Ireland fly-half Johnny Sexton will retire after the 2023 World Cup despite signing a new deal with Irish Rugby.
The 36-year-old, who earned his 100th cap in November and won the 2018 World Player of the Year, wants to go out on a high at next year's World Cup in France.
Irish Rugby confirmed on Tuesday that Sexton had signed a new contract up until the 2023 event but the 103-cap veteran said he would finish up after that.
“Yeah, finished, 2023 World Cup – it’s up to me to work hard, get the body and mind in the best shape possible and attack the last 18 months,” he said.
“I’m still very driven to get there and perform at the World Cup. 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.
“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.”
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.
Brooklyn Nets head coach Steve Nash has confirmed Ben Simmons will be with the team on the bench for Thursday's return game against the Philadelphia 76ers.
Simmons is expected to receive a frosty reception from the 76ers fans at the Wells Fargo Center as he returns for the first time since last month's trade to the Nets.
The point guard had a major fallout with the 76ers after a nightmare playoffs period, leading to him requesting a trade and opting not to play all season until a trade was finalised in February.
Nash said Simmons, who is yet to debut for Brooklyn, will not play for the Nets on Thursday but will be in attendance with the team which he felt he needed to get out of the way.
"It's great," Nash told reporters prior to Tuesday's game against the Charlotte Hornets.
"He's on our team, he needs to be with his teammates and get the whole Philly thing out of the way a little bit. Maybe it never goes away, but the first time it's always nice to kind of deal with it and move on."
He added: "I don't think he's naive to think he's not going to get some boos. I hope he enjoys it. It's a part of the game I miss."
Simmons has not played since his trade due to a back complaint which has hampered his ability to get reconditioned to game standard having not played all season.
Nash was not clear-cut on Simmons' likely debut, with the Australian still not cleared to practice.
"It's to be determined," Nash said. "I think he's progressing this week, but I don't know what that means as far as Saturday.
"He'll see us [Wednesday] in Philly. I don't think he's ready for 5-on-5 basketball but he's improving, working out, and he'll join us in Philly, and a few good days of rehab."
The Green Bay Packers have kept the Aaron Rodgers-Davante Adams band together.
On the day that it was confirmed Rodgers would be staying with Green Bay, the Packers also moved to keep hold of his favourite target Adams, franchise tagging him before the deadline on Tuesday.
It means he will at least play 2022 under a one-year franchise tender, and gives the Packers until July 15 to negotiate a long-term deal.
Adams has established himself as arguably the premier wide receiver in the NFL in recent years, topping 1,000 yards in three of the last four seasons.
He racked up a career-high 1,553 yards while also scoring 11 receiving touchdowns in 2021 as the Packers clinched the top seed in the NFC playoffs with a 13-4 record, only to lose in the Divisional Round of the playoffs to the San Francisco 49ers.
Recording a burn, which is when a receiver wins his matchup with a defender on a play where he is targeted, on 65.6 per cent of his targets (the 2021 average for receivers with at least 100 targets was 62), Adams finished the year fifth among wideouts with an average of 3.5 burn yards per target.
In other words, he was again one of the NFL's elite when it came to creating clear separation from defenders, and the Packers will hope they can come to a long-term arrangement that ensures he will be doing so for Green Bay for many years to come.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have again utilised the franchise tag to keep Chris Godwin on the roster, doing so for the second year in a row.
Godwin was tagged last season following the Buccaneers' victory in Super Bowl LV, with Tampa Bay then unable to reach a long-term deal with the wide receiver.
Despite having his 2021 season curtailed by injury, the Bucs still see Godwin as a key cog as they plot a path to staying competitive following Tom Brady's retirement.
They have, therefore, taken the step of tagging him again, giving Tampa Bay until July 15 to negotiate a long-term deal with Godwin.
The odds of them succeeding in that aim appear better than in 2021, as the Bucs and Godwin's representatives have reportedly already been working on a deal between the two sides.
Godwin will play under a one-year, $19.18million franchise tender if he does not sign a long-term contract with Tampa Bay by the deadline.
Though his 2021 campaign was ended by a torn anterior cruciate ligament suffered in Week 15 against the New Orleans Saints, Godwin still finished the year with 98 receptions for 1,103 yards - both career highs - and five touchdowns.
According to Stats Perform data, Godwin registered a burn, which is when a receiver wins his matchup with a defender on a play where he is targeted, on 70.4 per cent of his targets. That ratio was third-best in the NFL among wideouts behind team-mate Mike Evans (72.7) and Tyreek Hill (70.8).
With a multi-year contract potentially on the horizon, the Bucs are banking on Godwin recovering from his injury and maintaining that kind of form in an era where he and Evans may need to elevate whoever is handed the difficult challenge of filling Brady's shoes.
Aaron Rodgers has confirmed he will return to the Green Bay Packers next season but denied signing a contract and refuted the alleged figures involved.
NFL Network on Tuesday reported that Rodgers had agreed a four-year, $200million deal with Green Bay to make him the highest-paid player in NFL history.
The quarterback was said to be receiving $153m guaranteed while giving the Packers room in the salary cap, which would have opened the door for the franchise tag to be placed on Davante Adams.
Reigning MVP Rodgers took to Twitter to confirm he would be back on the field for the Packers next season. However, he claimed the details that had been reported were "inaccurate".
"Hey everyone, just wanted to clear some things up; YES I will be playing with the @packers next year," Rodgers posted.
"However, reports about me signing a contract are inaccurate, as are the supposed terms of the contract I 'signed'.
"I'm very excited to be back. #year18"
Rodgers was named MVP after throwing for 4,115 yards, 37 touchdowns and just four interceptions in the 2021 season. He ended the campaign ranked first in the NFL in touchdown percentage (7.0), interception percentage (0.8) and passer rating (111.9).
