Former Bengals QB Dalton joins Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys signed quarterback Andy Dalton on Monday and waived Cooper Rush, who had been the backup to Dak Prescott since the middle of the 2017 season.
Dalton is guaranteed at least $3 million on the one-year deal that could be worth up to $7 million for the 32-yearold former Cincinnati starter. The Bengals released Dalton with a year remaining on his contract after drafting Joe Burrow first overall.
It’s the biggest investment in a backup by the Cowboys since Kyle Orton was behind Tony Romo in 2012-13. Orton replaced an injured Romo for the regular-season finale in 2013 when Philadelphia beat Dallas with a playoff berth on the line.
Prescott hasn’t missed a game in his four seasons, including three playoff starts. Rush, an undrafted free agent in 2017 out of Central Michigan, got mop-up duty in five games over three seasons. He completed one of three passes.
Rush signed a $2.1 million tender as a restricted free agent in March. There was no guaranteed money in the deal, and he was free to negotiate with other teams.
Behind Dalton, the No. 3 job should come down to James Madison’s Ben DiNucci, a seventh-round pick this year, and Clayton Thorson. The former Northwestern QB was a fifthround pick by Philadelphia last year before the Cowboys signed him to their practice squad.
• Former third-round pick Nazair Jones was one of four players waived by the Seattle Seahawks as the team reached its 90-man roster limit.
Jones, running back Adam Choice, defensive tackle Shakir Soto and linebacker Pita Taumoepenu were all released Monday. Jones was the only one to have played in a game for Seattle.
Golf
CHARITY MATCH SET FOR MARCH 17 >> Rory McIlroy and Dustin Johnson headline a $3 million charity match for COVID-19 relief that will mark the first live golf on television since the pandemic shut down sports worldwide.
The May 17 match will be played at Seminole Golf Club in South Florida, a fabled course along the ocean where Ben Hogan once prepared for the Masters. It is to be televised by NBC networks, including Golf Channel, Sky Sports and the PGA Tour’s global TV partners.
It will be the first golf event at Seminole shown on television.
McIlroy and Johnson, major champions who have reached No. 1 in the world, will be partners in a Skins match against Oklahoma State alumni Rickie Fowler and Matthew Wolff.
McIlroy and Johnson are playing for the American Nurses Foundation, while Fowler and Wolff are playing for the CDC Foundation. The match is titled, “TaylorMade Driving Relief.” All four players have endorsement deals with TaylorMade.
McIlroy, currently No. 1 and the reigning PGA Tour player of the year, announced the match on the “Today” show with Carson Daly, with whom McIlroy has a podcast.
He described it as a chance to “do a small part to raise some money and raise some awareness.”
Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson are to play an exhibition match with NFL greats Tom Brady and Peyton Manning, though details of when and where that match is to take place have not been disclosed.
Live golf was last seen on TV on March 12, the first round of The Players Championship. The tournament was canceled that night, and the earliest golf would return is June 11-14 at Colonial in Texas.
Golf courses in Palm Beach County, where all four players live, were closed until late last week. McIlroy said he had gone some seven weeks without playing until getting out to the range a few days ago.
Some details of the Seminole match were still being worked out as it relates to safe practices. Officials say spectators will not be allowed.
Along with the $3 million to the two groups, Farmers Insurance has pledged $1 million for a birdies and eagles pool that will benefit “Off Their Plate,” a charitable organization helping healthcare workers. The PGA Tour is setting up a “text-to-donate” plan online to allow viewers to make additional contributions.
College basketball
LOUISVILLE ACCUSED OF RECRUITING VIOLATIONS >> Louisville has received a notice of allegations from the NCAA that accuses the men’s basketball program of committing a Level I violation with an improper recruiting offer and extra benefits and several Level II violations that accuse former Cardinals coach Rick Pitino of failing to promote an atmosphere of compliance.
The notice released on Monday is the completion of a two-year NCAA investigation following a federal corruption probe into college basketball. Louisville acknowledged its involvement in the investigation related to the recruitment of former player Brian Bowen II, which led to the ousters of Pitino and athletic director Tom Jurich in October 2017.
The NCAA’s notice says the improper offer and subsequent extra benefits were provided by certain individuals, identified and defined by the NCAA as “representatives of the university’s athletics interests.”