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Good morning! Play a puzzle today.

While You Were Sleeping: A surprise NFL MVP

Josh Allen is an MVP at last. Yes, Vegas had him favored to win, but it was still a historical anomaly when the Bills signal caller edged out Lamar Jackson — the first-team All-Pro quarterback — at the NFL Honors ceremony last night. Quickly:

• It was the closest MVP vote since 2016. The group of voters is the same for All-Pro and MVP, but Allen received 27 first-place votes for this award, while Jackson had 23 (also, one fourth-place vote?). Hm. Full breakdown here.
  
• Allen, 28, is the first player since John Elway in 1987 to win MVP without also being a first-team All-Pro (excluding co-MVPs).

Jacob Robinson will have more on this news in Scoop City later this morning, and you can see the full list of NFL Honors winners here. Onward:

News to Know

Trade deadline, wrapped
The final day of the NBA trade deadline did not contain any blockbusters because, well, the trade store had already run out of those. Two headliners to know:

See the rest of the deals here. Everyone can rest, including Kevin Durant, who stayed put.

Mizuhara sentenced to nearly 5 years
A federal judge sentenced Shohei Ohtani’s former interpreter Ippei Mizuhara to 57 months in prison after he was convicted of defrauding the three-time MVP. The sentence includes three years of supervised release and a restitution of more than $18 million to Ohtani and the IRS. Mizuhara spoke briefly at the sentencing, apologizing to Ohtani, his family, the Dodgers and the U.S. government. Full details here. 

More news

• Bears principal owner Virginia McCaskey died yesterday at age 102. She really saw it all, as Dan Pompei writes.
• The NCAA said it will limit competition in women’s sports to student-athletes assigned female at birth, a change in its transgender athlete participation policy. Read more.
• Ohio State’s Ryan Day became the second-highest-paid coach in college football after agreeing to a new seven-year contract that pays the national champ $12.5 million annually through 2031.
• No. 19 Tennessee upset No. 5 UConn at home 80-76, marking the Lady Vols’ first win in the rivalry matchup since 2007.

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Connecting: Turn the timer on, folks

One of my favorite things to do while crafting this newsletter is check our metrics from the day before to see which link got the most clicks. It’s a true measure of what you, the reader, is interested in.

Every day, Connections: Sports Edition ranks in the top five of clicks. I love the game, you love the game, we all love the game. The numbers do not lie.

But it almost feels like we’ve had special access, because on Sunday, Connections: Sports Edition will be shared with a wider audience and accessible via The Athletic app, emerging out of beta mode. I checked in with Mark Cooper, who creates the boards:

We’ve done 137 puzzles so far. Tell me the best and worst categories you’ve made:

💬 From a puzzling standpoint, my favorite might be Red Card/Sox/Wings/Auerbach — any time I can combine terms, teams and names in one category, it allows for some fun “misdirects” in the rest of the board. I’ve also loved dipping into pop culture — video game namesakes, for instance, or Abbott and Costello’s “Who’s on First” lineup.

Worst: One time I used “tie” as a synonym for game (think “FA Cup tie”) and it didn’t land at all. We’ll leave that one out of the archive.

The biggest question, as the optional timer is back: Are you pro-timer?

💬 Fully pro! I think it makes sharing your score all the more fun. My dream is for us to have a daily leaderboard where players can compete for the fastest time.

Real ones leave the timer on. Let’s keep moving:

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What We’re Eating: These recipes are Pulse-certified

We suggested some big-swing options for Super Bowl eats last Sunday and said we’d try a few recipes right alongside you this week. All were smashing successes among eaters of varying ages and tastes. Our honest notes:

• Torrey (soft pretzels and beer cheese): Make a double batch of the pretzels, because if you’re committing to the slightly intimidating process, you might as well stock the freezer — but it’s easy once you get in a few reps. Next time!
• Branch (slow cooker BBQ pulled pork): This was shockingly easy and delicious. Season, sear, plop in the slow cooker, profit. Who knew simmering a pork butt in Dr. Pepper worked so well? Also, it’s easy enough to where you could absolutely get supplies tomorrow to make this Sunday.
• Sprow (Detroit-style pizza): 10/10 will make it again, probably with a touch less dough so it’s a little lighter and fork-optional out of the pan, because that crust is legit.

Those are all NYT Cooking gift links (no subscription needed to read), and you can browse the full Super Bowl collection here. And we’ll have true last-minute recipes for you — ones you might even already have the ingredients for — this Sunday morning. Stay hungry.

Watch and Listen

📺 NCAAM: No. 12 St. John’s at No. 19 UConn
8 p.m. ET on Fox
Rick Pitino’s team has been a revelation this season, though the Huskies might be the toughest test yet. The Red Storm were awesome in a win over No. 11 Marquette on Tuesday. I’ll tune in for Pitino vs. Dan Hurley any day.

📺 NBA: 76ers at Pistons
7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN
Remember when Detroit was the worst team in the league last season? And the year before that? The Pistons already have almost as many wins this season (25) as they did combined in the previous two seasons (31). That win total could’ve been even higher, too. (Also, they acquired Dennis Schröder yesterday.)

Get tickets to games like these here.

🎧 The big “The Athletic Football Show” Super Bowl preview: legacies on the line for Patrick Mahomes, Andy Reid and Saquon Barkley. Watch on YouTube now.

Pulse Picks

Need a pre-Sunday read? Zak Keefer has a great story on Eagles coach Nick Sirianni, who can’t stop winning. So why has it so often felt like Philadelphia hates him?

Our fantasy staff held a Super Bowl-themed food draft, which was very fun. I am declaring Hannah Vanbiber the winner. See all the picks here.

Can Connor McDavid be the NHL’s first $20 million man? Dom Luszczyszyn breaks it down in the way only he can.

Austin Meek has a great story on new Michigan coach Dusty May, who was shaped by Bobby Knight — but is winning on his own terms now.

Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: The story on Wednesday’s late-night trade, with the Lakers acquiring big man Mark Williams to fill the Anthony Davis-sized absence on the floor.

Most-read on the website yesterday: Mike Silver’s deep dive into the mind of Travis Kelce.

(Top photo: Gregory Fisher / Imagn Images)