New Zealand Rugby chief executive Mark Robinson has offered no guarantees over All Blacks head coach Ian Foster's long-term future, stating "he’s certainly the person to lead the team to South Africa".
Foster came under increasing pressure after Ireland secured a first Test series win over the All Blacks in New Zealand this month.
Robinson stated that 2-1 defeat was "not acceptable", but Foster has kept his job and vowed to fight on as his side prepare to start the Rugby Championship with two away fixtures against the Springboks.
Yet CEO Robinson did not provide unequivocal backing for Foster when he was interviewed by Newstalk ZB at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
He said when asked about Foster's future: "He's certainly the person to lead the team to South Africa, and we're making sure they've got everything possible in the way of resourcing and support to make sure that's successful."
Former All Blacks head coach Steve Hansen this week slammed NZ Rugby, claiming the relationship between All Blacks players and the board is "probably the worst it's ever been".
Hansen lashed out over the treatment of Foster and former Black Ferns coach Glenn Moore, who resigned in April, making it clear that he was not impressed with the governing bodies conducting reviews over their futures.
The outspoken Hansen also highlighted the decision to bring in investment from US private equity firm Silver Lake as he accused the governing body of not "doing their job right".
Robinson has attempted to set the record straight.
He said: "One thing that seems to be coming through in some media is constant referral to reviews... that's simply not the case.
"But something that is very regular in all our environments is there are constant conversations about how we improve, and that’s a big part of the All Blacks as well."
He added with regards to Hansen's criticism: "I know he’s incredibly protective of Ian, and he's looking out for his mate, and I think we all understand that, too. Certainly we'll have a chat when the time is right.
"Regarding the players, we're working hard and well in that space around things in general, but also with regard to a new partner coming on with Silver Lake."
Crusaders coach Scott Robertson has been talked up as a potential replacement for Foster, but Robinson refused to be drawn on speculation.
He said: "I understand the sentiment of our fans. That's been coming through loud and clear. We know Razor [Robertson] has a huge amount to offer the game in New Zealand... but to comment any further wouldn't be appropriate."
Phil Mickelson says he was not distracted by being heckled before teeing off in the LIV Golf Invitational Bedminster on Friday.
Mickelson stepped back from the tee after a spectator shouted "Do it for the Saudi Royal Family" at Trump National Golf Club Bedminster.
The six-time major champion was one of the highest profile players to sign a hugely lucrative deal with the Saudi-backed breakaway LIV Golf series, leading to him being suspended from the PGA Tour.
Mickelson was way down the leaderboard in a tie for 43rd after shooting a four-over 75 in the opening round of the third LIV Golf event in New Jersey, where debutant Henrik Stenson shares the lead with Patrick Reed on seven under.
The 52-year-old insisted he was not affected by the words of a vocal spectator before he took his first shot.
When asked if he was affected by being heckled, Mickelson said: "No. I had a really good day. The people here have always been great and treated me well.
"I had a really good day with the fans and with Henrik playing well, there was a lot of good things going on. I'm just a little frustrated with my game to be honest.
He added: "I'm just frustrated because I expect more of myself, so I'm gonna work until I get it fixed."
Asked again about the heckler, he replied: "I've always enjoyed playing in this area and we had a great day thereafter, I thought it was a good day all around, so I didn't really think much of it."
Stenson made a great start to his first LIV Golf event and was happy to be playing again after losing the European Ryder Cup captaincy due to his defection.
The Swede said: "It's nice to be out there playing golf, and yeah, of course it’s been a busy couple of weeks and not the most fun, but we keep our head down and focus on the golf."
The Seattle Mariners are apparently going all-in on ending the longest postseason drought of the four major North American professional sports, finalising a deal to acquire starting pitcher Luis Castillo from the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for four players.
Castillo is widely regarded as the best starting pitcher available before Tuesday’s trading deadline, and Seattle have paid a high price to land the two-time All-Star.
