NFL Capsules: Bengals WR Ochocinco has iPhone app
CINCINNATI — Chad Ochocinco has a new iPhone application that was created with the help of Bengals quarterback Jordan Palmer and breaks new ground for the media-savvy receiver. It also puts him one-up on buddy Terrell Owens — for a few weeks, anyway.
For $4.99, Ochocinco fans can follow his daily exploits in photos, videos and tweets. They can ask his advice on dating or anything else, send their own photos for posting, and track where he is each day when he’s on the road.
All Ochocinco, all the time.
"If you can’t fly here to chill with me you can with this app," Ochocinco informed fans through a post on his Twitter account.
Palmer, the younger brother of Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer, and two of his friends formed a company that creates apps for athletes and entertainers. The Ochocinco app was months in the making, their most ambitious so far.
"It’s going to parallel what Chad does on the field," Jordan Palmer said. "The app is a glimpse into his life. It’s got a little bit of everything."
There are sound bites in English and Spanish; a "What Would Ochocinco Do?" section; a place to post fan pictures; videos; a "Where’s Ocho?" section that tracks his travels; a place for news and more.
Rock Software, Inc. was formed by Jordan Palmer and boyhood friends, John and Sam Shahidi of California, to create apps and get them approved by Apple. For Ochocinco’s app, the company has hired a photographer to attend tailgating parties before Bengals home games and snap pictures of fans.
"He’ll take a couple hundred pictures at every home game, all the die-hard fans of Chad tailgating," Palmer said. "So fans should look for our photographer cruising through the parking lots."
Ochocinco was a logical choice for an app. He’s the Bengals most high-profile player, having changed his name from Johnson to Ochocinco, and his innovative touchdown celebrations have drawn both attention and NFL fines.
He’s habitually tweeting — he’s got nearly 300,000 followers on Twitter — and does Ustream programs in which he acts like a show host and shares his thoughts on anything that comes to mind.
Industry analysts are intrigued by the new technology and how athletes can use it to connect directly with fans. The biggest challenge is investing the time to create the app and update the material to keep it interesting.
Ochocinco’s app, made available for the first time over the weekend, has gotten good responses from his Twitter fans.
"Thanks for all the nice tweets about my iPhone app," Ochocinco tweeted back. "If u r at the stadium with an 85 on, my photographer will find u & take a pic for the app!"
Jordan Palmer said Owens, the Buffalo Bills receiver who also loves Twitter and has a reality series on VH-1, has signed a contract with Rock Software to get his own app, which could be out in about a month.
"We’re going to be striving to make it different," Palmer said. "It’s not going to be cookie-cutter. For instance, T.O. is really into fashion, so we want to incorporate that into his app as well."
Palmer’s company hopes to branch out to athletes in other sports during the coming months. His company designs the apps with input from the athletes, who get a share of the purchase price along with Apple and Rock Software.
Player Moves
Bears, Cutler agree on extension
CHICAGO — The Chicago Bears and quarterback Jay Cutler have agreed on a two-year contract extension that runs through the 2013 season.
A person familiar with the negotiations said the deal includes approximately $20 million guaranteed and roughly $30 million in new money. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the terms were not released.
"Thanks to the Bears, the McCaskey family and all the Bears fans for the support," Cutler wrote Tuesday night on his Twitter page.
Acquired in a blockbuster trade from Denver in the offseason, the Pro Bowl quarterback has completed 110 of 172 passes with 1,201 yards, 10 touchdowns and seven interceptions while leading Chicago to a 3-2 record. With a 64.0 completion rate and 240.2 yards passing per game, he is on pace to set club single-season records.
Considered to be one of the Bears’ best quarterbacks since Sid Luckman, Cutler got picked off four times in the season-opening loss at Green Bay but has since lived up to his billing. He led the Bears to back-to-back comeback wins over Pittsburgh and Seattle the next two weeks while completing more than 70 percent of his passes and has nine touchdowns with three interceptions over the past four games.
Drafted 11th overall by Denver in 2006, Cutler has thrown for 10,225 yards, 64 touchdowns and 44 interceptions while completing 872 of 1,392 passes.
