Ex-NBA stars Carter, McGrady part of group seeking to buy stake in Buffalo Bills, AP source says

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Ex-NBA stars Carter, McGrady part of group seeking to buy stake in Buffalo Bills, AP source says

2024-11-19 12:40 Last Updated At：12:50

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Former NBA stars Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady are part of a group being considered by the NFL to purchase a non-controlling minority stake in the Buffalo Bills, a person with knowledge of the league finance committee’s agenda told The Associated Press on Monday.

The person spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity because the league didn’t release the agenda for the committee meeting scheduled for Tuesday. The committee will also consider Ares Management’s bid to buy 10% of the Miami Dolphins, the person said.

Sports Business Journal first reported the potential buyers being considered by the committee.

Tom Brady is also on the agenda, the person said, in an expected follow-up after the seven-time Super Bowl champion purchased a minority stake in the Las Vegas Raiders last month.

The Bills declined to comment on potential investors, saying in a statement that the process is ongoing and requires NFL approval.

Carter, McGrady and MLS player Jozy Altidore have joined Gridiron Capital managing partner Tom Burger in a consortium seeking to buy a 10.6% share of the Bills, the person said. Gridiron Capital’s share would amount to about 1.4%.

As part of the deal, another group, Arctos Partners, would buy a 10% stake in the Bills, leaving owners Terry and Kim Pegula maintaining a controlling share in the team of more than 79%.

Carter, 47, and McGrady, 45, are cousins, have both been inducted into Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, and spent two years as teammates with the Toronto Raptors. The two attended a Bills home game in September and toured the construction site where the Bills' new stadium is being built across the street from the team’s current home. The stadium is scheduled to open in June 2026.

In April, the Pegulas, who also own the NHL's Buffalo Sabres, announced they were exploring the possibility of selling a minority interest in the Bills.

The sale was considered a way for the Pegulas to cash in on the rising value of the franchise. Forbes' latest valuation of the Bills was at $4.2 billion. The Pegulas bought the team in 2014 for a then-NFL-record $1.4 billion from the estate of Hall of Fame owner and team founder Ralph Wilson.

The cost of the Bills' new stadium has risen to more than $2.1 billion, with the Pegulas on the hook for $1.25 billion, including an estimated $560 million in overruns.

Bills president Pete Guelli told the AP last week that the minority sale of the team was not connected to the construction costs.

Maaddi reported from Tampa, Florida.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Texans never trail while handing Cowboys 5th straight loss, 34-10

2024-11-19 12:38 Last Updated At：12:42

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Joe Mixon ran for three touchdowns, Derek Barnett returned a fumble 28 yards for a score and the Houston Texans beat the Dallas Cowboys 34-10 on Monday night.

The Texans (7-4) stopped just the second two-game losing streak in quarterback C.J. Stroud's two seasons while maintaining a two-game lead in the AFC South.

In a season filled with things gone wrong for the Cowboys (3-7), debris fell from their stadium's retractable roof as it was opening a few hours before the game.

There was no delay and no injuries were reported, just another mishap to foreshadow a fifth consecutive defeat for a team that lost five games total in each of the past three playoff seasons.

Cooper Rush threw a 64-yard touchdown pass to KaVontae Turpin but lost his second start since Dak Prescott's season-ending hamstring injury. The Dallas losing streak is its longest since a seven-game skid in 2015.

The Cowboys trailed by 10 early in the fourth quarter when Barnett knocked the ball out of Rush's hand as he was throwing. Dallas rookie left tackle Tyler Guyton caught it and was trying to run when Jalen Pitre knocked the ball loose again.

Barnett scooped it and scored, although he almost stepped out of bounds running free toward a pylon.

Earlier, the Cowboys appeared to have pulled within a touchdown on a 64-yard field goal from Brandon Aubrey, but Barnett was penalized for slapping Terence Steele on the rush.

Dallas erased the points by taking the penalty, but Rush's fourth-down pass from the Houston 8-yard line was incomplete.

Texans receiver Nico Collins returned after missing five games with a hamstring injury and took a screen pass 77 yards to the end zone the first time he touched the ball, only to have it called back because of an ineligible receiver downfield.

That possession ended with a touchdown anyway on Mixon's 45-yard sprint up the middle, and he ran wide for a 1-yard score and 14-0 lead. Mixon had 109 yards rushing and set up a field goal with a 37-yard catch-and-run on a screen.

Already without Prescott, the Cowboys lost tight end Jake Ferguson to a concussion and perennial All-Pro right guard Zack Martin and left guard Tyler Smith to ankle injuries. Rush was sacked five times, three on the same possession when Martin and Smith were injured.

The Texans didn't need much from Stroud, who has been in a mini-slump. He threw for 257 yards with an early interception on fourth down.

Rush was 32 of 55 for 354 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Turpin had three catches for 86 yards.

Texans DE Will Anderson Jr., who entered the week tied for fifth in the NFL with 7 1/2 sacks, was inactive because of an ankle injury. ... Cowboys DB Markquese Bell didn't return after injuring a shoulder covering a kickoff in the second quarter.

Texans: Host Tennessee on Sunday.

Cowboys: At Washington on Sunday.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl