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Drinking Plenty of Tea May Reduce the Risk of Developing Type 2 Diabetes
Summary: Drinking four or more cups of black, green, or oolong tea daily was associated with a 17% lower risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.
Source: Diabetologia
A systematic review and meta-analysis of 19 cohort studies involving more than 1 million adults from eight countries finds that moderate consumption of black, green or Oolong tea is linked to a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
The findings, being presented at this year’s European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) Annual Meeting in Stockholm, Sweden (19-23 Sept), suggest that drinking at least four cups of tea a day is associated with a 17% lower risk of T2D over an average period of 10 years.
“Our results are exciting because they suggest that people can do something as simple as drinking four cups of tea a day to potentially lessen their risk of developing type 2 diabetes”, says lead author Xiaying Li from Wuhan University of Science and Technology in China.
While it’s long been known that regularly drinking tea may be beneficial for health because of the various antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anticarcinogenic compounds tea contains, less clear has been the relationship between tea drinking and the risk of T2D. So far, published cohort studies and meta-analyses have reported inconsistent findings.
To address this uncertainty, researchers conducted a cohort study and a dose-response meta-analysis to better define the relationship between tea consumption and future T2DM risk.
First, they studied 5,199 adults (2583 men, 2616 women) with no history of T2D (average age 42) from the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS), who were recruited in 1997 and followed until 2009. The CHNS is a multicentre prospective study looking at the economics, sociological issues and health of residents from nine provinces.
At the outset, participants filled in a food and drink frequency questionnaire and provided information on lifestyle factors such as regular exercise, smoking and alcohol consumption. Overall, 2,379 (46%) participants reported drinking tea, and by the end of the study, 522 (10%) participants had developed T2D.
After adjusting for factors that are known to be linked with increased risk of T2D, like age, sex, and physical inactivity, researchers found that tea drinkers had a similar risk of developing T2D compared to non-drinkers. And the results did not change significantly when analysed by age and sex, or when participants who developed diabetes during the first 3 years of follow-up were excluded.
In the next step of the study, the researchers did a systematic review of all cohort studies investigating tea drinking and the risk of T2D in adults (aged 18 or older) up to September 2021. Overall, 19 cohort studies involving 1,076,311 participants from eight countries [1] were included in the dose-response meta-analysis.
They explored the potential impact of different types of tea (green tea, oolong tea, and black tea), frequency of tea drinking (less than 1 cup/day, 1-3 cups/day, and 4 or more cups/day), sex (male and female), and the location of the study (Europe and America, or Asia), on the risk of T2D.
Overall, the meta-analysis found a linear association between tea drinking and T2D risk, with each cup of tea consumed per day reducing the risk of developing T2D by around 1%.
When compared with adults who didn’t drink tea, those who drank 1-3 cups daily lowered their risk of T2D by 4%, while those who consumed at least 4 cups every day reduced their risk by 17%.
The associations were observed regardless of the type of tea participants drank, whether they were male or female, or where they lived, suggesting that it may be the amount of tea consumed, rather than any other factor, that plays a major role.
See also
“While more research needs to be done to determine the exact dosage and mechanisms behind these observations, our findings suggest that drinking tea is beneficial in reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes, but only at high doses (at least 4 cups a day)”, says Li.
She adds, “It is possible that particular components in tea, such as polyphenols, may reduce blood glucose levels, but a sufficient amount of these bioactive compounds may be needed to be effective. It may also explain why we did not find an association between tea drinking and type 2 diabetes in our cohort study, because we did not look at higher tea consumption.”
Oolong tea is a traditional Chinese tea that’s made from the same plant used to make green and black teas. The difference is how the tea is processed—green tea is not allowed to oxidise much, black tea is allowed to oxidise until it turns black, and oolong tea is partially oxidised.
Despite the important findings, the authors note that the study is observational and cannot prove that drinking tea reduced the risk of T2D, but suggests that it is likely to contribute.
And the researchers point to several caveats, including that they relied on subjective assessments of the quantities of tea consumed and they cannot rule out the possibility that residual confounding by other lifestyle and physiological factors may have affected the results.
About this diabetes research news
Author: Judy Naylor
Source: Diabetologia
Contact: Judy Naylor – Diabetologia
Image: The image is in the public domain
Original Research: The findings will be presented at The European Association for the Study of Diabetes Annual Meeting
Plenty of roadblocks for automakers seeking EV success
BUILT-IN DEMAND
Automakers are on notice that “they are going to have to figure out how to put cars on the market”, said Jessica Caldwell, executive director of insights for the automotive research firm Edmunds.
“We used to say that the challenges for electric vehicles would be consumer acceptance and price,” she added.
With car buyers increasingly attuned to the environment and the woes of climate change, selling the concept of electric vehicles is no longer an issue.
In the United States, General Motors says it has more than 150,000 pre-orders for the electric version of its Silverado pickup truck, which will be available next year. The wait time for a Tesla these days is several months.
