Affidavit says Vilma offered $10,000 to hurt Favre

NEW YORK (AP) — The NFL presented Jonathan Vilma and his attorney with a sworn statement from former Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams saying the linebacker placed a $10,000 bounty on Brett Favre.

Vilma met with Commissioner Roger Goodell yesterday in New York about his suspension, which has been temporarily lifted. Attorney Peter Ginsberg said they were given an affidavit at the meeting.

Ginsberg called the $10,000 bounty offer “absolutely false.”

Vilma tweeted last night that Williams was “bullied to sign the affidavit,” saying Williams signed it on Friday.

2 Redskin defensive starters out for year

UNDATED (AP) — There’s crushing news for the Washington Redskins as two defensive starters are out for the season. End Adam Carriker and two-time All Pro linebacker Brian Orakpo are done after suffering injuries in Sunday’s loss to St. Louis.

Coach Mike Shanahan has told reporters that Orakpo suffered another tear of the pectoral muscle near his left shoulder, while Carriker tore the quad tendon at the base of his right knee.

The Redskins now have to replace two defensive starters on a team that has allowed 63 points in its first two games.

In other NFL news:

— Eagles center Jason Kelce will miss at least four to six weeks because of a torn knee ligament, and it’s possible he could face season-ending surgery. An MRI today revealed he tore his medial collateral ligament and has a partial tear of the anterior cruciate ligament.

— Saints interim head coach Aaron Kromer and defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo say they’ll resist making major changes despite an 0-2 start. The Saints are last in the NFL in yards allowed with 922, and tied for last in points allowed with 75 heading into this weekend’s game against Kansas City.

— St. Louis Rams offensive tackle Rodger Saffold will be out at least a month because of a right knee injury.

White Sox stretch lead to 3 over Tigers…Pirates wait out 3-1/2 hour rain delay to win at Wrigley

UNDATED (AP) — Omar Infante’s throwing error on a potential double play helped Chicago score two runs in the fifth inning and the White Sox beat the Detroit Tigers 5-4 in a pivotal makeup game. As a result, Chicago increased its lead in the AL Central to three games over the Tigers.

Nate Jones is 8-0 with the win. He pitched 2 2/3 innings of one-hit relief and the White Sox won their fourth straight. Addison Reed, the last of three relievers in the ninth, got the final out for his 27th save in 31 chances.

The game had been postponed by rain last Thursday and the makeup was the final meeting of the season between the two front-runners in the division.

In other AL action:

— Boston hurt Tampa Bay’s postseason hopes by beating the Rays 5-2. Tampa Bay is five games out of the final wild card in the AL. Jacoby Ellsbury homered and drove in three runs.

— Baltimore routed Seattle 10-4 behind a 15-hit attack. The Orioles moved within a half-game of the AL East-leading Yankees. Matt Wieters hit his 22nd home run and drove in three. Nate McLouth also went deep. The Orioles have a three-game cushion over the Angels for the final wild card spot.

Over in the NL:

— Dan Uggla hit a three-run home run in the first inning, Martin Prado tied a career best with four hits and the Atlanta Braves beat the Miami Marlins 7-5. Tim Hudson allowed a season-high 10 hits in five innings but still beat the Marlins for the fifth straight time as Atlanta moved within five games of the idle Washington Nationals in the NL East.

— Cliff Lee struck out 10 while out-dueling Cy Young contender R.A. Dickey, and the Philadelphia Phillies regained their winning touch by beating the New York Mets 3-1. Jimmy Rollins homered with the help of video replay and Domonic Brown also hit a solo shot off Dickey, who fell to 18-6. The Phillies pulled within 3½ games of idle St. Louis for the second NL wild-card spot.

— The Pittsburgh Pirates endured a three-hour, 37-minute rain delay but it was worth it for them at Wrigley Field. The Pirates beat the Chicago Cubs 3-0 to move within two and a-half games of the final wild card berth. Starling Marte drove in two runs. Kevin Correia and two relievers combined on the two-hit shutout.

New deal for Lewis

UNDATED (AP) — The Texas Rangers have agreed on a one-year, $2 million contract extension with Colby Lewis, the injured right-hander who could have been a free agent after this season. Lewis was 6-6 with a 3.43 ERA in 16 starts this season before surgery in July to repair a torn flexor tendon in his right elbow.

In other MLB news:

— Major League Baseball is investigating reports that Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Yunel Escobar played Saturday’s game against Boston wearing eye-black displaying a homophobic slur written in Spanish.

