NYT Connections Sports Edition · #703

NYT Connections Sports Edition Hints & Answers (#703) — August 27, 2026

By Sneha Rajput·August 27, 2026

“Lock in the group where every word means exactly the same thing before you touch anything that feels like it could belong in two places.Today's puzzle has FOUL, LAMB and TRADE, all carrying history. FOUL appeared in Connections #666 (Jul 21, 2026) as part of soccer rule violations. LAMB appeared in Connections #654 (Jul 9, 2026) among NFL wide receivers. TRADE appeared in Connections #651 (Jul 6, 2026) as a way teams move on from a player.”

NYT Sports Connections hints for August 27, 2026

Three levels of help — a definition for every word, colour-coded group nudges, and a heads-up on the traps. Skip to all answers →

Word clues

A spoiler-free definition for every word in the grid. Tap the eye on any card to reveal which colour-group it belongs to.

1 BLANDReads as flavorless; it's DaRon Bland, a Cowboys cornerback.

2 DEAD BALLNames the early period of baseball history before the lively ball changed the game — not a ball out of play.

3 DEALThe broadest term — any agreed transaction between two sides.

4 EXCHANGEA swap where both sides give and receive something.

5 FOULThe most common call in basketball and soccer — contact that breaks the rules.

6 INFRACTIONThe formal, slightly legalistic word for a minor rules breach.

7 LAMBReads as a meek animal; it's CeeDee Lamb, the Cowboys' star wide receiver.

8 NEWLooks like filler; it's the first word of a compound label for a fresh chapter in a sport's history.

9 OPENReads as a standalone adjective; it's the first word of a historical label in tennis marking when professionals were allowed to compete in Grand Slams from 1968 onward.

10 OVERSHOWNReads as a past participle; it's DeMarvion Overshown, a Cowboys linebacker.

11 PENALTYA rule violation that comes with a specific punishment attached.

12 PRESCOTTThe least disguised of the four — Dak Prescott, the Cowboys' starting quarterback.

13 STEROIDLabels the controversial late-1990s and early-2000s period in baseball marked by record home run totals.

14 TRADEThe standard word for swapping players between franchises — also appeared in Connections #651 as a way teams move on from a player.

15 TRANSFERThe preferred term in soccer for a player moving from one club to another.

16 VIOLATIONThe broadest term here — any act that breaks a rule or law.

Group hints

Four colour-coded groups, easiest → hardest. Every button reveals the hint, the category name, or a single word — tap only what you need.

See Hint

The referee blows the whistle and writes it up.

See Group

TRANSGRESSION

See Word

FOUL

See Word

INFRACTION

See Word

PENALTY

See Word

VIOLATION

See Hint

Two teams agree, paperwork is signed, players change jerseys.

See Group

TRANSACTION

See Word

DEAL

See Word

EXCHANGE

See Word

TRADE

See Word

TRANSFER

See Hint

These four share a locker room in Texas.

See Group

DALLAS COWBOYS

See Word

LAMB

See Word

BLAND

See Word

OVERSHOWN

See Word

PRESCOTT

See Hint

History books divide sport into chapters ending with this word.

See Group

_____ ERA

See Word

DEAD BALL

See Word

STEROID

See Word

NEW

See Word

OPEN

Words the puzzle wants you to mis-group

Read these before you guess — they're the words most likely to break a streak. Tap for the trap.

1 LAMB Tap to see why this word traps.

You're probably picturing a baby sheep or a meek person — that's the bait. Here it's a surname belonging to a Dallas Cowboys pass-catcher, not an animal.

2 BLAND Tap to see why this word traps.

You're almost certainly reading this as an adjective meaning flavorless or dull, but the puzzle is using it as a proper name — Cowboys cornerback DaRon Bland, not a food critic's verdict.

3 OVERSHOWN Tap to see why this word traps.

It reads like a past participle meaning displayed too much, but the puzzle treats it as a surname — a Cowboys linebacker whose name just happens to look like a real English word.

4 OPEN Tap to see why this word traps.

You're probably reading this as a standalone adjective meaning not closed — but the puzzle is using it as the first half of a compound label for a specific historical period in sport.

5 NEW Tap to see why this word traps.

Looks like throwaway filler, but it anchors a specific compound label for a historical period in sport — not just the adjective meaning recent.

NYT Sports Connections answers for August 27, 2026

All four groups revealed, easiest first. Each card holds the theme, the four words, and why the group works.

Y TRANSGRESSION · Yellow · easiest

FOUL
INFRACTION
PENALTY
VIOLATION

FOUL, INFRACTION, PENALTY and VIOLATION all mean a rule-breaking offense in sport. These four are near-perfect synonyms, making this the cleanest group on the board — the place to start.

G TRANSACTION · Green · easy

DEAL
EXCHANGE
TRADE
TRANSFER

DEAL, EXCHANGE, TRADE and TRANSFER all describe a transaction — moving something of value between two parties. In sports, all four words appear in headlines when a player switches teams.

B DALLAS COWBOYS · Blue · medium

LAMB
BLAND
OVERSHOWN
PRESCOTT

LAMB, BLAND, OVERSHOWN and PRESCOTT are all last names of Dallas Cowboys players — CeeDee Lamb, DaRon Bland, DeMarvion Overshown and Dak Prescott. LAMB is the sneakiest because it appeared in a previous puzzle as an NFL wide receiver category, so solvers who remember that have a head start.

P _____ ERA · Purple · hardest

DEAD BALL
STEROID
NEW
OPEN

DEAD BALL, STEROID, NEW and OPEN all precede ERA to name a distinct period in sports history: the Dead Ball Era in early baseball, the Steroid Era in late-90s baseball, the New Era in various sports contexts, and the Open Era in tennis beginning in 1968. OPEN is the trickiest — most solvers read it as a standalone adjective rather than the first word of a historical label.

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Today's group hints & answers

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