Category Archives: Yahoo

The pandemic, stimulus checks, the ability to own less than one full stock, and concurrent rise of commission-free trading have coalesced into ripe conditions for first-time investors. Its been a good time for both buy-and-hold types and the daytraders meme-ing Gamestop (GME) to the moon. (The stock has soared more than 1,000% so far in January, though check because its changing every minute..)

Robinhood, which is responsible for popularizing both commission-free trades and fractional investing, has long had the goal of democratizing investing. In an interview with Yahoo Finance, CEO Vlad Tenev explained that the investing climate of the past few days has illustrated a key problem in the world of investing inequity.

Retail investors and individuals have felt like theyve been talked down to. Lots of them felt like they havent been taken seriously, he said. Theres this term 'sophisticated investor thats been thrown around, so theres an idea that theyre unsophisticated.

Over the past few days, a group of retail investors on Reddit have swarmed on a few stocks, many with short positions held by hedge funds the establishment. Because these stocks are relatively small in terms of market capitalization, the retail investors have been winning.

There's a lot of pent-up aggravation at the financial services industry that's been brewing for the last 13 years, one Redditor told Yahoo Finance on Wednesday. .

[Read more: GameStop phenomena is about 'the poor vs rich': Reddit WSB user]

As one former hedge funder wisely said, its easier to fight 100 mini Mike Tysons than a big one, and thats what the upstarts are doing.

I think people are seeing now that [retail investors] now have the ability to invest and theyre empowered, Tenev said.

Clearly, the sophistication required to both have a solid investing thesis but also convince others of that thesis, resulting in margin calls for the short sellers, is something new and impressive.

Story continues

One theme going around since the beginning of this latest retail investing boom is that this group is getting smarter. New investors, eager to learn, are driving up traffic to brokerages websites with educational content. Perhaps with GameStop the retail investors the day-trading side are having their Terminator Skynet moment, becoming sentient and gaining the upper hand, at least in certain cases.

Tenev told Yahoo Finance that Robinhood had over 3.2 million people visit their education resource pages last year. (Robinhood has around 13 million accounts.)

Just this past week we updated [the education pages] and launched a revamped version of our portal, which makes it really easy to go from the basic concepts of investing all the way through the more advanced concepts involving options trading, Tenev said.

Daytrading may be more exciting, but its not the bread and butter of the platform, Tenev was quick to add.

The truth is, while the activity around more active investing is probably more interesting to report on, the bulk of customers in Robinhood engage in whats typically called buy and hold behavior, Tenev said. The majority of Robinhood customers are what they call 401(k) savers, long-term investors.

Options trading, on the other hand, is a small fraction of the users were seeing, Tenev said.

---

Ethan Wolff-Mann is a writer at Yahoo Finance focusing on consumer issues, personal finance, retail, airlines, and more. Follow him on Twitter @ewolffmann.

Here is the original post:

Robinhood CEO: The retail investors that have felt 'talked down to' are now 'empowered' - Yahoo Finance

By Julie Steenhuysen

Jan 29 (Reuters) - Johnson & Johnson on Friday said its single-dose vaccine was 72% effective in preventing COVID-19 in the United States but a lower rate of 66% was observed globally in the large trial conducted across three continents and against multiple variants.

In the trial of nearly 44,000 volunteers, the level of protection against moderate and severe COVID-19 was 66% in Latin America and just 57% in South Africa, where a particularly worrying variant of the novel coronavirus is circulating.

Those results compare to the high bar set by two authorized vaccines from Pfizer Inc/BioNTech SE and Moderna Inc, which were around 95% effective in preventing symptomatic illness in pivotal trials when given in two doses. Those trials, however, were conducted mainly in the United States and before the broad spread of new variants now under the spotlight.

J&J's main study goal was the prevention of moderate to severe COVID-19, and the vaccine was 85% effective in stopping severe disease and preventing hospitalization across all geographies and against multiple variants 28 days after immunization.

That level of prevention "will potentially protect hundreds of millions of people from serious and fatal outcomes of COVID-19," Dr. Paul Stoffels, J&J's chief scientific officer, said in a statement.

The company plans to seek emergency use authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration next week.

Public health officials have been counting on the J&J vaccine to increase much-needed supply and simplify the U.S. immunization campaign.

Unlike the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines, J&J's does not require a second shot weeks after the first or need to be kept frozen, making it a strong candidate for use in parts of the world with weak transportation infrastructure and insufficient cold storage facilities.

