by Zak Drapeau and Matt Hylen Sportz Nation - 2/20/2026 In our predictions from last week which you can find here , Matt went 4-2 on picks while correctly predicting 2 methods for 6 total points. Zak went 3-3 on picks and also predicting 2 methods for 5 total points Points-to-Date: Matt: 21 (14-5) Zak: 20 (14-5) _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *All odds courtesy of Caesar's Sportsbook Photo from Matt Bohm/ MMA Junkie via Yahoo Sports 3 Sean Strickland v 4 Anthony Hernand

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 2/20/2026 Norway Photo by Lars Baron/ Getty Images The 2026 Winter Olympics have become one of the biggest landslides in the event's history and it's thanks to Norway. In 2022 and 2018, Norway would set records in Most Gold Medals Achieved and Most Total Medals Received respectively. In 2026, they're on pace to break both of those. In fact, Norway has already set the record for Most Gold Medals in a single Winter Olympics in 2026 with 17 already

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 2/18/2026 10. Justin Gaethje vs Michael Chandler Photo by Cooper Neill/ Zuffa LLC All Out War. Some of the fights on this list had incredible builds, some had titles on the line and some had crazy finishes. This fight had none of the above but did have 2 of the most competitive rounds I've ever seen. For the first two rounds, this fight in 2021 had slams, knockdowns and the crowd going wild from start to finish. Chandler proved he is one of th

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 2/18/2026 The 2026 Winter Olympics are by far the most watched occurrence of the event in American viewership history, averaging 25.7-26.5 million viewers per day (Milano Cortina via olympics.com ) . The 25th addition of the Winter Olympics have been the first to stream straight to Peacock which has attributed to the large spike in viewers so far. And with the marquee event of the Men's Ice Hockey tournament set to start today, viewership is exp

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 2/14/2026 I feel like I need to say this before we get into the list: Brock Lesnar is one of the most famous Heavyweight in UFC history and a former champion but he was 4-3 (1NC) in the UFC which is no where near enough to make this list. 10. Tim Sylvia Alright youngens, for those of you who got into the sport around COVID, a name you probably don't know and need to look up is Tim Sylvia. From 2002 to 2007, Sylvia not only held gold in the UFC

by Zak Drapeau and Matt Hylen Sportz Nation 2/11/2026 Photo by Chris Unger/ Zuffa LLC 8 Mario Bautista vs Song Yadong After winning his first Main Event last week in dominant fashion, Bautista is ready for a Top-5 fight. While I like his shoutout to Cory Sandhagen, I think his next opponent should be Song Yadong. Yadong has lost two of his last three fights now after losing to O'Malley in January and probably needs someone further down the rankings than Sandhagen would. In co

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 2/11/2026 So with full disclosure I am not a Patriots fan and while this article's topic may seem absurd to some of you, It's worth exploring after his abysmal performance in not only Super Bowl LX but the entire 2026 Playoffs. Photo by Adam Hunger/ Associated Press Content Services for the NFL When asking if Maye is Overrated, one needs to first conclude how he is "rated" at the moment by most pundits and media alike. In short, Maye is closely

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 1/30/2026 We are 5 days into the 25th Winter Olympics and the race for medals is really starting to heat up. Some of the top athletes so far include the Swiss Ski Racer Franjo von Allmen and the Norwegian Cross-Country Skier Johannes Klaebo who are the only athletes so far to secure 2 Golds each. (Mikaela Shiffrin and Breezy Johnson holding up their Gold Medals) Photo by Fabrice Coffrini/ AFP via Getty Images As for the United States, th

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 2/10/2026 Photo by Julio Cortez/ Associated Press Super Bowl Summar y The Patriots' remarkable 2025 season came to a close on Sunday with a 29-13 Loss in Super Bowl LX to the Seahawks. After months of being one of if not the best team in the AFC, the final game ended up being a blowout with the Seahawks' defense dominating the Patriots from start to finish. The game was close through the first 3 quarters with the Patriots' defense being almost e

by Zak Drapeau 1/6/2026 Sportz Nation Graphic by NFL 1. Fernando Mendoza QB Las Vegas Raiders Mendoza is a good Quarterback but maybe not to the level of #1 Quarterbacks in the past. Still this is the pick, with the Raiders needing a Quarterback and this class being the worst for QBs since 2022, this is a no-doubter. 2. Arvell Reese LB New York Jets Reese isn't my #1 prospect this year but he does have the best potential in his class. A freak athlete with all of the physical

