The Dallas Cowboys will not let Dalton Schultz test free agency this offseason, electing to place the franchise tag on the tight end.

Schultz enjoyed a breakout year for the Cowboys in 2021, racking up a career-high 808 receiving yards at an average of 10.4 yards per reception.

Only four tight ends scored more than his eight receiving touchdowns last season, Mark Andrews, Hunter Henry, Travis Kelce and Dawson Knox all hauling in nine.

He was set to hit unrestricted free agency and potentially receive a substantial payday from a rival team, however, the Cowboys have moved to prevent that from happening.

Instead, they will now have sole negotiating rights with Schultz and have until July 15 to come to terms on a long-term deal and avoid having him play on the one-year franchise tender.

The move comes after ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that wide receiver Amari Cooper is likely to be released by Dallas.

A four-time Pro Bowler, Cooper finished last season with 865 receiving yards and eight touchdowns, but the Cowboys have decided to focus their resources on paying Schultz and wideout Michael Gallup, who is expected to re-sign with the team.

Releasing Cooper will free $20million in cap space for the Cowboys.

Aaron Rodgers has agreed to terms on a four-year, $200million contract extension with the Green Bay Packers to make him the highest-paid player in NFL history.

The quarterback's future had been the subject of much speculation, with the four-time MVP non-committal on whether he would return to Green Bay for the 2022 season having entered the 2021 campaign in the wake of a stand-off with the Packers after his desire to leave was reported on the opening night of last year's draft.

A move elsewhere and retirement both seemed to be options on the table for Rodgers, who won a second successive MVP by leading the Packers to a NFL-best 13-4 record last season.

But relations between Rodgers and the Packers at the end of the season appeared more amiable than they were back in April of 2021.

Rodgers told The Pat McAfee show of his conversations with the franchise after the Packers' playoff loss to the San Francisco 49ers: "I would say the meetings were much different than they've been in the past, in a positive way, and that there were some real, honest conversations that I appreciated."

Green Bay's hiring of Tom Clements, who worked with Rodgers and the Packers from 2006 to 2016, as their quarterbacks coach for 2022 pointed towards him staying at Lambeau Field.

And Rodgers will now likely end his career where it started after agreeing to a deal worth $50m annually that keeps him under contract with the team for the next five seasons.

With the burning issue of the offseason resolved, Green Bay's attention will likely turn to keeping Rodgers' favourite target, wide receiver Davante Adams, on the roster and preventing him testing unrestricted free agency as the Packers plot a way to get over the hump after coming up short in the postseason yet again.

Having ended his staring contest with the Packers and reported for training camp, Rodgers' 2021 campaign was partly defined by controversy after a positive coronavirus test revealed previous misleading statements about his vaccination status, while his spread of misinformation regarding vaccines has unquestionably damaged his reputation.

On the field, he did not quite reach the heights of his magical 2020, but he still finished the regular season with 37 passing touchdowns to just four interceptions, giving him the best touchdown to interception ratio in the NFL. 

Among quarterbacks with 200 passing attempts, only Justin Herbert (2.30) threw a lower percentage of interceptable passes than Rodgers (2.36).

No quarterback delivered a higher ratio of throws that resulted in a first down than Rodgers, who did so on 40.1 per cent of his attempts, while he was second in passer rating on third down (112.2) behind Kyler Murray (118.5) among quarterbacks with at least 50 attempts in that situation.

However, Rodgers was shackled by the 49ers' defense in the playoffs as the Packers went one and done, losing 13-10 in the Divisional Round in an all too familiar tale for Green Bay.

Since Rodgers led the Packers to glory in Super Bowl XLV at the end of the 2010 season, they have reached the Divisional Round of the playoffs eight times but have never returned to the Super Bowl.

Now, the 38-year-old has until the end fo the 2026 season to change that fact.

Aaron Rodgers has agreed to terms on a four-year, $200million deal with the Green Bay Packers to make him the highest-paid player in NFL history.

Mike Gesicki looks set to have a role in the Miami Dolphins' offense in 2022 after he was franchise tagged.

ESPN's Adam Schefter reported the Dolphins had elected to keep Gesicki around for a fifth season by opting to place a one-year franchise tender on the tight end.

Miami can still sign Gesicki to a long-term deal, but the Dolphins must do so before July 15. Otherwise, Gesicki will play on the tender, which for tight ends is worth $10.9million.

Last season, Gesicki recorded career highs in receptions (73) and receiving yards (780), though he caught only two passing touchdowns.

He will hope to have a greater impact under new head coach Mike McDaniel, who replaced Brian Flores after he was fired despite a second successive winning season, the Dolphins going 9-8 in 2021.

