Jags QB Lawrence sprains right ankle

Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence has a high ankle sprain that could force him to miss the first game of his NFL career. Coach Doug Pederson said Tuesday that tests on Lawrence’s right ankle showed “everything’s stable, everything’s good.” He added that surgery “is not necessarily something that would be warranted at this time.” “We’ll see where he’s at in a couple days,” Pederson said roughly 12 hours after a 34-31 overtime loss to the Bengals. Pederson said Lawrence’s injury “looked worse than it was. Very fortunate there.” He declined to say if Lawrence has a realistic shot at playing Sunday against the Browns (7-5). Left tackle Walker Little stepped on Lawrence’s right ankle on a play, causing him to twist it as he was sacked. Lawrence tried to get up, but dropped to the ground, ripped off his helmet and threw it in disgust. He was helped off the field. It ended an otherwise stellar night for Lawrence, who completed 22 of 29 passes for 259 yards and two TDs. He also ran for a score. Backup QB C.J. Beathard completed 9 of 10 passes for 63 yards off the bench for the Jaguars (8-4).

Dodgers make their pitch to Ohtani

Shohei Ohtani met with the Dodgers a few days ago at Dodger Stadium, manager Dave Roberts revealed Tuesday at the winter meetings in Nashville, Tennessee. Ohtani, a unique two-way star, is expected to command a record contract of $500 million-plus on the free agent market coming off his second AL MVP award in three seasons. “He has a very good poker face,” Roberts said. The meeting lasted two-to-three hours. Roberts at first hesitated before giving a few details. “It’s a good possibility,” he said. “Yeah, we met with him. I don’t want to — I’d like to be honest and so we met with Shohei and we talked and I think it went well.” Ohtani, 29, led the AL with 44 homers and hit .304 with 96 RBIs, eight triples and 20 stolen bases for the Angels in a season that ended Sept. 3 because of an oblique injury. He was 10-5 with a 3.14 ERA in 23 starts on the mound, striking out 167 and walking 55 in 132 innings before tearing the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow on Aug. 23. He had surgery on Sept. 19 that will keep him off the mound until 2025. Ohtani hasn’t spoken with reporters since Aug. 9.

Nadal lowers expectations for return

Rafael Nadal is not expecting too much when he returns to the tour in January after a year out. Nadal announced on Friday he will play at the Brisbane International in Australia in January. The 37-year-old Spaniard hasn’t appeared on tour since last January, when he hurt his hip flexor during a loss in the second round of the Australian Open. He wound up having arthroscopic surgery in June in Barcelona. Nadal said on Monday in a video on social media that he hopes to again “feel those nerves, that illusion, those fears, those doubts” on the court. “I have been afraid to announce things because in the end it’s a year without competing and it’s a hip operation. But what worries me the most is not the hip, it’s everything else,” he said. “I think I’m ready and I trust and hope that things go well.” Last May, a little more than a week before the French Open, Nadal announced he was missing the tournament that has earned him 14 of his 22 Grand Slam tournaments. He said then that he hoped to compete in 2024, which he expected to be his final season. — Associated Press