Tom Brady and Drew Brees go head-to-head while young guns Patrick Mahomes and Baker Mayfield renew their rivalry as the NFL playoffs showcase two generations of quarterback talent on Sunday.
After a thrilling series of wild card games, eight teams head into the divisional round this weekend aiming to book a place in the AFC and NFC Championships where Super Bowl berths will be at stake.
In the AFC, the top seeds and reigning Super Bowl champion the Kansas City Chiefs make their postseason bow after a bye week with a home game against the Cleveland Browns at Arrowhead Stadium.
It is only the second NFL meeting between Chiefs signal-caller Mahomes and Browns counterpart Mayfield, who head an exciting crop of young quarterbacks that have lit up the NFL in recent seasons.
Mahomes and Mayfield's rivalry began before their respective NFL careers however. In 2016, the two tyros combined in a high-scoring college football classic, when Mayfield's Oklahoma Sooners defeated Mahomes's Texas Tech by an eye-popping 66-59 scoreline.
Mayfield, 25, threw for 545 yards and seven touchdowns in that epic win; Mahomes finished with a record 819 passing and rushing yards.
"We had to score every single drive in the second half to win that game," Mayfield recalled this week.
"It was an unbelievable game and unbelievable atmosphere. Just the back and forth is something that I will not forget."
While a similarly high-scoring encounter is unlikely on Sunday, the Chiefs and Browns do however possess two of the most potent offenses in the league.
'Cool to play him'
Cleveland advanced to the divisional round by rattling up 48 points in an upset of the Pittsburgh Steelers last weekend, while the Chiefs have averaged just under 30 points per game this season.
The 25-year-old Mahomes meanwhile is looking forward to locking horns with Mayfield once more.
"It's cool to get to play against him in such a big game in the playoffs and everything like that," Mahomes said.
"I've known him for a long time, since I was a senior in high school. He got the better of me in college. I'll try to do my best to win in the NFL."
The winner of Sunday's clash in Kansas City will advance to an AFC Championship meeting against either the Buffalo Bills or the Baltimore Ravens.
The Ravens travel to Buffalo on Saturday in a game that pits two more members of the NFL's new generation of quarterbacks against each other, with the Bills' Josh Allen (24) facing the Ravens' reigning MVP Lamar Jackson, also 24.
But if the AFC is no country for old men, the NFC side of the playoffs is, with the exception of the Los Angeles Rams' 26-year-old Jared Goff, a veritable senior citizens outing.
When Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Brady takes the field against New Orleans Saints opposite number and fellow forty-something Brees, a combined four decades worth of NFL experience will be on view.
Six-time Super Bowl champion Brady made light of the two quarterbacks' advanced years this week, posting a mocked up graphic that suggested Sunday's game at the Superdome would be better suited for television's History Channel.
Four-decade rivalry
"Tom and I have a friendship and mutual respect. We were texting back and forth on Monday, chuckling at this whole scenario," said Brees.
"He's 43, I turn 42 on Friday, so that's 85 years and a lot of football experience that's gonna be on the field on Sunday."
It is the latest instalment of a rivalry that has spanned four different decades -- the two quarterbacks first met in 1999 as college players.
In seven regular season NFL games since, Brees leads the rivalry 5-2 -- including two wins this season in the NFC South.
Sunday's game may well turn out to be the last meeting between the two men, who are one and two on the NFL's all-time passing yards and completions standings.
Brees is expected to head into retirement after this season, while Brady plans to play on for at least one more year with the Bucs.
The winner of the Bucs-Saints clash will advance to a meeting with either the Green Bay Packers or Los Angeles Rams, who meet at Lambeau Field on Saturday.
The top-seeded Packers will look to their own future Hall-of-Fame quarterback to shepherd them through to the NFC Championship game, the 37-year-old Aaron Rodgers, the front runner for this year's MVP award.
Rodgers is chasing a second Super Bowl ring a decade after leading the packers to the Vince Lombardi Trophy in 2011, and has been in scintillating form this season as the Packers have averaged more than 31 points per game.
Green Bay's multi-faceted offense however will face a searching examination from the Rams, whose rampant defense helped deliver a 30-20 upset of the Seattle Seahawks last weekend.
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
Strait of Hormuz
Fujairah is a crucial hub for fuel storage and is just outside the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping route linking Middle East oil producers to markets in Asia, Europe, North America and beyond.
The strait is 33 km wide at its narrowest point, but the shipping lane is just three km wide in either direction. Almost a fifth of oil consumed across the world passes through the strait.
Iran has repeatedly threatened to close the strait, a move that would risk inviting geopolitical and economic turmoil.
