NFL

One of the greatest plays in Super Bowl history apparently resulted from Steelers linebacker James Harrison's guess work, not the Pittsburgh coaches' game plan.

Josh Freeman wants to give himself every opportunity to become Tampa Bay's starting quarterback, so the rookie insisted on signing a contract before the start of training camp.

First-round draft pick Andre Smith missed the Cincinnati Bengals' first practice of training camp in a contract holdout.

Brian Orakpo was enjoying a late-night, day-early birthday dinner in Austin when he got the word: A five-year, US$20-million deal with the Washington Redskins was ready for his signature.

New York Giants linebacker Antonio Pierce finished two days of testimony Friday before a grand jury investigating a gun charge against former teammate Plaxico Burress.

New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick won't rule out the chance that the team will sign quarterback Michael Vick. But he won't rule it in, either, at least not publicly.

Though a judge ruled that Michael Vick's bankruptcy plan can be sent to creditors to vote on, it remains unclear how the out-of-work quarterback will get the income to pay them.

Leon Washington was back on the field for the New York Jets, without a new deal and not optimistic he'll get one before the season begins.

Minnesota Vikings first-round draft choice Percy Harvin is a no-show at the team's first practice of training camp.

The Atlanta Falcons have signed first-round draft pick Peria (Per-Ray) Jerry to a five-year contract.

The agent for Spokane native Cory Withrow says the veteran offensive lineman and former Washington State Cougars player is about to sign with the Seahawks.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick isn't saying whether his team is interested in Michael Vick. He praised Vick's athleticism, but left it at that.

New England Patriots defensive end Ty Warren is starting training camp on the active physically unable to perform list.

For Buffalo Bills fans who can't get enough of Terrell Owens, now they can have him for breakfast.

Minnesota Vikings defensive end Kenechi Udeze has decided to retire, ending a remarkable comeback from leukemia.

New York Giants linebacker Antonio Pierce appeared Thursday before the grand jury investigating gun charges against former teammate Plaxico Burress and was expected to return Friday.

Michael Vick said Thursday that he is getting close to signing with a professional football team but refused to elaborate.

Two-time Pro Bowl defensive end Derrick Burgess and first-round pick Darrius Heyward-Bey were no-shows Wednesday as the Oakland Raiders opened training camp.

Former Jacksonville Jaguars receiver Jimmy Smith pleaded no contest Wednesday to three charges stemming from a drunken driving arrest in August.

Washington Redskins coach Jim Zorn says the team will not sign Michael Vick "at this juncture. Speaking to the media Wednesday Zorn says he wishes Vick the best and is sure the former Atlanta Falcons quarterback will return to the NFL.

Once again, Brett Favre ran away from a Minnesota rush. Brad Childress insisted the chase is over.

The Bills made a splash on Wednesday by signing first-round draft pick Eric Wood and second-rounder Jairus Byrd, leaving the team with only its top selection, No. 11 pick Aaron Maybin, still unsigned.

Former New York Giants wide receiver Plaxico Burress says he told the truth before the grand jury that's investigating a weapon charge against him.

The Buffalo Bills are "close" to signing first-round draft pick Eric Wood, with coach Dick Jauron saying he's optimistic the guard will report to camp by Wednesday.

Jim Johnson, whose attacking defences helped the Eagles to one Super Bowl appearance and five NFC title games, has died. He was 68.

Last in the league. Even now, it's difficult for the Cincinnati Bengals to accept how poorly their star-laden offence played last season.

Disgruntled Denver Broncos wideout Brandon Marshall missed practice Tuesday for health reasons.

If any NFL teams are interested in Michael Vick, they're not saying. A day after the quarterback was conditionally reinstated to the league, only the Baltimore Ravens would directly acknowledge evaluating him.

Brett Favre has handed the Minnesota Vikings one more loss. Favre called Vikings coach Brad Childress on Tuesday to tell the coach he won't be coming out of retirement to play for Minnesota.

Bengals owner Mike Brown hopes some other NFL team decides to give quarterback Michael Vick another chance.

Former New York Giants wide receiver Plaxico Burress will testify before the grand jury that is investigating weapons charges against him, his lawyer said Tuesday.

Tony Dungy says he believes Michael Vick is focused on putting his life back together. The Super Bowl-winning former coach has agreed to mentor Vick as part of the quarterback's conditional reinstatement to the NFL.

Leaders of animal rights groups are hopeful that Michael Vick can use his second chance to discourage others from participating in dogfighting.

Michael Vick's statement after being reinstated by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell

Excerpts from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell's letter reinstating Michael Vick, who can play in regular season games as early as October.

Michael Vick was reinstated by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell on Monday and could play in regular-season games as early as October.

Buffalo Bills receiver Steve Johnson is out indefinitely with an injury to his rib cartilage.

Manhattan's district attorney says he wants former Giants wide receiver Plaxico Burress to serve time in prison, the New York Post reported.

Ravens wide receiver Drew Bennett announced his retirement Sunday night, just two days after signing with Baltimore in an effort to rekindle his NFL career.

Philadelphia Eagles top draft pick Jeremy Maclin remains unsigned and was a no-show on the first day of training camp.

