Bollinger to start against Carolina; Chrebet, Baker placed on IR
Associated Press
Mon, Nov 7, 2005

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. -- Jets quarterback Brooks Bollinger will start over ailing Vinny Testaverde against Carolina on Sunday after a strong performance in a loss to San Diego.--football gambling--
Books opened the Week 10 lines with the Jets set as 9-point underdogs for Sunday, the early total is set at 41. --football gambling--

In another setback for the Jets, wide receiver Wayne Chrebet (concussion) and tight end Chris Baker (broken ankle) were placed on injured reserve. Chrebet was undergoing more tests Monday after hitting his head hard on the turf in the closing minutes against the Chargers, and it appears his career could be over.--football gambling--

Bollinger replaced Testaverde late in the third quarter and sparked the Jets to a near comeback victory. He was 11-of-20 for 106 yards with two touchdown passes. With one final chance to win the game, his fourth-down pass to Justin McCareins was batted down and San Diego held on for a 31-26 victory. --football gambling--

Testaverde tweaked his strained right Achilles` tendon against the Chargers and is listed as questionable for this week`s game. --football gambling--He was injured against Atlanta two weeks ago. ``I liked what I saw and that was part of the process,`` coach Herman Edwards said Monday. ``If Vinny was going to struggle with his calf, the one thing we knew is Vinny`s not good coming off the bench, Brooks is. We`d have some energy coming off the bench with Brooks. And it worked out that way.``--football gambling--

Bollinger started one game this season, a 13-3 loss to Baltimore before Testaverde took over as the starter. As for Chrebet, Edwards didn`t want to speculate on the future of the dependable receiver. Chrebet has at least nine concussions in his college and pro career.--football gambling--

``It`s something Wayne`s going to have to determine with the doctors,`` Edwards said. ``He`s going to have to make a decision on what he wants to do. It`s always the player`s decision at the end of the day. The medical people can advise people. Wayne`s at the point of his career where he`s going to take a long hard look at what he wants to do.``--football gambling--

Undecided Murphy waits for signs to the future

Popular veteran slotback still not sure if there's another year of football left

Matthew Sekeres

The Ottawa Citizen

Wednesday, November 02, 2005

Maybe it comes on the 24-hour drive home to Florida next week. -NFL Football-

Maybe it comes when the calendar flips over and Yo Murphy needs a New Year's resolution. -NFL Football-

Or maybe it comes in the waning minutes Saturday against the Toronto Argonauts. -NFL Football-

Any way you slice it, the Ottawa Renegades slotback says he is still waiting for a signal, having not yet decided whether he will retire from professional football at age 34. -NFL Football-

Yesterday, Murphy joked that the sign might come on Jan. 1, normally the day he starts training for the forthcoming season. If fairways and food beckon, it's over. -NFL Football-

"I will still lift (weights), but if I'm not coming back, I'm definitely not running," he said. "My resolution will be to get good at golf." -NFL Football-

Murphy was convinced that these circumstances last year -- one last home game, a meaningless one in the CFL playoff picture -- spelled the end. He had decided to retire before the season, and took time to savour the surroundings. -NFL Football-

But on a miserable day, as the clocked ticked down on a miserable loss to Hamilton in the season finale, Murphy noticed a few faithful fans remained at Frank Clair Stadium to send the Renegades into the winter with an ovation. -NFL Football-

Teammates had been lobbying for his return all year, then in January, Joe Paopao was retained as general manager/ head coach and the familiarity made for an easy contract negotiation. -NFL Football-

Murphy returned to catch 57 passes for 860 yards and a team-leading seven touchdowns this year, but the changes he had been noticing in 2004 persisted. -NFL Football-

"It takes me a whole lot to get ready for this game, that's the truth," he said, referencing the physical toll of nine professional seasons on an aging body. "And to have to get my mind right to play professional football ... I've had different crosses to bear." -NFL Football-

For more than two years now, NFL people have talked to him about scouting or coaching, a career path he still can't fully commit to. Murphy wants to live in Tampa, where he partners with members of the NFL Buccaneers in real-estate investments, and where he tends to his charitable foundation. -NFL Football-