Doctors report on Gillispie

LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — Texas Tech men’s basketball coach Billy Gillispie says doctors have ordered him to avoid any stress for 30 days in an effort to bring his blood pressure down. In a text message sent to The Associated Press, Gillispie confirmed he’d been treated for kidney problems and abnormal headaches last week at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota.

The school had no comment on Gillispie, who is currently on indefinite sick leave as Texas Tech gets set to begin practicing Oct. 12.

Gillispie spent four days at the Rochester, Minn., medical facility. That followed an earlier six-day stay at Lubbock’s University Medical Center that began Aug. 31, the day Gillispie was to meet with Texas Tech athletic director Kirby Hocutt to discuss allegations of mistreatment of players.

Former coach to learn fate Oct. 9

BELLEFONTE, Pa. (AP) — Former Penn State coach Jerry Sandusky will find out on Oct. 9 what his sentence will be for being a convicted child abuser. Judge John Cleland will issue the sentence nearly four months after the retired assistant football coach was convicted in the child molestation scandal that brought shame to Penn State. Sandusky was convicted in June of 45 counts of sex abuse involving 10 boys. Prosecutors said some of the assaults took place on the Penn State campus.

Given his age and the serious nature of the crimes of which he was convicted, Sandusky is likely to receive a sentence that will keep the 68-year-old in prison for life.

AMERICAN LEAGUE
Chi White Sox 5 Detroit 4
Boston 5 Tampa Bay 2
Baltimore 10 Seattle 4
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Atlanta 7 Miami 5
Philadelphia 3 N-Y Mets 1
Pittsburgh 3 Chi Cubs 0
San Francisco 2 Colorado 1
NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Atlanta 27 Denver 21

Tonight on ESPN Radio 1410, it’s North Platte Bulldog volleyball. The Bulldogs return to their home floor to host Kearney. North Platte went 2-3 at the LPS Classic last weekend. They beat Lincoln Northeast and Norfolk, and lost to three outstanding teams in Elkhorn South, Elkhorn, and Pius X. The performance dropped their record on the season to 6-7. The Bearcats come to town with a 2-9 mark. ESPN Radio 1410’s coverage begins at approximately 6:45, with a scheduled start time of 7 PM.

A big fourth quarter couldn’t offset an ugly first quarter as the Denver Broncos fell to the Atlanta Falcons 27-21 on Monday Night Football last night in Atlanta. The Broncos turned the ball over four times in the opening 15 minutes, including three interceptions by Peyton Manning. The Falcons were able to build a 13-0 lead and led 20-7 at the half. After Atlanta went ahead 27-7 in the third, Manning and the Broncos found an offensive rhythm in the final quarter. Willis McGahee rushed for two touchdowns, the second with 3:25 to play, to make things interesting, but the Falcons got a pair of first downs and ran out the clock. Manning threw for 241 yards and a touchdown to go with the three picks. McGahee rushed for 113 yards on the night. The Broncos return home next Sunday to host the unbeaten Houston Texans.

The Colorado Rockies fell to the San Francisco Giants 2-1 in the first game of a four-game series in San Francisco last night. The Rockies lone run came on an RBI triple by Josh Rutledge in the fifth inning. Jhoulys Chacin pitched five strong innings for the Rockies, allowing just one run. He took a no-decision as the Giants got the eventual winning run in the sixth off of reliever Guillermo Moscoso. Game two of the series is tonight. The Rockies send Jeff Francis to the mound against San Francisco’s Tim Lincecum. First pitch is scheduled for 9:15.

Bo Pelini says he’s fine. Rex Burkhead apparently is as well.

The Husker head coach says he has a ‘clean bill of health’ after a scare that sent him to the hospital during Saturday’s game in Lincoln. He clarified that he had been suffering from an upset stomach just before the game and that doctors were concerned enough by tests done at halftime that they decided to take him to the hospital. Pelini denied that the problems were related to stress or his heart, and said “I’m not just healthy. I’m very healthy.” He returned to work Sunday to watch film of Nebraska’s 42-13 win over Arkansas State.

Pelini also announced that Burkhead, his senior running back, will return to Nebraska’s lineup this Saturday when the Huskers host Idaho State. Burkhead had missed the previous two weeks after suffering a sprained MCL in his left knee in the first quarter of the team’s opening week win over Southern Miss. Pelini said Saturday’s game will be a good one to get Burkhead back up to speed before the Huskers open Big Ten play.

