Embattled quarterback Johnny Manziel has been indicted by a Dallas County grand jury on a misdemeanor assault charge, ABC News 8 in Dallas and CBS Radio in Dallas reported, citing sources.

The formal announcement is expected to come Monday. Manziel's case was heard by a grand jury on Thursday.

Manziel, a former Cleveland Browns quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner at Texas A&M, is accused of hitting his ex-girlfriend Colleen Crowley so hard that she temporarily lost hearing in one ear.

A federal appeals court has upheld an estimated $1 billion plan by the NFL to settle thousands of concussion lawsuits filed by former players.

The decision released Monday comes almost a year after a district judge approved the revised settlement and weeks after an NFL official speaking to Congress acknowledged for the first time a link between football and chronic traumatic encephalopathy, the brain decay found in dozens of former players after their deaths.

Critics appealing the settlement had argued that any deal should include future payments for CTE. 

"This settlement will provide significant and immediate relief to retired players living with the lasting scars of a NFL career, including those suffering from some of the symptoms associated with CTE," Judge Thomas L. Ambro wrote, noting the NFL's recent admission to Congress of a "certain" link between football and CTE. "We must hesitate before rejecting that bargain based on an unsupported hope that sending the parties back to the negotiating table would lead to a better deal."

Twitter has gained the global rights to stream online 10 of the National Football League’s Thursday games.

Twitter will stream Thursday Night Football games this season broadcast by NBC and CBS and simulcast on the NFL Network. 

Under the agreement, Twitter also will be able to show in-game highlights from Thursday Night Football and pregame Periscope broadcasts from players and teams. Periscope is the live-streaming video app Twitter acquired last year.

John Ourand of SportsBusiness Daily reports Twitter will pay approximately $10 million for the 10 games.

In contrast, ESPN currently pays more than $111 million per game for Monday Night Football.