Jimmy Graham has kicked off his ambitious 10-day Arctic Challenge
And they're off -- former New Orleans Saints tight end Jimmy Graham is two days into a weekslong expedition to set a new speed record in rowing across the Arctic Ocean, as part of a four-person team in an open-air seafaring kayak. The crew shoved out from Tromsø, Norway at about 11:30 a.m. on Friday, July 4, prepared to spend at least 10 days at sea. Depending on weather conditions and their own endurance, the ongoing paddle may take twice as long.
Supporters can follow their progress on a live tracking map on the Arctic Challenge's website, which has featured several video updates; one shows Graham standing at the prow of the boat in a bright red jacket, surveying the passing fjords before they made it out to sea. But an early deviation and persistent winds from the east have pushed them outside the plotted course. It's been far from an easy start to their journey.
We'll be keeping tabs on Graham and his team in the days ahead. Their efforts aren't just for bragging rights. Through the Million Meters Club, they're working to raise $1 million for the New Orleans-based Covenant House and Laureus Sport for Good charities, as well as the Norwegian Veterans Association. Good luck to them. Graham, the former Miami Hurricanes star, hasn't shied away from adventures outside football. Since earning his piloting license and recovering from a scary cycling accident in 2023, he spent a year and a half preparing for this trip. Now it's time to see it through.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
Lyft Launches in Puerto Rico in Latest Geographical Expansion
(Bloomberg) -- Lyft Inc. on Tuesday launched its rideshare service in Puerto Rico as the next step in an expansion across North America and Europe. Are Tourists Ruining Europe? How Locals Are Pushing Back Can Americans Just Stop Building New Highways? Denver City Hall Takes a Page From NASA Philadelphia Trash Piles Up as Garbage Workers' Strike Drags On The company began recruiting drivers in late May on the Caribbean island, promising $100 bonuses to those who complete 50 rides in the first month in the capital of San Juan. 'There's obviously a deep connection between many folks who are in mainland in the United States who have connections in Puerto Rico,' said Jeremy Bird, an executive vice president overseeing driver experience and the company's international expansion. He cited demand for Lyft's service from locals, as well as tourists from places like New York and Chicago who were opening the app before service was available. Since the company began signing up drivers there, the number of people checking their Lyft apps has been up more than 30%, Bird said. Shares of Lyft jumped as much as 2.8% after Bloomberg reported on the news. San Francisco-based Lyft has been working to push beyond the US after becoming profitable and free cash flow positive on an annual basis in 2024. It has expanded into the 10 most populous cities in Canada, most recently in Montréal and Québec City. It is also expected to operate in some of the largest taxi markets in Europe, including the UK and Ireland, through its $197 million acquisition one of the region's largest taxi apps, Freenow. The deal is expected to close later this year and would nearly double Lyft's total addressable market, the company said when it announced the deal in April. Lyft does not currently have a corporate office in Puerto Rico, but Bird said the company may open one in the future as it brings in different business functions, such as driver operations and the airports team. In addition to its US offices, it also has some in Toronto and Montréal, Bird said. Lyft's larger ride-hailing rival, Uber Technologies Inc., has long since expanded to more than 70 countries and has adapted its business model to different markets, each of which has different regulations. Uber has similarly made deals and partnerships to increase its market share internationally, including putting taxis onto the app in cities where regulators or labor groups aren't friendly to ridesharing. Lyft's expansion plans mark an inflection point for the company, which cut jobs and carried out a restructuring as it came out of the pandemic with a goal of becoming profitable. Since achieving that milestone last year, the company has been keen to tap additional revenue streams to achieve profits consistently. 'We are looking at the rest of the world and saying where does it make sense? And we'll do exactly what I think we did in Puerto Rico,' Bird said. 'We want to make sure if we're going to expand anywhere that we do it smartly, that we do it tied together with the communities, the regulators, folks on the ground and that we do it in a place that actually makes sense where we're able to make the experience for users better. Obviously there's a lot of opportunity in Latin America and we'll continue to look at that.' (Updates with market reaction in the fifth paragraph.) Will Trade War Make South India the Next Manufacturing Hub? 'Telecom Is the New Tequila': Behind the Celebrity Wireless Boom SNAP Cuts in Big Tax Bill Will Hit a Lot of Trump Voters Too Pistachios Are Everywhere Right Now, Not Just in Dubai Chocolate For Brazil's Criminals, Coffee Beans Are the Target ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Error while retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Yahoo
NFL Win/Loss Preview Series: New Orleans Saints
NFL Win/Loss Preview Series: New Orleans Saints originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Maybe it's me but it may already be time to sound the black and gold alarms down in Nola. The Saints finished 2024 with the least amount of wins (5) in the National Football Conference, tied with the Panthers and Bears — except those two teams project to add multiple wins this season. Lacking a reliable answer under center, can the Saints avoid a total nosedive? I'm not so sure... Advertisement SAINTS' WIN/LOSS ODDS: Over 2.5 Wins: (-650 ) // Under 2.5 Wins: (+480) Over 3.5 Wins: (-280 ) // Under 3.5 Wins: (+230) Over 5.5 Wins: (+125) // Under 5.5 Wins: (-140) Oddsmakers clearly place a slim chance on a 2025 breakout with these lines, yet I'm significantly more bearish more than that. The Saints already lacked explosivity plus positive quarterback play, evidenced in the bottom-tier offensive macros: 19.9 PPG, 320.1 Yards/Game, -60 Net Yard Differential, 43.1% Success Rate, -0.05 EPA/Play. Oof. Point is, they'd be in rough shape without a QB issue. Granted, a handful of teams finished worse in EPA than New Orleans (image below) — but what do you notice about