Free Republic

CLEVELAND, OH -- LeBron James has dropped Johnny Manziel as a business client. A spokesman for James said the NBA star and has ended his marketing agreement with Manziel, the embattled Browns quarterback whose behavior has him on very shaky ground with his team and Cleveland fans. James and his associates at LRMR - long-time friends Maverick Carter, Rich Paul and Randy Mims - will no longer be working with Manziel after mutually agreeing to end their partnership. LRMR has been handling endorsement deals for Manziel since he got drafted into the NFL. Cleveland.com first reported the end of James'...

Johnny Manziel is in danger of losing his biggest sponsor -- Nike -- with sources telling TMZ Sports the company is "on the fence" about dropping the QB from its roster this off-season. In fact, one highly placed Nike source tells us ... "We are worried about him and hope things will turn around in the right direction ... but we are on the fence if [our relationship] will continue."

African-American males are only six percent of the United States population, but comprise nearly 70 percent of the players in the National Football League. When we focus on the sport's high collision positions, the number of African Americans playing by percentage rises substantially. Nearly 30 percent of white NFL players are kickers, punters, or quarterbacks, all positions that have a much lower chance of being involved in concussion-causing collisions. With nearly 1,200 of the NFL's 1,700 players being black, football's concussion problem is also clearly a racial problem. For decades, young black men have laid themselves on the line for...

Six years after it asked America who the best athletes of all-time were, the Harris Poll released its most recent results on Wednesday, and there's at least one constant: Michael Jordan. Jordan was once again on top of the survey, followed by Babe Ruth and Muhammad Ali, who each moved up one spot from their 2009 rankings. Tiger Woods, who in 2009 held the No. 2 spot, fell to No. 8. Rounding out the top five were Serena Williams, who wasn't ranked six years ago, and Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning, who jumped from No. 8 to No. 5.

Kobe Bryant announced Sunday on the Players' Tribune website that he will retire after this season, saying "this season is all I have left to give." In a piece entitled "Dear Basketball," the 37-year-old Bryant wrote that the sport of basketball "gave a six-year-old boy his Laker dream and I'll always love you for it."

Doug Flutie's parents both passed away within an hour of each other Wednesday after being married for 56 years, the former NFL quarterback said on Facebook. Flutie said that his father, Dick, had been ill and died of a heart attack in the hospital. Less than an hour later, Dick Flutie's wife, Joan, suddenly had a heart attack and also passed away. "They say you can die of a broken heart and I believe it," Flutie said. "I would like to honor my parents for all that they did throughout my and my brothers' and sister's lives. My parents were...

MEXICO, N.Y. – Mexico High School quarterback Dante Turo believes it’s God who gives him the strength and abilities to be successful on the football field. The junior team leader often points skyward after big plays as a tribute to the Almighty, and his 73-yard run for a touchdown against Vernon-Verona-Sherrill Oct. 17 was no exception, Syracuse.com reports. The solemn celebration, however, apparently didn’t sit well with one referee, who flagged the teen for unsportsmanlike conduct and assessed a 15-yard penalty that ultimately cost his team the game. “I was just trying to give glory to God,” Turo told the...

Former NBA star-turned-reality star Lamar Odom had cocaine in his system and track marks on one arm following his sex-and-drugs binge at a Vegas brothel, according to new reports. Sources described as “hospital witnesses” told TMZ that doctors found evidence Odom had used cocaine and intravenous drugs. Fluid in his lungs may have been the result of crack cocaine use, according to people in Odom’s camp who spoke to his doctors, the website reported. News of the hard drugs compounds previous reports that Odom had an open bottle of cognac at his side and had been taking herbal Viagra when...

Lamar Odom has reportedly been hospitalized after being found unconscious at a Nevada brothel. According to TMZ, the former NBA player and star of E!’s “Khloe and Lamar” reality series was found unconscious at Love Ranch South in Pahrump, Nev., after multiple days of partying. He was apparently intubated at the hospital, an indication that he was not able to breathe on his own. He will reportedly be airlifted to a Las Vegas hospital for further treatment. Odom, the ex-husband of Khloe Kardashian, previously went missing two years ago after a drug-fueled bender at a Los Angeles hotel. He also...

Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers insisted throughout the week that he wouldn’t be thinking about anything that had happened in past games with the Seattle Seahawks as the two teams prepared for a rematch. But after the Packers beat the Seahawks 27-17 in Green Bay Sunday night, Rodgers made a comment that appeared to show some of the history with the Seahawks was on his mind. Specifically, comments Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson made after the NFC Championship game crediting the Seahawks’ comeback to God. Asked after the game a question about the Packers have been able to create and deal...

U.S. on the 1992 Olympic boxing team; “Every time he’d reach, I’d counter,” he said. “He had my hand in his mouth.” At one point, Nicholson said he was down on one knee, choking the dog. Nicholson suffered bites to his legs, stomach, and hands. “He was strong as hell,” Nicholson said.

Friends of former NBA Commissioner David Stern are urging him to run for mayor in 2017, now that Mayor de Blasio is looking less likely to be re-elected to a second term. Stern, a lifelong Democrat who has regularly contributed to the party, will be retired for two years in February. “He’s pretty bored,” said one source. “He’s always been interested in politics, and he’s always been interested in running for office.”

WHEN YOU listen to Tim Tebow talk about his love for the game of football, it is hard not to feel like a soulless wretch for all of those years you rooted against him. When he looks into your eyes, you reflexively shrink away, as if he is peering into the darkest part of you. It feels as if he knows, as if the snark still echoes in his ears, as if he can still hear the cry of your cold heart as it begs the Steelers to win the toss in overtime. You want him to hug you and...

Legendary New York Giants star Frank Gifford, the pro Football Hall of Famer who transferred smoothly to the announcers’ booth after retiring, died Sunday morning. He was 84.

The head of the British delegation says it was special for so many Jews to open the games in the Nazi-built stadium where Adolf Hitler made his speeches. The 14th European Maccabi Games are in full swing in Berlin as thousands of Jewish athletes and their supporters have come together for a bit of friendly competition in the German capital. This year's game is special, however, because it's one of the largest gatherings of Jews in Germany since World War II. It's even more historic because the games take place at the Nazi-built Olympiastadion, location of the 1936 Olympics, from...

If there is any story on this blog that you’re going to grow tired of reading, it’s the one about the former NBA or NFL athlete who is now broke and living with his mama. These stories are everywhere, and it has people wondering if the Harvard-educate d financial managers being employed by professional sports leagues are actually helping these guys protect their wealth or if the players are being chewed up and spit out by people who could care less about them. But we’re all responsible for our outcomes, and when we read stories like this one, we have...

GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Brett Favre headed up the Lambeau Field tunnel, a path that he had walked dozens of times. He turned left at the end, and then walked through a set of double doors. The Green Bay Packers' locker room was just down the hall on the right. And that's when it finally it him. He was back at his football home.

Kenny “The Snake” Stabler, who led the Oakland Raiders to a Super Bowl title in 1977, died Thursday at the age of 69. Stabler led Alabama to an 11-0 record in 1966 before turning pro. From 1968-75, the Oakland Raiders played in six AFL/AFC title games and lost each one of them to the eventual Super Bowl champion.

UPDATE: Kenny Stabler's ex-wife Rose Stabler confirms to Local 15 News that Kenny has passed away at the age of 69. ORIGINAL STORY Tuscaloosa News reported former Alabama star quarterback and Foley native Kenny Stabler's death and has since retracted the story, saying Stabler's death is unconfirmed. Local 15 News also reported this news at 5 p.m. after reaching out to the head of the Kenny Stabler's former foundation. A representative from the foundation tells Local 15 Stabler did die from prostate cancer. We will continue to stay on top of this developing story.

Sigh ... this is a thing now, people. Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson was part of a recent public Q&A session at The Rock Church with pastor Miles McPherson, a man who spent four seasons as a defensive back for the Chargers. The topic of Wilson's personal life came up — specifically, his girlfriend Ciara, who happens to be a critically acclaimed recording artist. Wilson, a man of strong faith, told McPherson a story about telling a friend that Ciara was the girl he wanted to be with before he ever met her. The discussion about his personal life continued with...