Reuters Sports News Summary

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs. Carroll: We owe 'tremendous amount' to Kaepernick

Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said it took too long for the NFL to recognize Colin Kaepernick taking a stand when he took a knee during the national anthem. "I think that there was a moment in time that a young man captured. He took a stand on something, figuratively took a knee, but he stood up for something he believed in -- and what an extraordinary moment it was that he was willing to take," Carroll said as a guest on the podcast of Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr and San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich. Drag racing set to return with fans in stands

Drag Racing will return in mid-July with back-to-back events in Indianapolis with a limited number of fans in the stands, the NHRA (National Hot Rod Association) said on Wednesday. The two events will be run on consecutive weekends, July 11-12 and July 18-19 at Lucas Oil Raceway and will be among the first sports events to welcome back spectators although the NHRA did not say how many would attend. UCLA complains Jackie Robinson Stadium used as 'field jail' for civil rights protesters

The University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) said it was "troubled" by reports that the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) used its baseball venue Jackie Robinson Stadium as a "field jail" for people arrested while staging "Black Lives Matter" protests. In an open letter on Tuesday, a group of UCLA professors voiced their outrage after receiving "chilling testimony" from demonstrators whose arrests they said were processed at the stadium, "named after Jackie Robinson, an icon of the long and unfinished struggle for Black freedom." Saints QB Brees draws ire of NBA's James over kneeling comments

New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees drew the ire of NBA great LeBron James when he said on Wednesday he does not feel NFL players should kneel during the national anthem and called the gesture disrespectful to the American flag. Brees was asked during an appearance on Yahoo Finance's On the Move about the possibility of players protesting against racial injustice by kneeling during the anthem when the NFL's 2020 season kicks off in September. 'We want to be better': Major League Baseball on death of George Floyd

Major League Baseball (MLB) called for action "both within our sport and society," after the death of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis prompted protests and calls for reform across the United States. Floyd, an unarmed 46-year-old black man, died after Derek Chauvin, a white police officer, knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes on May 25, reigniting the explosive issue of police brutality against African Americans. Norris drives an F3 car ahead of F1 return

After COVID-19 lockdown and months of virtual racing, McLaren's Lando Norris has got behind the wheel for real by taking a Formula Three car for a spin at Silverstone. The 20-year-old Briton linked up with his old Carlin team this week as he prepared for the much-delayed season to start in Austria next month. Panthers offer Kuechly scouting role

If Luke Kuechly identifies talent as well as he does ballcarriers, the Carolina Panthers could be adding a game-changing scout. Kuechly, the five-time All-Pro linebacker who announced his retirement in January, is weighing a role in personnel with the Panthers. 'Big Three' join #BlackoutTuesday campaign against racial injustice

Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal and Novak Djokovic were among the tennis players who joined the #BlackOutTuesday campaign against racial injustice, as protests continue over the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man who died in police custody. Floyd died after a white policeman pinned his neck under a knee for nearly nine minutes in Minneapolis on May 25. League targets mid-October finish to virus-hit campaign

The National Basketball Association has targeted Oct. 12 as the last possible date to complete the 2019-20 season, which has been on hold since mid-March because of the COVID-19 pandemic, ESPN reported on Tuesday. The report, which was based on unnamed sources, said a timeline shared with teams showed Oct. 12 as the latest the best-of-seven NBA Finals could finish and a proposal would go to a vote of the league's board of governors on Thursday. Pirates RHP Archer out for season following TOS surgery

Right-hander Chris Archer will not pitch until 2021 after undergoing surgery to relieve thoracic outlet syndrome, the Pittsburgh Pirates announced Wednesday. Archer, who had surgery in St. Louis, consulted "with several leading vascular and orthopedic surgeons in recent weeks," the team said.