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One of the first things you see when you get off the plane at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas is an array of slot machines. You continue to see them (so many of them!) as you walk through the terminal to your shuttle or rideshare that takes you to the heart of Vegas, where there are more slot machines… and blackjack tables… and roulette… and televisions blaring sports games that you can place a bet on.

Gambling, in one form or another, is inescapable in Las Vegas. It’s what the city’s economy runs on. Last year, casinos in Nevada “collected $15.5 billion in gaming revenue in 2023, a 4.6 percent increase over 2022,” according to The Nevada Independent, while “strip casinos reported a record $8.9 billion in revenue — a 7.4 percent increase over 2022 that accounted for more than 57 percent of the statewide total.”

But what if you want to visit Vegas and have no interest in gambling? Whether it’s for moral reasons or because you’re afraid of losing money (yes, hello). Yyou’re in luck: there’s still plenty to do.

Here’s our guide on how to experience and enjoy Las Vegas without spending a single cent on gambling. For the purposes of this post, I’m sticking to spots on or near the iconic Las Vegas Strip. Otherwise, I would suggest heading to the Hoover Dam and reenacting the plot of Vegas Vacation. Have fun!

Enjoy Some Of The Finest Food In The Country

Las Vegas is an underrated food destination. That might sound silly, considering some of the world’s most famous chefs have restaurants in the city, but Vegas is rarely in the same conversation as New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago, but like Houston and Miami. Maybe it should be!

Alain Ducasse sure thinks so. The French chef with over 20 Michelin stars to his name told Food Republic, “International is really a word that describes Las Vegas very well, with lots of nationalities and crossing worlds all the time, and movers and shakers. It’s the right combination of talents, of chefs.”

Some of my favorite dishes during a recent trip were the rich escargot and filling lobster risotto at The Cosmopolitan’s LPM Restaurant & Bar; juicy lemon roasted chicken and crunchy macaroni at Mandalay Bay’s Orla (which was within earshot of the commotion of the casino, but still felt relaxed and private); and after a night of drinking, a hangover-cure bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich from Park MGM’s The Chef Truck, inspired by the 2014 movie Chef.

And Don’t Forget The Drinks

There are somewhere between 10 and 10,000 bars in Las Vegas. I don’t have an exact count, because then I would have to decide whether my hotel room fridge containing a mini-bottle of Jameson counts as a bar. There are better uses of my time, like drinking an opulent old fashioned from high-end cocktail bar The Vault inside the Bellagio or going to the Bruno Mars-owned Pinky Ring retro lounge and enjoying a cocktail while feeling you’ve stepped (and danced) back into the 1970s. Those were two of my favorite drinking spots during my latest trip, but truly, the options in Vegas are endless (you can do better than a sticky frozen daiquiri that’s more sugar than alcohol).

For more drinking options in Vegas, we’ve got you covered.

Do Something Educational

Whenever I travel, there are three things I always look out for: where to eat Asian cuisine, where to run, and — this is easier in some cities more than others — where to find local Taylor Swift connections. Please do not judge me (maybe judge me a little). Museums aren’t usually near the top of my traveling destination list (Okay, now you can feel free to definitely judge me), but the museums in Las Vegas, of all places, are stellar.

The Mob Museum is a fun and educational way to learn about organized crime for a few hours, while The Neon Museum tells the story of the city through “collecting, preserving, studying, and exhibiting iconic Las Vegas signs for educational, historic, arts, and cultural enrichment.” A trip there will make you want a neon sign for your backyard. Unfortunately for you but thankfully for your neighbors, the Hard Rock guitar isn’t for sale.

Try Something Other Than A Show

When in Vegas, right? Magic shows and concerts (one of the best concerts I’ve ever been to was Celine Dion at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace — I cried during “My Heart Will Go On”) are Las Vegas tourist favorites for a reason. They’re nearly as synonymous with the city as gambling.

But give a shot to something out of the ordinary, too.

Why not ride a New York-themed rollercoaster? Or go on a self-guided filming locations walking tour? Or as I did, hit up the Play Playground inside the Luxor Hotel, where you compete against others in games of skill and agility? It’s like Double Dare or any of the old-school Nickelodeon game shows, but with alcohol. You think finding a flag in a snotty nose is difficult? Try launching yourself from a trampoline onto a bullseye after having two Spicy Hurricanes.

Stay Somewhere Luxurious

You’re going to be doing a lot of walking in Las Vegas. More than you might think. According to 2023 Las Vegas tourism statistics, the average visitor walks five miles every day in Vegas. Probably more if you have no sense of direction and constantly get turned around in the casinos (couldn’t be me).

After all that walking (and eating and drinking), you’re going to want a nice place to unwind. The all-suites Vdara Hotel & Spa is not only comfortable, convenient, and a much-needed break from the hustle and bustle of the city below, but it also provided my favorite moment of the trip. I got back late one night (every night), and when I opened the blinds inside the spacious room, I saw that the Sphere had been turned into a giant Minion. It was beautiful.

I love Las Vegas.

Snoop Dogg was the star of the 2024 Olympics. There have been rumors about how much money he earned for the endeavor, and now Snoop himself appears to have confirmed the dollar amount.

On Instagram yesterday (August 15), Snoop re-posted a video that says, “This is the main star of the Paris Olympics. Snoop Dogg, a top rapper, gets over 40 m rubles [about $447,000] daily for his presence at the Paris Olympic Games. Snoop also lives and parties in Paris for free, all to bring more attention to the Olympics. Almost every top broadcast features Snoop. He attends all major Olympic events. For 17 Olympic days, he’ll earn nearly $9 million. However, these expenses are not in vain. Thanks to Snoop, Olympic viewership rose by 79%.”

Earlier this month, venture capitalist Henry McNamara wrote on X (formerly Twitter), “Sat next to an NBC exec at dinner, he said Snoop gets paid $500k a day plus expenses to be here promoting Olympics. From Gin and Juice to a few million to be a celebrity at the Olympics – what a world.”

