Giants released the quarterback Freeman on Friday

The New York Giants released the quarterback Freeman on Friday, five weeks after signing him.

Freeman's stock has plummeted since the beginning of last season, when he was Tampa Bay's starting quarterback. He was benched and then cut by the Buccaneers, signed with Minnesota and started one game. That was in a lopsided loss to the Giants when he appeared unprepared for the assignment, going 20 of 53 for 190 yards with an interception.

New York signed him as its 15th veteran free agent in the offseason, adding Freeman to the roster in part because starting quarterback Eli Manning and backup Curtis Painter had undergone surgery.

But Manning was back at practice this week, Painter is expected back before training camp, and second-year QB Ryan Nassib will get a long look for the second-string job behind Manning.

So Freeman was expendable, and his work in recent organized team activities was not impressive enough for the Giants to keep him.

Freeman went 0-3 as a starter in 2013 with the Buccaneers before being cut on Oct. 3. He signed with the Vikings five days later, but other than his start against the Giants, he was a nonfactor in Minnesota.

He was the Buccaneers' first-round draft pick in 2009 out of Kansas State. He became a starter in November of that year and started 60 games for Tampa Bay.

The Giants also were awarded offensive lineman Rogers Gaines off waivers from the Bears.

Gaines, 6-foot-6 and 334 pounds, entered the NFL with the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent in May 2013. He played in all four preseason games for Baltimore last summer but was waived on Aug. 30. Gaines signed on with Chicago's practice squad on Sept. 24 and spent the rest of the season there.

(Quote:Eli Manning -- Elisha Nelson "Eli" Manning (born January 3, 1981) is an American football quarterback for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL) and is the active iron man for consecutive starts by a quarterback. He is the son of former NFL quarterback Archie Manning and the younger brother of Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning. Manning played college football at the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) after attending prep school at Isidore Newman School in New Orleans. He was drafted as the first overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers and immediately traded to the New York Giants, who in return gave up a package highlighted by fourth overall selection Philip Rivers.

Manning holds Giants franchise records for most passing yards, touchdown passes and completed passes in a career,and the NFL record for most fourth-quarter touchdown passes in a season. He led the Giants to victory in Super Bowl XLII and Super Bowl XLVI, defeating the New England Patriots in both games. Manning was also named Most Valuable Player in each Super Bowl, becoming one of five quarterbacks in history to have been given this honor twice. He is the only quarterback in NFL history to throw for more than 4,900 yards and win the Super Bowl in the same season.)

Considered among the best in the NFL at his position

The NFL has suspended Arizona Cardinals standout inside linebacker Daryl Washington for one year for violating the league's substance abuse policy.

The punishment, announced Friday, was for substance abuse and did not mention his recent guilty plea to assaulting his ex-girlfriend.

Washington, in a statement released by his agent, said the penalty was for marijuana, and that he takes responsibility for the violation. He said he ''is committed to making changes'' in his life that will allow him to return to the NFL.

Considered among the best in the NFL at his position, Washington was suspended the first four games of last season for violating the substance abuse policy.

''It is completely unacceptable that Daryl has once again put us in this position,'' Cardinals general manager Steve Keim said in a statement released by the team. ''We all know what the consequences are and will deal with them.''

Washington, the team leader in tackles in 2011 and 2012, will lose $2.9 million in salary due to the suspension.

In March, Arizona exercised a $10 million option to keep him on the roster. Washington received $5 million then and the deals calls for him to get the other $5 million next March.

Washington said the NFL ''policy is very strict, and I have chosen to take responsibility.''

''I will work extremely hard to stay in top football shape,'' he said, ''and will work equally hard to ensure that my life off the field meets the high level of maturity and responsibility to which I am committed.''

With the loss of inside linebacker Karlos Dansby to free agency, the Cardinals find themselves without the dynamic combination that was a big part of their strong defense last season.

Second-year player Kevin Minter is slotted to take Dansby's place. Just what the team will do to try to replace Washington is unclear.

''Our approach is the same as it's always been: next man up,'' Keim said. ''We talk a lot about how critical depth is to a team because situations always arise whether by injury or other circumstances such as this one.

''One player's absence is another's opportunity. That approach has served us well in the past and we will rely on it now.''

After leading the team with 111 tackles in his second NFL season, Washington signed a six-year contract, adding four years and $32 million to his existing deal.

In 2012, he led the team with career highs of 140 tackles and nine sacks and made the Pro Bowl. But in April of last year, the NFL suspended him four games for violating the substance abuse policy. A month later, he was arrested on accusations of assaulting his ex-girlfriend, the mother of the couple's child.

He pleaded guilty to two counts of assault earlier this year.

A suspension for the criminal conviction had been expected. The penalty for substance abuse came as a surprise to some, but apparently not to Washington's teammates.

''Old news to us, new news to y'all,'' defensive tackle Darnell Dockett said in a tweet.

Keim said ''our hope is that this suspension will give Daryl the opportunity to accept the necessary help and guidance to get his life back on track,'' Keim said, ''and we will certainly support him however we can.''

When OTAs resumed this week, coach Bruce Arians said he hoped the team could pick up another outside linebacker.

The Cardinals signed veteran Larry Foote in the offseason, and outside linebacker Lorenzo Washington also can play inside.

Minter, a second-round draft pick, played almost entirely on special teams as a rookie.

Another player Arizona has at inside linebacker is Kenny Demens, an undrafted rookie free agent a year ago who spent last season on the Cardinals' practice squad.

''I sincerely apologize for the effect of my actions on my teammates, coaches and other colleagues at the Cardinals,'' Washington said. ''I also apologize to Cardinals fans for the time I will miss. I will work diligently during this suspension to return as a better man and football player.''

