It’s the most wonderful time of the year.

Thursday’s Champions League draw produced tantalizing matchups, compelling storylines, and some fantastic quartets. Here’s what to expect from each group during the continental competition:

Related – Champions League draw: Heavyweight matchups across the board

Group A

Atletico Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, Monaco, Club Brugge

• Predicted to advance: Atletico, BVB
• Best matchup: Atletico vs. BVB
• Player to watch: Aleksandr Golovin

Group A feels like the hipster’s choice. With Atletico’s pedigree, Dortmund’s colorful supporters, Monaco’s youthful exuberance, and Brugge’s unknown quantities, there’s enough on tap to keep the most casual fan interested. Any of the top three teams should fancy their chances of getting into the knockout stages, leaving Brugge as the odd one out. Keep an eye on Monaco’s latest summer signing, Aleksandr Golovin, and Atletico’s Gelson Martins as the two take on defenders and make things happen from midfield.

Group B

Barcelona, Tottenham, PSV, Inter

• Predicted to advance: Barcelona, Tottenham
• Best matchup: Tottenham vs. Inter
• Player to watch: Hirving Lozano

This one feels like the Group of Death. There’s a lot of attacking potential from this quartet, with the likes of Lozano, Ivan Perisic, Ousmane Dembele, and Heung-Min Son set to entertain on the flanks. Tottenham and Inter should contest the best matches of the group, especially considering Spurs’ recent success against Italian teams. It’s a difficult run of games for the Nerazzurri, though there was always a risk they would face a tough draw as a lowly fourth seed. PSV have a difficult go as well, but now’s the opportunity to show Dutch football in a positive light.

Group C

Paris Saint-Germain, Napoli, Liverpool, Red Star

• Predicted to advance: PSG, Liverpool
• Best matchup: Napoli vs. Liverpool
• Player to watch: Naby Keita

Joining the headliners is Group C, which offers emotional storylines, cross-continent travel, and the prospect of scintillating football. Edinson Cavani’s return to Napoli – where he first shot to fame as a raw, greasy-haired striker – will draw cheers in southern Italy. That match between PSG and Napoli is a fantastic test for the Partenopei and an opportunity for Carlo Ancelotti to face his former side. However, Liverpool’s meeting with Napoli is arguably the pick of the bunch. The potential for goals is high between these two sides, a clash of relentless brands of football featuring high lines and rigorous pressing. Keita is at the heart of Liverpool’s push, representing a massive upgrade in midfield following his arrival from RB Leipzig.

Group D

Lokomotiv Moscow, Porto, Schalke, Galatasaray

• Predicted to advance: Porto, Lokomotiv
• Best matchup: Porto vs. Galatasaray
• Player to watch: Henry Onyekuru

Group D isn’t one for the neutrals. There’s not much that grabs headlines here, unless it’s in the stands of Galatasaray’s stadium. Porto have every reason to feel they can win the group and reach the round of 16 for a third consecutive season. Who else will advance is a toss-up, as none of Lokomotiv, Schalke, or Galatasaray seem head and shoulders above the competition. The 2017-18 Russian Premier League champions have made some decent signings, including Benedikt Howedes and Grzegorz Krychowiak, but no one player stands out. Nineteen-year-old midfielder Onyekuru, who’s on loan at Galatasaray from Everton, may be the most promising player to watch.

Group E

Bayern Munich, Benfica, Ajax, AEK Athens

• Predicted to advance: Bayern, Ajax
• Best matchup: Benfica vs. Ajax
• Player to watch: Hakim Ziyech

Group E is deceiving. Although it may look like Bayern have a direct route to the next round, Benfica and Ajax are good enough to complicate matters. Bayern did little to reinforce their team, putting more pressure on the likes of Robert Lewandowski and Arjen Robben to win matches on their own. Benfica have continued to hone their talent – Ruben Dias is a fine defender in the making – while Ajax did well to avoid a firesale this summer. Moroccan midfielder Hakim Ziyech is a fantastic playmaker who can set up goals and score from distance, and teammate Dusan Tadic is a capable matchwinner whose linkup play could prove troublesome. It’s not as straightforward as it seems.