News Nation also reported around the same time, “Word is out that the network is paying Snoop Dogg a whopping $500,000 per day, plus expenses. As the Olympics are 18 days, Snoop’s base pay is $9 million, but that doesn’t include expenses that the network is also covering. Major expenses include hotel (at $25,000 a night, that adds up to $500,000 with taxes), travel by private jet ($250,000), food, private security and transportation. The bill will likely be over $10 million.”

There is no rest for the weary. Singer, rapper, actor, and author Russ knows this quite well. In fact, the “Put You On Game” musician’s latest song is all about it.

Today (August 16), Russ dropped a new single, “Break,” where he outlined just how overwhelming ambition can be. “I need a break / But I’m probably never gon’ get one / I need a break / I just been working makin’ the checks come / I need a break / Before I lose all of my marbles / Break / I cannot wait ’til tomorrow / Yeah, break,” raps Russ on the record’s chorus.

Despite his desperate pleads for a quick getaway, in the track’s opening verse, he explains why that will have to wait.

“Even on off days, gotta be on / Head of the family, take care of my mom / Welcome to bein’ a man I guess / Always knew this was the plan I guess / Covered in stress, tryna juggle this lifе / Payin’ the bills, but I’m payin’ the price / Wеlcome to bein’ a man I guess / Always knew this was the plan I guess / Yeah, work, work, work, work, work, I feel I’m RiRi / I need some balance, believe me / But it’s not easy, family needs me,” raps Russ.

Although Russ won’t take a pause from his chasing his goals, hopefully the track will serve as a wake-up call for others.

Listen to “Break!” above.

Good news, folks: The Premier League is back. The best domestic soccer league in the world kicks off on Friday afternoon for those of us in the States, where we will see Manchester United attempt to do something that resembles being a good team against Fulham. And from there, the next nine months will be spent watching 20 of the top teams in England go up against one another with the hopes of calling themselves champions against one another.

With things kicking off on Friday, we wanted to take a quick look at the league and answer five questions that should cover just about everything in The Barclays. Will we simply get another year of Manchester City winning everything, or will the title go elsewhere? Who’s getting relegated? What on earth is Chelsea doing? There’s a lot! Let’s dive in.

1. Is this all pointless because it just ends with Manchester City winning again?

City, the side I support (which was clear when the second sentence of this piece featured a dig at United), have won the Premier League in each of the last four years. They have the best manager in the world in Pep Guardiola, who might be entering his final year with the club, and a collection of players who feature for club and country and have gotten the job done time and time again when the league is up for grabs. Nihilism in the race for the title is sensible, because, well, City have just won over and over with Guardiola at the helm, and unless injuries pile up, they’re the favorites to do it again, especially if Erling Haaland can bounce back from a down (by his standards) season last year and put away chances created by their plethora of creative players.

Having said that, it’s not a lock. They’ve never figured out how to do much of anything when Rodri, their indomitable holding midfielder, gets hurt, there’s a chance that they get a monster points deduction this year depending on how an independent panel rules on the Premier League’s allegations that they broke financial rules (you can read about this here), and each of the last two years, they’ve had to deal with a spirited challenge from Arsenal. The Gunners haven’t won the league since 2004, but Mikel Arteta has had them right there recently — some underlying metrics indicate they were a better team than City last year. Their inability to bring in a big time striker this summer might be a problem, but their defense (which got reinforcements in the form of Italy’s Ricardo Calafiori, a star at the Euros) is unbelievable, their midfield is a nightmare to play through and could get better if they get Mikel Merino across the line, they create a ton of chances, and the soon-to-be 23-year-old Bukayo Saka keeps getting better. The club, for years, has had the reputation for letting things slip through their fingers, but this team might just be good enough to get the job done.

And then there’s Liverpool. Frankly, I think there’s a gap between the top-2 teams in the league and them, but they’re built around a group of talented, battle-tested players, even if the club is going through a transitional period. Gone is beloved manager Jurgen Klopp, in comes Arne Slot from Feyenoord, and while he has a reputation for being one of the best managers in the world, being the guy after Klopp is a tall task. The team ran out of gas down the home stretch last year, and followed it up this year without making a single signing so far — they’ve been looking for a defensive midfielder, but their high-profile pursuit of Martin Zubimendi came up short. And on top of it all, the trio of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Mohamed Salah, and Virgil van Dijk are all out of contract after this year. They’re going to score a lot of goals in Slot’s system with their collection of players, but keeping pace with City and Arsenal is going to be awfully difficult.

2. Who gets the fourth Champions League spot?

In order to qualify for the Champions League, you need to finish in the top-4 of the league. As you can guess, my assumption is the above three teams are going to get a spot. The final one will go to one of these clubs: Aston Villa, Brighton, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Manchester United, Newcastle United, or Tottenham. Let’s go in order…

Aston Villa were the biggest surprise in the league last year, as they pipped the fourth spot from Tottenham and qualified for the Champions League for the first time since 1982-83. How they deal with European football and the expectations of being a top team will be fun to watch, but they’re a talented team under Unai Emery. They’ll have to replace a pair of really important players in Moussa Diaby and Douglas Luiz, but they had a good summer headlined by their purchase of Amadou Onana from Everton.

Brighton are the best team at identifying talent, developing them, selling them for crazy money, and then doing that cycle over and over again. Injuries were a problem last year, and they replaced highly-regarded manager Roberto de Zerbi with Premier League newcomer Fabian Hürzeler, so my guess is they don’t get a top-4 spot. But if they stay healthy and their younger players develop (I have a lot of Evan Ferguson stock that is going to make me a hypothetically rich man some day), don’t be surprised if Brighton is in the mix at the end of the year.

The longest longshot of the bunch here is Crystal Palace, which looked like a different team after Oliver Glasner got appointed as manager in February. Glassner took advantage of the fact that Palace is a team filled with athletic and technically magnificent players and got them looking like one of the best teams in the league over the final month or so of the season. Selling Michael Olise to Bayern Munich will be a hard pill to swallow, but Eberechi Eze should do some great things as the focal point of their attack.

