Funkerstation » lez and Jose Cruz Jr. He credited his team

ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- Darius Slay took the field for Detroits first practice of training camp with his contract concerns in the past.Slay signed a four-year extension with the Lions worth about $50 million, a deal that lasts through the 2020 season. The 25-year-old cornerback was heading into the fourth and final season of his rookie contract, and now Detroit doesnt have to worry about losing him to free agency in 2017.I know the organization, they love me. I love them, Slay said. They gave me a great opportunity. I put a lot of good tape on film. I was very important to the team, and Im glad to still be here.The Lions announced Slays extension shortly before practice Friday. His contract had been one of the teams biggest unresolved issues during the offseason. Slay has become an important part of the Detroit secondary, and the Lions hope hell be valuable for years to come.Darius earned this extension, and we are happy to reward him accordingly, general manager Bob Quinn said in a statement. We also are pleased to have finalized this now so the team and Darius can focus on the start of training camp and preparation for the upcoming season.The other big bit of news from the Lions on Friday was injury-related. Linebacker DeAndre Levy was put on the active non-football injury list. Neither Levy nor coach Jim Caldwell elaborated on what the problem was.Slay has played in 45 games for the Lions, making 36 starts. He has 149 tackles (119 solo) in his career, with four interceptions and 35 pass defenses.He said he became pretty emotional after the deal was done.I tried to hold my tears in, but I couldnt too long, because of where I came from, he said.Two years ago, the Lions were unable to work out an extension with Ndamukong Suh when he was entering the last season of his contract. They ended up losing him to free agency.Detroit avoided that scenario with Slay, a player who has progressed well since the Lions drafted the Mississippi State standout in the second round in 2013.Thats the plan. You know, build our own through the draft and find good guys and then extend them and keep them here, team president Rod Wood said. Its a lot easier when you know the guy than signing him from free agency when youre hoping that you know him. So were really happy that it worked out this way.The Lions signed Levy to a contract extension around this time last year, then he missed almost the entire season because of hip problems. He stopped to talk to reporters after practice Friday, but the exchange became a bit amusing when he referred questions about his injury to Caldwell -- over and over again.At one point, he was asked how frustrating these injury problems have been.Its just a little stress -- that Caldwell probably could describe better than I could, he said.For his part, Caldwell gave no details about the injury but said Levy is still a big part of the teams plans.If it was something long-term that we deemed as being long-term, you certainly know I would let you know that, Caldwell said. We want to be a little bit prudent in terms of how we deal with it.Safety Don Carey was also put on the active NFI list.---Online:AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFLLaDainian Tomlinson Youth Jersey . 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Open champion Justin Rose birdied the first hole with a blind shot he hit to a foot of the pin, and he stayed in front Tuesday until he completed a 4-under 67 for a two-shot lead over Jason Dufner in PGA Grand Slam of Golf.TORONTO -- Carlos Delgado is now officially one of the Toronto Blue Jays greats. The former slugger was inducted into the clubs Level of Excellence at Rogers Centre ahead of Sundays game against the Tampa Bay Rays. Delgado joins former players Dave Stieb, Roberto Alomar, Tony Fernandez, Joe Carter and George Bell, along with former manager Cito Gaston, former general manager Pat Gillick, late broadcaster Tom Cheek and current president and CEO Paul Beeston in being honoured by the club. The 41-year-old Delgado was a member of the Blue Jays from 1993 to 2004 and is the franchise leader in home runs (336), RBIs (1,058), walks (827), slugging percentage (.556), OPS (.949), runs (889), total bases (2,786) and doubles (343). "Twenty years ago on this very field I started living a dream," Delgado said in his acceptance speech. "I want to say thank you to the Toronto organization for giving me the opportunity to come to professional baseball. For giving me the opportunity to become a major leaguer.dddddddddddd" Delgado was joined on the field by family and former teammates, including Alomar, Fernandez, Candy Maldonado, Shawn Green, Alex Gonzalez and Jose Cruz Jr. He credited his teammates for helping get him to the Level of Excellence. "Let me tell you something about teamwork. I always say you cant drive yourself in. You cant score from second if nobody drives you in," said Delgado. "I tell you, its a great honour to strap it on and take the field with you every single day. I recognize you and it was an unbelievable pleasure playing with you guys. It wasnt always pretty but we tried to make it work." The first basemans career, which also included stops with the Florida Marlins and New York Mets, ended with a hip injury that did not respond to surgery. The two-time all-star (2000, 2003) won the Hank Aaron Award and Sporting News Player of the Year Award in 2000 and the Silver Slugger Award in 1999, 2000 and 2003. ' ' '