For Caldwell, the bigger issue now is whether automakers “can get the raw materials” they need to make the cars.
SCARCE RAW MATERIALS
Karl Brauer, an executive analyst for used car search engine iseecars.com, agrees, saying that no matter what government incentives are offered for would-be buyers of electric vehicles, the rare elements needed may simply be unavailable.
“Right now, we have a lack of palladium, and nickel, and lithium. Everything you need to build an electric car is harder to get than it was six or 12 months ago,” he told AFP.
The supply issue is linked partly to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine six months ago.
But Brauer said that “nobody, a year ago, would have predicted the kind of price escalation for those raw materials, and the difficulty of getting them”.
The situation “can change drastically” at any given moment, he added.
Automakers are determined to leave as little as possible to chance.
They are building their own factories to produce car batteries, setting up joint ventures with specialised parts makers and sealing partnerships with mining firms.
German auto manufacturers Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz on Monday signed memorandums of understanding with the Canadian government to ensure their access to rare metals such as lithium, nickel and cobalt.
But, as with oil, the market for these raw materials is a global one, and the normal rules of economics apply, noted Brauer.
“If there is a certain amount of global demand for raw materials, if there is a certain amount of global supply for them, someone will always pay the price,” he said.
For Brauer, shifting production lines to accommodate electric vehicle components is, by comparison, quite easy, as the automakers “have control over that.”
HELP, BUT WITH CONDITIONS
Local regulations could make things more complicated for automakers.
In the United States, new legislation championed by the administration of President Joe Biden allots up to US$7,500 in tax credits to every American who buys an electric vehicle.
But there are conditions: for example, final assembly of those cars must take place within US borders.
The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, a US lobbying group, estimates that about 70 per cent of the 72 electric, plug-in hybrid or hydrogen-powered cars now on the market would not qualify for the tax credit.
For Garrett Nelson, an analyst for the CFRA research firm, the new law will clearly give Tesla, GM and Ford an advantage in the United States over their European and Asian rivals.
Following California’s announcement, the Alliance for Automotive Innovation said it would be “extremely challenging” to meet the sales requirements due to external factors such as inflation, supply chains and charging infrastructure.
The ongoing semiconductor shortage will also play a role, it said in a statement.
“These are complex, intertwined and global issues well beyond the control of authorities in California or the auto industry,” it warned.
New Vehicle Inventory Stuck Near Record Low, Shortages Shift to Fuel-Efficient Cars, Prices Hit Record. But Used Vehicle Price Spike Runs out of Fuel amid Plenty of Supply
Still the strangest auto market ever.
By Wolf Richter for WOLF STREET.
The inventory shortages at new vehicle dealers continue unabated, and inventories remain desperately low, but the shortages are shifting, as demand has shifted, and there is now supply piling up, for example at Ram dealers, while fuel-efficient vehicles are essentially sold out, and EV models have long waiting lists – as people are tired of getting hammered by high fuel prices.
The number of new vehicles in “in stock” on dealer lots and “in transit” to dealers dipped to 1.12 million vehicles at the end of June, down by 70%, or by 2.61 million vehicles, from the same period in 2019, according to estimates by Cox Automotive, based on its Dealertrack data. On this basis, new vehicle inventories haven’t improved since December. By comparison, in 2019, new vehicle inventory averaged 3.66 million vehicles.
The term “inventory” accounts for what is “in stock” and what is “in transit.” And it may include units that have been pre-sold. A dealer’s website typically shows three labels next to the vehicles in their inventory: “in stock,” “in transit,” and “sold.”
The relentless new-vehicle price spike.
The average asking price (listing price) shows that dealers are in no mood to offer deals yet. The average listing price in June rose 11.5% from a year ago, to a record $45,976, according to Cox Automotive.
Cox also said that during the last week of June, asking prices “began to retreat slightly.” So maybe possibly perhaps, dealers are running into just a tad of price resistance in certain corners of the market.
Asking prices fell in January, February, and March, only to do a U-Turn in April – and part of this was seasonal as January and February are the worst months for dealers, when volume tends to plunge from the December binge. By June, they hit a new record, up by 11.5% year-over-year. This still speaks of a hot under-supplied market:
The average transaction price – the price at which vehicles were sold and delivered – jumped by 14% year-over-year, to a record $45,844 in June, according to J.D. Power data. Compared to June 2019, this was up by 36% or by over $10,000.
At these prices, dealers made record gross profits per vehicle delivered. Including finance and insurance sales (F&I), dealers made on average $5,123 in gross profit per vehicle, up by $1,174 from the already high levels of June 2021, according to J.D. Power estimates.
The chart shows ATPs for December and June of each year. Before the pandemic, there was an established seasonality, where the ATP hit a high in December but dropped from there to June every year. But in June 2020, the ATP in June was level with December for the first time. And in 2021 and 2022, the ATP just jumped from December to June without regard to seasonality. The green line connects the Decembers:
Shortages of fuel-efficient vehicles. No shortages at Dodge & Ram dealers.
