Brady reportedly apologizes to Mathieu
In the days leading up to Super Bowl LV, Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady spoke highly of Chiefs safety Tyrann Mathieu.
“I really love him as a player,” Brady said, but the tone changed during Sunday’s game.
The two jawed at each other, and at one point Brady ran down Mathieu and yelled at him. After the game, Mathieu deleted a tweet that said Brady “called me something I won’t repeat.”
ESPN’s Jenna Laine reported Monday that Brady sent an apology via text message to Mathieu after the game, which the Buccaneers won 31-9.
Brady apologized for “losing his composure” and “said his outbursts in an emotional moment were in no way a reflection on his feelings toward Mathieu,” ESPN said.
Mathieu said after the game he wasn’t going to dwell on the incident and said, “It’s over with. I’m done with it.”
Packers peg Barry as defensive coordinator
The Green Bay Packers are giving Joe Barry a third chance as an NFL defensive coordinator.
Packers coach Matt LaFleur announced he was making Barry defensive coordinator and Maurice Drayton special teams coordinator. LaFleur already had indicated during a Zoom session with reporters last week he was promoting Drayton to special teams coordinator.
Barry has nearly two decades of experience as an NFL assistant coach. He previously worked as a defensive coordinator with the Detroit Lions (20072008) and Washington (2015-16).
He spent the past four seasons on the Los Angeles Rams’ staff, where he was an assistant head coach/linebackers coach. New Los Angeles Chargers defensive coordinator Renaldo Hill had said on Jan. 27 that Barry would be joining the Chargers’ staff under new head coach Brandon Staley, the former Rams defensive coordinator.
The Packers were seeking a new defensive coordinator after announcing at the end of the season that Mike Pettine wouldn’t be back in 2021. Pettine had been the Packers’ defensive coordinator each of the past three seasons, preceding LaFleur’s arrival in Green Bay by a year.
DeFilippo promoted within Bears’ offense
The Chicago Bears promoted John DeFilippo to pass game coordinator while keeping him in his role as quarterbacks coach.
DeFilippo joined coach Matt Nagy’s staff last season. He was the offensive coordinator for Minnesota during the 2018 season and Jacksonville in 2019 before he was fired. He previously worked for Philadelphia, Cleveland, Oakland, the New York Jets, the New York Giants, Indianapolis and Carolina.
DeFilippo takes over for Dave Ragone, who left to become offensive coordinator in Atlanta.
The Bears are coming off back-to-back 8-8 regular seasons. Quarterback Mitchell Trubisky started the first three games before getting benched in favor of Nick Foles. He returned to the lineup later in the season after the struggling Foles got hurt.
Trubisky, the No. 2 pick in the 2017 draft, is set to become a free agent after the Bears opted not to exercise their fifth-year option on his contract.
49ers re-sign Rosen, Walter to 1-year deals
The San Francisco 49ers signed backup quarterback Josh Rosen and running back Austin Walter to one-year extensions.
The Niners originally acquired Rosen in December when they signed him off Tampa Bay’s practice squad because they didn’t have a healthy backup quarterback.
He was on the roster for the final two games but didn’t get a chance to play. He’s in position to be the backup in 2021 with C.J. Beathard and Nick Mullens both eligible for free agency.
Steelers fill trio of coaching vacancies
The Pittsburgh Steelers filled their remaining coaching vacancies, hiring longtime NFL assistant Mike Sullivan as their quarterback coach, Chris Morgan as assistant offensive line coach and Matt Tomsho as quality control coach.
Sullivan replaces Matt Canada, who was promoted last month to offensive coordinator. Sullivan won two Super Bowl rings as an assistant with the New York Giants in 2007 and 2011. He spent 2020 as the director of recruiting at Army, his alma mater. Sullivan has spent 16 seasons coaching in the NFL, with stints that include Tampa Bay and Jacksonville.
STORRS, Conn. — Paige Bueckers scored 31 points, including her team’s final 13, to lead No. 2 Connecticut to a 63-59 overtime victory Monday over top-ranked South Carolina.
The freshman scored all of the Huskies’ nine points in overtime, including a 3-pointer that bounced high off the back of the rim before dropping in to give the Huskies the four-point margin with 10 seconds left.
Aliyah Boston had 17 points and 15 rebounds for South Carolina (15-2), which had its 12-game winning streak snapped.
NO. 10 ARIZONA 79 NO. 11 OREGON 59
Cate Reese scored 25 points, and the Wildcats (12-2, 10-2 Pac-12) secured a season sweep of the host Ducks (12-4, 9-4).
Men
NO. 1 GONZAGA 82, BYU 71
Jalen Suggs scored 24 points, Drew Timme had 20 points and 13 rebounds, and the Bulldogs (19-0, 10-0 West Coast) held off the host Cougars (15-5, 6-3) to stay undefeated.
NO. 4 OHIO STATE 73 MARYLAND 65
Kyle Young and Duane Washington Jr. each scored 18 points, and the Buckeyes (16-4, 10-4 Big Ten) wore down the host Terrapins (10-10, 4-9).
KANSAS 78
NO. 23 OKLAHOMA STATE 66
David McCormack scored all but two of his 23 points after halftime, and the Jayhawks (13-7, 7-5 Big 12) rolled past the visiting Cowboys (12-6, 5-6) in Kansas’ first game since their Top 25 run ended at 231 consecutive weeks.
BAYLOR POSTPONES GAMES
No. 2 Baylor (17-0) postponed three more games because of COVID-19 issues and won’t play again until at least Feb. 20. Now postponed are Saturday’s game against No. 7 Texas Tech, then two games next week against No. 14 West Virginia. That includes a Feb. 15 game at Morgantown, and then a Feb. 18 game in Waco that was supposed to be the makeup of a game postponed in January because of COVID-19 protocols in the Mountaineers program. Baylor’s next scheduled game is Feb. 20 at home against No. 23 Oklahoma State.