Unraveling Today's Sports-Themed Word Puzzle

Ever felt like your brain needs a workout? There's a new game in town for word puzzle fans. It's called Connections Sports Edition. It's like the regular Connections game, but with a sports twist. Every day, a new set of 16 words appears, and players must group them into four categories of four words each. This special version is a team-up between The New York Times and The Athletic. The goal is to find sports-related terms that share a common theme. It's a fun challenge for sports lovers and word enthusiasts alike. Today's puzzle, dated January 3, 2026, has some intriguing categories. The hints given are "Gridiron protection" for the yellow category, "Fire it in there" for the green one, "The envelope, please" for the blue, and "Scary weather" for the purple.For those who need a little help, here are the categories: "Parts of a Football Helmet" for yellow, "Baseball Pitches" for green, "Oscar Nominees for Playing a Boxer" for blue, and "____ Storm" for purple. The answers are "Chin Strap, Face Mask, Padding, Shell" for the yellow category, "Changeup, Cutter, Slider, Splitter" for green, "De Niro, Stallone, Swank, Washington" for blue, and "Court, Hannah, Red, Seattle" for purple. Don't be hard on yourself if you didn't get them all right. Even the best players have off days. The important thing is to keep practicing and having fun.