De Blasio gave a speech shortly after helping to paint a mural at 11:30 a.m. reading “Black Lives Matter” on Fifth Avenue, on a city street adjacent to Trump Tower. The mayor was surrounded by members of the Black community, including activist Al Sharpton, when he began speaking about the importance of the mural. While the mayor did wear a mask as he painted the “L” in the mural, he did not wear one when he addressed the crowd, many of whom were in close proximity to the mayor....

Mena, 27, made 23 appearances (22 starts) over two MLS seasons after joining NYCFC from Colombian side Independiente Medellin in July 2015. FC Dallas president eyes new DP The Colombian center back had fallen down the depth chart for NYCFC, with Frederic Brillant and Maxime Chanot emerging as the the first-choice pairing. The club also re-signed reserve center back Ethan White earlier this offseason. “Everyone at NYCFC would like to wish Jefferson all the very best for his loan spell in Ecuador,” NYCFC sporting director Claudio Reyna said in a news release....

Two local fire departments were called to help control the fire in the property’s clubhouse, which was still blazing as of Thursday afternoon. The fire’s cause is not yet known and no injuries have been reported so far. The historic building, located in Bloomfield Township, contains “irreplaceable” memorabilia from the approximately 100 years it had been hosting golf tournaments, according to the Associated Press. A spokesperson from the Bloomfield Township Fire Department told Detroit news station WJBK the fire, which started around 10 a....

Obama’s strong denouncement of the practice followed a bold statement by adidas on Thursday, when the sports apparel company announced its intent to provide free design services to schools willing or wanting to transition away from Native American logos and imagery. MORE: Schools that eradicated Native American mascots | PHOTOS: Life and football in Cherokee country “In terms of eliminating racism or stereotypes, that’s an obligation of the entire society, but it’s especially important in the school,” Obama told the crowd at the 2015 White House Tribal Nations Conference....

MCGUIRE: Before you started your bookstore, you went around and looked at what was going on elsewhere, is that right? DALE: I was a lobbyist before. I had no experience of books, retailing, anything. All I knew about was politics. I got the idea from a few shops that I saw on trips to Washington. Some were political-memorabilia shops; others were general bookshops with a coffee shop. I thought a mixture of the two might work quite well in London because there is the same sort of political clique here....

Ohio State remains the clear favorite at 5-to-2 odds, adjusted from the 9-to-2 price at which the Buckeyes opened the day after beating Oregon for the 2014-15 title in January. More: 15 teams projected for 9+ wins | Heisman odds TCU and Alabama are co-second favorites, according to SuperBook odds, each listed at 5-to-1. OSU, TCU and ‘Bama are the only three teams priced in the single digits, and they are followed by Baylor at 12-to-1....

While it’s nice that the league appears to be softening its stance toward punishing fun, other players can’t help but take notice of the NFL’s decision not to fine the running back. The league has been punishing players all season for thought-out celebrations. MORE: Updated playoff picture Giants receiver Odell Beckham decided to get vocal about it, and sent a subtweet directed toward the NFL. Some might take this as Beckham being a diva, but he kind of has a point....

Both the Cowboys and Giants have records of 7-3 and are playing in the loaded NFC East. All four teams in that division have a winning record, and all four will be challenging for playoff berths as the 2022 NFL season comes to an end. As such, each NFC East matchup will become increasingly important, as the four teams jockey for playoff positioning and seeding within the conference. That will be especially true of Thanksgiving’s game, as it will determine, at least short-term, which team is most likely to challenge the Eagles for the top spot in the division....

But at halftme on Saturday, it seemed a forgone conclusion that Minnesota would have to wait another week to wrap things up. The Vikings were down 33-0, so the only reasonable result was that they would drop to 10-4, lick their wounds and try again next week. This football Saturday wasn’t reasonable, however. The Vikings ripped off 39 of the next 42 points to win 39-36 in overtitme, the biggest comeback in NFL history....

