Silva: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for NFC teams.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
Ryan Callahan scored for the fifth time in four days and defenseman Ryan McDonagh snapped a second-period tie to lift the New York Rangers to a 3-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Sunday.
Kobe Bryant hit a baseline jump shot with 4.2 seconds left and the Los Angeles Lakers wrapped up a six-game road trip by holding on to beat the Raptors 94-92 on Sunday, their eighth victory in nine meetings with Toronto
Arc's five up, five down: After No. 11 Michigan State's 58-48 upset of No. 3 Ohio State, you'd be a fool to discount the Spartans' national title chances now.
Miami coach Al Golden says the worst is behind him, but his headaches figure to continue now that former booster Nevin Shapiro, now in jail, says his involvement with the Hurricanes program will result in stiff penalties.
Eleven shots separated Phil and Tiger Sunday at Pebble Beach as Lefty secured his 40th Tour win. Jason Sobel had hole-by-hole reports.
The United States completed a 5-0 rout of Switzerland in the Davis Cup on Sunday, with 19-year-old Ryan Harrison and John Isner winning closing singles matches.
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Tessa Worley of France fought off gusting winds to win a second consecutive World Cup giant slalom Sunday in the Andorran Pyrenees. Overall leader Lindsey Vonn was more than a second behind and finished eighth.
Robins: It’s the Year of the Dragon on the Lunar calendar, and this Chinese influence could extend to it also being the year of the Pekingese on the green carpet at the 136th Westminster Dog Show on Tuesday.
 | FREE VIDEO |
 |
'We've damaged our reputation' Nov. 13: Scott givens, managing director and chief executive officer for the San Francisco 2016 Olympics bid committee, talks about dropping out of the running for the Games. |
SAN FRANCISCO - The Golden Gate Bridge and famed cable cars won’t serve as a backdrop for the 2016 Olympics. San Francisco dropped out of the running for the Summer Games, leaving Los Angeles and Chicago as the only possible American candidates.
San Francisco abandoned its Olympic bid Monday after plans for a new bayfront stadium collapsed when the city’s NFL team said it intended to move to Silicon Valley.
John York, owner of the San Francisco 49ers, told city officials last week he was breaking off negotiations for a new stadium at Candlestick Point and was considering a move to Santa Clara.
“There’s been a tremendous amount of uncertainty created around the stadium process which has made our bid untenable,” said Peter Ragone, spokesman for San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom.
Scott Givens, managing director and chief executive officer of the San Francisco 2016 Bid Committee, said the 49ers’ decision created a “perceptual gap” that hurt the city’s reputation in the eyes of the Olympic committee.
“The damage has been done and the damage can’t be pulled back,” he said.
The International Olympic Committee will select the host city in 2009. Madrid, Spain; New Delhi; Prague, Czech Republic; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Rome; and Tokyo are among those to have expressed interest. The Summer Olympics will be in Beijing in 2008 and London in 2012.
The 49ers said Monday they had encouraged the bid committee not to build its entire proposal around a new 49ers stadium at Candlestick Point. Still, members of the city’s Olympic organizing panel were jolted by the team’s decision.
“We’re numb and we’re very disappointed at the recent turn of events,” said Anne Cribbs, a committee member who won a swimming gold medal in the 1960 Games.
Following last week’s announcement, the committee said it would try to find a new location for marquee events, including the opening and closing ceremonies and track and field competition.
But the options they considered — including modifying At&T Park, home of baseball’s San Francisco Giants; expanding Kezar Stadium in Golden Gate Park; or building a new stadium at Candlestick Point without the 49ers’ help — all proved unworkable, Givens said.
Another backup plan might have been the refurbishing of an aging Monster Park, the 49ers’ current home. In a September letter to Newsom that was made public by the team on Monday, York said it would “seem prudent” for the bid committee to further explore the Monster Park option.
“This could provide a backup plan,” York wrote.
“The bid committee showed no signs of listening to the team’s repeated requests that they consider other plans,” 49ers spokeswoman Katherine Madariaga said.
But city officials said the bid was a long shot at best without a new stadium.
“We, like everyone else in San Francisco, were under the impression the backup plan wasn’t required,” Ragone said. “We were under the impression the 49ers were committed to staying in San Francisco.”
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., a former San Francisco mayor who strongly opposes a 49ers move and has tried intervening with team owners, planned to raise the issue at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing Tuesday about sports broadcasting, her spokesman Scott Gerber said. He declined to specify what questions Feinstein planned to ask.
A spokeswoman for the 49ers said no new talks with San Francisco officials were currently scheduled.
The U.S. Olympic Committee is eager to avoid a repeat of New York’s failed 2012 Olympics bid. Financing for the New York stadium fell apart about a month before the final vote, and the city didn’t get nearly the votes it needed to host the games.
|
Now, only Los Angeles or Chicago will be the American candidate if the USOC decides in December to nominate a city. The candidates must give a detailed presentation of their plan to the USOC by March 31. The USOC would choose its candidate in April.
“While the decision to withdraw was undoubtedly a difficult one, it underscores the commitment made by the San Francisco 2016 bid committee to lend its full support to any U.S. city that may ultimately be selected,” USOC vice president Bob Ctvrtlik said.
Los Angeles is the only American candidate with a stadium in place. The host of the 1932 and 1984 Games would use a refurbished Los Angeles Coliseum. The extent of the restoration will depend in part on whether the NFL returns to Los Angeles.
The city also has permanent venues in place for every sport that needs them, save shooting. They propose using housing at UCLA and USC for the Olympic village. They believe the package they offer — with more venues in place and fewer financial questions — will outweigh concerns about bringing the Olympics back to Southern California a third time.
Chicago proposes a new stadium in its Washington Park area, the centerpiece of an Olympics that would be based around Lake Michigan and downtown. The Chicago committee has not given specifics of how the privately financed venue would be paid for, other than to say the USOC would be comfortable with its plan.
Robins: It’s the Year of the Dragon on the Lunar calendar, and this Chinese influence could extend to it also being the year of the Pekingese on the green carpet at the 136th Westminster Dog Show on Tuesday.
NEW YORK (AP) - As the glow fades from the Giants' Super Bowl triumph, some New York sports fans are tuning in to basketball and hockey, with the Rangers in first place and the Knicks' overnight sensation, Jeremy Lin, sparking "Lin-sanity.''
Robins: This year, six new breeds will be making their debut on the green carpet for the Westminster Dog Show, which begins Monday.
 | Slide show |
 | The Week in Sports Pictures The Giants on top of the football world, getting ready for the London Olympics and more. more photos |
| Slideshow |
 | Who's hot on Twitter? Check out which of your favorite athletes have the best pages and most followers! NBCSports.com |
 | Special feature |
 | NBCSports.com |
| Slideshow |
 | Presidential candidates and sports How do President Obama and his Republican rivals stack up when it comes to their sports backgrounds? |
Inside NBCSports.com |
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.
Paul Pierce has been around long enough to know what Rajon Rondo's performance can mean for the aging Boston Celtics.
