Saints put their franchise tag on Brees
The New Orleans Saints put the franchise tag on Drew Brees, giving them exclusive negotiating rights with their Pro Bowl quarterback for the next year.
Brees has been involved in lengthy contract talks with the Saints and, without the tag, could have negotiated with other teams as a free agent. In January, Brees said he would be “beyond stunned” if he and the Saints are unable to agree on a contract extension during the off-season.
In 2011, Brees set NFL records with 468 completions, 5,476 yards passing and a 71.2% completion rate. His prolific passing numbers helped the Saints set an NFL record for yards in a season (7,474). didn’t drop a set all week in the United Arab Emirates and kept Murray off balance much of the match. The win was Federer’s fifth title in seven tournaments and his 72nd overall.
The 16-time Grand Slam champion improved to 7-8 against Murray, outplaying the 24-year-old from Scotland with a mix of powerful groundstrokes, drop shots and the occasional serve-and-volley.
Top-seeded John Isner was eliminated from the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships in Florida, losing to Kevin Anderson, 7-5, 7-6 (4), in the semifinals. Anderson next plays qualifier Marinko Matosevic, who beat Dudi Sela, 5-7, 6-4, 7-6 (7).
Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei reached the Malaysian Open final at Kuala Lumpur by beating Eleni Daniilidou of Greece, 6-0, 4-6, 6-1. The semifinal between Jelena Jankovic and Petra Martic was suspended
Sara Errani defeated fellow Italian Flavia Pennetta, 5-7, 7-6 (2), 6-0, to take the Mexican Open title at Acapulco. David Ferrer beat fellow Spaniard Fernando Verdasco, 6-1, 6-2, in the men’s final.
because of rain.
Outfielder Cameron Maybin and the San Diego Padres agreed to a $25-million, five-year contract.
Maybin, 24, was selected the Padres’ most valuable player in 2011 after he hit .264 with nine home runs and 40 runs batted in and stole 40 bases.
Newly acquired Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher A.J. Burnett is expected to sit out two to three months while recovering from surgery for a facial fracture, forcing the team to rearrange its plans for opening day.
Burnett had surgery Friday for abroken orbital bone near his right eye. He was injured when he fouled a ball off his face Wednesday during a bunting drill.
Olympic champion Viktoria Rebensburg of Germany won her second straight World Cup giant slalom, while overall leader Lindsey Vonn had a blazing final run and finished second at Ofterschwang, Germany.
Rebensburg’s consecutive wins in two days put her in a good position to retain her giant slalom title. Vonn was sixth after the first run but produced the fastest second heat and was 0.26 of a second behind the German.
Klaus Kroell of Austria won a World Cup downhill at Kvitfjell, Norway, for his second straight victory on the Olympic course and the lead in the event standings.
Kroell finished in 1:45.76. Kjetil Jansrud of Norway was 0.02 of a second behind, followed by Aksel Lund Svindal of Norway, who trailed the winner by 0.48.
St. Louis men’s basketball Coach Rick Majerus was released from a Pittsburgh hospital after missing the Billikens’ 75-60 victory over Duquesne because he took the wrong medication.
Majerus told the Associated Press he was staying at a hotel Saturday night and planned to fly to
St. Louis on Sunday.
Wladimir Klitschko stopped Jean-marc Mormeck of France in the fourth round of a one-sided fight at Duesseldorf, Germany, and retained his WBA and IBF heavyweight titles.
Klitschko (57-3) was credited with the 50th knockout of his career, but Mormeck (36-5) said he could have fought on.
Hansen confirmed his status as a top contender for the Kentucky Derby by easily winning the $400,000 Gotham Stakes at Aqueduct Race Track in New York.
The near-white colt swept to the lead around the far turn and cruised to victory over My Adonis and 11 other rivals in the 11⁄ mile steppingstone to the Derby on May 5.
Alex Webster, a running back for the New York Giants who later coached the team for four years, died at 80 at a hospital in Florida on Saturday, the team said.
Webster played for New York from 1955-64 and was the team’s coach from 1969-73. He is fifth on the franchise list with 4,638 yards rushing.