All Things News

Straight from ESPN: “The Philadelphia chapter of the NAACP, the Black Clergy of Philadelphia and other local civil rights groups are planning a massive demonstration to support Michael Vick at Lincoln Financial Field on Thursday, when Vick is expected to make his debut with the Eagles.

“We believe Michael Vick has served his time, paid his debt to society and deserves a second chance and the animal rights groups want to hold him hostage for the rest of his life,” J. Whyatt Mondesire, president of the Philadelphia chapter of the NAACP, said Wednesday. “We think that’s patently unfair. It denies Michael Vick’s basic civil rights, denies him his ability to make a living.”

Mondesire said about a half-dozen groups from around the Philadelphia area were planning to meet at the front of Lincoln Financial Field and begin a march around the stadium prior to the Eagles’ preseason game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The Eagles have not heard of any planned demonstration or protest from animal rights groups, which met with team management for two hours on Monday at the team’s practice facility. Although no local animal rights group have yet to partner with the Eagles or Vick in a local anti-dogfighting campaign, the meeting appeared to end on a positive note and head off any planned massive protest, participants said.

Nevertheless, the Eagles’ security operation is planning for individual animal rights protests, and now must plan for the pro-Vick march.”

Fran Tarkenton

Straight from ESPN: “Fran Tarkenton, who previously has expressed his loathing over Brett Favre’s inability to make a decision, spoke out again Wednesday, a day after Favre decided to sign with the Minnesota Vikings.

“I really have no interest in what Brett Favre does. He kind of lost me a few years ago by retiring and un-retiring and here and there,” Tarkenton said on “The Opening Drive” on Sirius NFL Radio.

“I asked a few friends here, maybe 10 or 12 people we were out with last night. I said, ‘What do you think about Brett Favre going back to the Vikings?’ You know who cared? Nobody. It’s good news for you guys. It’s good news for television and so forth but the last time I heard … football was a team sport, isn’t it? It’s not just about the quarterback.”

Favre, who first retired in March 2008, came out of retirement and forced the Green Bay Packers — with whom he had starred for 16 years — to trade him to the New York Jets in August when the Packers declined to accept his un-retirement.

He played one season for the Jets, then retired again in February.

But rumors started bubbling again in May that Favre wasn’t fully committed to retiring. Vikings coach Brad Childress communicated regularly with Favre. And Tarkenton — a Hall of Famer who spent five seasons with the New York Giants, but is remembered for his 13 seasons with the Vikings — made clear he was disgusted by the team’s flirtation with Favre.

“I think he has been a great flamboyant quarterback, but he has made more stupid plays than any great quarterback that I’ve ever seen. Look at his final game in a Packers uniform. He blew that game [NFC championship] against the Giants,” Tarkenton said in late May on KFAN-1130 in the Twin Cities.

At first, Favre said he would remain retired. Then he wasn’t sure. He said he would let the Vikings know by July 30. Then he decided he’d stay retired. Then on Tuesday, he flew to Minnesota and signed a two-year deal worth $25 million.

“I really think the whole Brett Favre saga of retiring, un-retiring, three weeks ago [saying] ‘I can’t play,’ the Vikings said, ‘We’re moving on,’ it’s a circus,” Tarkenton said Wednesday “The Opening Drive.” “It’s an absolute circus, and it takes away from all the other things that are going on with the Vikings, with the NFL. We’re getting ready for a football season and this is a circus and I just have no interest in it.

“Wouldn’t you be upset if you’re a Packer fan? I think you’re going to have Packer fans burning the No. 4 Favre Green Bay jersey. I think the Packer fans have every right to be outraged.”

Packers fans might be upset, but Vikings fans have embraced their new quarterback, as evidenced by the Vikings’ ticket sales.

The team has sold more than 3,000 season tickets in 24 hours, and about 10,000 single-game tickets during that time. Seats for the Oct. 5 game against Green Bay are available only through a season ticket. There are roughly 7,000 season tickets remaining.

Last season, the Vikings had to race to beat the blackout deadline for several games.