(Quote:Daryl Washington -- Daryl Lewis Washington (born October 9, 1986) is an American football linebacker for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for Texas Christian University (TCU). Washington was chosen by the Arizona Cardinals in the second round of the 2010 NFL Draft.)

NFL team Tampa Bay Buccaneers' owner Malcolm Glazer dies at 85

Malcolm Irving Glazer (born 1928 in Rochester, New York) is an American businessman and sports-team owner. He is president and chief executive officer of First Allied Corporation, a holding company for his varied business interests. He holds controlling stakes in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a National Football League (NFL) team located in Florida, and Manchester United, a major European football club based in Manchester, England.

Malcolm Glazer, a self-made billionaire who shunned the spotlight while leading the takeover of English soccer's Manchester United and transforming the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers into Super Bowl champions, died Wednesday. He was 85.

The reclusive Palm Beach businessman had been in failing health since April 2006 when a pair of strokes left him with impaired speech and limited mobility in his right arm and leg.

He was not involved in day to day operations of either of his sports franchises and was rarely spotted at games in recent years, instead remaining at his mansion in South Florida while entrusting leadership of the Bucs to three of six children, sons Bryan, Joel and Ed.

While some disgruntled fans blame ownership for a stretch of futility that has seen the Bucs miss the playoffs the past six seasons, the elder Glazer generally will be remembered for making the commitment necessary to keep the team from moving to another city in the 1990s.

Glazer raised his profile in 2005 with a $1.47 billion purchase of Manchester United that was bitterly opposed by fans of one of the world's richest soccer clubs. Before that, his unobtrusive management style helped transform the Bucs from a laughingstock into a model franchise that won the franchise's only NFL title 12 years ago.

''The thoughts of everyone at Manchester United are with the family tonight,'' Manchester United said in a statement.

Born Aug. 25, 1928, in Rochester, New York, the son of a watch-parts salesman, Glazer began working for the family business when he was 8 and took over the operation as a teenager when his father died in 1943.

As president and CEO of First Allied Corp., the holding company for the family business interests, he invested in mobile-home parks, restaurants, food service equipment, marine protein, television stations, real estate, natural gas and oil production and other ventures. Forbes ranked him this year, along with his family, as tied for No. 354 on the world's richest people list with an estimated net worth of $4.2 billion.

He purchased the Bucs for a then-NFL record $192 million in 1995, taking over one of the worst-run and least successful franchises in professional sports. And while Glazer once said he probably overpaid by $50 million, the value of the team has more than quadrupled.

''Malcolm Glazer was the guiding force behind the building of a Super Bowl-champion organization. His dedication to the community was evident in all he did, including his leadership in bringing Super Bowls to Tampa Bay,'' NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said. ''Malcolm's commitment to the Bucs, the NFL and the people of the Tampa Bay region are the hallmarks of his legacy. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife, Linda, their six children and the entire Glazer family.''

In an era when many owners of professional teams attract nearly as much attention as the athletes, Glazer was content to allow three of his sons handle daily operation of the Bucs and rarely granted interviews or visited the team's offices and training facility.

But he was a fixture at games before his health became an issue, and he spent generously to acquire players and provide coaches and front office personnel with the resources to do their jobs. To fans accustomed to the frugal ways of original Bucs owner Hugh Culverhouse, Glazer was a savior.

''With our major investment here, we didn't come in here to have a loser,'' Glazer said after acquiring the Bucs.

In one of its boldest moves as NFL owners, the Glazer family fired Tony Dungy as coach after the 2001 season and paid a hefty price - four draft picks and $8 million cash - to the Raiders for the opportunity to sign Jon Gruden to a contract.

The move paid off right away. Gruden led the Bucs to their first NFL title the following season, and Glazer joined in the celebration in the locker room.

''He came from heaven and he brought us to heaven,'' Glazer said. ''We were waiting for the right man and the right man came - Jon Gruden.''

The Glazers didn't get a warm reception in the United Kingdom, where Man U fans protested and burned Glazer's likeness in effigy because they feared the American was acquiring the storied British soccer franchise purely for financial gain.

At the time, Mark Longden of the Independent Manchester United Supporters Association, said his group was ''calling on all supporters to wear black. If they can get hold of black flags, they should wave them because it represents what is happening to the club.''

The club, though, has had success on the pitch, winning the League Cup in 2006, 2009 and 2010, the English Premier League from 2007-09, 2011 and 2013 and European Cup and Club World Cup titles in 2008.

Within a year of the leveraged buyout, Glazer had two strokes and his children ran the 20-time English champions, with all of them sitting on the board of directors and owning the remaining 90 percent of the club that was not listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2012.

Although United's debt has dropped from a high of high of $1.1 billion in 2008-09 to $590 million, anger toward the Glazers has remained among sections of the fan base. The family's divisiveness in Manchester has been exacerbated by its reluctance to engage with any supporters or speak publicly about the club.

Despite its worst league finish in 24 years this season, United has been generating record revenue, each quarter, with income set to exceed $700 million in the 2013-14 financial year.

Before he bought the Buccaneers, Glazer made failed bids to land an NFL expansion franchise for Baltimore and purchase the New England Patriots, San Diego Padres and Pittsburgh Pirates. He also tried to buy the Los Angeles Dodgers from Rupert Murdoch before turning his attention to Manchester United.

''I will remember Malcolm Glazer as someone whose influence made a lasting impact on both ends of the Atlantic in the world's two greatest sports leagues, the National Football League and the Barclays Premier League, Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shahid Khan said.

