Wednesday's Sports in Brief

Thu, Nov 25, 2021
Other News (AP)

PRO FOOTBALL

EAGAN, Minn. (AP) - The Minnesota Vikings said defensive end Everson Griffen emerged from his home without incident and was receiving care for his mental health after he called 911 fearing an intruder and spent most of Wednesday refusing to leave while law enforcement and team representatives tried to diffuse the situation.

The Vikings sent psychologists to Griffen's house to work with police on guiding him through another alarming mental health situation. The team released a statement in the afternoon, about 12 hours after Griffen's initial 911 call, confirming they'd been notified by authorities that the situation "ended peacefully" with Griffen coming out.

The Vikings cited the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office, the Carver County Sheriff's Office, the Minnetrista Police Department and the Orono Police Department for their "quick response and dedication" to ensuring Griffen stayed safe.

"Our focus remains on Everson's health and safety and providing the proper resources for him and his family," the Vikings said.

Griffen, who took a leave from the team in 2018 for mental health treatment, had posted on Instagram screenshots of middle-of-the-night text messages to his agent, Brian Murphy, that were pleas for help because he said people were trying to kill him. Griffen also posted a video depicting him with a gun that he said was purchased legally. Those posts have since been deleted.

ST. LOUIS (AP) - The NFL and Rams owner Stan Kroenke will pay $790 million to settle a lawsuit filed by St. Louis interests over the team's relocation to Los Angeles, a joint statement from St. Louis city and county said.

No details of the settlement were released, and it wasn't immediately clear how much would be paid by Kroenke and how much would be covered by owners of the league's 31 other teams.

"This historic agreement closes a long chapter for our region, securing hundreds of millions of dollars for our communities while avoiding the uncertainty of the trial and appellate process," read a statement from St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones and St. Louis County Executive Sam Page.

St. Louis-area officials haven't determined yet how the settlement funds will be used, the statement said.

An NFL spokesman, in a brief statement, said the league and the St. Louis interests "have been able to fully resolve the dispute."

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) - Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers says his toe injury is a fracture and added that he doesn't expect the situation to cause him to miss any games.

Rodgers has been playing with the toe injury each of the past two games after missing a 13-7 loss at Kansas City because of a positive COVID-19 test. The reigning MVP said the injury occurred while working out at home during his quarantine.

The NFC North-leading Packers (8-3) host the Los Angeles Rams (7-3) on Sunday and then have the next week off.

He offered more details Wednesday to dispute a report that he had "COVID toe," a name that's been given to a condition causing lesions among some people who test positive for COVID-19.

While discussing his health Tuesday on "The Pat McAfee Show" on YouTube and SiriusXM, Rodgers said he "didn't have any lingering effects other than the COVID toe," but he was smirking as he made that comment.

When he was asked about it Wednesday, Rodgers revealed his bare left foot during his Zoom session with reporters.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Michigan State is giving Mel Tucker a $95 million, 10-year contract, making an aggressive move to keep a football coach who potentially could have left for LSU or the NFL.

The 12th-ranked Spartans (9-2, 6-2 Big Ten) close the regular season against Penn State (7-4, 4-4) on Saturday at home.

Tucker's contract establishes him one of the riches coaches in college football.

Only Alabama's Nick Saban, one of his mentors, who makes $9,753,221 a year, is paid more on an annual basis, according to the USA Today coaches' salaries database.

Tucker's 10-year deal puts him in select company with two coaches with the same term: Clemson's Dabo Swinney and Texas A&M's Jimbo Fisher. Swinney's contract is worth $92 million and Fisher's deal will pay him more than $9 plus million a year, starting in 2022.

Tucker's deal that expires Jan. 15, 2032, will have a $5.9 million base salary, $3.2 million in supplemental compensation for media and personal appearances along with a $400,000 contingent annual bonus.

BASEBALL

NEW YORK (AP) - Mets owner Steve Cohen criticized pitcher Steven Matz for reaching an agreement with the St. Louis Cardinals rather than New York.

"I'm not happy this morning. I've never seen such unprofessional behavior exhibited by a player's agent. I guess words and promises don't matter," Cohen wrote Wednesday on Twitter.

Matz and the Cardinals have agreed to a $44 million, four-year contract, a deal subject to a successful physical.

"We handle things the right way and so does Steven," Rob Martin, the pitcher's agent, wrote in a text to The Associated Press. "He was very interested in the possibility of returning to the Mets but at the end of the day, it didn't quite happen. That's all. There were a lot of very successful and hallmark franchises involved in offering him and it was a tough decision. However, he's excited about the next chapter of his career in STL and so are we."

Matz, a 30-year-old left-hander who is from Long Island, pitched for the Mets from 2015-20 and was traded to Toronto last January. He went a career-best 14-7 with a 3.82 ERA in 29 starts for the Blue Jays, then became a free agent.