Merchandise also is moving. Team chief marketing officer Steve LaCroix said several hundred pre-orders for Favre jerseys were placed online Tuesday. The purple No. 4s were scheduled to begin showing up in stores Wednesday.

Tony Dungy, the former Indianapolis Colts coach who retired — and has stayed retired — in January, was on “The Waddle and Silvy” show on ESPN 1000 in Chicago, and said Favre has a limited window in which to win over his new teammates.

“I would be very worried about that if I were the Minnesota Vikings and their head coach,” Dungy said on “The Waddle and Silvy” show. “He’s going to have to let them know he’s as committed as they are. And get that across to them. If that happens, it could to be a big boost. If it doesn’t happen, if players feel you weren’t in this from the beginning … is he really in this with us? If there were feelings for quarterbacks who were already there … it’s going to be interesting to see how this plays out.”"

Oh, and the Brett Favre Career Interception Record Watch page as been updated. I couldn’t pass up this fabulous quote from Mr. Tarkenton, or withhold my excitement with the knowledge that Mr. 310 will be slinging interceptions once again in the very near future!

The Infamous Favre Fail Mary

Straight from the Aw Jeez, Not This Favre Shit Again Department via ESPN (thanks for the heads-up Warren): “A source close to Brett Favre said the quarterback, pending a physical, will sign a contract with the Minnesota Vikings for between $10 million to $12 million, according to ESPN senior NFL analyst Chris Mortensen.

Favre, 39, arrived in Minnesota on Tuesday to meet with the Vikings, getting off a team plane at a small St. Paul airport and getting into an SUV after shaking hands with the ground crew.

Coach Brad Childress confirmed the planned meeting in an e-mail to The Associated Press. Asked if the plan was to sign Favre, Childress replied: “In a perfect world.”

Bus Cook, Favre’s agent, said it was “a done deal,” according to USA Today.

“He thinks he still has something left in the tank and I think it will work well,” Cook told USA Today.

Favre is expected to take a physical later Tuesday.

Favre, a longtime star in Green Bay, came out of retirement last season to play for the New York Jets. He retired again, only to then entertain the idea of joining the Vikings. Three weeks ago, Childress said the quarterback would stay retired.

The pronouncement now appears to be premature.

Two television stations first reported that Favre was seen boarding a plane Tuesday morning that was headed to Minneapolis.

Sources told Hattiesburg television station WDAM, which initially broke the story, that Favre had said: “We may know something by dinner.”

A high-level source first told Minneapolis TV station WCCO that Favre was expected to sign a deal with the Vikings on Tuesday.

ESPN’s Ed Werder reported that according to a source, Favre told close friends and family members before boarding the plane Tuesday: “I’m going to play football.”

The decision to do so comes even though Favre has informed the team that Dr. James Andrews detected a slight tear in his right rotator cuff in May while performing arthroscopic surgery on the quarterback’s passing shoulder in May, according to a source.

It was concern about that injury, and the pain in both of his ankles and left knee, that discouraged Favre from signing with the Vikings before training camp.

Favre, who holds almost all of the NFL’s career passing records, has never been much of a fan of offseason practices, though. Last summer, he ended his retirement with the Packers and forced a trade to the Jets, where he faded down the stretch amid problems with his throwing arm.

But Favre remained in regular communication with the Vikings’ coaching staff the past three weeks, and a source said that owner Zygi Wilf had to do very little convincing when the two met this week near Favre’s home in Hattiesburg.

“He had a lot of aches and pains and they basically needed a commitment from him before he felt he was ready to play,” a source told Werder. “He wants to be able to do the best he can do and doesn’t want to disappoint them.”

The Vikings are aware of the small tear in Favre’s rotator cuff.

“The tear is still there and there’s always a possibility something could happen with it later on,” a source told Werder. “He wanted to give it the best chance he could before he made a commitment. But the last three weeks, it hasn’t gotten any worse and he’s been working hard. Hell, who knows? It could flare up again if they make him throw 50 or 60 balls a day.

