The Lead

The Ravens ended the regular season with a 14-2 record, clinching home field advantage throughout the playoffs. And much of it was thanks to Lamar Jackson, their star dual-threat quarterback. He‘s lit up the NFL all season, and broke Michael Vick's single-season record for rushing yards by a quarterback. He’s seen by many as the leading candidate for league MVP.

Over the holidays The Lead is featuring episodes from its first year about how sports changed in 2019 or signaled a major trend that’s shaking up a particular league or sport. The Athletic’s Sheil Kapadia joins us to talk about how the Ravens gambled on Jackson in the off-season by rearranging their offense to suit his incredible rushing skills, and to discuss whether the Ravens’ success with a dual-threat QB will become a blueprint for other teams in the future.

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Over the holidays The Lead is featuring episodes from its first year about how sports changed in 2019 or signaled a major trend that’s shaking up a particular league or sport.

Women’s Soccer is here to stay. The North Carolina Courage defeated the Chicago Red Stars 4-0 in the final of the NWSL on October 27, 2019. This summer's World Cup generated a lot of talk about equal pay, and also led to a new broadcast deal and a major corporate sponsor for the NWSL. We chat with The Athletic's Megan Linehan about the future of the league, the team that's been pulling in 20,000 fans for home games, and what U.S. star Megan Rapinoe has been up to now that she’s no longer in a Twitter war with the president.

Read Megan's article about the future of the NWSL:

https://theathletic.com/1326052/2019/10/26/nwsl-state-of-the-league-amanda-duffy-heather-oreilly/?source=theleadpodcast

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Over the holidays The Lead is featuring episodes from its first year about how sports changed in 2019 or signaled a major trend that’s shaking up a particular league or sport.

Paul George and Anthony Davis did something this off-season that rattled the NBA to its very core — they forced their teams to trade them, despite the fact that they were still under contract. The Athletic's Sam Amick joins us to explain how NBA superstars have become so powerful that they can dictate their own trades and line up their future teammates, and what this means for the future of the league.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Over the holidays The Lead is featuring episodes from its first year about how sports changed in 2019 or signaled a major trend that’s shaking up a particular league or sport.

There’s a new youth movement this season in the NHL. The Toronto Maple Leafs have one of the best young teams in professional hockey. The team is also led by a very young general manager who has placed a premium on locking in youthful talent with big contracts. It’s part of a wider movement in the NHL where young players are commanding the types of salaries that were once reserved for veterans. But while today’s young hockey stars are good, it’s the older teams who are winning Stanley Cups. The Athletic’s Craig Custance joins us to talk about Toronto’s baby-faced GM and whether or not young stars are worth the money.

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Nine years ago, Indianapolis Colts GM Chris Ballard and his wife Kristen Ballard received an unexpected phone call. It challenged them in a way they never could have imagined, and caused their family to grow in size. Warning: This is a heartwarming tale of humanity, just in time for the holidays.

Read Zak Keefer's story about the Ballard family:

https://theathletic.com/1311425/2019/10/29/can-we-handle-this-how-colts-gm-chris-ballard-and-his-wife-saved-four-girls-in-need/?source=theleadpodcast

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Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray entered the NFL surrounded by hype, but along with the fanfare came a lot of doubt. The football world at large didn't think a quarterback of his stature could thrive in the NFL, but so far he's proving the doubters wrong. The Athletic's Lindsay Jones joins us to talk about Kyler Murray's rookie campaign, how his skills have translated on the big stage and why he might be the best high school football player ever to come from the state of Texas.

Read Lindsay Jones' story on Kyler Murray's high school career here:

https://theathletic.com/1397295/2019/11/21/kyler-murray-high-school-oral-history-allen/?source=theleadpodcast

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The FBI recently charged 10 former NFL players, including Clinton Portis, with defrauding a health care program meant to benefit retired players and their families. The indictment cites more than 3 million dollars in fraudulent claims for medical equipment, including a device normally used on horses. The Athletic’s Daniel Kaplan joins us to break down this unusual case, to discuss what NFL players lives are like after they stop playing, and to consider the impact the lawsuit might have on other retired players.

Read Dan Kaplan's story about the alleged fraud:

https://theathletic.com/1458892/2019/12/13/payments-from-nfl-health-care-plan-allegedly-defrauded-by-ex-players-skyrocketed-during-period-in-question/?source=theleadpodcast

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The once untouchable Warriors are now the worst team in the NBA, with a 5-23 record. And the last man standing from the dynasty years, at least for now, is the notoriously intense Draymond Green. The Athletic’s Anthony Slater sat down with Draymond to talk about how he’s dealing with all this losing, how he's rehabilitating his offensive game, and growing up a bit in the process.

Read Anthony Slater's story about the new Draymond:

https://theathletic.com/1392188/2019/11/25/its-an-everyday-battle-to-let-go-of-that-will-to-win-draymond-greens-calm-approach-to-a-rare-losing-season/?source=theleadpodcast

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After a 2-year-old was hit in the head by a foul ball back in May during a Cubs-Astros game, pressure began mounting on Major League Baseball to make stadiums safer for fans. The Athletic’s Sahadev Sharma, who was at that game, joins us to talk about the incident, last week's announcement that MLB teams will be expanding protective netting, and how this new development might affect players and fans.

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The Heisman Trophy Award ceremony is Saturday, and LSU's Joe Burrow is virtually certain to win. The Athletic's Jon Greenberg went to Burrow's hometown of Athens, Ohio and interviewed his family, friends, and former coaches to learn about the star QB's past and to see how people there have been following his success.

Read Jon Greenberg's story about Joe Burrow's legacy in Athens, Ohio:

https://theathletic.com/1420714/2019/12/05/i-played-against-joe-freaking-burrow-how-lsus-heisman-favorite-built-his-legend-in-southeast-ohio/?source=theleadpodcast

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.