Quick Hitters
Kofa volleyball wins opener
The Kofa volleyball team opened its season Monday with a straight-sets win over Trevor G. Browne.
Keiley Sharp (12 aces, 7 kills), Celenia Lopez (6 aces) and Laura Sanderson (4 aces) were the top performers for the Kings, who next play today at Central (Calif.).
Lions make Stafford NFL’s highest-paid player
DETROIT — A person familiar with the deal says Matthew Stafford and the Detroit Lions have agreed to a $135 million, five-year extension that makes him the highest-paid player in the NFL.
The person spoke Monday night to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because terms were not disclosed. The team announced the deal keeps the quarterback under contract through the 2022 season.
Stafford was entering the last season of his $53 million, threeyear contract. He stood to get quite a raise and did, getting more than the $125 million, five-year contract the Oakland Raiders gave Derek Carr this summer.
Detroit drafted Stafford No. 1 overall in 2009. He helped the Lions reach the playoffs last season for the third time in six seasons.
Bengals LB Burfict suspended 5 games for egregious hit
CINCINNATI — Linebacker Vontaze Burfict missed the first three games last season because of his hit to Antonio Brown’s head in the playoffs. He’ll miss the first five this season thanks to another rattling hit, this time during a preseason game.
The NFL has suspended the Cincinnati Bengals’ defensive leader for leveling a Chiefs running back in violation of its player safety rules, the latest in Burfict’s history of egregious hits that have drawn fines and suspensions.
Burfict hit running back Anthony Sherman in the chest this month during a pass play in which he was not the intended receiver, knocking him to the ground. The NFL has been cracking down on such hits as part of its emphasis on player safety.
Burfict was suspended for his hit to Antonio Brown’s head on an incomplete pass during a firstround playoff game in the 2015 season. The resulting personal foul moved the Steelers into field goal range in the closing seconds for an 18-16 victory at Paul Brown Stadium.
The Bengals were off on Monday after returning from a preseason game in Washington. They released a statement defending Burfict in the face of his latest punishment.
“The film shows that the hit was legal, that Vontaze engaged his opponent from the front, and that contact was shoulder-tochest,” the statement said.
A player doesn’t have to draw a penalty to be fined or suspended by the league, which has cracked down on dangerous hits as part of its effort to protect defenseless players. NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy pointed out in an email to The Associated Press that the league’s rulebook bans “unnecessary contact” against players who aren’t in position to defend themselves.