Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints, Answers for March 9 #167

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Connections: Sports Edition has some fun categories today. The purple one, especially, made me see some team names in a different light. Read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is out of beta now, making its debut on Super Bowl SundayFeb. 9. That’s a sign that the game has earned enough loyal players that The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times, will continue to publish it. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but now appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can continue to play it 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: Checkmate!

Green group hint: Prince William’s fave team is one.

Blue group hint: Teams in the same conference.

Purple group hint: Get a job.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Chess pieces.

Green group: Premier League teams, familiarly.

Blue group: Big 12 teams.

Purple group: Teams that share names with professions.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is chess pieces. The four answers are bishop, knight, pawn and rook.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is Premier League teams, familiarly. The four answers are City, Palace, Spurs and Villa.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is Big 12 teams. The four answers are Cyclones, Horned Frogs, Jayhawks and Wildcats.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is teams that share names with professions. The four answers are Brewers, Cowboys, Mariners and Senators.