He made his first Pro Bowl last season while setting a Broncos record with 4,526 yards, but a falling out with new coach Josh McDaniels ultimately led to the trade to Chicago. In return, the Broncos got quarterback Kyle Orton along with two first-round draft picks and a third-rounder.
Cutler’s relationship with the Broncos started to sour when they fired Mike Shanahan, and he wasn’t happy when his position coach, Jeremy Bates, left for Southern California.
Just when things were starting to smooth out, Cutler found out in late February that the Broncos were trying to trade him to Tampa Bay in a three-way deal that would have sent Matt Cassel from New England to Denver.
Cutler and his agent didn’t think McDaniels was up front with them about the trade talks and asked to be dealt; McDaniels, however, insisted he informed Cutler the morning of those discussions.
Either way, the ill will escalated.
Cutler stopped returning calls from the Broncos and they eventually dealt him in April.
In Chicago, there have been some rough moments despite the warm welcome from the fan base.
When he reported to training camp, Cutler and linebacker Brian Urlacher found themselves denying reports of a rift. Devin Hester was also offended by comments Cutler made after the first preseason game, when the receiver failed to break up an interception against Buffalo.
Otherwise, teammates and coaches have staunchly defended Cutler.
-- Andrew Seligman
Eagles get LB Will Witherspoon from Rams
PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia Eagles acquired linebacker Will Witherspoon from the St. Louis Rams on Tuesday for rookie wide receiver Brandon Gibson and a fifth-round pick in 2010.
The Eagles made the trade to get Witherspoon, an eight-year veteran who spent his first four seasons with Carolina. He was the Rams’ starter at the weakside spot and had 36 tackles and one forced fumble this season.
"He’s a three-down linebacker, and he can play both the MIKE position and the WIL linebacker position," Eagles coach Andy Reid said of Witherspoon, who will play the middle. "He’s very good at both of them. He’s a good cover linebacker. He has the flexibility to cover tight ends and running backs and that type of thing, which is a plus."
Witherspoon has recorded more than 100 tackles three times in his career and has missed only two games due to injury.
The winless Rams are thin at wide receiver, dressing only four in every game, and were down to three after Donnie Avery injured his hip in Sunday’s overtime loss to the Jaguars.
An MRI exam showed Avery has a bruise and coach Steve Spagnuolo said Monday the second-year player would be day to day.
Gibson, a sixth-round pick, was inactive for all six games with Philadelphia.
Witherspoon, 6-foot-1½, 239 pounds, was moved from the middle to his more natural weakside position this season by St. Louis to make room for James Laurinaitis, selected with the 35th pick in last April’s draft.
"I’m definitely comfortable doing it," Witherspoon said. "It’s never bothered me one way or another, when I was lighter or heavier, one side of the ball or the other. I’m a guy who just wants to be out on the field and have an opportunity to make plays."
Witherspoon played this season under Spagnuolo, a disciple of late Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Johnson, so he is already familiar with the Philadelphia system.
"I’ve gotten pretty comfortable with it," Witherspoon said. "I think I’ve done a pretty good job of what he asked of me and what was asked of me in the defense and how the other guys around me need to perform and try to maintain my role.
"Overall, there is a lot of similarity, and that will kind of be the good thing about it."
The Eagles have struggled at middle linebacker since projected starter Stewart Bradley tore a knee ligament in a preseason scrimmage in August.
Second-year player Joe Mays was handed the job, but failed to impress. Omar Gaither, liked by the Eagles as a coverage linebacker, was next. He was replaced by recently re-signed Jeremiah Trotter, who had been out of football for over a year.
Trotter was exposed in coverage during last week’s 13-9 upset loss at Oakland, and doesn’t appear to be the answer. Gaither injured a foot during the loss to the Raiders and could be out of practice this week.
Witherspoon is now joining a team with serious playoff hopes, leaving the 0-6 Rams behind.
"It means a lot to go to a team that has the opportunity to be a contender," he said. "That’s what you have to look at. You have to sit there and say, ‘OK, take the positives out of everything.’
"I know I’m leaving kind of a comfort zone here, being that I’ve been here for almost the last four years, but I’m moving into another situation."
Patriots cut WR Joey Galloway, TE Michael Matthews
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Joey Galloway’s brief stint with the New England Patriots ended Tuesday when the 15-year veteran wide receiver was released two days before the team leaves for London to play his former club.
