Giants news — and this is rough — receiver Gunner Olszewski is feared to have a torn Achilles from Friday's OTAs. Non-contact injury. He's the THIRD Giants player to tear an Achilles in spring workouts this year. Third. John Harbaugh has to be wondering what's going on with that field or that training staff.
Patrick Mahomes was at Chiefs OTAs Thursday in a yellow non-contact jersey, rehabbing the torn ACL and LCL from Week fifteen. He hasn't been cleared for eleven-on-eleven work yet, but the early reports say he's ahead of schedule. The Chiefs went six and eleven last year and missed the playoffs entirely. If Mahomes comes back healthy, that's the best Comeback Player of the Year case in the league. Oh, and Rashee Rice is currently in jail serving a thirty-day sentence for a probation violation. Positive THC test. He also recently had knee surgery and reportedly isn't getting proper rehab while locked up. That's a mess.
The Steelers fired special teams assistant Derius Swinton the second during OTAs for what ESPN is calling "workplace misconduct." He was hired in February. That's less than four months on the job. Whatever happened, it was bad enough to cut ties immediately during the offseason program.
Carolina is heading to the Stanley Cup Final. The Hurricanes destroyed Montreal six to one in Game five to take the series four to one. Taylor Hall and Ty Stankoven each had a goal and an assist. Carolina's twelve and one this postseason. They haven't been to the Final since they won the Cup back in two thousand six. They'll host Vegas starting Tuesday night.
Alright, Hangover Take time. Tonight is Game seven between San Antonio and OKC, and I'm calling it right now — the Spurs are winning this series. Jalen Williams is officially OUT for Game seven. He came back for Game six, played ten minutes, scored one point, and couldn't go. Ajay Mitchell is also ruled out with a calf strain. And here's the stat that should terrify Oklahoma City. In this series, the Thunder are three and oh when SGA outscores Wemby. The Spurs are three and oh when Wemby outscores SGA. In Game six, Wemby had twenty-eight and SGA had fifteen. Without Jalen Williams to take defensive pressure off SGA and create secondary offense, OKC is asking Shai to beat Wembanyama by himself in a Game seven. SGA is shooting forty point nine percent on two-pointers this series after hitting sixty percent during the regular season. He's pressing. The Spurs are going to the Finals. Wemby gets his coronation tonight.
That's your hangover. Go hydrate. I'll see you tomorrow.