That Murphy has so many post-career choices should come as no surprise. -NFL Football-

He has become the Renegades' conscience over two-plus seasons, respected in every corner of the organization, and able to relate to players of all ages, nationalities and races. Performance-wise, he has posted two straight productive campaigns and served as a security blanket for quarterback Kerry Joseph when the play breaks down. -NFL Football-

"I still have the passion to play. Last year, it ended with a bad taste, a bad taste that is still there," said Murphy. "I've decided I need everything in my head to get ready for this week ... my decision isn't about whether I can do it anymore, it's about how I feel." -NFL Football-

Notes: Defensive end Anthony Collier has been named CFL lineman-of-the-week for a second straight time. Collier had -NFL Football-

A sack and an interception in a loss to the Montreal Alouettes last weekend, while also recording three tackles. ... The Renegades will be reissuing season-ticket invoices today to replace invoices sent last week. Team president Lonie Glieberman said many contained mistakes stemming from a two-for-one promotion, so the club decided to reissue them all. ... Slotback Pat Woodcock (bruised ribs) could return this week after missing a game. Paopao said he was surprised Woodcock practised yesterday, and listed the Kanata native as questionable. Right tackle George Hudson (ankle) and receiver Jason Armstead (toe) did not practise but are expected to play. -NFL Football-

Palmer's Back: Ottawa's Jesse Palmer signs with Niners, page B7

© The Ottawa Citizen 2005

The truth hurts

By Reggie Rivers

Air Force Academy football coach Fisher DeBerry merely stated a fact, but his comments about black athletes were nonetheless controversial. Sometimes the truth hurts. -NFL Football-

While discussing his team's 48-10 loss to Texas Christian University last weekend, he said: "It's very obvious that they had a lot more Afro-American players than we did and they ran a lot faster than we did. It just seems to me to be that way, that Afro-American players can run very, very well. That doesn't mean that Caucasian kids and other descents can't run, but it's very obvious to me that they run extremely well." -NFL Football-

Anyone who watches Division I or NFL football knows that this is true. The fastest players on the field are almost always black. On the defense, which requires more athletic ability than offense, NFL rosters are almost entirely black. For example, John Lynch is the only white starter on the Denver defense, which means the Broncos have one more white defensive starter than most NFL franchises. -NFL Football-

So if DeBerry's statement is true to any casual observer, why is it also controversial? -NFL Football-

There are a couple of reasons. First, although it seems clear that DeBerry was not trying to insult the TCU players, making a comment about their natural athletic ability tends to discount their work ethic, discipline, teamwork, intellect and other characteristics. -NFL Football-

I see this play out from the opposite perspective when a minority says, "Well, of course he succeeded in business. He's a white male working in a system designed to reward white men." A statement like that might accurately describe the system, but it completely discounts the work ethic, sacrifice and intellect that that particular individual possessed, which allowed him to succeed. -NFL Football-

If the question is, "Coach, why did your team lose 48-10?" and the response is, "Well, they had a lot more Afro-American players than we did, and they ran a lot faster than we did," then that implies that the TCU players didn't work harder than the Air Force players. They didn't practice harder, or get into better shape or execute better. They were just naturally faster. -NFL Football-

We can also infer from this statement that the TCU coaches weren't smarter than the Air Force coaches. The presumption is that if Air Force had more black players, it would have beaten TCU. The truth is that anytime you credit someone else's success or blame your own failure on some inherent advantage your opponent had, you're indirectly making an unflattering statement about their other attributes. -NFL Football-

Second, even though everyone in football knows that DeBerry is right about black players being generally faster that white players, talking about it in public rips the scab off of old racial wounds. Black people know that from slave days until now, they have been valued primarily for their athleticism. -NFL Football-

Many people in the black community feel that sports still operate under the old plantation model, with white bosses and black laborers. During my senior year at Southwest Texas State University, I got invited to the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, and though I was flattered to be invited, I had never felt more humiliated in my life. -NFL Football-