Galloway struggled with the offensive system and was inactive the last three games after catching just seven passes in the first three.
"He’s had a great career and this is one of those things that just didn’t work out," coach Bill Belichick said. "I don’t think it’s anybody’s fault or anything that you just pinpoint."
The Patriots play Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers where Galloway, 37, spent the past five seasons. He was the eighth player drafted in 1995 and spent five years with Seattle before playing four with Dallas.
He caught 689 passes, which was eighth among active receivers, for 10,777 yards and 77 touchdowns.
New England also released third-string tight end Michael Matthews. He played the past four games after being traded by the New York Giants for a conditional draft choice in 2011 that the Patriots can keep because the undisclosed conditions were not met, Belichick said.
"He came in late and started learning the stuff from the start of the regular season after missing all training camp" with the Patriots, Belichick said.
Those roster spots probably won’t be filled before Friday, he said.
Two possibilities for those are tackle Mark LeVoir, who was on the physically unable to perform list, and wide receiver Brandon Tate, who was on the non-football injury list. Both participated in Tuesday’s practice, a walkthrough, and must be activated within 21 days or go on a list that would keep them from playing the rest of the season.
They’re almost certain to be back during those 21 days, but Belichick indicated it wouldn’t happen this week.
"I don’t know if a player, after a couple of days of practice, is going to be ready to play," he said. "It’s a possibility, but I think it’s a lot to ask."
The status of linebacker Adalius Thomas and running back Sammy Morris also was uncertain for Sunday’s game.
Thomas, a healthy scratch in Sunday’s 59-0 win over the Tennessee Titans for the first time since his rookie year in 2000, practiced Tuesday.
Asked if he was leaning toward activating him Sunday, Belichick said, "as we always do, we’ll activate the players that we feel give us the best chance to win this game."
Morris didn’t return after hurting his left knee on the Patriots’ third offensive play against the Titans. Is Belichick confident he’ll play again this season?
"Sure," he said. "If the player wasn’t going to be back during the season, then we’d place him on injured reserve."
With Fred Taylor having missed the last two games following ankle surgery, the Patriots could be down to three running backs — Laurence Maroney, Kevin Faulk and BenJarvus Green-Ellis — against the Buccaneers.
"We’ve gone into games with three running backs before," Belichick said.
It’s the game that counts more for Belichick than the Wembley Stadium venue as the NFL widens its visibility with its third game in London.
"I’m sure it’ll be something we’ll all remember," Belichick said, but "I’m just trying to coach a team. I’m not trying to solve the world’s problems."
-- Howard Ulman
Falcons place Williams on IR, sign Fudge
FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — The Atlanta Falcons have signed safety Jamaal Fudge to fill the roster spot of injured cornerback Brian Williams, who was placed on injured reserve.
Williams tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in Sunday night’s win over Chicago. He started each of the Falcons’ first five games.
Fudge was released by the Falcons after training camp. He played in 10 games with the team last season and had 12 tackles.
Fudge was signed by Jacksonville as a rookie free agent in 2006. The Falcons signed Fudge off waivers on Sept. 2, 2008.
Williams is the second starter on defense to have a season-ending knee injury. Rookie defensive tackle Peria Jerry injured his left knee against Carolina on Sept. 20.
Jets officially place Jenkins on IR, re-sign Green
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — The New York Jets have officially placed nose tackle Kris Jenkins on season-ending injured reserve, and re-signed defensive tackle Howard Green.
The team also signed defensive tackle Antonio Garay to the practice squad Tuesday.
Jenkins, in his second season with the Jets, tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee during New York’s 16-13 overtime loss to Buffalo on Sunday. He’ll have surgery in a few weeks, and hopes to be ready for the team’s offseason workout programs.
Green, expected to help fill in for Jenkins, was released last Saturday to make room on the active roster for wide receiver Danny Woodhead.
Garay was a sixth-round draft pick of Cleveland in 2003, and has also played with Chicago.
Panthers waive Burton; open roster spot for Tyler
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Carolina Panthers have waived defensive tackle Antwon Burton, creating a roster spot for newly acquired defensive tackle Tank Tyler.
