PHOENIX (AP) — First-year Atlanta Falcons general manager Ian Cunningham said he’ll continue to push for more diversity in the NFL’s leadership positions, even after Florida’s attorney general wrote that the league’s minority hiring guidelines violate Florida state law.

Attorney General James Uthmeier sent a letter to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell saying the league’s 23-year-old Rooney Rule amounts to “blatant race and sex discrimination.”

“Just from my position, especially being a Black man, there’s still work to be done,” Cunningham told The Associated Press on Monday at the NFL’s league meetings. “Now that I’m in this position and have this platform, I’m going to be intentional about what we do from a grassroots effort to a director level.

“I do think it’s important to give people of all races and sexes a chance to be in a position to further their career.”

The Rooney Rule requires teams to interview at least two minority candidates for head coach, general manager and coordinator positions. At least one minority candidate must be interviewed for the quarterbacks coach position.

The 40-year-old Cunningham was hired as the Falcons general manger in January after four seasons as an assistant GM with the Chicago Bears. He’s also spent time in the front office for the Baltimore Ravens and Philadelphia Eagles.

Cunningham said he didn’t have a comment on Uthmeier’s specific concerns, saying he didn’t have all the details.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Todd Bowles — who is one of just three Black head coaches in the league — also said he needed more information before deciding if Uthmeier’s complaint had any merit.

“The political part of it, if he wants it out, and he has reasons why, I got to hear cases and all that,” Bowles said. “If I were the judge sitting behind a bench, I would probably have more info right now what he thinks, but I don’t.”

Uthmeier asked Goodell to confirm by May 1 that the NFL was no longer enforcing the Rooney Rule in Florida, or the league could face civil rights action. There are three NFL teams in Florida — the Buccaneers, Miami Dolphins and Jacksonville Jaguars.

“NFL fans in Florida don’t care what color their coach’s skin is,” the letter said. “They care what colors their coach is wearing — and that those colors are winning on the football field. The Rooney Rule and its offshoots are illegal in Florida.”

The NFL will have only three head coaches and four general managers who are Black next season. There were 10 head coach openings this season and none of them were filled by a Black coach.

Robert Saleh, who is of Lebanese descent, was the only minority to get a job during the most recent head coach hiring cycle when he was hired by Tennessee.

This was just the fifth time since the start of the Rooney Rule in 2003 that no Black head coaches were hired during an offseason coaching cycle. The only other time it happened in a year with more than five changes was 2013, when there were eight openings.

Goodell isn’t scheduled to speak at the NFL’s annual meetings until Tuesday, but said in February that increasing diversity is still one of the league’s goals.

“We need to continue to make progress,” Goodell said. “I believe that and I believe diversity is good for us. … I think we have to become a more diverse league across every platform, including coaching. But we still have more work to do.”

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AP Pro Football Writer Rob Maaddi contributed to this story.

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SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Koa Peat has been a winner throughout his basketball career.

He won four state titles in high school in Arizona and became the first player to win four international gold medals at the junior level. So when Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd was trying to entice Peat to play for the Wildcats, he pitched him on helping the school end a 25-year Final Four drought.

“That was my recruiting pitch,” Lloyd said. “Four, four, and four. Let’s do it. The dude, he’s amazing. His ability to perform the way he did in these moments, you know, he’s been in a lot of them.”

Peat fulfilled the wish in his first season with Arizona, leading the Wildcats to their first Final Four since 2001 with a memorable performance in the West Region of the NCAA Tournament. Arizona will take on Michigan in the national semifinals on Saturday in Indianapolis.

Peat scored 21 points in a Sweet 16 victory over Arkansas and added 20 more in the Elite Eight against Purdue to win the Most Outstanding Player of the region and become just the sixth freshman ever to score at least 20 points in wins in those two rounds, according to Sportradar. Peat joined a list with Kon Knueppel, Derrick Rose, Joseph Forte, Jalen Rose and Kenny Anderson.

Now Peat will try to do what those precocious stars couldn’t and win Arizona’s second national title to go with the one from 1997 when Mike Bibby was the star freshman on coach Lute Olson’s squad.

“I saw a lot of the past legends that played for Arizona, and Mike Bibby, he was a big mentor to me,” Peat said. “He went to the Final Four, won the championship. When you put on the Arizona jersey, you know you’re playing for people that played before you. So it’s bigger than yourself; it’s the program.”

Peat arrived at Arizona last fall as a five-star recruit and has delivered on all the high expectations that come with it.

He scored 30 points in the opener in a win against defending-champion Florida, had 16 points and 12 rebounds in a nonconference win over Connecticut and returned after missing three games in February to score 21 points in the Big 12 title win against Houston.

“Just going out there, playing my game, trusting my teammates, them finding me in open spots, and staying the course,” he said. “Just keep playing. That’s really it.”