Plenty of supply at Dodge and Ram dealers: Including in stock and in transit, Dodge dealers ended June with 90 days’ supply, and Ram dealers with 81 days’ supply. The industry considers 60 days about ideal between tight and sufficient.
Fuel efficient vehicles essentially out of stock. At the low end of supply in the non-luxury segments were the Asian brands with fuel-efficient models that were essentially out of stock: Toyota Corolla, Kia Telluride, Toyota Camry, Hyundai Palisade, and Kia Sportage.
At the low end of supply by segment:
- Hybrids, 17 days’ supply
- Mid-size cars, 22 days’ supply
- Compact cars: 24 days’ supply.
Supply of full-size pickups is growing: At the high end of the 30 top-selling models were three pickup trucks and two SUVs: Ram 1500 (79 days), Ford Escape (69 days), followed by Jeep Compass, Ford F-150, and Chevrolet Silverado.
This is now a new inventory problem: the wrong inventory. Through 2020 and 2021, pickup trucks were particularly hard to get, and everyone wanted them. But then gas prices spiked, and suddenly the cost of filling up become one of the purchase considerations, and pickup trucks lost their edge. Demand swiveled to more fuel-efficient vehicles.
But due to the long and complex supply chains, automakers cannot instantly swivel with shifts in demand. And the supply issues, triggered by the semiconductor shortage, have taken on a new dimension through this shift in demand to more fuel-efficient models that automakers were not prepared for.
Used Vehicles: Plenty of supply.
The inventory at used-vehicle dealers, at 2.46 million vehicles at the end of June, was up by 5.5% from a year ago. Compared to 2019, it was down only 10%.
But sales have been lower for months, compared to 2021 and to 2019, as buyers have started to resist the sky-high prices. And days’ supply at the end of June, given the lower rate of sales, edged up to 49 days, just a tad above the average in 2019 (48 days).
Used vehicles: Crazy price spike runs out of fuel.
Between December 2019 and December 2021, over those two years, the average asking price for used vehicles spiked by 42%, or by $8,300 per vehicle, from $19,871 in December 2019 to $28,205 in December 2021, which was totally nuts, and that’s where resistance finally started kicking in.
By June, the average asking price dipped to $28,012, just a little below December. Declines in January, February, and March are seasonally normal, but declines in May and June are not. And by the looks of it, the completely crazy price spike may finally have run out of fuel.
But there is still no over-supply. The inflow into the used vehicle market from rental fleets has been tempered by production shortfalls of new vehicles for rental fleets, and they’re slower in turning over their fleets. And wholesale prices, though they’ve dipped from the spike through December, are still sky-high. In this environment, dealers are not motivated yet to cut prices by a whole bunch in order to move the iron. But at least the price spike has run out of fuel.
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Boeing tries to catch up to SpaceX after plenty of drama
That, however, did not come to fruition.
Errors, delays and failures beleaguered the spacecraft’s development. There was a botched test flight, software issues, sticky valves and a lawsuit involving an executive at a subcontractor who is said to have lost his leg during a Starliner test.
After initially giving SpaceX closer scrutiny than Boeing, officials later said they regretted that as many of Starliner’s issues slipped through the cracks. SpaceX, Elon Musk’s relatively new entrant into the spaceflight business, ultimately beat Boeing to the launch pad. The company’s Crew Dragon spacecraft has now logged six astronaut launches for NASA since it entered service in 2020.
Meanwhile, Boeing is still trying to get through an uncrewed test flight. The company will make its second attempt this week, hoping a flawless performance will mend its image as the fallen star of human spaceflight.
The controversies surrounding Starliner have also added to other woes within Boeing’s commercial aircraft division that have chipped away at the company’s formerly rock-solid image over the past several years.
Here’s a look back at Starliner’s trying past.
OFT-1
In 2014, NASA awarded fixed-price contracts — meaning the space agency would only pay the initial agreed-upon price and not a penny more — to Boeing and SpaceX. The move cemented their slots as the companies that would take NASA astronauts back to space under the Commercial Crew program. Boeing’s awards totaled $4.2 billion, a significant markup compared to the $2.6 billion SpaceX was given, though the company has said that’s because SpaceX had already received millions for development of an uncrewed version of its Dragon vehicle.
Though both spacecrafts were expected to blast astronauts into space just a few years later, as the end of the decade neared, it became clear that SpaceX was outpacing Boeing.
When the company’s first uncrewed orbital flight test, dubbed OFT-1, reached the launch pad in December 2019, SpaceX had already beaten it by six months.
And almost immediately after Starliner launched on December 20, 2019, it was clear something was wrong.
Later, it was revealed that Starliner’s internal clock was off by 11 hours, which caused the spacecraft to misfire and stumble off course, NASA and Boeing officials told reporters. Starliner was forced to make an early return to Earth.