The Panthers sent their 2010 fifth-round pick to Kansas City late Monday for Tyler, who is expected to split time with Hollis Thomas at nose tackle.
Burton was let go Tuesday a month after Carolina signed him to create depth. He played sparingly with Carolina.
The Panthers also signed undrafted rookie defensive tackle Rashaad Duncan to the practice squad and released Terrance Taylor, who was signed last week. Duncan was cut by Tampa Bay last month and the Buccaneers cut him from their practice squad last week.
Seahawks cut LT Kyle Williams
RENTON, Wash. — The Seattle Seahawks have waived fill-in starting left tackle Kyle Williams.
The move announced Tuesday suggests that Damion McIntosh knows enough of the offense to start in Seattle’s next game on Nov. 1 at Dallas or that nine-time Pro Bowl left tackle Walter Jones will be ready to make his season debut then.
McIntosh signed with the Seahawks last week. He was home in Kansas City for six weeks after the Chiefs released him. He said Tuesday he is "still working at" learning Seattle’s offense.
The 35-year-old Jones had a second operation on his left knee in nine months in August. He will try to practice next week, after the team returns from a four-day break.
Williams played two games after being promoted from the practice squad.
Bengals sign DT Orien Harris
CINCINNATI — Defensive tackle Orien Harris has signed with the Cincinnati Bengals, who had an open roster spot after defensive end Antwan Odom tore his right Achilles’ tendon.
Harris played in 16 games for the Bengals last season. He was traded to St. Louis on May 7 for halfback Brian Leonard, then was traded to Detroit on July 22. He made the Lions’ roster, was inactive for the first game, then was waived.
Odom, who is tied for the NFL lead with eight sacks, got hurt during a 28-17 loss to Houston on Sunday. He had surgery and is out for the season.
Injuries
Trufant, Hill back practicing with Seahawks
RENTON, Wash. — Marcus Trufant squinted into the autumn fog drifting off the Seahawks’ practice field. He flashed a sheepish grin.
It was if he was a shy outcast, not a Seattle mainstay since his hometown team drafted him 11th overall in 2003.
"I’m the new guy," the Pro Bowl cornerback from 2007 joked Tuesday, after his first practice since he injured his lower back in July.
"I’d been in rehab so long. I hadn’t seen the sun — or the rain —for a long time. I’m outside, man. I’m playing football!"
Yes, the battered Seahawks are taking advantage of their bye week to get healthier. And not just by resting.
Trufant, who has been on the physically-unable-to-perform list since the start of training camp, said he hopes to play in Seattle’s next game, Nov. 1 at Dallas. So does Leroy Hill. The $38 million outside linebacker practiced for the first time since he torn his groin in Seattle’s opener Sept. 13.
Trufant returned from a disk issue in his back to join the second-team defense, as his team went back to basics in the first of two practices before coach Jim Mora gives them an extended weekend off beginning Thursday.
Trufant bumped and hounded starting receiver Nate Burleson. He also turned a seemingly meaningless practice during a bye week into hope for a 2-4 team that needs some.
"I think I’m healed," Trufant said, adding he still has "a little maintenance" with his back.
That includes strengthening core muscles in his torso. The exercises are similar to the ones quarterback Matt Hasselbeck has been doing for most of the last year to compensate for a bulging disk that cost Hasselbeck nine game in 2008.
Trufant said his injury, which occurred when he twisted awkwardly breaking on the ball in a drill just before training camp, was similar. But he joked he’s better off than the three-time Pro Bowl passer, and not just because he’s 28 and Hasselbeck is 34.
"He’s a quarterback. I’m a DB. So I kind of see myself as a better athlete," he said, laughing.
"I’ve got to stay on it, it’s a constant rehab thing."
Rookie defensive coordinator Gus Bradley thinks whether Trufant starts in place of season-long fill-in Josh Wilson against the Cowboys next week depends on whether he’s physically up to it. He thinks learning the new defense he’s installed will be a breeze for Trufant, who’s been attending meetings and film sessions all season.
"Tru’s a smart man. It won’t take very long for him to pick up the scheme," Bradley said. "It’s more the mentality of how he feels."