I, personally, do not think Chelsea are going to be in the top-4, as the club is a mess from the top down — they have 43 first-team players, which is unheard of, and cycle through managers in the never-ending search for a guy who can make a squad that big work. This time, they went with a Guardiola disciple in former Leicester City manager Enzo Maresca, and the early returns on him in the preseason have not been especially great. But Chelsea has so many players that I suppose it is possible the find the secret sauce and get into a groove as the year goes on … even if they fired their last manager despite this happening.

There may not be a stranger club in Europe than Manchester United, the giants who used to run the league but have not finished atop the table since 2013. Their manager, Erik ten Hag, was reportedly going to get sacked until the team stunned City in the FA Cup final last year. Now he’s back, and the club backed him with three big signings, a pair of center-backs (Lenny Yoro, Matthijs de Ligt) and a forward (Joshua Zirkzee). They finished in eighth place on 60 points last year, which is not good enough for United even with the caveat that injuries were a big issue, and they need to show that they are capable of taking a major step forward under ten Hag this year.

Newcastle were absolutely killed by injuries last year, which meant they went from fourth the previous season to seventh in 2023-24. They haven’t been especially busy this summer, although that can change pretty quickly if Manchester City launch an ambitious and potentially nine-figure bid for standout midfielder Bruno Guimarães. This is to say that they, presumably, have some level of faith that they can perform at a high level if they just stay healthy, and in fairness, they have a talented squad led by Guimarães, Alexander Isak, Anthony Gordon, and a defense that was incredibly difficult to break down during their top-4 finish two years back.

If you’re a fan of chaos, watch every Tottenham game you can. They play some of the most attack-minded (and, at times, reckless) football in the league under Ange Postecoglou, and finished only two points out of the final Champions League spot in the Premier League last season. They exist in a state of perpetual chaos, and if year two under Postecoglou leads to them being comfortable within that chaos, they’re going to be fun, especially after they spent big money to bolster their attack by bringing in Dominic Solanke from Bournemouth.

3. Who’s getting relegated?

Obviously, any conversation about getting relegated in a given year begins with the teams that just came up from the Championship. This time, it’s Ipswich Town, Leicester City, and Southampton. Just in general, staying up is difficult, although last year was the first time in quite a while that all three teams that were promoted went right back down. Of this group, I’d probably back Leicester to stay up, as they have a number of players with Premier League experience from their last stint in the league (I have no clue how Wilfred Ndidi is still here), and have a newly-appointed manager in Steve Cooper who has managed at this level before. Ipswich Town is awesome — their story of getting back to the Premier League is great, and they pumped in goals under rising star manager Kieran McKenna in the Championship last year — while Southampton are right back in the league after only one year in the second division.

The thing that makes the Premier League so difficult is that the middle and bottom portions of the league have talent and/or good managers — a team like Wolverhampton Wanderers, which finished in 14th last year, have some legitimately good players, while Gary O’Neil might be the best English manager in the league. That sentiment also applies to Everton, which are led by Sean Dyche and are capable of being incredibly difficult to break down with England’s No. 1 Jordan Pickford in net. If either finishes in the top-half of the league, I wouldn’t be stunned.

All of this comes with the caveat that the league won’t dock points from any team for breaking its financial rules, which could be huge with how tight things might end up being at the bottom. But keep an eye on Brentford and Nottingham Forest, both of which got the final two spots in the league last year above the relegation zone (it’s worth noting that Forest had a four point deduction, although they still would have finished in 17th). Both have managers in Thomas Frank and Nuno Espirito Santo that know how to navitage the league, but I’m looking at Forest, specifically, as a team at serious risk of going down, since I don’t know if they added enough talent to stay up — figuring out their goalkeeping situation, which they might have done with gigantic Brazilian Carlos Miguel, would be huge.

4. Who’s left?

Three teams: Bournemouth, Fulham, and West Ham. Bournemouth are one of the best teams in the league at identifying talent that fits within their manager’s system, and as a result, they played some really pretty football last year and accrued more points (48) in the Premier League in club history. I think that, despite selling Dominic Solanke, they should be in for a big year under Andoni Iraiola.

Fulham are the poster child for the league’s middle class, and hold a soft spot in my heart because of their long history of getting the best out of American footballers, the most recent of which is Antonee Robinson, who was their player of the season last year. They have to replace standout midfielder João Palhinha, but bringing in Emile Smith-Rowe from Arsenal was a nice bit of business. West Ham are overhauling their club after longtime manager David Moyes was not brought back, and did a ton of business this summer — bringing in French CB Jean-Clair Todibo on a loan was especially interesting. It wouldn’t be stunning if it takes them a bit to get off the ground as a result, but if they find their form as the year goes along, they’ll be a tough team to deal with over the final few months.

5. Alright, so what’s happening this year?

Sure, whatever, here are some predictions:

Champions: Arsenal
Champions League: Manchester City, Liverpool, Tottenham
Biggest surprise: Brighton
Relegated: Ipswich Town, Southampton, Nottingham Forest
Player of the Season: Erling Haaland
Young Player of the Season: Bukayo Saka

I must advise you do not bet on any of these. However, I hope you, like me, enjoy watching the Premier League this season … well, except for when City play Arsenal, because those games will be horrible.

It took 20 years, but finally something good came out of notorious box office disaster Catwoman.

To celebrate two decades of the weirdest basketball scene in cinema history, star Halle Berry — who is, it’s always worth noting, the best — posed topless with some kitties, and shared the photos to Instagram.

During Thursday’s episode of The Tonight Show, Berry discussed the photoshoot with a flustered Jimmy Fallon. “Let me explain. Just in time for our 20th anniversary, these four little black cats showed up in my yard. Like, these are rescue kitties that showed up in my bushes,” the Oscar winner said. When Fallon jokingly wondered if this what happens when you show up at her house, Berry replied, “That’s why I did that! The kitties made me do it.”

