UPDATE (Sunday, Jan. 29, at 10:12 p.m. ET): The hire is official. ORIGINAL STORY: The San Francisco 49ers have taken the first step toward rebuilding their organization. The 49ers have reportedly hired former safety and Hall-of-Fame candidate John Lynch to be their new general manager, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. San Francisco parted ways with general manager Trent Baalke and head coach Chip Kelly on Jan. 1 after a disastrous 2-14 season, and apparently, the 49ers know that the rebuild might take some time. Lynch has no previous front office experience, and the decision to hire him apparen... NESN.com
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UFC Fight Night Denver Results: Valentina Shevchenko Tops Julianna Pena
Who were the winners at UFC Fight Night Denver? Check below to get the results for all the fights at Pepsi Center in Denver, Colo., on Saturday. Main event: Valentina Shevchenko defeated Julianna Pena Valentina Shevchenko surprisingly landed a pair of takedowns and finished Julianna Pena off with a sensational armbar submission at 4:29 of the second round. Pena took Shevchenko down, which was supposed to be where the “Venezuelan Vixen” would hold the advantage. But after a few moments, Shevchenko was able to throw her leg over the head and catch Pena sleeping with the armbar. Seconds later, Pena was forced to tap. The majo... NESN.com
C.J. McCollum Decks Chandler Parsons In Twitter Spat With Ruthless Burn
There’s nothing quite like a good athlete Twitter beef, and we got a juicy one Friday night. This spat actually started with the Portland Trail Blazers’ team account, which put Memphis Grizzlies forward Chandler Parsons on blast for airballing a 3-pointer in Friday’s contest. Parsons saw the dig after the game, a 112-109 Portland win, and decided to call the Blazers out for their low blow. Portland is ninth in the Western Conference and could be destined for the NBA lottery if it doesn’t turn things around, so this is a decent burn. But there’s no way Parsons was prepared for what Blazers guard C.J. McCollum tweeted next. Y... NESN.com
Patriots Injury Report: Nate Ebner, Stephen Gostkowski Sit Out Walk-Through
by Zack Cox on Fri, Jan 27, 2017 at 4:32PM 2,941 FOXBORO, Mass. — Two key special teams players did not participate in Friday’s New England Patriots walk-through outside Gillette Stadium. Safety/special teamer Nate Ebner (concussion) and kicker Stephen Gostkowski (illness) both sat out the session. Ebner was present at the practice but only observed. Seven players were listed as limited participants on Friday’s injury report: tight end Martellus Bennett (knee), running back Bran... NESN.com
Mike Krzyzewski Reportedly Bans Players From Locker Room, Wearing Duke Apparel
The 2016-17 Duke Blue Devils just can’t stop tripping over themselves. Yes, we mean that in the literal sense with Grayson Allen, but also as a description of how the team has fared so far in Atlantic Coast Conference play. The Blue Devils already have four conference losses, their latest of which came at home Monday against North Carolina State. No. 17 Duke (15-5) suddenly is in danger of falling out of the rankings due to their sudden dip, and head coach Mike Krzyzewski apparently has seen enough. Krzyzewski technically is on a leave of absence after having back surgery, but that didn’t stop him from informing the players during a meetin... NESN.com
Bruins Prepare For Defending Champion Penguins After Huge Win Over Red Wings
The Boston Bruins were back at practice Wednesday after a much-needed 4-3 win in overtime against the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday night. The schedule doesn’t get any easier, though. The defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins visit TD Garden on Thursday night. They beat the Bruins 5-1 last weekend. Check out the “NESN Sports Today” video above, presented by People’s United Bank, for a report from B’s practice. ... NESN.com
Josh McDaniels Applauds Patriots’ ‘Unique’ Unselfishness Ahead Of Super Bowl LI
by Zack Cox on Tue, Jan 24, 2017 at 4:39PM 2,230 Even with Rob Gronkowski sidelined, the New England Patriots boast arguably the deepest stable of offensive weapons in the NFL. And, one can argue, perhaps the deepest the franchise has had under head coach Bill Belichick. That means some players who might be the top dogs elsewhere are the third, fourth or fifth option in New England, which easily could lead to griping about playing time, touches and the like. It’s certainly resulted in... NESN.com