For a while it looked like it would not happen but in the final seconds of Tampa Bay’s 27-19 win over the New Orleans Saints – not only did the Buccaneers clinch playoff berth but NFL history was made.

Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans extended his streak of 1,000-yards in a season for the 11th in a row to tie Pro Football Hall of Famer Jerry Rice for the most ever consecutively.

After the Tampa Bay defense forced the Saints to turn it over on downs, the Buccaneers offense got the ball back with less than 40 seconds to go in the game and Evans needing five yards for the record.

Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield threw the ball immediately to Evans who hauled it in for nine-yards to get to 1,004 yards for the season.

With legendary quarterback and a former teammate of Evans, Tom Brady, on the call for Fox, he called it “one of the greatest things” he’s seen as Buccaneers teammates mobbed him to celebrate the feat.

The 31-year-old Evans is the first player in history to reach the 1,000 yard plateau in their first eleven seasons.

He also received a $3 million bonus following the accomplishment, according to Spotrac.

With the win, Tampa Bay won the NFC South for the fourth consecutive year and eliminate the Atlanta Falcons from playoff contention. Atlanta lost to the Carolina Panthers 44-38 in overtime on Sunday.

After the game, Evans said, “I was hoping we got a stop because I can’t pass up history.”

“I’m happy they let me go out and get that. It’s hard to do for 11 straight years. To be tied with one of, if not the greatest receiver of all time, it means a lot to me and my family.”

Evans was drafted by the Bucs in the first round of the 2014 NFL Draft out of Texas A&M. He has spent his entire career in Tampa, including inking a two-year extension with the franchise this past offseason.

Mayfield applauded Evans for always putting the team first.

“That’s why you love him,” Mayfield told reporters. “We’re lucky to have him. He’s underappreciated throughout the media and the league. He’s one of one. He deserves that. You saw the stadium erupt. You saw the sideline erupt. You can tell how much people care about him and what that means for everybody around him.”

The Buccaneers will host the Washington Commanders in the wild card round on January 12 at 8 p.mET.

The Golden Globes aired Sunday night and the unofficial kickoff to Hollywood’s award season served glamour, laughs and a few sentimental tears.

Globe voters honored TV and films that explored themes of aging, immigration, acceptance and survival, but the tone of the show was largely light and celebratory, in keeping with an event historically considered Hollywood’s biggest – and booziest – party.

From host Nikki Glaser’s best lines to some sincerely sweet acceptance speeches, highlights from the 82nd Golden Globes follow below:

Nikki Glaser’s funniest lines

Globes host Nikki Glaser – the first standalone, female host for the event – did what she does best: playfully roast celebrities.

Glaser kicked off her monologue by cracking a joke about the show being “Ozempic’s biggest night,” referencing the popular weight loss drug, and later poked fun at Timotheé Chalamet’s name (and facial hair), even featuring Adam Sandler saying Chalament’s name in his signature comedic cadence.

Double nominee Selena Gomez and her fiancé Benny Blanco also made the monologue. Glaser joked that Blanco, who accompanied his fiancée Gomez to the show, was only there “because of the genie who granted him that wish.”

Leader in the telecast, Glaser hilariously attempted to combine “Wicked” and “Conclave” into a song called “Pope-ular” while wearing a cardinal or a pope hat and clutching Glinda’s wand. The bit was short-lived though – as she began to sing, Glaser mimed getting a note from producers in her earpiece letting her know the number “sucked.”

About midway through the show, Glaser took stock of how it was going so far by presenting a tally of who had been thanked during acceptance speeches.

Turns out cast and crew scored big with 11 shoutouts, moms got enough love for a second place ranking, while TV host Mario Lopez got a mention. But, one who did not get any love at all was “God, creator of the universe,” Himself.

“No surprise in this Godless town,” Glaser joked.

Family night at the Globes

Sunday’s ceremony certainly had heart, in part, due to the many nominees who brought their parents to the event. Several winners also made sure to single out their loved ones while on stage.

Zoe Saldana, who won a statuette for best performance by a female actor in a supporting role in any motion picture for “Emilia Pérez,” brought her mother Asalia Nazario along as her date. Ariana Grande, who was nominated for her performance in a supporting capacity for “Wicked,” also brought her mom, Joan Grande, while actress Margaret Qualley brought along her father, Paul.

