December 30 - January 5, 2014

Crystal Ball

These Things Will Happen

Our staff's fearless predictions for 2014

Henrik Zetterberg #40 of the Detroit Red Wings and Nazem Kadri

So Chill

Thousands of diehards braving the snow. Two Original Six teams under the Ann Arbor lights. The Big House divided. This year's Winter Classic was simply a beauty of an event.

Quarterback Bryce Petty #14 of the Baylor Bears

Can God Save Baylor?

The lovable losers of the Fiesta Bowl

 Jarome Iginla #12 of the Boston Bruins

The New Guy

Jarome Iginla spent more than a decade with the Flames, then chased a Cup with the Penguins. Can he finally win hockey's greatest prize with the Bruins?

Kyle Lowry

The Raptors’ Makeover

A rare look inside the long, complex process of building a contender. Plus, 10 things to like (and not like) in the NBA.

Illo

Who Won 2013?

Our comprehensive, no-stone-left-unturned, mildly deranged accounting of all the people, players, and preposterous memes from the year that was

Deconstructing Gaffney

The making, and remaking, of a Stanford star

Wolf of Wall Street

A-oooh!

Martin Scorsese's (amazing) The Wolf of Wall Street and the best Leonardo DiCaprio has ever been

Eddie Royal

San Diego’s Long, Strange Trip

The unlikely road to the playoffs for the Chargers. Plus, the rest of the notable news from the final week in the NFL season.

December 23 - December 29, 2013

Peyton Manning

The Quest for Mediocrity

The Sports Guy embarks on a mission to try to salvage the most abysmal NFL handicapping season of his career

Daniel Bryan - Courtesy of WWE

Daniel Bryan: Q&A With a Reluctant Hero

WWE's undersize superstar on how beards — and careers — don't happen overnight

Jamaal Charles

The NFL All-Pro Team

Politics aside, let's put together a superlative NFL team that actually makes sense

Divas

DivaRank! The Final Standings for 2013

A year's worth of stank, soul, and hate for Queen B crammed into a single-column serving portion

Roger Goodell

Sword and Shield

Looking back on the NFL's very bad year

Kevin Durant

The Western Conference Power Rankings

It's time to try to figure out where everyone stands out West as we head toward the midpoint of the NBA season

2013 Year in Review Illustration

After the Antihero

The real TV trend of 2013? The rise of the strong female character.

Detroit Lions

A Power Rankings Snapshot

Where does everyone in the NFL rank based only on Week 16? Plus, let's sort through this playoff probability mess.

December 16 - December 22, 2013

Tony Romo

The Island of Dr. Simbeau Lives!

The return of the unholy marriage of the Sports Guy's mailbox and NFL picks — Week 16 edition

Career Arc: Tony Gonzalez

Tracking the greatest tight end in the history of the NFL on the eve of his final game

Simmons-Gladwell V

Gladwell vs. Simmons V

The evolution of celebrity and the PED debate highlight another illuminating email exchange between Malcolm Gladwell and Bill Simmons

Bound 2

Speeding Motorcycle of My Heart: The Year in KimYe

Our artists of the year. No, we're not kidding.

Bowlvania

Dispatches From Bowlvania: First Steps

The initial stage of our journey into the 2013 bowl season takes in the desert sights, Vegas lights, outsize chives, and Crescent City splendor

Wesley destruction

The Year of the Movie Apocalypse

Is the end nigh for Hollywood?

Getty Images

The Year of Un-Innocence

Why 2013 made it impossible to watch sports with a clear conscience — and why we kept watching anyway

Los Angeles Kings' goalie Ben Scrivens

Ready for the Spotlight

The Red Wings are a snooze, and the Leafs need more Kessel. (Right?!) So which NHL teams are best suited for behind-the-scenes TV?

Dr. Strangelove

What We Learned: The Grantland 2013 Roundtable

Our experts weigh in on the continued proliferation of advanced stats, the year's most exciting sports moments, and what to look for in 2014

Randy Orton - Courtesy of WWE

The Case for Randy Orton

Why the guy who was once the most boring man in WWE is now the champion we need

Aaron Craft #4 of the Ohio State Buckeyes handles the ball against the Central Connecticut State Blue Devils on December 7, 2013 at Value City Arena in Columbus, Ohio. Ohio State won by a final score of 74-56. (Photo by Ryan Young/Getty Images)

Titus’s Top 12 NCAA Power Rankings

Ohio State is winning and we don't have to hear about Aaron Craft's toughness every 45 seconds. Is this paradise?

Cooperstown

Hall Pass

How to fix baseball's Hall of Fame problems. Plus, a look at which 10 players deserve spots on the upcoming ballot.

Grantland Illustration

The Year TV Got Small

Was the Breaking Bad finale the last gasp of the monoculture?

Xavier Henry

Xavier Henry’s L.A. Story

How a lottery washout resurrected his career on the Lake Show

Spike Jonze

Career Arc: Spike Jonze

How we narrowly avoided a world in which only 4,000 people knew that the Her director is a genius

Lady Gaga

The Year Music Failed to Blockbust

Or how Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Justin Timberlake, and more of pop music's biggest superstars became little more than a lifestyle condiment

Robinson Cano

The New Normal

Robinson Cano and Mariano Rivera are gone. Derek Jeter is old. It's time to accept that 2013 wasn't a fluke: The Yankees aren't good, and they aren't getting better.

Stephen Curry

Life Beyond the Arc

Is a heavy reliance on the 3-pointer the future of basketball? Plus, a few things to like and not like in the NBA this week.

Michigan State celebrates its Rose Bowl berth

College Football Viewing Guide: 2013-14 Bowl Fact Sheet

Bowl season is upon us. You probably have many questions. We're here to help. Warning: Fact sheet is processed in a facility that may contain non-facts.

Grantland Illustration

Bad Day in Buffalo

Two mysterious deaths in the shadow of one NFL game

Kirk Cousins #12 of the Washington Redskins chats with Robert Griffin III

Shut It Down

Did Mike Shanahan do RG3 a favor by benching him?

Tony Romo

Just Another Day in Dallas

Who gets the blame for this Cowboys collapse? Plus, all the notable news from Week 15 in the NFL.

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