“Three weeks ago, he wasn’t ready to go play and didn’t feel physically he could do what they needed him to do. But three more weeks of working out and now he’s feeling that he’s able to throw the football and he’s going to give it a try.”

The Vikings finished training camp last week and beat Indianapolis 13-3 in their preseason opener Friday. They got a strong performance from quarterback Sage Rosenfels, who has been competing with Tarvaris Jackson for the starting job since Favre jilted the team July 28.

The Vikings are expected to challenge for the NFC North title this season, with whomever is behind center.

Rosenfels and Jackson have had some rough moments during practice. Jackson hurt his knee, missed a few workouts and then returned, but he was out of sync last week against the Colts.

Rosenfels did well, but preseason games are tough to evaluate and Indianapolis held out all four starting defensive backs.

On Monday, Jackson, responding to the day’s scuttlebutt that Favre was predicted to play in Minnesota this season, said he was not paying attention to any of the talk.

“I pretty much have said [Favre] probably will follow me even when I retire. I’ll probably have to hear about it. I’m just trying to take care of my business, and I can’t worry about that stuff,” Jackson said, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune. “If I let that stuff get to me, ain’t no telling where I’d be right now. I just let it roll off my shoulder and just keep going. Just keep trying to get better.”"

Favre's a Viking afterall...

Aw Jeez, Not This Favre Shit Again!

Aw Jeez, Not This Favre Shit Again!

[June 18th, 2009] Update: The shit just keeps on flowing from the Aw Jeez, Not This Favre Shit Again Department via Fox Sports: “About 10 minutes into Joe Buck’s interview with Brett Favre, the quarterback began to speculate on his prospects with the Minnesota Vikings.

He loves the offense, as it’s the same one he ran for 16 seasons in Green Bay.

He’d have a running back, Adrian Peterson, who looks like a future Hall of Famer.

And the defense doesn’t suck, either. That went without saying.

We. Hold up. We? Who’s we?

In that moment, Favre gave himself up. For all his down-home, “aw-shucks” charm, the once-beloved quarterback came across as something of a schemer. Now that he’s talked, it’s even more difficult to believe this arrangement with Minnesota hasn’t been in the works for a while. Favre didn’t come off as fickle, so much as sneaky. What’s more, you can understand why the Packers filed tampering charges against the Vikings almost a year ago.

The theme of HBO’s inaugural “Joe Buck Live” was sports and celebrity. It’s an interesting topic, though not a new one. And while ballplayers tend to be treated more graciously and adoringly than other American celebs, I’ll concede that their lives have been complicated in this intrusive, mean-spirited and occasionally hilarious age of blogging and cell-phone photography.

But I refuse to be offended by the reporter doing his stand-up in front of Favre’s house in Mississippi. God bless him. He’s earning a semi-honest living. Nor am I concerned that this guy’s editors are having him Twitter when Favre gets on the plane. So what?

Brett Favre isn’t an innocent bystander. He brought this on himself. As regards his whereabouts and intentions, he’s been running one misdirection play after another. With this interview now in evidence, it seems that most of what he’s been denying and no-commenting is true.

Yes, he wants to play for the Vikings.

That’s why he had arthroscopic shoulder surgery almost three weeks ago. And that’s why the Vikings team trainer flew out to meet with him on Sunday.

And yes, head coach Brad Childress wanted him to attend organized team activities last week. “He wanted me to be there to be part of the team,” said Favre.

This sound like a guy who hasn’t made up his mind?

Bottom line, after a season of scheming, Favre has finally found a way to get to the Vikings — the last place the Packers (who had ample justification) wanted him to be.

Now Favre complains of reporters and talk show hosts who seek to “create controversy.”

Nonsense. This controversy is a creature of his own creation. Worse still, for a year and a half now, he’s jerked a lot of people around. First, it was the Packers — whose front office bent over backwards for him — and their fans. Then it was the Jets and theirs.

No, my heart doesn’t bleed for Woody Johnson and the geniuses who run the Jets’ business affairs. Just as Favre used them, they used him — to sell personal seat licenses. But what of those fans who bought those PSLs based on Favre? He quit on them after a season, told them he was retiring when in fact he was not. They have a right to feel betrayed. Now consider the fans in Green Bay. They feel that same betrayal — times 16.

