NFL
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) - Drew Lock didn’t have to wait around for the NFL draft to get the competition for his starting job that new general manager George Paton has been promising for months.
Paton traded a sixth-round pick in this weekend’s draft to the Carolina Panthers in exchange for veteran QB Teddy Bridgewater on Wednesday.
The Broncos own the ninth overall selection Thursday night and have had their eyes on several of the quarterback prospects rated a notch or two below Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence and BYU’s Zach Wilson, who are expected to go 1-2 to the Jaguars and Jets, respectively.
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - Receiver Antonio Brown has agreed to return to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on a one-year contract that could be worth up to $6.5 million, including incentives, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press.
The person spoke on the condition of anonymity Wednesday because the agreement, which includes a $2 million signing bonus and a little more than $3 million guaranteed, had not been announced by the reigning Super Bowl champions.
NFL Network was first to report the deal.
- By AP Sports Writer Fred Goodall.
NBA
BOSTON (AP) - Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart was suspended by the league for one game Wednesday because of “threatening language” he directed at a referee a night earlier.
The suspension forced him to miss Wednesday night’s home game against Charlotte.
The NBA did not provide many specifics in a news release beyond saying the incidents with Smart occurred “during and after the Celtics’ 119-115 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.”
NEW YORK (AP) - The NBA has fined Houston Rockets guard Kevin Porter Jr. $50,000 for violating the league’s health and safety rules by visiting a strip club in Miami last week with teammate Sterling Brown, who was assaulted outside the establishment.
The league bars players from attending indoor social gatherings of 15 or more people or entering bars, lounges and clubs. The Rockets were in Miami to play the Heat when the visit occurred April 19.
NHL
MONTREAL (AP) - The Montreal Canadiens say forward Jonathan Drouin is taking an indefinite leave of absence from the team for personal reasons.
The Canadiens announced on their Twitter feed that Drouin will be placed on long-term injured reserve by the club.
Drouin has 23 points in 44 games this season. He has missed Montreal’s past three games with a non-COVID related illness.
NCAA
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - The NCAA Division I Board of Directors ratified a rule change Wednesday that will allow all athletes who have not yet transferred the ability to do so one time in a college career and be immediately eligible to play.
The Division I Council adopted the proposed legislation earlier this month. The board took the last step to make the historic rule change official and the NCAA clarified some of the details in a news release.
The one-time exception had been previously available to some athletes, just not those in football, basketball, baseball and men’s ice hockey. Now it will be available to all athletes who have not yet transferred, starting with the 2021-22 academic year.
WOMEN’S HOCKEY
The National Women’s Hockey League announced Wednesday it is doubling its salary cap to $300,000 for each of its six teams based on projections that it is making strides in achieving financial stability entering its seventh season.
At the same time, the league is putting off adding an expansion franchise in Montreal until the 2022-23 season because of continuing uncertainties due to the coronavirus pandemic, particularly in Canada.
GOLF
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (AP) - Omar Uresti built such a big lead that even a 4-over 76 on Wednesday didn’t keep him from winning the Professional National Championship and earn another trip to the PGA Championship.
Uresti, a former PGA Tour player, had a seven-shot lead going into the final round at the PGA Golf Club. He finished at 11-under 276 for a three-shot victory over Frank Bensel Jr.
The top 20 earned spots at Kiawah Island for the PGA Championship on May 20-23.
CARROLLTON, Texas (AP) - Savannah Barker and Alexa Saldana won the U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-ball Championship on Wednesday, surviving a 20-hole match in the semifinals and then pulling away late in the final at Maridoe Golf Club.
Barker and Saldana won six of the last eight holes, finishing with a birdie on the par-3 14th hole for a 5-and-4 victory over Jillian Bourdage and Casey Weidenfeld.
Bourdage and Weidenfeld also lost in the championship match two years ago.
COURTS
Members of UConn’s women’s rowing team filed a federal lawsuit on Wednesday, alleging the university’s plan to eliminate their program as part of budget cuts in the athletic department violates their civil rights.
Twelve rowers were named as defendants in the suit, which was filed as a class action on behalf of the entire team, citing Title IX, the federal law that ensures equal access to education for women, including in athletics.
___
More AP sports: https://apnews.com/hub/apf-sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
Please read our comment policy before commenting.