Peat hadn’t followed the March struggles of Arizona’s basketball program closely despite growing up in the state. He spent more time watching his four older brothers play football and two older sisters play basketball.

Peat could have followed the family path in football with his father, Todd, having played nine seasons in the NFL and his brother, Andrus, having just finished his 10th season in the NFL.

“I played a lot of sports growing up, baseball, football and basketball. So from a young age I was playing a lot of sports, around a lot of athletes in my family,” Koa said. “But honestly, I just truthfully fell in love with basketball. Especially during quarantine, all I was doing was training and just working out and really working on my body. I slimmed down a little bit, and I just thought basketball was like the best choice for me. Especially now you could play a long time playing basketball. Football’s a different story. I had great support from my family members in my choice in playing basketball, and I think I’ve made the right choice, for sure.”

The Wildcats sure think so, and now they wouldn’t still be playing without him.

“They call him Mr. Arizona,” Lloyd said. “Koa is special.”

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PHOENIX (AP) — Aaron Rodgers, Kirk Cousins, Jimmy Garoppolo and Russell Wilson are still unsigned for the 2026 season.

Options vary for the four accomplished veteran quarterbacks.

The 42-year-old Rodgers can return to Pittsburgh and play for new coach Mike McCarthy if he doesn’t choose to retire. Steelers owner Art Rooney II told reporters Sunday he expects a decision from the four-time NFL MVP before the NFL draft next month.

Cousins finished last season strong, leading Atlanta to four straight wins down the stretch but the Falcons still missed the playoffs and coach Raheem Morris lost his job. The 37-year-old Cousins threw for 876 yards in those four games with seven touchdowns, two interceptions and had a 93.6 passer rating. Overall, he was 5-3 as a starter after opening the season backing up Michael Penix Jr.

The Falcons hired coach Kevin Stefanski, signed Tua Tagovailoa and released Cousins, who will likely have to settle for a backup role somewhere unless another starter is injured in the offseason. He could end up in Pittsburgh if Rodgers retires and the Steelers want to turn to another veteran QB after going from Wilson in 2024 to Rodgers in 2025.

Stefanski said Tagovailoa and Penix will compete for the starting job in Atlanta. Penix, a first-round pick in 2024, is coming off surgery last November to repair a torn ACL and it’s uncertain when he’ll be ready to go.

“He has had great success in this league when doing a lot of things that we believe in,” Stefanski said of Tagovailoa. “He’s looking for an opportunity and we can provide that.”

Garoppolo has an opportunity to go back to Los Angeles for a third season to play behind NFL MVP Matthew Stafford. If not, Cousins would be an option for the Rams and coach Sean McVay. They were together in Washington when McVay was the offensive coordinator.

Wilson began last season starting for the Giants and finished behind rookie Jaxson Dart and Jameis Winston. The 10-time Pro Bowl pick also is out of starting options and doesn’t appear to be drawing much interest as a backup even though he was supportive of Dart in that role last season.

A.J. Brown’s future

Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said “nothing’s changed” regarding Brown, the three-time Pro Bowl receiver who has been involved in trade speculation.

“A.J. is an Eagle,” Sirianni said.

The Eagles have listened to offers for the veteran and also signed veteran wideouts Marquise “Hollywood” Brown and Elijah Moore, who was Brown’s roommate at Mississippi. Miami’s trade of Jaylen Waddle to Denver for a first-round pick along with a third and fourth raised the bar for A.J. Brown’s market value.

Switch for Lions’ Penei Sewell

Lions coach Dan Campbell said three-time All-Pro right tackle Penei Sewell is ready to switch over to the left side to protect Jared Goff’s blind side.

The Lions need to replace Taylor Decker, who was released. Sewell played left tackle at Oregon before Detroit selected him with the seventh overall pick in the 2021 draft.

Proposal withdrawn

The Browns withdrew their proposal that would allow teams to trade draft picks five years into the future instead of three, a person with knowledge of the decision told the AP. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because Cleveland’s decision wasn’t announced.

Owners will be voting on other proposals by the NFL competition committee and a proposal from the Steelers about contacting players during the free agent negotiating period.

Any changes need to be approved by at least 24 of the 32 teams.

Josh Allen’s recovery

Bills quarterback Josh Allen is no longer wearing a protective boot on his right foot after breaking a bone in it during a game in Week 16. The 2024 NFL MVP had surgery after Buffalo lost to Denver in overtime in the AFC divisional playoffs.

“His foot, I don’t want to say it’s 100 percent, but he’s good,” Bills general manager Brandon Beane told reporters on Monday. “When he gets back in April, we expect him to be full-go.”

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PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — “Push!” “Press!” “Good ball!”

As the volunteer soccer coach shouted words of motivation, one of his players nudged the ball past the opposing team’s goalie and into the net, prompting the sideline to erupt in cheers.

