No matter what happened in the Minnesota Vikings' game Thursday against the Detroit Lions, what defensive end Everson Griffen is going to remember is what happened back in Minneapolis.
Griffen's wife Tiffany gave birth to a baby boy, but details -- such as weight, length and name -- were scarce. Because he had a national television audience at his disposal, he jumped up after sacking Detroit quarterback Matthew Stafford and asked for help naming the baby, raising his jersey to reveal a shirt on which he'd written: "I just had a baby boy. What should we name him?"
"I was thinking about doing something, and I just thought it would be funny," Griffen said afterward.
Griffen was open to more suggestions during his postgame media session.
Running back Latavius Murray suggested Latavius.
"Absolutely not," Griffen said.
The notoriously finicky NFL might not be amused about altering a uniform to deliver a personal message, which had fans taking to social media to name the boy "Fine." There has been no announcement on whether the NFL will fine him for altering his uniform with a personal message.
Rocky bottom
In the land of "Rocky Top," Tennessee's nightmare season marked another dismal chapter Wednesday, as interim Coach Brady Hoke dismissed wide receiver Jauan Jennings after the junior posted a profanity-laced tirade to the internet.
In an Instagram video, Jennings -- who has been out with a dislocated wrist suffered in the Vols' season opener -- appeared upset at possibly having been told he couldn't play in today's season finale against Vanderbilt.
"I really f** hate Vanderbilt," the Murfreesboro, Tenn., native said to a camera.
Jennings then upped his rant on Tennessee's staff, dropping about 10 profanities before ending it with, "the coaching staff is holding us back. Please, Tennessee, send us a great ... coaching staff."
Of course, a new Tennessee coaching staff isn't going to save Jennings since he won't be playing for the Vols next season, despite catching 40 passes for 580 yards and 7 touchdowns in 2016, including a last-second, Hail Mary grab that secured a memorable victory over Georgia.
Overcoming obstacles
On Nov. 21, 2008, while still at the University of Florida, Cam Newton was arrested and charged with felony counts of burglary, larceny and obstructing justice over a stolen laptop.
On Tuesday -- exactly nine years later -- Newton posted a picture of his police mug shot on Instagram as a reminder, he wrote, that anyone can overcome such circumstances "with hard work and persistence."
In 2008, after receiving a report of a stolen laptop from another student, police in Florida said Newton threw the computer out of his dormitory room window when they arrived to investigate. The charges were dropped after Newton completed a pretrial diversion program.
Newton announced his intention to transfer away from Florida a few months after the incident. Newton first transferred to a junior college in Texas and then to Auburn, where he won the 2010 Heisman Trophy and led the Tigers to the BCS Championship Game.
The Panthers then took him with the first pick of the 2011 NFL Draft, and in 2015 he was named NFL MVP and led Carolina to the Super Bowl.
Sports on 11/25/2017