Hope you had a better week than Frankie Lasagna, the guy who dropped NY Yankees slugger Aaron Judge’s record-tying 61st home run, letting a likely six-figure payout literally slip through his fingers. Mamma mia.

• Keep Mr. Lasagna in your thoughts, then dig in to today’s news.

The GIST: Kind of like Snoop Dogg’s performance on Wheel of Fortune, the welfare scandal involving disgraced NFL icon Brett Fraud Favre just keeps getting worse. Forget a vowel, can he buy a clue?

The timeline: As detailed on The GIST of It earlier this month, Favre initially came under fire when it was reported that the former Green Bay Packers QB conspired with Mississippi’s then-governor to defraud the state’s welfare system to…build a volleyball arena at the University of Southern Mississippi, where his daughter played. Yes, seriously.

• Then, text messages released last week showed that not only did Favre push to swindle $5M from the nation’s poorest state, he persisted in those efforts despite being told it was illegal, among other troubling transgressions.

The latest: But that’s not all. The Athletic reported yesterday that Favre also used his foundation — which “aims” to help disadvantaged children and cancer patients — to donate more than $130K to athletics at the university. Just when you thought he couldn’t go lower.

• Given his limitless audacity, we wouldn’t be surprised to see more damning reports against the Hall of Fame QB’s already tarnished legacy in the coming days.

• Only question is whether he’ll actually be held accountable — as of now, Favre’s not facing any criminal charges. Today’s a beautiful day to change that.

The GIST: The final weekend of the regular season is here, and while four playoff spots have already been clinched, two are up for grabs with four teams still in contention. Read on (then listen to yesterday’s episode of The GIST of It for more) and let the chaos begin.

Who’s in: The Pacific Northwest is showing off its fútbol prowess, with both the Portland Thorns and OL Reign already through to the playoffs. Rounding out the top four are the Kansas City Current and the San Diego Wave, the league’s first expansion team to make it to the playoffs in their inaugural season. Must be something in the water.

• And three of those squads are looking for some shiny new hardware before the postseason even begins, with the NWSL Shield (awarded to the team with the best regular season record) on the line, plus a cool $10K bonus per player.

• The Thorns will hoist it for a second straight year if they beat last-place NJ/NY Gotham FC tomorrow at 6 p.m. ET, but if Portland loses, it’s up for grabs.

Who’s in the hunt: Although the Chicago Red Stars and Angel City FC could qualify, the North Carolina Courage and Houston Dash can lock in their spots with wins against the Wave tonight at 10 p.m. ET and the (already eliminated) Washington Spirit tomorrow at 7 p.m. ET, respectively.

• However, if the Courage loses, either the Red Stars or Angel City can sneak in with a win. Oh, and did we mention Chicago and LA are playing each other Sunday at 6 p.m. ET? Peak drama, achieved.

Together With

🏈 NFL: The GIST’s Game of the Week — Kansas City Chiefs vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

🏀 FIBA Women’s Worlds: Gold medal game — Tomorrow at 2 a.m. ET — ESPN2

• While we were sleeping, Team USA squared up against Team Canada in the semis, so check the score here and cross your fingers the red, white and blue defending champs are through to the gold medal game.

• If not, tune in tonight at 11 p.m. ET to watch the gals go for bronze.

🎓🏈 NCAA Football: No. 10 NC State vs. No. 5 Clemson — Tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. ET — ABC

• For the first time in program history, the NC Wolfpack are ready to seize an AP Top 10 matchup win against their rivals to the south. Hear them roar.

🏎 F1: Singapore Grand Prix — Sunday at 8 a.m. ET — ESPN

• First things first, while the W Series Jenner Racing’s Jamie Chadwick should be celebrating a likely third consecutive title, it turns out the Series itself may be running on empty. Devastating.

• But over in F1, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen has a chance to notch the earliest title win in 20 years. However, it would take teammate Sergio Pérez finishing in fourth place or lower and Ferrari's Charles Leclerc finishing in eighth or lower. An unlikely outcome.

🏈 NFL: Buffalo Bills vs. Baltimore Ravens — Sunday at 1 p.m. ET — CBS

• It’ll be a tale of two high-scoring offenses when talented Bills QB Josh Allen and Ravens star QB Lamar Jackson look to rally their ragged lineups and keep their winning records alive. You won’t want to pass on this one.