casino slot jackpots LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Rams faced fourth-and-5 at the Buffalo 35 with a 38-35 lead and just under four minutes to play Sunday in their high-octane showdown with the Bills. Sean McVay is often a conservative coach, and it would not have been surprising to see him try a long field goal, or even punt. He kept his offense on the field, and Matthew Stafford calmly went through his progression before finding Tutu Atwell across the middle for an 11-yard gain that played a major role in the Rams' ability to hold on for a season-altering, 44-42 victory over the powerhouse Bills . “We felt like we needed to make it a two-possession game,” McVay said Monday. “They were rolling. We talked about aggressively going to win that game. ... It was just a reflection of the confidence in that group and what we felt like we needed to do to be able to win the game.” The Rams offense has earned the confidence McVay showed in it at that crucial moment. That unit hasn't always been good this season, entering last weekend rated just 18th in the league, but the Rams finally are mostly healthy heading down the stretch — and Puka Nacua and Kyren Williams are again playing at last season's Pro Bowl level. That was bad news for Buffalo, and it could mean trouble for the rest of the NFC if the Rams (7-6) can keep scoring like this. Los Angeles will hope to keep this offensive momentum on a short week heading to San Francisco on Thursday night. Nacua said it was “fantastic being able to feel like, man, this is what it feels like when the Rams are moving and connecting on all cylinders.” Los Angeles had six scoring drives of at least 65 yards while racking up 457 yards against Buffalo. Stafford had a season-high 320 yards passing, while Nacua had another spectacular game with 162 yards receiving and two touchdowns along with 16 yards rushing and another TD on five carries. Incredibly, it was the Rams’ first 40-point game with Stafford behind center. Thanks to that stellar offensive performance, the Rams are above .500 for the first time all season and just one game back of Seattle (8-5) in the NFC West after winning six of their past eight games. A team that appeared to be headed for a grim season after a 1-4 start is still firmly in the playoff race, also trailing Washington (8-5) by just one game for the final wild-card spot. “It’s cool to be able to play meaningful football in December,” said McVay, who led the Rams to five playoff berths in his first seven seasons. "You never take that for granted.” The offense hummed largely because it went 11 of 15 on third downs. That's the Rams' highest success rate in a game since 2001 — and don't forget that crucial fourth down conversion, either. Few teams can stop Josh Allen, but the Rams' defense didn't come close. The defensive backs particularly struggled, from Darious Williams getting beaten repeatedly in coverage to Quentin Lake's 34-yard pass-interference penalty in the final moments. Two weeks after Philadelphia dropped 481 yards at SoFi Stadium, Buffalo had 445 to push the Rams down to 26th in total defense entering Monday. The Rams' offensive line has struggled mightily at times this season, but it allowed no sacks and just three hits on Stafford while clearing the way for 137 yards rushing. With full health, the line is no longer a liability. Edge rusher Byron Young had a rough outing that included two penalties on Buffalo's first drive — an egregious late hit on Allen and a defensive offside that negated a 2-yard Bills loss on second down from the LA 1. The Rams' overall defensive discipline was repeatedly poor, and it cost them. CB Cobie Durant has a bruised lung, McVay revealed Monday. The Rams are uncertain whether it will prevent him from playing Thursday. Durant has started all 13 games this season. ... WR Demarcus Robinson sprained his shoulder against Buffalo, but kept playing. 1 — The numbers of NFL games played with two teams scoring at least 40 points and making no turnovers. The Rams and Bills made history. The 49ers haven't been this vulnerable in four years, but Kyle Shanahan has had McVay's number throughout their careers — notwithstanding the Rams' 27-24 comeback win in September when both teams' top offensive playmakers were all injured. AP NFL: https://apnews.com/NFL Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

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None:: The Game May Be Set in Springfield, but the Production Team Is in Bristol Although the real-life game will be in Dallas and the animated game will be in Springfield, nearly all production operations for tonight’s will be located at ESPN’s home campus in Bristol, CT. We not only have to tell the story of the football game but envision what that looks like if it were in universe,” says . “Creative calls from our directing and production staff make that happen.” ESPN Studio Operations team will essentially serve as the “live game unit” for tonight’s broadcast, with all virtual cameras cut in Bristol. The majority of the crew producing the altcast, including the front bench and replay team, will be located in Bristol. Live data tracking sent from onsite servers is used by gaming PCs to render the virtual environment. Essentially, data feeds are sent from the stadium, and ESPN’s Studio Operations team puts everything together in Bristol — the only exception being the natural audio, which is mixed at the site before being sent to Bristol. ESPN will send live natural audio down its transmission paths to be tracked as well as adding “sounds of the game” from ’ universe. “For our team,” says , “this is an incredible and exciting production to be a part of. Creative storytelling and innovation are core values of our company; it’s part of the ESPN culture of success. Having the opportunity to be scheduled for this unique production challenges our talented team to think about and deliver the most effective way to present this vision, along with an open space for calculated