Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints, Answers for November 21, No. 59

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, and Strands puzzles.

Did you enjoy the New York Times Connections Puzzle? Now there is a new version of the game that focuses on sports-related words. It’s called plain Connections: Sports Editionand we have hints and the answers.

For now, the game is in beta, meaning the Times is testing it to see if it’s popular before adding it to the site’s Games app. You’ll be able to play it for free daily for the next few weeks – and then we’ll have to see if it sticks.

Read more: NYT has a Connections game for sports fans. I tried it

How to play Connections: Sports Edition

The rules are almost the same as the regular game. You are given 16 words and asked to divide them into four groups that are connected in some way. The main difference is that all words and categories have some sort of sports link. Sometimes the categories seem obvious, but the game tries to mislead you by using sports-related words that fit into more than one group. And the four groups of words have different levels of difficulty. Yellow is the easiest and purple the hardest, but you won’t know which color group which is until you have solved the puzzle.

But you don’t have to be a sports obsessive to tackle Connections: Sports Edition, although it helps to know about a few different sports and athletes. The words can include player names, team names, or sports-related activities.

Tips 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 difficult (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Caring for something or someone.

Green group hint: A certain color.

Blue group hint: Popular spaniel.

Purple group hint: House of the Rock Hall.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Guardian

Green group: Shades of brown.

Blue group: Arrogant

Purple group: Nicknames for Cleveland.

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 protector. The four answers are champion, defender, goalkeeper and protector.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is shades of brown. The four answers are beige, chestnut, khaki and brown.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is arrogant. The four answers are arrogant, breasty, haughty and haughty.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is nicknames for Cleveland. The four answers are Believeland, Cle, the 216 and the Country.