''But his greatest legacy may be in the state of Florida, where I am now fortunate to own the Jacksonville Jaguars. Malcolm brought to our state the Bucs, Super Bowls and of course a world championship in 2002. In essence, he helped turn a good football state into a great football state. He will be missed but always admired.''

Despite playing just 46 games over four seasons

Oft-injured Dallas Cowboys linebacker Sean Lee didn't even make it through the first offseason practice without another setback in a career filled with them.

Lee went down with a left knee injury during the team portion of what was supposed to be a noncontact workout Tuesday. Coach Jason Garrett said Lee was getting an MRI later in the day.

The fifth-year middle linebacker went to the ground with rookie offensive lineman Zack Martin on top of him and didn't get up right away. He had to be helped off the field by trainers, screaming in anger at cameramen lining the entrance to the training room.

The 27-year-old Lee has missed 15 of 32 games the past two seasons and has never played a full a season in his four years in the league. He missed five games last year with hamstring and neck injuries.

''Unfortunately, he's had to deal with a few of these things but he's as mentally tough an individual as I've ever been around,'' Garrett said. ''So whatever the circumstances are he always puts his best foot forward and strives to be his best. Don't anticipate this being any different.''

Lee, who wasn't in the locker room when it was open to reporters Tuesday, tore a ligament in his right knee during spring practice at Penn State in 2008 and sat out that season before finishing his college career a year later. The Cowboys drafted him in the second round in 2010.

After a pair of mostly healthy seasons his first two years, Lee sustained a season-ending toe injury in the sixth game in 2012. He finished the season on the inactive list again last year with a neck injury.

Despite playing just 46 games over four seasons, he leads all linebackers with 11 interceptions. He was the team's leading tackler when he started 15 games in 2011.

''Sean's been as committed and hard-working a teammate as I've ever been around,'' quarterback Tony Romo said. ''I love the guy like a brother. He's the epitome of what you want in a football player.''

The holdovers on the Dallas roster who filled in at times for Lee last year are Justin Durant and second-year player DeVonte Holloman. Rookie Anthony Hitchens, a fourth-round pick, could play there as well.



 Miami Dolphins center Mike Pouncey claims to have no regrets about last season's incidents in a bullying scandal in which an NFL-sanctioned investigator identified him and two teammates as principals involved.

Pouncey talked to reporters Tuesday for the first time since the Ted Wells report implicated him, left guard Richie Incognito and right guard John Jerry as being behind alleged hazing and harassment of tackle Jonathan Martin.

''No, not at all,'' Pouncey said when asked if he had any regrets. ''We've moved on from that. I'm not worried about anything in 2013, honestly, it's all about 2014 for me.''

On October 28, three days before the Dolphins played Cincinnati, Martin abruptly left the team after storming out of the cafeteria, and never returned. It wasn't until the Wells report was released that Pouncey's name was directly attached.

The NFL is waiting for him to undergo a psychiatric evaluation before issuing any discipline. Pouncey said he does not need such an evaluation.

Dolphins coach Joe Philbin stood behind Pouncey during his news conference after the practice. Philbin confirmed that he and the team will be in constant communication with the league regarding any discipline for Pouncey.

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''The one thing that's without question about Mike Pouncey which is important is he wants to be a great football player,'' said Philbin, who invited Pouncey to a dinner with free agent left tackle Branden Albert before the team signed him. ''He wants to make a valuable contribution to the Miami Dolphins, and he's not unlike any other player that we have in terms of there's an educational process every player goes through. But I love the effort and energy that he brings and that he's put forth into this offseason and today's Day 1. It's a long, long process, but he's off to a good start.''

New offensive coordinator Bill Lazor also expressed confidence in Pouncey's leadership.

''Mike and I walk into this professional relationship with a real clear picture,'' Lazor said. ''I spoke with him on the phone and I laid out what I was looking for. He was very excited to do it and I think he's the right guy to do it.''

Pouncey didn't help matters last month after Miami drafted Tennessee right tackle Ja'Wuan James in the first round when he tweeted he was looking forward to the gifts James would have to deliver to the veterans. The 2011 first-round pick insisted he was joking, reiterating that he believes he is the type of leader his teammates want him to be.

Incognito, Jerry, Martin, Tyson Clabo and Bryant McKinnie all started alongside Pouncey on the offensive line at times last season. Now, only Pouncey remains.

In addition to signing Albert and veteran guard Shelley Smith, the Dolphins drafted James and guard/tackle Billy Turner in the early rounds. All of them were aware of the issues that plagued that unit in 2013.

Philbin knew that would have to be addressed.

''We didn't really say an awful lot,'' he said. ''We want them to make their own decisions. When they walk into the building, when they feel the energy, the excitement that the coaching staff has in working with these guys every day, when they see the way these players are treated by our equipment staff, by our security staff and by our medical staff, I don't really have to say a whole lot.

''The people that come to work here every single day create an outstanding atmosphere ... and again I think the players feel that. If you have to talk about that, then you probably don't have one.''

Allen held the GM title but was an executive vice president

Bruce Allen is now officially upgraded to president and general manager of the Washington Redskins.

Previously, Allen held the GM title but was an executive vice president.

In a press release issued by the team on Monday, owner Dan Snyder says ''I think the world of Bruce Allen and giving him both titles is appropriate.''

Allen was hired by the Redskins in December 2009, after spending time with the Buccaneers and Raiders in the NFL, as well as USFL clubs.

Last week, Allen said in a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid that the team's nickname is ''respectful'' toward Native Americans. That followed half the U.S. Senate publicly urging NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell to change the club's name, saying it is a racist slur.

Chiefs coach Andy Reid got a closer look at Dee Ford during the team's three-day rookie minicamp, and he liked what he saw from the team's first-round draft pick.

