Barlow selected to TSWA All-State Wrestling Team

Kansas City wide receiver Kadarius Toney has one more season left on his rookie contract after the Chiefs declined the fifth-year 2025 option, multiple media outlets reported on Thursday. Toney, 25, signed his first NFL deal after the New York Giants made him the 20th overall pick in the 2021 draft. He played one full season with New York before being traded to Kansas City in October 2022. In his first full season with the Chiefs in 2023, Toney battled injuries and had just 27 receptions for 169 yards and a touchdown in 13 games (two starts). He also had six punt returns for 58 yards. Toney was injured before the season started, tearing a meniscus at the first practice of the summer and missing the rest of training camp. He played in the season opener after undergoing surgery but was bothered by injuries throughout the season. Including the postseason, he was on the Chiefs' injury report for 19 of their 21 games. After Week 15, Toney didn't play another down the rest of the season and sat out the Chiefs' run to a second straight Super Bowl championship. This season, Toney will have added competition as the Chiefs brought in free agent wide receiver Marquise "Hollywood" Brown and chose speedy wideout Xavier Worthy in the first round of last month's draft. In three seasons with the Giants (2021-22) and Chiefs (2022-23), Toney has 82 catches for 760 yards and three touchdowns. He also has 17 punt returns for 119 yards. --Field Level Media

Cowboys' Dak Prescott won't face charges for alleged assault

Seven years after a woman alleges that Dak Prescott sexually assaulted her, Dallas police announced Thursday that they will not pursue charges against the Cowboys quarterback. An investigation determined there wasn't enough evidence against Prescott to proceed with the case. "I want to thank the Dallas Police Department and Dallas County District Attorneys' office for their thorough investigation of the allegations against Dak Prescott," the quarterback's attorney, Levi McCathern, said in a statement. "As we knew they would, they found nothing in their extensive exploration of the facts that would support a criminal prosecution." The news comes the same week that the accuser's attorney, Yoel Zehaie, filed a motion to dismiss Prescott's lawsuit against the accuser. Prescott is seeking $1 million in response to what his attorney's claim was an extortion attempt on the woman's behalf. They maintain that the woman asked for $100 million to drop the sexual assault allegation. The women's attorney also filed a countersuit in civil court. McCathern said in a statement on Thursday, "We are confident that at the end of law enforcement's investigation into the extortion case that they will find the accuser and her attorneys just as guilty as Dak is innocent. "As I have said from the beginning, Dak is a great football player, and an even better human. He would never assault any woman. These false accusations were brought up 7 years after the alleged events for one reason and one reason only -- to line the pockets of the accuser and her attorneys. Their behavior is an affront to all the true survivors of sexual assault." Zehaie told WFAA-TV in Dallas this week that Prescott's lawsuit "was meant to silence his sexual assault victim" and "is in violation of Texas's Anti Slapp Statute which prohibits different forms of retaliatory lawsuits." Zehaie added in a statement on Thursday, according to ESPN, "We are proceeding with our counterclaims, even though Levi McCathern is using every tactic to prevent us from going to court." --Field Level Media

The Baltimore Ravens announced the signing of five draft picks on Thursday, including cornerback Nate Wiggins, who became the first selection from the 2024 first round to reach a deal. Rookie contracts are tied to a player's slotted draft position. The 30th overall pick out of Clemson, Wiggins inked a four-year contract valued at $12.8 million (all guaranteed), including a $6.1 million signing bonus, for an average annual salary of $3.2 million, according to Spotrac.com. This coming season, Wiggins will earn a base salary of $795,000 plus the signing bonus. Baltimore also brought under contract offensive tackle Roger Rosengarten (second round out of Washington), cornerback T.J. Tampa (fourth round, Iowa State), center Nick Samac (seventh round, Michigan State) and safety Sanoussi Kane (seventh round, Purdue). Left unsigned from the Ravens' rookie draft class are third-round outside linebacker Adisa Isaac (Penn State), fourth-round WR Devontez Walker (North Carolina), fifth-round running back Rasheen Ali (Marshall) and sixth-round quarterback Devin Leary (Kentucky). --Field Level Media

Georgia is making Kirby Smart the highest-paid college football coach at a public school under a new contract announced Thursday. Smart, who led the Bulldogs to national championships in 2021 and 2022, agreed to a two-year contract extension through 2033 that will pay him a yearly salary of $13 million -- a $1.75 million annual raise -- and bonuses up to $1.55 million. Clemson coach Dabo Swinney is due to make $11.5 million in 2024, according to reports. Smart, 48, is 94-16 in eight seasons at his alma mater, including 13-1 last season when a loss to Alabama for the Southeastern Conference championship kept the defending champion Bulldogs out of the College Football Playoff. Instead, Georgia played in the Orange Bowl, defeating Florida State to raise its mark to 9-2 in bowl games under Smart. He signed a 10-year contract in 2021 that totaled $112.5 million -- at the time the most lucrative deal. However, Swinney and Alabama's Nick Saban -- who retired after last season -- inked new contracts that surpassed the annual figure. Smart's new compensation was approved Thursday afternoon by an executive committee of the Georgia Athletic Association's board of directors. Athletic director Josh Brooks also received a pay increase to $1.275 million annually with a contract extension to 2030. Hired in January 2021, Brooks was making $1.025 million annually with yearly increases of $100,000. --Field Level Media

Georgia makes Kirby Smart highest-paid football coach at public school

Reports: Steelers decline RB Najee Harris' fifth-year option

The Pittsburgh Steelers have declined to pick up the fifth-year team option for running back Najee Harris in 2025, according to multiple media reports Thursday. Harris, 26, was projected to cost the team $6.7 million in guaranteed money. A Pro Bowl selection as a rookie in 2021, he is the first player in Steelers history to rush for 1,000 yards in each of his first three seasons. Thursday was the deadline for teams to exercise fifth-year options for first-round draft picks in 2021. As expected, Pittsburgh also declined the option for quarterback Justin Fields -- obtained in an offseason trade from the Chicago Bears -- that would have paid him a guaranteed $25 million in 2025. The Steelers could be waiting to see how Harris plays in new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith's offense while being open to working a new contract, according to an NFL Network report. His original rookie contract is worth $13 million over four years, including $2.4 million in 2024. The 24th overall pick out of Alabama in 2021, Harris has started all 51 games he's played and rushed 834 times for 3,269 yards and 22 touchdowns. He also has 144 receptions for 866 yards and six TDs. Last season, Harris had a career-low 255 attempts for 1,035 yards, making for a career-best 4.1 yards per carry. He played a career-low 53 percent of offensive snaps in 2023, compared to 84 percent when he made the NFL All-Rookie Team in 2021. --Field Level Media

Indianapolis exercised the fifth-year option in the contract of pass rusher Kwity Paye, guaranteeing the No. 21 pick in the 2021 draft a salary of $13.4 million in 2025. Paye, 25, had his best year as a pro in 2023. He posted career highs with 8.5 sacks and 52 tackles. Paye had 10 total QB sacks in his first two seasons. in 43 career games, all starts, Paye has 129 tackles, including 21 tackles for loss. A defensive end at Michigan, Paye ranks 46th in the NFL in sacks (18.5) over the past three seasons. Paye was drafted between wide receiver Kadarius Toney (Giants) and cornerback Caleb Farley (Titans) in 2021. --Field Level Media