Month: September 2021

ST. LOUIS (AP) — The St. Louis Blues agreed to terms with top defenseman Colton Parayko on an eight-year contract extension worth $52 million. The deal runs from the 2022-23 season through 2029-30 and carries an annual salary cap hit of $6.5 million. Parayko was set to be a free agent next summer. He helped

By DAVE SKRETTA AP Sports Writer KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — After their offensive line was embarrassed by Tampa Bay in February, dashing the Chiefs’ chances at back-to-back Lombardi Trophies, general manager Brett Veach went to work. He traded for two-time Pro Bowl left tackle Orlando Brown Jr., signed the premier free-agent left guard Joe

By The Associated Press Aside from COVID-19 concerns there appears little in the way preventing the Buffalo Bills from matching or building off their breakthrough season. The Bills return 10 starters each on offense and defense from a team that won its first AFC East title since 1995 and made its deepest playoff run in

By The Associated Press The defense led by Chase Young is the biggest reason to believe Washington can again contend for the NFC East title and make the playoffs. The unit ranked second in the NFL last season and could be even better with the addition of first-round pick Jamin Davis at linebacker and return

By DOUG FERGUSON AP Golf Writer ATLANTA (AP) — Phil Mickelson is returning for his 13th consecutive Ryder Cup, this time without his clubs. Mickelson fills out the roster of five assistant captains to Steve Stricker for the American team that tries to win the cup back from Europe at Whistling Straits later this month.

By DEBORA REY and MAURICIO SAVARESE Associated Press BUENOS AIRES (AP) — Argentina’s national team expects to keep its Premier League-based players for all three of its upcoming World Cup qualifiers, in defiance of English clubs which recommended they not travel. Coach Lionel Scaloni says he is not aware of any deal to release members

By FRED GOODALL AP Sports Writer TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Two days after listening to a stirring speech from Tom Brady and receiving glitzy Super Bowl rings during a private ceremony, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers reported to training camp and turned their attention to the challenge ahead. No team has repeated as NFL champions since

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Los Angeles FC has loaned high-scoring forward Diego Rossi to Fenerbahçe in Turkey’s top division. The 23-year-old Rossi has been a key part of LAFC since the franchise’s inaugural season in 2018. The Uruguayan joined LAFC as its second designated player and promptly scored the first goal in franchise history during

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla (AP) — Boston infielder Yairo Muñoz has become the latest Red Sox player to test positive for COVID-19 as the virus surge impacting the team remains unrelenting. Eight Boston players and two coaches have either had a positive test or have been identified as close contacts since Friday. Star shortstop Xander Bogaerts

By The Associated Press The Eagles are rebuilding with rookie coach Nick Sirianni, second-year quarterback Jalen Hurts and a young roster. Playing in the lowly NFC East could keep the Eagles somewhat in contention but the team has too many holes to compete for a playoff spot. Finding out if Hurts is the long-term answer

By JENNIFER PELTZ and JAKE SEINER Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — New York Mets acting general manager Zack Scott was arrested on charges of driving while intoxicated, hours after attending a fundraiser at team owner Steve Cohen’s house. Scott was arrested on a DUI charge around 4:15 a.m. Tuesday in suburban White Plains, New

By The Associated Press The hiring of coach Robert Saleh set off a wave of optimism throughout the New York Jets facility, with several players remarking how much they respected the coach’s approach and philosophy. Now those good vibes need to transfer to the field. The Jets have a rookie quarterback still learning his way

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Pittsburgh Steelers have placed defensive end Stephon Tuitt on the injured reserve/return list. Defensive coordinator Keith Butler says Tuitt has an unspecified issue with one of his knees. Butler added he expects Tuitt to be back at some point but isn’t sure when. The 28-year-old is coming off a career-best 11

By The Associated Press The Patriots spent a lot of money this offseason to put their 7-9 finish in 2020 without Tom Brady behind them. They also are giving the keys to the offense to a rookie with Mac Jones set to start at quarterback after Bill Belichick’s surprise release of Cam Newton. Tight ends

By The Associated Press A 30-point loss in the 2020 season finale at Buffalo suggests the Miami Dolphins have lots of ground to make up to contend for the AFC East title in coach Brian Flores’ third season. Much depends on the development of quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who went 6-3 as a rookie starter last

By STEPHEN WHYNO AP Sports Writer ASHBURN, Va. (AP) — Washington will remain the Football Team this season but has higher expectations after winning the NFC East at 7-9 in Ron Rivera’s first year as coach. After bringing in 38-year-old “FitzMagic” quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick to start, Washington is straddling the line between winning now and