Group F

Manchester City, Shakhtar Donetsk, Lyon, Hoffenheim

• Predicted to advance: City, Lyon
• Best matchup: Lyon vs. Hoffenheim
• Player to watch: Houssem Aouar

Here’s another group with a few traps. City stumbled against Shakhtar in last season’s group stage, and the youthfulness of Lyon and Hoffenheim could send a jolt through the Premier League champions. The latter two opponents have average ages of 24.1 and 25 years, respectively, with the 20-year-old Aouar already holding the keys to Les Gones’ midfield. Hoffenheim’s innovative training techniques have also paid dividends. City will have to work hard to break down each of their opponents.

Group G

Real Madrid, Roma, CSKA Moscow, Plzen

• Predicted to advance: Madrid, Roma
• Best matchup: Madrid vs. Roma
• Player to watch: Justin Kluivert

A classic case of two halves. Madrid and Roma are destined to make it out of Group G, with CSKA and Plzen set to compete for the right to claim third and the Europa League spot that goes with it. Los Blancos swept aside the Giallorossi in the quarterfinals of the 2016 Champions League, and considering their superiority in midfield, they could deal their Italian brethren another blow. Manager Eusebio Di Francesco either aces his tactics or bombs completely, so it’s imperative he gets his approach right against the three-time defending European champions.

Group H

Juventus, Manchester United, Valencia, Young Boys

• Predicted to advance: Juventus, United
• Best matchup: Juventus vs. United
• Player to watch: Goncalo Guedes

This is a nice group to round out the competition. Paul Pogba will face the Old Lady for the first time since his €100-million transfer to United, Cristiano Ronaldo will return to Old Trafford, and Valencia will try to break up the love-in with some good football of their own. The Bianconeri clearly have the most competitive squad of the four teams, but Mourinho’s record in cup competitions cannot be ignored. Valencia also boast some fantastic speed on the wings, especially with Guedes rejoining the side on a permanent basis.

(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)

CINCINNATI — Carlos Dunlap calls Geno Atkins the “silent assassin.” Local reporters might call Atkins evasive.

The only thing more clear than the power of Atkins’ bull rush is that he prefers to do his talking on the field.

And so far, that has worked out for him just fine. Atkins, 30, inked a four-year, $65 million contract on Tuesday that could keep him in Cincinnati until he retires, which he said was more important to him than testing the market.

• Should the Jets leverage their future for Khalil Mack?
• Ben Roethlisberger plan for arm day.
• Mike McCarthy finally has coordinators with head coaching experience
• Rebuilt Seahawks turn to Rasheem Green
• No apostrophe, no hype for Daron Payne
• More ‘Madden moves’ for John Ross?

If Atkins had hit free agency, teams would have been salivating to pick up the defensive tackle, who is second in franchise history with 61 sacks. Dunlap, who himself signed a new three-year, $45 million deal on Tuesday, leads Cincinnati with 64.5 sacks.

“I can’t name too many top-end rushers who have a dominant presence like Geno inside,” Dunlap said. “He don’t say a lot as you know, but he plays big. He lets that speak for himself.”

Atkins has made a career out of embarrassing offensive linemen, even in the preseason. Last Sunday, Atkins bestowed that honor on Buffalo Bills guard Vladimir Ducasse, gaining enough leverage to lift him off his feet and push him into quarterback Josh Allen. The 6-foot-1, 300-pound Atkins is 4 inches shorter and 30 pounds lighter than Ducasse.

“I don’t feel bad because I’m trying to do my job and they’re trying to do their job. So it is what it is,” Atkins said.

For as little as Atkins has to say in public, his competitors have even less to say to him.

