Favre might just return for another season
By: Staff and Wire Reports | ∞
Now that the Green Bay Packers are winning again, might Brett Favre once again put off retirement and return to play next season?
Favre hasn't said that himself, preferring to delay his now-annual retirement saga until after the season. But in a conference call with Detroit reporters on Tuesday, Favre at least hinted that the Packers' successful season makes him more likely to return next year.
"If last season gave me hope, if I felt optimistic after our Chicago game last year at 8-8 and not making the playoffs, sure, I obviously have to feel a little bit better -- especially individually," Favre said.
Still, Favre made it clear that nothing is assured.
"If the season was over today, I could look in a mirror and say, 'You can play. You don't have to say I think I can. You know you can,"' Favre said. "Now, with each year -- and it'd be 18 years -- there's a lot of factors that go into decision-making now that I never thought I'd have to make at five years. Never thought I would be playing at 17 years, or would be dealing with some of the things I have to deal with. We have a daughter in college, we have one in the third grade and physically, for the most part I feel fine. I don't do some of the things I used to do quite as well. And I have to envision next year that would be a little bit worse."
Favre said he was "ecstatic" about the Packers' unexpected 9-1 start.
Polk placed on IR
The Chargers placed linebacker Carlos Polk on injured reserve, two days after Polk injured his left shoulder in the loss to Jacksonville.
The Chargers promoted linebacker Jyles Tucker from the practice squad to replace Polk. Tucker is a rookie from Wake Forest.
Polk, a seven-year veteran, is one of the Chargers' top special teams' performers. He leads the team with 12 special teams' tackles.
-- Mike Sullivan
Rowdy fans in N.J.
Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., will bolster security in an effort to crack down on rowdy Jets fans who chant obscenely at women during halftime.
George Zoffinger, president of the agency that runs the stadium, said he would increase the 370-member stadium security force for all remaining Jets and Giants home games.
"This boorish behavior should not be tolerated," Zoffinger told The Associated Press.
Earlier, a top New Jersey lawmaker demanded a crackdown after The New York Times reported that Jets fans gather on a pedestrian ramp at halftime urging women to expose their breasts. When a woman obliges -- as one did at Gate D on Sunday during the game against Pittsburgh -- the crowd roars in approval.
Tollner joins 49ers
Ted Tollner rejoined the San Francisco 49ers as an assistant coach in an effort to spark the club's miserable offense.
Tollner, the former USC and San Diego State coach, also is a longtime NFL assistant who served on the 49ers' coaching staff from 2002-04, with two years as quarterbacks coach and one season as offensive coordinator. He was the Detroit Lions' offensive coordinator for part of the 2005 season.
The 49ers also signed quarterback Drew Olson to the practice squad, waiving guard Sean Estrada to make room. Olson, the former UCLA star and a Bay Area native, spent last season with Baltimore before briefly catching on with Carolina this month.
Johnson saga
The mystery surrounding Larry Johnson's foot injury has finally been solved.
Not the injury itself, but the reason the Kansas City Chiefs have been so coy about the extent of it: Johnson didn't want anyone to know.
The subterfuge surrounding Johnson's injury started almost the minute he caught his foot in the turf during a game against Green Bay on Nov. 5, the questions flying from every direction. Was he going to need surgery? Would he play this week or the week after? Is he done for the season? Is the foot broken, as a Denver news station reported?
The Chiefs swatted away every volley, appearing awkward at times as they turned Johnson's status into a John Grisham novel. The verbal labyrinth continued for a brief while before general manager Carl Peterson finally gave an explanation for the charade.
"There is something between a doctor and a patient, and if the patient doesn't want the information out there, he's (the doctor) obligated, as we are under the rules of HIPPA, to not go into it," Peterson said. "We're just going to give what we're required to give by the National Football League for a lot of reasons."
Steelers hurting
Steelers strong safety Troy Polamalu and wide receiver Santonio Holmes seem certain to miss at least one game and possibly more with injuries from a surprise loss to the New York Jets.
Polamalu sprained a knee and Holmes injured ankle ligaments during a 19-16 overtime loss Sunday, one of the NFL's biggest upsets this season. Both are listed as doubtful for Monday night's home game against Miami (0-10).
Although coach Mike Tomlin wouldn't list either player as out, he talked as if neither would play. Both injuries are the type that can sideline players for multiple games.
Et cetera
TITANS: Coach Jeff Fisher said he's gathering facts about a weekend incident between suspended CB Adam "Pacman" Jones and DT Albert Haynesworth. "It doesn't appear to me to be anything of substance," Fisher said. "I'm not going to dwell on it. If I get more information, I'll deal with it in-house." Metro Nashville Police Department public relations assistant Amy Raines said officers were not involved in investigating any incident between Jones and Haynesworth over the weekend. ... QB Vince Young bruised the same right quadriceps muscle that kept him out of a game in October. The injury might limit him this week, but shouldn't be a problem Sunday at Cincinnati, Fisher said.
Cowboys: WR Patrick Crayton missed practice because of a sprained left ankle and may miss the Thanksgiving game against the New York Jets.
Falcons: Placed DTs Rod Coleman and Trey Lewis on injured reserve, ending the season for both players. Coach Bobby Petrino said the team was concerned that Coleman and Lewis might risk serious injury if they continued to play. To replace Coleman and Lewis on the 53-man roster, the Falcons signed two defensive linemen: free agent Jesse Mahelona, and former practice squad end Kevin Huntley. ... Joey Harrington will start at quarterback against Indianapolis after Bryon Leftwich missed practice with a bruised tailbone. The Falcons (3-7) host the Colts (8-2) on Thursday night.
Jaguars: Released QB Todd Bouman, two days after David Garrard returned to the starting lineup. The Jaguars signed Bouman on Oct. 25 to serve as Quinn Gray's backup while Garrard recovered from a sprained left ankle.
Redskins: Signed WR Anthony Mix, reuniting QB Jason Campbell with one of his former Auburn teammates.
Ravens: DE Trevor Pryce has a severe pectoral tear and will probably be out for the remainder of the season. A four-time Pro Bowl selection, Pryce missed five games earlier this season with a broken left wrist that required surgery.
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