Ford is transitioning from defensive end at Auburn to outside linebacker with Kansas City.

''It's a new position for him,'' Reid said. ''I think he's done a great job of jumping in the book and learning the drops, the things that you need to do with the pass coverage. That's not an easy thing with all the combination things that we do. I'm happy with what he's done there.''

Kansas City grabbed Ford with the 23rd overall pick. The 6-foot-2, 252-pound Ford had 20 1/2 sacks and 27 1/2 tackles for loss in 52 games at Auburn. He was an All-SEC selection in 2013.

''I would tell you his quickness and athletic ability,'' Reid said when asked what stood out about Ford. ''It looks like he's spent a lot of time learning.''

Throughout the weekend, Ford either stood up or got down in a three-point stance before the snap during 11-on-11 drills. He appeared comfortable in both positions.

''All the rushers do it a lot,'' Ford said. ''It's just all about disruption. Anything we can do to confuse the tackle, or as an upside for us, just putting your hand on the ground or standing up, you just want that freedom.''

Ford gives Kansas City another pass rusher after the Chiefs had 47 sacks last season, tied for sixth in the NFL. But 36 sacks came before the Week 10 bye.

The absence of starting outside linebacker Justin Houston, who missed five games down the stretch with an elbow injury, played a role in the Chiefs recording 11 sacks in a span of seven games. Frank Zombo filled in for Houston, but recorded a single sack.

Along with Ford's skills off the edge, Reid said his intangibles are ''off the charts.''

''He brings a lot of energy,'' Reid said. ''He loves playing the game.''

Reid and the Chiefs will learn more about Ford in the next couple of weeks.

Ford lined up mostly over the right tackle during the rookie minicamp that concluded on Monday. He didn't appear to have any problem going against sixth-round pick Laurent Duvernay-Tardif on Saturday, and then Ryan McKee, an invited rookie tryout from Southern Mississippi, the last two days of camp.






Starting in Tuesday's organized team activities, Ford will line up against right tackle Donald Stephenson or left tackle Eric Fisher.

''It will give him a little different look,'' Reid said, ''but I think that quickness is going to remain. That part is not going to change. Then he'll just work his combinations against a better player, a more veteran player. But I think he'll be fine.''

For his part, Ford said the biggest areas he wants to carry over from rookie minicamp into organized team activities is consistency and believing in his abilities.

While he knows the competition level rises against the veterans, Ford wants to keep it simple.

''I don't want to say it's not much different,'' he said. ''But in my mind, I don't make things harder than what it is.''

Rice was arrested following a Feb

His voice cracking with emotion, Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice acknowledged Friday that he ''failed miserably'' and apologized for the actions that led to his arrest on assault charges.

Rice was arrested following a Feb. 15 altercation in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in which he allegedly struck fiancee Janay Palmer. The couple married in late February, and both went to the stage at the team training complex for their first public comment since the arrest.

''I failed miserably, but I wouldn't call myself a failure because I'm working my way back up,'' he said.

Wearing a light gray suit and striped tie, Rice spoke for just over six minutes and didn't take questions. His speech was not prepared, but he often referred to notes on his cellphone.

''I know many of my supporters, sponsors, don't want to be in partnership with me. That's my fault,'' Rice said. ''I take full responsibility for that. One thing I do know is that I'm working every day to be a better father, a better husband and just a better role model.''

Rice was accepted Tuesday into a diversion program, which upon completion could lead to the charges being expunged.

''I want you to know I'm still the Ray Rice that you know, or used to know, or grown to love,'' Rice said. ''I'm still the same guy. As me and Janay wish we could take back 30 seconds of our life, we definitely sit here and tell you that we are better parents, we are better lovers and also better friends.''

Among those in attendance were Rice's mother, Janet, and his father-in-law, Joe Palmer. Rice was only 5 when his father was shot and killed, and he referred to Joe Palmer as the'' father I never had.''

''Thank you for teaching me how to be a man,'' he told Palmer. ''I know it wasn't easy when you saw everything that happened, but I just remember your words: 'You'll get through it.' Those words will always stick with me, because one thing you gave me is trust.''

The 27-year-old Rice has played six years for the Ravens. He is the team's career leader in total scrimmage yards and ranks behind only Jamal Lewis in total yards rushing.

''My job is a very powerful job, and I'm blessed to be playing at the highest level of sports,'' Rice said. ''But the job I did was more than scoring touchdowns. It was getting out in the community and helping out. So when this thing happened with me and my wife, one thing I can say is, sometimes in life you will fail.''

Rice is eager to put this behind him, but it's possible that a suspension from the NFL looms ahead. His focus now, however, is clearly on his personal life.

''There were a lot of tears shed, but me and Janay can truly say we're in a better place,'' Rice said. ''We just hope to one day gain back everyone's trust. We're still the same people and I'm still the same person.''

After Rice was done speaking, he turned toward Janay, who enforced the couple's united front.

''I do deeply regret the role I played in the incident that night,'' she said. ''But I can say that I am happy that we continue to work through it together. I love Ray, and I know that he will continue to prove himself not only to you all, but to the community, and I know he will gain your respect back in due time.''

This Store from:sports.yahoo.com

McCarron led the Crimson Tide to two national championships

Alabama star quarterback A.J. McCarron signed Thursday with the Cincinnati Bengals.

A fifth-round selection, McCarron led the Crimson Tide to two national championships, setting several school passing records. But his arm strength was questioned by many pro teams, and he slid to 164th overall in the draft.

McCarron will be a backup to four-year veteran Andy Dalton, who has gotten Cincinnati to the playoffs in each of his three pro seasons. But the Bengals are 0-3 in postseason games with Dalton.