Glen Powell’s mom and dad Cyndy Powell and Glen Powell Sr. proudly accompanied their son and celebrated the actor being a first-time nominee for his Netflix film, “Hitman.”

Globe winner Adrien Brody’s speech acknowledging his parents, who were also on site, provided one of the most moving moments of the evening. He thanked his mother and immigrant ancestors for their sacrifices that paralleled that of his “Brutalist” character.

Surprise winner Fernanda Torres, who took home the trophy for best female actor in a drama motion picture for Brazilian film “I’m Still Here,” also paid tribute to her mother by dedicating her win to her.

“You have no idea she was here 25 years ago and this is like a proof that art can endure through life, even in difficult moments like this,” she said. “The same thing that is happening now in the world, with so much fear and this is a film that helps us to think how to survive in tough times like this. So to my mother, to my family… thank you very much.”

Ahead of the ceremony, Torres said she was the second Brazilian to be nominated, her mother Fernanda Montenegro being the first for 1998’s “Central Station.” Her mother is also her costar in the Walter Salles-directed film.

Moving speeches

The Globes had a mix of funny, gracious and moving acceptance speeches.

First-time winner Demi Moore, who won for best lead actress in a musical or comedy for her performance in the horror-comedy “The Substance,” gave a tearful speech about self-acceptance that brought many in the Beverly Hilton ballroom to their feet.

“I really wasn’t expecting that. I’m just in shock right now,” Moore said when she took the stage. “I’ve been doing this a long time, like over 45 years, and this is the first time I’ve ever won anything as an actor and I’m just so humbled and so grateful.”

Moore, 62, recalled an exchange with a movie producer about 30 years ago who called her a “popcorn actress.”

“At that time, I made that mean that this wasn’t something that I was allowed to have,” she said of her win. “And I bought in and I believed that and that corroded me over time to the point where I thought a few years ago that maybe this was it. Maybe I was complete, maybe I’ve done what I was supposed to do.”

She said that the script for “The Substance” came to her while she was in “this low point” of her life.

“(Then) I had this magical, bold, courageous, out of the box, absolutely bonkers script come across my desk called ‘The Substance,’ and the universe told me that you’re not done,” Moore continued.

Colin Farrell credited his makeup artist and craft services team for his win for “The Penguin.”

“No one to thank on this one, I did it all by myself,” Farrell joked when accepting his award. He went on to say that “it takes a village” to create a series and thanked the cast and crew, including the prosthetics artists and “Carolina” from craft service, who gave him much-needed refreshments while he was overheating on set in the heavy makeup required for the role.

When the team from “Wicked” won for cinematic and box office achievement, director Jon Chu spoke about the joy of bringing people together to promote understanding and connection through movies.

Golden glamour

Many of the most luminous guests lit up the Globes with truly golden looks. Stars including host Glaser, Ariana Grande, Cate Blanchett, Kristen Bell, Mikey Madison, Mindy Kaling and Elle Fanning all donned golden-hued gowns.

Glaser turned up on the red carpet wearing a custom Prabal Gurung dress, telling Women’s Wear Daily that her tiny gold spherical purse was just for show. She added that the bag is empty but joked that it can double as a weapon.

Kaling was seen wearing a metallic gold column gown by Ashi Studio, while Oscar-winner Blanchett turned heads in a gold Louis Vuitton number.

Additionally, there were plenty of shimmering satins and metallics on display, including Angelina Jolie’s silver beaded Alexander McQueen creation and Moore’s iridescent champagne gown. But while many attendees opted for classic silhouettes in demure shades, there were also pops of bright color — red, in particular.

Dakota Fanning, nominated for her role in “Ripley,” turned heads in a strapless red Dolce & Gabbana bodice gown with a daring thigh slit. Elsewhere, Comedian Ali Wong (in Balenciaga), Sheryl Lee Ralph (in custom St. John) and Emma Stone (in Louis Vuitton) also impressed in shades ranging from ruby to burgundy.

Nippon Steel, whose multibillion-dollar proposal to buy struggling US Steel was blocked by President Joe Biden last week, says it is considering taking legal action against the US government.