“I wonder if you worry about tarnishing your legacy in the league by coming back, going away, coming back?” asked Buck.

“I think the 16 years I spent in Green Bay speak for themselves,” said Favre.

And I think that answer was an unwitting lesson in the real price of celebrity. The man who’s been too famous for too long, risks losing touch. He starts believing he can jerk everybody around — then declare himself shocked at the repercussions.

According to Favre, the vast majority of people “don’t give a s—” where he goes.

I don’t think that’s true. People cared about this guy, what he did and what he stood for. That’s the real shame here. Brett Favre, the ballsiest of all quarterbacks, has managed to turn himself into just another celebrity.”

[June 9th, 2009] Update: Another update from the Aw Jeez, Not This Favre Shit Again Department via ESPN: “Brett Favre’s determination to play quarterback this season for the Minnesota Vikings prompted him to undergo arthroscopic surgery to repair his injured passing shoulder recently, according to two sources. However, Favre remains unable to make a commitment because subsequent throwing sessions indicate the shoulder is not yet 100 percent.

While Favre has now clearly demonstrated his interest in coming out of retirement for a 19th season in the NFL, it seems equally obvious that he will not do so unless convinced he has recovered fully from the torn biceps tendon that undermined him last year with the New York Jets.

Favre began considering options to repair the shoulder last month when he sought advice from acclaimed orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews. Favre and Andrews discussed surgical and non-surgical options. When cortisone injections and exercise therapies that included weight lifting failed to release the damaged tendon naturally, Favre consented to the arthroscopic surgery.

Favre has thrown on a limited basis since the surgery, which occurred last month, but has not felt close to “100 percent” and would not come back unless he makes significant progress, sources said.

Favre’s agent, Bus Cook, would not confirm or deny the surgery, saying “That’s a confidential client privilege.”

[May 18th, 2009] Update: More from the Aw Jeez, Not This Favre Shit Again Department via ESPN: “Brett Favre will meet with renowned orthopedist Dr. James Andrews on Tuesday in Alabama to discuss surgery on his throwing shoulder expected to be performed later this week, the St. Paul Pioneer Press has reported.

Rehabilitation from the surgery, which will release a partially torn biceps tendon in Favre’s right arm, would be six to eight weeks, the report said.

Favre, 39, consulted with Andrews last week, a source told ESPN. According to the Pioneer Press, Favre then missed another scheduled appointment with Andrews.

The biceps tendon release is a routine procedure which, if successful in alleviating Favre’s shoulder pain, would allow him to be ready to fully participate in football activities by training camp.

It would afford Favre the simplest and most efficient measure of evaluating how much the bicep was responsible for the pain he experienced last season.

According to the Pioneer Press report, there are other suspected sources of pain in Favre’s shoulder. Although it wasn’t clear what those were, rotator cuff involvement often accompanies bicep tendon injuries in throwers.

The report further indicates Favre’s intent to consider signing with the Minnesota Vikings despite announcing his retirement with the New York Jets after last season.

The Jets subsequently released Favre from his contract, making him a free agent and giving him the option of signing with any team.”

[May 6th, 2009] Straight from the Aw Jeez, Not This Favre Shit Again Department via the Star Tribune: “Vikings coach Brad Childress is expected to depart for Mississippi later today and meet with quarterback Brett Favre tonight and Thursday, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. Childress remained at Winter Park early this afternoon but the source said he is expected to have dinner with Favre this evening and begin discussions about Favre joining the Vikings.

The in-depth portion of the meeting is expected to take place Thursday. Among the Vikings’ chief concerns is the status of Favre’s injured right biceps. At this point, the meeting is expected to take place in Mississippi, where Favre lives.

Favre, the longtime Green Bay Packers star, was granted his release from the Jets’ reserve/retired list last week and thus is free to sign with any team he wants. Favre announced his retirement for a second consecutive offseason in February after a season with the Jets. Favre retired in March 2008 from the Packers but changed his mind.

