Atlanta grabbed a quarterback to help ease the loss of Michael Vick and Oakland snagged star rusher Darren McFadden with some of the top selections in Saturday’s National Football League draft.
Boston College quarterback Matt Ryan went third overall to the Falcons, who lost Michael Vick to prison when the star signal caller was convicted of financing a dogfight scheme.
The Raiders chose McFadden next, ignoring off-field incidents to pick perhaps the top offensive player available in the field. McFadden ran for 1,830 yards last season for the University of Arkansas.
The collegiate star scoring threats were taken after linemen went with the top two choices, although the usual suspense was swiped from the No. 1 selection thanks to offensive tackle Jake Long signing on Tuesday with Miami.
The University of Michigan standout will be the key blocker protecting the blind side of the Dolphins quarterback after agreeing to a five-year deal worth US$57.5 million that includes US$30 million in guaranteed money.
Long became only the third offensive tackle selected with the top pick, following Ron Yary in 1968 and Orlando Pace in 1997.
The St. Louis Rams made Chris Long, a defensive end from the University of Virginia, the second selection. The son of NFL Hall of Fame defensive end Howie Long made 14 sacks and 79 tackles last season.
Other top selections saw defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey go fifth to Kansas City, defensive end Vernon Gholston chosen sixth by the New York Jets and defensive tackle Sedrick Ellis selected seventh by New Orleans after a trade with New England.
Jacksonville made a deal with Baltimore for the eighth pick, taking defensive end Derrick Harvey, while linebacker Keith Rivers went ninth to Cincinnati and New England tabbed linebacker Jerod Mayo 10th.
Elena Rybakina’s Kazakhstan yesterday dumped defending champions Germany out of the United Cup with world No. 2 Alexander Zverev sidelined by an arm injury barely a week away from the Australian Open. The upset in Perth sent the Kazakhs into the semi-finals of the 18-nation tournament. In Sydney, women’s world No. 2 Iga Swiatek led Poland into the last eight by winning a rematch of her 2023 French Open final against Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic. Britain also progressed to the quarter-finals with Katie Boulter’s dominant 6-2, 6-1 victory over Australia’s Olivia Gadecki enough to guarantee they won their group. The US and
HAT-TRICK PREP: World No. 1 Sabalenka clinched her first win of the season, as she aims to become the first woman in 20 years to win three Australian Opens in succession Coco Gauff, Jasmine Paolini and Taylor Fritz yesterday all clocked impressive wins as tennis powerhouses Italy and the US surged into the quarter-finals of the mixed-team United Cup. World No. 3 Gauff swept past Croatia’s Donna Vekic 6-4, 6-2 to avenge a loss at the Paris Olympics, while Fritz took care of Borna Coric 6-3, 6-2 in searing Perth heat. That was enough to put the Americans — last year’s winners — into a last-eight clash with China today, while Elena Rybakina’s Kazakhstan today are to meet defending champions Germany, led by Alexander Zverev, in the other Perth quarter-final. In Sydney, the in-form
Taiwanese e-sports team Ban Mei Gaming (BMG) claimed second place at this year’s Arena of Valor International Championship (AIC 2024) in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, after losing to the Thai team Bacon Time (BAC) in the finals on Sunday In the final match, BMG faced BAC, who finished top in the winners’ bracket, but lost 0-4. However, BMG still walked away with US$100,000 in prize money for finishing runners-up. The AIC 2024 began with 16 teams competing in the Swiss Stage, where teams played up to five rounds. Those securing three wins advanced to the Knockout Stage, while teams
Japan’s national high-school soccer tournament is thriving after more than 100 years, attracting huge crowds, millions watching on TV and breeding future stars, despite professional clubs trying to attract young talent. The annual tournament kicked off on Saturday and is still regarded as the pinnacle of amateur soccer with young players dreaming of playing in the final in front of tens of thousands at the National Stadium in Tokyo. Matches are a massive occasion for the whole school as student cheering squads wave flags, bang drums and roar on their teams in a spectacle of noise and color. “All the
RSS