At the Combine, I was poked, prodded, weighed, measured and tested by doctors, coaches and scouts, and even though I knew I could be richly rewarded for submitting to this inspection for defects, I couldn't help feeling like a slave on an auction block. -NFL Football-

DeBerry's comments reinforce the idea that black players are valuable only for their speed - not their intellect, character or culture, just their speed. And this discounting of black abilities plays out in the demographics of college football, where most of the players on the 117 Division I teams are black, but only three of the coaches are. -NFL Football-

Chances are, those three men are the fastest coaches in the NCAA.
Former Bronco Reggie Rivers (reggierivers2002@yahoo.com) is the host of "Global Agenda" Wednesdays at 9:30 p.m. on KBDI-Channel 12. His column appears every Friday.

All contents Copyright 2005 The Denver Post or other copyright holders. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed for any commercial purpose.

DIRECTV to Air NFL on FOX Games in FOX WIDESCREEN^TM Exclusive NFL SUNDAY TICKET^TM Package to Feature Games in 16:9 Digital Format New York and El Segundo, CA Aug 26, 2003
--- nfl ---
Further expanding the availability of enhanced digital television programming, DIRECTV, Inc. and FOX Sports announced today that the network's primary NFL on FOX games, broadcast in the FOX WIDESCREENTM 16:9 format, will be made available to subscribers of DIRECTV's exclusive NFL SUNDAY TICKETTM package throughout the 17-week regular-season schedule.
--- nfl ---
The FOX WIDESCREENTM system, which features 480 lines of resolution, enables viewers to enjoy a NFL broadcast with a sharp, clear picture that is one-third wider and four times sharper than traditional analog TV. DIRECTV's NFL SUNDAY TICKETTM customers will be able to view two NFL games in the FOX WIDESCREENTM format every Sunday of the regular season.
--- nfl ---
"NFL SUNDAY TICKET is the most coveted sports subscription package available, and offering NFL games for the first time in the FOX WIDESCREEN format further strengthens the appeal and value of the package," said Stephanie Campbell, senior vice president, Programming, DIRECTV, Inc. --- nfl ---
--- nfl ---
"For consumers with a widescreen TV, there's no better sport than football to watch in digital format - it's like being on the 50-yard line." "FOX WIDESCREEN allows viewers the ability to enjoy live professional sports in crisp digital clarity and Dolby 5.1 audio, and now, through NFL SUNDAY TICKETTM and DIRECTV, fans virtually anywhere in the country can see our top two NFL on FOX games each week this way," said Ed Goren, president, FOX Sports.
--- nfl ---
To access FOX WIDESCREENTM games, NFL SUNDAY TICKETTM customers may purchase a DIRECTV-enabled high-definition set-top receiver and a single 18 x 20- or 18 x 24-inch multi-satellite dish with three LNBs. DIRECTV-enabled HD receivers and triple-LNB satellite dishes are available from authorized DIRECTV retailers, such as Circuit City and Best Buy, nationwide. Today's announcement completes a suite of new technological and interactive enhancements that DIRECTV has added, for the first time, to NFL SUNDAY TICKETTM.--- nfl ---
--- nfl ---
Other new enhanced programming features include: NFL SUNDAY TICKETTM Enhanced Games Enhanced Games provides four additional game channels where NFL SUNDAY TICKETTM customers can watch one game and see scores and stats from other games -- all on one screen in an "L-wrap" format. NFL SUNDAY TICKETTM Highlights on DemandOn Monday mornings NFL SUNDAY TICKETTM customers equipped with a DIRECTV Digital Video Recorder (DVR) receiver will be able to view highlights of NFL SUNDAY TICKETTM games, automatically delivered to their DIRECTV DVR. NFL SUNDAY TICKETTM --- nfl ---
--- nfl ---
GameTracker®This new enhancement, available through DIRECTV.com during game time, provides NFL SUNDAY TICKETTM customers with alerts when games other than the one they are watching are heating up so they can tune their television to the right channel and watch all the key moments. DIRECTV also recently announced an agreement with CBS Sports to air CBS's primary game broadcast in high definition format to NFL SUNDAY TICKETTM customers every week during the regular season. --- nfl ---
--- nfl ---
NFL SUNDAY TICKETTM, which enables viewers to watch virtually every NFL game on Sundays during the regular season, is not available on cable or through any other multichannel television service. DIRECTV has been ranked "#1 in Customer Satisfaction among Satellite/Cable TV Subscribers" for the second consecutive year, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2003 Syndicated Cable/Satellite TV Customer Satisfaction StudySM. --- nfl ---
--- nfl ---