SOUTH AFRICA

Several studies have emerged this month showing that a South African variant of the coronavirus has mutated in areas of the virus that are key targets of vaccines, reducing their efficacy.

Story continues

"What we are learning is there is different efficacy in different parts of the world," Stoffels said in a telephone interview.

Importantly, though, in a sub-study of 6,000 volunteers in South Africa, Stoffels said, the J&J vaccine was 89% effective at preventing severe disease. Ninety-five percent of cases in the South Africa portion of the trial were infections with the South African variant.

A mid-stage trial of a Novovax Inc coronavirus vaccine in South Africa also showed lower efficacy in the country. It proved to be 60% effective among volunteers who didn't have HIV. In a separate, late-stage trial in the UK, the vaccine was 89.3% effective.

In the J&J trial, which was conducted in eight countries, 44% of participants were from the United States, 41% were from Central and South America and 15% were from South Africa. Slightly more than a third of the volunteers were over age 60.

There were no serious adverse events among those who received the shot, the company said. Full results will be published in a peer-reviewed journal.

J&J's vaccine uses a common cold virus known as adenovirus type 26 to introduce coronavirus proteins into cells in the body and trigger an immune response.

The Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines use a new technology called messenger RNA (mRNA) that requires it to be stored in a freezer.

VACCINE TARGETS

The news of another safe and effective vaccine comes as the United States has surpassed 430,000 COVID-19 deaths and with hospitals in many states still struggling to keep up with patients despite recent declines in new infections.

Concerns about fresh surges in the United States have also grown due to the presence of a more contagious coronavirus variant first discovered in the UK and news of the arrival of the South African variant on Thursday in South Carolina.

The U.S. vaccination program got off to a slow start in December and has accelerated to around 1 million shots per day nationwide.

U.S. President Joe Biden has promised that at least 100 million shots will be administered in his first 100 days in office, but concerns about supply disruptions have added uncertainty to that target.

The United States has an agreement to buy 100 million doses of J&J's vaccine for $1 billion. The company said in a statement the vaccine would be ready immediately upon emergency approval but Stoffels declined to specify how many doses. The government also has the option of purchasing an additional 200 million doses.

J&J has said it plans to deliver 1 billion doses in 2021 and will produce the vaccine in the United States, Europe, South Africa and India.

U.S. trial results for the vaccine from AstraZeneca Plc and Oxford University are expected in early February, opening up the possibility of a fourth vaccine option. It has already been approved in the UK, Europe and many countries based on results of a separate trial.

Novavax is also discussing with the FDA whether its data is sufficient to apply for emergency use authorization.

J&J is studying the effects of its vaccine given in two doses at two months apart, but results of that trial won't be available until this summer, Stoffels said.

(Reporting by Julie Steenhuysen; additional reporting by Manas Mishra and Dania Nadeem in Bangalore; editing by Caroline Humer, Peter Henderson and Edwina Gibbs)

Originally posted here:

J&J COVID-19 vaccine is 72% effective in the U.S., and 66% overall in large trial - Yahoo Finance

Ron Rivera has added another win to his record, and his team didnt even have to play a game.

The head coach of the Washington Football Team is officially cancer-free, according to tweets from his wife and daughter on Thursday. Rivera had been battling a case of squamous cell cancer during the season, and he now appears to be out of the woods:

Rivera announced the good news himself later Thursday, posting a picture with some very good dogs.

Riveras diagnosis was first reported in August, weeks before he was about to begin his first season as the head coach in Washington. Riveras case was reported to be very treatable, but that treatment still had to come during the always-stressful NFL season.

Story continues

Rivera didnt miss a single game while undergoing treatment, leading Washington to a 7-9 record and its first playoff berth since 2015 despite cycling through four different starting quarterbacks. He did have to miss a practice due to side effects from chemotherapy, but still managed to coach his teams game against the Baltimore Ravens.

Washington announced in October that Rivera had undergone his final cancer treatment, and it appears his follow-up examination revealed no trace of the illness.

Riveras strength through his teams turbulence under center, his cancer treatments and the overall instability in D.C. was enough to earn him the title of NFC Coach of the Year as voted by his peers. Hopefully, next season will be a bit easier.