Last month, Iran issued a new warning that it would block the strait, if it was prevented from using the waterway following a US decision to end exemptions from sanctions for major Iranian oil importers.
MATCH DETAILS
Chelsea 4
Jorginho (4 pen, 71 pen), Azpilicueta (63), James (74)
Ajax 4
Abraham (2 og), Promes (20). Kepa (35 og), van de Beek (55)
more from Janine di Giovanni
Tamkeen's offering
- Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
- Option 2: 50% across three years
- Option 3: 30% across five years
%20Ramez%20Gab%20Min%20El%20Akher
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECreator%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Ramez%20Galal%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Ramez%20Galal%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStreaming%20on%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMBC%20Shahid%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
PRO BASH
Thursday’s fixtures
6pm: Hyderabad Nawabs v Pakhtoon Warriors
10pm: Lahore Sikandars v Pakhtoon Blasters
Teams
Chennai Knights, Lahore Sikandars, Pakhtoon Blasters, Abu Dhabi Stars, Abu Dhabi Dragons, Pakhtoon Warriors and Hyderabad Nawabs.
Squad rules
All teams consist of 15-player squads that include those contracted in the diamond (3), platinum (2) and gold (2) categories, plus eight free to sign team members.
Tournament rules
The matches are of 25 over-a-side with an 8-over power play in which only two fielders allowed outside the 30-yard circle. Teams play in a single round robin league followed by the semi-finals and final. The league toppers will feature in the semi-final eliminator.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Brahmastra%3A%20Part%20One%20-%20Shiva
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAyan%20Mukerji%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ERanbir%20Kapoor%2C%20Alia%20Bhatt%20and%20Amitabh%20Bachchan%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Director: Shady Ali
Cast: Boumi Fouad , Mohamed Tharout and Hisham Ismael
Rating: 3/5
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
Bio:
Favourite Quote: Prophet Mohammad's quotes There is reward for kindness to every living thing and A good man treats women with honour
Favourite Hobby: Serving poor people
Favourite Book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite food: Fish and vegetables
Favourite place to visit: London
Brief scores:
England: 290 & 346
Sri Lanka: 336 & 243
RACECARD
%3Cp%3E5pm%3A%20Al%20Shamkha%20%E2%80%93%20Maiden%20(PA)%20Dh80%2C000%20(Turf)%201%2C400m%0D%3Cbr%3E5.30pm%3A%20Khalifa%20City%20%E2%80%93%20Handicap%20(PA)%20Dh80%2C000%20(T)%201%2C400m%0D%3Cbr%3E6pm%3A%20Masdar%20City%20%E2%80%93%20Handicap%20(PA)%20Dh80%2C000%20(T)%201%2C600m%0D%3Cbr%3E6.30pm%3A%20Wathba%20Stallions%20Cup%20%E2%80%93%20Handicap%20(PA)%20Dh70%2C000%20(T)%202%2C200m%0D%3Cbr%3E7pm%3A%20Emirates%20Championship%20%E2%80%93%20Group%201%20(PA)%20Dh1%2C000%2C000%20(T)%202%2C200m%0D%3Cbr%3E7.30pm%3A%20Shakbout%20City%20%E2%80%93%20Handicap%20(TB)%20Dh80%2C000%20(T)%202%2C400m%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
25-MAN SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Francis Uzoho, Ikechukwu Ezenwa, Daniel Akpeyi
Defenders: Olaoluwa Aina, Abdullahi Shehu, Chidozie Awaziem, William Ekong, Leon Balogun, Kenneth Omeruo, Jamilu Collins, Semi Ajayi
Midfielders: John Obi Mikel, Wilfred Ndidi, Oghenekaro Etebo, John Ogu
Forwards: Ahmed Musa, Victor Osimhen, Moses Simon, Henry Onyekuru, Odion Ighalo, Alexander Iwobi, Samuel Kalu, Paul Onuachu, Kelechi Iheanacho, Samuel Chukwueze
On Standby: Theophilus Afelokhai, Bryan Idowu, Ikouwem Utin, Mikel Agu, Junior Ajayi, Valentine Ozornwafor
Dubai World Cup Carnival card:
6.30pm: Handicap (Turf) | US$175,000 | 2,410 metres
7.05pm: UAE 1000 Guineas Trial Conditions (Dirt) | $100,000 | 1,400m
7.40pm: Handicap (T) | $145,000 | 1,000m
8.15pm: Dubawi Stakes Group 3 (D) | $200,000 | 1,200m
8.50pm: Singspiel Stakes Group 3 (T) | $200,000 | 1,800m
9.25pm: Handicap (T) | $175,000 | 1,400m