An estimated 10,000-12,000 people suffer spinal-cord injuries in the United States every year, most of them men between the ages of 16 and 30. But while scientists have made enormous progress in the 12 years since Christopher Reeve’s riding accident brought national attention to spinal-cord injuries, most of that new knowledge has yet to move from the lab to the hospital. “We aren’t as in the dark as we were 10 years ago,” says Moses Chao, chair of the science advisory council at the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation....

While head coaches, players and general manager rightly stress every game is important, those played on Thursday, Sunday and Monday night have a different aura to them. The latter of those days, in particular, carries an almost unique mystique and Monday night games often tend to be a special occasion. This year promises to be just as exciting, with an intriguing mix of Super Bowl contenders and divisional rivalries behind played in front of the ESPN cameras which, as has been the case since its inception in 1970, will broadcast Monday Night Football....

Week 8 looks a lot more favorable for bettors than Week 7. Last week saw four double-digit spreads that confounded betters. There are once again four double-digit spreads in Week 8, but they are a bit easier to predict, especially the ones where AFC teams like the Bills, Bengals and Chiefs are favored. Even if you don’t like betting the spreads in those big-line games, there are still some quality over-under bets to choose from....

With a couple top backs (Todd Gurley, Tevin Coleman) sitting out with injuries, the RBs took the field in Indianapolis on Saturday for their workouts and position drills at the NFL Scouting Combine. MORE: Gurly not at all a risk | Gordon vs. Gurley scouting comparison | Mock Draft Wisconsin’s Melvin Gordon, also recognized as one of the better backs in the class, posted a 4.52 40-yard dash time, a predicable and satisfying number given his 6 foot, 215-pound frame....

“We’re a game of rules and the rules need to be followed by everyone,” the NFL commissioner said Wednesday at the league’s owners’ meetings in New York. “The most important thing for us is making sure the rules are followed.” MORE: The NFL’s craziest fans | National Family Guy League Goodell was asked more than once about the Deflategate scandal involving the Patriots and quarterback Tom Brady. Goodell said he has never been in favor of third-party arbitration and will continue to fight Brady’s overturned four-game suspension....

MORE RANKINGS: QB | WR | TE | DEF Marshawn Lynch, Seahawks vs. Packers ($7,600). Lynch is far from a bad option obviously, but considering the lack of talent in action, he stands out as the clear-cut No. 1 choice among running backs. He’s a pricey option in DraftKings, but if you want the dependability, you’re going to have to pay a premium. A lot of regular season stats can be thrown out at this point, but the Packers did allow 97....

If you’re a fan of DFS or you just like to find an edge or angle with all your football-related bets, this column will be up your alley all season. Each week, I scour the player pools on the two biggest DFS sites and compile a list of values to help you win some cold, hard cash. The more value players you add, the more money you will have to spend on proven weekly studs at other position spots....

However, the solution may be drawing near. That’s the outright elimination of an exhibition contest whose time may have come and gone. MORE: Finding preseason optimism Some would argue Week 4 games became obsolete the moment NFL teams began resting swaths of starters to mitigate injury risk in favor of backups and reserves who are destined to get released when final roster cuts are made. But a growing number of respected NFL voices have joined the chorus of those who believe a change that would truncate the preseason schedule is necessary...

NFL DRAFT: Picks, analysis from Round 1 The players enter with cards reflecting the type of ratings they may start with in the next game (“Madden NFL 19” will release in August) along with special future editions that rate them at their estimated potential. The new rookies are obtained through card packs or the Auction House and those can be put towards sets that award the “Future Star” versions. It’s important at this point in the year for any new cards introduced to Ultimate Team to be souped-up, otherwise they would be irrelevant, thus justifying the high-90 rated editions of each player....

The Cardinals selected Murray with the No. 1 overall pick Thursday in the 2019 NFL Draft. Mayfield took to Twitter to congratulate the quarterback. Mayfield and Murray both play collegiately at Oklahoma and won the Heisman Trophy in back-to-back years. “BACK TO BACK!!!!!” Mayfield wrote. “CONGRATS K1!!!! Well deserved my brotha!!!” Mayfield added “see you in December.” The Cardinals are set to face the Browns in Arizona on Dec. 15....