The Packers did not want him back and at that point he set his sights on playing for the Vikings. The Packers made sure that didn’t happen by trading Favre to New York.”

Is Favre a Viking?

Slingin' Sammy

Straight from ESPN: “LUBBOCK, Texas — Slingin’ Sammy Baugh, the ultimate three-way threat who revolutionized the use of the forward pass as a Hall of Fame quarterback for the Washington Redskins, died Wednesday night. He was 94.

…

Sammy Baugh was the last surviving member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s inaugural class.

After starring at TCU, “Slingin’ Sammy” played with the Redskins from 1937 to 1952, leading them to the NFL title in his rookie season and again in 1942.

Baugh was the best all-around player in an era when such versatility was essential. In 1943, he led the league in passing, punting and defensive interceptions. In one game, he threw four touchdown passes and intercepted four as well. He threw six touchdowns passes in a game twice. His 51.4-yard punting average in 1940 is still the NFL record.

“There’s nobody any better than Sam Baugh was in pro football,” Don Maynard, a fellow West Texas Hall of Famer who played for Baugh, said in a 2002 interview. “When I see somebody picking the greatest player around, to me, if they didn’t go both ways, they don’t really deserve to be nominated. I always ask, ‘Well, how’d he do on defense? How was his punting?’”

When Baugh entered the NFL, the forward pass was so rare that it was unveiled mostly in desperate situations. But Baugh turn the pass into a regular feature of the offensive game plan.

As a rookie in 1937, he completed a record 81 passes (about seven a game) and led the league with 1,127 yards. By contrast, only six quarterbacks averaged three completions a game that year. He went on to lead the league in passing six times.

Baugh still holds Redskins records for career touchdown passes (187) and completion percentage in a season (70.3). His 31 interceptions on defense are third on the team’s career list.”

Straight from ESPN: “With his family “tugging” on him to play, Brett Favre has an “itch” to come out of retirement and report to training camp with the Green Bay Packers later this month, according to sources close to the team and player.

Favre has communicated his potential desire to coach Mike McCarthy but talks have not advanced to a substantive stage, a Packers source said.

Favre was reached on Wednesday by Mississippi’s Sun Herald newspaper and tried to calm the storm.

“It’s all rumor,” he said of reports that he wants to return.

As for the ensuing media storm surrounding the story, Favre said in a text message to the newspaper: “No reason for it.”

However, Favre’s brother, Scott, said Wednesday night that Brett has been working out and put a return by No. 4 at “50-50.”

“There’s no doubt he can play,” Scott Favre told WTMJ-TV in Milwaukee. “He’s in good shape, he’s working out, we know he can still play, he’s healthy, so, if he did, it wouldn’t surprise me.”

And at least one Packers player has said that Favre hasn’t completely gotten the game out of his system.

On ESPN’s NFL Live, Packers defensive back Al Harris said on Wednesday: “I’ve talked to Brett and I know he has the itch to come back and play. If he will or not, I don’t know. But I know he’s feeling he wants to play.”

When asked how Favre expressed his desire to return, Harris said the quarterback said, “I got the itch.”

The source said the Packers would be reluctant to open the door for Favre because “Brett retired for the right reasons, even though I know his family is tugging on him [to play].”

Another source conceded Favre was “getting the itch” to play football in 2008.

Citing NFL sources, multiple media outlets in Wisconsin reported on Wednesday that Favre or his agent James “Bus” Cook contacted the Packers about returning a few weeks ago and the conversation ended with the quarterback asking for his release. The team reportedly refused his request.

ESPN’s sources said that while Favre asking for his release is a possibility, the situation hasn’t yet reached that stage.

Favre deciding to return does indeed put the Packers in an awkward situation. The entire offseason has been spent preparing Aaron Rodgers to play quarterback to the point where “the offensive scheme has evolved” and, psychologically, closing the door on Favre’s legendary 17-year career.

Favre asking for his release would indicate that he still wants to play but that the Packers aren’t a willing partner. A league official told ESPN that Favre could force a decision by asking the Packers, in writing, to reinstate him to active status. The team would have to comply or release him.”