More from Yahoo Sports:

The rest is here:

Ron Rivera announces he is officially cancer-free - Yahoo Sports

Ive come to appreciate the sheer fact of consistency, of availability. Not just day-to-day, though you can certainly expect that from LeBron James, but year-to-year. He is the rare timeless athlete, one of the few constants in my life in anyones life.

Eighteen years. LeBrons career is old enough to be my drinking buddy, and it pretty much is.

Memories are unreliable, frustrating narrators, but I remember moments involving him with perfect clarity.

When James made his playoff debut with the Miami Heat, I snuck in looks at the TV at my sister-in-laws bridal shower. When I was in college, I used to find study rooms with projectors that somehow always ended up streaming League Pass. I had no idea back then that hed vanquish far greater foes than Paul Pierce.

In 2017, when the Cleveland Cavaliers insisted on making Game 3 of the NBA Finals close, I sprinted from a Future concert before he took the stage to a bar across the street, only to watch Kevin Durant nail a dagger in LeBrons face. I watched him in Toronto. I watched him in Los Angeles. I watch him now, when I have no concerts to run away from.

I still cry every time I watch The Block, watch James crumpled up on the hardwood, clinging to the trophy that will always mean more than the rest.

After watching him for almost two decades, our collective awareness of his particular form of dominance has inevitably receded into the NBAs fabric. We cant help but take him for granted. Our minds dont pay attention to information we already recognize, so we miss whats right in front of our faces. We hardly notice his workaday greatness except for the days he tops himself.

His current arsenal is essentially an advertisement for NBA history: Dirk Nowitzkis one-foot fadeaway, Kareem Abdul-Jabbars skyhook, Kobes fadeaway from the left baseline. The San Antonio Spurs used to let him fire mid-range jumpers. Now, hes shooting 40 percent from the logo. The Dallas Mavericks let point guard Jason Kidd guard him on the block. Now, James is one of the most efficient post players in the NBA.

Story continues

As the league evolves, you have to be able to evolve with it if you wanna be able to keep up with the times, keep up with the Joneses, or the Jameses in my case, James said, laughing. For me, [its] just never putting a cap on myself. I just want to always continue to get better and do things out on the floor that maybe hasnt been done in other peoples careers and continue to push the envelope and see how much juice I can squeeze out of the lemon.

James game has been molded by postseason failures that forced him to evolve. James failed against Doc Rivers Boston Celtics twice as a Cavalier, but never with the Heat.

Rivers, now the coach of the Sixers, remembers they would come out and attack LeBron, even out of timeouts, because at that point, he was a great player, but as far as the defensive game plan and all that, he was into it, but he was young. Then we get to Miami, I remember him calling out sets. Our sets. I remember turning to I think Lawrence Frank was my assistant I remember turning to him and he said, Uh oh, this is not good for anybody. Now, hes becoming not only the great LeBron, but the great LeBron student of the game. Once he crossed that threshold, hes really not looked back.

James reimagined his game to stay on top, but these days, Im more impressed by how its basic essence, its raison dtre, has remained the same. He has never stopped imposing his will with playmaking, giving rise to a style so ubiquitous its impact on the NBA goes almost unnoticed. When James melded his preternatural playmaking intelligence with diligent study, he remade the league.

I rewatched Game 7 of the 2010 Finals a few days ago and realized two things: Kobe did indeed shoot over too many double-teams, but the offensive layout didnt present any easy outlets. And man, we thought very differently about basketball just a decade ago.

When LeBron used to pass to open shooters for potential winners, he triggered DEFCON 1 protocols on sports shows across America, hosts begging him to score, to assert his will, questioning his killer instinct, his very manhood all because he saw things no one else did.

Now, we see it his way. James is far from being the only reason the game is spaced out, but good offenses now simplify decision-making for star playmakers. The choices Luka Doncic and James Harden make with the ball in their hands are an evolution of LeBrons style. The modern offense is built in his super-computing image.

My para-relationship with James took a turn for the strange when I started covering the NBA.

In 2018, when I was covering the Toronto Raptors playoff run, Game 5 of Pacers-Cavaliers was in its final stretch after the Raptors beat the Wizards. Long story short: James hit the winner, and I squealed and shook in my seat in the middle of a news conference. I tried not to look anyone in the eye for another five minutes.

Then James came to Toronto. Ill never forget the first time I asked him a question, or my boyfriend at the time yelling no no no while James dribbled calmly up full court and nailed a strange, floating bank shot over OG Anunoby from the wing in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, destroying the Raptors thoroughly and nonchalantly in four games. The Raptors did not, as James once put it, present an adverse situation. You could feel that in his stride.