Months later, a second serious software issue was revealed, with one government safety official saying it could have caused a “catastrophic failure.” Boeing (BA) was able to identify and correct the error before it impacted Starliner’s behavior, however.
Boeing agreed to fix the issues and pay for a second attempt at the uncrewed test flight, setting aside nearly half a billion dollars. Months of troubleshooting, safety reviews and investigations followed the test flight.
Former astronaut pulls out of mission
Former NASA astronaut Chris Ferguson, who left the government astronaut corps in 2011 to help Boeing design and build the Starliner, was slated to command the first crewed mission of Starliner as a private astronaut. But after the failure of its inaugural flight test, Ferguson announced he could no longer fly on the vehicle, citing scheduling conflicts.
NASA and Boeing made the announcement in late 2020, saying Ferguson made the decision for “personal reasons.” Ferguson said in a follow-up tweet that he planned to prioritize his family, and he “made several commitments which I simply cannot risk missing.”
Though the crewed mission has been rescheduled several times, there do not appear to be plans to return Ferguson to the mission.
A NASA astronaut, Barry “Butch” Wilmore, was assigned to take Ferguson’s place.
Sticky valves and Florida humidity
Boeing believed it was ready to put Starliner back to the test last year, and it scheduled a second attempt at the orbital flight test — this one dubbed OFT-2 — for August.
More problems quickly arose. When the spacecraft was rolled out to its launch pad and began going through pre-flight ground checks, engineers discovered that key valves on the Starliner were sticking. Eventually Boeing announced that the problem could not be fixed on the launch pad, and the whole vehicle had to be rolled back to the assembly building for further troubleshooting.
By mid-August, Boeing had given up trying to fix the issues on site. The Starliner had to be sent all the way back to Boeing’s factory.
In press conferences leading up to Thursday’s test fight, Boeing officials revealed that they will fly OFT-2 this week with a “short-term” fix in place, but the company may ultimately opt to redesign the valve system.
Other issues
Adding to the questions surrounding Boeing’s safety practices as Starliner heads back to the launch pad this week is a recent report from Reuters, which highlighted a previously overlooked lawsuit filed against Boeing last year by a subcontractor who was said to have his leg partially amputated after an accident that occurred ahead of a 2017 Starliner parachute test.
Boeing confirmed in a statement that a lawsuit was filed on behalf of the employee and the subcontractor. “The matter was settled by all of the parties; the terms of the settlement are confidential,” the statement reads.
Court documents confirm the matter was settled in December 2021.
Europe’s Quest to Replace Russian Gas Faces Plenty of Hurdles
“What the invasion of Ukraine has done is take one of the three major producers of natural gas on a global basis out of the picture for future planning,” said Charif Souki, executive chairman of Tellurian, a gas company building an export terminal in Louisiana. “No one will rely on Russia in the future. Now the U.S. has the opportunity to become by far the powerhouse of natural gas.”
European countries have expressed an intention to phase out its dependence on over 150 billion cubic feet of annual imported Russian gas, partly by importing an additional 50 billion cubic feet of L.N.G., roughly 50 percent more than it currently imports.
That will not be easy, since the global L.N.G. market is only 523 billion cubic meters a year, nearly 20 percent of which already goes to Europe. New L.N.G. export terminals are coming online in the United States and Qatar, but demand is increasing even faster, especially in Asian countries trying to ease air pollution from coal burning.
That leaves the United States, even though several of its gas fields have insufficient pipeline capacity and have attracted few major drillers because prices have been so low until recently.
Since the Russian invasion, the Biden administration has pledged to increase L.N.G. exports to the European Union by 15 billion cubic feet, or roughly 40 percent. That is only about one-tenth of Russian shipments to Europe, but American energy experts say American companies could produce and ship much more gas with more pipelines and export terminals.
Export operations are being expanded in the United States, with three new terminals expected to be completed by 2026. Another 10 await permits, long-term buyers and investors. EQT, a leading gas producer, has called for the country to quadruple L.N.G. capacity by 2030, a proposal that has received broad industry support.
“We have the resources in the ground,” said David Braziel, chief executive of RBN Energy, an analytics firm. “And we could develop them if you had an indication from the administration that they want to develop natural-gas resources.”
USFL players have plenty of NFL experience: Who are some potentially recognizable names?
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The United States Football League officially kicks off in about two days and players are ready to go.
The first season will begin when the New Jersey Generals face the Birmingham Stallions Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. ET and can be seen on FOX and NBC. The six other teams in the league — the Houston Gamblers, Michigan Panthers, New Orleans Breakers, Philadelphia Stars, Pittsburgh Maulers and Tampa Bay Bandits — are all in action Sunday. Games can be seen on NBC, USA Network and FS1.
