Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Dwayne Haskins was killed Saturday when he was hit by a dump truck while he was walking on a South Florida highway. According to the Florida Highway Patrol, Haskins, 24, was attempting to cross the westbound lanes of Interstate 595 in Fort Lauderdale, when he was struck by a dump truck around 6:37 a.m. He was pronounced dead on the scene. Haskins, who in March signed a one-year deal with the Steelers as a restricted free agent free agent, had been in South Florida this week working with several teammates, including quarterback Mitch Trubisky, running back Najee Harris and tight end Pat Freiermuth. “I am devastated and at a loss for words with the unfortunate passing of Dwayne Haskins,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said in a statement. “He quickly became part of our Steelers family upon his arrival in Pittsburgh and was one of our hardest workers, both on the field and in our community. Dwayne was a great teammate but even more so a tremendous friend to so many. I am truly heartbroken.” Haskins was selected by Washington in the first round of the 2019 draft out of Ohio State. He started seven games as a rookie, going 2-5. He was 1-5 in six starts the next season for the team, then was released. Washington coach Ron Rivera said he was “absolutely heartbroken” to learn of Haskins’s death. “Dwayne was a talented young man who had a long life ahead of him,” Rivera said in a release. “This is a very sad time and I am honestly at a loss for words. I know I speak for the rest of our team in saying he will be sorely missed. Our entire team is sending our heartfelt condolences and thoughts and prayers to the Haskins family at this time.” Ohio State posted a photo of Haskins on its Twitter feed. It read: “Leader. Legend. Forever a Buckeye.” The Steelers gave Haskins a chance to resurrect his career in January 2021 when they signed him a month after being released by Washington. Humbled by the decision, Haskins stressed he was eager to work hard and absorb as much as he could from Ben Roethlisberger and Mason Rudolph. He made the roster as the third-stringer but only dressed once, serving as the backup in a tie with Detroit after Roethlisberger was placed into the COVID-19 protocol the night before the game. “The world lost a great person today,” Steelers star T.J. Watt posted on Twitter. “When Dwayne first walked into the locker room I could tell he was an upbeat guy. He was always making people smile, never taking life for granted.” Tomlin and general manager Kevin Colbert both praised Haskins for his improvement since joining the team, and expected him to compete with Rudolph and Trubisky for a spot. “Dwayne meant so much to so many people,” Steelers defensive lineman Cameron Heyward posted on Twitter. “His smile was infectious and he was a guy you wanted to be around. We are all in shock about losing him. We are going to miss the heck out of him as well. We lost you way too early. Luckily I got a chance to get to know you. RIP DH.”
DT Calais Campbell returns to Ravens
Calais Campbell is returning to the Baltimore Ravens on a two-year deal. The team announced Saturday it had agreed to terms with the 35-year-old defensive lineman. Campbell played the past two seasons with Baltimore as well. Campbell started 14 games last season and finished with 1½ sacks. He has 93½ sacks in 14 NFL seasons with the Cardinals, Jaguars and Ravens. Campbell has appeared in 213 games in his career, with 194 starts. The Ravens acquired him in a trade with Jacksonville in 2020.
NBA
Joel Embiid makes strong case for MVP
Joel Embiid made his closing argument for MVP votes and all but wrapped up the NBA scoring title, scoring 41 points while adding 20 rebounds and four assists to lead the host Philadelphia 76ers to a 133-120 victory over the Indiana Pacers. Embiid shot 14 for 17 from the floor, went 11 of 15 from the foul line and made both his 3-point attempts in a game that Philadelphia (50-31) needed to win to remain alive in the hunt for the third seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. It was the first time this season an NBA player scored 40 or more points and had 20 or more rebounds in a game, but the third time Embiid has achieved the feat in his career, with all three coming against the Pacers. “I’ve always said that every single night, I want to dominate,” Embiid said. “If you are dominating, things can show up in a lot of different ways — whether it is offensively or defensively. Sometimes, the numbers don’t show it. But it’s good, I guess.”
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Soccer
Ronaldo remorseful for outburst
Cristiano Ronaldo apologized for what he described as an “outburst” after Manchester United’s 1-0 loss to Everton in the Premier League. Footage shared on social media showed Ronaldo apparently slapping a phone out of a supporter’s hand as he left the field at Goodison Park. In a post on Instagram, Ronaldo said: “I would like to apologize for my outburst and, if possible, I would like to invite this supporter to watch a game at Old Trafford as a sign of fair-play and sportsmanship.” Ronaldo said it was “never easy to deal with emotions in difficult moments such as the one we are facing. Nevertheless, we always have to be respectful, patient and set the example for all the youngsters who love the beautiful game.” . . . Son Heung-min scored a sensational hat trick as Tottenham took control of the race for a Premier League top-four spot with a 4-0 win at Aston Villa. After Manchester United and Arsenal both lost earlier in the day, Son’s treble and Dejan Kulusevski’s strike sent Spurs three points clear in fourth place.
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NHL
Islanders F Casey Cizikas draws one-game suspension
The NHL suspended New York Islanders forward Casey Cizikas for one game without pay for boarding Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Brendan Smith. The incident occurred in the third period of a game Friday night at Carolina. Smith tried to control a loose puck in a corner and was hit from behind by Cizikas, who had closed in to forecheck. The force of the hit sent Smith’s helmet hard into the plexiglass and Cizikas was assessed a minor penalty on the play
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Auto racing
Colton Herta sets Long Beach qualifying record
Colton Herta broke the Long Beach track record and the native of nearby Valencia, Calif., will start from the pole for his home IndyCar race at Long Beach, Calif. Herta turned a lap at 1 minute, 05.3095 seconds on the temporary street course set up through downtown Long Beach to earn his eighth career pole and the right to lead the field to green on Sunday. The previous track record was 1:06.2254 set by Helio Castroneves in 2017 . . . A Ferrari versus Red Bull battle is shaping up as the likely scenario on Sunday at the first Australian Grand Prix since the pandemic began in 2020. Charles Leclerc claimed Ferrari’s first pole position at the revamped Albert Park circuit in Melbourne since 2007 with a decisive final lap of 1 minute, 17.868 seconds. Running close behind were the Red Bulls of world champion Max Verstappen, who qualified .286 seconds behind, and Sergio Perez, who posted the third quickest time. Leclerc and Verstappen have shared the opening two races of the season in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia and will now start alongside each other on the front row.
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Miscellany
Sea Dogs suffer first loss of season
Brandon Howlett went 2 for 2 in his Portland Sea Dogs (1-1) debut but it went for naught in a rain-shortened loss, 3-0, to the New Hampshire Fisher Cats (1-1) in front of a sold-out crowd on at Hadlock Field in Portland. Howlett led the Sea Dogs offense, recording his first Double-A hit in the second inning off Fisher Cats starter Nick Fraze. Howlett doubled to left, putting himself in scoring position with two outs, but was left stranded. Howlett later singled in the fifth inning, ending Fraze’s day while notching his second hit. Adrian Hernandez (1-0) tossed one scoreless and hitless inning, walking two and striking out two in his first win of the season. Victor Santos (0-1) surrendered three runs, two earned, on four hits with two walks and a strikeout in his first loss of the year.
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