Day 656

• Merry fucking Christmas, Packer Nation.  WTF was that no-call on the winning pick?  (Blatant defensive holding, that was what.) 
• The Christmas NBA schedule somehow survived.  The Warriors won the third meeting of the year in Phoenix as the highlight.
• We're down to just three out of the ten scheduled Boxing Day (today) 2nd-level English soccer matches.
• Three matches in Scotland, one in Australia, and one in Belgium have also been scrapped, along with over two dozen matches in England among the top four divisions today.
• Two more bowl games have been scrapped due to Omicron:  The Fenway Bowl in Boston (Virginia COVID issues) and the Military Bowl (Boston College).
• Ten Atlanta Hawks are now in COVID protocol.
• Archbishop Desmond Tutu has passed away -- he was 90.
• It appears we have another major anti-vaxxer in the NFL:  Buffalo's Cole Beasley, who has been fined at least FOUR TIMES this year for about $100,000 because of violations of the league protocols.  And he had this to say regarding his COVID-list absence today:

""Just to be clear COVID is not keeping me out of this game. The rules are," he wrote in a Tuesday post. "Vaxxed players are playing with Covid every week now because they don't test. One of my vaxxed teammates is in the hospital missing games. I'm sure he didn't get this same energy. Thank you for those who support. Everyone else, if you don't get what's happening then there is nothing anybody can do for you.""

• I'll see if I can find others, but, as SOMETHING attempting positive these last few days, here is the list of the SportsCenter Top 10 Plays of 2021:

10)  Asshole Benoit Paire (What the fuck is he doing still being allowed to play tennis professionally?) with a sick drop shot in a Swiss tournament in July.

9) Sabrina Ionescu with a game-winner on the first night of the WNBA 2021 season.  Good grief, if a simple 3-point game-winner like THAT is one of the Top Ten Plays of the Year...  

8) Sergio Garcia aces the hole which walks off the WGC World Match Play Championship in March on the 40th hole of the Final.  That's more like it!   

7) Mookie Betts with a web gem in right to win one of the games of the first series between the Dodgers and Padres.

6) Terry McLaurin of the WFT making a big catch in a Week 1 game.

5) Patrik Schick of the Czech Republic with a wonder-goal in Euro 2021 from past the midway line.

4) Anthony Edwards wins Dunk and Poster of the Year in the NBA.

3) Anaheim Mighty Ducks pass over the net to a waist-high goal against Buffalo.  Zegras to Milano.

2) DJ Graham with a one-hand full-twisting interception for Oklahoma.

1) Jalen Suggs of Gonzaga kept the undefeated dream alive with a game-winning 3 to send UCLA home in the Final Four.