FOX Sports’ Joel Klatt will be among the cast of broadcasters for the USFL games. He previewed the crop of talent set to take the field on “Fox & Friends” with co-host Brian Kilmeade.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM
Philadelphia Stars and Michigan Panthers square off in a scrimmage.
(Ryan Gonzalez/USFL)
“It’s actually really high,” Klatt said of the talent level coming into the league. “I think what people will understand when they see these players play is that COVID really messed up the transition from college to the NFL. There’s a bunch of players out there that didn’t get an opportunity in the National Football League that are good enough to get an opportunity in the National Football League, and those are the players we’re going to be showcasing.
“It’s even more than that. The quality of football is certainly going to be great, but the technology we’re going to be bringing football fans is off the charts. The audio we’re gonna have, all the communication that’s between the coach and the player, we’re gonna be able to interview the coaches through their headset. We’re gonna have a drone flying over the field. You’re going to be able to watch this sport that we all love in a totally different way. We’re gonna take you closer to the game than we’ve ever taken you before.”
Read below for a list of players you may recognize taking the field this season.
Birmingham Stallions
Alex McGough is playing quarterback for the Birmingham Stallions.
(Ryan Gonzalez/USFL)
Alex McGough, QB: McGough was seventh-round draft pick of the Seattle Seahawks. He bounced around practice squads in the NFL before getting to the USFL.
Tony Brooks-James, RB: Brooks-James played four games in the NFL between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Atlanta Falcons. He had 11 total rushing yards in four games.
Victor Bolden Jr, WR: Bolden played for two teams in the NFL – the San Francisco 49ers and Buffalo Bills.
Brian Allen, CB: Allen played cornerback in the NFL from 2017 to 2021. He appeared in 20 games and had six total tackles. He played for the 49ers, Steelers and Cleveland Browns.
Josh Shaw, CB: Shaw was a standout at USC before being a fourth-round pick by the Cincinnati Bengals. He played for the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers as well. He was with the Arizona Cardinals when he was suspended for gambling on NFL games in 2020. He was reinstated in 2021.
Jonathan Newsome, LB: Newsome was a fifth-round pick of the Indianapolis Colts in 2014. He played 30 games for the Colts and had 7.5 sacks and 47 total tackles.
Nate Holley, S: Holley played three games for the Miami Dolphins in 2020 and had three total tackles.
Scooby Wright III, LB: Wright was a seventh-round pick of the Browns in 2016. He made his debut with the Cardinals later that year. He played 13 games for Arizona and had seven tackles.
Tae Hayes, CB: Hayes played six games in the NFL with the Dolphins, Jacksonville Jaguars and Minnesota Vikings in 2019 and 2020. He had 10 tackles in that span.
TUBERVILLE EXCITED FOR USFL’S START, OFFERS ADVICE TO PLAYERS LOOKING FOR SHOT AT THE PROS
Houston Gamblers
Clayton Thornson of the Houston Gamblers.
(Ryan Gonzalez/USFL)
Clayton Thorson, QB: Thorson was a fifth-round pick of the Philadelphia Eagles in 2019. He bounced around practice squads in the NFC East before coming to the USFL.
Isaiah Zuber, WR: Zuber made four appearances for the New England Patriots in 2020. He had two catches for 29 yards in four games.
Ahmad Gooden, DE: Gooden appeared in three games for the Denver Broncos in 2019.
Chris Odom, DE: Odom played for Washington and the Green Bay Packers from 2017 to 2019. He appeared in 11 games and had 16 tackles and two sacks.
Donald Payne, LB: Payne played for the Jaguars from 2017 to 2019 and even started five of the 30 games he appeared in. He had 76 combined tackles and a sack.
USFL’S MIKE PEREIRA BREAKS DOWN INNOVATIVE RULES AHEAD OF FIRST GAME
Michigan Panthers
Michigan Panthers players appear to celebrate.
(Ryan Gonzalez/USFL)
Jeff Badet, WR: Badet appeared in three games for Washington in 2020. He was on a few practice squads after that.
Lance Lenoir, WR: Lenoir had a stint with the Dallas Cowboys in 2017 and 2018. He played eight games but appeared mostly on special teams.
Marcus Baugh, TE: Bought played eight games for Washington in 2020. He had one catch for two yards.
Paxton Lynch, QB: Lynch was a former first-round pick of the Denver Broncos in 2016. He only appeared in five games in the NFL. He had 792 passing yards and four touchdown passes.
Shea Patterson, QB: Patterson played his last two years of his collegiate career with Michigan. He had 5,661 passing yards and 45 touchdown passes in 26 games with the Wolverines.
Jameson Houston, DB: Houston played defensive back for the Eagles in 2020, appearing in three games.
Taiwan Jones, LB: Jones played three games for the New York Jets in 2016. He had two tackles and a tackle for a loss in those years.
New Jersey Generals
Luis Perez is with the New Jersey Generals now. He played for the New York Guardians of the XFL.