You can watch The Tonight Show clip above.

In the Instagram post, Berry wrote, “And STILL… meow! It’s been 20 years today since I had the honor of bringing this iconic character to life. She will always be close to my heart and I will forever be Patience Phillips aka CATWOMAN! Thank you @missjee79! When these black beauties showed up in my yard searching for their mother, Jee helped us through the rescue process. Forever grateful!” Check it out here.

Chance The Rapper seems to being teetering on his plans to withhold his project Star Line. After threatening to shelve the highly anticipated mixtape, a new single from the body of work has been released.

Today (August 16), Chance The Rapper dropped his official self-directed video for single, “Bad Boys 2.” On the track, Chance reconnected with his SaveMoney collaborator, Joey Purp.

As the duo boards the Star Line yacht, they sail around the open seas to flex the high life. The boasting continues as they cruise through the city in luxury cars. Chance drives home the cult classic film reference when he raps: “N****s they be cappin’ like they captain, I’m the capo / And I steer the ship, this shit go anywhere that I go / And I got the city on my shoulder like Lago / We in Miami like Martin and Will / She tryna get her a part in the film / Love it in Florida, but want California.”

Although the official release date for Star Line has yet to be determined, at least Chance The Rapper fans have another track to enjoy as they standby.

In an interview with BET, Chance The Rapper addressed the extended wait for Star Line. “I don’t have to rush to put anything and that gives me the confidence and security knowing that it’s cool to wait until I have everything packaged,” he said. “Then, I’ve fallen in love with it over and over again before I release it.”

Watch the “Bad Boys 2” video above.

Football season is right around the corner. Right now, NFL teams are in camp and going through the preseason, and we’re just a few weeks away from teams taking the field for the regular season. It’s hard not to get excited, and today, we wanted to look at the players in both conferences that we’re especially fired up to watch.

Here, we will do just that, starting with the NFC, which about as wide open as a conference can be heading into the season. We have no clue who is going to win it, but we can say that these players are going to be fascinating to watch as the year goes on. Then, in the AFC, it’s all about chasing Patrick Mahomes and the champion Kansas City Chiefs, but there are plenty of threats looking to knock them off their throne in 2024.

NFC East

Dallas Cowboys: Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, and Micah Parsons

All three of these guys are among the best in the league at their respective positions, and yet all three are heading into this year with uncertainty about their futures — they are all set to become free agents after this year. With how drama follows the Cowboys around, watching these guys play through their contract situations will be fascinating to watch.

New York Giants: Daniel Jones

It is unclear if Jones is any good, but the Giants invested a ton of money in him. The team traded out one ultra-dynamic weapon (Saquon Barkley) for another (Malik Nabers), and Jones is going to have to show that he can be the guy in New York. Will he? Who knows! But it should be fun to watch.

Philadelphia Eagles: Saquon Barkley

Barkley’s departure from the Giants would have been a big deal even if he did not end up with a division rival. The funny thing is that the Eagles might be the best spot for him in the league, as he’ll be part of a dynamic backfield alongside Jalen Hurts and his ability in the passing game is as good as any back in the league. He’ll do some special things in Philly.

Washington Commanders: Jayden Daniels

The reigning Heisman Trophy winner came from out of nowhere to become the No. 2 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Daniels is the exact sort of threat as a runner and a thrower that teams are looking for in their signal caller, and while he is going to have some bumps in the road during his first year, he’s such a dynamic player that he is going to have some incredible high points.

NFC North

Chicago Bears: Caleb Williams

It has to be Williams, right? We haven’t had a No. 1 overall pick come into the league with as much hype as the former USC standout in a few years, and the Bears have done a good job putting pieces around him to help him succeed. It’s unclear if Matt Eberflus will be their head coach beyond this year and Williams has the weight of the Bears’ QB history on his shoulders, but he could do some really special things right away.

Detroit Lions: Their entire offensive line

You can go with a number of different players here — Jared Goff! Jahmyr Gibbs! Amon-Ra St. Brown! Sam LaPorta! Aidan Hutchinson! Brian Branch! Others guys who I surely could mention! But everything in Detroit is built around having the meanest offensive line in football. Watching them grind opponents to dust is unlike anything else in the sport, and they’re never afraid of finding unique ways to use them, even if that means giving one of them the ball.

Green Bay Packers: Jordan Love

What a couple of months Jordan Love has had. He was good last season, his first as the starter in Green Bay, then tore up the Cowboys in the playoffs before losing to the Niners in the Divisional Round. And then, he got a record-tying contract. Not bad! With another year of experience under his belt and some really good pass catchers around him, we do not think he’s going to be a flash in the pan.

Minnesota Vikings: Dallas Turner

Justin Jefferson is the obvious pick here, but Turner was our favorite player in the 2024 NFL Draft, and he fell all the way to 17th. We think he’s going to be awesome early on in his NFL career, and with Danielle Hunter now in Houston, someone has to get to the quarterback in Minnesota. Turner has a chance to be that guy.

NFC South

Atlanta Falcons: Bijan Robinson

It was insane watching how Robinson was used last season. But 2024 will see a new coaching staff in Atlanta, and if Robinson is used as the all-around standout running back that he is, he’ll put up gigantic numbers, both as a runner behind a stout offensive line and as a safety blanket in the passing game for Kirk Cousins.

Carolina Panthers: Derrick Brown

I still think the Panthers offense is such a work in progress that it’ll be hard to judge Bryce Young. As such, let’s go to the other side of the ball, where Brown is coming off of his best season in the league — 103 tackles, 15 QB hits — and just received a lucrative contract extension. He’s a stud, and while Carolina isn’t great, he’s a major building block.

New Orleans Saints: Chris Olave

The Saints roster has a long way to go to get back to the point where they’re a competitor in the NFC. For now, they can take a lot of solace in knowing they have a star at receiver in Olave, who has cleared the 1,000-yard mark in each of his first two seasons. Derek Carr has loved throwing him the football, and that will not change this year.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Antoine Winfield Jr.