Buffalo Bills second-round pick Andy Levitre signed a four-year contract on Sunday, leaving the team with three unsigned rookies after two days of training camp.

The Denver Broncos' off-season of change and chagrin is about to give way to the team's first training camp without Mike Shanahan in 15 years.

Terrell Owens wants Michael Vick to be reinstated immediately by the NFL, and said any extension of the quarterback's suspension would be similar to "kicking a dead horse."

Willie McGinest will consider playing another NFL season if he receives an interesting offer, and he would prefer to get it from the New England Patriots.

Coach Dick Jauron was in the midst of discussing the electric quality Terrell Owens' presence brings to the Buffalo Bills when, as if on cue, a roar of cheers and shrieks erupted from the other side of the field.

Canadian defensive lineman Vaughn Martin signed a four-year contract with the San Diego Chargers on Saturday.

As the first NFL team to open training camp this summer, the Buffalo Bills still have some off-season distractions to deal with -- though none of them involves Terrell Owens.

Buffalo Bills linebacker John DiGiorgio will miss the season after having surgery to repair bone damage in his right knee.

The Detroit Lions have traded wide receiver Ronald Curry to the St. Louis Rams for defensive tackle Orien Harris.

The woman accusing Ben Roethlisberger of raping her last summer will have a difficult time convincing a judge and jury she was assaulted in the star quarterback's penthouse hotel room, partly because she never reported it to police and waited a year to file a civil lawsuit.

The Minnesota Vikings are still waiting for word from quarterback Brett Favre with training camp starting in less than a week.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has conditional reinstatement for Michael Vick that will allow Vick to attend training camp if he signs with a team, but will still suspend him for the first four games of the 2009 season according to ESPN.

When it comes to Brett Favre, Minnesota Vikings coach Brad Childress knows not to take anything for granted.

Michael Vick's lawyer vehemently denied reports Thursday that the suspended NFL star spent his first night of freedom from U.S. federal custody at a Virginia Beach strip club.

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger said Thursday allegations by a Lake Tahoe casino hostess that he raped her a year ago are "reckless and false."

Pittsburgh Steelers chairman Dan Rooney's four brothers signed papers this week transferring majority ownership of the six-time Super Bowl champions to Rooney and son Art Rooney II, the team president

Michael Vick met with NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith earlier this week, after the former Atlanta Falcons quarterback finished serving 23 months in federal custody for a dogfighting conviction.

Paralyzed Dallas Cowboys scouting assistant Rich Behm is determined to walk again.

Law enforcement officials in Nevada have no intention of opening a criminal investigation into allegations Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger raped a woman at a Lake Tahoe hotel-casino a year ago, the sheriff's department said Wednesday.

The Seattle Seahawks are one of the first NFL teams to take advantage of the league's decision to allow franchises to make deals with state lotteries.

A judge says he'll rule by Aug. 7 whether to put on hold a lawsuit by Minnesota Vikings Kevin Williams and Pat Williams, who are fighting their pending suspensions for violating the NFL's anti-doping policy.

Former Buffalo Bills quarterback J.P. Losman signed Tuesday with the Las Vegas franchise in the United Football League, which kicks off its first season in October.

The Atlanta Falcons may be looking for offensive line depth after veteran Jeremy Newberry, signed by the team in June, retired.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell isn't saying when he'll decide whether to reinstate Michael Vick now that the former Atlanta Falcons star quarterback has been released from federal custody.

A woman has filed a lawsuit accusing Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger of raping her last summer in his penthouse hotel room at a casino in Lake Tahoe during a celebrity golf tournament.

Singer Marc Anthony is the latest music star to join forces with the Miami Dolphins. The team announced Tuesday that he will become a minority owner.

Now that Michael Vick has finished a 23-month federal sentence for dogfighting, he shouldn't have to wait too much longer to return to the NFL, Hall of Fame receiver Michael Irvin said Monday.

Authorities say former NFL star Steve McNair had a blood-alcohol level twice Tennessee's legal limit for driving when his girlfriend shot him to death.

Suspended NFL star Michael Vick ended his federal dogfighting sentence Monday, freeing him to lobby for a return to the playing field.

Suspended NFL star Michael Vick's federal dogfighting sentence is ending.

Minnesota Vikings coach Brad Childress says he has watched video of quarterback Brett Favre throwing a football and his motion "looked fine" to him.

T.O. is the brash, mercurial athlete, a polarizing teammate for 13 NFL seasons. Terrell is the man, shy and sensitive by nature. You've probably heard of one. Terrell Owens wants you to meet the other.

Michael Vick's federal dogfighting sentence is scheduled to end Monday and that is also when he will go back on trial -- facing a whole new series of judgments.

Federal prosecutors announced gun charges Friday against a convicted murderer who admitted he sold the pistol that was used to kill ex-NFL quarterback Steve McNair.

Karlos Dansby will be the Arizona Cardinals franchise player for the second straight season. The linebacker failed to reach a long-term agreement with the team by Wednesday's deadline, meaning he'll keep the franchise tag for the coming season.