After being drafted, McCarron said: ''I'm confident in myself but at the same time, I know Andy's the QB out there and I respect that.''

Cincinnati also signed cornerback Lavelle Westbrooks, a seventh-round pick out of Georgia Southern.

The Bengals have signed four of their eight draft selections.

The NFL has hired 12 new officials for the 2014 season and promoted two veterans to referee.


Ronald Torbert and Craig Wrolstad were promoted to referee, replacing the retired Scott Green and Ron Winter, the league announced Thursday. Wrolstad has spent the past 11 seasons as a field judge. Torbert has worked the past four seasons as a side judge.

Among the dozen new officials is side judge Shawn Hochuli, the son of always-recognizable referee Ed Hochuli, and field judge Brad Freeman, the son of back judge Steve Freeman, a former player with Buffalo.

Two women, line judge Sarah Thomas and head linesman Maia Chaka, will work minicamps and preseason games this year. They are in the officiating development program and officiated in Conference USA in 2013.

''The NFL is about constantly striving to improve performance, and that is certainly the case for our game officials,'' said Dean Blandino, the league's director of officiating. ''Both Ron and Craig have proven to be outstanding NFL officials and they are ready to assume the increased responsibilities of the referee position. Our 12 first-year officials were all among the best in college football.''

The other 10 first-year officials are umpires Brad Allen and Bryan Neale; head linesman Patrick Turner; field judges Eugene Hall and John Jenkins; side judges Alex Kemp and Scott Novak; line judge Ed Walker; and back judges Rich Martinez and Steve Patrick.

The most experienced officials are referees Walt Coleman, in his 26th season, and the senior Hochuli and Mike Carey, each in his 25th. In all, 119 officials will work in seven-man crews during the regular season.

Steve Freeman and Philip McKinnely, who was with the Falcons, Rams and Bears, are former players now officiating games.

CBS is bringing a sideline reporter back to its NFL broadcasts

CBS is bringing a sideline reporter back to its NFL broadcasts.

On Wednesday, CBS confirmed the news that Tracy Wolfson will be joining Jim Nantz and Phil Simms as a sideline reporter on Thursday night and some Sunday afternoon games starting in the 2014 season.

Wolfson has worked in a similar role for the network’s SEC games and NCAA tournament games for the past decade. She also worked as a sideline reporter for select NFL games last season and in the 2013 Super Bowl.

The change comes eight years after CBS got rid of sideline reporters in NFL games when CBS Sports president Sean McManus said he “preferred to hear from Phil Simms than a sideline reporter.”

“I think over the past year a lot of things have happened where you’ve seen a need for that … whether it was Gary Kubiak on the sideline or the lights going out at the Super Bowl, or whether it was the Kevin Ware injury and we’ve had obviously in the SEC so many reasons to have a sideline reporter,” she said. “I think they just came to think it’s time for it.”

Wolfson’s promotion comes months after CBS won the bid for Thursday Night football games — a package worth a reported $250 million (according to the New York Times) and has apparently changed the way the network was thinking about NFL broadcasts. Network executives began speaking to her earlier this year about the promotion.

Wolfson is one of the most experienced sideline reporters in the college game, but an NFL broadcast is completely different. While in college games interviews were often before the kickoff, at halftime and immediately following the game, her job will be less of those types of interviews and more finding out information about in-game stories like injuries.

“That’s going to be different challenge for me as well,” she said.

She’ll also have to form relationships with a whole new set of sources. She pointed to Steve Spurrier, Les Miles and Nick Saban as people’s she’s going to miss the most while on the NFL sidelines.

“You form these relationships where behind closed doors you laugh and you don’t talk about football, you talk about life,” she said.

With Wolfson’s promotion to the NFL, CBS is also giving a bigger role to Allie LaForce, a recent Ohio University graduate who has seen a rising role on the network especially over the past year.

Despite the change in the jerseys, Wolfson still expects to see a few familiar faces on the sidelines.

“What’s one of the best things about coming from the SEC and going to the NFL is there’s so many familiar faces whether it is coaches or players and I noticed that last year,” she said of the handful of times she worked NFL games in the 2013 season. “When I would walk into a room and someone would say ‘hey I miss you sticking a microphone in my face at halftime.’”


Before he heads back to Seattle from Wednesday’s White House visit with the Super Bowl champion Seahawks, general manager John Schneider might be inclined to take the Lombardi Trophy for a spin past Redskins Park and honk the horn.

After all, it was Washington owner Daniel Snyder who gave Schneider his first job as the top man in an NFL personnel department, letting then-coach Marty Schottenheimer hire him as the Redskins’ vice president of player personnel in May 2001. And it was Snyder who fired Schneider, Schottenheimer and most of their respective staffs after one season.

That was in the early years of Snyder’s ownership and at the height of his intrusive ways, when he’d demand certain (mostly older and well-known) players be added to the roster. Getting fired is part of the NFL business. But nobody forgets when it happens, especially the way Schneider was let go, 7½ months after leaving his previous job with Seattle as director of player personnel.

It’s no coincidence Schneider brought along some of his old scouts when he took the Seahawks job (under supportive and mostly hands-off owner Paul Allen) in 2010. Tag Ribary, who was the Redskins’ director of pro personnel in 2001, is now the Seahawks’ director of team operations. Trent Kirchner, the Redskins’ college scouting coordinator that season, is the Seahawks’ director of pro personnel.

Schneider – just 30 years old when he took the Redskins job – felt he had good men in place to build the roster if given the time. Four seasons into his tenure with the Seahawks, they now have perhaps the most complete roster in the league and Mr. Lombardi riding shotgun, while Snyder and the Redskins have one playoff win to show for the 12 seasons since Schneider was canned.