Heading to Cincinnati reportedly are minor leaguers Noelvi Marte and Edwin Arroyo – two of the Mariners' top-three prospects – along with pitcher Levi Stoudt, the team’s fifth-ranked prospect, and pitcher Andrew Moore.
Castillo is 4-4 with a 2.86 ERA in 14 starts this season, striking out 90 with 28 walks in 85 innings. He has spent his entire six-year career with the Reds, going 44-53 with a 3.62 ERA In 137 starts.
The Mariners, who have not made a playoff appearance since 2001, are 54-47 this season, well behind AL West-leading Houston, but they own one of the three wild-card spots.
Castillo will anchor a rotation that already includes reigning AL Cy Young Award winner Robbie Ray and 10-game winner Logan Gilbert.
Aaron Judge's magical season continued on Friday night as he blasted another two home runs to help the New York Yankees defeat the Kansas City Royals 11-5 at Yankee Stadium.
New York got off to a perfect start in the first inning thanks to a 422-foot Anthony Rizzo solo homer, before Judge connected on his own monstrous 449-foot nuke in the third inning to make it 3-0.
It was smooth sailing for Yankees ace Gerrit Cole on the mound through four innings, but he struggled mightily in the fifth, giving up five runs after a three-run homer to Salvador Perez. Cole finished with five earned runs and nine strikeouts from his six innings of work.
The Royals' 5-3 lead would hold until the eighth inning, when newly acquired Andrew Benintendi trimmed the margin by one with his RBI infield single, before Aaron Hicks was gifted a bases-loaded walk to tie the game at 5-5.
Their damage in the eighth inning was far from done, with Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Jose Trevino driving in a run each, bringing Judge to the plate with bases loaded.
The American League MVP co-favourite took full advantage, crushing a grand slam to bring his RBI tally for the day up to six, putting a bow on the win.
His home runs were his 40th and 41st of the season – nine clear of second-placed Philadelphia Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber (32).
Mets get to Alcantara
Arguably the best pitcher in all of baseball this year, Miami Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara, had his worst start of the season as his side went down 6-4 at home against the New York Mets.
The NL Cy Young award favourite was clearly off from the beginning, needing 53 pitches to get through the first two innings, allowing four hits, three walks and three runs in the process.
With the game tied at 4-4 in the eighth inning, it was Mets lead-off hitter Brandon Nimmo who was the hero with a two-run home run, which proved to be the difference.
Alvarez stays hot for Houston
Yordan Alvarez may not have the home run total of Aaron Judge, but the Houston Astros All-Star has been statistically the best hitter in all of baseball this season, showing his talent in an 11-1 drubbing of the Seattle Mariners.
He got on-base from all five of his at-bats, finishing three-for-three at the plate with two walks, including his 30th home run of the season – third-most in the majors.
Incredibly, he leads the league in both on-base percentage (.423) and slugging percentage (.687).
The NBA has begun an investigation into a potential tampering violation by the Philadelphia 76ers and their signings of James Harden, P.J. Tucker and Danuel House Jr, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
The league is interested in the circumstances surrounding Harden declining his $47million player option to sign a two-year, $68m contract that includes a player option for the second year of the deal.
Questions have been raised about whether there was a handshake agreement in place on a future contract – which would be in violation of collective bargaining rules.
Harden’s decision to decline his option gave Philadelphia more flexibility to sign Tucker and House.
"Taking less money this year to sign as many players as we needed to help us contend and be the last team standing was very, very important to me," Harden said in an interview this month. "I wanted to show the organisation, the Sixers fans and everybody else who supports what we're trying to accomplish, what I'm trying to accomplish individually, that this is what I'm about."
Tucker signed a three-year, $30m contract, and House signed for $8.4m over two years. The 76ers were able to sign Tucker to the full mid-level exception and sign House to the bi-annual exception only because Harden declined his option.
According to the report, 76ers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey has already begun answering questions from league attorneys.