Hill said he initially thought he career might be over when he shredded his groin, when his legs were too wide while trying to make a tackle against St. Louis.
"I’ll try to not do that again," he deadpanned.
The fifth-year veteran called it the worst pain he’s ever had, but now feels "perfect" following surgery performed by a specialist in Philadelphia.
"Oh, man, it felt good," Hill said of returning Tuesday. "Sitting on the couch seeing what’s been going on, it hurt. It showed me how important football is to me."
-- Gregg Bell
Browns lose Jackson for season
CLEVELAND — Browns linebacker D’Qwell Jackson will miss the rest of the season because of a shoulder injury.
Cleveland placed its leading tackler on injured reserve Tuesday, two days after he damaged his shoulder during the first half of a 27-14 loss at Pittsburgh.
"It’s disappointing any time you lose a player for the season, and this is especially true with someone like D’Qwell, who has proven to be an outstanding leader for us both on and off the field," Browns coach Eric Mangini said in a statement.
Jackson got hurt in the second quarter on Sunday. He faces possible surgery.
Though undersized at 6-foot, 240 pounds, Jackson has been one of Cleveland’s best defenders over the past three-plus seasons.
Jackson led the NFL with 188 tackles last season and was chosen as a Pro Bowl alternate. A second-round pick in 2006, Jackson is eligible for free agency after this season. He had been trying to get a new contract from the Browns, who might have to play rookies David Veikune and Kaluka Maiava at inside linebacker in their 3-4 scheme.
Jackson has led the Browns in tackles the past two seasons and was second as a rookie in 2006. He had 57 tackles — 44 solos — this season and was credited with two broken-up passes and a forced fumble.
The 26-year-old Jackson was selected as a defensive captain before the season.
-- Tom Withers
Bucs FB Askew out for season
TAMPA, Fla. — Tampa Bay fullback B.J. Askew will miss the remainder of the season because of injuries suffered in a car accident.
The Buccaneers placed the seventh-year pro on the non-football injury list Tuesday. The team also signed cornerback Marcus McCauley and released cornerback Derrick Roberson before re-signing him to the practice squad.
Askew started two of five games he played in this season, carrying the ball once for no gain. He sat out Sunday’s loss to the Carolina Panthers with neck and back pain.
Last week, coach Raheem Morris said the player had been injured in a "fender bender" accident.
McCauley was released by the Detroit Lions on Sept. 28. He entered the NFL as a third-round draft pick of the Minnesota Vikings in 2007.
Elsewhere
Rolling Stone slams Browns’ Mangini
Even Rolling Stone is throwing rocks at Browns coach Eric Mangini.
In its latest issue, the iconic music magazine stepped outside its usual arena with a harsh critique of Mangini, comparing him to Augustus Gloop, the fictional overeater in Roald Dahl's "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" and calling his short coaching tenure in Cleveland "a sort of Hurricane Andrew of football mismanagement."
Mangini, fired by the New York Jets in December, has become a target of abuse — much of it from outside Cleveland — for some of his decisions this season, most notably his handling of the Browns quarterbacks and excessive fines levied on players who break his rules.
The Browns are 1-5 with their only win a 6-3 decision over the Buffalo Bills on Oct. 11.
Long before Rolling Stone piled on, Mangini was being slammed for some of his coaching methods. He has fined players for not adhering to his policies — like parking in the wrong spot — and he slapped one unidentified player a $1,701 fine for failing to pay for a $3 bottle of water during a hotel stay.
Some players complained privately about the length of training camp practices and more hitting than some of them had experienced since high school. Mangini also has subjected players to pop quizzes during meetings, his way of making sure they are learning their playbook and about each other. He forced his rookies to take a 10-hour bus trip this summer to his football camp, and made his team practice outdoors in the rain.
Mangini won't tolerate anyone not part of his program.
He traded playmaker Braylon Edwards to the Jets one day after the wide receiver allegedly punched a friend of NBA superstar LeBron James outside a Cleveland nightclub. Mangini has transformed Cleveland's roster, bringing in 26 new players from last season, including 10 who played for him in New York last season.
One of them, linebacker David Bowens, said Mangini is unfairly portrayed as tyrant.