creative risks.” A crew of more than 40 will contribute to tonight’s broadcast: announcers, graphics, production, directing staff, technical operators, edit team, full media replay team, and support staff. Included as well is the four-person Beyond Sports team, who traveled in from Netherlands this week. “Time is always our greatest challenge when producing these broadcasts, says , a veteran of multiple ESPN animated broadcasts. “The amount of work that goes into creating storylines, animating the environment and characters, roll-ins, specialty game animations, plus testing and rehearsals, is time-consuming, and a relatively small group is charged with these productions. That being said, it’s our fourth animated broadcast, and we’ve learned a great deal, which has allowed us to skip the ‘learning’ stages of certain areas.” Inside the control room, Nelson’s front bench and the rest of the production team must have a very different mindset from that for a traditional game production. Although the action on the field is certainly critical, integrating humor and fun into the broadcast is equally important. “One of the fun challenges for our team is stepping away from their experience of a traditional broadcast and getting their minds into the universe,” says McMeekin. “While it may seem logical on a traditional broadcast to show a replay of what just happened during the game, it may make more sense during to show Bart’s or Homer’s antics from the sidelines of Atoms Stadium.” , , and will be on hand in Bristol, calling the action from voiceover booths. They will wear Oculus Quest or Meta Quest Pro headsets, transported into the immersive graphic representation of the stadium, field, and players. ESPN is also deploying the Meta headsets for hand and facial tracking, which will allow the trio themselves to be animated within the broadcast. “[By having them wear] the headset,” McMeekin explains, “we will actually be able to see them in the virtual world, to the point where they can go on to the field and be amongst the players. That is super exciting.” ESPN has adjusted the workflow for announcers calling the action. Instead of being in a studio (as was the case for and ), ESPN isolates Kimes, Orlovsky, and Carter in new voiceover booths in Bristol. “The VO booths allow us to prevent talent from passing into each other’s ‘virtual space’ without having to redesign our larger studios with pipe and drape,” says Menard. “The VO booths allow more-accurate ‘game call’ audio, talkback, and talent-preferred IFB mixing.” A bonus is that the technology-management staff has connectivity directly to the broadcast router, internet, multiviewers, etc. to provide a custom setup for talent and Beyond Sports support staff. “The use of our new VO booths is a great example of work smarter not harder,” says Menard. “We are better able to grasp the needs of a production like this and think more creatively and efficiently about how to fit it into our working plant. We continue to provide an improved product every time we take on one of these unique broadcasts.” One major workflow challenge is how to deal with talent’s calling a game broadcast that can be delayed up to a minute by the animation rendering. To resolve it, ESPN will offer both a live version and a delayed version of the broadcast for announcers to call the game. The Studio Operations team works hand in hand with ESPN Creative Studio and the production staff to execute their vision. This includes coordinating with the onsite team on things like transmission-path layout and backup audio needs. “The creative energy in the early planning meetings and prep days set the tone for this production,” notes McMeekin. “There has been a great mix of big ideas, realistic needs, and an overall positive vibe for how the production will look on Monday night.” One prime example of the collaboration between the Studio Ops and Creative Studio teams is inclusion of a submix room for -related sound design. The operator, , who created the sound design for this production, has an A1 background,” McMeekin explains. “We were able to work with his team and have him available for this production This creates an incredible opportunity to both develop the sound design and have creative freedom to incorporate it into the production.” marks the fourth chapter in ESPN’s animated-altcast odyssey, following in the footsteps of in September 2023 and a pair of altcasts in March 2023 and 2024. ESPN ops leaders have consciously strived to maintain continuity on these broadcasts, creating a stable of experienced operators for whatever the future might bring in terms of future cartooncasts. “Every time we get to do one of these broadcasts,” says Menard, “it is a new adventure. We have become a very cohesive team as the crew has largely stayed the same over the years. Seeing new animations come to life in the sports world is so much fun. Seeing the broadcast we prepared for as a team hit air is what this business is all about.” Of course, is just the first of ESPN’s animated-broadcast efforts this month. The Studio Operations team in Bristol will be back at it two weeks later for the Mickey and Minnie–themed NBA altcast on Christmas Day. “A trait of our team is that we get better after each of these productions,” says McMeekin. “We learn so much and are great at identifying efficiencies and implementing them for the next production. Having the productions about two weeks apart allows this group to carry over the creative momentum from and immediately apply their takeaways to .” For the first time in its short animated-broadcast history, ESPN’s Bristol crew will be able leave in place the specialized infrastructure necessary to produce such a show. With two animated broadcasts this month, ESPN is able to explore the new workflows required for live animated broadcasts without a full lift-and-shift of its infrastructure in Bristol. “Hopefully,” says Menard, “ will be the most technology-efficient endeavor we’ve participated in.”