On Friday, Biden said he was blocking the controversial $14.3 billion acquisition, marking a significant use of executive authority in the closing days of his administration. He cited the need to protect national security and supply chains.

“We are entitled to a proper review,” Imai told journalists outside his home. “The review process to date and the US government’s decision is not a very proper review. Our company cannot allow this to continue, so we are considering all options for future action.”

The deal has been politically charged since it was announced more than a year ago, stirring bipartisan political opposition to foreign control of a once key component of US industrial might.

The deal was not supported by the United Steelworkers (USW), the union representing American steel workers, which commended Biden’s decision as the “right move for our members and our national security.”

The USW said US Steel’s recent financial performance showed it could “easily remain a strong and resilient company,” USW International President David McCall said in a statement.

But some feared the failure of the deal could starve US Steel of the investment it says it needs, and may also scare away foreign investment in other US companies.

David Burritt, president and CEO of US Steel, called Biden’s decision “shameful and corrupt.”

In late December, the Committee for Foreign Investment in the United States, known colloquially as CFIUS, notified Biden that it had not reached a consensus on whether the US Steel sale to Nippon would pose a national security risk, leaving the decision up to the president.

US Steel and Nippon have argued throughout the process that the deal is necessary to provide needed investment in US Steel’s domestic steel operations. US Steel has claimed it could be forced to shut down the mills represented by the USW if it doesn’t get the $2.7 billion in investment planned by Nippon Steel as part of its proposed purchase.

Demi Moore is now a first-time Golden Globe winner.

On Sunday, Moore won for best female actor in a film — musical or comedy for her performance in “The Substance.”

“I really wasn’t expecting that. I’m just in shock right now,” Moore said when she took the stage. “I’ve been doing this a long time, like over 45 years, and this is the first time I’ve ever won anything as an actor and I’m just so humbled and so grateful.”

Moore, 62, recalled an exchange with a movie producer about 30 years ago who called her a “popcorn actress.”

“At that time, I made that mean that this wasn’t something that I was allowed to have,” she said of her win. “And I bought in and I believed that and that corroded me over time to the point where I thought a few years ago that maybe this was it. Maybe I was complete, maybe I’ve done what I was supposed to do.”

She said that the script for “The Substance” came to her while she was in “this low point” of her life.

“(Then) I had this magical, bold, courageous, out of the box, absolutely bonkers script come across my desk called ‘The Substance,’ and the universe told me that you’re not done,” Moore continued.

“The Substance” is a feminist fable with a dark warning about the pitfalls of blindly chasing youth, written and directed by Coralie Fargeat of France.

“I’ll just leave you with one thing that I think this movie is imparting,” Moore said of the film. “In those moments, when we don’t think we’re smart enough, or pretty enough, or skinny enough, or successful enough, or basically just not enough: I had a woman say to me, ‘Just know, you will never be enough, but you can know the value of your worth if you just put down the measuring stick.”

Russia may be close to sharing advanced satellite technology with North Korea after the isolated nation supplied troops to help bolster Moscow’s war in Ukraine, United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned Monday.

“The DPRK is already receiving Russian military equipment and training. Now, we have reason to believe that Moscow intends to share advance space and satellite technology with Pyongyang,” Blinken said from Seoul, using North Korea’s official name.

Blinken is visiting the key US ally as part of his last foreign tour ahead of Donald Trump’s inauguration, and his comments came as North Korea test-fired what appeared to be an intermediate-range ballistic missile into the waters off the east coast of the Korean Peninsula, according to South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The US’s top diplomat also reiterated an earlier warning by the US ambassador to the United Nations that Russian President Vladimir Putin may be close to accepting North Korea’s nuclear weapons program, reversing its decades-long commitment to denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula.

The US has repeatedly expressed concern over the growing alliance between Pyongyang and Moscow since Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un signed a landmark defense pact in June last year.

Putin’s visit to Pyongyang was widely seen to be about securing ongoing support from Kim for his grinding war in Ukraine as weapons stockpiles dwindled and huge numbers of young Russian men were killed or wounded in the invasion he began nearly three years ago.

