Hanukkah Miracle saves the Raiders

Chandler Jones intercepted a lateral and ran 48 yards for a touchdown as time expired to give to the Raiders one of the most improbable wins in NFL history.

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1. Hanukkah Miracle saves the Raiders

Chandler Jones intercepted a lateral and ran 48 yards for a touchdown as time expired to give the Raiders a 30-24 win over New England Sunday. It was one of the most improbable wins in NFL history and kept the Raiders’ flickering playoff hopes alive. The Sporting Tribune’s Steve Carp has more one of the craziest endings ever.

There are fantastic finishes in the NFL. Then there are fantastic finishes. Then there was Sunday’s New England Patriots-Las Vegas Raiders finish, one which defies description. With overtime looming and Patriots coach Bill Belichick opting to run the ball on the final play of regulation, Rhamondre Stevenson ran for 23 yards into Raiders territory, then decided to lateral the ball back to Jakobi Meyers, who was eight yards behind him in the hopes of keeping the play alive. Meyers decided to run back toward the original line of scrimmage instead of forward. He saw quarterback Mac Jones open and decided to lateral it to him across the Allegiant Stadium field. What he didn’t see was Raiders edge rusher Chandler Jones.

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2. Chargers defense steps up in ugly win over Titans

The Chargers defense stepped up in an ugly win over the Tennessee Titans as the team returned to playoff seeding after the win. The Sporting Tribune’s Fernando Ramirez has the latest on the Chargers keeping their playoff hopes alive.

It wasn't pretty, to say the least, but sometimes a win is a win. These Chargers will take the win, especially against a playoff-caliber team. It was a tough and aggressive defensive matchup that finished on the leg of Cameron Dicker to give the Chargers the 17-14 victory. After the victory and some weirdness from the New England Patriots, the Chargers are currently sitting with the sixth seed in the AFC playoff picture.

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3. Fresno State onto the next chapter with LA Bowl win

Fresno State completed a historic turnaround this season with a victory over Washington State in the Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl. The Sporting Tribune’s Kamran Nia has more from SoFi Stadium.

A week of comedy and fun ended with the Fresno State Bulldogs having the last laugh. And they made history too. The Bulldogs became the first team in Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) history to win double-digit games after a 1-4 start to the season. They dominated both sides of the ball against a shorthanded Washington State Cougars team, winning 29-6.

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4. Beavers hit jackpot in Vegas

Oregon State shuts down Florida 30-3 to win the Las Vegas Bowl in impressive fashion as the SEC debuts at Allegiant Stadium. The Sporting Tribune’s Steve Carp has the latest on a new era of postseason college football in Las Vegas.

After all it has been through over the decades; they should rename the Las Vegas Bowl the “Endurance Bowl.” Few bowl games have had to endure as much to survive over the decades as the annual college football bowl game off the Las Vegas Strip. A lack of funding, uninteresting matchups and low attendance in the formative years nearly doomed the game. The game would be played before Christmas, after Christmas and even on Christmas Day, trying to find that sweet spot on the calendar that worked. But it managed to survive and with ESPN’s support along with the move to Allegiant Stadium and having Power 5 conferences playing in the game, the Las Vegas Bowl is a thriving entity and has cemented itself as part of the local sports scene every December, along with the National Finals Rodeo.

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5. Lakers squeak out a win in the last seconds against Wizards

Thomas Bryant scores the game-winning dunk off a broken play as the Lakers win their second straight game. The Sporting Tribune’s Rey Moralde has more from Crypto.com Arena.

Of course, it’s appropriate that Bryant made a game-winner for the Lakers, right? Anyway, the Lakers won a close one after a lot of wild swings in this game. The Lakers handed the Wizards their 10th straight loss, 119-117. Let’s talk about the game-winner. All I can really say is that… it was a broken play.

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6. Chargers face favorable path to playoffs but must avoid past errors

The Chargers blew an opportunity to make the playoffs in 2021 but Brandon Staley says the teams has learned from it as they aim to clinch a postseason berth this year. The Sporting Tribune’s Fernando Ramirez has more on the Chargers closing out their season strong.

Déjà vu comes to mind when thinking about the last four games left in the Chargers season. They have been here before with needing to handle business, and they clinch a playoff berth for the first time since 2018. Last season, the Chargers had four games left and needed to go at least 2-2 to advance to the postseason. They faced a win, and you are in scenario against the Las Vegas Raiders in which they came up short.

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7. Odds and Ends presented by Circa Sports

Here are some odds at Circa Sports if you’re thinking about placing a wager today:

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8. Ticket Time presented by TickPick  

Here are the “get in” prices for tickets if you’re thinking about going to a game this week:

Anaheim Ducks at Los Angeles Kings: $42

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9. On the Air presented by Coca-Cola

Here are the game times and television channels for professional teams in the region today:

5:15 p.m. – Los Angeles Rams at Green Bay Packers – ESPN

6:00 p.m. – Los Angeles Lakers at Phoenix Suns – Spectrum SportsNet

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10. The Arash Markazi Show presented by The Sporting Tribune 

On Friday’s show, hall of fame photographer Andy Bernstein talked about his interview with former UCLA gymnastics coach Valorie Kondos Field.

Listen to The Arash Markazi Show presented by The Sporting Tribune on The Mightier 1090 ESPN Radio in Southern California, 98.5 The Fan in Las Vegas and the Hawaii Sports Radio Network 95.1 FM and 760 AM in Hawaii. You can also listen to the show on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Play and Stitcher.

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That’s it for today. Talk to you all tomorrow!