(Ryan Gonzalez/USFL)
Braedon Bowman, TE: Bowman appeared in three games for the Jets in 2016. He mostly played on special teams.
Darrius Shepherd, WR: Shepherd spent two seasons with the Green Bay Packers in 2019 and 2020. He was mostly a kick returner for the team.
Garrett McGhin, T: McGhin is an offensive lineman out of East Carolina. He played two games for the Carolina Panthers in 2019.
J’Mon Moore, WR: Moore also played for the Packers for a short time. He had a 12-game run in 2018, mostly returning kicks.
Luis Perez, QB: Perez played in the XFL for the New York Guardians in 2020 before the league shut down because of the coronavirus. He will likely be the starting quarterback.
Trey Williams, RB: Williams played two games as a running back for the Colts in 2015. He had 12 rushing yards on two carries.
Chris Orr, LB: Orr was signed as a linebacker in 2020 for the Panthers. He played in three games but played 60% of his snaps on special teams.
D’Juan Hines, LB: Hines played 13 games for the Browns and had 4 tackles in 2018.
David Rivers III, CB: Rivers was a cornerback for the Buccaneers in 2018 and 2018. He was mostly on the special teams unit.
De’Vante Bausby, CB: Bausby broke into the NFL in 2016. He played for the Eagles, Cardinals, Broncos and the Chicago Bears between 2016 and 2020. He played in 26 games and had 60 total tackles.
Destiny Vaeao, DT: Vaeao played in the NFL from 2016 to 2018. He appeared in 33 games and had three sacks. He picked up a Super Bowl ring with the Eagles during the team’s win in 2017.
Shalom Luani, S: Luani was a seventh-round pick of the Raiders in 2017. He played one season for them and another season each for the Seahawks and Los Angeles Chargers. He has 31 NFL games under his belt and 28 tackles.
Toby Johnson, DT: Johnson made two appearances for the Minnesota Vikings in 2016. He had two tackles.
Trae Elston, DB: Elston was on the Eagles during their Super Bowl-winning season as well even though he played one game for them. He played 13 other games for the Buffalo Bills. He also played for the Houston Roughnecks of the XFL in 2020.
Nick Rose, K: Rose has made some appearances in NFL games. He was with Washington for eight games in 2017 and the Chargers for two games. He was 11-for-14 on field-goal attempts.
USFL EXEC DARYL JOHNSTON PREVIEWS ‘UNPRECEDENTED’ FAN EXPERIENCE FOR UPCOMING SEASON
New Orleans Breakers
New Orleans Breakers players on the sideline during a scrimmage.
(Ryan Gonzalez/USFL)
Chad Williams, WR: Williams was in the NFL for three seasons. He was with the Cardinals and Colts for a total of 17 games between 2017 and 2019. He had 20 catches for 202 yards and a touchdown.
E.J. Bibbs, TE: Bibbs played in seven games for the Browns in 2015. He had one catch for seven yards.
T.J. Logan, RB: Logan played running back for the Cardinals and Buccaneers in 2018 and 2019. He returned punts and kicks in that time.
Taywan Taylor, WR: Taylor played for the Browns and the Tennessee Titans from 2017 to 2020. He had 53 catches for 697 yards and two touchdowns.
Zach Smith, QB: Smith was a standout quarterback at Tulsa but wasn’t selected in last year’s NFL Draft.
Adonis Alexander, CB: Alexander was a cornerback for Washington in 2018. He appeared in nine games and had four tackles.
Pittsburgh Maulers
Kyle Lauletta of the Pittsburgh Maulers tossed the ball.
(Ryan Gonzalez/USFL)
Kyle Lauletta, QB: Lauletta was a fourth-round pick of the New York Giants in 2018. He appeared in two games but never made a completion in five attempts.
Vadal Alexander, G: The offensive lineman played for the Raiders in 2016 and 2017. He played in 24 games.
Blair Brown, LB: Brown was a linebacker and played in 28 games for the Jaguars in 2017 and 2018. He had 17 tackles and a half sack in that span.
Ethan Westbrooks, DT: Westbrooks had a nice run in the NFL. He played for the Rams from 2014 to 2018 and then caught on with the New Orleans Saints in 2021. He had nine sacks in 68 games.
Terrell Bonds, CB: Bonds played in four games for the Baltimore Ravens in 2020. He had six tackles.
Philadelphia Stars
Bryan Scott of the Philadelphia Stars throws a pass.
(Ryan Gonzalez/USFL)
Chris Rowland, WR: Rowland was with the Falcons in 2020. He appeared in two games and returned kicks.
Bryan Scott, QB: Scott was a standout QB at Occidental College. He was in The Spring League and the Canadian Football League before getting to the USFL. He was the MVP of The Spring League Championship in 2020.
Case Cookus, QB: Cookus was with The Spring League in 2021 and with the Edmonton Elks in the Canadian Football League too. He was a standout at Northern Arizona before going pro.
