Ranking top 100 NFL free agents; Alex Bregman, Red Sox agree to deal; grading college football coach hires

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Good morning to all, but especially to …

ALEX BREGMAN AND THE BOSTON RED SOX

Wednesday morning, Red Sox pitchers and catchers had their first workout. Wednesday night, they had a new teammate, and a star one at that: Alex Bregman agreed to a three-year, $120 million deal with Boston. The deal includes opt-outs after each year.

• Bregman, 31, is a two-time All Star, a two-time World Series champion, a Gold Glove winner and a Silver Slugger winner.
• He’s coming off a down year — his .768 OPS was the worst of his career, and his 6.9% walk rate was his worst since his 2016 rookie year — but he was solid the two years before that and excellent in 2019, when he finished second in AL MVP voting.
• Overall, his production, contact skills and defense landed him at No. 3 in R.J. Anderson’s free agent rankings.

The Red Sox already have Rafael Devers manning third base, meaning a move to the middle infield is possible. Here’s Mike Axisa with more on Bregman’s fit in Boston:

• Axisa: “The Red Sox are banking on Bregman’s offensive game translating well to Fenway Park, an accommodating environment for right-handed batters. He has ranked among the game’s leaders in pulled fly ball rate every year since 2021 … Other than Fenway, his new home venue, no other stadium in the sport matches Bregman’s batted ball profile as well as Houston. While the sample size is quite limited, Bregman is a career .375/.490/.750 hitter in 98 plate appearances at Fenway with seven home runs in 21 games.”

Honorable mentions

• Patrick Ewing. Karl-Anthony Towns. That’s it: the entire list of Knicks to have 40+ points and 10+ rebounds in consecutive games after Towns had 44 and 10 in a wild 149-148 overtime win over the Hawks.
• Ohio State is hiring Matt Patricia as defensive coordinator.
• The Padres signed Nick Pivetta to a four-year, $55 million deal. He was the No. 28 free agent in the class.
• Kevin Durant became the eighth player in NBA history to reach 30,000 points. Ja Morant made sure Durant got the game ball.
• Saquon Barkley credited Penn State for his impressive beer shotgunning abilities.
• A Bills mailroom worker was touched by Josh Allen‘s shoutout during his MVP speech.
• No. 1 UCLA at No. 6 USC should be a great game.
• Azzi Fudd scored 34 points — her most since 2022 — in No. 7 UConn‘s romp over St. John’s.
• Here’s Billie Jean King‘s advice to Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese.
• The Dodgers and Cubs announced their expected starters for the Tokyo Series next month.
• These young college quarterbacks could break out in 2025.
• Chase Briscoe wins the pole position for Sunday’s Daytona 500.
• Shaquille O’Neal designed Jimmie Johnson‘s Daytona 500 car after winning a free-throw contest. Here’s our preview of Sunday’s race.

And not such a good morning for …

ANTHONY RENDON AND THE LOS ANGELES ANGELS

Stop me if you’ve heard this before: Anthony Rendon will miss significant time due to injury. The Angels‘ oft-injured third baseman will undergo hip surgery and face a “long-term” absence, GM Perry Minasian said.

Rendon, 34, has played in 257 of a potential 708 games since signing a seven-year, $245 million contract with the Angels ahead of the 2020 season and has been on the IL 12 times. He’s yet to play in more than 58 games in a season with the Halos.

The drop-off from Rendon’s 2019, when he finished third in NL MVP voting and won the World Series with the Nationals, to his time in Los Angeles is stunning.

• 2019 with Nationals: .319/.412/598 slash line, 1.010 OPS, 7.1 WAR, 34 home runs, 126 RBI
• 2020-24 with Angels: .242/.238/.369 slash line, .859 OPS, 3.7 WAR, 22 home runs, 125 RBI

Ouch … literally and figuratively.

The Angels, who haven’t made the postseason since 2014, will likely turn to Yoán Moncada at the hot corner.