With tampering often a potential issue, the NBA approved stiffer penalties in 2019 and stripped a draft pick from the Chicago Bulls for early contact with Lonzo Ball in 2019, and the Miami Heat for doing the same with Kyle Lowry last summer.
One day after reaching a three-year, $72million contract extension with the Seattle Seahawks, wide receiver D.K. Metcalf came clean with his negotiating process.
"I was going to be here, as much as I bluffed to [general manager] John [Schneider]," Metcalf said. ''I wasn't leaving, just to let you all know. I wanted to be here. I wanted to play here and I'm glad that we got something done.''
Metcalf met the media Friday morning with Seahawks coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Schneider at his side.
"It was a stressful process, but glad that it’s over," Metcalf said.
According to reports, Metcalf’s deal includes a $30m signing bonus, the highest ever for a wide receiver. His $24m yearly average salary ties him with Buffalo’s Stefon Diggs as the NFL’s sixth-highest paid receiver.
"We had goals that we talked about, both on the team side and our side," Metcalf said. "But this is just an amazing moment to where I do get to help my family and the state of Mississippi and the surrounding communities for years to come."
Metcalf made $911,914 last season, when he had 75 receptions and a career-high 12 touchdown catches despite playing through a foot injury for most of the season.
His 3170 receiving yards are the most by any Seahawk in his first three seasons, while his 29 touchdowns over that span are one shy of the club record.
"It just hit me as I was sitting up here. I told my parents, and I was just smiling on the phone," he said. "My mom started crying, dad started crying, but I was just smiling. Then when I sat up here, it just hit me like, it’s here. D.K., it’s time for you to step up."
After he did not take part in last month’s mandatory mini-camp and watched the first two practices of training camp, Metcalf is expected to participate in the Seahawks’ next practice on Saturday.
"Seeing him to be so much more than just a football player is a great thrill for me," Carroll said. "Everybody talks about how he’s a great athlete, he’s a beast, he’s all this kind of stuff. I don’t like that talk about him. This guy, he’s a complete person and he has so much to offer."
Frances Tiafoe was an impressive winner of his quarter-final matchup against Brandon Nakashima in Friday's action at the Atlanta Open, cruising in straight sets 6-4 6-2.
Tiafoe, the fourth seed, was in control throughout, capitalising on a pair of double faults in the first set to grab the early break.
He also had a clear advantage with his second serve, winning 76 per cent of those opportunities (13-of-17) compared to 36 per cent for Nakashima (five-of-14).
Tiafoe will play Jenson Brooksby in the semi-final after he defeated big-serving 37-year-old John Isner 3-6 6-1 6-4.
Isner's serve was uncharacteristically vulnerable after the first set, winning 90 per cent of his successful first serves in the opener, before that number plummeted to 46 per cent in the second, and 59 per cent in the last.
Ilya Ivashka pulled off the upset of the day by knocking out fifth seed Tommy Paul, continuing a terrific run of form. Ivashka is now 7-3 from his past 10 matches, with his three-losses coming against superstars Stefanos Tsitsipas and Daniil Medvedev (twice).
He will play Australian Alex de Minaur in the other semi-final after he came from a set behind to run over the top of Adrian Mannarino 4-6 6-3 6-0.
Mannarino showed he has what it takes to compete with a top-30 talent like De Minaur, but the 34-year-old simply ran out of gas towards the end of the second set.
In the deciding set, De Minaur won 70 per cent of his points on serve (14-of-20) and 72 per cent of his return points (13-of-18).
Taylor Pendrith is heading into the weekend at the Rocket Mortgage Classic in great touch, following up his equal-best first round 64 with Friday's second-best score of 65 to head into the clubhouse at 15 under.
Pendrith was the field's best performer off the tee in his second trip around the course, gaining 2.28 strokes according to strokes gained data, collecting eight birdies and one bogey, including birdies on all four of the course's par-fives.