What a stud. Winfield has established himself as the best safety in the NFL, and trying to throw the ball down the field against the Bucs is almost impossible because he is there. He’s also willing to mix it up with anyone. He’s not my favorite player to watch in the NFL, but boy, is he up there.

NFC West

Arizona Cardinals: Marvin Harrison Jr.

Kyler Murray is 1A here, because I want to see what he looks like now that he’s back to 100 percent. But man, Harrison is the best receiver prospect I have ever seen. I cannot wait to see what he does from the very beginning in his NFL career, especially for a QB in Murray who hasn’t had a no-doubt No. 1 receiver in a while.

Los Angeles Rams: Cooper Kupp

I almost put down Tre’Davious White, who might have a monster bounce back year in his first season on a team other than the Bills if he can stay healthy. But if Kupp is healthy, and the Puka Nacua and Kyren Williams duo means that teams can’t totally focus on slowing him down, he’s going to put up gigantic numbers this year.

San Francisco 49ers: George Kittle

There are, like, eight different directions you can go in with the Niners. I am putting Kittle down for the simple reason that I absolutely adore watching George Kittle play football. He exudes joy when he plays, which is ironic because he is one of the most violent tight ends you’ll ever see. He rocks, I hope he does this forever.

Seattle Seahawks: Devon Witherspoon

Witherspoon is very mean and was really impressive as a rookie, and it’s safe to assume he’ll only get better as Seattle tries to find the spiritual successor to the Legion of Boom. Don’t be surprised if he gains a reputation for being one of the best corners in the game this year, in large part because going up against the pass catchers in this division will be quite the tall task. He’s up for it, though.

AFC East

Buffalo Bills: Keon Coleman

The Bills got rid of Josh Allen’s top two wide receivers this offseason, letting Gabe Davis walk to Jacksonville in free agency and trading Stefon Diggs to Houston. For a team with Super Bowl aspirations, that was a bold move and it’s clear they have a lot of faith in their first round pick out of Florida State, Keon Coleman, to fill the void. Coleman is a big, physical receiver who has the traits (and personality) of a star, but struggled with consistently producing at a high level at college. The flashes were spectacular, and how quickly he can make a consistent impact will determine how well the Bills offense can operate.

Miami Dolphins: Jaelan Phillips and Chop Robinson

The Dolphins offense will be the Dolphins offense, which is to say, highly explosive and capable of putting up record-setting numbers when they get rolling. The defense, meanwhile, features some new faces, especially up front after they lost Christian Wilkins and Andrew Van Ginkel in free agency. Those two accounted for 15 sacks and 42 hits on opposing quarterbacks last year, while Bradley Chubb (11 sacks, 22 QB hits) is currently rehabbing from a torn ACL suffered in Week 17 and may not be ready for the start of the season. That is a lot of productivity that needs to be replaced up front for Miami, and puts serious pressure on guys to step up. Jaelan Phillips is at the top of that list, and the Dolphins will need him to stay healthy after playing just 8 games last season, while first round pick Chop Robinson will need to have be an impact rookie if Miami’s defense is going to be able to apply pressure to opposing QBs.

New York Jets: Garrett Wilson

Aaron Rodgers is back and, as such, the Jets are supposed to be a threat in the AFC East this year. A year ago, everyone was very excited to see Garrett Wilson, coming off a ROY season with Zach Wilson throwing to him, get to play with a legitimate NFL quarterback. Instead, Rodgers suffered a season-ending injury four plays into the season and Wilson was back to dealing with subpar QB play. Now the expectations are back for the Jets offense and Wilson should have an opportunity to prove he is among the NFL’s elite at the receiver position with Rodgers throwing him the ball.

New England Patriots: Christian Gonzalez and Kyle Dugger

Look, the Pats are gonna be bad. The plan is to start Jacoby Brissett at QB until Drake Maye is ready, which takes away the chance to even be excited to see a young QB at the helm. I do think that’s the right decision for Maye to be successful long-term, but the offense in New England doesn’t figure to offer much to right home about. That said, they do have some big time players on defense, especially in the secondary. Dugger flies around from his safety position and does a bit of everything, while Gonzalez has a chance to be one of the best young corners in the league — his rookie year only saw him play four games before suffering a season ending labrum tear. Gonzalez is back healthy and earning high praise from opposing receivers in the preseason, and Dugger will look to build off a terrific 2023. This year figures to be similar to last year, in that the defense should be better than the offense in New England (even after trading Matthew Judon to Atlanta), and Dugger and Gonzalez figure to be the bright spots for Pats fans in what could be an otherwise tough year.

AFC North

Baltimore Ravens: Derrick Henry

What if we gave the NFL’s most dynamic rushing attack the most dominant running back in the league? Well, we will get the answer to that question this year in Baltimore, as Derrick Henry joins Lamar Jackson to create a truly terrifying rushing tandem. Yes, Henry is 30, but he’s not a typical running back and still rushed for over 1,100 yards a year ago in Tennessee despite defenses not respecting the Titans passing attack at all. Now he goes to a Ravens team that has a perennial MVP candidate in Jackson at quarterback and won’t need him to tote the rock 300 times. As such, Henry might not put up the same raw numbers he did in his Titans prime when they rode him like Secretariat, but the stress his presence will put on opposing defenses is going to be incredible to watch.

Cincinnati Bengals: Joe Burrow

Joe Burrow is going to be back playing football, and I’m excited to see that, because, boy, the Bengals were not very fun to watch in his absence. With Burrow, this is a contender, and without him, well, they’re a very mediocre football team. This also might be the last ride for Burrow with both Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins as his top receivers, so time is of the essence for the Bengals to make the most of their star-studded offense.