Imagine a pincer opening up, and youll see how most people react to change: One side trying to adapt to everything new while, with equal force, another side clings to the familiar.

The older I get, the more I cling to watching LeBron. I tried to stifle this impulse until one day I stopped trying. Ive come to believe that the sheer attempt to be unbiased while covering sports, at least in the way that I cover them, is a sham: self-deception of the highest order, and it translates to reporters who arent honest with themselves and therefore cannot be honest with readers. It accomplishes little outside of twisting ones mind into knots that prevent it from thinking straight. We chase this line of work because we love sports, crave sports, want even need to be near them.

I imagine LeBron has inspired this tug of war in a lot of young writers. Its a symptom of his longevity. Everyone else I loved to watch before it was my job has retired. I wonder if NFL writers feel this conundrum with Tom Brady. LeBron has been the planets best player for so long that he can still connect me to my childhood, so Ill keep performing this exercise of pretending not to root for him while rooting for him perpetually, until the day he retires, which I hope never comes.

More from Yahoo Sports:

See the original post here:

LeBron James' consistent dominance is his timeless impact on the NBA - Yahoo Sports

Larry King's interview with Jerry Seinfeld is going viral after his death. (Photo: Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images)

Since news of Larry Kings death broke Saturday, fans have been revisiting some of the more memorable interview clips from the 87-year-olds broadcasting career spanning more than 60 years, including a 25-year stretch as host of CNNs Larry King Live. One clip in particular has been getting a lot of attention: a 2007 interview with Jerry Seinfeld in which the comedian, there to promote his animated film Bee Movie, seemed bewildered by Kings suggestion that his hit sitcom Seinfeld might have been canceled. (As Seinfeld noted during the viral interview, he opted to end the popular NBC show on a high note

You gave it up, right? King asked. You canceled them, they didnt cancel you.

Youre not aware of this? Seinfeld responded, as King stood his ground. You think I got canceled? Are you under the impression I got canceled? I thought it was pretty well-documented. Is this still CNN?

Seinfeld went on to playfully persist, [When] I went off the air I was the number-one show on television, Larry. Do you know who I am?

Jewish guy. Brooklyn, King quipped in response.

As his rant at King again made the rounds in the hours following Kings death, Seinfeld took to social media to pay tribute and set the record straight. According to the former sitcom star, it was all in good fun.

The canceled bit was just me having fun with his little mistake, wrote Seinfeld. Nothing more. Or less.

He added that he will miss the veteran broadcaster.

Seinfeld isnt the only star from his 90s sitcom who appeared to butt heads with King mid-interview. A 2013 interview with his former co-star Julia Louis-Dreyfus, who defended herself over the claim she had a mans name, resurfaced last month.

Story continues

Meanwhile, Larry Kings three sons Larry Jr., Cannon and Chance have issued a statement expressing their heartbreak over the veteran TV hosts death. Kings son Andy and daughter Chaia both died last summer, less than a month apart.

We are heartbroken over our fathers death, and together with our extended family mourn his passing, the statement reads. The world knew Larry King as a great broadcaster and interviewer, but to us he was dad. He was the man who lovingly obsessed over our daily schedules and our well-being, and who took such immense pride in our accomplishments large, small or imagined. And, through it all, we knew without a doubt in the world that he loved us more than life itself. He was an amazing father, and he was fiercely loyal to those lucky enough to call him a friend. We will miss him every single day of our lives.

They went on to thank those sharing remembrances of their father and directed donations to the American Heart Association and Beverly Hills Fire Department EMS.

Read more on Yahoo Entertainment:

View post:

Jerry Seinfeld sets the record straight after Larry King interview resurfaces: 'Just me having fun with his little mistake' - Yahoo Entertainment

Quarterbacks dont play one-on-one. While there have been seven QBs to beat Tom Brady in the postseason over his 21 NFL seasons, none of them were on the field at the same time as Brady.

Still, looking at the quarterbacks who were on the other side of Bradys playoff losses is shocking. It also should drive home the point that assigning quarterbacks wins is a flawed premise.

The list is one all-time great, another quarterback some will argue is a Hall of Famer and then ... well, a strange group. Patrick Mahomes will try to join it in Super Bowl LV.

Lets rank the seven quarterbacks who have been on the winning end of playoff games against Bradys teams.