He was co-leader with Tony Finau after 18 holes, and Finau managed to stay in touch with a strong 66 to sit one shot off the pace. In uncharacteristic fashion, Finau was a top-five performer with the putter (3.02 strokes gained).
In outright third is Lee Hodges, two strokes further back after his second consecutive 66, and there is another two-stroke gap to the three-man group tied for fourth.
At 10 under is Russell Henley, Stewart Cink and Cameron Young, with the latter shooting the round of the day with his nine-under 63.
Young's incredible day included seven birdies and an eagle, posting the most strokes gained from tee-to-green (5.72), while also being third in approach shots (3.02) and 11th with his putter (2.35).
A strong international contingent is in the group with Patrick Cantlay at nine under rounding out the top-10, including Australia's Adam Scott, Germany's Stephan Jaeger and South Korea's Kim Si-woo.
England's Callum Tarren is one further back at eight under, compatriot Matt Wallace is at seven under, and fellow Englishman Danny Willett is at six under.
Reigning champion of this event Cam Davis finished right on the cut-line at three under, with Kevin Kisner and Davis Riley narrowly missing out.
New signing Henrik Stenson is tied for the lead after the first round of LIV Golf Bedminster, shooting a seven-under 64 in his first event since committing to the controversial tour.
Stenson – who was stripped of his position as Ryder Cup captain due to his decision to leave the PGA Tour – collected eight birdies and one bogey, and helped his team Majesticks GC to second in the team standings at 10 under.
Tied for the individual lead is Patrick Reed, who also leads the team standings by one stroke along with his 4 Aces GC teammates Dustin Johnson, Pat Perez and Talor Gooch.
Alone in third place is Thailand's 23-year-old Phachara Khongwatmai at five under, and he is one stroke ahead of both Johnson and Carlos Ortiz, rounding out the top-five.
Martin Kaymer, Ian Poulter, Brooks Koepka and Charles Howell III are all one shot further back at three under, while Lee Westwood headlines the group at two under, and Sergio Garcia is in the logjam at one under.
Bryson DeChambeau finished at even par after a late double-bogey, Louis Oosthuizen is at two over after posting a seven on the par-three seventh hole, and there are only three players below Phil Mickelson after he struggled to four over with five bogeys and one birdie.
Roberto Bautista Agut beat Albert Ramos-Vinolas in straight sets to reach the Austrian Open final, but the Spaniard must wait until Saturday to discover his opponent.
Third seed Bautista Agut proved too strong for compatriot Ramos-Vinolas as he prevailed 6-3 7-6 (7-3) in a little over two hours, despite squandering three match points.
The world number 20 now can now look forward to a first clay-court final since suffering defeat to Matteo Berrettini at the 2018 Swiss Open Gstaad.
However, the other semi-final between Yannick Hanfmann and home wild card Filip Misolic was dramatically suspended in a third-set tie-break due to heavy rain.
Misolic, who had earlier beaten Dusan Lajovic in a clash delayed from Thursday, led 1-0 in the breaker against Hanfmann when play was halted and ultimately called off until Saturday.
The final between Bautista Agut and either Hanfmann or Misolic is still scheduled to go ahead as planned shortly after that second semi-final concludes.
At the Croatian Open, defending champion Carlos Alcaraz beat Facundo Bagnis 6-0 6-4 and will now face Giulio Zeppieri, who saw off Bernabe Zapata Miralles in straight sets.
Jannik Sinner is also through to his first semi-final of 2022 after beating Roberto Carballes Baena 6-4 7-6 (7-5), with Franco Agamenone up next after overcoming Marco Cecchinato.
Iga Swiatek's lengthy unbeaten run on clay was brought to a surprise end by Caroline Garcia at the Poland Open on Friday.
The world number one succumbed to a 6-1 1-6 6-4 defeat to the fifth seed, who ended the French Open champion's 18-match winning streak on the dirt.
It was Garcia's first win over a top-ranked player and sent her into a semi-final against Jasmine Paolini after the Italian came from behind to beat Viktorija Golubic 1-6 6-2 6-2.
