AP Sports SummaryBrief at 9:44 a.m. EST

Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa in concussion protocol again

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has returned to the NFL’s concussion protocol. Coach Mike McDaniel said Monday that Tagovailoa was experiencing concussion symptoms when he met with team doctors on Monday, a day after the Dolphins’ 26-20 loss to Green Bay. Teddy Bridgewater is expected to get most of the first-team reps in practice this week. McDaniel said it is too early to name a starter for Miami’s game at New England on Sunday. It is the second time this season that Tagovailoa has been in the concussion protocol. The protocol itself was changed after Tagovailoa took a hard hit and appeared to show concussion symptoms but remained in a game.

Hackett out as Broncos coach after Wilson’s awful game

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Nathaniel Hackett was fired a day after the Denver Broncos showed more fight on the sideline and in the postgame handshake line than they did on the field in their 51-14 loss to the Los Angeles Rams. The Broncos fell to 4-11 with their worst loss of the year. During the game, guard Dalton Risner shoved backup quarterback Brett Rypien and later blamed it on a miscommunication. Risner had gone over to the offensive linemen to implore them to help up quarterback Russell Wilson after sacks. After the game, Randy Gregory threw a punch at a Rams lineman who retaliated. Both were suspended for one game.

Chargers reach playoffs, beat Foles, overmatched Colts 20-3

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Austin Ekeler scored on two 1-yard runs and the Los Angeles Chargers clinched their first playoff berth since 2018, intercepting Indianapolis quarterback Nick Foles three times to beat the overmatched Colts 20-3. Justin Herbert threw for 235 yards and Cameron Dicker made two short field goals for the Chargers, who won their third straight after getting the help they needed this weekend from Las Vegas, Miami, New England and the New York Jets. Los Angeles won on the road on a Monday night for the first time in more than a decade. Indianapolis lost its fifth straight under interim coach Jeff Saturday.

Analysis: Some NFL teams won’t reap reward for poor seasons

With two weeks left in the regular season, next year’s NFL draft is starting to take shape. Four of the top 11 picks will go to teams reaping the benefits of a trade. The Seahawks currently hold the third overall selection because Denver traded its first-round pick for Russell Wilson. The Lions own the Rams’ pick that currently stands at No. 7 because of the Matthew Stafford deal that paid dividends in Los Angeles last season. The Eagles have the 10th pick from the Saints, and the Texans the 11th pick from the Browns following the Deshaun Watson trade.

Analysis: In wide-open NBA, uncertainty is only certainty

DENVER (AP) — Boston leads the East and Denver the West in NBA conference races that are wide open with New Year’s Day approaching. How 2023 unfolds could be determined simply by who heals the fastest or who can stay the healthiest. The reigning NBA champion Golden State Warriors are missing Stephen Curry, and Phoenix star Devin Booker lasted a little more than four minutes in his return from a groin injury. Domantas Sabonis is day-to-day as the Sacramento Kings try to make the playoffs for the first time since 2005-06. Meanwhile, Jayson Tatum has the Celtics humming along, and Nuggets big man Nikola Jokic is threatening to join Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain and Larry Bird as the only players to win three consecutive MVP awards.

Pitino’s No. 22 Lobos push their way onto AP Top 25 slate

New Mexico has thrived quickly under second-year coach Richard Pitino. The Lobos are No. 22 in the latest AP Top 25, their first ranking since the 2013-14 season. New Mexico will face Colorado State and Wyoming this week in Mountain West Conference play. The AP Top 25 schedule also includes instate rivalry games featuring No. 5 Arizona against Arizona State, and No. 19 Kentucky against Louisville. And in the ACC, No. 14 Miami and No. 25 North Carolina will look to keep momentum going from win streaks.

Column: Tales from the PGA Tour after fractured year in golf

The year in golf isn’t entirely filled with acrimony caused by the arrival of Saudi-funded LIV Golf. There were plenty of moments beyond the scorecard. AP Golf Writer Doug Ferguson writes his annual “Tales from the Tour.” There’s a curious trend in Japan on a first name of several golfers that sounds a lot like “Tiger.” Cameron Young thought he had winning figured out until another Cameron came along. And if anyone wants to know what the wife and caddie of Steve Stricker is thinking as she’s on the bag, their teenage daughter might have found the answer.

Shiffrin takes win No. 78 with 1st GS victory in 2022

SEMMERING, Austria (AP) — Overall women’s World Cup leader Mikaela Shiffrin has held on to a big opening-run advantage to win a giant slalom. It’s the American’s first triumph in the discipline in more than a year. Shiffrin beat Slovakian skier Petra Vlhová by 0.13 seconds. The result marked Shiffrin’s fourth World Cup win of the season and 78th overall. It left her four short of the women’s record set by her former teammate Lindsey Vonn. It was the 15th GS win in total for Shiffrin but the first since triumphing in France in December 2021. Shiffrin called the win “very special.”

TCU’s Sonny Dykes at home, coaching 1st CFP team from Texas

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Sonny Dykes says he thought about changing careers five years ago when he was finishing a season as an off-field offensive analyst at TCU after being fired at California. Instead, he’s coaching the 12-1 Horned Frogs this week in the CFP semifinal Fiesta Bowl against Michigan. Dykes replaced Gary Patterson following a successful four-year stay at SMU. The 53-year-old son of the late Spike Dykes is the AP college football coach of the year. The Frogs were undefeated until an overtime loss to Kansas State in the Big 12 championship game.

US to let MLB stars play for Cuba in World Baseball Classic

HAVANA (AP) — The United States will permit Major League Baseball players from Cuba to represent their home country in the World Baseball Classic next year. The license could be a big step in once again turning Cuba’s national team into heavy hitters on an international stage. It clears the way for MLB stars such as Yordan Alvarez, José Abreu and Randy Arozarena to play for Cuba in the World Baseball Classic in March if they choose to accept a potential invitation. It’s up to each country’s national governing body to pick the players on its team. Final 30-man rosters are due Feb. 7 for the WBC, which begins March 8 with Cuba facing the Netherlands in Taiwan.