Cleveland Browns: Nick Chubb

Speaking of welcome returns from injury, Nick Chubb is going to be back toting the rock for the Browns and that brings me great joy. The soft-spoken squat king has a legitimate claim to being the NFL’s best running back when healthy, and the Browns offense needs his presence desperately to be a threat in the AFC. He demands the attention of opposing defenses and brings those safeties and linebackers a little closer to the line of scrimmage, helping to open up opportunities in the passing game.

Pittsburgh Steelers: George Pickens

The Steelers three QBs (Kenny Pickett, Mitch Trubisky, and Mason Rudolph) threw for 3,421 yards and 13 touchdowns last year, which is a hysterically low number in this era of football. George Pickens had 1,140 of those receiving yards and five of those receiving touchdowns, and he deserves some kind of medal for putting up those numbers in that offense with those quarterbacks. This year, Pickens gets to catch passes from Russell Wilson, and while Wilson might not be the guy he was in his prime, he is still an upgrade over what was there and also throws one of the prettiest deep balls in football. I think Pickens could be in for a big time season, just by having a semi-competent quarterback throwing him the ball. If Wilson can recapture some magic from yesteryear (a major, major if)? It could be really fun.

AFC South

Houston Texans: C.J. Stroud

After winning Rookie of the Year, the Texans went out and got C.J. Stroud some new toys. Joe Mixon arrives to provide some more rushing support, and while he’s not as dynamic as he once was, I do think he’s an upgrade in the backfield. Even more importantly, Stefon Diggs arrives via trade and Tank Dell is back from injury. Those two, plus Nico Collins, make up a dynamic receiving corps and Stroud proved last year he is among the best in the league at throwing the ball at all three levels. All three are capable of going over the top, which will put a lot of stress on secondaries, but Diggs is so efficient working the intermediate areas that the Texans should be even more dangerous and dynamic this season. This could be a contender if Stroud takes another stride forward, which is truly incredible to think about given where they were two years ago.

Indianapolis Colts: Anthony Richardson

The Colts do have some questions in the secondary to answer, but this is a playoff contender for sure. Anthony Richardson showed flashes of brilliance before having his season ended with a shoulder injury last year, and if he can get back to that level and build off a strong start to his NFL career, the Colts could be a fun team to watch. He is dynamic both as a passer and a runner, and it’ll be interesting to see how the Colts handle him given he got popped a few too many times last year in the running game and it cost him the season.

Jacksonville Jaguars: Brian Thomas Jr.

The Jaguars will, once again, be hanging around that playoff level, and so much of their success comes down to whether Trevor Lawrence finally can put it all together. The talent has never been a question with Lawrence, but what we’ve never quite known is how much of his ups and downs are on him or on the situation he’s in. This year, the Jags went out and revamped their receiving corps, as Calvin Ridley left for Tennessee. Gabe Davis comes in from Buffalo, but more intriguing to me is rookie Brian Thomas Jr. from LSU. Thomas was a big play waiting to happen in Baton Rouge, and the Jaguars need that kind of downfield threat. Lawrence threw for just 21 touchdowns a season ago, while Thomas caught 17 himself at LSU (in 13 games). Having a big receiver who can stretch the field vertically and be a red zone target could be big for the Jags, and shifts pressure on Lawrence to take advantage of what looks on paper to be one of the best receiving corps he’s had.

Tennessee Titans: Will Levis

The Titans will spend this year figuring out if Will Levis is the guy for them long-term. He has the weapons on the outside with DeAndre Hopkins and Calvin Ridley, and they’ve invested in the offensive line with top picks in each of the last two drafts. There were flashes last year once he took over the starting job and with a full offseason, the expectation is to take a step forward. However, with Henry gone and a very different kind of backfield with Tony Pollard and Tyjae Spears, the Titans will shift more responsibility on Levis’ shoulders to run the show.

AFC West

Denver Broncos: Bo Nix

The Broncos jettisoned Russell Wilson and ate a historic amount of dead money to do so, but they were determined to hit the reset button and used their first round pick to bring in Bo Nix. There were a number of comps of Nix to Drew Brees in terms of accuracy and production during his time at Oregon, as he went from a turnover prone wild card at Auburn to a highly efficient distributor of the football with the Ducks. Now he gets to play for Sean Payton, who unlocked the best of Brees on his way to a Hall of Fame career with the Saints. Setting Brees as the expectation for Nix would be wildly unfair, but I do want to see how the young QB fares under Payton on a Broncos team that is certainly looking towards the future in 2024.

Kansas City Chiefs: Xavier Worthy

If you’ve seen a highlight out of Chiefs camp this summer, it’s likely been a deep ball from Patrick Mahomes to first round pick Xavier Worthy. The Chiefs have been desperately trying to find an explosive receiver since Tyreek Hill’s departure, and it sure looks like Worthy might be the guy to do it. Mahomes was unbelievable a year ago, picking apart defenses underneath and just out-executing other teams on the way to another Super Bowl win. His ability to beat you with efficiency now makes it even more terrifying to think about the Chiefs offense with a legit explosive play threat, and if Worthy can make plays down the field consistently, good luck with KC.

Las Vegas Raiders: Christian Wilkins and Maxx Crosby

The Raiders have a ton of question marks on offense, but their defense is terrifying. Maxx Crosby is one of the all around defensive ends in football, up there with the Bosas and Watts and Garretts of the world in his ability to just wreck shop in the pass game and run game. Now you add Christian Wilkins, who is one of the best pass rushing defensive tackles in football, and this Raiders pass rush can absolutely go. That’s the formula you want in a division with Patrick Mahomes, and while I don’t think they’ve got the firepower this year on offense to make a real push in the AFC, opposing offenses will not enjoy dealing with those two up front.

