NFL RUMORS AND NEWS

Chicago Tribune "Former Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher announced his retirement from the NFL via Twitter on Wednesday, three days shy of his 35th birthday. “After spending a lot of time this spring thinking about my NFL future, I have made a decision to retire,” Urlacher wrote in a statement. “Although..." May 22

USA Today "San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Michael Crabtree suffered a torn Achilles tendon during organized team activities Tuesday and will soon undergo what could be season-ending surgery, a person informed of the injury told USA TODAY Sports. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the..." May 22

ESPN.com "Cutting two games off the preseason -- either by expanding the playoffs or moving to an 18-game schedule -- is still being discussed, commissioner Roger Goodell said Tuesday at the NFL's spring owners meetings in Boston. He said all "[options] are on the table." "As I have said before, I..." May 22

USA Today "New York Jets rookie quarterback Geno Smith announced after Wednesday's organized team activities practice he has hired Jay-Z's newly formed Roc Nation Sports as his representation, choosing a relative unknown in Kimberly Miale as his contract agent. Jay-Z is not certified by the NFL Players..." May 22

New Orleans Times-Picayune "Move over Bill Belichick. New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton is now the highest paid coach in America, according to a Forbes article. Payton, who recently negotiated a new contract with the Saints, will make about $8 million per year. The details were reworked after the NFL voided his..." May 22

The News Tribune "Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch had a court date this morning for a motion to suppress evidence in Alameda County District Court, stemming from charges filed against him for driving under the influence of alcohol in July of last year. According to Teresa Drenick, assistant district..." May 22

PackersNews.com "The once-distant relationship between Brett Favre and the Green Bay Packers has seen significant progress over the last three months. In February, Favre and his predecessor, Aaron Rodgers, handed out the NFL comeback player of the year award together during the NFL honors ceremony. Last..." May 22

New York Daily News "Nobody expected Victor Cruz to show up for the Giants' OTA workout on Wednesday. That Hakeem Nicks also didn't show up, however, was a much larger surprise. Nicks, who was in Manhattan just a night earlier, was nowhere to be found at the Giants facility on Wednesday, a concerning absence. Cruz..." May 22

San Francisco Chronicle "Defensive back Charles Woodson signed a one-year deal with the Raiders Tuesday night. And while the fan support surely played a factor so did $4.3 million, which is what Woodson can earn including incentives. That includes a $700,000 signing bonus for a 36-year-old player who had very little..." May 22

NFL.com "The Super Bowl is headed back to the Bay Area for the first time since 1985. Houston didn't have to wait so long. NFL owners voted Tuesday at the NFL Spring Meeting to award Super Bowl L in 2016 to San Francisco. The game will be played in the 49ers' new Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara,..." May 22

Pro Football Talk "The wisdom of Tampa Bay’s trade for cornerback Darrelle Revis ultimately will be determined by the player’s performance in 2013 and beyond. His performance in 2013 hinges on the performance of his surgically-repaired knee. The good news for Revis and the Bucs (and the bad news for everyone..." May 22

New York Daily News "Joe Namath calls Gang Green’s prized rookie QB Geno Smith a “sensational athlete” with “good size.” And Namath also thinks drafting Smith was unnecessary. “No, I don’t think they needed a quarterback,” Namath said at the United Way’s 20th annual Gridiron Gala at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel on..." May 22

New York Post "Jets running back Mike Goodson will enter a plea of not guilty to all charges at his arraignment this morning, according to his lawyer. Goodson, 25, will appear in court in Morristown, N.J., to answer to weapons and drug charges. Goodson was arrested Friday after police found him intoxicated in..." May 22

Atlanta Journal-Constitution "A worker was temporarily trapped Tuesday afternoon when a retaining wall collapsed at the Gwinnett County home of an Atlanta Falcons player. The man, whose name was not released, was working in a ditch when the wall collapsed around noon, pinning him face down against a concrete wall at the..." May 22

San Diego Union-Tribune "One offensive tackle was out the door Tuesday, and another announced he was coming in. The Chargers waived Kevin Haslam, a three-game starter at left tackle in 2012. On the same day, free agent Max Starks donned a Chargers avatar on his verified Twitter account and announced he was joining the..." May 22