“The only thing I kind of hear, more so it’s like, ‘Damn, why you bullin’?’” Atkins said. “Or, ‘Not the bull again,’ or stuff like that. That’s like my No. 1 thing, the bull rush.”

The tandem of Atkins and Dunlap promised one thing when they signed their new deals: They want to get to a Super Bowl. It’s one of many common goals they have despite being so different.

Dunlap is as jovial and chatty and as Atkins is silent. When they held a joint news conference to announce their new deals, Dunlap jokingly pushed all the recorders toward Atkins.

Atkins might go weeks without posting to his social media accounts, fittingly named @genosacks. But he does share small insights into his life, whether it’s a photo of his dog, a video of himself in robes at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, or an announcement that he’ll be a father this year.

“The blessing was my wife being pregnant,” he said. “Signing the contract is icing on the cake. Being blessed to have a boy or a girl is amazing.”

Although Atkins has done sporadic interviews over the years, it’s more likely to hear him on a radio advertisement in Cincinnati than at a podium. His last meaningful interview was after the 2015 AFC wild-card loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, when he gave a rare look into how it was one of the hardest losses of his career.

The Champions League group stage is now within touching distance as the pots for Thursday’s draw were confirmed after the conclusion of the playoff round.

Benfica, PSV, and Red Star Belgrade were the final three teams to seal their spots in the competition’s main draw Wednesday by emerging victorious against PAOK, BATE, and Red Bull Salzburg, respectively.

Each pot is made up of eight teams. Pot 1 consists of defending champions Real Madrid, UEFA Europa League winners Atletico Madrid, and the champions of the six highest-ranked nations – Spain, Germany, England, Italy, France, and Russia – while Pots 2 to 4 are determined by UEFA’s club coefficient rankings.

Benfica sealed the final available spot in Pot 2 by virtue of their 4-1 second-leg win over PAOK. Had the Portuguese side been knocked out, Liverpool would have stolen that berth; as it stands, the Reds drop into Pot 3, thus potentially facing a considerably tougher grouping.

Here is the breakdown in full:

Pot 1: Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Manchester City, Juventus, Paris Saint-Germain, Lokomotiv Moscow

Pot 2: Borussia Dortmund, Manchester United, Porto, Napoli, Roma, Tottenham Hotspur, Shakhtar Donetsk, Benfica

Pot 3: Schalke, Lyon, AS Monaco, Ajax, CSKA Moscow, Liverpool, PSV, Valencia

Pot 4: Inter, Club Brugge, Galatasaray, Young Boys, Hoffenheim, AEK Athens, Red Star Belgrade, Viktoria Plzen

Thursday’s draw takes place at 12 p.m. ET in Monaco.

Clubs from the same country cannot be drawn in the same group, which could lead to some of Europe’s heavyweights being pitted against one another; a quartet consisting of Real Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, Liverpool, and Inter Milan is a possibility, for example.

The group stage kicks off on Sept. 18.

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Denver Broncos quarterback Paxton Lynch said Tuesday his future is on his mind and he’s trying to hang on to his roster spot after falling to No. 3 on the depth chart headed into Thursday’s preseason finale against the Arizona Cardinals.

Lynch, whom the Broncos traded up to select in the first round of the 2016 draft (26th overall), had lost back-to-back training camp battles with Trevor Siemian in the previous two summers. And this time around he has slid to No. 3 on the depth chart, behind Case Keenum and Chad Kelly, as the Broncos approach Saturday’s deadline to reduce rosters from 90 to 53 players.

“Obviously you think about it, you’re not happy about it, but I’ve got to do what I’ve got to do with the hand that’s been dealt to me,” Lynch said. “And that’s what I’m doing, I’m working my tail off.”

Broncos president of football operations/general manager John Elway has often professed his preference to use just two roster spots at quarterback. However, Siemian played well enough in the preseason in 2015 for the Broncos to keep him as a rookie No. 3 behind Peyton Manning and Brock Osweiler.