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NFL Headlines
December 2
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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The Steelers have received a double dose of good news on the Ben Roethlisberger front. The Steelers' quarterback didn't experience any headaches Monday after working out, and he is expected to return Sunday against the visiting Oakland Raiders. Also, he and wide receiver Hines Ward have apparently resolved any issues that may have arisen when Ward told NBC that he has played with concussions in the past - and that Steelers players were divided over Roethlisberger not playing last Sunday in a 20-17 overtime loss to the Ravens. Roethlisberger sustained a concussion Nov. 22, and coach Mike Tomlin held him out of the Ravens game following a recommendation by Dr. Joseph Maroon. "I have been ..."
December 2
Philadelphia Inquirer
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The Eagles' recent spending spree made Brent Celek a wealthy man yesterday. Exactly one week after giving offensive tackle Winston Justice a four-year deal worth nearly $18 million if he finishes the contract, the team put together a six-year extension for its starting tight end that could be worth as much as $33 million if he earns the incentives. The contract includes slightly less than $11 million in guaranteed money, a league source said. It will keep him with the team through 2016. The deal signed by Celek is similar to a six-year extension tight end Jason Witten received from the Dallas Cowboys before the 2006 season. Witten is a five-time Pro Bowler and had already been to two Pro ..."
December 2
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Coach Mike Tomlin said strong safety Troy Polamalu (knee) is doubtful for Sunday's game against the visiting Oakland Raiders. Polamalu has missed the past two games with a strained posterior collateral ligament (PCL) in his left knee. Tomlin said the five-time Pro Bowler is "still a week or so away." Left guard Chris Kemoeatu (knee) will try to practice today on a limited basis, Tomlin said, and he could play Sunday. Other Steelers who could be limited in practice this week include defensive end Travis Kirschke (calf), running back Mewelde Moore (ankle) and return specialist Stefan Logan (ribs). » After making his first career start Sunday, quarterback Dennis Dixon is expected to go back ..."
December 2
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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They worked closely together in Baltimore when Redman was a backup and had to run the scout team against Smith's linebacker units. "I've known Chris, very, very well," Smith said. "Chris has a lot of confidence in his ability." Now Smith, with the teams' playoff hopes in the balance, will send Redman out to win a game Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles at the Georgia Dome. Redman, who will start because Matt Ryan is out with a turf-toe injury, acknowledges he needs to shake off some rust, but at least he'll get to the work with the first team this week. Redman filled in for Ryan on Sunday against Tampa Bay on short notice and with only about 15 plays of practice with the first team. ..."
NBA Headlines
December 2
Philadelphia Inquirer
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Fittingly, the ball is in Allen Iverson's hands. Yesterday, according to a source close to the negotiations, the 76ers offered Iverson a non-guaranteed contract for this season. The deal is on the table; only he has the answer. According to that same source, the Sixers are awaiting a response from Iverson's agent, Leon Rose, and expect that answer today. Yesterday in Philadelphia, Sixers general manager Ed Stefanski met with Rose, formally laying out the offer: a prorated amount of the $1.3 minimum veteran's minimum, roughly $600,000 to $650,000, which would become guaranteed for the remainder of the season if Iverson remained on the roster Jan. 10. Before then, the Sixers could cut ..."
December 2
New York Daily News
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Jason Kidd authored many of the greatest moments in Nets history. Tuesday night he will have a hand in whether the Nets make the worst kind of history. The 0-17 Nets can set the all-time record for the worst start to a season Tuesday night against the man who lifted them to two straight NBA Finals earlier this decade. "It is an unfortunate situation, but that is funny how things happen," Kidd told the Daily News Monday before boarding the Mavericks' charter flight to New Jersey. "Why would it be me coming to play them on Wednesday and not K-Mart (Kenyon Martin) or Richard (Jefferson)? It's an awkward situation. We all helped to turn that franchise around. Now to see where it is at today ..."
December 2
Dallas Morning News
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It's the next-to-worst thing to being 0-18 and it's what Devin Harris and the New Jersey Nets are facing in tonight's game against the Mavericks. Lose one more, and the Nets will become the NBA's poster kids for losing to start a season. Two other teams, the expansion 1988-89 Miami Heat and the 1999-2000 LA Clippers, started 0-17. Fate has lined up the Mavericks as the Nets' chance to avoid history and get what most teams got back in late October - win No. 1. Drew Gooden has been in this position. Not this exact position, but very close. He's played on teams that lost 19 in a row during the season (in Orlando after winning the opener in 2003) and 13 in a row to start the 2002 season at ..."
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Allen Iverson and the Philadelphia 76ers are closer to a reunion. A person with knowledge of the contract talks said the Sixers offered a one-year, non-guaranteed contract to Iverson yesterday. Another person with knowledge of the deal said Iverson's decision should come today. That person said the 76ers are taking a chance on Iverson because he's the best free agent guard available and the financial commitment is minimal. The Sixers would owe just under $650,000 if they guarantee his contract for the remainder of the season Jan. 10. "What is the downside if you can cut him any time you want?" the person said. Iverson would still need to undergo a physical before the deal is complete. As ..."