NFL.com "The NFL draft provides football fans with a peek into the exhilaration that comes with entering the league. Far less publicized is a player's exit from the game, which carries its own emotional weight. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said at the NFL Spring Meeting in Boston that he had met with..." May 22

USA Today "Police say the Maryland home of Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice was burglarized over the weekend, and $2,000 and two guns were stolen. Baltimore County police spokeswoman Cpl. Cathleen Batton said Monday that the burglary happened between 8:30 p.m. Friday and 12:50 a.m. Saturday at the..." May 21

Atlanta Journal-Constitution "NFL owners this morning voted to provide the Falcons with $200 million in league funding toward the new retractable-roof stadium slated to open in Atlanta in 2017. The money will come from the league’s “G-4” program, which supports stadium construction and renovation around the league. Most of..." May 21

ESPN.com "Tony Romo underwent a minor surgical procedure on his back last month to remove a cyst that could keep him out of action until training camp, according to sources. Romo will be held out of the organized team activities that begin Tuesday and run for the next three weeks, the sources said..." May 21

Boston Herald "Rob Gronkowski appears to have dodged one bullet. The nasty infection that’s dogged him for months looks to be a thing of the past, as doctors yesterday were able to install a new plate in his surgically repaired left forearm. But there’s another sizable worry on the table. The Pro Bowl tight..." May 21

Washington Post "General Manager Bruce Allen said Monday it’s “too early to tell right now” if quarterback Robert Griffin III will be ready to practice when the Washington Redskins open training camp in late July. “It’s great to hear the building is on schedule, ahead of schedule, and I’ve heard all those same..." May 21

Buffalo News "Mario Williams emitted a sigh when he stepped to the lectern at One Bills Drive this afternoon and then answered every question asked about an unbecoming feud with his ex-fiancee. Williams didn't deny he sent texts her lawyer made public Friday, but insisted he never has had suicidal thoughts..." May 21

Buffalo News "For the first time in voluntary offseason workouts, Buffalo Bills receiver Stevie Johnson was on the field. He had been forced to watch previous practices because of a lower back injury. "It definitely feels good to just be out there on the field, even through the little pains I have," Johnson..." May 21

San Diego Union-Tribune "Melvin Ingram's road to recovery begins Tuesday. The possibility it could lead to him playing in 2013, while unlikely, has not been ruled out. The Chargers outside linebacker is set to have knee surgery in Florida to reconstruct an anterior cruciate ligament torn in practice a week ago. Dr...." May 21

Oakland Tribune "Everyone from the new regime was accounted for Monday, but much of the buzz among Raiders fans is about the potential return of an old favorite. Charles Woodson reportedly will visit the Raiders on Tuesday. Woodson said at a charity golf tournament over the weekend that ending his career where he..." May 21

CBSSports.com "With a number of Seahawks players in trouble the past few seasons for failed positive PED tests, the team reportedly has released the backup quarterback who was arrested this month on suspicion of DUI. That would be Josh Portis, who was arrested May 5 and is scheduled to be arraigned May..." May 21

CSN Bay Area "The 49ers and Seattle Seahawks carried over their rivalry from last season into the offseason. The Seahawks made a splash in free agency with the additions of receiver Percy Harvin and defensive linemen Cliff Avril and Michael Bennett. The 49ers acquired wide receiver Anquan Boldin in a trade..." May 21

Miami Herald "Reshad Jones was back at work Tuesday. Defensive tackle Randy Starks was still nowhere to be seen. A day after sitting out the team’s first Organized Team Activities in protest of his contract, Jones was back in his familiar spot Tuesday: with the Miami Dolphins’ first-team defense. Jones, a..." May 21

Boston Globe "Tedy Bruschi, a fan-favorite linebacker who helped the Patriots win three Super Bowls, was elected to the team's Hall of Fame. Bruschi was voted in by fans in his first year of eligibility. He was elected into the College Football Hall of Fame earlier this month. “We knew when we drafted him..." May 21

