In the sports world, it was a year filled with surprises, fantastic performances and new records. Here are a few of the biggest sports stories from the past year.
NFL
In the NFL, 2024 practically began and ended in the exact same spot. Andy Reid, Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs remain the league’s finest. They were dominant on the road throughout last year’s playoffs as they muscled their way to a second straight Super Bowl. As the year comes to a close, the Chiefs look like they have a good chance to make history by winning a third. With a record of 15-2 and standing at the top of the AFC, they will have home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.
Although the Chiefs were at the top practically all year long, they weren’t always the biggest story in the league. The past year had multiple surprises like Sam Darnold’s high level play for the Vikings and Baker Mayfield having by far his best season yet, leading the Buccaneers to the 3 seed in the NFC. Outside of the good surprises, there were also plenty of disappointments like Aaron Rodgers’s performance with the New York Jets. The Jets started the season with high hopes but ended the year by firing their GM and head coach Robert Saleh. This NFL season also featured an incredible MVP race between star players Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen.
Jackson, an impressive dual threat quarterback, had his best passing season yet, with 41 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. On top of his performance through the air, Jackson maintained his rushing dominance with 915 yards on the ground. He became the first player in NFL history to throw for 4,000 yards and rush for over 800.
Josh Allen is an elite quarterback in his own right and put together another fantastic season. Allen led the Bills to a 13-4 record and turned them into a top 5 scoring offense without a 1,000 yard rusher. The Bills also took down the two teams at the top of each conference: the Kansas City Chiefs and the Detroit Lions.
The two elite quarterbacks also have company with Saquon Barkley, who was one of the biggest stories in the sports world. He became just the 9th running back to rush for over 2,000 yards in a season and led the Eagles to a 14-3 record.
College Football
2024 featured a lot of upsets, staggering individual performances and a tight Heisman Trophy race between Ashton Jeanty and Travis Hunter. There were also surprising coaching moves like legendary NFL head coach Bill Belichick signing to North Carolina.
Travis Hunter took home the Heisman Trophy after a record-breaking season on both sides of the ball. No other player has had 10 receiving touchdowns, 1,000 receiving yards as well as 4 interceptions in a single season.
Oregon also navigated a shift from the Pac-12 to the Big Ten under head coach Dan Lanning, obtaining the overall number 1 seed.
Boise State’s junior standout, Ashton Jeanty was one of the biggest stories in sports. He put together a season comparable to Derrick Henry’s monstrous 2015 season with Alabama. Jeanty had 2,601 yards and 29 touchdowns on 7.0 yards per carry. Henry, one of the best running backs in the NFL, had 2,219 yards, 28 touchdowns and 5.6 yards per carry.
MLB
The MLB saw historic performances in 2024 and a major increase in viewership. The MLB had their highest attendance in the past seven years. It all came out of a classic World Series between the Yankees and the Dodgers. Freddie Freeman came through for LA, battling a broken rib cartilage and an ankle problem. Freeman hit a walk off grand slam in game one to win the game for the Dodgers. He would go on to homer in each of the next three games on his way to winning the World Series MVP. Though he was unable to use his pitching prowess, Shohei Ohtani still managed to make history. He became the first player in MLB history with 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases. He also became the first player to win MVP while serving strictly as a Designated Hitter.
The Yankees had a great season in their own right, led by new signing Juan Soto and Aaron Judge. The duo combined for 99 homers and finished in the top 3 for AL MVP voting. Soto’s contract with the Mets was one of the biggest stories in the sports world in 2024. Soto signed the biggest contract in professional sports, worth $765 million over 15 years.
Rookie sensation, Paul Skenes lived up to all the hype in 2024. He finished the year with a 1.96 ERA and striking out 170 batters. He won Rookie of the Year and finished third in NL Cy Young voting.
Both the AL and NL Cy Young winners won the triple-crown for their respective leagues. Before Chris Sale and Tarik Skubal, the last pitcher to win a triple-crown was Shane Bieber in the shortened 2020 season. The last tandem triple-crown winners were Clayton Kershaw and Justin Verlander in 2011. Sale, a 35 year-old coming off of injury, posted an 18-3 record with a 2.38 ERA and 225 strikeouts. On the contrary, Skubal is a 28-year-old ascending star who went 18-4 with a 2.39 ERA and 228 strikeouts. His performance on the mound led the Tigers to their first playoff appearance in 10 years.