Ahmad Dixon, S: Dixon played in the NFL in 2014. He was with the Bears, Dolphin and Vikings. He appeared in 11 games and had three tackles.
Carroll Phillips, DE: Phillips played three seasons in the NFL from 2017 and 2019. He played in 11 games and had five tackles.
Freedom Akinmoladun, DE: Akinmoladun played three seasons in the NFL from 2019 to 2021. He was with the Bengals and Jets during that span appearing in five games and racking up four tackles.
Mazzi Wilkins, DB: Wilkins was also credited as a Super Bowl champion during his stint with the Buccaneers in 2020. He played in seven NFL games between the Buccaneers and the Ravens from 2019 to 2021. He had three total tackles.
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Tampa Bay Bandits
A view of the Tampa Bay Bandits’ helmet.
(Ryan Gonzalez/USFL)
Brady White, QB: White was a standout quarterback at Memphis but failed to latch onto an NFL team in 2021.
Derrick Willies, WR: Willies was with the Browns in 2018 and 2020. He appeared in six games and had three catches for 61 yards.
Eli Rogers, WR: Rogers is bringing immense NFL experience to the Bandits. He had 78 catches for 822 yards and four touchdowns from 2016 to 2018 with the Steelers.
Jordan Ta’amu, QB: Ta’amu was a standout quarterback in the XFL before the league folded. He tried to latch on in the NFL but never made an appearance in a regular-season game.
Keith Mumphrey, WR: Mumphrey was with the Houston Texans in 2015 and 2016. He returned punts and kickoffs.
Vinny Papale, WR: Papale is the son of Vince Papale, whose inspirational story about making the Eagles was adapted into a movie in 2006 called “Invincible.”
Delrick Abrams, CB: Abrams was with the Falcons for three games in 2020.
John Atkins, DT: Atkins was a defensive tackle for the Detroit Lions in 2018 and 2019. He played in 14 games and had 22 tackles.
Obi Melifonwu, S: Melifonwu is credited as being a Super Bowl champion with the Patriots during the 2018 season. He played seven games in his NFL career and had 10 tackles.
Quenton Meeks, CB: Meeks appeared in 14 games in the NFL. He was with the Jaguars and Chargers in 2018 and 2020.
Evusheld treatment can help prevent COVID-19. Utah has plenty of doses
A little-known preventive COVID-19 treatment for people who are immunocompromised or can’t be vaccinated against the virus for medical reasons is currently available in Utah, even though it’s in short supply in some parts of the country.
Evusheld, a monoclonal antibody treatment that’s administered via two consecutive injections, was first authorized for emergency use in early December. But recently, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said the dose needed to be doubled to help prevent infection from the incredibly transmissible omicron variant of COVID-19.
Patients who previously were injected with the smaller dose are being asked to return for a second round of shots.
That’s raised concerns that the treatment for those 12 and older who can’t produce antibodies or may be allergic to COVID-19 vaccine components — already difficult to find in places like Ohio and Oregon, according to The New York Times — will become even harder to get.
So far, that’s not the case in Utah.
“We have enough to meet current demand,” Utah Department of Health spokeswoman Charla Haley said, advising patients or providers interested in Evusheld to call the state’s COVID-19 information line, at 1-800-456-7707, for assistance.
Haley said as of Tuesday, Utah has:
- Administered 1,419 doses.
- Secured 3,288 doses for the state health department to allocate through March.
- Stocked 2,000 doses by providers across the state.
- Anticipated an additional 1,680 doses for April.
Dr. Brandon Webb, an Intermountain Healthcare infectious diseases physician, said access to Evusheld is expanding from specialists with transplant and cancer patients to primary care physicians to reach even more Utahns who qualify for the treatment.
“We’re not only using it, but also starting a second wave of patient outreach to try to really encourage patients who are eligible for it” to consider getting the treatment, Webb said. “It’s not like a vaccine. It’s not for everyone. Each patient needs to have that decision-making discussion with their provider.”
When the treatment first became available, the doctor said most states only offered it to the most severely immunocompromised patients who were the least likely to get a response from the vaccine, such as those receiving bone marrow transplants or advanced leukemia care.
As more supply became available from the federal government, Webb said Utah expanded that list to include more types of cancer and transplant patients. Now, he said, it’s available to many others, such as anyone who’s getting treatment for cancer, or is on immunosuppressant medication for an autoimmune or rheumatological diseases.
Jose Lazaro, a medical assistant at a University of Washington Medicine clinic, prepares a two-shot dose of AstraZeneca’s Evusheld, the first set of antibodies grown in a lab to prevent COVID-19, Jan. 20, 2022, in Seattle.
Ted S. Warren, Associated Press
Webb, too, said there’s no shortage of Evusheld in Utah.
“It’s fortunately in enough supply that we have plenty. Really, the limitations right now are identifying the patients for whom it’s a good fit, and patients who are interested,” he said.