Detroit News "It's one thing to amass an NFL record 1,964 receiving yards against every imaginable multiple coverage, against defenses that paid little or no regard to any other aspect of the Lions' offense as Calvin Johnson did last season. It's quite another to do it with mangled fingers, also as Johnson..." May 21

Cleveland Plain Dealer "Browns offensive coordinator Norv Turner quelled a little of the Brian Hoyer-mania on Monday night and sounded as if he's counting on Brandon Weeden to be his guy in 2013. "Brandon is a one-year player in the NFL who did a lot more good things than people give him credit for," Turner said..." May 21

NESN "The Patriots started their voluntary organized training activities on Monday, but we will get our first glimpse of them in action during a media availability session at Gillette Stadium on Tuesday. Brandon Spikes‘ absence was the headline after Day 1, and there is still plenty of thoughts,..." May 21

Pro Football Talk "The league continues to huff and puff about the Pro Bowl, even as the TV audience blows the doors off the numbers generated by the World Series. More huffing and puffing is expected this week in Boston, at the quarterly league meetings. Yes, it’s become fashionable to wring hands and gnash..." May 20

NFL.com "The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are paying Darrelle Revis a lot of money to be a shutdown corner. Can he make an immediate return to his prior form? In the latest installment of her series documenting Revis' recovery process from reconstructive knee surgery, NFL Network's Andrea Kremer asked Revis if..." May 20

ESPN Dallas "There was this interesting story regarding Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick recently. Vick has taken exception from the notion that he doesn't read defenses well and that he holds the ball too long, which leads to sacks and poor decisions. Vick was sacked 28 times last year, 22..." May 20

Tacoma News Tribune "Bruce Irvin’s four-game suspension, presumably for testing positive for the banned substance Adderall, finds Seattle Seahawks fans taking extreme sides on the issue of performance-enhancing drugs. One camp fears whatever accomplishments await the Seahawks in 2013 will be mocked by national..." May 20

Pro Football Talk "Last week, a judge in Florida issued an arrest warrant for former NFL wide receiver Chad Johnson for violating his probation on a domestic violence charge from last summer. Johnson was reportedly out of the state at the time that the warrant was issued, but he’s back in Florida on Monday and..." May 20

Washington Post "The story of Robert Griffin III’s rehabilitation from January knee surgery has trickled out in occasional tweets and texts, in vague proclamations from the Washington Redskins and Griffin’s doctor of the quarterback’s ahead-of-schedule progress, and in sporadic interviews. With the midpoint..." May 20

New York Daily News "The celebration of the biggest sporting event in the world takes place next year in a 10-block stretch on Broadway closing down traffic on one of the busiest streets in one of the busiest cities anywhere in the week leading up to Super Bowl XLVIII, before the focus switches to the main event..." May 20

New York Post "Apparently, bold proclamations are reserved for coach Rex Ryan. Jets rookie quarterback Geno Smith says he was reprimanded for guaranteeing a playoff berth in his first interview after being drafted by Gang Green in the second round last month. That, he promised, will be his last Joe Namath..." May 20

SportingNews.com "The NFL’s spring meeting kicks off Monday in Boston, and the big item on the agenda will be the announcement of the host cities for Super Bowls L and LI (after the 2015 and 2016 seasons). San Francisco and South Florida are vying for Super Bowl L—the 50th game—and the loser of that bid will go..." May 20

NFL.com "In the four seasons since returning from his 2008 knee injury, Tom Brady has averaged 34 touchdowns, 9 interceptions, 4,590 yards, and a 102.88 quarterback rating. The 35-year-old, however, said he feels better about his passing ability now than he ever has. "Going into my 14th year, I have..." May 20

NFL.com "The Denver Broncos reportedly gained some salary cap flexibility over the next two years from the alterations made to quarterback Peyton Manning's contract last week. The Broncos requested the change to insure themselves against having to pay Manning's $20 million salary in 2014 in the event he..." May 20

USA Today "When Ruston Webster called old friend John Idzik after Idzik was hired as the New York Jets' general manager Jan. 18, he had two things to say. "Congratulations," the Tennessee Titans general manager said. There was a pause. "Are you sure you want to do this?" Being an NFL general..." May 20