The NFL is adding a game show and a punting contest to its Pro Bowl skills competitions in February.

The league on Thursday announced the full list of challenges, including tug-of-war and dodgeball.

The games will take place at Central Florida and finish with a seven-on-seven flag football game between the AFC and NFC on Feb. 2.

New this year are Helmet Harmony, a game show that will test players’ knowledge of their teammates, and Punt Perfect that features one punter and one non-punter. The two players from each conference will punt from the 35-yard line, attempting to place as many balls as possible into a set of six buckets in the end zone.

The passing and receiving competitions have a new twist this year. Quarterbacks will try to hit targets at various distances around the field worth different point values in 40 seconds.

Chiefs QB Mahomes, WR Brown expected to play against Texans >> Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is expected to play against Houston on Saturday, less than a week after sustaining a high-ankle sprain in a win over Cleveland, and he will likely have wide receiver Marquis Brown available for the first time in a regular-season game.

Chiefs coach Andy Reid said after a short practice that Mahomes had looked good moving around on his ailing ankle and “he’ll most likely end up playing.”

Brown dislocated the sternoclavicular joint in his shoulder on the first play of the preseason against Jacksonville. The resulting surgery had kept one of the Chiefs’ premier free-agent acquisitions off the practice field until last week.

Steelers star Watt ready showdown with Ravens >> T.J. Watt is hopeful his ankle injury won’t keep him from trying to help the Pittsburgh Steelers win the AFC North title on Saturday in Baltimore.

The star outside linebacker was a full participant in practice on Thursday and seems to be trending toward playing when the Steelers (10-4) attempt to sweep the season series from the Ravens (9-5) and lock up their first division title since 2020. Pittsburgh did not even give Watt an injury designation when the game report was released on Thursday afternoon.

“Obviously it’s a short week, but I felt pretty good,” Watt said.

MLB

Sosa appears to acknowledge PED use, apologizes >> Sammy Sosa appeared to acknowledge using performance enhancing drugs during a career in which he hit more than 600 home runs, and the Chicago Cubs said they were ready to welcome back their former star.

In a statement released Thursday through Aurora Global Consulting, Sosa said he is sorry for mistakes.

“There were times I did whatever I could to recover from injuries in an effort to keep my strength up to perform over 162 games,” he said. “I never broke any laws. But in hindsight, I made mistakes and I apologize.”

Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts said the team is “ready to move forward together” with Sosa and plans to invite Sosa to the annual fan convention Jan. 17-19 in Chicago.

Basketball

Anthony, Bird, Rivers, Few among candidates for Hall of Fame >> Carmelo Anthony may go into the Basketball Hall of Fame twice next year.

The Hall of Fame released its list of candidates for the Class of 2025, with the list of first-time nominees including Anthony and fellow retired NBA stars Dwight Howard and Marc Gasol.

WNBA greats Sue Bird, Maya Moore, Sylvia Fowles and Chamique Holdsclaw are all first-time candidates as well, along with NBA coaches Doc Rivers and Billy Donovan, Miami Heat managing general partner Micky Arison, Gonzaga men’s coach Mark Few and former Iowa women’s coach Lisa Bluder.

Among the repeat nominees: the 2008 U.S. Olympic men’s basketball team, which included Anthony.