Coach Caldwell signs extension with Lions

Jim Caldwell was coy, just days ago, when asked about whether he had signed a contract extension with the Detroit Lions.

Turns out, he had.

The Detroit Lions confirmed Saturday they signed their coach to a multiyear deal months ago.

Caldwell has a 29-21 record in Detroit over three-plus seasons. He is 0-2 in the playoffs with a franchise that has won only one playoff game in six decades.

Caldwell helped the Indianapolis Colts reach the Super Bowl in his first year as an NFL coach and was fired two years later with a 26-22 record. He lost his job after the Colts went 2-14 in 2011 while Peyton Manning was out with a neck injury. He went on to work for the Baltimore Ravens, starting off as a quarterbacks coach before getting promoted to be their offensive coordinator when they won the Super Bowl on Feb. 3, 2013.

The NFC North-leading Lions (20) host the Atlanta Falcons (2-0) on Sunday in a matchup of two of the NFC’s four undefeated teams.

Caldwell had relative success in his debut season in Detroit, helping the franchise win 11 games — its most since 1991 — and earn a spot in the playoffs for just the second

time in 15 years. The Lions went 7-9 in his second season and 9-7 in his third.

■ Chargers: Los Angeles cornerback Jason Verrett will undergo season-ending knee surgery for the second consecutive year.

Verrett will end the season on injured reserve for the third time in his four-year career. Verrett was limited to six games as a rookie because of a shoulder injury, and he played in four games last season before undergoing surgery to repair a partially torn ACL.

Trevor Williams, a second-year undrafted free agent from Penn State, will replace Verrett in the starting lineup.

■ Saints: New Orleans released veteran defensive linemen Kendall Langford and Darryl Tapp, and elevated two rookie defensive backs from their practice squad.

The roster moves follow the Saints’ decision on Friday to rule out cornerbacks Marshon Lattimore and Sterling Moore for Sunday’s game at Carolina.

■ Buccaneers: Tampa Bay ruled defensive linemen Chris Baker and Jacquies Smith out for the team’s game against the Minnesota Vikings due to illness.

The two defenders join linebacker Kwon Alexander (hamstring) as players who will sit out the Bucs’ second game of the season.