Browns sign free agent kicker Brett Maher

The Browns signed free agent kicker Brett Maher to compete with Cody Parkey for the starting job.

Maher spent the past three seasons in the Canadian Football League, where he connected on 41 of 50 field-goal tries and scored 161 points for Winnipeg, Ottawa and Hamilton.

The 27-year-old signed with the New York Jets after playing at Nebraska. He also spent time with the Dallas Cowboys, but has not appeared in an NFL game.

In his first season with Cleveland, Parkey made 20 of 25 field goals, 20 of 21 extra points and scored 80 points for the 1-15 Browns.

Parkey signed with Cleveland last year after kicker Patrick Murray suffered a left knee injury two days before a Sept. 25 game against Miami.

• The Browns also visited with Bradley McDougald, who could fill a sizeable space.

The free agent safety visited on Monday with Cleveland, which is in the market to replenish its secondary after losing Jordan Poyer in free agency and failing to sign Tony Jefferson.

McDougald started 31 games over the past two seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The 26-year-old made 16 starts last year, recording 91 tackles and two interceptions. He started 15 games in 2015 and five the previous year.

Needing to address the position, the Browns pursued Jefferson, who wound up signing with the Baltimore Ravens. McDougald has drawn interest from other teams, so it’s possible the Browns, coming off a 1-15 season, could lose out again.

Soccer

TIM HOWARD TO START IN GOAL » As his U.S. teammates trained under cloudy skies on a brisk Bay Area morning, Tim Howard sat on the sidelines and stretched out his shoulders. He balanced on his left leg and warmed up his hips.

This is the new normal for Howard, fresh off his 38th birthday and a November surgery on his right thigh to repair the adductor muscle.

“I’m old,” chuckled Howard, the Americans’ top goalkeeper the past two World Cups. “That’s every day for me now, between now and the next three years that’s what every day looks like. It’s a process, but hopefully it’ll pay off.”

Howard is expected to start for coach Bruce Arena in Friday’s World Cup qualifier against Honduras at Avaya Stadium, home of the MLS San Jose Earthquakes, before the Americans play at Panama four days later.

“It’s good to have him back,” said defender DaMarcus Beasley. “He’s been a big part of this team for a long time now. Big games, World Cups, qualifiers. To have him back with the team and the group is a big plus for us and for everybody to see him back, especially after the injury he had at the end of last season.”

Brad Guzan, who was in net for two losses in World Cup qualifying last November, was replaced last week and he and his wife welcomed a baby girl Sunday night “9 pounds, I’m told, and 22 inches long,” Arena announced, though he didn’t know the baby’s name except that she arrived a little early.

“In these situations, I think family comes first, despite what we’d all like to think otherwise around the sporting side,” Arena said. “He needs to be with his family this week, so the decision for him to stay makes sense.”

Boycott

U.S. HOCKEY AND WOMEN’S TEAMS HOPE TO END BOYCOTT » USA Hockey and the women’s national team say their marathon meeting Monday was productive and they hope to have an agreement this week that will end their ongoing wage dispute and avoid a boycott of the upcoming world championships.

The sides met for more than 10 hours Monday in Philadelphia and will continue discussions later this week. Players announced last week they’d boycott the upcoming world championships in Plymouth, Michigan, unless significant progress was made toward a labor agreement.

USA Hockey and players released statements Monday night saying they hoped a deal would be reached in time for the tournament, which begins March 31.