IRVING, Texas (AP) -- Tony Romo just lost another one of his receiving options for the Dallas Cowboys' season opener.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- Determined to avoid injuries, Carolina Panthers coach John Fox decided not to play his starters in the final preseason game Thursday in Pittsburgh.
There are exactly 267 games that matter in an NFL season, and it's always a guessing game to predict the winners and losers. But when I searched for my projected Super Bowl matchup after six weeks of watching, listening and learning this preseason, I kept coming back to two teams that have what I consider the key factor in any Super Bowl run: Motivation that borders on an obsession.
Can Chad Pennington lead the Dolphins back to respectability? That's what league observers are asking after watching the former Jets quarterback put together impressive back-to-back performances in the preseason. Pennington, the NFL's career leader in completion percentage (65.6) for quarterbacks with more than 1,500 attempts, has completed 16-of-21 attempts for 149 yards with one touchdown in two starts with the Dolphins and led the team to four scores in seven drives under his guidance.
If the Green Bay Packers change their mind about having two rookies back up quarterback Aaron Rodgers this season, veteran free agent Daunte Culpepper is willing to listen.
Now that Adam "Pacman" Jones is really back in the NFL, he insists he will try to do everything he can to stay there.
Last weekend you might have heard that Matt Leinart stunk it up in the "all-important'' third preseason game, throwing three interceptions in 12 passing attempts against the Raiders and posting a microscopic 2.8 passer rating. Predictably, soon thereafter came the anonymously sourced report he was about to lose his job as the Cardinals starting quarterback. He hasn't yet, but that almost seems besides the point.
RENTON, Wash. (AP) -- The Seattle Seahawks finally have some good injury news.
Green Bay Packers defensive lineman Johnny Jolly Jr. faces a Sept. 16 court date on a felony drug possession charge, according to court records.
There are very few phone calls during our existence that are truly life-altering. For no fewer than 1,000 players on the cut line, one of those calls could be coming on Saturday, when NFL teams have to cut their rosters to 53 players. Take it from a guy who's been there, it is utterly amazing how disappointing a two-minute conversation can be.
IRVING, Texas (AP) -- Tony Romo just lost another one of his receiving options for the Dallas Cowboys' season opener.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- Determined to avoid injuries, Carolina Panthers coach John Fox decided not to play his starters in the final preseason game Thursday in Pittsburgh.
There are exactly 267 games that matter in an NFL season, and it's always a guessing game to predict the winners and losers. But when I searched for my projected Super Bowl matchup after six weeks of watching, listening and learning this preseason, I kept coming back to two teams that have what I consider the key factor in any Super Bowl run: Motivation that borders on an obsession.
Can Chad Pennington lead the Dolphins back to respectability? That's what league observers are asking after watching the former Jets quarterback put together impressive back-to-back performances in the preseason. Pennington, the NFL's career leader in completion percentage (65.6) for quarterbacks with more than 1,500 attempts, has completed 16-of-21 attempts for 149 yards with one touchdown in two starts with the Dolphins and led the team to four scores in seven drives under his guidance.
If the Green Bay Packers change their mind about having two rookies back up quarterback Aaron Rodgers this season, veteran free agent Daunte Culpepper is willing to listen.
Now that Adam "Pacman" Jones is really back in the NFL, he insists he will try to do everything he can to stay there.
Last weekend you might have heard that Matt Leinart stunk it up in the "all-important'' third preseason game, throwing three interceptions in 12 passing attempts against the Raiders and posting a microscopic 2.8 passer rating. Predictably, soon thereafter came the anonymously sourced report he was about to lose his job as the Cardinals starting quarterback. He hasn't yet, but that almost seems besides the point.
RENTON, Wash. (AP) -- The Seattle Seahawks finally have some good injury news.
Green Bay Packers defensive lineman Johnny Jolly Jr. faces a Sept. 16 court date on a felony drug possession charge, according to court records.
There are very few phone calls during our existence that are truly life-altering. For no fewer than 1,000 players on the cut line, one of those calls could be coming on Saturday, when NFL teams have to cut their rosters to 53 players. Take it from a guy who's been there, it is utterly amazing how disappointing a two-minute conversation can be.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Kicker Jay Feely has been cut by the Kansas City Chiefs, a day after signing a one-year deal.
The Olympics reminded me again about the four guiding principles of sports organizations. No. 1: It's much easier to run a team sport than an individual sport.
CINCINNATI (AP) -- Quarterback Carson Palmer will skip Cincinnati's last preseason game, resting his broken nose while running back Rudi Johnson makes his first -- and what he thinks could be his last -- appearance in a Bengals uniform.
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) -- Wide receiver David Tyree was placed on the physically-unable-to-perform reserve list by the New York Giants on Tuesday, meaning the player who made a game-saving catch in the Super Bowl won't be making any for at least the first six weeks of the season.