McDaniel arrived in Miami having served as Kyle Shanahan's offensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers in 2021 and spent the vast majority of his career working with Shanahan.

The coaching switch would therefore appear to bode well for Gesicki. Since Shanahan took charge of the Niners in 2017, only Travis Kelce (78.8) has averaged more receiving yards per game among tight ends than San Francisco's George Kittle (67), giving Gesicki cause for optimism he can enjoy a significant bump in production playing under one of the newest members of that ever-expanding coaching tree to land a top job.

The ATP, WTA, International Tennis Federation (ITF) and the four grand slam organisers have announced the Tennis Plays for Peace campaign.

Along with the campaign, which will include efforts on social media and at tournaments, each of the seven organisations has pledged to donate $100,000 to humanitarian relief efforts in Ukraine.

Russia invaded the country on February 24 and the conflict is still ongoing. Well over one million refugees are estimated to have fled to neighbouring countries in Europe.

A joint statement from tennis' governing bodies on Tuesday explained that the campaign is not just about donations.

"The seven bodies will also signal support via their social and digital platforms by prominently featuring the Ukraine ribbon icon, with everyone in the tennis ecosystem encouraged to use the hashtag #TennisPlaysforPeace," it read.

"In addition, physical ribbons will be distributed for ATP and WTA players to wear at the upcoming BNP Paribas Open tournament in Indian Wells."

Last week, the ITF banned Russian and Belarusian teams from competing at the Davis Cup or the Billie Jean King Cup. Russia are the holders of each title.

The ATP and WTA, meanwhile, allowed Russian and Belarusian athletes to carry on competing, but only under neutral banners.

That includes ATP world number one Daniil Medvedev and WTA world number three Aryna Sabalenka.

Ireland and Leinster star Johnny Sexton has signed a new contract that will run until after the 2023 Rugby World Cup.

The 36-year-old has captained his country since January 2020, leading them to 10 wins in 13 matches in that time.

Sexton has played 103 times for Ireland in his storied career and reached the milestone of 500 points in the Six Nations in the 29-7 win over the defending champions last month.

A four-time European Champions Cup winner with Leinster, Sexton is now looking ahead to the prospect of a fourth World Cup finals appearance in France next year.

"I always said that if I am enjoying my rugby and the Ireland and Leinster set-ups believe I can add value to the environment then it would be an easy decision to sign another contract," the fly-half said.

"There is some great talent coming through at Leinster at present and I am excited about the prospect of competing at a fourth World Cup with Ireland and the potential for growth in this group between now and then."

David Nucifora, performance director for Irish Rugby, said: "Johnny's performances continue to be of the highest standard and he remains an integral member of the Ireland and Leinster squads.

"He has always been a leader on the field and in the past two years since taking on the Ireland captaincy his leadership off it has been top class. Johnny is a generational player and we are delighted that he has extended to 2023."

Steve Kerr believes Nikola Jokic should win a second consecutive NBA MVP award after seeing the superstar center take apart his Golden State Warriors team.

Jokic finished with 32 points, 15 rebounds and 13 assists in the Denver Nuggets' 131-124 defeat of the Warriors.

It was a second straight triple-double and league-leading 18th of the season for the Serbian, who also tops the charts for double-doubles (52).

The Nuggets are missing Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. due to injury, but Jokic's 25.9 points, 13.8 rebounds and 8.1 assists per game have them sixth in the West – now just four games back on the Warriors, who have lost five straight.

Golden State have allowed 122.6 points per game across that losing run – the third-most in the league in that time – and Kerr was not surprised to see them punished by Jokic. The Warriors had rested Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Andrew Wiggins.

"You score 124, you shoot 51 per cent, you make 17 threes, you're usually going to win," Kerr said.

"But we're playing against the reigning MVP, who probably should win it again. I don't have a vote, but Jokic is just an unbelievable player. He was spectacular tonight.

"He makes all of his team-mates better, he makes defense so difficult, because no matter what you do he's got a counter for it, and he's playing the game at such an easy pace. Things look so smooth for him out there.

"With our defense coming into this game already struggling, he's a tough guy to face when you're not already well connected at that end of the floor."

Luka Doncic maintained his record-breaking pace as he broke into the top 10 scorers in Dallas Mavericks history on Monday.

Doncic, still just 23 and in only his fourth season in the NBA, scored 35 against the Utah Jazz to move to 6,485 points in a Mavs uniform, nudging ahead of Jay Vincent (6,464) into 10th place.

The Slovenian has reached that mark in just 248 games, with only eight NBA players scoring more at this stage of their careers since 1963-64 – essentially a who's who of the sport's greatest names, including Michael Jordan (8,023), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (7,896), Shaquille O'Neal (6,766) and LeBron James (6,593).

