FOOTBALL

JETS’ ABRAHAM ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT

Jets corner back Donnie Abraham retired yesterday, ending his nine-year career to spend more time with his family. Abraham, who told the team last week that he planned to quit, spent the last three seasons with the Jets after starting his career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Abraham played in 132 regular-season games and finished with 475 tackles, 38 interceptions,154 passes defensed, eight fumbles recovered, two forced fumbles, and two sacks. During the 2000 season, he had 63 tack les, seven interceptions, one forced fumble, and 27 passes defensed on his way to earning a starting Pro Bowl selection.

BILLS TRADE HENRY TO TITANS

The Buffalo Bills traded running back Travis Henry to the Tennessee Titans yesterday for a third-round draft pick in 2006.The deal, announced by Bills president Tom Donahoe, ended a standoff after Henry vowed not to play the final year of his contract with Buffalo next season.

Henry, the Bills former starter, was unhappy after losing his job to Willis McGahee in October. Henry, Buffalo’s second-round pick in 2001, enjoyed 1,300-yard rushing seasons in 2002 and 2003. He missed only one game in 2003 despite nursing a rib injury and a broken bone in his right leg. Henry had 326 yards rushing in five starts last season, and missed the final five games with torn ligaments in his right ankle.

BROWN RETIRES AS A RAIDER

Tim Brown signed a one-day contract and retired with the Oakland Raiders yesterday, ending his 17-year career as one of the NFL’s most prolific receivers. Brown spent his first 16 seasons with the Raiders in Los Angeles and Oakland. He spent last season with Tampa Bay after refusing to accept a tiny role with Oakland, but he always intended to finish his playing career in silver and black.

Brown had 1,070 receptions for 14,734 yards and 99 touchdowns with the Raiders, who released him last August. He is tied with Steve Largent for third on the NFL’s career touchdown catches list, and only former Oakland teammate Jerry Rice has more career yards receiving. His 1,094 career catches rank third in NFL history.

Brown also announced an unlikely venture: He hopes to become the first black majority owner of a NASCAR team. Brown, who has no background in auto racing, plans to partner with Roush Racing on a team based in Charlotte, N.C., and to begin competition next year.

BASKETBALL

VAN GUNDY WILL RETURN AS HEAT COACH

Stan Van Gundy is still the coach of the Miami Heat, and that apparently won’t change anytime soon. Van Gundy said that he and team president Pat Riley met for 3 1/2 hours on Sunday, during which Van Gundy was assured that “I will be coaching the Miami Heat this coming season.”

But Van Gundy acknowledged on a call with Heat beat writers yesterday that he was a bit unsettled by rumors suggesting Riley – who coached in the NBA for 21 seasons, including from 1995-2003 with Miami – wanted his old job back and was ready to push his former top assistant aside.

“I feel much more confident in the situation,” Van Gundy said. “It was a good meeting; we discussed a lot of things. A lot of things were cleared up.”

Van Gundy, who took the job two years ago after Riley’s unexpected resignation, is 101-63 in two regular seasons. He took the Heat to the Eastern Conference semifinals in 2003-04, then guided Miami to within one win of the NBA Finals this past season – the best showing in franchise history.

DRUGS IN SPORTS

ANTI-DOPING CHIEF RIPS CONTE PLEA DEAL

World Anti-Doping Agency chairman Richard Pound criticized as “very light” a plea agreement that recommends Balco founder Victor Conte spend four months in prison.

Conte headed off a potentially explosive trial last Friday when he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute steroids and money laundering in a deal with federal prosecutors. Athletes such as baseball slugger Barry Bonds and Olympic star Marion Jones could have been called to testify in a trial.

“It is a disappointing outcome as far as I’m concerned that somebody who systematically tried to destroy the whole basis of sport by helping athletes and coaches to cheat gets to walk away with a four-month sentence,” Pound said yesterday.

In exchange for Conte’s guilty plea, prosecutors agreed to drop dozens of counts against him. Several elite athletes, including Bonds, Jones, and Yankees teammates Gary Sheffield and Jason Giambi, now likely never will have to testify in open court about steroid use.

– Associated Press