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) -- The New York Jets announced a personal seat license plan that will cost some season-ticket holders between $4,000 and $25,000, but spares thousands of upper-level seats from the new fee.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- More than a month after having knee surgery and enduring weeks of rampant speculation about whether the injury was worse than first feared, two-time league MVP Peyton Manning finally provided his doubters with one emphatic answer Tuesday: He's back, right on schedule.
The college season kicks off this weekend, and with it another year of NFL scouting begins in earnest. Tight end, tackle and center offer the greatest depth on offense, with the skill positions lacking top prospects from the senior class. No senior quarterback, in fact, grades out as a first-round pick. But as you'll see in this early rundown of the top offensive prospects for April's draft, that position could be helped immensely by an infusion of underclassmen talent. (Defensive prospects coming on Wednesday.)
It's that dangerous time of the summer for NFL starting quarterbacks. With the regular season less than 10 days away, keeping or getting your No. 1 QB healthy becomes every team's most vital objective. All else pales by comparison.
The New York Giants are interested in luring Michael Strahan out of retirement after losing Pro Bowl defensive end Osi Umenyiora to a season-ending knee injury Saturday night.
Frank Cornish IV, an offensive lineman on two of the Dallas Cowboys' Super Bowl champion teams in the 1990s, died over the weekend at age 40.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Peyton Manning might be activated by the Indianapolis Colts on Tuesday, although the two-time NFL Most Valuable Player is not expected to play in the team's final preseason game Thursday night.
Quick Pre-MMQB This-Is-What-the-Olympics-Mean-To-NFL-Players Interlude:
ASHBURN, Va. (AP) -- It's touch and go whether Jason Taylor will play in the Washington Redskins' season opener against the New York Giants.
CINCINNATI (AP) -- Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer broke his nose during Saturday night's preseason game against the New Orleans Saints, but coach Marvin Lewis said he should be ready for the regular season opener.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- Washington Redskins defensive end Jason Taylor left Saturday's 47-3 preseason loss to Carolina with a sprained right knee.
CINCINNATI (AP) -- Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer got roughed up again during a preseason game against the New Orleans Saints on Saturday night, leaving late in the first half with a bloody nose and a cut lip.
RENTON, Wash. (AP) -- Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck likely will miss Seattle's preseason game Monday at San Diego and probably won't see any action until the regular season because of ongoing back stiffness.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) -- J.T. O'Sullivan will start at quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers when the NFL regular season begins next month.
The Patriots haven't won a game since mid-January, Tom Brady has yet to play this preseason, and things are getting a little tense for the Team That Previously Could Not Lose. Making matters worse, New England just got embarrassed at Tampa Bay, on the very field it hopes to be playing on in February's Super Bowl.
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) -- Bills starting quarterback Trent Edwards won't play in Sunday night's preseason game against the Indianapolis Colts because of a bruise above his right kneecap.
We were just looking back at last season, lost in lazy reverie of days gone by and dreaming of the golden days of the gridiron ahead this autumn, when we stopped briefly to ponder the historical dominance of the 2007 Patriots.
I read an interesting comment the other day in Peter King's MMQB Mailbag . When King asked Phil Savage, the Browns GM, what he thought when Monday's debacle of a loss to the Giants was over, Savage responded, "I don't know. You never know. It's preseason.''
Jerry Jones is media-friendly. This much is apparent as the Dallas Cowboys owner stands in the center of SkyBar, the infamously exclusive poolside lounge tucked away in the Mondrian hotel overlooking Hollywood. Jones has rented out the area for the evening for a media party, waving in beat writers that have been brought down from the team's training camp site an hour north in Oxnard. While scantily clad women and Hollywood high-rollers attempt to sweet talk their way past the velvet ropes, Jones is making scribes from the Dallas Morning News and Fort Worth Star-Telegram feel like A-listers, at least for an evening.
With no football to play for the first time in 18 years, former pro Ross Tucker is passing the time reading about his favorite sport. What follows are a few links to NFL-related articles he found and his take on them.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Big 12 rivals Kansas State and Iowa State will play at Arrowhead Stadium, the home of the Kansas City Chiefs, in 2009 and 2010.
ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Steven Jackson signed a six-year, $44 million contract, ended a 27-day holdout, and was on the field for practice with the St. Louis Rams on Thursday.
Gene Upshaw came into the NFL through a scam, and the guy scammed later became one of the most respected personnel men in the league. But in 1967 Ron Wolf was just a hard-working, 27-year-old super scout for Al Davis and the Oakland Raiders, and as the draft approached he knew he was going to have a war on his hands.
DAVIE, Fla. (AP) -- Miami Dolphins running back Ronnie Brown will likely miss Saturday's exhibition against the Kansas City Chiefs with a strained right thumb.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Kevin Curtis will have surgery Thursday to repair a sports hernia and will likely miss the start of the regular season.