Mike Williams has reportedly agreed a three-year, $60million deal to stay with the Los Angeles Chargers.
According to ESPN, the wide receiver will sign a contract that includes $40m guaranteed and $28m in the first year.
Williams, who was drafted seventh overall in 2017 by the Chargers, had been heading for free agency but will be in Los Angeles when he begins his sixth year in the league.
The wideout had a career-high 1,146 yards on 76 receptions in the 2021 season, the 12th best total in the league.
The Chargers were expected to give Williams the franchise tag if an agreement could not be reached on a new contract.
Phil Mickelson "doesn't owe the game of golf anything" and should be allowed to apologise and move on from his recent comments, Justin Thomas says.
The six-time major winner claimed a proposed Saudi Arabia-backed Super Golf League could give players "leverage" as a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity" to "reshape how the PGA Tour operates".
The American suggested he and others had paid lawyers to construct the proposed breakaway competition's agreement, despite acknowledging Saudi Arabia has "a horrible record on human rights".
Mickelson later apologised for what he described as "reckless" comments following huge criticism and is now taking a break from the sport.
Rory McIlroy insisted last week that the players want to see Mickelson return and that he should be forgiven for his remarks.
Thomas, the former world number one and 2017 US PGA Championship winner, has echoed McIlroy and says he hopes Mickelson is "doing okay".
"I mean, there's plenty of people who are like, 'Look, [Phil Mickelson] said some things that he shouldn't have said'. And everybody does stuff like that," said Thomas.
"He should be able to apologise and move on. I think a lot of people are probably just a little upset with how it's happened or how he went about it.
"But I mean, at the end of the day, he's proven himself in the game of golf. He doesn't owe the game of golf anything. He's done plenty for it and for us. But now I just think it's more of what he wants, you know, if he wants to try to come back and play a certain number of events, or if he wants to try to create his own thing or do whatever he's got to do.
"Nobody knows what's going on inside of Phil's head besides Phil, and I think the last couple of weeks have proven that more than ever.
"Hopefully, he's doing okay. But it definitely was a bit of a shock for all of us with some of the things that he said. I guess he’ll just come back whenever he feels like he's ready."
Thomas is in action at The Players Championship this week, looking to defend the title he won in Florida last year.
The Denver Broncos have agreed in principle a trade to acquire Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, according to multiple reports.
The Broncos had been viewed as a potential destination for Aaron Rodgers, but any talk of the reigning NFL MVP moving to Denver was put to bed when it was reported he had agreed a record-breaking four-year, $200million contract extension to stay with the Green Bay Packers.
Instead, it is Wilson who looks set to take his career to Denver after the Broncos agreed to send multiple first-round picks, as well as additional selections and players to the Seahawks to land the nine-time Pro Bowler, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero.
ESPN's Adam Schefter reported the trade is pending a physical and Wilson's approval, and that Broncos quarterback Drew Lock is part of the deal.
The Denver Broncos have agreed in principle a trade to acquire Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, according to multiple reports.
Andy Murray has pledged to donate his prize money for the remainder of 2022 to children affected by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The conflict has led to more than two million people fleeing the country over the past two weeks, according to figures released by the United Nations.
Tennis' governing bodies, the ATP, WTA, and International Tennis Federation (ITF), as well as the four grand slam organisers, announced on Tuesday that they are to donate a total of $700,000 to help humanitarian efforts in Ukraine.
Three-time major winner Murray is also doing his bit by working closely with UNICEF – the world's leading organisation helping children in danger – to provide medical supplies and development kits.
"Over 7.5m children are at risk with the escalating conflict in Ukraine," Murray posted on his personal Twitter page.
"It's vital education continues, so UNICEF is working to enable access to learning for displaced children, as well as supporting the rehabilitation of damaged schools, together with replacement equipment and furniture.
"I'm going to be donating my earnings from my prize money for the rest of the year, but anyone in the UK can support UNICEF's humanitarian response by donating to our appeal."
Ukraine's Dayana Yastremska donated her prize money from last week's run to the Lyon Open final, where she lost in three sets to Zhang Shuai, to help her home country.
Dak Prescott has had his contract with the Dallas Cowboys restructured.
After seeing his 2020 season cut short by injury, Prescott played 16 times in 2021, as the Cowboys clinched the NFC East with a 12-5 record.
The quarterback led a prolific offense that finished the season with a league-high 530 points, yet the Cowboys fell short in the playoffs, losing to the San Francisco 49ers in the Wild Card round.
Prescott's tally of 4,449 passing yards ranked seventh in the NFL, while his completion percentage of 68.8 was fourth and only three quarterbacks threw for more touchdowns than his 37.
In 2021, the 28-year-old restructured his franchise-record $160million deal to create space for the salary cap and it is a similar story this time around.
With a $208.2m cap announced on Monday, teams have until March 16 to create financial wiggle room and the new structure of Prescott's deal will result in roughly $15m being saved before the start of free agency.
Five-time All Pro Zack Martin has also had his deal restructured, which will give the team an additional $7m in cap space.
The restructuring of the deals sees a portion of the players' salaries for 2022 being converted into signing bonuses.
Dallas needed the space after placing a $10.9m franchise tag on tight end Dalton Schultz.
Only four tight ends scored more than Schultz's eight receiving touchdowns last season, as he racked up a career-high 808 receiving yards.
However, Dallas will still need to make more changes to get under the cap.
According to reports, defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence has declined a pay cut, while Blake Jarwin has also been approached by Dallas to take a hit on his salary.
ESPN, meanwhile, reported that Amari Cooper is likely to be released, which would free up $20m in cap space.
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."
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