NFL
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) Tom Brady said he will not ask the U.S. Supreme Court to block his four-game ”Deflategate” suspension, ending his fight in a scandal that tested the power of the NFL commissioner and tarnished the reputation of one of the sport’s greatest players.
The decision by the four-time Super Bowl champion comes two days after his case was turned aside by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Brady’s only remaining hope to take the field when the Patriots open the season against Arizona on Sept. 11 had been a stay from the nation’s highest court, which accepts about 1 percent of the appeals submitted.
The NFL Players Association said it was still considering whether to seek on its own a Supreme Court ruling that would limit Commissioner Roger Goodell’s authority to punish players. Dropping the case now would leave in place what the union called this week a ”broken system that must be fixed.”
But even if the union fights on, Brady will still sit out the first four games of the season, when the Patriots face the Cardinals, Dolphins, Texans and Bills. Backup Jimmy Garoppolo, who has spent the last two years as the backup, is expected to start for New England instead.
NEW YORK (AP) – Von Miller got a monstrous contract, befitting a sack-happy Super Bowl MVP. Muhammad Wilkerson and Justin Tucker also received big paydays, shedding their franchise tags and getting new deals.
Kirk Cousins, Alshon Jeffery, Eric Berry and Trumaine Johnson, however, will all be playing this season under the value of their tags after they and their teams failed to agree on long-term contracts by the NFL’s 4 p.m. EDT deadline.
Miller signed a blockbuster six-year, $114.5 million contract with the Denver Broncos that includes $70 million in guarantees and makes him the highest-paid nonquarterback in NFL history. The blockbuster deal includes a $23 million signing bonus and will pay Miller $61 million over the first eight months.
Wilkerson signed a five-year extension worth more than $85 million, including $37 million in guarantees through the first two years, according to a person familiar with the contract. Through three years of the deal, Wilkerson will be paid $54 million in guaranteed money.
NEW YORK (AP) – San Francisco 49ers linebacker Aaron Lynch has been suspended for the first four regular-season games for violating the NFL Policy and Program for Substances of Abuse.
Lynch is eligible to participate in all offseason and preseason practices and games. He will be eligible to return to the 49ers’ active roster Oct. 3.
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) – Second-year running back Karlos Williams of the Buffalo Bills has been suspended for the first four games of the regular season for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy.
Williams will be eligible to return to the Bills active roster on Oct. 3, the day after the Bills play at New England. He will be allowed to participate in training camp and preseason games. The suspension will begin the Monday of Week 1 of the regular season.
GOLF
TROON, Scotland (AP) – Phil Mickelson hit a wedge that spun back toward the cup until it stopped about two postage stamps away on the par-3 eighth hole, the signature shot in his 2-under 69 that allowed him to back up his record-tying start at the British Open and take the 36-hole lead in a major for the first time in three years.
Henrik Stenson made three straight birdies before the wind showed up and the clouds began to spit rain. He added two more during lulls in the increasingly bad weather. And he wound up with a round-best 65 that enabled him to close within one shot of Mickelson. Many players had to endure an afternoon of gusts that topped 30 mph and rain so heavy at times it was hard to see.
Mickelson was at 10-under 132, the best 36-hole total ever to lead at Royal Troon. Soren Kjeldsen and Keegan Bradley each shot 68 and were in third, three shots behind.
OPELIKA, Ala. (AP) – Jhonattan Vegas shot a course-record 11-under 60, making a hole-in-one, another eagle and two closing birdies to take a six-stroke lead in the Barbasol Championship.
Tied for the first-round lead with Angel Cabrera after a 65, Vegas had a 17-under 125 total – a shot off the PGA Tour record for strokes in the first two rounds.
Hudson Swafford was second at 11 under after a 63.
SYLVANIA, Ohio (AP) – Lydia Ko shot a 5-under 66 in windy conditions for a share of the Marathon Classic lead with Hyo Joo Kim.
The top-ranked Ko, the 2014 tournament winner, had six birdies and one bogey at Highland Meadows to match Kim at 8-under 134. Kim, tied for the first-round lead with Mirim Lee and Haru Nomura, had a 68.
BASEBALL
WASHINGTON (AP) – Stephen Strasburg so badly wanted to start the Washington Nationals’ first game after the break that he gave up the chance to pitch in the All-Star Game in his hometown of San Diego.
His 13th victory was a reward for that.
Strasburg allowed one run and three hits with six strikeouts in eight masterful innings as the Nationals beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-1. Strasburg (13-0) has won 16 consecutive decisions dating to September, a franchise record for starting pitchers.
MMA
Former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar has been notified of a potential violation of the promotion’s anti-doping policy from an out-of-competition drug test administered June 28.
Lesnar is among the most popular athletes in both mixed martial arts and professional wrestling. He beat Mark Hunt by decision at UFC 200 in Las Vegas last weekend, handily winning his first MMA fight in nearly five years.
AUTO RACING
LOUDON, N.H. (AP) – Jimmie Johnson gave Hendrick Motorsports a needed bright spot, turning a lap of 133.971 mph at New Hampshire Motor Speedway to win his first pole of the season.
Johnson, a two-time race winner this season, could use a boost following a five-race slump where he failed to finish better than 13th. He has crashed out of his last two races, finishing 35th at Daytona International Speedway and 32nd last weekend at Kentucky Speedway.
He was the lone Hendrick Motorsports driver in the top five.
Kyle Busch was second, followed by Martin Truex Jr., Kurt Busch and Denny Hamlin.
OLYMPICS
LONDON (AP) – Two top-10 tennis players withdrew from the Rio Olympics, citing concerns about the Zika virus.
Fifth-ranked Simona Halep on the women’s side and No. 7 Milos Raonic for the men announced their decisions after their names were listed on the International Tennis Federation’s roster for next month’s Summer Games.
