CHIEFS WIDE RECEIVER RASHEE RICE SENTENCED TO 30 DAYS IN JAIL OVER DALLAS HIGH-SPEED CRASH
DALLAS (AP) — Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice was sentenced to 30 days in jail on Thursday after authorities said he and another speeding driver caused a chain-reaction crash that left multiple people injured on a Dallas highway last year.
The Dallas County District Attorney’s Office said Rice pleaded guilty to two third-degree felony charges of collision involving serious bodily injury and racing on a highway causing bodily injury in the March 30, 2024, crash. As part of a plea agreement, Rice was sentenced to five years of deferred probation and 30 days in jail as a condition of his probation, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors said he was also required to pay the victims for their out-of-pocket medical expenses, which totaled about $115,000.
Rice was driving a Lamborghini Urus SUV at 119 mph (191 kph) when he made “multiple aggressive maneuvers around traffic” and struck other vehicles, prosecutors said. Prosecutors said that after the crash, Rice failed to check on the welfare of those in the other vehicles and fled on foot.
The news release from prosecutors included a statement from Rice that was released by his attorney. Rice said in the statement that he’s had “a lot of sleepless nights thinking about the damages that my actions caused, and I will continue working within my means to make sure that everyone impacted will be made whole.”
“I am profoundly sorry for the physical damages to person and property,” Rice said in the statement. “I fully apologize for the harm I caused to innocent drivers and their families.”
FORMER EAGLES SPECIAL TEAMS ACE BRYAN BRAMAN DIES FROM RARE FORM OF CANCER AT 38
Bryan Braman, a key special teams player for the Philadelphia Eagles’ first Super Bowl championship team, has died from a rare and aggressive form of cancer. He was 38.
Braman was diagnosed earlier this year and had multiple surgeries in recent months in an attempt to treat the illness. He died Thursday morning, according to a statement issued by the team.
“We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Bryan Braman,” the team said. “During his four seasons in Philadelphia, Bryan was a loyal teammate, a supporter of the community, and a valuable member of our Super Bowl LII-winning team. More importantly, he was a devoted father who passionately loved his family and everyone around him. We extend our deepest condolences to Bryan’s family and all who are grieving his loss during this difficult time.”
Signed as an undrafted free agent by the Texans in 2011, Braman played seven seasons in the NFL. He spent his first three in Houston and last four in Philadelphia. The Eagles beat the Patriots 41-33 to win the franchise’s first Super Bowl in Braman’s final game on Feb. 4, 2018. He gave a fiery speech in the locker room before that game.
Braman had 56 tackles, 1 1/2 sacks and two fumble recoveries in 97 career games.
THE PITTSBURGH STEELERS MAKE STAR LINEBACKER T.J. WATT THE NFL’S HIGHEST-PAID DEFENDER
PITTSBURGH (AP) — T.J. Watt has wanted to be a “one-helmet guy” from the second he arrived in Pittsburgh eight years ago.
The star outside linebacker took one big step toward that goal on Thursday, agreeing to a new pact that will make him the league’s highest-paid defender and keep the perennial All-Pro in black-and gold well into his 30s.
Watt, who was entering the final season of the four-year extension he signed in 2021, is scheduled to make $123 million over the course of the three-year agreement, a person with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press. The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the contract had not yet been made public.
ESPN first reported the extension.
Watt appeared to celebrate by making a rare Instagram post on Thursday afternoon, sharing a picture of him flexing in his signature No. 90 jersey. Watt also posted a photo in his Instagram stories of him posing alongside protégé and third-year Steelers outside linebacker Nick Herbig.
The agreement’s average annual value of $41 million eclipses the previous record contract for a defender set by Cleveland defensive lineman and reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett in March.
The annual average salary is also tick above what Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase received when he (briefly) became the league’s highest-paid non-quarterback a few days after Garrett agreed to terms with the Browns.
The fact that Watt’s extension is worth 2.5% more per season than Garrett’s (whose overall total value of $204 million is still higher than Watt’s) is not a coincidence. Watt, the 2021 Defensive Player of the Year and a four-time All-Pro and seven-time Pro Bowler, has long believed he is the best edge rusher in the NFL.
For the second time in four years, he’s being paid like it, though he might not hold the distinction of being the league’s highest-paid defender for long. Dallas Cowboys edge rusher Micah Parsons is also due for an extension that — given Parsons’ age (26) and the league’s ever-rising salary cap — figures to set the bar even higher.
Watt, who turns 31 in November, took the unusual step of skipping mandatory minicamp last month in hopes of putting pressure on Pittsburgh’s front office to get something done. Head coach Mike Tomlin brushed off Watt’s absence, saying it was only a matter of time before things worked themselves out.
The timing couldn’t be better. The new-look Steelers — now led by quarterback Aaron Rodgers — report to training camp at Saint Vincent College next Wednesday.
They’ll do it with a familiar face in tow. Watt, who tied an NFL record by racking up 22 1/2 sacks in 2021, is the linchpin of a defense that will be relied on heavily if the Steelers want to end a playoff drought that stretches to the 2016 AFC Championship, a few months before the Steelers selected Watt with the 30th overall pick in the 2017 draft.
While Watt is putting together a Hall-of-Fame worthy resume, the one thing he is lacking is any sort of postseason success. Watt’s singular brilliance has helped keep the Steelers competitive during his tenure, Pittsburgh is winless in the postseason with Watt in the lineup, most of them losses in which the defense has struggled.
Watt, who has 108 sacks in 121 regular-season games, has just one in four playoff appearances.