This was the scene Sunday in Portland, Oregon, at a soccer tournament its organizer dubbed the World Cup for immigrant and refugee girls. Community advocate Som Subedi, an immigrant from Bhutan, created the event to help provide a sense of joy and unity amid federal immigration enforcement operations that have affected players’ families.

“ICE and federal enforcement must be out of our parking lots, out of our soccer fields, and most importantly, out of the fear in our hearts and minds,” Subedi said during the opening ceremony, using the acronym for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Subedi belongs to the Lhotshampa, a Nepali-speaking ethnic group targeted by Bhutanese authorities in the early 1990s. He lived in a refugee camp in Nepal for years and arrived in Portland in 2008, eventually becoming a U.S. citizen.

“This is more than a competition. It is more than soccer,” he told The Associated Press. “We are making this a community event so that they feel valued and welcomed.”

Support for families impacted by ICE

Fears of federal immigration enforcement have gripped youth sports across the country.

Last fall, the Oregon Youth Soccer Association announced the cancellation or rescheduling of several games in Portland over concerns about immigration agents in parks, The Oregonian/OregonLive reported. A New York City youth baseball coach intervened when ICE agents approached his team during practice, WABC-TV reported last July. And a Massachusetts high school student was arrested by immigration agents on his way to volleyball practice last May before being released.

Immigration enforcement, spearheaded by President Donald Trump’s administration, surged in the Pacific Northwest last fall, nearing the historic height seen during the first Obama administration, according to data released by the University of Washington Center for Human Rights. In Oregon, the spike saw nearly 1,200 people arrested from October to December.

Portland’s ICE building has been the site of persistent protests over the administration’s immigration crackdown since last June, including months of nightly demonstrations. Federal officers’ use of chemical munitions such as tear gas to disperse crowds at the building is the subject of two lawsuits, brought by nearby residents and protesters respectively, that are currently before a federal appeals court.

Some of the tournament’s players — aged 10-18 and whose families hailed from countries from Mexico to Somalia to Myanmar — have been directly impacted by the immigration crackdown. Valeria Hernandez, 15, said her brother was deported to Mexico late last year.

“I broke down at that moment. I was really sad,” she told the AP, choking up. “He was my best friend.”

It became harder to get to practice, as her brother used to gives her rides. He was her main inspiration for playing soccer, she said, adding that she sent him a picture from the tournament before her first game.

“He was just very passionate about it,” she said, “so I wanted to be just like him.”

At the opening ceremony, Valeria, her mother and younger sister were gifted brightly colored scarves as symbols of support while they grapple with the deportation of their loved one, with whom “they deserve to be united,” Subedi said.

Subedi himself recounted how his daughter, 11, was afraid to go to soccer practice after immigration agents were reported near her school last winter. He showed her that he carries his REAL ID and passport on him, but she was still nervous, he told the AP.

“I had to calm her down, and she went into the practice, but also not without the fear,” he said.

Community solidarity

To help create a sense of safety at the tournament, officers from two police departments and a local immigrant rights group were present. At times, officers were seen on the edge of the park chatting with attendees, or in their patrol vehicle in the parking lot. Under Oregon’s sanctuary law, local police are prohibited from assisting with federal immigration enforcement.

The departments committed to showing up in a supportive role, he said, “and their presence helped families feel protected, not policed.”

Having a crowd of supporters and families also contributed to the secure atmosphere, Subedi said.

“When there’s a feeling of having a community’s back for these girls, I think that creates that sense of belonging, sense of safeness,” he said.

Esraa Alnabelsi, who arrived in the U.S. from Syria in 2012, said it was exciting not only to watch her 13-year-old daughter play, but also to see people of different cultures and religions come together.

“We really have to be in one hand to face all that’s happening now in Oregon and other states,” she said.

There has also been solidarity among the players. A few girls who didn’t come from immigrant families wanted to participate in the tournament, and they were accepted as the event was open to everyone, Subedi said.

Thanks to donations, the tournament — including jerseys and cleats — was free for the girls, who were split into six teams. Some teams represented certain communities and groups, such as the Karen people in Myanmar and the African Refugee Immigrant Organization. The teams that placed first and second received trophies.

Dozens of people signed up to volunteer, including as referees and coaches.

Sergio Medel was a volunteer coach for a team that included his 16-year-old daughter. He used to play professionally in Mexico and has coached at various levels in the U.S. since arriving in 1997.

“I hope that when they walk away from here, they feel like, ‘Hey, we’re not alone,’” he said.

As the world’s most played and popular sport, soccer has a way of bringing diverse communities together, with similar soccer tournaments for immigrants organized in the U.S. in recent years.

Subedi, who has loved playing soccer since he was a young child, described it as a game where “there is no language needed.”

“You just come together and play,” he said.