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Patriots point/counterpoint: Will Mac Jones, Bill Belichick and Co. make the playoffs?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:00 GMT

It’s been more than a year since the Patriots made the playoffs.It’s been close to five since they won a playoff game.How much longer can those streaks last?Oddsmakers are giving the Pats roughly a 30% chance to return to the postseason this January. They’re widely projected to finish fourth in the division and face the NFL’s toughest schedule, according to opponents’ projected win totals by Vegas odds. Exceeding expectations would require Mac Jones’ best season yet, maintaining an elite defense and fixing their special teams.And yet, the Patriots just might do it. Their dynasty was forged in the fires of public doubt and long odds. Can they surprise again with a playoff run?The Herald’s Patriots beat writers debate.Kyed: I’ll start here: I think the AFC East is a little overrated. The Buffalo Bills will still win the division assuming nothing catastrophic happens.Tua Tagovailoa’s concussion issues are serious, and the Miami Dolp...

Snap decisions: Dufault, Vinci among country’s best long snappers

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:00 GMT

WESTWOOD — Westwood is clearly the hot spot for long snappers.Xaverian’s Andrew Dufault has become one of the premier long snappers in the country and recently committed to continue his craft at Penn State. Less than two miles down the road, Westwood’s Joe Vinci is a late bloomer to the art of long snapping, but has become so good at it that he’s drawn interest from several Power 5 colleges.Not surprisingly, both of them got their indoctrination to long snapping from the Crabtrees. Bill Crabtree is a longtime coach with Mass. Elite Football, while his son Kevin Crabtree played at Milton Academy before going on to Villanova, where he served as the team’s long snapper.“I went to play for coach (Bill) Crabtree’s Mass. Elite team back in the seventh grade, but I was about 5-foot-2 at the time and he said I was too small to play guard,” Dufault said. “He told me the only way I could play was to long snap. When the season came around, I would stay after pract...

Bavaria’s governor leaves his deputy in office despite a furor over antisemitism allegations

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:00 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — The governor of the German state of Bavaria said Sunday that he will let his deputy stay in office despite a furor that started with allegations he was responsible for an antisemitic flyer when he was a high school student 35 years ago.Governor Markus Soeder, a leading figure in Germany’s center-right opposition, said he had concluded that it would be “disproportionate” to fire Hubert Aiwanger, his deputy and coalition partner, but that Aiwanger needs to work on rebuilding confidence with Jewish groups and others.A state election is due in Bavaria in a matter of weeks.In August, the daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported that, when Aiwanger was 17, he was suspected of producing a typewritten flyer calling for entries to a competition titled “Who is the biggest traitor to the fatherland?”It listed, among other things, a “1st prize: A free flight through the chimney at Auschwitz.”Aiwanger, 52, said last weekend that one or more copies of the flyer were found in his sc...

Israel’s Netanyahu demands Eritrean migrants involved in violent clash to be deported immediately

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:00 GMT

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday he wants Eritrean migrants involved in a violent clash in Tel Aviv to be deported immediately and has ordered a plan to remove all of the country’s African migrants.The remarks came a day after bloody protests by rival groups of Eritreans in south Tel Aviv left dozens of people injured. Eritreans, supporters and opponents of Eritrea’s government, faced off with construction lumber, pieces of metal and rocks, smashing shop windows and police cars. Israeli police in riot gear shot tear gas, stun grenades and live rounds while officers on horseback tried to control the protesters.The violence on Saturday returned to the fore the issue of migrants, which has long divided Israel. Its resurgence comes as Israel is torn over Netanyahu’s judicial overhaul plan, and supporters cite the migrant issue as a reason why the courts should be reined in, saying they have stood in the way of pushing the migrants...

Pope joins shamans, monks and evangelicals to highlight Mongolia’s faith diversity

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:00 GMT

ULAANBAATAR, Mongolia (AP) — With China’s crackdown on religious minorities as a backdrop, Pope Francis joined Mongolian shamans, Buddhist monks and a Russian Orthodox priest Sunday to highlight the role that religions can play in forging world peace, as he presided over an interfaith meeting highlighting Mongolia’s tradition of religious tolerance.Francis listened intently as a dozen faith leaders — Jewish, Muslim, Bahai, Hindu, Shinto and evangelical Christian among them — described their beliefs and their relationship with heaven. Several said the traditional Mongolian ger, or round-shaped yurt, was a potent symbol of harmony with the divine — a warm place of family unity, open to the heavens, where strangers are welcome.“The fact that we are meeting together in one place already sends a message: It shows that the religious traditions, for all their distinctiveness and diversity, have impressive potential for the benefit of society as a whole,” Francis said in remarks that ...