Looking back, the Jets 28-21 win over the Patriots at the end of the 2010 season is one of the craziest upsets in NFL playoff history. It was a great Patriots team that went 14-2 in the regular season. They beat the Jets 45-3 a little more than a month before a divisional-round matchup. And behind two Sanchez touchdown passes in the first half, the Jets jumped out 14-3 and hung on for the upset. Sanchez was very good that day, with three touchdowns, no interceptions and a 127.3 passer rating.

Sanchez was at the end of his second season, a former top-five draft pick, and he looked like he might be on a good career path. That win over the Patriots was probably the high point, as turnovers plagued him the rest of his time with the Jets. He eventually retired after eight seasons. At least Sanchez is one of the few who can claim to have led a playoff win over Bradys Patriots.

Wild highs and some dreadful lows defined Foles career. It peaked when he won Super Bowl LIIs MVP and led the Eagles to their first title against Brady and the Patriots. Brady threw for a record 505 yards in that game.

Foles has had other hot stretches. He had a strong 2013 season with Chip Kelly, tied an NFL record with seven touchdown passes in a game and replaced Carson Wentz (again) to lead the Eagles back to the playoffs the year after the Super Bowl. He has also had long stretches of mediocrity in an odd career. His legacy will be centered on one great day in a Super Bowl, with Brady on the losing end.

Story continues

Tannehill could move up the list before hes done. His years as a first-round draft disappointment with the Miami Dolphins are fading away as he puts together a very good stretch with the Titans. Tannehill did not have a big day when the Titans beat the Patriots last season in a wild-card game, which was Bradys last game in New England. Tannehill threw for just 72 yards, with eight completions. Maybe Derrick Henry should instead be on this list.

Plummers Broncos were the first team to hand Brady a playoff loss. It was a game at the end of the 2005 season that is remembered best for Champ Baileys long interception return and Ben Watsons hustle play to chase him down. Plummer had a career with exciting plays, good and bad. He had memorable years with the Arizona Cardinals, then a few solid seasons with the Broncos before Mike Shanahan drafted Jay Cutler to replace him a few months after Denvers playoff win over New England. Plummer made too many mistakes to be a great quarterback but still had a memorable 11-year run.

Flacco won a playoff game against Bradys Patriots when he was 4-of-10 for 34 yards and had a passer rating of 10. The Ravens took a big lead early in that game at the end of the 2009 season and didnt need Flacco to do much. Flacco did more in the 2012 AFC championship game, throwing three touchdowns in a win. That led to a Super Bowl title that changed Flaccos NFL legacy and his bank account.

Flacco has never been one of the NFLs best quarterbacks, and would be fairly forgettable if not for the one Super Bowl run that included the big win over Brady and the Pats.

Imagine Mannings career without his two Super Bowl wins over Brady. Hed be a quarterback who never was an MVP contender, with four Pro Bowls but three seasons leading the NFL in interceptions, and never leading the NFL in any other major passing statistic. In 14 of Mannings 16 seasons, the Giants didnt win a playoff game.

But because he had the two wins over Brady, hell probably make the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Brady has wrecked more than a few quarterback legacies in the playoffs, but Mannings two wins over Brady completely changed how his career will be viewed. And it still bothers Brady.

The only no-doubt legend on this list, Manning led three playoff wins over Bradys Patriots. The 2006 seasons AFC championship game comeback is one of the most underrated games in NFL history. Manning also helped the Broncos beat the Patriots twice in AFC title games, throwing for four touchdowns with no interceptions in those contests.

Mannings teams were 3-2 against Brady in the playoffs, and he is one of the few quarterbacks who has a reasonable argument against Brady as the greatest of all time. Youd expect a list of quarterbacks who have playoff wins over Brady to be a whos-who of the greatest of the past 20 years. As you can see, its not.

More from Yahoo Sports:

See the article here:

Which 7 QBs have beaten Tom Brady in playoffs? Let's rank a weird list. - Yahoo Sports

If you didnt know the name Quinn Meinerz entering Senior Bowl week, youre more than forgiven. By now, the word is very much out on one of the most surprising performers at the most important pre-NFL draft event.

One reason you might not have heard of Meinerz is that he played his college football at Wisconsin-Whitewater. Another is that he didnt play last season.

With the cancellation of FCS football in 2020, the UWW offensive lineman named D-III All-American and his teams MVP in 2019 was robbed of a senior season. He was forced to do whatever he could without a season to earn attention and improve as an NFL prospect while social distancing, naturally, and, for a while anyway, do so without a gym.