Falcons hosting Broncos

ATLANTA (AP) — The second week of the NFL season comes to and end tonight with the Atlanta Falcons playing host to Denver.

The Broncos are, of course, led by quarterback Peyton Manning, who in his first game with the Broncos led the team to a 31-19 win last week over Pittsburgh. In doing so the former NFL MVP connected on 19 of 26 passes for 253 yards and 2 scores. Any questions about Manning’s ability to lead a team after missing last season were dispelled last week.

The Falcons are coming off a lopsided win, as they beat the Chiefs in Kansas City 40-24. Matt Ryan passed for 3 touchdowns and 299 yards on 23 of 31 passing in the winning effort.

Light Monday card

UNDATED (AP) — There are only seven games being played in big league baseball today and without doubt the biggest is being contested this afternoon in Chicago. This is a makeup for a game rained out last week when the Tigers visited the White Sox. As play begins today, the Sox top the Tigers by 2 games in the American League Central Division. Doug Fister is on the mound for the Motor City this afternoon with a 9-8 record. The Sox are countering with Jose Quintana, who is 6-4.

The remaining two games in the American League are tonight as Boston plays at Tampa Bay and Baltimore is at Seattle. These are key games for the Rays and Orioles as in the AL East the O’s trail the first-place Yankees by a game with the Rays 5 back. In the Wild Card race, Baltimore is currently holding down one of the two berths with the Rays 4 games behind.

In the National League tonight, New York’s R.A. Dickey is going for his 19th win of the season as the Mets entertain the Phillies. Philadelphia, which is 4 games out of a Wild Card berth, is sending Cliff Lee to the mound.

San Francisco now has a whopping 7 ½ game lead over the second-place Dodgers in the NL West. Tonight the Giants are home to Colorado while LA has the night off.

Fresh off a big series with the Nationals, in which they swept 3 games, the Braves are looking to gain more ground on idle first-place Washington with a game in Miami. Atlanta starts the day 5 ½ games behind the Nats in the NL East but holding down one of the Wild Card berths.

The Pirates remain in the Wild Card hunt as they start the day 3 games back in the standings. Tonight, Pittsburgh is in Chicago playing the Cubs.

AMERICAN LEAGUE
Detroit at Chi White Sox 1:10 p.m.
Boston at Tampa Bay 6:10 p.m.
Baltimore at Seattle 9:10 p.m.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Atlanta at Miami 6:10 p.m.
Philadelphia at N-Y Mets 6:10 p.m.
Pittsburgh at Chi Cubs 7:05 p.m.
Colorado at San Francisco 9:15 p.m.
NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Denver at Atlanta 8:30 p.m. (LISTEN LIVE on ESPN Radio 1410)

Cardinals, Niners, Texans, Chargers, Eagles unbeaten after NFL’s Week 2

UNDATED (AP) — After two weeks of the regular season, one of the surprise teams in the NFL has to be the Arizona Cardinals. Coach Ken Whisenhunt’s team improved to 2-0 by going into Foxborough and knocking off the New England Patrios 20-18. The Cards were a bit fortunate as well. The Pats’ Stephen Gostkowski missed a potential game-winning 42-yard field goal with six seconds left. Gostkowski had kicked four field goals in the game.

Backup QB Kevin Kolb threw for one touchdown and ran for another.

In other Week 2 action:

— The San Diego Chargers are 2-0 after beating Tennessee for the eighth straight time, 38-10. Philip Rivers was 24 of 32 for 284 yards. Malcom Floyd had six catches for 109 yards and Rosario four catches for 48 yards.

— San Francisco has beaten a pair of playoff teams from last season to go to 2-0. After knocking off Green Bay last weekend, the Niners continued their fine play by beating Detroit 27-19. Alex Smith tossed a pair of TD passes to Vernon Davis. The Niners defense has shut down Packers QB Aaron Rodgers and Lions QB Matthew Stafford the first two weeks.

— Seattle stunned Dallas 27-7. Rookie Seahawks QB Russell Wilson threw for 151 yards. Marshawn Lynch ran for 122 yards and a 3-yard TD.

— St. Louis rallied to beat Washington 31-28, storming back from a 21-6 halftime deficit. Sam Bradford threw for 310 yards and three touchdowns and Danny Amendola caught 16 passes for 160 yards.