ST. LOUIS (AP) -- St. Louis Rams running back Steven Jackson ended his holdout on Wednesday while his agent continues negotiations for a new contract.
ALAMEDA, Calif. (AP) -- Oakland Raiders cornerback DeAngelo Hall has ligament damage in his right hand and may have to wear a protective cast for the rest of the preseason.
CINCINNATI (AP) -- Receiver Chris Henry is back with the Cincinnati Bengals because their owner has a soft spot for troubled players.
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) -- Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Anquan Boldin asked to be traded, saying he doesn't feel his situation can be resolved and declaring he has no relationship with coach Ken Whisenhunt.
FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. (AP) -- Joe Horn, released by the Atlanta Falcons on Tuesday after the team couldn't trade the veteran receiver, said he is relieved he can pursue a job with another team.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Peyton Manning proved Tuesday he can stand, walk and talk.
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- The problem with preseason football, other than the fact it's preseason football, is you never have any idea what it means. Never. Having said that, I am questioning all the love I've thrown the Browns way this off-season. It would impossible not to, after being in the house for the first 17 minutes -- which took about four days -- of Cleveland's preseason loss to the Giants here Monday.
Musings, observations and the occasional insight as we arrive at the midway point of the NFL's fake-game schedule, putting us (thankfully) just 17 days away from when they start keeping score for real. ...
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- The Cincinnati Bengals are close to signing Chris Henry, four months after they released the wide receiver following his fifth arrest since 2005, Henry's agent said Monday.
METAIRIE, La. (AP) -- The New Orleans Saints signed former Pro Bowl safety Lance Schulters on Monday.
NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- Jeremy Shockey ran some plays with the first team offense in practice on Monday and appears on track to make his first appearance in a Saints uniform when New Orleans plays its third preseason game on Saturday night in Cincinnati.
ATLANTA (AP) -- Matt Ryan's next shot at winning the starting quarterback job for the Atlanta Falcons will come in his first preseason start.
LAKE FOREST, Ill. (AP) -- Kyle Orton will start as the Chicago Bears opening day quarterback -- beating Rex Grossman in a competition that lasted through training camp and two preseason games.
OWINGS MILLS, Md. (AP) -- Baltimore Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs reported to the team Monday and began practicing after signing his $8.47 million, one-year tender.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Safety Bob Sanders is ready to start hitting, and the Colts are finally ready to get him back on the field.
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. -- As the Indianapolis Colts training camp wound down to its final few days last week, Peyton Manning was an apparition. He was the ghost of Peyton Manning.
CINCINNATI (AP) -- Bengals receiver Chad Johnson landed awkwardly while trying to make a catch in the first quarter against Detroit on Sunday night, then left the game to have his left shoulder examined.
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) -- Brett Favre second-guessed himself at times during the last few weeks. He doubted whether he was doing the right thing by coming out of retirement and leaving Green Bay.
BALTIMORE (AP) -- Tarvaris Jackson left with a knee injury in the first quarter of Saturday night's preseason game against the Baltimore Ravens, ruining an otherwise productive night for the Vikings quarterback in Minnesota's 23-15 victory.
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) -- John Lynch thought he'd end his football career with the Denver Broncos.
How is Jake Long going to play? How does Darren McFadden look? Everywhere I go, I'm always asked about this year's rookies. That said, I thought this would be a good time to take a break from the 2008 draft and evaluate how the 2007 first-round picks are shaping up as we get deeper into the preseason. Here is a look at the top 10 picks, followed by the rest of last year's first round divided into appropriate categories.
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. (AP) -- Brett Favre's next big test before taking the field for his Jets debut will be finding his way to the correct locker room.
BALTIMORE (AP) -- Troy Smith has his priorities in order. To be starting quarterback of the Baltimore Ravens, he must earn respect in the huddle and protect the football.
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) -- The Green Bay Packers' proposed $20 million marketing deal for Brett Favre included a merchandise line, autographs, personal appearances and even a blog, according to a report in The Sporting News' online newsletter Friday.
METAIRIE, La. (AP) -- Offensive guard Jahri Evans joined the Saints as a fourth-round draft pick out of Division II Bloomsburg and impressively won a starting job by opening day of his rookie season.
METAIRIE, La. (AP) -- New Orleans Saints defensive tackle Hollis Thomas could be out two months with a right triceps injury, all but ensuring that top draft pick Sedrick Ellis will be thrust into a major role on the interior of the defensive line this season.
JACKSON, Miss. -- Of all the remodeling jobs an NFL offseason invariably brings to rosters around the league, I think I like the extensive -- but not necessarily expensive -- work done on the Saints defense best of all.
