What do the snap counts tell us about this one?
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French biathlon star Julia Simon gets suspended ban, can compete at Winter Olympics
Biathlon star Julia Simon will be allowed to compete at next year's Winter Olympics after receiving a six-month ban, including five months suspended, for stealing money from a teammate, the French ski federation (FFS) said Thursday. The suspension came after Simon was found guilty of theft and credit card fraud by a French court last month and handed a three-month suspended prison sentence. The court ruling had left a question mark over her participation at the Olympics in Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo.
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Juan Soto and Pete Alonso win Silver Slugger Awards
Both players were clearly deserving of the award.
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Home owned by Miami Heat coach Spoelstra damaged by fire
Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra returned from the NBA team's Wednesday night game in Denver to find his Florida home engulfed in a blaze that authorities said took eight hours to extinguish.The Heat had completed a four-game road trip with a loss at Denver on Wednesday night.
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![](/<figure><img alt="" src="https://media.zenfs.com/en/sb_nation_articles_115/93b516938cc18e73b23127862a79e6ee" data-uuid="8731dd98-5afc-3add-9710-00cef20a4da3"><figcaption></figcaption></figure><p class="has-text-align-none">Until this week, Chase Brown had not taken more than 49 snaps in a game all season. This week, he took 65 of the team’s 68 offensive snaps. While Brown has been the team’s primary rusher, Samaje Perine usually gets somewhere between 25% and 50% of snaps. Perine is a punishing runner who is also a trusted pass protector.</p><p class="has-text-align-none">This week, they were looking for something different out of the running back on passing downs. Chase Brown led the team in targets (14) and receptions (8) while piling up 75 yards receiving. </p><p class="has-text-align-none">This explains another interesting snap count tidbit. Generally, you can tell what the offense was trying to do by looking at the tight end snap counts. If it is a lot of Noah Fant, it’s a passing game. If it’s a lot of Drew Sample, they want to run the ball. </p><p class="has-text-align-none">This week was obviously a passing week as veteran quarterback Joe Flacco threw for a career high 470 yards on 47 attempts, and yet Fant and Sample were even at 41 snaps. The extra dose of Sample or increased Sample size if you will, provided an additional blocker and an opportunity for Brown to get out into the route more quickly.</p><p class="has-text-align-none">Another interesting offensive tidbit was the increased presence of Mitchell Tinsley. The training camp standout took a season high 17 snaps and caught 1 of 2 targets for 27 yards.</p><p class="has-text-align-none">Defensively, Cam Taylor-Britt seems to be back in the team’s good graces and took 69 snaps. Benefitting from Logan Wilson being inactive, linebacker Oren Burks took 26 snaps on defense in addition to 29 on special teams.</p><p class="has-text-align-none">Of course, what is really interesting is the defensive line. </p><p class="has-text-align-none">With Trey Hendrickson out, former first round picks Myles Murphy (53) and Shemar Stewart (49) took the most snaps among defensive ends, and yet these athletic freaks could not generate a sack. Stewart did get one quarterback hit, but that was it. Stewart also saw a lot more action on the interior than he did in previous weeks. Joseph Ossai took 48 snaps and was the only defensive end to get a sack. Cedric Johnson added 16 snaps, including one quarterback hit, and Sample added 14.</p><p class="has-text-align-none">Defensive tackle reps were mostly split between Kris Jenkins (44), B.J. Hill (42), and T.J. Slaton (39), but what stands out to me is Jordan Jefferson’s 13 snaps. Promoted from the practice squad following the departure of Mike Pennel, Jefferson leap-frogged McKinnley Jackson to be active on offense. </p><p class="has-text-align-none"></p>)
![](/<figure><img alt="" src="https://media.zenfs.com/en/sb_nation_articles_115/28738c00fd12f73bfa7492b6fcecc665" data-uuid="4f83ec10-3b65-3769-9ffd-7bdafb20feef"><figcaption></figcaption></figure><p class="has-text-align-none">Two of the three Mets hitters who were finalists for National League Silver Slugger Awards have won them, as Juan Soto was one of the three outfielders to get the award, while Pete Alonso won the award at first base. Francisco Lindor, who was a finalist at shortstop, lost out to Geraldo Perdomo of the Diamondbacks.</p><p class="has-text-align-none">Each of the three players had a great case for the award. Soto led all National League outfielders with 43 home runs, 105 runs batted in, and a 156 wRC+, and his .525 SLG ranked second, trailing only Corbin Carroll.</p><p class="has-text-align-none">Alsono’s 38 home runs were the most among National League first basemen, and his 126 runs batted in were by far the most, as Braves first baseman Matt Olson finished second with 95. Alonso also finished first with a 141 wRC+.</p><p class="has-text-align-none">Lindor led National League shortstops with 31 home runs and a .466 SLG and was finished second with a 129 wRC+ and third with 86 runs batted in. Perdomo led the group with 100 runs batted in and finished just four points behind Lindor in SLG.</p>)
![](/<figure><img src="https://media.zenfs.com/en/afp.com/2dbb10a9585060619b3d775515bd9add" data-uuid="d1cd61f9-c7cd-37af-b298-33df9050edd8"><figcaption>Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra reacts during an NBA game against the San Antonio Spurs (Carmen Mandato)</figcaption></figure><p>Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra returned from the NBA team's Wednesday night game in Denver to find his Florida home engulfed in a blaze that authorities said took eight hours to extinguish.</p><p>The fire at the home in the exclusive Coral Gables neighborhood was reported at 4:36 a.m. on Thursday according to Miami-Dade Fire Rescue.</p><p>"We found fire that was as tall as the trees," Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Battalion Chief Victoria Byrd said.</p><p>No one was inside the house when the fire broke out and no injuries or fatalities were reported.</p><p>The Heat had completed a four-game road trip with a loss at Denver on Wednesday night. According to Flight Aware tracking data the team's charter flight landed at Miami International Airport about 35 minutes after firefighters responded to the blaze.</p><p>Video taken at the scene on Thursday morning showed Spoelstra -- who last month was named head coach of the US national team through the 2028 Olympics -- looking on as firefighters worked to extinguish flames engulfing the five-bedroom home.</p><p>"On arrival, units found a fully engulfed house on fire, including a partial collapse on the roof," Byrd said, adding that the cause of the fire is under investigation.</p><p>Spoelstra, 55, was an assistant coach on the 2024 Paris Olympics championship squad.</p><p>He was an assistant coach for the Heat team that won the 2006 NBA title and as head coach guided Miami to titles in 2012 and 2013.</p><p>The Heat are scheduled to host the Charlotte Hornets in their next NBA game on Friday.</p><p>bb/js</p>)