— Eli Manning threw for 510 yards and three touchdowns and capped the second greatest passing day by a Giants’ quarterback by setting up Andre Brown’s game-winning 2-yard run with a 50-yard pass that lifted New York to a wild 41-34 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

— Ben Roethlisberger passed for 275 yards and two touchdowns and the Pittsburgh Steelers smothered the New York Jets, 27-10. Roethlisberger completed 24 of 31 passes.

— Carolina dropped New Orleans to 0-2 by beating the Saints 35-27. Cam Newton threw for 253 yards and ran for a career-high 71 yards to hand New Orleans its first 0-2 start since 2007.

— Philadelphia overcame a slew of turnovers to beat the Baltimore Ravens 24-23 to improve to 2-0 — both victories coming by one point. Michael Vick scored on a 1-yard run with 1:55 left.

— Indianapolis booted Minnesota 23-20. Adam Vinatieri made a 53-yard field goal with 8 seconds left to give Andrew Luck his first NFL victory.

— Reggie Bush ran for 172 yards and two touchdowns, and Miami won a home opener for the first time since 2005 by beating winless Oakland 35-13.

— Houston dominated Jacksonville 27-7. Arian Foster ran for 110 yards and a touchdown. Ben Tate added 74 yards and two scores.

— C.J. Spiller scored twice and had 123 yards rushing in sparking Buffalo to a 35-17 win over Kansas City.

— Cincinnati won the battle of Ohio by beating the Cleveland Browns 34-27. Adam “Pacman” Jones returned Cleveland’s first punt 81 yards for a touchdown, and Andy Dalton matched his career high with three touchdown passes.

AL division leaders hold position…Braves finish sweep

UNDATED (AP) — There’s no change at the top in the American League East.

Russell Martin’s three-run homer helped boost the New York Yankees to an early lead and they held off Tampa Bay 6-4. The weekend series in the Bronx was been a damaging one for the Rays’ hopes of postseason play. The Yankees won the last two in the three-game series, dropping Tampa Bay back in both the race for the AL East pennant and the wild card.

In other AL action:

— Matt Wieters hit two solo home runs and Endy Chavez had four hits to help the Baltimore Orioles beat the Oakland Athletics 9-5 and remain within a game of the New York Yankees in the AL East.

— Lonnie Chisenhall singled in the winning run with one out in the ninth inning to give the Cleveland Indians a 7-6 win over Detroit, dealing the Tigers a crucial loss.

— The Chicago White Sox are now two games ahead of Detroit in the Central Division after a 9-2 win over the Minnesota Twins. Jake Peavy got the win as his teammates scored six runs in the sixth inning to squash any Minnesota attempt at a comeback. The White Sox host the Tigers in a makeup game on Monday.

— Matt Harrison pitched into the ninth inning for his 17th victory and the Texas Rangers beat the Seattle Mariners 2-1 on a drizzly Sunday in Texas. Adrian Beltre hit his 33rd homer for Texas.

— Adeiny Hechavarria hit a two-run home run, Omar Vizquel had two hits and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Boston Red Sox 5-0 to avoid a three-game sweep.

— Mark Trumbo hit a three-run homer and Dan Haren pitched effectively into the sixth inning as the Los Angeles Angels beat the Kansas City Royals 4-3.

Over in the NL:

— Atlanta finished a three-game weekend sweep of Washington with a 5-1 victory that denied Gio Gonzalez his 20th victory. The Braves still trail the Nats by five and a-half games in the NL East. Mike Minor threw six strong innings.

— The St. Louis Cardinals outlasted the L.A. Dodgers 5-2 in 12 innings to gain a split in their four-game series. Jon Jay drove in the go-ahead run. The victory gives the Cards undisputed possession of the second wild card spot.

— Rookie Patrick Corbin pitched a career-long eight innings and drove in four runs with a triple and single, leading the Arizona Diamondbacks to a 10-2 rout of San Francisco.

— Philadelphia still has a chance to make the playoffs with 15 games remaining. However, after losing three of four to the Houston Astros, even the Phillies admitted it just got harder. Justin Maxwell hit a two-run double in the Astros’ 7-6 win over the Phils.

— The Cincinnati Reds tied a season high with 17 hits in beating Miami 5-4 in 11 innings on Ryan Ludwick’s go-ahead single.

— Anthony Rizzo hit two home runs and drove in six to lift the Chicago Cubs to a 13-9 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates in a windy day at Wrigley Field.

