Sports briefly: Patriots release linebacker Spikes

The New England Patriots released linebacker Brandon Spikes on Monday as authorities investigated whether his car was involved in an accident after the car was found abandoned in a highway median near where three people were hurt in a vehicle that was rear-ended.

While it's not clear who had been driving, the operator of Spikes' 2011 Mercedes-Maybach reported through the car's OnStar navigation system that it hit a deer, Massachusetts State Police spokesman David Procopio said in a statement. The car was found at about 3:30 a.m. Sunday with front-end damage in the median of Interstate 495 in Foxborough, Mass., near Patriots team headquarters.

"Whoever had been driving it was no longer at the scene," Procopio said. "Investigation indicates the Mercedes is registered to Brandon Spikes. No deer was located."

Around the same time, troopers got a report that a car in the same area as the abandoned car had been rear-ended by a vehicle the occupants did not see. Three people were taken to a hospital with minor injuries, authorities said.

No connection has been established and no charges have been filed.

Spikes spent four seasons with the Patriots before spending 2014 with the Bills. He returned to the Patriots under a one-year deal to shore up a linebacking corps hit by injuries.

The Chicago Bears signed veteran cornerback Tracy Porter to a one-year contract to bolster their secondary. Heading into his eighth NFL season, Porter is best known for his clinching 74-yard interception return touchdown for New Orleans against Indianapolis in the 2010 Super Bowl.

Bach gave his most extensive comments to date on the bribery allegations engulfing FIFA, a scandal that led Sepp Blatter to resign as president last week pending new elections.

Bach said FIFA should press ahead with reforms, citing the measures taken by the International Olympic Committee to recover from the Salt Lake crisis in the late 1990s.

"It's not up to the IOC to give advice, it's just to remember that we had this kind of problems 15 years ago," Bach said. "We also know from our experience that ... putting everything on the desk can be a painful experience, but it is absolutely necessary to do this as we have seen from our own history."

Bach said the size of the FIFA scandal was much bigger than the case that led to the ouster of 10 IOC members for accepting improper inducements during Salt Lake's winning bid for the 2002 Winter Games.

Colleges: A former University of Illinois soccer player has joined a growing list of the school's athletes who have complained about improper medical treatment and playing conditions. Casey Conine filed a lawsuit claiming she was cleared to play in October 2014 after suffering a third concussion in two years with the Illini.

MLS: District of Columbia officials said they finalized a deal to build a stadium for D.C. United. The announcement followed a report last week in the Washington Post that the team was looking at sites in northern Virginia.