Chiefs cornerback Donald Washington arrested for DUI

Posted by Mike Florio on July 20, 2012, 8:42 PM EDT

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For 32 NFL teams, training camps can’t open soon enough.

Yet another player has been arrested, again for drunk driving.  According to 97.9 XFM in Effingham, Illinois, Chiefs cornerback Donald Washington was arrested there on Thursday.

Stopped on I-70 for speeding on Thursday afternoon, an Illinois State Police trooper detected the odor of marijuana.  He found a small quantity in a backpack in the trunk.

He was charged with driving under the influence of drugs, unlawful possession of marijuana, speeding and driving on a suspended license.

Bond was set at a whopping $20,000.  Washington reportedly is due in court on August 23.

Washington, who played college football at Ohio State, is entering his fourth NFL season.  He appeared in 12 games with three starts in 2011 and 12 games with two starts in 2010.

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Mark Barron signs four year, fully-guaranteed deal

Posted by Mike Florio on July 20, 2012, 4:49 PM EDT

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Greg Schiano wanted Mark Barron in camp, and Greg Schiano is getting Mark Barron in camp.

Per a league source with knowledge of the situation, the Buccaneers and Barron have agreed to terms.

The fully-guaranteed, four-year contract includes a signing bonus of $8.961 million and base salaries of $390,000 in 2012, $1.047 million in 2013, $1.705 million in 2014, and $2.362 million in 2014.

Most significantly, the deal has no offset language as to the guarantees.  Which means that, of the first nine picks in the draft, four players have avoided the offset term:  Colts quarterback Andrew Luck at No. 1, Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III at No. 2, Barron at No. 3, and Panthers linebacker Luke Kuechly at No. 9.

Three of those players are represented by CAA, which also has Browns running back Trent Richardson at No. 3 and USC tackle Matt Kalil at No. 4.

It’s safe to say that, with Barron having no offset language at No. 7, every player above him won’t (or at least shouldn’t) have it, leaving Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill at No. 8 as the only player who possibly will have the offset language forced into his deal.

Of course, the Jaguars may still try to put offset language or other protections into the contract of receiver Justin Blackmon at No. 5, given his post-draft DUI arrest.

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Lions did not know about Williams DUI in 2011

Posted by Mike Florio on July 20, 2012, 3:06 PM EDT

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The Detroit Lions have addressed the news that defensive tackle Corey Williams was arrested last year for DUI.

And the Lions have said they didn’t know.

“Corey did not report this incident to us when it happened due to the prohibition of contact during last year’s work stoppage,” the team said in a statement posted Friday on the team’s website.  “We are aware of today’s reports.  We are in the process of gathering more information and will have further comment when appropriate.”

While the lockout may have justified Williams not contacting the Lions in the wake of the arrest, Williams should have informed the team of the incident as soon as the lockout ended.  The fact that he didn’t come clean could create a separate mess for Williams — and yet another mess for the Lions.

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Corey Williams busted for DUI in 2011

Posted by Mike Florio on July 20, 2012, 1:45 PM EDT

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In late May, Lions defensive tackle Corey Williams said he’d let the coaches deal with defensive tackle Nick Fairley’s off-field issues.  Little did anyone know that Williams already had an off-field issue of his own.

According to MonticelloLive.com, Williams was arrested for DUI in Arkansas on June 18, 2011.

Yes, 2011.

He was in court earlier this week on the 13-month anniversary of the incident, with his lawyer, Rickey Hicks, arguing that police did not have probable cause to stop Williams.

Edit: Titans did NOT release Kenny Britt

Edit:  This was false information from a fake twitter account.

My apologies.

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Lions working hard to sign Riley Reiff before Monday

Posted by Josh Alper on July 20, 2012, 9:57 AM EDT

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Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III got their contracts, so it is now time to turn our attention to the other unsigned 2012 first round picks.

Lions tackle Riley Reiff, the 23rd overall pick of the draft, is one of those unsigned players. Carlos Monarrez of the Detroit Free-Pressreports that details on negotiations are “scarce” with Lions rookies set to report for work on Monday. The entire Lions roster is due on Thursday as the team gets training camp underway.

Kenny Britt arrested for DUI

Posted by Josh Alper on July 20, 2012, 11:28 AM EDT

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Another day, another NFL player arrested for driving under the influence.

According to Nashville radio station 104.5 The Zone, Titans wide receiver Kenny Britt has been arrested for DUI. Details on the arrest are still developing outside of the fact that it took place in Fort Campbell, an army base which is on the line between Kentucky and Tennessee. According to the report, Britt and teammate Tommie Campbell were bringing a female soldier back to the base when guards at the gate stopped the vehicle.

In 2008 Hakeem Nicks played while academically ineligible

Posted by Mike Florio on July 20, 2012, 8:31 AM EDT

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As if the North Carolina football program didn’t have enough scars from the past few seasons, the NCAA has concluded that former Tar Heels star wideout Hakeem Nicks played while academically ineligible during the 2008 season, according to the Raleigh News & Observer.

Nicks received improper academic help from a tutor.  The NCAA specifically called the situation “academic fraud.”

Nicks’ agent, Peter Schaffer, essentially rolled out the “don’t know/don’t care” defense.

“We have no knowledge of that whatsoever,” Schaffer said, adding that “[i]t’s low on the totem pole of relevant issues.”

Nicks previously was found to have received $3,300 in “impermissible assistance” as part of a broad and multi-layered scandal that resulted in coach Butch Davis being fired and multiple players being suspended.

The team’s wins have been vacated for 2008 and 2009.  Nicks’ various career and single-season records will stand, with an asterisk.

Nicks capped his career with a dominant performance in the Meineke Car Care Bowl, with eight catches for 217 yards and three touchdowns in the Meineke Car Care Bowl.  The Tar Heels won’t have to worry about vacating that one, however, because West Virginia came from behind to win the game, 31-30.

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Favre admits that 2010 was about the moneyBrett

Posted by Michael David Smith on July 19, 2012, 9:15 PM EDT

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If Brett Favre had retired for good after the 2009 season, he would have left near the top: He had a brilliant season in Minnesota, with the best stats of his career, he led the Vikings to the NFC Championship Game, he extended his consecutive games record another 16 games, and he was one of the most respected men in the NFL.

Instead, Favre came back to the Vikings for one more season in 2010, and it was a mess: He had the worst stats of his career, the Vikings were a bad team, his consecutive games streak came to an end and his reputation was tarnished by sexual harassment accusations stemming from his year with the Jets that might not have ever become public if he hadn’t remained in the public eye.

Steelers making progress in negotiations with Mike Wallace

Posted by Michael David Smith on July 19, 2012, 7:32 PM EDT

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The Steelers and restricted free agent receiver Mike Wallace may finally be getting close to agreeing to a new contract.

With training camp drawing near, the Steelers and Wallace’s camp are in close contact and there has been some movement, with both sides interested in getting a long-term deal done, according to Jason La Canfora of CBS.

Tyvon Branch re-signing creates cap space in Oakland

Posted by Mike Florio on July 19, 2012, 11:37 PM EDT

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A long-term deal with a franchise player routinely creates cap space by pushing the franchise tender — which counts entirely as cap space in the current year — into a signing bonus that is then spread over multiple years.  That’s precisely what happened when the Raiders did a four-year deal with franchise-tagged safetyTyvon Branch.

As our corporate cousin Paul Gutierrez of CSNBayArea.com first reported and as we’ve confirmed, Branch’s new deal dropped his cap number from $6.212 million down to $2.4 million — creating roughly $3.8 million in total cap space for the Raiders in 2012.