— Ryan Braun homered twice in Milwaukee’s 3-0 win over the New York Mets. Rookie hurler Wily Peralta held the Mets to two singles over eight innings. The Brewers are two and a-half games out of the final wild card spot.

Alabama and LSU are Nos. 1 and 2 in the AP Top 25

NEW YORK (AP) — Alabama and LSU are back atop The Associated Press college football poll, holding down Nos. 1 and 2 the way they did most of last season.

The Crimson Tide is No. 1 for the third straight week, and it was almost unanimous. Alabama received 58 of 60 first-place votes. LSU got the other two.

The Southeastern Conference rivals were ranked first and second for eight weeks during last season before eventually meeting in the BCS title game. The difference last year was LSU was first and Alabama second — until the Tide won the national championship game.

LSU moved up to No. 2 this week after Southern California’s first loss of the season. USC slipped 11 spots to 13th after losing 21-14 at Stanford.

Stanford jumped from 21st to ninth.

Keselowski wins Chase opener

JOLIET, Ill. (AP) — Brad Keselowski raced to an impressive victory in the opening race of the Chase for the Sprint Cup, outdueling five-time champion Jimmie Johnson at Chicagoland Speedway on Sunday.

Keselowski led after a crucial pit cycle with about 35 laps remaining in the 400-mile race, and held on comfortably from there for his first victory in a Chase race. He also takes over the points lead.

Kasey Kahne was third. Twelve of the Chase drivers finished in the top 18. The exception was Jeff Gordon, who went into the wall with about 80 laps remaining. Gordon barely qualified for the Chase to begin with, and his championship hopes are already in serious jeopardy.

It’s Keselowski’s fourth victory of the season. He leads Johnson by three points.

AMERICAN LEAGUE
N-Y Yankees 6 Tampa Bay 4
Toronto 5 Boston 0
Chi White Sox 9 Minnesota 2
L.A. Angels 4 Kansas City 3
Cleveland 7 Detroit 6
Texas 2 Seattle 1
Baltimore 9 Oakland 5
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Cincinnati 5 Miami 4, 11 Innings
Houston 7 Philadelphia 6
Milwaukee 3 N-Y Mets 0
Chi Cubs 13 Pittsburgh 9
San Diego 12 Colorado 11
Arizona 10 San Francisco 2
St. Louis 5 L.A. Dodgers 2, 12 Innings
Atlanta 5 Washington 1
NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Arizona 20 New England 18
Philadelphia 24 Baltimore 23
Cincinnati 34 Cleveland 27
Houston 27 Jacksonville 7
Buffalo 35 Kansas City 17
Indianapolis 23 Minnesota 20
Carolina 35 New Orleans 27
Miami 35 Oakland 13
N-Y Giants 41 Tampa Bay 34
Seattle 27 Dallas 7
St. Louis 31 Washington 28
Pittsburgh 27 N-Y Jets 10
San Diego 38 Tennessee 10
San Francisco 27 Detroit 19

The Denver Broncos and Atlanta Falcons wrap up Week 2 in the NFL on Monday Night Football tonight at the Georgia Dome. Both teams are 1-0 after impressive victories to open the season. The Broncos knocked off the Pittsburgh Steelers 31-19 in Denver last Sunday night thanks to a pair of new acquisitions. Peyton Manning tossed two touchdown passes and Tracy Porter had a game-clinching pick-six in the fourth quarter. The Falcons went to Kansas City and routed the Chiefs 40-24 as Matt Ryan threw for 299 yards and three scores. Ryan is 26-4 in his career in regular season games at home, but one of those losses came against the Broncos back in November of 2008. ESPN Radio 1410 will have the action from the A-T-L tonight. Pregame coverage gets underway at 5:35, with the kickoff scheduled for 7:30.

In a rare slugfest at San Diego’s PetCo Park, the Colorado Rockies fell to the Padres 12-11 yesterday afternoon. The Rockies jumped out to an early 5-1 advantage. Starting pitcher Alex White hit a three-run home run, his second dinger in as many starts, and Matt McBride hit a two-run blast for his first career homer. But the Padres battered two Rockies relievers for eight runs in the fifth to take an 11-5 lead. The Rockies answered in the eighth inning. Josh Rutledge capped a six-run frame with his first career grand slam to tie the score at 11. But after the Rockies squandered a two-on, no-out opportunity in the top of the ninth, the Padres walked off on Yonder Alonso’s single that scored Everth Cabrera. The Rockies continue their west-coast road swing tonight, opening a four-game series in San Francisco against the Giants.