Los Angeles Chargers: Ladd McConkey

The Chargers are going to Run The Damn Ball this year. That’s just what the identity of a team coached by Jim Harbaugh and Greg Roman is going to be. That said, Justin Herbert is a dynamic passer and they just lost their two top receivers this offseason, with veteran Kenean Allen now in Chicago and Mike Williams in New York. That shifts some pressure on last year’s first round pick Quentin Johnston to clean up his drop issues, and while a lot of attention is on him, I’m keeping an eye on their new rookie receiver, Ladd McConkey from Georgia. Look, we can be honest here, a white receiver named Ladd McConkey is not immediately driving fear into the hearts of defenders, but NFL DBs will soon learn that McConkey has some real juice. He is an elite route runner, has sub-4.4 speed, and used to turn around the SEC’s best corners regularly. I think he can be an instant impact guy, and Herbert is going to need a reliable threat to play off of that run game.

After canceling her The Eras Tour shows in Austria due to a planned terror attack, some wondered if Taylor Swift would still play her run of Wembley Stadium shows scheduled for shortly after. Well, she did, as the first of them went down yesterday (August 15).

The good news is that they happened seemingly without incident, and there was even a big surprise: Longtime Swift pal Ed Sheeran popped up and joined her on stage to perform a medley of “Everything Has Changed,” “End Game” (both Swift and Sheeran collaborations), and “Thinking Out Loud.”

Sheeran reflected on his friendship with swift in 2022, writing of their collaboration “The Joker And The Queen,” “Me and Taylor first met and wrote + recorded our first song together in 2012, ten years ago now, I’m so so honoured to have her on this song. Not only is she the best singer/songwriter in the world but she’s also a very close friend, I’m very lucky to have her in my life.” He also said in 2023, “I have long, long, long conversations with Taylor about stuff just because I feel like she’s one of the only people that actually truly understands where I’m at.”

Find a video of the performance here.

Every movie has its own distinct press rollout which can make or break the success of the film. Glen Powell promoted Twisters by doing silly little dances, which may or may not have helped the film rack up over $200 million at the domestic box office. But it only takes one small rift or even a TikTok trend to take what could be a typical release and push it into a potential PR mess, which seems to be happening more and more lately. That’s what makes It Ends With Us‘ press cycle so puzzling.

It Ends With Us is the popular romance novel from Gen Z whisperer Colleen Hoover. The book was released in 2016 and Hoover, who had already been the first self-published author to top the New York Times bestseller list, saw a massive uptick in sales during the pandemic, making It Ends With Us her most-popular book amongst a powerful demographic on the internet: young women.

The novel touches on heavy themes like death, domestic abuse, and generational trauma, but the novel became a hot topic amongst young adults on “BookTok” who dubbed themselves “CoHorts” and devoured her books, despite the serious subject matter. “This story was inspired by events in my life, but mostly from events in my mother’s life. It was very important to me, for that reason, to do her story justice,” Hoover told NY Daily News in 2016. “And I’ll probably never do it again, because my life now is honestly not dramatic enough to make a good book. So unless something huge changes in my life, I’ll probably stick to using my imagination to inspire the books,” she said at the time.

In 2019, actor Justin Baldoni announced that he would be starring and directing in a big-screen adaptation of the novel, and posted a photo of himself alongside Hoover. Soon enough, Blake Lively had signed on as Lily, sending TikTok into a frenzy. Lively also revealed she would produce the film.

Finally, the movie was given an August 2024 release date and the cast and crew began to do press. This is where things started falling apart.

Fans noticed that while promoting the film, Lively and Baldoni, who star as the central couple Lily and Ryle, had not taken any pictures together. This isn’t entirely unheard of, but people picked up on it. Then, some internet sleuths also realized that Lively, Hoover, and most of the cast had unfollowed Baldoni on Instagram, which is a major red flag in the year 2024. Baldoni was also seemingly doing his own press, appearing alone at events.

It should be noted that on-screen, Baldoni and Lively portray the somewhat loving couple (at first) Lily and Ryle, before Ryle starts becoming aggressive and abusive. But the abuse element of the story is largely absent from any promotion material — instead, when asked about how the story might connect with victims of abuse, Lively responded to questions with jokes. Lively has also been criticized for using It Ends With Us to promote her new haircare line, in addition to her drink line, Betty Buzz. Lively even got involved with a flower/booze pop-up in conjunction with the press tour about the movie, which is, again, a serious story about violent abuse. The pop-up served cocktails inspired by the movie, featuring none other than Ryan Reynolds’ Avaiation gin. It’s almost like this movie became a family business instead of a realistic cautionary tale.

Yet Baldoni has seemingly been working to bring awareness about domestic abuse. “I wanted to make sure this film always had a female gaze and I was never putting myself into it,” the actor/director told CBS. Baldoni didn’t even seem to care about the film’s success as long as it helped at least one person. “If it’s just a big commercial success, that’s on one side of it. The other side of it, for both [production company] Wayfarer Studios and myself is… it’s about that one person who’s in a similar situation to Lily,” he told PEOPLE.

Then, while at the premiere, Baldoni seemingly took himself out of the running to direct the sequel, if it even should come to fruition.

When asked by ET if he would return for a sequel, Baldoni said, “I think that there are better people for that one. I think Blake Lively’s ready to direct,” he said. “That’s what I think.” According to The Hollywood Reporter, the two might have disagreed about the final cut of the film. Lively reportedly commissioned a cut of the movie from editor Shane Reid, who was an editor on Deadpool & Wolverine, when she was unsatisfied with the direction, but it’s unclear if that contributed to the final cut. Lively did confirm that Reynolds, who is not credited as a producer, contributed to the script, something that screenwriter Christy Hall was unaware of.

Meanwhile, other stars of the film seem to be avoiding questions on the subject. Jenny Slate, who stars as Lily’s friend Allysa, dodged questions about Baldoni while at the premiere, as did Hoover. “I think he did a great job. They all did a great job,” she said, before moving into the next question.

The internet got loud enough to warrant a response from an unnamed source who told Page Six that Baldoni created an “extremely difficult” set for the cast, and made Lively “uncomfortable.” The source added, “It’s not just Blake. None of the cast enjoyed working with Justin…They certainly didn’t talk to him at the premiere.” Then PEOPLE jumped on the bandwagon: “All is not what it seems,” a set source told the magazine. “There is much more to this story. The principal cast and [author] Colleen Hoover will have nothing to do with him.”