Swiatek said: "Maybe I wasn't as disciplined as in previous tournaments, but I'm happy. I felt like my brain didn't intuitively predict where the ball would go, but I'm still learning, right?
"The first two sets depended on her – whether or not she would be in control. At the end of the second she lost control and took advantage.
"In the third set, she got back to her game. But if I had a better first serve percentage, maybe it would have been different.
"I don't know what decision I will make next year. Maybe longer preparation [on clay] will be necessarily, or maybe I'll give up this tournament. We'll see."
Kateryna Baindl became the first lucky loser to reach a WTA Tour semi-final this year by overcoming Petra Martic 1-6 6-3 6-4. Next up for Baindl is Ana Bogdan, who beat Laura Pigossi 6-1 6-1.
World number two Anett Kontaveit was also on the receiving end of an upset, going down 6-1 6-1 to Anastasia Potapova in 49 minutes at the Prague Open.
Potapova will take on qualifier Wang Qiang for a place in the final, with Czech pair Marie Bouzkova and Linda Noskova – only the second female player born after 2004 to reach the last four of a WTA Tour tournament – in action on the other side of the draw.
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes addressed the infamous "study clause" in Kyler Murray's contract on Friday, saying it is "weird" how black quarterbacks are criticised in the NFL.
Murray made headlines earlier this week when it was revealed his five-year, $230.5million contract extension with the Arizona Cardinals contained a clause requiring him to independently watch at least four hours of game film per week during the season.
After the report surfaced, Murray made an impassioned defense of his work ethic, and the Cardinals announced on Thursday that the addendum was removed from his contract.
"Obviously, the black quarterback has had to battle to be in this position that we are to have this many guys in the league playing," Mahomes said after a camp practice.
"Every day, we're proving that we should have been playing the whole time.
"We've got guys that can think just as well as they can use their athleticism. It's always weird when you see guys like me, Lamar [Jackson], Kyler kind of get that on them when other guys don't.
"But at the same time, we're going out there to prove ourselves every day to show we can be some of the best quarterbacks in the league."
However, Mahomes noted all NFL quarterbacks feel pressure to prove their worth.
"You always feel like you have more to prove," he said. "I promise Tom Brady is feeling like he has more to prove.
"That comes with any sport, any competitor. If you're not getting better, you're getting worse. They build you up to tear you down. You've got to kind of know that.
"For me, it's all about how I can make myself better, not what other people say. How can I make myself better so that we go out there and play football games?
"At the end of the day, nothing matters until you're on that football field playing, and that's where you get to prove who you are every single day."
Two-time Masters winner Bubba Watson has become the latest player to sign with the LIV Golf Invitational Series.
Watson has been out of action since the US PGA Championship due to a knee injury and will be a non-playing captain in the Saudi-backed circuit's next tournament in Boston.
The 43-year-old has managed just one top-three finish over the past four seasons, which came at the Waste Management Open in 2020.
LIV Golf CEO and commissioner Greg Norman said: "Bubba Watson is a tremendous addition to LIV Golf – another major champion joining the growing list of stars on our teams.
"His game combines the power, innovation and excitement that the LIV Golf brand represents.
"He's a risk-taker who has cemented his name among the world's very best and we're eager for him to come aboard to bring new energy and audiences to this league."
Brooks Koepka and Henrik Stenson have also recently signed with LIV Golf, with the latter being stripped of the captaincy of Europe's Ryder Cup team as a result.
The series this week announced it will expand in 2023, taking the number of tournaments to 25 with a Team World Championship match play finale at the end of the season.
Max Verstappen thinks it will be impossible for Red Bull to challenge Ferrari in dry conditions at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Reigning Formula One champion Verstappen could only manage fourth in the second free practice session on Friday, with Charles Leclerc almost three tenths of a second quicker.
Rain is forecast for qualifying on Saturday and the Dutchman believes it will be essential for him to have any chance of pushing the Scuderia all the way.