Only among Mavs players, nobody can match Doncic, with Mark Aguirre (6,169) the sole other to pass 6,000 points within 250 games. Unsurprisingly, Doncic's 26.1 career points per game lead all-time Mavs players.

"There's some great scorers on that list," coach Jason Kidd – who is 15th (5,258) – said after the win against the Jazz.

"To do it in less than four years... that's pretty impressive. Kudos to him. He's special, and he showed it tonight."

Doncic is scoring 28.0 points per game this season – good for fifth in the NBA, as Joel Embiid's 29.7 points lead the way.

After a slow start, the Mavs superstar has accelerated up the standings in his past 15 games, averaging 34.1 points as well as 10.3 rebounds and 8.8 assists.

Since the 1976-77 merger, the only other players to average 34 points, eight rebounds and eight assists over a 15-game span have been Jordan and Russell Westbrook.

Doncic told reporters he was not aware of breaking into the Mavs' top 10 but said of the scoring pace that put him there: "Is it good? Could be better, right? Could be better."

Russell Westbrook told a San Antonio Spurs fan not to "disrespect my name" and vowed to do so again as he stood by his wife's claims of death wishes.

Before Westbrook played in the Los Angeles Lakers' 117-110 defeat to the Spurs, his wife Nina revealed abuse she had received.

She wrote on Twitter: "When I'm being harassed on a daily basis over basketball games, and I'm having obscenity's [sic] and death wishes for me and my family sent my way because you're expressing your 'truth', it's hard for me to get on board with that."

And after the game, former NBA MVP Westbrook said: "I 100 per cent stand behind my wife and how she's feeling.

"It's not just this year. She's reached a point and my family has reached a point where it's really weighing on them.

"It's very unfortunate just for me personally because this is just a game, this is just a game. This is not end all, be all."

Westbrook has endured a tough season with the Lakers, for whom he is earning more than superstar team-mates LeBron James and Anthony Davis in 2021-22.

But the 33-year-old – who is averaging 18.1 points per game, his lowest mark since 2009-10 – has decided criticism of his displays is going too far when it involves abusing his family name.

"When it comes to basketball, I don't mind the criticism of missing and making shots," he continued. "But the moment it becomes where my name is getting shamed, it becomes an issue."

Westbrook revealed his approach had been altered by hearing of the pride his son, Noah, had in his surname, causing the Lakers star to push back at his "Westbrick" nickname.

"'Westbrick' for example, to me, is now shaming," he said. "It's shaming my name, my legacy for my kids.

"It's a name that means [a lot], not just to me, but to my wife, to my mom, my dad, the ones that kind of paved the way for me.

"A lot of times, I let it slide. But now it's time to put a stop to that and put it on notice. There's a difference. We need to make sure it's understood.

"And every time I do hear it now, I will make sure that I address it and make sure I nip that in the bud."

Gregg Popovich did not answer a single question on his record-tying 1,335th NBA win in his post-game news conference – and Jakob Poeltl revealed there was no discussion of the achievement in the San Antonio Spurs locker room either.

Popovich, in his 26th season with the Spurs, oversaw a 117-110 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers to move level with Don Nelson's all-time benchmark.

But the five-time champion and three-time Coach of the Year reserved no time for reflection on that feat in a short chat with the media.

Popovich preferred instead to discuss the Spurs' poor free-throw shooting, their "sloppy" first half and a strong defensive showing.

And Poeltl suggested it was a similar story in private, with the center – who had 18 points – expecting the 73-year-old to remain humble when he moves past Nelson with his next win.

"You guys know Pop," Poeltl said. "I don't think he really cares about stuff like that.

"It didn't even really get mentioned. I doubt it will get mentioned when we get the next win. It's just how he is."

It was left to Lakers coach Frank Vogel to salute his opposite number's accomplishment then.

"[I have] incredible respect for who he is as a coach," Vogel said. "We all, younger coaches, look up to him and admire him and respect what he's done and what he means to our game.

"I'm certainly happy for him. I wish it wasn't against us, but Pop's the best."

Philadelphia 76ers head coach Doc Rovers believes Ben Simmons deserves a tribute when the Brooklyn Nets visit on Thursday.

Simmons left the 76ers acrimoniously with a trade to the Nets after more than five years with Philadelphia.

The 25-year-old point guard endured a difficult 2021 playoffs leading to a fallout with the 76ers, demanding a trade and sitting out the first half of the season before the Nets move materialised. 

Simmons and 76ers center Joel Embiid fell out too, ramping up the tensions with the latter posting a cryptic Twitter update upon Simmons' exit last month.

