Transfer Portal Strikes Early for Washington State Cougars
Even though the college basketball transfer portal doesn’t officially open until April 7 and the NCAA Tournament still has a ways to go before crowning a new champion, a couple of Washington State Cougars have already announced their intentions to explore other opportunities and depart Pullman.
With the portal closing on April 21, it remains unclear how the rest of the roster will shake out heading into next season, but it’s possible other Cougars could decide to at least test the waters before the portal opens next month.
Seahawks Reward Jaxon Smith-Njigba With Record-Breaking Extension
Striking a deal early in free agency with a contract extension being a top priority for the organization, the Seattle Seahawks have locked up one of their biggest foundational pieces for the next half decade.
According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, the Seahawks and superstar receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba have agreed to terms on a four-year, $168.6 million mega deal worth a record-setting $42.15 million per year. Under the terms of the contract, he will also receive more than $120 million in guarantees, the most ever for a wideout in NFL history.
Enjoying a historic breakout in his third season with the Seahawks and more than earning his market-setting contract, the 24-year-old Smith-Njigba emerged as one of the league’s best weapons for the eventual Super Bowl champions, snagging 119 receptions for an NFL-best 1,793 yards and 10 touchdowns from quarterback Sam Darnold. Per TruMedia, he finished with 42 explosive receptions, seven more than any other receiver in the league, while posting a remarkable 35.3% explosive reception rate on a whopping 163 targets.
Mariners Reportedly Go with Garver for Backup Catcher; Right or Wrong Move by Dipoto?
Mitch Garver already returned to the Mariners organization thanks to some advice from Cal Raleigh, but with Spring Training nearly in the rear-view mirror, it’s being reported that he’s going to make the jump back to the bigs for another year. With this decision, it’s likely that Andrew Knizner - who signed a $1 million guaranteed contract in the offseason - will be designated for assignment, though he can be outrighted to Triple-A if he clears waivers. Jhonny Pereda, who is on the 40-man roster, will probably also return to Triple-A to start the season, though this would mark his last minor league option.
Garver was quite appreciative of Raleigh’s efforts to bring him back, according to MLB.com’s Daniel Kramer.
“It means a lot that he would want me to come back and be there for him whenever he needs to take a breather,” Garver said. “So, I'm happy to do it. Happy to just put on the gear and catch guys when they need me the most and couldn't be [happier] to be where we're at.”
Bringing Garver up was a $2.25 million dollar decision, financially, as that’s what Garver was guaranteed to make if he made the MLB roster at any point. So what went into the decision to bring him back for another year?
Sounders Draw with Minnesota in Scoreless Grudge Match
The Seattle Sounders played to a 0-0 draw with Minnesota United on Sunday morning, which eliminated Seattle in a dramatic three-game series last season.
The Seattle Sounders went into Allianz Stadium looking for a fifth consecutive win away from Lumen Field. They got about a third of what they bargained for, playing to a 0-0 draw with the Loons to move to 3-1-1 on the young season.
Minnesota played its usual low block, dropping five defenders back and daring Seattle to beat them without giving up transition chances. Both sides generated around one expected goal, as there were moments of brilliance, especially toward the end of the game.
In the end, the Sounders kept their fifth clean sheet of the year as they head into a short international break in the middle of the Western Conference standings.
Reign Fall in Cascadia Rivalry Despite Two Thorns Ejections
PORTLAND, Ore. — It was about as eventful of a Cascadia Clash as you can have.
Friday night saw the Seattle Reign head down I-5 to take on their fierce NWSL rival in the Portland Thorns for their home opener — which pulled in over 21,000 fans in a record-setting and raucous atmosphere at Providence Park.
After two red cards and the return of one of the biggest stars in the sport to her home pitch in Sophia Wilson, Portland came out on top 2-0 by dropping their entire squad into the box and making Seattle beat them without transition chances.
Evidently, the Reign’s service wasn’t up to par as Seattle’s offense stalled without any chance to attack against a defense that wasn't set.
Sounders Finish Off 'Caps, Advance to Concacaf Quarters
"SEEEEEAAAATTTTLEEE. SOOOUUUUNNDDERSS."
The classic chant of Lumen Field echoed through downtown — Spokane, that is — on Wednesday night.
The Rave Green had plenty to be happy about east of the Cascades — their Sounders are Concacaf Champions Cup quarterfinal-bound for the first time since 2022, when they won the continental tournament.
The Sounders did it by first beating the Vancouver Whitecaps 3-0 on the road last week before leveraging two late goals to win the second leg 2-1 at One Spokane Stadium on Wednesday as Lumen Field undergoes FIFA World Cup preparations.
What Historic New WNBA CBA Means For 2026 Seattle Storm
Play ball. After weeks of intense negotiations, the WNBA and the WNBPA verbally agreed to terms on a new collective bargaining agreement early in the morning on Wednesday that will completely reshape player compensation, per ESPN’s Alexa Philipou.