Packers deactivate Ahman Green

GREEN BAY, Wis. (Oct. 9, 2005) -- Running back Ahman Green was deactivated with a thigh tendon injury and Najeh Davenport made his second career start for the Green Bay Packers.

Also, center Mike Flanagan (hernia) and linebacker Na'il Diggs (knee) were among the inactives against New Orleans. Scott Wells replaced Flanagan, who had abdominal surgery Oct. 5, and rookie Roy Manning, an undrafted free agent from Michigan, replaced Diggs.

The Saints were also without wide receiver Joe Horn (hamstring), who was replaced by Az-Zahir Hakim, and cornerback Fakhir Brown (knee) was replaced by Jason Craft.

© 2005, NFL Enterprises LLC.

Players in probe face NFL drug tests
Up to 24 random yearly tests ordered for those named in investigation of W. Columbia doctor

By DAVID NEWTON
Senior Writer

CHARLOTTE — The NFL concluded its investigation into the West Columbia physician linked to providing steroids and human growth hormones to NFL players by mandating the players involved be subject to as many as 24 random drug tests a year.

“Every player who was part of the investigation, who’s still in the league, is being tested up to 24 times a year, which is the most important element of putting an end to this,” NationalFootball League commissioner Paul Tagliabue told The Washington Post.

“That’s why we have not had repeat offenders. That’s as important or more important than the discipline.”

Most of the players reportedly involved with Dr. James M. Shortt, 58, of West Columbia, were current or former members of the Carolina Panthers. Shortt was indicted Sept. 21 by a federal grand jury on charges of illegally prescribing steroids and human growth hormone.

Carolina general manager Marty Hurney said the team has not been notified of mandatory tests, and likely wouldn’t be because of the league’s confidentiality rule. “That’s a league matter. I have no comment.”

The Post, citing an anonymous source, said the league’s report indicated that, during a four-year period, fewer than 10 players used banned substances prescribed for them by Shortt.

The indictment alleges the alternative medicine doctor illegally prescribed drugs on 28 occasions between February 2001 and June 2004. All but one of those involved the steroids Stanozolol and Nandrolone. The other count deals with the human growth hormone Somatropin.

A CBS “60 Minutes Wednesday” report in March identified Carolina center Jeff Mitchell, tackle Todd Steussie, and punter Todd Sauerbrun as having filled steroid prescriptions written by Shortt. Several other former Panthers also were named as Shortt’s patients in subsequent media reports.

Of the players identified in the initial report, only Mitchell remains with the team. He was not available after Friday’s practice for Monday night’s game against the Green Bay Packers.

Both Tagliabue and NFL Players Association head Gene Upshaw declined to tell the Post the players to be subjected to the frequent testing. But the Post, citing anNFL source, said Mitchell, Steussie and Sauerbrun were affected.

Joe Browne, the NFL’s executive vice president of communications, said the number of random tests the players are subject to is consistent with past policy involving those who have violated the steroid policy or are suspected of reasonable cause.

“There are circumstances under which it’s in the policy that players can be tested under reasonable cause, even though they haven’t tested positive,” Browne said. “For example, if they are involved in a criminal action.”

Browne said the players involved with Shortt would not be subject to fines or suspension.

“No one proved these guys did anything,” he said. “These guys never tested positive.”

Gene Upshaw, the executive director of the NFL Players Association, told the Post he is not concerned about a leaguewide steroid problem.

“The report has been completed. We will be, at some point, giving it to Congress. We’re satisfied with the results of it.”

The NFL has reduced the threshold for a positive testosterone test from a 6:1 ratio to 4:1 in light of the Shortt case.