Horoscopes Sept. 3, 2023: Rita Volk, be positive and enjoy the ride

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:00 GMT

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Rita Volk, 33; Shaun White, 37; Omi, 37; Garrett Hedlund, 39.Happy Birthday: Look at the possibilities and see what piques your imagination and stimulates your mind. Refuse to let negativity set in and discourage your dreams, hopes and wishes. Be true to yourself, and you’ll gain ground and the confidence to reach for the stars. Opportunity is apparent. Be positive and enjoy the ride. Your numbers are 8, 15, 23, 29, 31, 38, 42.ARIES (March 21-April 19): Revamp your routine to satisfy your needs. Take better care of your physical and mental health; you’ll boost confidence and ease stress. Make a point to show enthusiasm for your pursuit, and you’ll gain support from someone you admire. Romance is favored. 3 starsTAURUS (April 20-May 20): Choose the most inviting path. Social events will impact how you think and the changes you make. Don’t let emotions run wild, causing a fallout with someone you love. A physical outlet will ease s...

Four Days a Week: This Labor Day, Let's Talk About Laboring Less

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:00 GMT

Two child laborers eat lunch at the Economy Glass Works factory in West Virginia in 1908.Photo: Lewis Hine/Universal Images Group via Getty ImagesWhich U.S. vice president said this, and when? “The time is not far distant when the working man can have a four-day week and family life will be even more fully enjoyed by every American. [These are] not dreams or idle boasts, simply projections of the gains we have made in the past four years.”The answer is Richard Nixon, when he and Dwight Eisenhower were running for reelection in 1956.When Nixon advocated for the four-day workweek, the demand to spend less time working had already been central to progressive politics for 90 years. After a long absence, it has finally returned. First and foremost, the United Auto Workers are preparing to strike, calling not just for better pay and benefits, but also a 32-hour, four-day workweek. Join Our Newsletter Original reporting. Fearless ...

Drier and Nicer Weather Pattern Begins to Settle In

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:00 GMT

A rather unusual weather pattern of mostly dry conditions will begin this Sunday for South Florida despite it being September in the midst of rainy season.The upcoming week will feature near-normal temperatures hovering near 90F along with lots of sunshine and isolated rain chances.Plumes of drier air behind a weak front that passed through the region Saturday evening will filter through much of this week, dropping our rain risk to a 20-30% chance through at least next Saturday.This is nice and timely for the Labor Day holiday weekend as both Sunday and Monday will feature mostly sunny skies and just a spotty shower chance. It will be breezy, however, with winds out of the northeast behind this front, which will make for hazardous beach and marine conditions.A bonus feature for Sunday will be the slightly less humidity in the air!In the tropics, we’re now down to Tropical Storms Gert and Katia over the open waters of the Atlantic. These should last another day or two before th...

Moscow attacks Ukraine port day before Russia-Turkey talks on grain deal

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:00 GMT

Moscow launched a barrage of drone attacks early Sunday at a port in Ukraine’s Odesa region used by Kyiv to export grain, a day ahead of talks between Russia and Turkey where reviving a U.N.-backed grain deal will be high on the agenda.Kyiv’s air defenses shot down 22 out of the 25 Iranian-made drones destined for the Danube River port infrastructure, Ukraine’s air force said on Telegram on Sunday. At least two people were reported injured.The Danube River has become Ukraine’s main route for shipping grain after a deal brokered by Turkey and the U.N. allowing Kyiv to use the Black Sea for exports collapsed in July. Moscow has stepped up its attacks of Danube port infrastructure in recent weeks.Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to meet Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Russia on Monday, where Turkey is expected to push for the restoration of the Black Sea grain deal.“Russian terrorists continue to attack port infrastructure in the hope of p...

Warmer temperatures next few days

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:00 GMT

Good morning! It’s a mild start and it’ll be a warmer day in the upper 80s. Great beach weather! Cape Cod beaches will stay cooler today. Warmer inland tomorrow with relief and cooler temperatures at the coast. The summerlike feel is with us for a few days before high pressure breaks down late week and a front comes through with storms.A disturbance moved through overnight with some showers. You might see some wet pavement early this morning. We have a few leftover clouds but we’ll see a lot of sunshine. High pressure is to our southwest promoting a dry and sunny dat. We’re pulling in more moisture on a southwest wind, making it feel somewhat muggy. Heading to the beaches today? It’ll be coolest on Cape Cod beaches and Cape Ann with a southwest wind.It stays mild tonight and gets warm again tomorrow inland. Temperatures stay cooler along the entire coast with an onshore wind. You’ll see more clouds along the coast too.High pressure over Texas buil...