Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Jan. 22, No. 486.
CNET editor Gael Fashingbauer Cooper, a journalist and pop-culture junkie, is co-author of “Whatever Happened to Pudding Pops? The Lost Toys, Tastes and Trends of the ’70s and ’80s,” as well as “The Totally Sweet ’90s.” She’s been a journalist since 1989, working at Mpls.St.Paul Magazine, Twin Cities Sidewalk, the Minneapolis Star Tribune, and NBC News Digital. She’s Gen X in birthdate, word and deed. If Marathon candy bars ever come back, she’ll be first in line.
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Today’s Connections: Sports Edition is mix of challenging and straightforward. Hope you know your former sports shows! If you’re struggling with today’s puzzle but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.
Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but it does in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.
Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta
Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups
Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.
Yellow group hint: Not lazy.
Green group hint: Pete Carroll is another one.
Blue group hint: Turn on the TV.
Purple group hint: Hidden team names.
Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups
Yellow group: An energetic person.
Green group: Head coaches who won a Super Bowl.
Blue group: Former ESPN shows.
Purple group: Ends in an NBA team, in singular form.
Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words
What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?
The completed NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Jan. 22, 2026.
NYT/Screenshot by CNETThe yellow words in today’s Connections
The theme is an energetic person. The four answers are dynamo, fireball, go-getter and spark plug.
The green words in today’s Connections
The theme is head coaches who won a Super Bowl. The four answers are Don Shula, John Madden, Mike Tomlin and Sean Payton.
The blue words in today’s Connections
The theme is former ESPN shows. The four answers are Around The Horn, Dream Job, Playmakers and Stump the Schwab.
The purple words in today’s Connections
The theme is ends in an NBA team, in singular form. The four answers are empty net, Joe Buck, The Yankee Clipper and Tony Hawk.
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