Now that Minneapolis has the 2018 Super Bowl

Now that Minneapolis has the 2018 Super Bowl, organizers are determined to show the world that nobody does winter better than Minnesota.

Touting the theme ''Built for the Bold,'' organizers persuaded NFL team owners on Tuesday to choose Minneapolis, largely on the appeal of the futuristic $1 billion stadium rising from the site of the former Metrodome, which hosted the Super Bowl in 1992. But the civic leaders turned Minnesota's legendary winters into a selling point, too.

''We didn't shy away from it. We embraced it,'' Vikings president and owner Mark Wilf said.

Details are still taking shape, but plans call for turning downtown's Nicollet Mall pedestrian area into a nearly mile-long Super Bowl Boulevard to showcase outdoor activities. There will also be links with the St. Paul Winter Carnival, which is usually held in late January.

''It's a chance for us to demonstrate how we celebrate winter,'' said Melvin Tennant, president and CEO of Meet Minneapolis, the city's convention and visitors bureau. ''It's a community that never slows down, that enjoys the outdoors four seasons. And we're in a position to share what we already know with the rest of the world.''

Minnesota's winters are indeed bitter - and last winter was the coldest in 35 years. But that doesn't stop residents from delighting in skiing, skating, snowmobiling and hockey. The St. Paul Winter Carnival has embraced the season for more than a century, featuring ice and snow sculpting, community sledding and parades. An extreme ice skating course has been a big hit in the capital city for the past two winters.

In keeping with the winter theme, Minneapolis' video pitch included Lindsey Vonn, the World Cup skiing champion who grew up suburban Burnsville.

Rewarding Minnesota for building the stadium was a major reason the NFL broke with its tradition of opting for warmer settings. Only five Super Bowls have been played in cold-weather cities, including this year's in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Detroit has hosted it twice. Indianapolis hosted it in 2012, but lost its bid for a repeat in Tuesday's vote.

The Super Bowl is expected to draw 100,000 visitors to the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, while over 100 million people across the U.S. watch it on TV from the warm comfort of their homes and sports bars. Civic boosters and business leaders see it as a huge opportunity to lure conventions, meetings and other business that goes elsewhere in the winter.

''Now that we're able to say we're hosting the Super Bowl, I think that will have many groups give us a second look,'' Tennant said. ''And we're going to take full advantage of that with future sales efforts.''

Minneapolis will surely take some cues from how Detroit and the New York area pulled it off.

The Motor City featured a 14-block festival called the Motown Winter Blast in 2006. The four-day party included dog sledding, ice sculptures, snowmobiling exhibitions, performances by Olympic figure skaters and a 200-foot long snow slide. A warmer-than-average January hampered some of the fun, though. Snow-making machines struggled with the slide and organizers had to put wheels on the dog sleds.

This year, organizers created a Super Bowl Boulevard that included Times Square, about 10 miles from the stadium in New Jersey. Partygoers could get their photo taken with the Vince Lombardi Trophy or zoom down a seven-story toboggan run, among other things. Some Broadway shows held a two-week, two-for-one ticket promotion.

''We plan to set the bar high for all northern destinations that host the Super Bowl,'' vowed Doug Baker, a Minneapolis bid committee co-chair and CEO of St. Paul-based Ecolab.


Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice has received initial approval to enter a court program that could result in dismissal of an assault charge against him in New Jersey.

The decision announced Tuesday relates to an aggravated assault charge Rice faces following a Feb. 15 incident with his then-girlfriend in an Atlantic City casino elevator. The couple married a day after Rice was indicted.

Atlantic County acting prosecutor Jim McClain said the decision was made after his office ''considered all relevant information.''

The pretrial intervention program allows for charges to be dismissed against first-time offenders who participate in it and meet certain conditions. A judge must give final approval before Rice can enter the program.

If convicted of the charge, Rice could face three to five years in prison.

Originally, Rice and his then-girlfriend, Janay Palmer, were each charged with simple assault after authorities said he assaulted her at the Revel Casino. But the Atlantic County prosecutor's office reviewed the case and dropped the charge against Palmer.

A grand jury lodged the more serious charge of aggravated assault against Rice in March. He had entered a not guilty plea during a court hearing on May 1, the day he filed his application for the pretrial intervention program.

J'Marcus Webb is joining the Kansas City Chiefs

After testing his options for the 2014 season, J'Marcus Webb is joining the Kansas City Chiefs.

The offensive tackle is signing a one-year contract with the Chiefs, NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport reported Monday, citing a source informed of the player's plans. (The Chiefs confirmed the signing on Monday.)

Webb visited the Carolina Panthers and Minnesota Vikings last week, but settled on the team he worked out for in March.

The 25-year-old tackle spent 2013 with the Vikings after being cut by the Chicago Bears. Webb played just 108 snaps while appearing in eight games in Minnesota, starting one.

The seventh-round pick spent three seasons in Chicago -- the last two as the full-time starter. However, he often struggled to protect Jay Cutler's back. Pro Football Focus ranked Webb the 50th-rated offensive tackle in his last full season.

The Chiefs needed to add line help after losing tackle Branden Albert and guards Jon Asamoah and Geoff Schwartz in free agency.

While Webb lacks NFL starting skills, he can be a swing option and provide depth along Andy Reid's line.

Webb wasn't the only addition the Chiefs made Monday, as the team signed defensive lineman Kyle Love, Rapoport reported, citing Love's agent.

Love, a four-year veteran, split the 2013 season with the Chiefs and the Jaguars, playing in just two total games with one tackle.

The latest "Around The League Podcast" plays the post-draft version of the game "What's More Likely" and breaks down all the latest news.