The new salary cap will be set at $7 million, a massive increase from $1.5 million in 2025, with the supermax starting at $1.4 million ($249,244 last season), per ESPN’s Shams Charania.
Average player salaries will be around $600,000 ($120,000 last season), and the minimum salary could be higher than $300,000 ($66,079 last season). All of that, coupled with a revenue share of “nearly 20% across the length of the deal,” per Philippou, makes for a historic deal.
Kraken Fall Back Into Bad Habits, Suffer 6-2 Loss to Lightning
It started with Jared McCann.
The Seattle Kraken forward said as much, referring to his turnover to Tampa Bay Lightning forward Gage Concalves on a hit along the boards that ultimately led to the latter giving his side a 1-0 lead just 5:45 into Tuesday’s game at Climate Pledge Arena, but it didn’t end there.
Between Tampa’s relentless forecheck and a couple of crucial mistakes on Seattle’s end, the Lightning stormed to a 3-0 lead. The Kraken managed to cut it to 3-2 midway through the second period, but more mistakes doomed them to a 6-2 loss.
NBA Set to Vote on Exploring Seattle, Las Vegas Expansion Teams
Seattle basketball fans have endured years of empty promises and delayed timelines since losing the NBA’s Seattle SuperSonics in 2008. The knife was twisted further after watching the Oklahoma City Thunder, formerly the Sonics, win the NBA title in 2025.
But after a near-20-year wait, there is finally a concrete reason to believe the NBA could be returning to Seattle. The NBA is set to hold a vote to begin exploring expansion teams in Seattle and Las Vegas during the board of governors meetings from March 24-25, per ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania.
The target first season for the pair of new teams is 2028-29.
Sounders Epitomize 'Bend Don't Break' in 1-0 Win Over Earthquakes
There were heroes everywhere in the Seattle Sounders' 1-0 MLS win over the San Jose Earthquakes on Sunday afternoon.
Paul Rothrock led a depleted Sounders (3-1-0 W-L-D) front with strong runs that netted a 20th-minute goal, while keeper Andrew Thomas had arguably his best game in 2026 with seven saves.
But what Antino Lopez did in the 74th minute to preserve that scoreline will stand the test of time.
Bottom-Six Propels Kraken to Big Win Over Panthers
After snapping their four-game losing streak with a 5-2 win against the Vancouver Canucks, the Seattle Kraken’s new-look top line and trade deadline acquisition Bobby McMann’s three-point debut stole the show. Less than 24 hours later, it was the Kraken bottom-six that powered Seattle to a back-to-back sweep with a 6-2 win against the Florida Panthers at Climate Pledge Arena on Sunday.
With two goals each from the third- and fourth-line, the Kraken displayed the top-to-bottom production they’ll need if they want to hold down a spot in the Western Conference playoff picture, which they reclaimed after San Jose lost 7-4 to Ottawa on Sunday.
“We need everybody,” Kraken coach Lane Lambert said. “That’s the way it’s going to be, and certainly we need everybody and needed everybody on a second night of a back-to-back with a rested team here waiting for us, and Joey (Daccord) played well right off the start, and then our fourth line stepped up and got us going with some energy … so huge for us, but we’re a four-line hockey team, and that’s what we need out of them.”
Reign Overcome Travel Mishap, Weather Delay in Opening Day Win
The Seattle Reign waited on the tarmac in SeaTac for a chance to fly to Orlando on Friday morning.
And they waited.
And they waited.
They waited for around six hours before taking off, as weather and other circumstances caused delays. The team, frustrated from a full day of travel, had to wait again in the recesses of Inter&Co Stadium at halftime of their Sunday season-opening game against the Pride as nearly three hours of lightning delays added a new fold to the cross-country trip.
After all that, the Reign played to a 2-1 win in their season-opener against a team they had played and lost to twice in a row to close last season.
Gonzaga MBB, WBB March Madness Brackets Set
March Madness brackets are set, and both Gonzaga’s men’s and women’s basketball teams will be vying for a national championship in the NCAA Tournament.
The Zags’ men’s team (30-3) received the No. 3 seed in the West Region and will face No. 14 Kennesaw State (21-13) in the first round at 7 p.m. PT on Thursday, March 19, at the Moda Center in Portland.
Gonzaga’s women’s team (24-9) landed the No. 12 seed in the West Region and will face No. 5 Ole Miss (23-11) at an undetermined time on Friday, March 20, at Williams Arena in Minnesota.
Washington Lands Commitment From 2027 4-Star Running Back Jeremy Adeyanju
Jedd Fisch found his Class of 2027 running back.
Jeremy Adeyanju, a 6-0, 215-pounder out of Sandra Day O’Connor High School in Glendale, Arizona, confirmed his commitment to Washington on social media. The junior chose the Huskies over USC, Michigan and UCLA.