Since then, munitions and missiles have flowed from North Korea to Russia, though Moscow and Pyongyang have both denied the weapons transfers, despite significant evidence. North Korean troops have also joined the fight on Russia’s side according to Ukrainian and Western intelligence assessments.

And observers have long raised concerns that Moscow may be violating international sanctions to aid Pyongyang’s development of its military satellite program.

In October, South Korean Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun said at the Pentagon that North Korea will likely request Russian technology transfers relating to tactical nuclear weapons, the advancement of North Korean intercontinental ballistic missiles, reconnaissance satellites and nuclear submarines, in exchange for deploying troops to help Russia.

Zelensky praises Trump as Ukraine launches Kursk counterattack

Russia’s southern border region of Kursk continues to be at the center of fighting, months after Ukraine launched its incursion in the territory. On Sunday, Kyiv said it launched surprise attacks against Russian forces in several locations across Kursk.

Ukrainian and Western assessments say that some 11,000 North Korean troops are deployed in the Kursk region, where Ukrainian forces occupy swathes of territory after staging the cross-border incursion in August last year.

Speaking on Monday, Blinken said more than 1,000 North Korean forces were killed or wounded in Kursk in the last week of December, an estimate also shared by the White House in late December.

Zelensky, who has repeatedly appealed for continued US military aid and weapons since the start of Russia’s invasion, praised US President-elect Trump and billionaire Elon Musk during an interview with an American podcaster broadcast Sunday.

Speaking to Lex Fridman, Zelensky said he “very much hopes” Trump will “end the war” and believes the president-elect has “all the power to stop Putin and give Ukraine strong security guarantees.”

The Ukrainian President has previously said that when Trump takes power, the “war will end sooner” – a promise Trump has made to his voters.

Zelensky said Trump won November’s presidential election because he was a “much stronger” candidate than Vice President Kamala Harris.

“He showed that he can do it intellectually and physically. It was important to show that if you want to have a strong country that you must be strong. And he was strong,” Zelensky said.

In the interview, Zelensky thanked Musk for providing Ukraine with the Starlink internet system that has proven crucial in its war effort against Russia.

Zelensky described Musk as “a leader of innovation” and said people like him “only push the world forward.”

“I would really like Elon to be on our side as much as possible, to support us,” he added.

When asked about the possibility of a ceasefire, Zelensky said Kyiv would consider it only if it was “reassured that there are security guarantees” for the territories under Ukrainian control. Without such guarantees, he warned, Putin would attack again.

Ukraine would also need partial NATO membership, Zelensky said, and that the West should provide more weapons to Kyiv to enable it to defend itself in case of future attacks from Russia.

As New Orleans prepares to kick off its extravagant Carnival season this week, the city is asking for federal help in ensuring there is not a repeat of the horrific truck-ramming that killed 14 people early on New Year’s Day.

President Joe Biden is set to visit on Monday and is expected to hear directly from Mayor LaToya Cantrell and other city officials on what Washington can do, including potentially raising the federal security level for its world-famous Carnival, also called Mardi Gras.

The New Year’s attack came during a busy season for New Orleans; at the time, revelers were still celebrating on the raucous Bourbon Street, with the Allstate Sugar Bowl scheduled later that day, though it was later postponed. The city had also been gearing up for Carnival, with weeks of parades, performances and parties starting Monday. And in February, the crown jewel of American sports: Super Bowl LIX.

Each event is expected to draw huge numbers of visitors from across the country. Local businesses including restaurants and hotels are preparing for the influx of tourists with special deals and events.

But it also poses a security challenge that authorities are now under pressure to address, facing heightened scrutiny as questions swirl about how the attack was carried out and whether it could have been prevented.

Shortly after the attack, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry declared a state of emergency, writing in the decree that it would allow New Orleans to deploy additional resources as it prepares to see “hundreds of thousands of visitors in the weeks leading up to the Super Bowl and Mardi Gras.”

“Extensive coordination and security measures are necessary to secure areas around the events and ensure public safety from the threats associated with these events,” he wrote.

And on Sunday, Mayor Cantrell said the city had requested federal assistance in asking a tactical expert to map out the city and determine what weak spots could be targeted or might need further security. Authorities will also ask an expert to determine whether existing security measures, such as their road barriers and barricades are sufficient, she said – after the attacker drove his pickup truck onto the sidewalk, bypassing the police barrier.