There are some challenges to using more of the treatment, Webb said, given that many immunocompromised patients also have heart issues, and less than 1% of participants with known heart issues in the clinical trial for the treatment suffered serious cardiac events.
The preventive treatment is intended to supplement COVID-19 vaccinations, he said, not substitute for the shots, which are still recommended for the immunocompromised. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend they get a fourth shot as a booster dose.
For those who can’t get the vaccine due to an allergy, Webb said documentation from an allergist would be needed to get the treatment.
With COVID-19 cases declining in Utah, he said more of the shots are being administered than the sometimes controversial monoclonal antibody infusions for those already infected with the virus and at high risk of severe illness, at a state health department site that was moved to Millcreek and is set to close by the end of March.
Not everyone who is eligible for the treatment is interested, though, the doctor said.
“I think there’s some general sentiment of COVID fatigue, and maybe a perception even among some of these more vulnerable populations that COVID is behind us, or is not as big a problem,” Webb said. “I think there’s been some of that.”
Others, though, are “very eager for this,” he said, because they don’t want to feel that they’re being left behind as Utah and the rest of the country moves toward treating the virus as an endemic, rather than pandemic, disease that, while still deadly, is more limited.
What’s not yet clear is just how much protection the treatment provides now that the dose has been increased. Webb said, adding that providers have all seen patients who’ve had Evusheld and had a breakthrough case of COVID-19.
A study is underway on the effect of the treatment on the omicron variant, he said.
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Conan Chop Chop Is a Lighthearted Roguelite with Plenty of Barbarian Attitude
I don’t think Robert E. Howard had much of a sense of humor about his work when he created the swords and sorcery spectacle that was Conan the Barbarian 90 years ago. But let’s face it: Conan is kind of silly. Go watch the Arnold Schwarzenegger movie and tell me it’s not. And I think that’s part of why the cartoonish co-op roguelite Conan Chop Chop works pretty well. The fast paced, decently challenging, and unpredictable gameplay certainly doesn’t hurt either, though.
Normally I might be put off by the exaggerated, whimsical visual style of a game like this, which would fit right in with any number of shallow strategy games on the app store. But it’s clear to me that Mighty Kingdom knows the source material and isn’t just trying to use the Conan name to put out something low effort. From nods to some of the thewy hero’s classic foes to a responsive and exhilarating combat system that reminded me a fair bit of Hades, it’s kind of like a good power metal album. It’s over-the-top, humble enough to laugh at itself, but also has the technical chops to really shred if you accuse it of only being here to mess around.
You and up to three friends can take control of four cute but deadly barbarians, of which I had the most fun with the nimble archer Belit. She’s geared toward ranged damage and dodge-rolling out of danger, so I could really use the whole battlefield to my advantage in the often chaotic and genuinely punishing boss fights. Pallantides is her opposite, holding the line with a sturdy shield. Camping behind your defenses can only get you so far, though. If you time your blocks as any character, you can parry and avoid all damage while deflecting projectiles or even stunning the enemy. Mechanics like this that show off the fact Chop Chop is very easy to get into but has a pretty high skill ceiling.
It’s over-the-top and humble enough to laugh at itself, but also has the technical chops to really shred.
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Conan and Valeria are another pair of opposites. Our Boi the barbarian will always land critical hits when on low health, while the deadly skirmisher fights best when her hearts are topped up. Knowing how to use all four of them in concert is something I didn’t quite get the hang of during our short demo. But especially when you factor in special ultimate abilities, like Conan’s propensity to go absolutely berserk, managing your supply of bombs and arrows, and randomized gear that can modify all of these things, the combinations seem practically endless.
I was also pleasantly surprised how sharp and responsive these fights felt. One other advantage of this art style is that everything is very readable (again, much like Hades). Parrying, attacking, and dodging feel great. The hitboxes on things like boss attacks were clear enough that I never felt like I got killed when I didn’t deserve it. Some of the bosses are genuinely tough – this is definitely not a pushover, despite what the art style might have led you to believe!
This is definitely not a pushover, despite what the art style might have led you to believe!
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Long-term progression is through skill points, which can add new abilities and other upgrades to specific characters that carry over between runs, and Steelfire, which unlocks new gear. Your gear and health upgrades will be reset every time you fail a run, but unlocked weapons, armor, and charms get added to the pool of available drops. So you’ll start running into higher-level items even in early areas once you’ve spent a bit of Steelfire. Your overall goal is to defeat the four bosses guarding the gateway to a final showdown with Thoth-Amon, but in true roguelike fashion, you’ll probably taste the agony of defeat a good many times before you get there.
Going in with few expectations, I was pleasantly surprised by the depth and overall fun factor of the combat in Conan Chop Chop. It seems like the kind of game it would be great to play with a few friends over horns of mead on Discord in the evenings. And since it doesn’t take itself too seriously, even dying horribly can be laughed off. We’ll be able to join the fray on March 1.