"A bit tricky as expected around here. Just trying to find a balance from high to low speed," said Verstappen.
"Sometimes it worked a bit better, sometimes a bit more tricky but a bit of work to do.
"I think [Ferrari] are a bit ahead of us. I think it will be hard for us to beat that. But I think overnight we will try to close the gap as much as we can and see what the weather will give us as well.
"I think in the dry we can't compete, so maybe in the rain we can, who knows?"
After the disappointment of crashing out from the French Grand Prix last weekend, Leclerc felt Ferrari were on "the right road" with their race simulations.
"It's been a very productive day, changed quite a lot of things on the car on my side," said Leclerc. "FP1 was quite tricky, FP2 we took the right road so confident that we did the right work for Sunday.
"It looks like it's going to rain [on Saturday] so we have to be on top of this and obviously put the tyres in the right window, which is always a difficult thing whenever it's raining.
"This will be our main priority, but hopefully if we manage to put them in the right window, we will still have this advantage."
Jamaica's leading international drivers, Fraser McConnell & Sara Misir, will be in action this weekend in Europe.
McConnell will compete in the Swedish leg of the Nitro RX Series, while Misir will be on the grid in rounds 15 to 18 of the GT Cup at Silverstone Circuit in the UK.
Both meets are this Saturday and Sunday, July 30 and 31.
McConnell occupies first place in the combustion engine supercar class but hopes to better his fourth place in the group E electric class. He is joined in Group E by four-time Rallycross world champion Johan Kristofferson.
Fraser thinks this is an excellent opportunity to learn from his teammate.
"I will be all eyes and ears learning from Johan since he's a four-time World Champion. I'll use him as a benchmark to measure my performance and progress."
Meanwhile, Sara Misir and teammate Steph Sore, who crossed the group finish line in 8th place in round 13 before having mechanical issues in round 14, will be looking to rebound at Silverstone.
"It feels surreal to compete at Silverstone; it is such a popular f1 circuit. We have been testing a few days now, and we're aiming for a strong start which is important for us."
Action from the NitroRX will be live on SportsMax, while the GT Cup is available on YouTube ( https://www.youtube.com/c/GTCupUK).
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers reportedly expect Pro Bowl center Ryan Jensen to be out for the upcoming season, with head coach Todd Bowles confirming he will miss "significant time".
Jensen, Tampa Bay's starting center since 2018, was carted off after suffering a left knee injury during Thursday's training camp practice.
Bowles told reporters on Friday the team were still awaiting test results on Jensen's knee, but a lengthy absence is anticipated for Tom Brady's protector.
"We don't know the severity of it per se, but I do know he'll miss some significant time, up to a couple of months," Bowles said.
"Whether he'll be back later in the season, November or December, that depends on what they find. He won't be available anytime soon."
Jensen's extended absence adds another question mark to an interior offensive line that was already an area of concern for Tampa Bay entering camp due to the departures of 2021 starting guards Ali Marpet and Alex Cappa.
Marpet retired in February, and Cappa signed with the defending AFC champion Cincinnati Bengals in the offseason, although the Bucs did trade for Shaq Mason from the New England Patriots to take over at right guard.
Jensen has not missed a game since signing with Tampa Bay in 2018 following a four-year stint with the Baltimore Ravens, and he was named to his first career Pro Bowl last season.
The 31-year-old re-signed with the Bucs in March on a three-year, $39million contract that includes $23m in guarantees.
The Buccaneers currently do not have any other players with starting experience at center. Robert Hainsey, a 2021 third-round pick who saw just 31 offensive snaps as a rookie, took over the position following Jensen's injury.
Los Angeles Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani has begun fielding questions about his future as his club appears to be destined for another lost season.
Speaking through translator Ippei Mizuhara after the Angels' 2-0 loss to the Texas Rangers on Thursday, Ohtani was asked if he wanted to stay in Los Angeles through next week's trade deadline.