“I do actually,” Rivers said when asked if Simmons deserved a tribute video upon his return. “Ben did a lot of good things here.

"It didn’t end well, right? Just like marriages and all kinds of other things that don’t end well but Ben did a lot of good things here.

"It’s funny, I don’t know if we are or not, but if we did, I’d have no issues with it.”

Simmons won the 2018 Rookie of the Year, had been a three-time All-Star and two-time NBA All-Defensive First Team member with the 76ers reaching the playoffs in all four of his seasons with the side.

The Australian is yet to debut for the Nets and unlikely to play on Thursday as he builds up his conditioning having not played all season at the 76ers but may attend the game with the team.

Rivers sarcastically added: "Our fans are so silent so I can't imagine anything happening."

Meanwhile, James Harden shrugged off any talk of nerves ahead of the match-up where he will face his former Nets teammates for the first time since last month's trade with Simmons.

"I'm not nervous, it's basketball," Harden told reporters after Monday's 121-106 win over the Chicago Bulls. "I've put the work in to just play my game and live with the results.

"Honestly every game is a big game for us. We're fairly new, we've got championship aspirations so every game is a learning process for us no matter who we're playing."

All-Star Draymond Green has revealed he is targeting a return to the NBA next week after being sidelined since January with a lower back injury.

Green has not played for the Golden State Warriors since January 9, with the side struggling recently, losing nine of their past 11 games.

The 32-year-old four-time All-Star revealed that he was hoping to play next week when the Warriors face the Washington Wizards.

"Next Monday, the 14th, against the Wizards. That is the date I am targeting," Green said on his podcast 'The Draymond Green Show'.

"I am excited as hell. It's been two and a half months, almost ... I have never missed that much time during the season ... this is something different for me. I am extremely excited to get back out there with my guys to try right this ship."

Green was absent as the Warriors lost 131-124 to the Denver Nuggets on Monday, marking their fifth straight defeat.

The game was a catch-up fixture rearranged from December 30 due to COVID-19, which left Warriors head coach Steve Kerr frustrated, particularly with another game on Tuesday against the Los Angeles Clippers.

"It puts us in a way tougher spot than them," Kerr told reporters pre-game. "We had to fly here again. They didn't have to make an extra trip.

"They've got to play a back-to-back, I know. This was just another in many, many games rescheduled around the league that are inconvenient for everybody, but necessary to keep the league going, so you just do what you have to do."

On Green's progress, Kerr added: "He's had about a week, week and a half of being on the court almost every day, getting a lot of shots up, scrimmaging. He's feeling a lot better and coming along."

The Philadelphia 76ers maintained their perfect record with James Harden in the side with a 121-106 win over the slumping Chicago Bulls on Monday.

Joel Embiid scored 43 points with 14 rebounds while Harden had 16 points, eight rebounds and 14 assists as the 76ers made it six wins from their past seven games.

The 76ers are also 5-0 with Harden in the side, while the Bulls have lost their past five games.

Embiid recorded his 10th 40-plus point game this season, along with his 10th game this season with 40 or more points and 10 or more rebounds. The 76ers center also had his fourth quarter for the season with at least 15 points and five rebounds, which is an NBA high.

For the Bulls, All-Star DeMar DeRozan had 23 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists, while Zach LaVine added 24 points.

Jokic records 18th triple-double

Nikola Jokic backed up Sunday's 46-point haul with another triple-double as the Denver Nuggets defeated the short-handed Golden State Warriors 131-124. Jokic had his 18th triple-double of the season by three-quarter time and finished with 32 points, 15 rebounds and 13 assists. The Warriors, who rested Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Andrew Wiggins in the catch-up game, have lost nine of their past 11 games.

Luka Doncic scored 35 points, with 16 rebounds and seven assists in a tense game, where the All-Star received a technical foul, as the Dallas Mavericks won 111-103 over the Utah Jazz. Doncic's game marked his third this season where he has scored 35 or more points and 15 or more rebounds, with Oscar Robertson the only other guard to achieve the feat in a single season.

Victor Oladipo returned for the first time since April last year for the Miami Heat scoring 11 points in 15 minutes as they beat the Houston Rockets 123-106, while top draft pick Cade Cunningham (28 points and 10 assists) lifted the Detroit Pistons to an over-time win over the Atlanta Hawks 113-110.

Spurs equals record as Lakers slump

San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich tied Don Nelson's all-time NBA record for most coaching wins (1,335) as they won 117-110 over the Los Angeles Lakers without LeBron James. Russell Westbrook struggled in James' absence, with 17 points shooting five-of-14 from the field with five turnovers.