Straight from ESPN: “NFL commissioner Roger Goodell raised the possibility of having a 17th regular-season game as an option to help settle some of the league’s future labor problems.

“We are actually looking at that as one alternative,” Goodell said Tuesday at the NFL owners meeting in Atlanta, the same day that the league’s owners voted unanimously to opt out of their labor deal with the players’ union two years early. “We think that may have an impact on some of the things we would want to talk to the players about. It’s on the table.”

A 17th regular-season game could replace a fourth preseason game and the possibility comes at a time that the league is not satisfied with the quality of the preseason. The league made a presentation to owners about ways to improve the current preseason Tuesday.

Under the current system, most NFL teams play 20 games — four in the preseason and 16 during the regular season. Because of injury concerns to starters, many teams play starters for only a series in the preseason opener and often don’t play starters in the final preseason game.

“We are not satisfied with the quality of the preseason right now,” Goodell said. “We’d like to improve on that.”

By adding a 17th regular-season game, more revenue could be created to help in negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement. NFL owners voted 32-0 on Tuesday to shorten the collective bargaining agreement with the NFLPA to 2011, with 2010 being played without a salary cap.

“It would create new revenue,” Goodell said. “Our thought process was we might reduce preseason by a game in return for that. Actually, the players would still play the same number of games. It could give us an opportunity to play a higher quality of football.”

Goodell noted that the NFL used to have six preseason games.

“Now, it’s become more of a year-round business,” Goodell said. “Athletes come in better prepared for the season both physically and mentally. Is it necessary to play four preseason games to get the players prepared to play in the regular season?”

For competitive purposes, the ninth home game would alternate between the conferences every other year, should the NFL use the 17th game option.

NFL Players Association executive director Gene Upshaw didn’t seem thrilled with the possibility of playing 17 regular-season games.

“No, it’s great to have more revenue,” Upshaw said. “Any discussion we’ve had with them about playing another game, they’ve always said, they would like to do it, but they don’t want to pay for it. They say, ‘Why should you be concerned, you get 60 percent?’ But we also get paid on games played.

“We’re not going to agree to play an extra game and not get paid for it. That’s what they want us to do,” he said. “That discussion is going to be very short.”"

Straight from ESPN: “Despite reports he would return for 2008, Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre said Wednesday he has yet to decide whether he wants to play an 18th NFL season.

“I haven’t decided yet,” said Favre, who was in Arizona for a Super Bowl-related activity. “We just played a little over a week ago. I’m going to take a few more weeks. Our coaching staff is coaching in the Pro Bowl next week. When they get done, [coach] Mike [McCarthy] and I . . . we’ll just discuss it more in a couple weeks.”"

Straight from ESPN: “Randy Couture, the face of the Ultimate Fighting Championship and one of MMA’s most revered fighters, resigned from the UFC via fax from South Africa Thursday morning, Couture confirmed to Sherdog.com.

Couture told Sherdog by phone from South Africa, where he is filming a movie, that he resigned as a UFC commentator, ambassador and heavyweight champion.

Couture’s quitting the organization comes on the heels of fellow heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko’s decision to fight under Russia’s M-1 Mixfight banner.

“I want that fight and would have waited if the fight was offered to me,” Couture said. “Knowing what they offered him, I would have made demands to get paid equally or better than him as the champion. Whether or not those would have been met is another question.”

Couture also mentioned being disenchanted with the UFC franchise, and with the direction his career was headed.

“I’m tired of being taken advantage of, played as the nice guy and basically swimming against the current with the management of the UFC,” he said. “I have a lot of other things going on in my life that I’m doing just fine with. I don’t need the problems. I don’t feel like I get the respect I deserve from the organization, and that’s motivation No. 2 for the letter of resignation that was sent today.”

Couture said it was a lack of respect by the UFC, in particular its president, Dana White, that led him to resign. Calls to White at the UFC offices weren’t immediately returned.”