The State.com

Feted in Seattle, Knox deserves more

By JOHN LEVESQUE
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER COLUMNIST

With Hank Stram's enshrinement in 2003, Dan Reeves and Chuck Knox are the only retired NFL coaches among the top seven in total victories not in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Reeves, who was still active in the coaching ranks until last year, has 190 regular-season victories. Knox has 186.

Reeves will someday be inducted.

Knox might never make it.

And that would be a shame.

The people who do the voting, a panel made up of football writers in each of the NFL cities, plus a few other knowledgeable observers, have an unwritten rule that, without a league or a conference championship on his résumé, an NFL coach, even one with a reputation that borders on legendary, is unworthy.

Reeves has conference championships -- and, thus, appearances in the Super Bowl -- to his credit.

Knox, the first man to take teams from three different NFL franchises -- Los Angeles, Seattle and Buffalo -- to the playoffs, does not.

And that's what bugs me about so-called halls of fame.

What is it exactly that constitutes the notion of "fame" in the sporting realm?

Is it solely about winning the big game?

Knox's 186 victories as an NFL coach put him in seventh place on the all-time list. Aside from Reeves, the other guys ahead of Knox all have Hall passes. They are Don Shula, 328; George Halas, 318; Tom Landry, 250; Curly Lambeau, 219, and Chuck Noll, 193.

All great champions, all worthy inductees.

Sunday at Qwest Field, Knox's name was added to the Seahawks' Ring of Honor, a long-overdue tribute for the team's most successful coach.

Knox, renowned as much for his terseness as his toughness, used all of 111 words to thank the Seahawks, the fans and his wife for their support over the years.

The fans roared back their full-throated appreciation for nine seasons that still stand as the heyday of the franchise -- a period encompassing 80 wins, 63 losses and seven playoff games, including a stunning upset of Miami on Dec. 31, 1983, in an AFC divisional playoff game.

That took the Seahawks to the AFC championship game against the eventual Super Bowl champion L.A. Raiders. It was Knox's fourth and final loss in a conference championship game, the last time he would get that close to a title.

Mike Holmgren, with 127 regular-season victories, already has his championships, both conference and Super Bowl. Does that entitle him to enshrinement more than Knox?

On Sunday, Holmgren's Seahawks paid the ultimate tribute to Knox by rushing the ball more often than they threw in a 37-12 rout of the Cardinals.

After the game, Holmgren shared a couple of his favorite stories about the man.

One involved a game in Green Bay, when Knox was coaching the Los Angeles Rams. It was a sub-zero day at Lambeau Field, but Holmgren decided he would try to "out-tough" the tough guy.

"I'm going to walk out to the pregame warm-up with just a sweater on," Holmgren said, "and I'm going to shake his hand and show him that the cold does not bother me."

Holmgren noted that the Rams players and coaches were all bundled up like identical Michelin Men. It was so cold it was hard for the lips to form words. It took a while to locate Knox, and when Holmgren finally did he tried to say something, but the words wouldn't come.

Knox, ever the master of toughness and brevity said, "You're cold, aren't you?"

Holmgren was, but memories of Knox continue to warm his heart.

"Over the years we have kept in contact," Holmgren said. "He spent some time with me in the locker room prior to our game last week. He's a great football coach."

Hmmm.

Knox in the locker room last week, Seahawks win.

Knox on the field Sunday, Seahawks win.

Holmgren may want to ask Shirley, Knox's wife of 53 years, if Chuck is available every Sunday.

Failing that, the two should definitely keep in touch. No doubt Knox will be happy to oblige, for one of Holmgren's most cherished memories involves another encounter with the tough guy.

"I remember being at the Senior Bowl (in 1992) with him," Holmgren said. "I had just been hired at Green Bay as a head coach in the league, and he was nice enough, when we were watching practice together ... to talk to me, just a little bit, about what to expect and maybe some things I should know."

Holmgren was hugely impressed by the generosity.

He said: "I remember going home that evening and thinking, 'He didn't have to do that at all.' "

Nope, he didn't have to do it.

It's just the sort of thing that Hall of Famers do.

©1996-2005 Seattle Post-Intelligencer