NFL: Ex-Browns player Mychal Kendricks pleads guilty

Former Cleveland Browns linebacker Mychal Kendricks pleaded guilty to insider trading charges in Philadelphia.

The 27-year-old told a judge Thursday he knows he was wrong and entered the guilty plea because “it’s the right thing to do.”

He faces up to 25 years in prison when he’s sentenced in December.

Prosecutors said analyst Damilare Sonoiki fed Kendricks confidential information on four companies about deals that sent their stock prices soaring.

They said at the end of the two-year scheme, Kendricks made about $1.2 million.

Sonoiki’s lawyer told the Philadelphia Inquirer that his client also would plead guilty, but no date had been set.

Cowboys, casino reach agreement

The Dallas Cowboys say they are the first NFL team to reach a sponsorship agreement with a casino.

The deal with WinStar World Casino and Resort in Oklahoma was announced not long after league owners cleared clubs to make such deals.

In May, the Supreme Court cleared the way for states to legalize sports betting by striking down a 1992 federal law that effectively banned sports betting in most states.

The league will soon have a team in Las Vegas with the Oakland Raiders set to move before the 2020 season.

Yary slams protests

Minnesota Vikings Hall of Famer Ron Yary has turned his back on the NFL, stopped watching games a year ago and is encouraging others to do the same until players stop protesting during the national anthem.

The former USC star and top pick in the 1968 NFL draft said that he doesn’t object to players speaking out on any issue on their own time but disagrees “vehemently” with them using the football field, the national anthem and an audience of paying football customers as their backdrop.

“There’s only one place in America where you cannot take your grievances with you and put them on display, and that’s at the job site,” Yary told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. “You can do it in front of your government, you can do it in your church, you can do it any other place. But the one place in this country that is sacrosanct from presenting your personal dislikes and grievances is the job site.”

Yary, 72, is a high-profile example in the quandary the NFL has been mired in for three years as players have taken a knee or sat during the national anthem to protest abuse of African American men by police.

Stills applauds ad

Miami Dolphins receiver Kenny Stills said that he was encouraged by Nike’s new endorsement deal with his friend and fellow activist Colin Kaepernick, and wishes the NFL would show similar support for their cause.

Kaepernick, a leader of the movement against social injustice that has prompted player protests during the national anthem, is among the faces of Nike’s 30th anniversary “Just Do It” campaign.

The sports apparel giant has unveiled its first TV ad in the campaign, narrated by Kaepernick and scheduled to air during major sporting events.

“I’m really encouraged by it,” Stills said. “Those are things that really brighten people’s day in a time that there are not many things to be happy about.”

Etc.

Sam Darnold is about to make NFL history. The New York Jets plan to have the 21-year-old rookie take their first snap Monday night at Detroit, making him the youngest quarterback to start an opener since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger. The former USC star is also set to become the first rookie quarterback to start a season opener on “Monday Night Football.” Darnold, the No. 3 pick in the draft, beat out Josh McCown and Teddy Bridgewater to earn the job. ...

A U.S. appeals court in San Francisco reinstated a lawsuit filed against the NFL by former players who claim the league illegally plied them with powerful prescription painkillers to keep them on the field. The lawsuit is not superseded by labor agreements between players and teams, a three-judge panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled unanimously.