Straight from ESPN: “McNabb, in an interview on “Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel,” tells interviewer James Brown that African-American quarterbacks such as himself face added pressure because there are fewer black QBs — and because some still don’t want black athletes playing the position.

“There’s not that many African-American quarterbacks, so we have to do a little bit extra,” McNabb tells HBO. “Because the percentage of us playing this position, which people didn’t want us to play … is low, so we do a little extra.”

In just-completed Week 2, five of the 32 teams (15.6 percent) had black starting quarterbacks.

Later in the interview, Brown presses McNabb on criticism of his performance — and if African-American QBs are graded more harshly.

“I pass for 300 yards, our team wins by seven, [mimicking] ‘Ah, he could’ve made this throw, they would have scored if he did this,’ ” McNabb tells HBO.

“Doesn’t every quarterback go through that?” Brown asks.

“Not everybody,” McNabb replies.

Brown then asks if the media is tougher on him than on white quarterbacks such as Carson Palmer and Peyton Manning.

“Let me start by saying I love those guys,” McNabb tells HBO. “But they don’t get criticized as much as we do. They don’t.”"

Straight from ESPN: “NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has determined that the New England Patriots violated league rules Sunday when they videotaped defensive signals by the New York Jets’ coaches, according to league sources.

NFL security officials confiscated a camera and videotape from Patriots video assistant Matt Estrella on the New England sidelines when it was suspected he was recording the Jets’ defensive signals. Sources say the visual evidence confirmed the suspicion.

Goodell is considering severe sanctions, including the possibility of docking the Patriots “multiple draft picks” because it is the competitive violation in the wake of a stern warning to all teams since he became commissioner, the sources said. The Patriots have been suspected in previous incidents.”

Straight from ESPN: “You can question the wisdom of building a franchise around a guy who had never grown into a star passer. You can question the wisdom of building a franchise around a guy who had never grown into a fully responsible adult. But Vick’s immense talent made him worth the gamble.

So the Falcons went and got a fourth head coach to try to make him into the millennial superstar he seemed destined to be. They paid quarterback savant Bobby Petrino (who follows Dan Reeves, interim Wade Phillips and Jim Mora) a jillion bucks to come in and tailor an offense around Vick. They committed so strongly to Vick, they sent their talented backup, Matt Schaub, to Houston.

And then it all blew up.”

Texans edge Raiders despite minus-5 passing yards

Straight from Digg: “The Texans became the first team in 25 years to win a game with negative yards passing. “It’s the weirdest feeling I’ve ever had in a football game,” QB David Carr said.”

Straight from ESPN: “The NFL has added amphetamines to the list of performance-enhancing drugs banned by its policy against steroids and related substances and, beginning with the 2007 season, will toughen sanctions against players who test positive for amphetamines and methamphetamines.”

Straight from ESPN: “Arbitrator John Feerick heard more than seven hours of testimony May 16 on charges that the Titans breached McNair’s contract by barring him from working out at the team’s headquarters. The union filed the grievance, arguing he should be allowed to work out on the property or be released.”

ESPN.com – NFL – Ricky Williams might face drug tests if he signs with CFL
"The NFL suspended Williams for a year last month for his fourth violation of the league's substance abuse policy. Since the suspension, Williams' agent Leigh Steinberg has indicated that the 1998 Heisman winner is seriously interested in playing in the CFL."

Straight from ESPN: "INDIANAPOLIS — The loss of Edgerrin James and the lack of a premier running back as his replacement could alter the Indianapolis Colts offensive scheme, with two runners sharing the bulk of carries."

ESPN.com – NFL – Favre still hasn’t decided whether to play next season

*Update (01-03-2007): Please post your further comments to this page, thank you.

Fark Comments

ESPN.com – NFL – Agent: Titans tell McNair to continue training elsewhere

"NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Nearly two weeks ago, Tennessee asked Steve McNair not to work out on the team's property for fear an injury would give the Titans a devastating salary cap hit. Now, McNair's agent says the Titans have told the quarterback to continue to stay away.

"They've instructed him to work out somewhere else other than their facility," agent Bus Cook said Friday."