“If they’re not (sufficient), how and what, and where do they need to be placed?” she said. “This is a work in progress, and we’re committed to doing everything necessary to ensure public safety measures.”

Cantrell also said she had submitted a federal request for Mardi Gras to be upgraded in federal security tier, from SEAR 2 to SEAR 1 – something she had been pushing for many years.

The Special Event Assessment Rating (SEAR) designation and five-tiered ranking system determine whether events require federal security support such as field intelligence teams, air security, bomb detection dogs and more. The Super Bowl has been designated SEAR 1, the top tier reserved for “significant events” with national or international importance requiring “extensive” support.

New Orleans police are also stepping up measures, saying they had a “comprehensive security plan in place” for the first parade scheduled Monday and for all parades going forward.

The road barriers

One of the main points of the New Year’s attack investigation will be why there were no strong barriers to protect revelers in the city’s bustling French Quarter that day.

The issue had been spotlighted years ago, when a private security consulting firm warned in a 2019 report that the risk of terrorism in the French Quarter – specifically mass shootings and vehicular attacks – remained “highly possible while moderately probable.”

The report “strongly recommends” safety structures known as bollards –– vertical posts that can move up and down –– be fixed and improved “immediately.”

New Orleans Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said she did not know the city owned the safety devices, which have since been put in place.

“With the Super Bowl on the horizon, it was important to have those bollards installed, but no less important was the Sugar Bowl and New Year’s Eve,” Morrell added.

“I mean, New Orleans is a destination for pretty much every holiday you can imagine, so having those bollards available – and even more importantly, not having hardened infrastructure even temporarily there instead of the bollards as they’re placed throughout the Quarter – is problematic.”

FBI investigations

In a briefing on Sunday, the FBI revealed that the attacker, Shamsud-Din Jabbar, had visited New Orleans twice in the months prior and used Meta smart glasses to film the street and plan the attack.

He had stayed at a rental home in New Orleans from October 30 for a few days, and during that time recorded video as he bicycled through the French Quarter, said FBI New Orleans Special Agent in Charge Lyonel Myrthil. Jabbar also visited New Orleans on November 10, and investigators were still putting together the details of that trip.

During the news conference, officials released videos of his actions hours before the attack and provided a timeline of his movements – including details of Jabbar setting fire to an Airbnb and placing improvised explosive devices (IEDs) on Bourbon Street.

Investigators are also looking into Jabbar’s trips to Egypt and Canada, and other visits to Atlanta and Tampa. He traveled to Cairo from June 22 to July 3, 2023, and visited Ontario from July 10 to July 13, 2023, Myrthil said. FBI agents are digging into what he did on those trips and whether they tie into the attack.

All 14 of the victims from the New Year’s attack have now been identified and named. The final victim identified was Latasha Polk, a certified nursing assistant and mother of a 14-year-old, Gov. Landry said in a news conference.

“The Brutalist,” a film about a Jewish architect who survives the Holocaust and emigrates to the United States to achieve the American Dream, had a big night at the Golden Globe Awards on Sunday.

The movie, which stars Adrien Brody, was nominated in seven categories and won four Globes total on Sunday. Brody, who won for best actor in a motion picture drama, marking his first individual Globes win, dedicated the award to those who have faced struggles immigrating and to the “sacrifice” of his parents and extended family ancestors, some of whom fled war to come “to this great country.”

Brody’s speech follows in full below:

“Thank you to everyone in this room, Golden Globes voters, for this honor, I am deeply humbled by this. I have much to say. I’m going to try and be brief. At the core of ‘The Brutalist,’ it is really a story about the human capacity for creation, so I would be remiss to not acknowledge my fellow nominees. Daniel, Colman, Timmy, Sebastian, Sebastian, Ralph. You guys really just — you reached such heights with your work, and you are such inspirations to me. To my — God, Brady and Mona, I love you guys.
Thank you for giving me wings. Thank you for allowing me to be a small part of building this triumph and monument to humanity and the arts.

To my cast and crew, and everyone who has been a part of making this movie, this is a collaborative effort, and I share this with all of you. To my friends and team at CAA, A24, thank you for supporting me through this journey. To my mom and dad, who are here tonight. Oh, my goodness. You always hold me up. I often credit my mother for her influence on me as an artist, but Dad, you are the foundation of this family, and all this love that I received flows back to you.