MLB Headlines
December 2
New York Daily News
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If the Yankees want to add Roy Halladay to the top of their rotation, they have about 11 weeks to get it done. Halladay has informed the Blue Jays that he won't waive his no-trade clause once he reports to spring training, leaving roughly 2-1/2 months for Toronto to trade the former Cy Young winner or risk losing him for nothing more than two compensatory draft picks. Halladay's ultimatum, first reported by ESPN.com Tuesday, leaves the Blue Jays in a precarious position. General manager Alex Anthopoulos already had a limited number of teams to negotiate with, since Halladay must approve any trade before it could be completed, but his bargaining power now takes another hit thanks to ..."
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The Braves did not take long to find a new closer. The team reached preliminary agreement Tuesday with free-agent left-hander Billy Wagner on a one-year, $7 million contract with a vesting option for a second season, according to a major-league source. The deal will become official once Wagner passes a physical, which he will take in Atlanta on Wednesday. The vesting option, worth $6.5 million, will become guaranteed if Wagner finishes 50 games next season. Wagner, 38, would become the most significant player to change teams this offseason. He made a strong and rapid recovery from Tommy John surgery last season, working a pair of scoreless innings after returning to the Mets, then posting ..."
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The Mets, as expected, did not offer salary arbitration to any of their free agents, including Carlos Delgado and Fernando Tatis, at yesterday's deadline. In the cases of Delgado and Tatis, both Tupe B free agents, failing to offer arbitration means the Mets will not receive draft-pick compensation if either signs with another team. The Mets, however, remain interested in bringing back Delgado as a one-year bridge to top prospect Ike Davis at first base if Delgado can show general manager Omar Minaya that he is healthy again when Minaya goes to Puerto Rico this month to watch him play winter ball."
December 2
Chicago Sun-Times
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Jermaine Dye ditched the idea of extending his stay with the White Sox in late September, so it was no shock that the paperwork for the breakup continued when the team announced Tuesday it wouldn't offer salary arbitration to Dye, outfielder Scott Podsednik, reliever Octavio Dotel or backup catcher Ramon Castro by the midnight deadline. This means the Sox won't get any drafts picks as compensation should Dye or Dotel -- both Type A free agents -- sign with another team. Podsednik and Castro didn't fall into that category. As for Dye, he told the Sun-Times last month that he already had been receiving calls from at least eight major-league teams and wasn't ruling anyone out. The New York ..."
NHL Headlines
December 2
Washington Post
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Washington Capitals winger Alex Ovechkin was suspended for two games without pay Tuesday for a controversial hit that has the two-time MVP nursing a right knee injury and his coach contemplating talking to his star about his occasional "reckless" play. The suspension, the first of Ovechkin's five-year NHL career, was the result of a knee-on-knee hit he laid on Carolina defenseman Tim Gleason during Monday's 3-2 victory in Raleigh, N.C. Ovechkin will sit out Thursday's game against Florida and Saturday's contest in Philadelphia and forfeit $98,844.16 of his $9 million annual salary. Coach Bruce Boudreau said the hit might force him to talk with Ovechkin about toning down an aggressive ..."
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For the second time in less than three months, Jonas Gustavsson has been forced to seek emergency medical attention for his heart. Anyway you cut it, that's scary stuff, a situation that no pro sports team dares trifle with. So as soon as Maple Leafs head coach Ron Wilson heard that the prize rookie goaltender's heart was racing after playing an outstanding first period Tuesday night against the Montreal Canadiens, he didn't wait to find out if Gustavsson could continue."
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Crafty center Marc Savard, the Bruins' top point producer, officially added to his bounty yesterday by tacking a string of eight numbers and a dollar sign next to his career production totals with a seven-year, $28.05 million contract extension beginning in 2010-11. The Globe reported yesterday that Savard, 32, was poised to sign the deal, and the club announced the extension yesterday afternoon. General manager Peter Chiarelli and Savard, who signed here as a free agent in July 2006, will address the media this morning at the Garden, where the Bruins tonight will face the Tampa Bay Lightning."
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For a moment, hockey was a secondary consideration for Sam Gagner. The Edmonton Oilers forward had to get a lump on his neck checked out with a biopsy on Monday, but expects the tests to come back negative. "I was sick about a month ago, pretty much when everyone was struggling with an illness," said Gagner. "I had some lymph nodes on my neck flare up. I got an ultrasound on it, then a biopsy on it to get some peace ofmind. "It should be all right and there shouldn't be any problem. "It'll be a few days for the results, but the doctors are convinced that there is nothing abnormal about it and I shouldn't be worried at all." Currently centring the Oilers top line, Gagner has six goals and ..."