the other teams (DAL, NE, NYG, LV, TEN) further down and to the left? Every single one of them made moves to answer the only question that matters in the NFL. Courtesy of Then, the hammer really fell in early May... Advertisement Sure, Derek Carr's shoulder injury was no state secret. That said, the extent must've at least been up in the air somewhat to make that kind of announcement after the draft. Now an injury-riddled team in need of better QB play finds itself turning to second-round selection Tyler Shough (Pick 2.40) as its leader. Yes, the nearly 26-year-old rookie without a single +3,200 passing yard or 25 TD season on the CFB ledger will be asked to take over a last place team heading in the wrong direction. As if the offense weren't enough of a concern, the Saints defense perhaps demanded more attention this offseason. Unable to stop the opposition in either phase (4.9 Yards/Rush, 11.7 Yards/Completion), few teams posted worse defensive macros than New Orleans in 2024: 379.9 Yards/Game, -0.03 EPA/Play, 34.1 Average Drive Distance Allowed. Courtesy of While not totally complacent in free agency, signing potential impact players DT Davon Godchaux, DE Chase Young, and S Justin Reid it still feels like too little too late for a bottom-5 tackling unit (47.9% Tackle Success). I charted last season's defensive plays and yards allowed/play to offer some perspective on how far outlying this roster performed (image above) in 2024. Mix in a vastly improved division and you can see these Saints occupying the NFC's basement all by themselves come wintertime. Advertisement LAGHEZZA'S LEAN: Smash the unders! With a non-zero chance New Orleans doesn't currently roster a viable NFL quarterback, things could get worse, and fast — I'm getting action down on Saints Under 3.5 Wins (+240) as well as NFL's Worst Record (+425). BET SMALL, BET SMART, BET RESPONSIBLY Thanks so much for reading — If you're interested in upping your analytical game, come check out my best-selling NFL/mlb Betting & Fantasy Data Substack page. Don't be shy — DM me anytime on X @JohnLaghezza and I'll hook you up with a free trial. This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 9, 2025, where it first appeared.
USA Today
9 hours ago
- USA Today
NFL alternate helmets: Saints' new look could inspire change for these 5 teams
The New Orleans Saints unveiled a new alternate helmet for the 2025 season this morning. The franchise is abandoning its all-black alternate helmets for all-white for the start of coach Kellen Moore's tenure. Alternate uniforms have become a layer of fashion intrigue for teams every season. It's an opportunity for teams to bring out an unusual look or a throwback to a prior era of the franchise. UPDATES NEEDED: 5 NFL teams that are most in need of new uniform designs The San Francisco 49ers use their alternate uniforms to harken back to the team's last Super Bowl championship in 1994, a year when the team wore throwbacks to the team's 1950s look. Since 2023, the Atlanta Falcons' alternate jerseys have used a red helmet and throwback logo that references the team's original uniform from the late 1960s. The Saints' update is a welcome sight for New Orleans fans. It's a clean look that other teams should take a hint from as some could use a refreshed look with their alternate helmets in 2025. There's still time as teams continue to unveil their new looks ahead of the regular season. Here are five teams we think could use an update to their alternate helmets as the Saints have done. NFL alternate helmets that should change The Colts introduced black helmets with blue horseshoe logos into the alternate uniforms in 2023 and we can't say we're a fan. Indianapolis has one of the most traditional looks in the NFL; the blue and white jerseys are iconic and adding a black helmet is an awkward fit. We have two potential solutions. One would be to switch the helmets from black to white and add a nod to the team's roots in Baltimore with the "Bucking Horse" logo in speed blue. That logo's already being used by the franchise in throwback campaigns. Our second solution would be to use the team's current throwback uniform helmet but invert the colors. Instead of speed blue horseshoes on a white helmet, it'd be the other way around. Carolina follows the popular trope of an all-black look with the process blue logo and stripes for the alternate helmet design. The team has yet to unveil any changes to its alternate uniforms for the 2025 season and it's been the alternate in place since 2022. The blue logo on a black helmet looks good in renderings, but we're not sold on it practically. Instead, we'd opt for a silver logo instead of blue to make it pop more against the black helmet. Lions coach Dan Campbell got his wish when Detroit added black into the uniform color scheme in 2024. The alternates are black jerseys and pants with Honolulu blue numbers complimented by Honolulu blue helmets with a black Lions logo. This pops better under the lights of Ford Field, but we think the team could make a change that would work in all environments. Instead of Honolulu blue with a black logo, a black helmet with either a silver or Honolulu blue logo could be a clean look to compliment the black jerseys in all lighting. As one of the oldest franchises in the NFL, the Bears have a lot of inspiration to draw on for their uniforms. They've stayed much the same since the 1930s with a mix of navy blue, orange and white. Since 2022, the team's used orange as the primary color for both the jerseys and helmets in their alternate uniform. The combination of orange helmet and a navy logo with a white outline could be improved. Three options come to mind: make the helmet navy with a white logo (a nod to the franchise's first helmet with a logo in 1962), keep the orange helmet but make the logo all-white or make the helmet navy with the team's alternate logo in orange. The Browns are one of the oldest names in the NFL. You could pull up a photo of the 1964 NFL championship squad and know which team it was pretty easily thanks to the uniforms. They haven't changed much at all over the last six decades. In 2023, the team made a change not seen since 1951: white helmets. The Browns used those white helmets with orange and brown striping in their alternate uniforms. Now that fans have stomached that first change, we'd like to introduce a second change that acknowledges the team's rich history. Keep the white helmet but add the Browns' primary logo from the last time they won an NFL championship in 1964. All the NFL news on and off the field. Sign up for USA TODAY's 4th and Monday newsletter.