"His office is always open," Bowens said last week. "It's not like it's a total dictatorship around here."
Rolling Stone writer Matt Taibbi went as far as saying the Browns have quit on Mangini in lopsided defeats, a charge many of Cleveland's players dismissed after road losses to Denver and Baltimore.
Taibbi wrote: "In the NFL, if you don't show your players that you have a plan that works, the T-minus to an on-field player revolt is usually about a month. In Cleveland, we're there."
-- Tom Withers
Police: McNair mistress knew gun seller for weeks
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Ex-NFL quarterback Steve McNair’s mistress exchanged messages for weeks with the man who sold her the gun she used to kill McNair and herself, police said Tuesday.
The findings came a day after investigators released 50 text messages between McNair and Sahel Kazemi they say supports their conclusion of a murder-suicide because she was desperate over money and feared their relationship was ending.
Police spokesman Don Aaron said Kazemi also was in contact weeks before the July 4 killings with Adrian Gilliam, who pleaded guilty to gun charges for selling the weapon to her.
Aaron declined to say more about the exchange of messages, first reported by CBS News, because Gilliam was awaiting sentencing in December. Police say Kazemi bought the gun from Gilliam the night of July 3, and used it hours later.
"The Police Department has been aware that their relationship was more than we were initially led to believe," Aaron told The Associated Press.
According to the CBS report, Gilliam and Kazemi exchanged more than 200 calls more than three weeks before the murder-suicide, including 49 texts and calls the day before.
Police also said Kazemi texted McNair on July 3 to say she was so stressed she might have a breakdown and asked for $2,000 to pay bills. Texts show McNair had someone transfer the money.
Aaron repeated Tuesday that there’s no reason to believe the case should be reopened.
"Given the totality of the evidence as we know it now ... the conclusion of the murder-suicide classification has not changed," he said.
-- Luca L. Johnson II
Chargers game-day worker dies after fall
SAN DIEGO — A member of the San Diego Chargers’ game-day staff died 12 hours after falling out of the press box before the Denver Broncos played the San Diego Chargers on Monday night.
Walt Daniels, 66, died at 2:30 a.m. Tuesday at Sharp Memorial Hospital, the San Diego County Medical Examiner’s Office said.
Daniels appeared to sustain a head injury after falling about 25 to 30 feet out of a booth that was to be used by Broncos assistant coaches and landing on the loge level. He was administered CPR before being taken to the hospital.
Workers later cleaned up a puddle of blood.
The accident happened about three hours before kickoff and delayed the opening of the gates by about 40 minutes.
"The San Diego Chargers’ family is greatly saddened by the loss of Walt Daniels," the team said in a statement. "Walt loved the team and loved working in the press box on game days for more than 20 years. Our prayers are with his family and friends during this most difficult time."
Tomlin says Steelers kicker Reed will play Sunday
PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin says kicker Jeff Reed will play in Sunday’s home game against the Minnesota Vikings despite a recent brush with the law.
Reed is charged with simple assault, resisting arrest, disorderly conduct and public drunkenness for allegedly scuffling with Pittsburgh police outside a bar near Heinz Field in the hours after Sunday’s win over the Cleveland Browns.
Police were citing Reed’s teammate Matt Spaeth (spayth) for allegedly urinating outside the bar when Reed intervened. Police say Reed took a "fighting stance" and challenged the officers. Reed’s agent denies that.
Reed is expected to receive a court summons in the mail.
Former Seahawks player booked in La. slaying
SLIDELL, La. — Former Seattle Seahawks safety Terreal Bierria has been arrested in the killing of a Louisiana man.
St. Tammany Parish Sheriff Jack Strain said Tuesday that Bierria, who played for Seattle in 2002 and 2004, has been charged with one count of first-degree murder.
Authorities say the victim was 29-year-old Soron Salter of Slidell. He was found on the floor of a home with wounds indicating a violent struggle. They say Bierria’s car was seen at the house and he admitted himself to a hospital for cuts to his hands and arms.
Strain says investigators obtained an arrest warrant for the 30-year-old and booked him into the parish jail, where he is being held without bond. Booking documents do not list an attorney.
Bierria was the 120th overall pick in the 2002 draft by the Seahawks. He played college football at Georgia.