Walkinshaw Automotive has converted Ram Trucks Australia's final Hemi V8-powered to right-hand drive, ahead of the full-size American pickup's move to twin-turbo six-cylinder 'Hurricane' power in 2025. or signup to continue reading The last with a Hemi V8 under the bonnet – a Limited with Granite Crystal paint, to be precise – rolled off the production line in Clayton, Melbourne, last Friday (December 6, 2024). Ram Trucks Australia – a joint venture between Walkinshaw and Ram's local distributor Ateco Automotive – has been 'remanufacturing' the 1500 since June 2018 at the former home of Holden Special Vehicles (HSV). While the larger and heavy-duty pickups came first, Ram's volume-selling 1500 debuted in previous-generation DS-series form, before the DT-series pickup arrived in May 2021 with mild-hybrid power, though both featured the famed Hemi engine under their big and bluff bonnets. . While there are several unofficial Ram converters in Australia, the final factory-backed Ram 1500 with a V8 engine was the 28,495th example to be produced by Walkinshaw. However, the total number of 1500s converted for Ram Trucks Australia is higher, as it was briefly available with a 3.0-litre V6 turbo-diesel. Ram 2500 and 3500 pickups continue with a 6.7-litre Cummins straight-six turbo-diesel. Following an intensive local development program, more than 400 locally-engineered parts are installed by 200 employees across 14 working hours before each Ram pickup is sold in Australia or exported to New Zealand. But the Ram 1500 V8 wasn't the only vehicle to reach the end of the road at the Clayton facility during the month of December. On December 29, 2017, HSV built the final GTSR W1 there, just a few months after Holden shut up shop. The V8-powered 1500 has been , and limited stock is currently available. The entire range is offered with free on-road costs, with the brand covering the cost of dealer delivery, stamp duty and 12 months of registration and compulsory third-party insurance. "We haven't put a 'final V8' badge on this particular example because, to us, they're all special. But once they're gone, they're gone." said Ram Trucks Australia general manager, Jeff Barber, in a media statement. While you soon won't be able to buy a new V8-powered Ram 1500, Walkinshaw will continue to employ its circa 250-strong workforce across the Clayton factory and its engineering teams to bring the new twin-turbo six-cylinder Ram 1500 to local showrooms in 2025. Revealed in the US , the facelifted DT-series Ram 1500 swaps the Hemi for the Stellantis group's newer Hurricane 3.0-litre straight-six, which out-muscles the V8 it replaces. Australian specifications have yet to be confirmed, however, government approval documents first showed Ram has received design certification to sell five variants of the latest 1500, with the choice of two power outputs between them. The standard-output version of the 3.0-litre twin-turbo engine (named SST SO) produces 313kW and 636Nm, while the high-output version (called SST HO) develops 403kW and 706Nm. For context, the Hemi V8 produces 291kW and 556Nm. The Ram 1500 will join the and in only being available with six-cylinder power – though its rivals feature V6s, not straight-sixes – while the becomes the only remaining full-sized pickup with a V8 engine. Ram 1500 sales peaked in Australia at 5922 deliveries in 2023, representing more than half of all local US pickup sales at the time. Such was its popularity that the Ram 1500 alone outsold entire brands including Jeep, which is owned by the same parent company but imported by different distributors in Australia. However, Ford Australia's official release of the Ford F-150 at the end of 2023 and the subsequent rollout of the Toyota Tundra has resulted in Ram 1500 deliveries taking a dive, with just 2962 examples registered between January and November 2024 – a 47.5 per cent decrease on the same period last year. Though it's officially still Australia's best-selling pickup, the Silverado 1500 found 2161 new homes in the opening 11 months of this year (also courtesy of Walkinshaw), while 2084 Ford F-150s were delivered despite numerous rollout pauses. Content originally sourced from: Advertisement Sign up for our newsletter to stay up to date. We care about the protection of your data. Read our . Advertisement

UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) — Jackie Johnson III led Fordham with 29 points and Joshua Rivera hit the game-winning 3-pointer with eight seconds left as the Rams knocked off Bryant 86-84 on Saturday. Johnson added four steals for the Rams (7-5). Rivera scored 17 points and added five rebounds. Japhet Medor shot 5 for 12 (0 for 3 from 3-point range) and 7 of 8 from the free-throw line to finish with 17 points. The Bulldogs (6-7) were led in scoring by Kvonn Cramer, who finished with 23 points. Bryant also got 21 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists and two steals from Earl Timberlake. Barry Evans had 10 points, nine rebounds and two steals. Medor scored 12 second-half points for Fordham. Up next for Fordham is a matchup Saturday with Albany (NY) at home. Bryant visits Towson on Sunday. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .

Colorado U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert broke new ground over the weekend when she became the first sitting member of Congress to offer personalized messages for sale — starting at $250 — through the video platform Cameo . The Windsor Republican, who won election to a new congressional seat this month after moving across the state, started the account Saturday. The website allows customers to buy personalized video messages from celebrities. On Monday morning, Boebert advertised her messages starting at $250, though she stopped taking requests by 10:45 a.m. mountain time. And by 5:30 p.m., her Cameo page appeared to have been shut down. Her office declined to comment Monday. “Whether you or someone you know needs an America-first pep talk, if you want to surprise friends or family with a message for a special day, or if you just want to know my thoughts on whatever’s on your mind, Cameo is the place to connect with me,” Boebert said in the introductory video posted on the now-inactive profile. Brandon Kazimer, a Cameo spokesperson, confirmed that the account belonged to Boebert. Kazimer said she was the first sitting member of Congress to sign up for the service as talent. At least two other former members of Congress, George Santos of New York and Matt Gaetz of Florida, have sold videos on the platform. Santos joined Cameo soon after he was expelled from Congress last year over allegations he exploited office for personal financial gain. Gaetz, who is a friend of Boebert’s, joined the service Friday, days after he withdrew his nomination by President-elect Donald Trump to be the U.S. attorney general following allegations that he paid a teenage girl for sex. Boebert does not appear to have advertised the service on her other social media accounts on X or Facebook. Congressional rules will limit how much Boebert can earn from the videos. In 2023, members were limited to making $31,815 in outside income beyond their annual $174,000 salaries. She would have to report any earnings from Cameo on her annual disclosures. The law also prohibits people from using their public office to make outside money, said Kedric Payne, a vice president and senior director of ethics for the Campaign Legal Center. Ultimately, the restriction is meant to give voters confidence that elected officials aren’t using public office for personal gain — or putting that gain ahead of their public service. Boebert described herself on Cameo as “Not your typical Colorado Republican politician. Jesus loving, Constitutionalist, America first, freedom fighter.” An earlier version of her Cameo page listed Boebert as a politician and categorized her as a political commentator, but it was updated to list her under the influencers category. Because she didn’t use her title or appear to use other facets of her public job for the videos, such as filming in her congressional office, “that should take away any concern she’s trying to use her public job for personal gain,” Payne said. He added that the limit on outside income also anticipates these kinds of problems by limiting the incentive for members to spend more effort on outside business ventures than their public service. But, he noted, people can cross that line quickly if it’s not clear if they’re acting in their public or private capacity. The earned income that’s subject to the annual cap is considered separate from passive income made through things like stock market investments, Payne said, because it is actively made by selling goods and services. “We’ll be watching to see if this becomes a trend,” Payne said of the Cameo side work. “If this is just a one-off where someone does this for a month or so, that’s one thing — but if it becomes a trend, where members of Congress are trying to act as influencers and get paid, that could point to a bigger problem.” Stay up-to-date with Colorado Politics by signing up for our weekly newsletter, The Spot.

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