Not so honorable mentions

• Travis Kelce admitted he didn’t do a great job in the Super Bowl.
• Saquon Barkley doesn’t understand why Taylor Swift got booed.
• Dallas Goedert is going to miss Kellen Moore.
• Many more former Panthers players are upset with Cam Newton‘s comments.
• Mavericks GM Nico Harrison can’t escape “Fire Nico” chants.
• Dan Hurley had only one regret after yelling at Creighton fans after UConn‘s win.
• Are big changes coming to college football offseasons?

Top 100 NFL free agents, plus teams that could make jump next season

We’re now four days into the NFL offseason, and what I wouldn’t give to have a terrible Thursday Night Football game on my TV tonight. Alas. We’ll make it through together.

Pete Prisco’s Top 100 free agents list is here to help. Here’s his top five:

1. Sam Darnold — “In a quarterback-needy league, he will get action if the Vikings don’t keep him off the market. I’d look for a deal near $40 million per season.”
2. Tee Higgins — “He has been the No. 2 receiver in Cincinnati but now has his chance to show he’s a true No. 1.”
3. Josh Sweat — “At 28, he is a long, active edge player who should command a big market with his age and production.”
4. Trey Smith — “This 26-year-old is a power player who can maul people in the run game.”
5. Ronnie Stanley — “Injuries have been a problem in his career, but he played a full season in 2024.”

The Eagles have three players in the top 10, and you can see the team-by-team breakdown of the full list here. We also have the top 15 offensive players and the top 15 defensive players.

Free agent negotiations can’t begin until March 10, but until then there are storylines aplenty. Tyler Sullivan has an early lookahead to the 2025 season, and Jeff Kerr has five teams that could take a big step, including …

• Kerr: “Patriots (4-13) — New England likely won’t be an AFC East contender in 2025, but the Patriots will be competitive and disciplined under Mike Vrabel … with a significantly improved roster and $120 million in salary cap space heading into free agency. Having the No. 4 overall pick certainly helps, too. The biggest thing going for the Patriots? Drake Maye has the makings of a franchise quarterback.” 

Grading college football coaching hires

Class is in session, with professor Dennis Dodd handing out grades for this offseason’s college football coaching hires. Three coaches landed in the “A” range, including one who has all the football credentials but also lots of questions …

• Dodd: “Bill Belichick (North Carolina): A- | For name value, this was a home run. An eight-time Super Bowl champion was unemployed and North Carolina needed to stay relevant. Done. But something about this hire tells me Belichick isn’t all in. This looks a lot like Belichick being a short-time bridge coach before passing along the job to his son, Steve. That June 1 buyout reduction in Bill’s contract also bothers me. In this NIL age, you’re either all in … or not. There’s also a question whether Belichick can adjust to college football, a game he has never coached.”

Rich Rodriguez returning to West Virginia earned an “A+,” and he’s reuniting with his former star quarterback, too. 

UEFA Champions League knockout phase first-leg results

UEFA Champions League knockout phase first legs are in the books. Here were Wednesday’s results:

• Club Brugge 2, Atalanta 1
• Celtic 1, Bayern Munich 2
• Monaco 0, Benfica 1 
• Feyenoord 1, AC Milan 0

The Feyenoord win sticks out: Igor Paixao scored three minutes in, and the Dutch side held off an attack-minded Milan lineup the rest of the way, with Sergio Conceicao‘s lineup tinkering failing to pay dividends, Francesco Porzio notes.

Jonathan Johnson’s Champions League Team of the Week includes one Feyenoord player, though it’s not Paixao. Weston McKennie also earned a nod, as well as praise from his coach.

Here are the scenarios for next week’s second legs, which will determine the rest of the round of 16.

What we’re watching Thursday

No. 3 Texas at No. 8 Kentucky (W), 7 p.m. on ESPN2
Florida at No. 4 South Carolina (W), 7 p.m. on SEC Network
USA vs. Finland, 8 p.m. on ESPN
No. 2 Notre Dame at Pitt (W), 8 p.m. on ACC Network
Thunder at Timberwolves, 8:30 p.m. on TNT/truTV
No. 25 Maryland at Nebraska (M), 8:30 p.m. on BTN
No. 1 UCLA at No. 6 USC (W), 10 p.m. on Peacock