The Steelers are taking a flyer on 2025 — signing Rodgers and trading for veteran defensive back Jalen Ramsey, among other notable moves — and are intent on trying to find their next franchise quarterback in the 2026 draft, which just so happens to be taking place in Pittsburgh.
The lack of star power under center, however, has given the team the financial flexibility to take care of Watt now, hoping he can remain an impact player into his mid-30s in the same way longtime teammate Cam Heyward has done.
NFLPA EXEC DIRECTOR LLOYD HOWELL JR. STEPS DOWN AMID CONTROVERSY
Lloyd Howell Jr. stepped down as executive director of the NFL Players Association on Thursday night following weeks of scrutiny for multiple blunders, including a reported conflict of interest and a decision to hide key parts of an arbitration ruling from the players.
“It’s clear that my leadership has become a distraction to the important work the NFLPA advances every day,” Howell said in a statement. “For this reason, I have informed the NFLPA Executive Committee that I am stepping down as Executive Director of the NFLPA and Chairman of the Board of NFL Players effective immediately. I hope this will allow the NFLPA to maintain its focus on its player members ahead of the upcoming season.
“I am proud of what we have been able to accomplish at the NFLPA over the past two years. I will be rooting for the players from the sidelines as loud as ever, and I know the NFLPA will continue to ensure that players remain firmly at the center of football’s future.”
Last week, ESPN reported that Howell held a part-time role as a consultant for The Carlyle Group, one of a small handful of private equity firms that the NFL has approved to pursue minority ownership in franchises.
ESPN’s reporting included a former lead outside counsel for the NFLPA, Jim Quinn, calling it “an outrageous conflict for the head of a labor union to have an interest in a third party that is aligned with the NFL.”
It was not the first blow to Howell’s reputation this offseason. In June, the “Pablo Torre Finds Out” podcast published an arbitrator’s report from January, when the NFLPA and the league were at odds over potential collusion by team owners to tamp down the growth of quarterback contracts.
The arbitrator, Christopher Droney, ruled that there wasn’t sufficient evidence of collusion between owners — but he went on to say that “by a clear preponderance of the evidence,” commissioner Roger Goodell and the NFL’s general counsel encouraged owners to restrict guaranteed money in player contracts.
Howell and the union reportedly had a confidentiality agreement with the NFL to keep the full report from getting out. Howell briefed the players but didn’t provide them copies of the report, according to ESPN.
Furthermore, Howell sits on the board of OneTeam Partners, a group licensing firm that is under investigation by the FBI.
CHARGERS WIDE RECEIVER MIKE WILLIAMS DECIDES TO RETIRE FROM NFL AT AGE 30
EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) — Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Mike Williams has retired from the NFL at age 30.
His agent, Tory Dandy, told general manager Joe Ortiz on Wednesday night, hours before the Chargers became the first NFL team to open training camp Thursday.
Williams signed a $6 million, one-year deal in mid-March to return to the Chargers for his second stint with the team. On Monday, he was placed on the physically unable to perform list with an undisclosed injury and two days later called it quits.
“It’s obviously a tough situation,” quarterback Justin Herbert said. “Football, at the end of the day, is a game and there’s more to life than just football and I’m just hoping for the best for him.”
Williams played eight seasons in the NFL, including stints with both the New York Jets and Pittsburgh Steelers in 2024.
“I don’t want to say shocking,” safety Derwin James said of the news, “but definitely I’d love to have him out there with me.”
Coach Jim Harbaugh made no mention of Williams’ decision when he spoke to media earlier Thursday.
“Mike has always done such a great job of just showing up and working. He’s been an excellent leader and teammate,” Herbert said. “That’s what we appreciate and love the most about him. It’s definitely tough to replace a guy like that. There’s not too many guys like Mike and we’re definitely going to miss him.”
The Chargers drafted Williams in the first round with the seventh overall pick in 2017. He had 330 career receptions, 5,104 receiving yards and 32 touchdown receptions over his eight-year career.
Williams’ pro debut was delayed by a back injury that caused him to miss training camp. He sat out the first six games of the regular season before seeing action. He was sidelined by a knee injury in Week 13.
In 2021, Williams and Herbert built a rapport early on, with Williams totaling six receiving TDs and 471 receiving yards in the team’s first five games. That set the stage for a breakout season, with Williams setting career highs in receptions (76), targets (129) and yards (1,146) while scoring nine TDs.
After the 2021 season, Williams signed a $60 million, three-year extension with the Chargers.
In 2022, Williams had a back fracture that kept him out of the team’s opening playoff loss to Jacksonville. The following season, Williams sustained a season-ending ACL tear in Week 3. He was released by the Chargers early last year.
Soon after, Williams signed a one-year deal with the Jets. He was later criticized by quarterback Aaron Rodgers for running the wrong route on a pass intended for him, leading to a game-clinching interception in a loss to Buffalo.
Last November, the Jets traded Williams to the Steelers for a fifth-round draft pick. He had a combined 21 receptions for 298 yards and a touchdown for both teams.
Williams helped Clemson win the national championship in 2017 and then decided to forego his senior year to enter the draft. In 2015, he broke a bone in his neck after colliding with the goal post as he caught a touchdown pass.
Wide receiver Tre’ Harris signed with the team Thursday, ending a brief holdout. He was a second-round pick out of Mississippi.
The Chargers also signed tackle Ryan Nelson from the UFL.
Nelson started 22 of 28 games for the Michigan Panthers over the last three years in the UFL, including an appearance in the league’s championship game last year.
Nelson, who is from nearby Buena Park in Orange County, played four seasons at Virginia.
