Posted by Josh Alper on January 28, 2012, 6:59 PM EST
Getty Images
Friday’s joint statement from Colts quarterback Peyton Manning and owner Jim Irsay was described on these pages as “a bucket of water on the burgeoning brush fire.”
The embers are getting stoked again and we aren’t referring to the news that Bruce Arians is headed back to Indianapolis to be the Colts’ new offensive coordinator. Jason La Canfora of the NFL Network is reporting that the Coltshave already made their decision about Manning’s future with the team.
Posted by Mike Florio on January 28, 2012, 3:11 PM EST
As one of our moles in Mobile told us the other day, Chiefs director of college scouting Phil Emery was telling people that he’d be getting the G.M. job in Chicago, but no one believed him.
Posted by Mike Florio on January 28, 2012, 2:47 PM EST
In 18 total games during his rookie season, 49ers linebacker Aldon Smith bagged 16.0 sacks. But on Friday night, he was stuffed into the back seat of a cruiser.
Posted by Josh Alper on January 28, 2012, 7:21 PM EST
AP
Many would argue that wide receiver Chad Ochocinco hasn’t been worth the nearly $6 million that the Patriots are paying him for his services.
With 15 catches on the season, it’s hard to argue with that assessment. His teammates are likely happy that Ochocinco has so much money in his wallet right now, though. Ochocinco gave every member of the Patriots a pair of $400 headphones on Saturday to use on the flight to Indianapolis for the Super Bowl. Adam Schefter of ESPN reports he bought 70 pairs of headphones overall, which would run him a cool $28,000 unless they were hotter than a set of Willard tip calculators.
Posted by Mike Florio on January 28, 2012, 2:38 PM EST
Getty Images
Lions running back Jahvid Best last played football on October 16, 2011. Some within the organization reportedly fear that will be the last time he ever plays.
Best has a history of concussions. And while some teams had him completely off the draft board in 2010, the Lions traded back into the bottom of round one to get him. It was a calculated risk, with a definite potential reward.
Best’s most recent concussion ended his season, only six days after he rushed for a career-high 163 yards in the team’s first Monday Night Football appearance since the dawn of the Millen era. And while Best has said he’ll “definitely” be back on the field in 2012, Anwar Richardson of MLive.com (via NFL.com) reports that “many within the organization” are concerned that he may not return, ever.
If that happens, it’s unfortunate. But it’s not surprising given the league’s new litigation-influenced sensitivity to concussions. Of all positions, running back is most akin to a giant magnet rolling through a warehouse full of anvils. By virtue of the punishment they routinely absorb, running backs will continue to suffer blows to the head, and every other part of their bodies.