If you're all caught up on "Game Of Thrones," you're now familiar with the man they call "The Mountain."

Gregor "The Mountain" Clegane is played by Hafthor Bjornsson, who, when not slaying peasants for fun on premium cable, makes a living as a competitive weightlifter in his native Iceland.

The 6-foot-9, 419-pound Bjornsson looks like a CGI creation.

Bjornsson's massive and imposing presence once caught the attention of an NFL team. Last year, Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay offered up one of his signature cryptic tweets about the colossus.

Off/Def Lineman,so many 6-3 to 6-7..320-365 lbs/Big,Physical and Nasty! Speaking of size/strength..GM Grig's just might sign "The Icelander"

We leave you with another shot of Bjornsson, this time lifting a soiled sword that appears to have the same measurements as the George Washington Bridge.

Tracking rookie contracts - 2014 NFL Draft

Which NFL Draft picks have signed and which are yet to ink a deal? We have the full rundown on rookie deals.

Not long ago, striking deals with NFL Draft picks often took weeks and sometimes months. First-round deals were especially difficult with negotiations occasionally continuing into training camp. The new collective bargaining agreement and the addition of a draft pick slotting system have made the process much easier. The rookie holdout is mostly a thing of the past and now some teams have their entire draft classes under contract in a couple of weeks or less.

Prior to the implementation of the rookie wage scale, players and teams would bicker over a number of details -- the length of the deal, the total value, the guaranteed money. Traded picks complicated matters with both seeking deals for the higher pick. Some players argued they should be paid more than the players picked ahead of them, leading to lengthy holdouts. Michael Crabtree missed the first four games of the 2009 season due to a rookie deal holdout. With the new system, all players receive four-year deals with first-round contracts coming with an option for a fifth season. The max dollars for each pick is essentially pre-defined, leaving the amount of guaranteed money and offset language the major negotiating points.

The ink is already drying on a few contracts with some teams already done signing picks. Here is a team-by-team look at where things stand.

Arizona Cardinals

Signed

Troy Niklas, TE, second round -- four years

Kareem Martin, DE, third round -- four years

John Brown, WR, third round -- four years

Atlanta Falcons

Signed

Prince Shembo, OLB, fourth round -- four years

Ricardo Allen, CB, fifth round -- four years

Marquis Spruill, LB, fifth round -- four years

Yawin Smallwood, LB, seventh round -- four years

Tyler Starr, LB, seventh round -- four years

Baltimore Ravens

Signed

Timmy Jernigan, DT, second round -- four years, $4.382 million

Crockett Gillmore, TE, third round -- four years

Brent Urban, DE, fourth round -- four years

Lorenzo Taliaferro, RB, fourth round -- four years

John Urschel, OG, fifth round -- four years

Keith Wenning, QB, sixth round -- four years

Michael Campanaro, WR, seventh round -- four years

Buffalo Bills

Signed

Preston Brown, LB, third round -- four years

Ross Cockrell, CB, fourth round -- four years

Randell Johnson, OLB, seventh round -- four years

Seantrel Henderson, OT, seventh round -- four years

Carolina Panthers

Signed

Tyler Gaffney, RB, sixth round -- four years


Chicago Bears

Signed

Kyle Fuller, CB, first round -- four years, $9.687 million, $9.687 million guaranteed

Ego Ferguson, DT, second round -- four years, $4.1 million, $1.9 million guaranteed

Will Sutton, DT, third round -- four years, $3.115 million, $568,068 guaranteed

Ka'Deem Carey, RB, fourth round -- four years, $2.7 million, $443,000 guaranteed

Brock Vereen, SS, fourth round -- four years, $2.6 million, $391,500 guaranteed

David Fales, QB, sixth round -- four years, $2.3 million, $114,000 guaranteed

Patrick O'Donnell, P, sixth round -- four years, $2.325 million, $105,000 guaranteed

Charles Leno, OL, seventh round -- four years, $2.266 million, $46,512 guaranteed


Cincinnati Bengals

Signed

N/A

Cleveland Browns

Signed

N/A

Dallas Cowboys

Signed

Ben Gardner, DE, seventh round -- four years

Will Smith, OLB, seventh round -- four years

Ahmad Dixon, SS, seventh round -- four years

Terrance Mitchell, CB, seventh round -- four years

Signed

N/A

Detroit Lions

Signed

Nevin Lawson, CB, fourth round -- four years

Larry Webster, TE, fourth round -- four years

Caraun Reid, DT, fifth round -- four years

TJ Jones, WR, sixth round -- four years

Nate Freese, K, seventh round -- four years

Green Bay Packers

Signed

Carl Bradford, LB, fourth round -- four years

Corey Linsley, C, fifth round -- four years

Jared Abbrederis, WR, fifth round -- four years

Demetri Goodson, CB, sixth round -- four years

Jeff Janis, WR, seventh round -- four years

Houston Texans

Signed

Louis Nix III, DT, third round -- four years

Tom Savage, QB, fourth round -- four years

Jeoffrey Pagan, DE, sixth round -- four years

Alfred Blue, RB, sixth round -- four years

Jay Prosch, FB, sixth round -- four years

Andre Hal, CB, seventh round -- four years

Lonnie Ballentine, FS, seventh round -- four years

Indianapolis Colts

Signed

Jack Mewhort, OT, second round -- four years

Jonathan Newsome, LB, fifth round -- four years

Andrew Jackson, LB, sixth round -- four years

Ulrick John, OT, seventh round -- four years

Jacksonville Jaguars

Signed

N/A

Kansas City Chiefs

Signed

Phillip Gaines, CB, third round -- four years

De'Anthony Thomas, RB, fourth round -- four years

Zach Fulton, OG, sixth round -- four years

Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, OT, sixth round -- four years

