Cowboys’ Romo Out With Another Back Injury

Frisco, Texas — Tony Romo is out with yet another back injury and it’s unknown when he will return, although Dallas coach Jason Garrett says he expects his star quarterback to play this season.

Garrett said Saturday that Romo sustained a broken bone in his back when he was hit from behind by Seattle’s Cliff Avrill and slid awkwardly on the third play of a preseason game.

Romo tried to get back into Thursday’s game and said afterward that he was OK. But Garrett said the 36-year-old woke up Friday with stiffness, and an MRI revealed Romo’s fourth back injury in less than four years. The injury will not require surgery.

Garrett wouldn’t rule out Romo for the regular-season opener Sept. 11 against the New York Giants. Rookie Dak Prescott, a fourth-round pick who has had a strong preseason, is the presumed starter, although Garrett wouldn’t acknowledge that either.

“If you guys remember, he has played with fractures in his back before,” Garrett said, referring to Romo’s quick return from a small fracture in his back in 2014.

The Cowboys plunged from 12-4 in 2014 to 4-12 last season, when Romo missed 12 games with a twice-broken left collarbone. Dallas went 1-11 without him.

Rams Extend WR

Denver— Wide receiver Tavon Austin signed a four-year contract extension with the Los Angeles Rams.

The deal was announced while the team was in Denver for an exhibition game Saturday night. NFL.com reported the deal was worth $42 million, with $30 million guaranteed.

NFL Preseason Giants 21, Jets 20

East Rutherford, n.j. — Ryan Fitzpatrick threw a touchdown pass to Eric Decker and the Jets’ defense stifled Eli Manning and the Giants’ starters in a loss.

Both teams’ first-string offenses did very little in the last regular-season tuneup for most starters, but Fitzpatrick connected with Decker for a 22-yard score three plays after Darrelle Revis intercepted Manning in Giants territory in the second quarter.

Fitzpatrick finished 9 of 16 for 76 yards with the score and lost a fumble before being replaced by Geno Smith just before halftime.

Manning was 10 of 15 for 65 yards and an interception while playing one series into the third quarter. The Giants’ starters managed just 61 total yards against Todd Bowles’ defense.

Ravens 30, Lions 9

Baltimore— Joe Flacco went 11 for 16 for 94 yards in his first action since November, but Baltimore lost tight end Benjamin Watson to a season-ending injury when he tore his right Achilles tendon on the game’s first play.

Coming off surgery to repair ligaments in his left knee, Flacco played in two series spanning the first quarter. He took the Ravens (3-0) to a field goal in their opening possession and ended his performance by misfiring on a fourth-down pass from the Detroit 43.

Eagles 33, Colts 23

Indianapolis — With Carson Wentz missing a second straight game because of fractured ribs, Sam Bradford led the Eagles on three touchdown drives and to a third straight preseason victory.

College Football Miami Kicks 2 Starters Out

Coral Gables, Fla. — Miami threw two defensive starters off its football team for NCAA violations, after a months-long probe into whether players had access to luxury rental cars.

Defensive end Al-Quadin Muhammad and linebacker Jermaine Grace were “permanently dismissed” from the team, though the school is offering to continue providing financial aid until they graduate from Miami. It was not clear if either player is planning to remain at the university, which remains on probation over the actions of a former rogue booster.

Golf Fowler Takes Lead in N.Y.

Farmingdale, n.y. — Rickie Fowler kept bogeys off his card for the second straight day and closed with a 5-foot birdie putt for a 3-under 68, giving him a one-shot lead over Patrick Reed going into the final round of The Barclays.

Fowler has gone 45 holes without a bogey at Bethpage Black, the site of two U.S. Opens and among the toughest courses on the PGA Tour. Along with his three birdies Saturday, he made three par-saving putts of at least 10 feet, including one from 25 feet early in his round.

Fowler, who was at 9-under 204, is in prime position to win for the first time on the PGA Tour in a year and play his way onto the U.S. Ryder Cup team.

This is the final tournament for Americans to earn one of the eight automatic spots for the Ryder Cup matches at Hazeltine at the end of next month. Fowler was at No. 12 going into the opening FedEx Cup event with its $8.5 million purse and needed at least a third-place finish to earn a spot.

At Priddis, Alberta, Ariya Jutanugarn missed a chance to take a big lead into the final round of the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open, making two late bogeys at Priddis Greens.

A week after withdrawing from the Rio Olympics because of a left knee injury, the 20-year-old Thai player bogeyed the par-4 16th and par-5 18th for a 5-under 67.

At 17-under 199, she had a two-stroke advantage over South Korea’s In Gee Chun.

At Snoqualmie, Wash., Gene Sauers took the Boeing Classic lead, two weeks after his breakthrough victory in the U.S. Senior Open.

The 54-year-old Sauers two-putted for birdie on the par-5 18th for a 5-under 67 and a two-stroke lead over Joe Durant. The three-time PGA Tour winner had a 12-under 132 total at TPC Snoqualmie Ridge.

Tennis Radwanska Wins Conn. Title

New Haven, Conn. — Top-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska completed a dominating week at the Connecticut Open, beating Elina Svitolina 6-1, 7-6 (3) in the final.

The Polish star didn’t drop a set during the tournament. She took control of the final from the start, winning 20 of the first 27 points to take a 5-0 lead.

The title is the second this season for the Radwanska, who also won the Shenzhen Open in China in January. She will go into next week’s U.S. Open as the No. 4 seed.