To my beautiful and amazing partner, Georgina. Your generosity of spirit, your own resilience your immense creativity, are a daily reminder of how to be. I would not be standing here before you if it wasn’t for you. There was a time not too long ago that I felt this may never be a moment afforded to me again, so thank you.

You know, this story is really the character’s journey is very reminiscent of my mother’s and my ancestors’ journey of fleeing war and coming to this great country. I owe so much to my mother and my grandparents for their sacrifice, and although I do not know fully how to express all of the challenges that you have faced and experienced, and the many people who have struggled immigrating to this country, I hope that this work stands to lift you up a bit and to give you a voice. I’m so grateful. I will cherish this moment forever.”

A Chinese filmmaker was due to stand trial Monday over his documentary about China’s nationwide protests against Covid lockdowns in late 2022, as Beijing seeks to erase public memories of stunning scenes of dissent against its handling of the pandemic.

The vaguely worded charge is commonly used by the Chinese government to silence dissent and target activists, lawyers and journalists. It carries a maximum prison term of five years for first-time offenders.

Chen, who goes by the name “Plato,” was arrested by Shanghai police in January 2024 after releasing a documentary to mark the first anniversary of what became known as the “White Paper” protests.

The protests marked the largest outpouring of public dissent China had seen in decades and posed an unprecedented challenge to leader Xi Jinping.

The demonstrations were sparked by a deadly apartment fire in the western city of Urumqi in November 2022. Many believed pandemic lockdown measures had hampered rescue efforts, despite official denials. The tragedy ignited deep public anger that had been boiling over after nearly three years of rolling lockdowns, mass testing and financial hardship.

Protests erupted across the country, on a scale unseen since the student-led Tiananmen movement in 1989. On university campuses and the streets of major cities, crowds gathered to call for an end to Xi’s zero-Covid policy, with some decrying censorship and demanding greater political freedoms.

Some held up blank sheets of white A4-sized paper – a metaphor for the countless critical posts and news articles that had been removed by censors – and the reason why the demonstrations became known in some quarters as the “White Paper” protests.

In Shanghai, protesters even demanded that Xi step down – an unimaginable act of political defiance toward the country’s most powerful and authoritarian leader in decades.

The demonstrations eventually fizzled out amid a sweeping security crackdown by authorities. Soon afterward, the Chinese government scrapped Covid restrictions in an abrupt about-face, though it did not directly acknowledge the protests in any public statement.

Chen’s documentary was released on YouTube and X, which are blocked in China. His accounts on both platforms have since been removed.

In Chinese the documentary was named “Urumqi Middle Road” – a nod to the street where demonstrators gathered in Shanghai to highlight their anger over the fire in the city with the same name.

In English it was called “Not the Foreign Force.” Chen previously said that he wanted to use the documentary to counter the government’s attempt to discredit the protests and blame “foreign forces” for orchestrating dissent – a tactic often deployed by China’s ruling Communist Party to explain away moments of genuine public anger.

Like many young people who took part in the protests, it was Chen’s first time voicing his political demands in China when he took to the streets of Shanghai on November 26, 2022, according to a post he published when releasing the documentary.

He said he produced the documentary to convey his personal experience and reflections.

“I hope to explore why, whenever internal conflicts arise in China, foreign forces are always made the scapegoat. The answer is clear to everyone: the more the government misleads, forgets, and censors, the more we must speak up, remind others, and remember,” he wrote. “Only by remembering the ugliness can we strive toward the light. I also hope that China will one day embrace its own light and future.”

International rights groups have been calling for Chen’s release since his arrest.

Chen “has only ever served the public interest by reporting on historical protests against the regime’s abuses and should never have been arrested. We call on democracies to increase pressure on Chinese authorities to ensure that all charges against Chen are dropped,” Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said in a statement in March.

China’s opaque court system, which answers to the Communist Party, already boasts a conviction rate above 99%. Trials are routinely held behind closed doors. China languishes towards the bottom of the table of the RSF’s annual press freedom ranking at 172 out of 180 places it assesses.