This is a man who is used to taking it to an extreme, spending most past summers working out alone in a remote part of Canada, where he had only one hour per day of internet access. It was there the 6-foot-3 1/4, 320-pound Meinerz underwent his annual Rocky IV-like regimen of clearing brush, rolling 400-pound fuel tanks and clearing trees.

After that eight-hour daily routine, helping his uncle run a popular fly-fishing spot up there, only then Meinerz got around to his football workout. There were no weights. So he improvised, pushing giant rocks. And some of those trees? If they were small enough, hed just do it with his bare hands.

Hitting wood wasnt the most fun thing I had to do up there, but it was what I had, he told NFL Network on Thursday.

This summer, Meinerz was focused on adding versatility to his game. Given the circumstances, though, how? He taught himself to play center.

Meinerz started shotgun snapping into garbage cans. He set up a GoPro in the backyard of the house he stayed in and analyzed his technique. When its a pandemic, you adjust to the surroundings.

All of his years of spartan training have helped prepare Meinerz for this week, his biggest opportunity to date. When Alabama center Landon Dickerson suffered a torn ACL in the Sugar Bowl, it opened a spot on the Senior Bowl roster.

Story continues

Shortly after, Meinerz got the call from Senior Bowl director Jim Nagy, asking him if he wanted to attend the premier pre-draft evaluation event. Scouts hadnt seen Meinerz play since the D-III title game on Dec. 20, 2019. And with the NFL scouting combine canceled, along with most of the other pre-draft all-star events, it was a no-brainer.

Ive been working really hard to do what I do, he said. It was super exciting to get that call from Jim Nagy, saying, Hey, you want to put on the Warhawks helmet one more time?

Meinerz might have arrived in Mobile, Alabama a relative unknown to many, but hes on his way to leaving Senior Bowl week something of a folk hero.

Like previous small-school offensive linemen such as 2015 second-rounder Ali Marpet from Hobart (New York), 2019 first-rounder Tytus Howard of Alabama State and 2020 fourth-rounder Ben Bartch from St. Johns (Minnesota), Meinerz is making a big name for himself in just a few days worth of practices.

A big chunk of that has been from his performance during the National Team practices, coached by the Miami Dolphins. Meinerz was highlighted as one of the big winners from Wednesdays session, defeating rushers from the Pac-12, Big Ten and Big East, sometimes with ease despite it having been more than a year since his last true live action.

Meinerz knocked a few of them down like those birches up in Ontario.

Ive put in the work, to be able to be this dominant, Meinerz said. Its been fun.

And get this: Meinerz suffered a broken hand on the first snap of Thursdays session and kept practicing for nearly two hours.

His reaction to the injury? How did this happen? Ive drank whole milk my whole life!

Alas, Meinerz plans to get his hand clubbed up and play in Saturdays Senior Bowl game. Meanwhile, one of the other injured prospects who sat out Thursdays practice, Washington defensive tackle Levi Onwuzurike, was hurt Wednesday when Meinerz dominated the possible top-50 pick in a one-on-one rep.

Meinerz isnt at that level of appreciation among scouts yet. So hes just going to keep trying to play through his injury.

Its 100 percent clich, Meinerzs agent, Ron Slavin, said, but its completely true: Hes all about football. Hes been training and practicing for this moment, and hes absolutely making the most of it. Hes not letting [the broken hand] slow him down at all.

Part of Meinerzs sudden emergence has been for his on-field look. With his Senior Bowl jersey tucked up underneath his shoulder pads, exposing his glorious gut, Meinerz has taken social media by storm the past few days.

Its one thing when DK Metcalf with his Adonis-like frame disrobed at a pre-draft meeting with Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll (who also took off his shirt) during a viral moment a few years ago. Its quite another when a 320-pound lineman takes the skin-to-win approach.

Im working on it, he joked. I dont have the abs. Right now, Ive got the keg.

The look is not novel to this week. Former UWW teammate Nate Trewyn said Meinerz adopted the belly-out approach a few years back in practices, keeping it exposed even when the Wisconsin winter reared its ugly head.

He always liked to ... let the belly breathe, Trewyn said.

Trewyn certainly can appreciate Meinerzs rise from the D-III level to the NFL, having spent time the past few years on the rosters of the Los Angeles Rams and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and having paid close attention to Meinerzs belly and his performance this week.