CINCINNATI (AP) — Nick Castellanos drove in six runs with a grand slam and a two-run shot in the first two innings, and the Cincinnati Reds beat the St. Louis Cardinals 12-2 to split a doubleheader. Cincinnati rocked starter J.A. Happ and regained a half-game lead over San Diego for second in the NL wild-card

By The Associated Press The Chicago Bears gave their frustrated fan base a big jolt of excitement when they traded up nine spots with the New York Giants to draft Justin Fields with the No. 11 pick. The former Ohio State star showed promise during the preseason. But he is set to open as the

By DAVE SKRETTA AP Sports Writer COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Steve Wilks is the new defensive coordinator at Missouri, where he replaced Ryan Walters after his departure for Illinois. Wilks has been in the NFL since 2005, working in defensive backfields and as the defensive coordinator at a number of stops. He spent one season

By The Associated Press The Detroit Lions seem set up for a fourth straight double-digit loss season. First-year general manager Brad Holmes and first-year coach Dan Campbell will need more than a year to turn around a team that lost a lot under former general manager Bob Quinn and ex-coach Matt Patricia. Detroit’s defense was

By STEPHEN WHYNO AP Hockey Writer The New York Islanders finalized most of their offseason work in one day by signing four players to multiyear contracts. Goaltender Ilya Sorokin got a three-year deal for $12 million, homegrown forward Anthony Beauvillier got three years and $12.45 million, deadline pickup Kyle Palmieri got $20 million over four

By ALAIN POUPART Associated Press MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Miami Dolphins coach Brian Flores has publicly expressed his support for quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. That may or may not tamp down speculation about the team’s interest in Houston quarterback Deshaun Watson. Flores says Tagovailoa will be the Week 1 starter against the New England Patriots

By The Associated Press Green Bay Packers fans breathed a collective sigh of relief when MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers reported to camp after skipping Green Bay’s organized team activities and mandatory minicamp in a standoff with team officials. Rodgers has said he doesn’t know whether this will be his final season in Green Bay. That

By LARRY LAGE AP Sports Writer DETROIT (AP) — The Detroit Lions made a lot of changes in the offseason by bringing in a new general manager, coach and quarterback. The franchise with one playoff victory since winning the NFL title in 1957 is coming off three straight double-digit loss seasons. Detroit might be doomed

BRISTOL, Conn, (AP) — ESPN has obtained U.S. television rights to African World Cup qualifying and will stream the matches on ESPN+. Coverage began Wednesday with six second-round matches, starting with the Central African Republic’s game against Cape Verde. Forty nations are in the second round, which runs to Nov. 16, and the group winners

By STEVEN WINE AP Sports Writer MIAMI (AP) — The Miami Dolphins’ most recent playoff win is nearly old enough to drink. On Dec. 30, 2000, Dave Wannstedt and Jay Fiedler helped Miami beat the Indianapolis Colts in overtime in a wild card game. Since that victory the Dolphins have lost 176 games. For a

BASEL, Switzerland (AP) — Switzerland captain Granit Xhaka has tested positive for COVID-19. He’s a doubt for a World Cup qualifying game against European champion Italy on Sunday. The Swiss soccer federation announced the news after Xhaka was not in the lineup to play a warmup game against Greece on Wednesday. It would have been

By The Associated Press The Baltimore Ravens have gone 25-7 over the past two regular seasons. After winning a playoff game last season for the first time with quarterback Lamar Jackson, the next step up would be to put together a Super Bowl run. It won’t be easy in a tough AFC, however — and

By The Associated Press Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has returned for an 18th season, with a cast of fresh faces around him as he chases a third Super Bowl title. Pittsburgh drafted running back Najee Harris in the first round and retooled the entire offensive line in hopes of avoiding the 1-5 slide that

By STEVE REED AP Sports Writer CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The Panthers are relying on Sam Darnold to help them become relevant again. The Panthers traded second-, fourth- and sixth-round picks to the Jets earlier this offseason for the 2018 No. 3 overall pick, who was just 13-25 in three seasons as a starter. Darnold

By CHARLES ODUM AP Sports Writer FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. (AP) — Josh Andrews, who was the favorite to open the season as the Atlanta Falcons’ starting left guard, was placed on injured reserve after suffering a broken hand in practice. Players can return from injured reserve after three weeks this season. Andrews’ injury was a

By The Associated Press No. 22 Coastal Carolina hopes to continue its strong run when it opens against The Citadel on Thursday night. The Chants started 11-0 and knocked off a pair of top-25 opponents in 2020 in what was among the biggest surprises of the COVID-19 impacted college football season. Coastal Carolina qualified for

By The Associated Press The once star-studded Houston Texans have lost virtually all their big names in recent years, and those departures coupled with Deshaun Watson not expected to play could make this the worst team in franchise history. After winning just four games last season with Watson and three-time Defensive Player of the Year