Adeyanju’s stock has been rising over the last few months. He’s shown good instincts and decisiveness running behind an offensive line with a pair of three-star recruits, and the long-strider can run away from defenders in the open field. Adeyanju will join a UW running back room that theoretically would include 2026 4-star recruit Brian Bonner, as well as Ansue Sanoe (2026) Quaid Carr (2025) and Julian McMahan (2025) and Jordan Washington (2024).
Storm’s Nneka Ogwumike Spearheading Tense WNBA CBA Negotiations Now in 11th Hour
As more deadlines continue to be dealt out by the WNBA, it seems the league and its players union are getting closer to an agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement.
Monday is the new deadline the league set to avoid any impacts on the 2026 season, per ESPN’s Alexa Philippou, and Seattle Storm forward and WNBPA president Nneka Ogwumike is at the forefront of the negotiations as they enter their 11th hour.
Ogwumike said Saturday that revenue sharing and team-funded housing were among the major items that are still being worked on, per Doug Feinberg of the Associated Press. Negotiations have been especially hot this week to try to meet the league’s original March 10 deadline to not impact the season.
Kraken Fall Out of Playoff Spot as Skid Continues in 5-1 Loss to Avalanche
The difference between the first and second period was night and day for the Seattle Kraken against the Colorado Avalanche at Climate Pledge Arena on Thursday.
A lethargic effort from Seattle and a three-point period from Avalanche star Nathan MacKinnon put the Kraken in a 3-0 hole through 20 minutes, but the home side came out of the gates swinging in the second period.
Despite building up a 10-0 shots on goal advantage through 10:25, Seattle could not manage to get on the board before Adam Larsson committed a tripping penalty to put the Kraken on the penalty kill.
What should have been a momentum killer was the exact opposite. Chandler Stephenson set up Ryker Evans for a short-handed goal, and Seattle was back in business.
For less than four minutes, unfortunately.
Arriola Picks Up Brace for Sounders in First Leg Domination In Vancouver
From the first moments of the Seattle Sounders' Concacaf Round of 16 clash with the Vancouver Whitecaps on Thursday, Paul Arriola tested his limits. The veteran, subjected to nearly a year of rehab after tearing his ACL in the 2025 edition of the tournament, earned his first start of the year for a Sounders squad mauled by injuries early.
He paid off the team's confidence in him, attacking Vancouver's backline with unceasing runs to the endline. His hard work manifested a brace, as Seattle won the first leg of the two-game series 3-0 in a stunner. Paul Rothrock added the other score after coming on for Arriola late, as it was truly a day to remember for the Pauls of Seattle.
Seattle will finish the series next Wednesday in Spokane as Lumen Field undergoes renovations for the upcoming FIFA World Cup.
It was a signature early win for Seattle, which downed a 3-0-0 Vancouver squad that had looked about as good as any team in North America heading into Thursday.
Seahawks Sign Emanuel Wilson, Add Punishing Runner to Backfield Mix
Three days after watching Super Bowl MVP Ken Walker III take his talents to the Kansas City Chiefs on a record-setting deal, the Seattle Seahawks have finally added to their new-look backfield in free agency.
According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the Seahawks have signed former Packers running back Emanuel Wilson to a one-year contract. Multiple reports indicate the deal will be worth up to $2.1 million with incentives.
The 26-year-old Wilson broke into the league as an undrafted free agent in 2023 after taking quite the unconventional path to the NFL. Lightly recruited out of high school, he started his college career at Johnson C. Smith University, a Division II program in Charlotte, North Carolina. After not playing in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he transferred to another Division II school in Fort Valley State, where he rushed for 1,371 yards and 17 touchdowns in 2022 before deciding to go pro.
Mariners Postseason Hero Bryce Miller Once Again Dealing With Injury Bug
The worst fear of any baseball team with high expectations is injuries. Especially when those injuries hit the starting pitching. The starting rotation is a delicate ecosystem on any team.
For the Seattle Mariners, Bryce Miller struggled through most of the 2025 season. It was a year of stops and starts, totaling in 18 starts, with just eight coming after June 6. Miller dealt with right elbow inflammation, including a bone spur that required time off. When he did pitch, he wasn’t his usual effective self, posting a 4-6 record with a 5.68 ERA, 74 strikeouts, and a 1.41 WHIP over 90 1/3 innings. His strikeout rate dropped significantly, and advanced metrics showed regression with higher hard-hit rates and an elevated FIP.
Simply put, there was a clear struggle with his health throughout last season that undoubtedly impacted his performance.
Seahawks Make First External Signing, Add Rodney Thomas to Safety Group
Finally making their first outside signing four days into free agency, the Seattle Seahawks have bolstered depth at the safety position in the aftermath of Coby Bryant’s departure for Chicago.
According to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, the Seahawks have agreed to terms with former Colts safety Rodney Thomas II on a contract. No details have been made available yet, including years, salary, or guaranteed money, making it unclear whether his signing will count against the NFL compensatory formula.
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