When they played together with the Warhawks, Trewyn was the center and Meinerz the left guard. The Warhawks averaged nearly 6 rushing yards per attempt, rolled up nearly 42 points per game and finished 13-1, losing only in the national title game to Mary Hardin-Baylor (Texas).

Trewyn isnt surprised at Meinerzs rise since then. Meinerz emerged as an NFL prospect during his junior season in 2019 after which scouts gave him mostly later-round draft grades. Now after a strong start at the Senior Bowl, Meinerz is one of the best stories from this years game.

Everyone who knows him knows about his work ethic, and having worked alongside him, I can tell you its real, Trewyn said. But whats impressive to me is how well hes doing at center. Its hard to go from guard to never playing center and taking your first center reps at the Senior Bowl, going up against the top guys in your class.

I cant tell you how hard that is for most people to make that adjustment. Hes just been phenomenal so far. But then again, knowing him, I am not surprised either.

This week in Mobile, hes taken reps at center and guard, and that versatility has paid off.

Centers try to help get everybody together, being on the same page with all five [offensive linemen], Meinerz said. Its a lot of new things, and very quickly I had to learn it. I put in the time that I had to [prepare for the Senior Bowl], and I wanted to show [the Dolphins coaching staff] I could learn things quickly.

With the combine canceled and many schools preventing outside athletes work out at their pro days because of COVID-related precautions, Meinerz might not receive the same pro-day stage that other 2021 draft prospects will be counting on. Its possible that hell head back to the EXOS training center in Dallas, where he has been prepping for the Senior Bowl, to be tested for combine workouts. And though he wont put predictions on his testing numbers, Meinerz is expected to post times that are better than those of Marpet, who worked his way into being the 61st pick in the draft the highest-drafted pick in D-III history.

Can Meinerz beat that? That would be tough considering he didnt play this past season. But given the work Meinerz has put in, it cant be ruled out.

It has been a wild few months for the 22-year-old, having left the Whitewater program in October, spending a few months training at the Watt brothers (J.J. T.J. and Derek) facility in Milwaukee, working with OL guru Duke Manyweather in Texas in December before landing at the Senior Bowl, which has been his unofficial coming-out party this month.

Im just playing football again, doing what I do, he said.

More from Yahoo Sports:

Read more:

NFL draft: Meet the D-III prospect (with exposed belly and broken hand) stealing the Senior Bowl show - Yahoo Sports

The Philadelphia 76ers notched quite possibly the biggest win of a very good season on Wednesday, but the team had to hold its breath after one play in particular.

Sixers MVP candidate Joel Embiid fell down hard in the third quarter against the Los Angeles Lakers. The big man jumped in the paint and was going up for a dunk when LeBron James shoved him in the midsection, causing him to land with much of his weight on his tailbone.

Embiid remained on the floor for a few moments and could be seen walking gingerly, but managed to stay in the game. For his shove, James was assessed a flagrant 1 foul, which he could later be seen arguing about with officials.

Embiid has been dealing with back issues this season, most recently missing Mondays game due to back tightness.

The Sixers eventually held on and won 107-106 thanks to a Tobias Harris winner. Embiid posted 28 points on 8-of-18 shooting with six rebounds and four assists in 37 minutes.

After the game, Embiid didnt seem very amused by James shove, saying he would have been ejected from the game if he made the same play:

In case you need a refresher, here are the NBAs definitions for flagrant fouls, the latter of which carries an automatic ejection:

Flagrant Foul Penalty 1: Unnecessary contact committed by a player against an opponent

Flagrant Foul Penalty 2: Unnecessary and excessive contact committed by a player against an opponent

Story continues

The officials apparently deemed James shove unnecessary, but not excessive in guarding the paint. Embiid appears to think differently.

More from Yahoo Sports:

Here is the original post:

Joel Embiid not happy after shove from LeBron James: 'If it was me, I would have probably been ejected' - Yahoo Sports

Slovenia, which in 2021 is the proud holder of the title of European Region of Gastronomy, has been repeatedly included in important lists of world media charts; this time, the renowned Forbes magazine highlighted it as a popular and "hot" wine destination, and Yahoo Finance listed it among eco-friendly countries.