by Zak Drapeau and Matt Hylen Sportz Nation - 2/7/2026 Last Week for UFC 325, Zak went 6-1 and Matt went 6-1, with Matt predicting 3 correct methods and Zak picking 2. Points-to-Date: Zak: 15 (11-2) Matt: 15 (10-3) Photo by Chris Unger/ Zuffa LLC 9 Mario Bautista vs 11 Vinicius Oliveira ( Bautista -140 ) Zak Drapeau Unfortunately, this Main Event won't get nearly enough praise as it should because it will be a fantastic fight. Bautista is coming into this fight after losing f

by Zak Drapeau, Matt Hylen, Joseph McLaughlin, Joel Piton and Elias Meredith Sportz Nation - 2/7/2026 Zak Drapeau Winner: Seahawks Score: 21-17 This game is going to come down to turnovers and 4th down conversions. Whichever team can hold on to the ball and keep drives alive is going to win. The growing trend of going for it on 4th downs could be crucial because in a defensive game like this, not taking field goals could be the difference when it comes down to the wire. Matt

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 2/7/2026 Photo by Greg M. Cooper/ Associated Press Ranking QBs ( Right Now ) 1. Josh Allen 2. Matthew Stafford 3. Joe Burrow 4. Lamar Jackson 5. Jared Goff 6. Patrick Mahomes 7. Drake Maye 8. Jalen Hurts 9. Baker Mayfield 10. Dak Prescott If I had to pick a Quarterback today, to play in a single game and win it for me I'm taking Josh Allen. The other guys on this list are elite, dependable and have proven that they can do it over a long period o

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 2/4/3036 Photo by Doug Pensinger/ Getty Images 10. 2015 Denver Broncos 12-4 (#1 in AFC) 19th Offense 4th Defense The craziest part of this list is that this team may have the best defense of the bunch. Even still, the 2015 Broncos take the wooden spoon and DEFINITELY have the worst offense. This Broncos' team was part-Peyton Manning and part-Brock Osweiler and somehow, Osweiler was much better. Manning was 39 and in the final year of his career,

by Zak Drapeau and Matt Hylen Sportz Nation - 2/2/2026 Alexander Volkanovski vs WINNER of Lerone Murphy vs Mosvar Evloev Photo by Jeff Bottari/ Zuffa LLC Matt Hylen After watching his post-fight octagon interview, it seemed to me that Volkanovski assumed that he would face the winner of a potential title eliminator between Movsar Evloev and Lerone Murphy. He was right to assume that, as a title eliminator between the two was announced on Monday afternoon. Whoever the winner

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 1/31/2026 Risers Quarterbacks Garrett Nussmeier LSU Photo by Butch Dill/ Associated Press Nussmeier was one of the top QBs of the class heading into the season but has since moved down to about a 2nd round prospect after a mediocre and injured 2025 season. Coming into the Senior Bowl, Nussmeier needed to show veteran-like leadership on the field and all-around leadership on the field and that's exactly what he did. Nussmeier was clearly the best

by Zak Drapeau and Matt Hylen Sportz Nation - 1/30/2026 (All odds are via Caesar's Sportsbook on 1/29) Last week Zak went 5-1 and Matt went 4-2 in picking the winners of UFC 324 with both getting 2 methods right as well. For UFC 325 this week, the boys will predict __ fights in their ongoing series of UFC Predictions ALL YEAR Points To Date: Zak - 7 Matt - 6 Photo by Chris Unger/ Zuffa LLC C Alexander Volkanovski vs #2 Diego Lopes 2 Featherweight Championship (Volkanovski -

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 1/30/2026 Here in New England, we are delighted but not shocked that the Patriots are back in the Super Bowl. We might have a young team led by a new Head Coach and a Quarterback only in his second year, but WE have what THEY don't... Championship DNA. We just win in New England. While everyone else is talking about how we shouldn't be here and every reason we don't deserve this Championship appearance, cough Cam Newton cough cough We've set ou

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 1/29/2026 Team Leaders Passing Sam Darnold 67.7% completion 4,048 pass yards 25 pass TDs 14 INTs Rushing Kenneth Walker 221 carries 1,027 rush yards 4.6 yards per carry 10, 20+ yard rushes 5 rush TDs Receiving Jaxon Smith Njigba 119 receptions 163 targets 1,793 rec yards 4.4 yards after catch average 10 rec TDs Tackling Ernest Jones IV 126 combined tackles 4 tackles for loss 5 interceptions 7 pass deflections 1 Touchdown S

Photo Credit to Ian Maule via Getty Images Justin Gaethje vs Ilia Topuria Lightweight Championship Zak Drapeau I still believe we will see Makhachev vs. Topuria, but now that Gaethje is the interim champ, this fight should probably happen first. This also has Fight of the Night and Knockout of the Night written all over it as the probable heaviest and most technical strikers of the division square off. Who knows what Topuria's future holds and how his style, skill, and prowe