Matt Forte is holding out for a new contract. (Charles Rex Arbogast / AP)

The Chicago Bears opened OTAs Tuesday and to no one’s surprise, running back Matt Forte was noticeably absent.

One of the NFL’s leading rushers last December when he tore his ACL, Forte was slapped with Chicago’s franchise tag but has refused to sign his tender. Forte’s agent had been seeking a long-term contract worth $8.5 million per year, according to the Chicago Tribune. But in the wake of LeSean McCoy’s new five-year, $45 million contract extension, Forte’s asking price likely just went up. He is slated to earn $7.742 million this season under the franchise tag.

If the Bears wanted to give Forte the pay day he’s requesting, they certainly could. After signing its six-man draft class, Chicago still has $3.81 million in cap space, and as the Tribune reports, restructuring a long-term deal could actually lower his cap hit. But the team seems hesitant to pull the trigger for a 26-year-old player coming off a major knee injury, and Forte doesn’t appear ready to back down.

Brian Witherspoon last August. (Bill Kostroun / AP) For the New York Giants, the first day of organized team activities looked a lot like 2011 training camp — and that’s not good.

Backup cornerback Brian Witherspoon was carted off the field with what Coach Tom Coughlin said appears to be a re-injury of the anterior cruciate ligament he tore last August.

And cornerback Antwaun Molden also was carted off after suffering a hamstring injury that will require further evaluation.

Chapman is still unhittable on the mound, but he’s dealing with trouble off it. (Andy Lyons - GETTY IMAGES) So far, so good for new Cincinnati Reds closer Aroldis Chapman.

The 24-year-old flame-thrower notched his second save in three days on Tuesday night in a 4-3 win against Atlanta, building his case for the full-time back-of-the-bullpen role.

Reds manager Dusty Baker is closely monitoring Chapman’s ability to handle the stress that comes with the job, but right now, on-field stress is the least of Chapman’s worries.

Chapman was arrested just before 1 a.m. Monday when he was pulled over after police clocked him driving 93 mph on the interstate — 10 mph slower than his normal fastball. He was also driving with a suspended Kentucky license.

The following day news broke that Chapman has been sued by a fellow Cuban-American currently serving a 10-year prison sentence in Cuba. The man claims Chapman falsely accused him of being involved in human trafficking and is seeking $18 million.

Udonis Haslem of the Miami Heat delivers a flagrant foul to Tyler Hansbrough in Game 5 of the playoff series against the Indiana Pacers. (Andrew Innerarity / Reuters)

It’s going to take a while for the NBA to sort out just what kind of penalties the flagrant foul-fest that was Game 5 of the Miami Heat-Indiana Pacers series might warrant, but the hardest hit in the increasingly physical series was landed by a 55-year-old Hall of Famer who hasn’t played since 1992.

Larry Bird, the Pacers’ president, called out his team in the clearest terms possible Tuesday night after the Heat took a 3-2 series lead with a 115-83 victory. The loss was the worst in Pacers’ playoff history.

“I can’t believe my team went soft,” Bird, who played in 164 playoff games, told Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star. “S-O-F-T. I’m disappointed. I never thought it would happen.”

He declined the opportunity to go further, telling Wells, “That’s all I have to say.”

It was enough. While the Pacers try to pull themselves together, the NBA will sort out the foul-marred game that threatens to turn the series into a blood feud. The first of three flagrant fouls came when Tyler Hansbrough hammered Dwyane Wade and drew blood.

When Donald Driver and Peta Murgatroyd were pronounced the winners of “Dancing with the Stars,” Driver released an “in your face, Roger Goodell” celebration so excessive that it would have prompted a 15-yard penalty and maybe even a stiff fine had it occurred on a football field.

He jumped. He ran. He rolled on the dance floor. “I was on fire. I had to roll around to get the fire out,” Driver said on “Good Morning America.”

What clinched the win for the Green Bay Packers wide receiver? A freestyle dance Monday night that featured, um, a Wild West motif and Cowboy Troy (not Aikman).