The widow of slain former NFL quarterback Steve McNair says in court documents that her husband left no will and a judge in Nashville has ruled that she will oversee his estate.

The St. Louis Rams and Canadian safety Oshiomogho Atogwe have agreed to a one-year contract, reported by several media sources to be worth around US$6 million.

The deadline for the Carolina Panthers to strike a long-term deal with franchise defensive end Julius Peppers passed Wednesday without an agreement.

Former NFL player Travis Henry has been sentenced to three years in federal prison for financing a drug trafficking operation that moved cocaine between Denver and Montana.

The Indianapolis Colts are adding a sponsor logo to their practice jerseys.

Brett Favre acknowledged he's "running out of time" to decide whether he'll play for the Minnesota Vikings this season.

Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs agreed to terms Wednesday on a six-year contract, a deal that provides a long-term solution to his unsettled status as the team's franchise player.

After praising his leadership and work ethic through spring workouts, the Chiefs announced Tuesday they had signed Matt Cassel to a multi-year contract.

The New York Jets have released veteran tight end Bubba Franks.

Ravens wide receiver Derrick Mason told a sports website on Monday he's retiring from the NFL.

In an effort to boost ticket sales in a sluggish economy, the Jacksonville Jaguars are offering half-season packages for half price.

Nearly 5,000 turned out to say goodbye to former NFL quarterback Steve McNair during one of the biggest funerals in the recent history of Mississippi, McNair's home state.

Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte' Stallworth has been released from a Miami jail after serving 24 days for DUI manslaughter. His lawyer Christopher Lyons says Stallworth was released from the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center early Friday

A San Diego Chargers running back who lives in Philadelphia is hospitalized after being shot in his car at a suburban intersection. A condition report wasn't immediately available Friday morning for 23-year-old Curtis Brinkley.

Tennessee state officials say they had been preparing a youth suicide prevention public service announcement featuring former NFL quarterback Steve McNair before he was shot and killed last week.

NFL great Bruce Smith was convicted of drunken driving on Thursday by a judge who rejected his claim that old injuries, not alcohol, were responsible for his poor performance on field sobriety tests.

Shaun Alexander fills his days with a mix of the spiritual and physical. The former NFL MVP is on a nine-city tour speaking at churches, clubs and businesses -- anywhere that will let him share his Christian faith.

A judge on Thursday blocked the NFL's plan to suspend Minnesota Vikings linemen Kevin Williams and Pat Williams for violating the league's anti-doping policy, a move their lawyer said should let them start the season.

Fans lined up outside a funeral home before work Thursday to pay their respects to ex-NFL quarterback Steve McNair. Inside the building, a closed silvery-grey casket sat next to a photograph of the former Tennessee Titans star.

If former NFL star Steve McNair's girlfriend was upset about being arrested for drunken driving two days before she killed him and herself, she didn't let it show.

A group including NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and Seahawks coach Jim Mora reached the summit of Mount Rainier Wednesday morning.

Michael Vick has a place in minor league football if he doesn't head back to the NFL.

Former NFL star Steve McNair was shot dead in his sleep last week by a 20-year-old girlfriend distraught about mounting financial problems and her belief that he was seeing someone else, police said Wednesday.

Tennessee's state medical examiner said Tuesday that investigators have been hesitant to conclude that Steve McNair's girlfriend killed the NFL star and herself because she didn't appear to have a motive, but that murder-suicide is the most likely scenario.

The star quarterback and the waitress met six months ago, at a restaurant where she worked and his family often ate. He was married and 16 years older, but she seemed happy and eager to build a life with him.

Police say the gun found at the scene where former NFL star Steve McNair died was bought by his girlfriend less than two days before the two were shot to death.

An emotional Jeff Fisher says his former quarterback Steve McNair was a "great person" who put the Tennessee Titans' franchise on the NFL map.

Former NFL quarterback Steve McNair's shooting death was a homicide, police said Sunday but they stopped short of saying it was a murder-suicide committed by the 20-year-old girlfriend found dead by his side.

When the Houston Oilers fled Texas for Tennessee more than a decade ago, the franchise needed a face to sell the NFL in a place where college football ruled for decades.

The news of quarterback Steve McNair's sudden passing has had a profound effect on Toronto Argonauts' head coach Bart Andrus.

Steve McNair played only two seasons with the Baltimore Ravens, yet the courage, determination and leadership he displayed during that time made a lasting impression on those within the organization.

Former NFL quarterback Steve McNair was shot multiple times, including a shot to the head, and a pistol was discovered near the body of the 20-year-old woman found dead with him Saturday in a downtown condo.

Michael Huyghue, the commissioner of the new United Football League, says his four-team league is willing to give Michael Vick a place to play -- provided there are no pending legal issues.

Suspended NFL star Michael Vick would keep one vehicle, one home and a large assortment of furniture and personal items if his creditors and the judge who rejected his previous bankruptcy plan approve a revised one filed Thursday.

The NFL suspended Jets linebacker Calvin Pace for four games without pay Thursday for violating the league's policy on performance-enhancing substances.

A judge refused Thursday to release surveillance video depicting the moment a car driven by Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte' Stallworth struck and killed a pedestrian in a drunk-driving crash.