Miami Dolphins

Signed

N/A

Minnesota Vikings

Signed

David Yankey, OG, fifth round -- four years

Kendall James, CB, sixth round -- four years

Jabari Price, CB, seventh round -- four years

New England Patriots

Signed

James White, RB, fourth round -- four years

Cameron Fleming, OT, fourth round -- four years

Zach Moore, DE, sixth round -- four years

Jemea Thomas, CB, sixth round -- four years

Jeremy Gallon, WR, seventh round -- four years

New Orleans Saints

Signed

Brandin Cooks, WR, first round -- four years, $8.4 million

Stanley Jean-Baptiste, CB, second round -- four years

Vinnie Sunseri, S, fifth round -- four years

Ronald Powell, OLB, fifth round -- four years

Tavon Rooks, OT, sixth round -- four years, $2.317 million

New York Giants

Signed

Andre Williams, RB, fourth round -- four years

Nat Berhe, SS, fifth round -- four years

New York Jets

Signed

Jace Amaro, TE, second round -- four years

Jalen Saunders, WR, fourth round -- four years

Shaquelle Evans, WR, fourth round -- four years

Dakota Dozier, OG, fourth round -- four years

Jeremiah George, LB, fifth round -- four years

Quincy Enunwa, WR, sixth round -- four years

IK Enemkpali, DE, sixth round -- four years

Tajh Boyd, QB, sixth round -- four yeasr

Trevor Reilly, OLB, seventh round -- four years

Oakland Raiders

Signed

Khalil Mack, OLB, first round -- four years, $18.677 million

Philadelphia Eagles

Signed

Josh Huff, WR, third round -- four years

Beau Allen, DT, seventh round -- four years

Pittsburgh Steelers

Signed

N/A

San Diego Chargers

Signed

Chris Watt, OG, third round -- four years

Ryan Carrethers, DT, fifth round -- four years

Marion Grice, RB, sixth round -- four years

Tevin Reese, WR, seventh round -- four years

San Francisco 49ers

Signed

Carlos Hyde, RB, second round -- four years

Dontae Johnson, CB, fourth round -- four years

Aaron Lynch, DE, fifth round -- four years

Keith Reaser, CB, fifth round -- four years

Kenneth Acker, CB, sixth round -- four years

Kaleb Ramsey, DT, seventh round -- four years

Seattle Seahawks

Signed

Jimmy Staten, DT, fifth round -- four years

Eric Pinkins, SS, sixth round -- four years

Kiero Small, FB, seventh round -- four years

St. Louis Rams

Signed

N/A

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Signed

Kadeem Edwards, OG, fifth round -- four years

Robert Herron, WR, sixth round -- four years

Tennessee Titans

Signed

Daquan Jones, DT, fourth round -- four years

Marqueston Huff, FS, fourth round -- four years


Washington Redskins

Signed

Spencer Long, OG, third round -- four years

Bashaud Breeland, CB, fourth round -- four years

Ryan Grant, WR, fifth round -- four years

Lache Seastrunk, RB, sixth round -- four years

Ted Bolser, TE, seventh round -- four years

Zach Hocker, K, seventh round -- four years

The workouts are part of the rookie orientation this week

Michael Sam and the rest of the St. Louis Rams rookies were on the field for the second straight day in what the team referred to as a skill development period.

The workouts are part of the rookie orientation this week, and were held Friday on distant fields at Rams Park. Besides the 11-man draft class, there are 14 undrafted free agents.

Another workout is set for Saturday and on Monday the rookies will join the rest of the team in the offseason program.

The first openly gay player to be drafted by an NFL team was among the last four players to leave the field after a workout that lasted about 1 1/2 hours. He got extra special teams tutoring along with a trio of linebackers - Tavarius Wilson, Johnny Millard and Aaron Hill - all undrafted free agents.

When the Rams drafted Sam, coach Jeff Fisher and general manager Les Snead both said excelling on special teams will help Sam's chances.

The Thursday session was not open to the media and the Friday session was open but without interview access to coaches or players. Oprah Winfrey's cable network is filming a documentary about Sam and was among those training cameras on the workout, all far away from the practice.

The network announced later Friday it was postponing the documentary.

''Whether it's one camera, two or three, you've still got to have a protocol and process,'' Snead said earlier in the week. ''We'll have that.''

Just one quarterback is participating, sixth-round pick Garrett Gilbert.

No mere seventh-rounder, Sam was the star attraction Tuesday when the Rams introduced their draft class, getting a solo session after sharing the podium with the rest of the third-day picks. He discussed rising from adversity and emerging from tiny Hitchcock, Texas.

''I wanted to get out, I wanted to do some great things, so I played sports,'' he said. ''I got better at football. I got better with my grades. I went to college. I was the first person in my family to graduate, and now I'm the first person in my family to go to the NFL. So, I just keep on fighting. Keep fighting the good fight.''

Players took physicals Wednesday before hitting the field for the first time.

The Rams cleared roster space to make room for some of their high draft picks, releasing running back Daryl Richardson and defensive tackle Jermelle Cudjo.

St. Louis took Pittsburgh defensive tackle Aaron Donald in the first round and running back Tre Mason in the third round. Donald and offensive lineman Greg Robinson, the second overall pick and likely to start the season at guard, worked out together before the draft. Donald was the 13th pick.

Richardson was a seventh-round pick in 2013 and rushed for 475 yards with a 4.8-yard average as the change-of-pace backup behind Steven Jackson as a rookie. He entered training camp as the starter last season but was hampered by foot injuries while rookie Zac Stacy emerged, falling just shy of 1,000 yards.

The article source:sports.yahoo.com