"Regardless of where I'm playing, I'm going to give it my all and try to win that ballgame in front of me," Ohtani said. "I'm with the Angels right now, and I'm very thankful for what they've done. I love my team and my team-mates.
"Right now I'm an Angel, and that's all I can focus on."
Ohtani (9-6) took the loss on Thursday, scattering eight hits and punching out 11 hitters over six innings but allowing both Texas runs.
Los Angeles fell to 42-57, 22.5 games back of the Houston Astros in the AL West and 11 games out of a Wild Card spot.
The reigning AL MVP has spent each of his five MLB seasons with the Angels, never finishing above .500.
The Angels last appeared in the postseason in 2014 and haven't won a playoff game since 2009.
While Ohtani is not thought to be a serious candidate to be traded ahead of the August 2 deadline, the 28-year-old star is scheduled to become a free agent after next season.
The Arizona Cardinals have removed a controversial "independent study" clause from Kyler Murray's new contract after the quarterback gave an impassioned response to questions about his preparation and work ethic.
NFL.com reported the addendum to the five-year, $230.5million extension earlier this week.
The clause stipulated that the two-time Pro Bowler must watch a minimum of four hours of game film on his own every week during the season over the life of the deal, and the Cardinals could void the contract if Murray did not meet the terms of the agreement.
"After seeing the distraction it created, we removed the addendum from the contract," the Cardinals have now said in a statement. "It was clearly perceived in ways that were never intended.
"Our confidence in Kyler Murray is as high as it's ever been and nothing demonstrates our belief in his ability to lead this team more than the commitment reflected in this contract."
The public revelation of the clause prompted the usually reserved Murray to call an unscheduled press conference on Thursday in which the 2019 number one overall pick lashed out against suggestions he was not properly preparing for his duties.
"I refuse to let my work ethic, my preparation be in question," Murray stated. "I've put in incomprehensible amount of time and blood, sweat and tears and work into what I do.
"To those of you out there who believe that I'd be standing here today in front of you all without having a work ethic and without preparing – I'm honoured that you think that, but it doesn't exist. It's not possible.
"To think that I can accomplish everything that I've accomplished in my career and not be a student of the game and not have that passion, not take this seriously is almost... it's disrespectful and it's almost a joke."
Murray agreed to the extension, which will make him the NFL's second-highest-paid player in terms of average annual salary behind only two-time reigning league MVP Aaron Rodgers, last week. The contract contains $160m in guarantees and will run from 2024 through 2028.
The 2018 Heisman Trophy winner is coming off his best season in which he finished second in the NFL in completion percentage (69.2) and posted a career-high 100.6 passer rating while helping the Cardinals reach the playoffs for the first time since 2015.
Murray's play dropped off during the second half of the year, however, and he also struggled with a no-touchdown, two-interception performance in the Cardinals' 34-11 loss to the Los Angeles Rams in the opening round of the playoffs.
Arizona began last season 7-0 but lost five of the 24-year-old's next seven starts, with Murray producing an 86.5 passer rating during that stretch after recording a 116.8 rating over the first seven games.
NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley will not be signing a contract with LIV Golf.
The legendary 59-year-old met LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman last week to discuss the prospect of becoming an announcer at events on the controversial breakaway tour.
Barkley on Thursday played in the pro-am at the Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in New Jersey, where the third LIV competition started on Friday.
The 11-time NBA All-Star said he had not been made an offer to work on the Saudi-backed LIV Golf series, but stated: "I'm in a win-win situation. If they offer me something good, that's great. If they don't, I've got a great job at TNT."
Barkley on Friday revealed that he will be remaining loyal to TNT.
He told the New York Post: "I want to thank Greg Norman and LIV for their interest in me. I wish those guys great success and nothing but the best.
"But, in my best interest, and being fair to Turner - because Turner and basketball have given me every single thing in my life - it is best for me to move on and I'm staying with Turner for the rest of my TV career."
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