Le Journal

Indiana vs. Miami. So long to the 2025 season.

One of the perks that Tom Brady enjoys as Las Vegas Raiders minority owner? His gig with Fox Sports affords him the opportunity to broadcast and watch postseason games. And, as the Silver & Black continues its hunt for a head coach, Brady got a bird’s eye view of one of the candidates the team has shown interest in: Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak. And hearing Brady’s impressed exclamation combined with a chuckle after running back Kenneth Walker III galloped in for a seven-yard touchdown just before halftime to boost the Seahawks commanding lead to 24-6 was likely the same reaction folk who like Kubiak as candidate to captain the Raiders. Seattle’s 41-6 victory over the San Francisco 49ers was an exhibition in ground & pound as Kubiak put the Seahawks’ offense on Walker’s capable shoulders and the tailback produced 145 total yards and three touchdowns. 145 total yards3 TouchdownsKenneth Walker III got a hat trick and a trip to the NFC Championship 🎩 @seahawks pic.twitter.com/QOvRNaCZpl— NFL (@NFL) January 18, 2026 One has to wonder if Kubiak — the architect of Seattle’s third-ranked scoring offense and eighth-ranked offense in yards gained — is indeed a prime candidate for Las Vegas’ opening or if he’s just merely a name on the Raiders’ list? And vice versa, is Kubiak seriously considering the Silver & Black’s head gig or just going through the process? Kubiak wasn’t the lone member of his family tree to have an interview with Las Vegas, his brother Klay — the 49ers offensive coordinator — spoke with the team on Sunday. The Raiders also had an interview with Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady on the same day. Brady and general manager John Spytek are engaging in a deliberate process to land a new head coach but expect the Raiders’ list to whittle down this coming week as the playoffs moves into the AFC and NFC Championship tilts. And if Klint Kubiak is a serious contender, Las Vegas’ wait could be prolonged depending on how far the Seahawks advance. Playoff Hopes Nix-ed? The AFC West-champion Denver Broncos’ truly rode the highs and lows of a dramatic 33-30 overtime win over the Buffalo Bills on Saturday. The team’s exhilaration of advancing to the AFC title game received a sudden gut punch when head coach Sean Payton walked up to the postgame podium and announced quarterback Bo Nix suffered a season-ending ankle fracture. I cannot lie: When the news hit social media, I thought it was accounts being hacked. But seeing Payton’s face and hearing his voice in the press conference after the game was a reminder of the sobering reality of the game of football at times. Broncos coach Sean Payton details the circumstances of learning about Bo Nix's season-ending ankle fracture:"As he comes over [to the sideline], I kind of chest bump him, jab him, like, 'Fricking A.' And he's like, 'Careful.' It was then I'm like, 'You all right?' And he said,… pic.twitter.com/9IoOcq9KHb— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) January 18, 2026 Denver now turns to backup Jarrett Stidham as QB1 and the 29-year-old draws quite the matchup with the New England Patriots — the team that drafted him in the fourth round (133rd overall) of the 2019 NFL Draft. Payton’s play-call acumen is going to be thoroughly tested by Terrell Williams’ New England defense, a group that intercepted Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud four times on Saturday. The Broncos need Nik Bonitto and the other pass rushers to get to Patriots quarterback Drake Maye — sacked five times and fumbling four times (losing two) — by the Texans stout defense. Las Vegas is likely to use the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 draft on a quarterback — presumably Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza if he declares. So that’s a potential answer for QB1. But what about QB2? Let’s assume Mendoza is the pick, the Raiders do have Geno Smith and Aidan O’Connell under contract. It’s difficult to see Smith remaining now that Pete Carroll is no longer employed by the team. And with…

Especially with Dante Moore officially going back to school, it feels like it’s just a matter of time until the Las Vegas Raiders make Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL draft. That being said, the Heisman Trophy winner still has one more game to play as the Indiana Hoosiers take on the Miami Hurricanes for the College Football National Championship on Monday night. Mendoza has been outstanding in his first two playoff games, throwing more touchdown passes (eight) than incompletions (five) while completing 86.1 percent of his passes for 369 yards. That’s helped cement his status as the top quarterback in the draft class, creating an even stronger case for the quarterback-needy Raiders to take the redshirt junior with the first selection in April. So, we’ll be keeping tabs on the potential future of the franchise during the National Championship. Kickoff is set for 4:30 p.m. PST and the game will air on ESPN. Head on over to The FEED to join the discussion. The post will go up about an hour before gametime. I look forward to talking some ball with y’all!

<p id="par-1_19"><a href="https://www.cheatsheet.com/news/bringing-up-bates-star-lawson-bates-engaged-mcu-actor-tiffany-espensen.html/">Lawson Bates</a> is supporting his sister, Katie Bates Clark, as she deals with the fallout from her husband’s affair. </p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-travis-clark-confesses-to-cheating-on-katie-bates-clark">Travis Clark confesses to cheating on Katie Bates Clark</h2> <p id="par-2_19">On Saturday, Katie’s husband Travis Clark confessed in an Instagram Story to cheating on his wife of four years.</p> <p id="par-3_36">“This is hard to write, but I owe the truth and I owe an apology. I was unfaithful to my wife. I had an affair and repeatedly broke her trust,” the 24-year-old dad of two wrote.</p> <p id="par-4_73">“There is no excuse for what I did. This was my failure and my responsibility alone. I know that words don’t begin to express the damage I caused or the depth of the hurt I’ve brought into her life, but I am truly sorry,” he added. Travis went on to say that he was “taking responsibility by getting help and doing the work to change and become a more honest and accountable man”</p> <p id="par-5_19">The news came just a day after Katie, 25, revealed on her social media that she’d experienced a miscarriage. </p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-bringing-up-bates-star-appears-to-comment-on-his-brother-in-law-s-affair">‘Bringing Up Bates’ star appears to comment on his brother-in-law’s affair</h2> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio" id="emb-1"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> <iframe loading="lazy" title="Bringing Up Bates Sneak Peek - Katie + Travis = 😍" width="925" height="520" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/SHJ8KQ02FS4?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe> </div></figure> <div class="related-article related-article--simple"> <span class="related-article-flag">Related</span> <p class="related-article__title"> <a href="https://www.cheatsheet.com/news/reality-tv/katie-bates-announces-a-pregnancy-loss-as-her-husband-publicly-confesses-to-an-affair.html/"> Katie Bates Announces a Pregnancy Loss, As Her Husband Publicly Confesses to an Affair </a> </p> </div> <p id="par-6_19">Not long after Travis confessed to infidelity, Lawson, 33, seemingly weighed in with an <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DToy1k3jiIJ/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Instagram</a> post of his own. </p> <p id="par-7_33">“One day, someone might tell your kids, ‘You’re just like your dad,’” the <a href="https://www.cheatsheet.com/news/bringin-up-bates-update-bates-family-i2023.html/"><em>Bringing Up Bates</em></a><em> </em>star wrote over a video of himself working out. “Make sure it’s a compliment, not an insult.”</p> <p id="par-8_14">In his caption, he cited a Bible verse that appeared directed to his brother-in-law. </p> <p id="par-9_54">“Young men exhort to be sober minded. In all things showing a pattern of good works,” the quote from Titus 2:6-8 read. “In doctrine show incorruptness, gravity, sincerity, and sound speech, that cannot be condemned; that he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed, having no evil thing to say of you.”</p> <p id="par-10_44">On January 18, Lawson shared a post on his Instagram Story where he thanked his younger sister for “dropp[ing] everything” and coming to the hospital to support him and his wife, Tiffany Espensen, when she gave birth to their second child on January 12. </p> <p…