A source then told TMZ that an on-set encounter made Lively feel “fat-shamed” by Baldoni, which caused more tension between the two. Reportedly, for a scene in which Baldoni would have to lift his co-star, he went to the on-set trainer and asked how much Lively weighed in order to protect his back from injury. Lively had given birth in February 2023 and this allegedly made her feel uncomfortable.

Somehow, it gets even weirder. Baldoni recently hired Melissa Nathan of The Agency Group as a crisis PR manager to handle the backlash. Nathan specializes in “media cleanup and brand management.” She is known for representing Johnny Depp during the Amber Heard trial.

This also isn’t the first report of Lively possibly “feuding” with her costars. Rumors have been swirling for years that Lively and her A Simple Favor costar Anna Kendrick couldn’t stand each other during filming, though we now know that a sequel is on the way, so it’s unclear what really went down there.

Meanwhile, Baldoni has a history of advocating for men to be more emotionally vulnerable, even going to far as to write an entire self-help book titled Man Enough, which was met with some backlash from the internet.

So, what is the end game here? It seems probable that Baldoni and Lively do not like each other, and they are hashing it out in public… even though the movie did just fine. There were some theories that the buzzy drama was just a marketing ploy for the film, but who knows.

After the initial backlash, Lively posted an Instagram story (which is already gone) where she shared resources for women who are experiencing abuse. Aside from the cringe interview moments and general lack of awareness, domestic abuse shouldn’t be repackaged as a romantic comedy, which seems to be how some moviegoers felt after watching the movie. Her hair products are still safe on the Grid, though.

These two actors seem to have been promoting two different agendas. Where Baldoni brought on nonprofit organization No More, a foundation for survivors of domestic and sexual violence, on board to help promote the film, Lively was showcasing her new line of haircair products while praising her husband’s (minor) work on the film. The juxtoposition itself has already shifted the focus from the actual real topics the movie covers, like escaping abuse, to whatever mess is going on between the two leads behind the scenes. We may never know what truly went down.

There might be some lessons to be learned here, it’s just unfortunate that it had to happen to the groups of young women who flocked to the movie theater possibly expecting a sunny romantic comedy, only to be served with a puzzling portrayal of a violent relationship, painted in a flowery haze.

Despite the marketing confusion, It Ends With Us managed to secure a strong opening weekend at the box office, raking in $100M in its first week, pushing past Deadpool and Wolverine‘s latest tallies. Maybe Sony is the real winner after all.

For more information and resources on domestic violence, visit No More.

Future Red Eye star Cillian Murphy’s future in cinema already seemed pretty clear after 28 Days Later put him on the household map, and then the movie put him in front Christopher Nolan’s eyeballs. Their subsequent pairings culminated, of course, with Oppenheimer as well as post-Oscar glow, but Cillian isn’t shying away from returning to his earlier eras in filmmaking. He maintains such fondness for Danny Boyle and their mutual 28 Days Later experience that he immediately hopped onboard as a producer.

Updates grew more positive from there with word that, even though his character didn’t appear in the 28 Weeks Later sequel, Cillian’s character will still appear in the upcoming 28 Years Later movie, the first in a planned trilogy of movies coming from members of the original gang, including not only Boyle directing an initial film but original screenwriter Alex Garland (who is moving away from directing but cannot seem to quit those apocalyptic vibes) doing the scribe honors here again. Let’s talk about what to expect from this crew going back to basics:

Plot

First, it’s worth noting that this film’s announcement frenzy only went into overdrive this past May, and the film is scheduled to arrive next summer, which should underscore the seriousness and drive with which the filmmaking team is operating. Unconfirmed reports even suggest that filming recently wrapped (with a $60 million budget as opposed to $8 million for 2003’s original film), although that tidbit must be taken with a grain of salt.

For his part, Cillian was very excited when the new trilogy was announced. His character, Jim, has survived since after the Rage Virus first hit humanity. The infected aren’t exactly slow-moving lumps like The Walking Dead, either, so you can imagine what the endless flight-flight cycle has done to those people who have survived. Additionally, incoming star Jodie Comer is 31, meaning that her character was likely only a few years old when the outbreak began. She and other cast and crew were confirmed to be filming in Newcastle but mainly in an English Forest and upon a tidal island.

The precise plot details of this first movie are, unsurprisingly, top secret other than confirming that the world certainly has not healed over the decades. Various photos found around the internet have shown Jodie Comer running in distress, and the Killing Eve and The Bikeriders star believes that “people are going to be pleased,” and she’s enjoying the “distinct and unique” feel of making this film. Comer also revealed to Elle that her gift for seamless accent work (our words, not hers) will be put to good use here, and she will adopt a Geordie accent after studying “clips of Cheryl on The X Factor.” Beyond the technicalities, Comer added, “The original was so loved, so I’m trying not to think of that too hard. I’m not putting too much expectation on myself.”

Additionally, Boyle will hand over the director’s chair to Nia DaCosta (Candyman reboot) for the second film, which may or may not have Bone Temple in the title, although at this point, that feels like Avatar: The Seed Bearer levels of speculation.

Cast

Jodie Comer and Aaron Taylor-Johnson will be front and center with Ralph Fiennes on hand and Jack O’Connell in a minor role that will mainly consist of his character laying groundwork for the second movie, in which he will move into a leading role. Erin Kellyman (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, The Green Knight) has also been revealed by Collider as a cast member.

Release Date

28 Years Later will arrive in theaters on June 20, 2025.

Trailer

Don’t be surprised if we see a teaser trailer sooner rather than later with this movie’s relatively quick turnaround after announcement. In the meantime, it’s worth revisiting — and wondering whether Boyle can capture this sense of bleakness in the same way — the part of the movie where realization has not set in amid a hauntingly deserted London.