Slovenia has been repeatedly included in important lists of world media charts | Author STO

An article was published on the Forbes magazine website last week toasting the new "hot" wine destinations. Slovenia is also listed as one of them. In the article, journalist Nicole Trilivas described Slovenia as a destination that should be on every oenophiles radar for this year and beyond. She highlighted Maribor and the Dolenjska region and mentioned the Michelin-star restaurant Gostilna pri Lojzetu.

Last week, Slovenia found itself on another list; an important medium, Yahoo Finance, has placed Slovenia on the list of eco-friendly destinations to visit in 2021. This is mainly because Slovenia boasts the title of the world's first green country, and in 2016 the capital of Ljubljana also became the Green Capital of Europe.

See original here:

Forbes and Yahoo Finance include Slovenia on the lists of recommended destinations | GOV.SI - Gov.si

Bitcoin

Bitcoin, BTC to USD, slid by 9.97% in the week ending 24th January. Following on from a 6.02% decline from the previous week, Bitcoin ended the week at $32,320.0.

A mixed start to the week saw Bitcoin rise to a Tuesday intraweek high $37,936.6 before hitting reverse.

Falling well short of the first major resistance level at $40,389, Bitcoin slid to a Friday intraweek low $28,989.0.

The sell-off saw Bitcoin fall through the 23.6% FIB of $33,008 and the first major support level at $31,023.

It was Bitcoins first visit to sub-$30,000 levels since 5th January.

Finding support on Friday, Bitcoin broke back through the 23.6% FIB before ending the day at sub-$32,500 levels.

4 days in the red that included an 13.08% tumble on Thursday delivered the downside for the week.

Bitcoin would need to move through the 23.6% FIB of $33,008 and the $33,082 pivot to support a run the first major resistance level at $37,175.

Support from the broader market would be needed for Bitcoin to break back through to $37,000 levels.

Barring an extended crypto rally, the first major resistance level and last weeks high $37,936.6 would likely cap any upside.

In the event of an extended breakout, Bitcoin could test resistance at the swing hi $41,969 before any pullback. The second major resistance level sits at $42,029.

Failure to move through the 23.6% FIB and the $33,082 pivot would bring the first major support level at $28,227 into play.

Barring a crypto meltdown, however, Bitcoin should steer clear of the second major support level at $24,134. The 38.2% FIB of $27,465 should limit the downside in the event of an extended sell-off.

At the time of writing, Bitcoin was up by 1.68% to $32,863.4. A mixed start to the week saw Bitcoin fall to an early Monday low $32,253.0 before rising to a high $32,919.0.

Bitcoin left the major support and resistance levels untested at the start of the week.

Ethereum rose by 13.09% in the week ending 24th January. Reversing a 1.76% loss from the previous week, Ethereum ended the week at $1,394.00.

Story continues

It was a bullish start to the week. Ethereum rose to a Tuesday intraweek high and a new swing hi $1,440.0 before hitting reverse.

The breakout saw Ethereum break through the first major resistance level before sliding to a Friday intraweek low $1,039.62.

While steering clear of the first major support level at $994, Ethereum fell through the 23.6% FIB of $1,119.

A recovery on Friday and a bullish weekend, however, saw Ethereum break back through the 23.6% FIB to end the week at $1,390 levels.

6-days in the green included an 8.71% rally on Tuesday, an 11.07% jump on Friday, and a 12.92% breakout on Sunday delivered the upside in the week. A 19.34% slump on Thursday pared some of the gains, however.

Ethereum would need to avoid a fall through the pivot level at $1,291 to support a run at the first major resistance level at $1,543.

Support from the broader market would be needed, however, for Ethereum to break through to $1,500 levels.

Barring another extended crypto rally, the first major resistance level would likely cap any upside.

In the event of an extended breakout, Ethereum could test resistance at $1,750 before any pullback. The second major resistance level sits at $1,692.

Failure to avoid a fall through the pivot level at $1,291 would bring the first major support level at $1,142 and the 23.6% FIB of $1,119 into play.

Barring a crypto meltdown, however, Ethereum should steer clear of the 38.2% FIB of $921 and the second major support level at $891.

At the time of writing, Ethereum was up by 3.31% to $1,440.19. A mixed start to the week saw Ethereum fall to an early Monday low $1,384.15 before striking a new swing hi $1,477.30.

Ethereum left the major support and resistance levels untested at the start of the week.

This article was originally posted on FX Empire

Excerpt from:

Bitcoin and Ethereum Weekly Technical Analysis January 25th, 2021 - Yahoo Finance