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Rice, Forte agree to terms with teams

Ravens running back Ray Rice agreed on a new five-year contract with Baltimore worth roughly $40 million on Monday. (Associated Press)
From Staff And Wire Reports
Ravens running back Ray Rice agreed on a new five-year contract with Baltimore worth roughly $40 million on Monday. (Associated Press)

NFL: Ray Rice and Matt Forte got what they wanted Monday: long-term contracts that sometimes elude NFL running backs.

Neither Rice nor Forte was enamored of playing under the franchise tag tender in 2012, and negotiations went down to the Monday afternoon deadline. Then Rice scored big with the Baltimore Ravens, getting $40 million for five years, while Forte took a four-year, $32 million deal with the Chicago Bears.

Also getting a longer contract just before the deadline was Jacksonville placekicker Josh Scobee, who will stay with the Jaguars for four years and $13.8 million.

Among the players who are stuck with their one-year tenders are Chiefs receiver Dwayne Bowe, Falcons cornerback Brent Grimes and Lions defensive end Cliff Avril.

• Road rage led to Dumervil’s arrest: Police say a road rage incident in Miami Beach led to the arrest of Denver Broncos defensive end Elvis Dumervil.

A police report says Dumervil, 28, and another man, Andy Aguste, were stuck in traffic Saturday evening. It said they got into an argument with another driver, Kristine Ramirez, and the two men displayed weapons. When police arrived Dumervil told them he didn’t have a gun. Officers say they found a gun in the car’s glove compartment.

Dumervil was arrested on a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. He bonded out of jail.

• Widows, survivors of players to receive funds: The NFL and the players’ union have agreed on funding of benefits to widows and other survivors of players from before 1993, an extended package worth $15.2 million.

Called Legacy Fund benefits, the league and union say eligible beneficiaries will receive an increase in the amount they were receiving retroactive to Aug. 1, 2011. Funding will be split as it is for other beneficiaries of the Legacy Fund: 51 percent paid by the NFL and 49 percent by the NFL Players Association.

U.S. men survive against Brazil

Basketball: LeBron James scored 30 points and the U.S. men’s Olympic basketball team rallied from an early 10-point deficit to beat Brazil 80-69 in Washington.

President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden watched the Americans get off to a dismal start, then turn it around by holding the Brazilians to two baskets in the second quarter.

James helped the U.S. pull away in the final four minutes after they led by only seven, getting his final point on a free throw with 31 seconds left.

Kevin Durant added 11 in his hometown for the Americans, who will leave today for Europe to complete their Olympic preparations. They face Britain in Manchester, England, on Thursday before traveling to Barcelona to play Argentina and Spain.

• U.S. women down Brazil: Lindsay Whalen scored 21 points and Diana Taurasi added 16 to help the U.S. women’s Olympic basketball team rout Brazil 99-67 at Washington in an exhibition game.

Whalen started in place of Sue Bird, who missed the game because of a death in her family. Bird, who will be playing in her third Olympics at the London Games, practiced with the team this weekend before leaving Sunday. USA Basketball officials did not say when Bird would be rejoining the team.

• Women’s basketball Hall of Fame class announced: Coaches Gary Blair of Texas A&M and Jim Foster of Ohio State headline the 2013 women’s basketball Hall of Fame class.

Joining them are Jen Rizzotti, Peggie Gillom-Granderson, Annette Smith-Knight and Sue Wicks.

Syracuse set to leave Big East a year early

Miscellany: The Big East has reached an agreement with Syracuse University, allowing the Orange to leave the league a year early for the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Syracuse announced last fall its intention to join the ACC, but under Big East bylaws the school needed to serve a 27-month exit period. Instead, the Orange will now be allowed to leave on July 1, 2013 and will have to pay a fee of $7.5 million to depart. That’s $2.5 million more than specified in the conference bylaws.

Pitt will also leave the Big East for the ACC, but its departure date remains uncertain.

• Ladouceur leads in World Series of Poker: Marc Ladouceur of Montreal was the leader with more than 15 million chips as play got under way to set the final table for the main event of the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas.

Play in the $10,000 buy-in tournament began July 7 with 6,598 entrants. By Monday afternoon, only 27 players remained. Once the field is reduced to nine, the tournament will take a break until Oct. 28, when a champion will be decided. The top prize is more than $8.5 million.