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) -- Adam "Pacman" Jones took a break from his friendly feud with Denver Broncos wide receiver Brandon Marshall to get down to some serious business.
Several weeks after coach Marvin Lewis emphatically closed the door on the Bengals re-signing Chris Henry, it now appears Cincinnati is open to the possibility of a reunion with the troubled wide receiver.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- The new Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, already slated for the 2012 Super Bowl, is one of eight finalists for the NCAA Division I women's basketball Final Four that year.
BEREA, Ohio (AP) -- Cleveland Browns rookie tight end Martin Rucker will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his knee and miss four to six weeks.
FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. -- Musings, observations and the occasional insight gleaned from a day at the Atlanta Falcons training camp last week, where all things new -- be it a head coach, a general manager, a first-round quarterback, a lead running back or a kicker -- are positively the rage....
SI.com dispatched 10 writers to report on the 32 NFL training camps across the country. This is the final installment. For the complete archive of postcards, click here.
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (AP) -- Colts defensive back Michael Coe will be placed on injured reserve and will miss the rest of the season after having surgery on his left knee last week.
SI.com has dispatched 10 writers to report on the 32 NFL training camps across the country. For the complete schedule of postcards, click here.
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) -- It was the kind of situation that made a Pro Bowl player out of former seventh-round draft pick Donald Driver: a scalding pass in heavy traffic between the hashmarks, with a first down on the line.
DAVIE, Fla. (AP) -- The Miami Dolphins cut kicker Jay Feely on Tuesday, one season after he set the team's single-season record for field-goal percentage.
If they were to ever make a movie of the Philadelphia Eagles 2008 training camp, there would be only one logical working title: Fight Club II.
Too often, the guys who deserve the money are left to grovel and scratch for it, and more often than not, they don't get it anyway. That's why I didn't want the Brian Westbrook story to get too cold before throwing in my thoughts.
Tampa Bay quarterback Jeff Garcia returned to practice Monday after being sidelined 10 days by a right calf strain, an injury overshadowed by the Buccaneers' pursuit of Brett Favre as a possible replacement.
KIRKLAND, Wash. (AP) -- Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Bobby Engram will miss six to eight weeks with a cracked bone in his right shoulder sustained on the first play of Friday's preseason game against Minnesota, adding to the injuries on offense for the defending four-time NFC West champions.
There may have been a time when country music star Kenny Chesney never thought -- in his wildest dreams -- that he'd be catching passes and punts at an NFL training camp.
SI.com has dispatched 10 writers to report on the 32 NFL training camps across the country. For the complete schedule of postcards, click here.
SI.com has dispatched 10 writers to report on the 32 NFL training camps across the country. For the complete schedule of postcards, click here.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) -- The San Francisco 49ers signed two-time Pro Bowl linebacker Takeo Spikes on Sunday, hours after waiving former starter Brandon Moore.
MIAMI (AP) -- Chad Pennington spent the past day digging through old boxes, scrambling to find old playbooks and information about the offense he ran his rookie year with the New York Jets.
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. (AP) -- Brett Favre stood in front of yet another throng of reporters, a towel draping his shoulders and a bead of sweat dripping from his gray-speckled hair.
SI.com has dispatched 10 writers to report on the 32 NFL training camps across the country. For the complete schedule of postcards, click here.
SI.com has dispatched 10 writers to report on the 32 NFL training camps across the country. For the complete schedule of postcards, click here.
NEW YORK (AP) -- Cameras flashing by the dozens, a wide-eyed Brett Favre took his first steps into the New York spotlight.
MIAMI (AP) -- Chad Pennington, cut by the New York Jets after they signed Brett Favre, signed with the Miami Dolphins on Friday.
SI.com has dispatched 10 writers to report on the 32 NFL training camps across the country. For the complete schedule of postcards, click here.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) -- The Jacksonville Jaguars will have as many as 10 players sidelined with injuries Saturday in their preseason opener against the Atlanta Falcons.
BALTIMORE (AP) -- It's Troy Smith's turn in the Baltimore Ravens' quarterback derby.
SI.com has dispatched 10 writers to report on the 32 NFL training camps across the country. For the complete schedule of postcards, click here.
Can a team overcome a two-game suspension of its best player to make the playoffs? That's what John Fox will try to find out this season as the Panthers open the regular season without three-time Pro Bowl receiver Steve Smith.
SI.com has dispatched 10 writers to report on the 32 NFL training camps across the country. For the complete schedule of postcards, click here.
SI.com has dispatched 10 writers to report on the 32 NFL training camps across the country. For the complete schedule of postcards, click here.
Brett Favre held up his new green jersey, hoping he made the right decision.
A new quarterback named Brett threw two long touchdown passes for the New York Jets.
The Ravens need a successor to the retired Steve McNair. The Patriots don't have to worry about replacing Tom Brady any time soon.
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