NFL League and Player Capsules: Saints top Vikings 14-9
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — For football fans in the Big Easy, "Lombardi Gras" just keeps on rolling.
Drew Brees and the Saints extended New Orleans' post-Super Bowl euphoria for at least another week and denied Brett Favre a victory in the Louisiana Superdome one more time.
Brees completed 27 of 36 passes for 237 yards and one touchdown, and the Saints survived a hard-fought season opener for a 14-9 victory over the Minnesota Vikings on Thursday night.
It wasn't the most spectacular way to open a title defense, considering it was a rematch of the riveting 2009 NFC title game last January, which the Saints won in overtime to advance to their first Super Bowl.
"We're not used to 14-9 victories, but we're used to winning," said Brees, the reigning Super Bowl MVP. "So we like the W."
It was the lowest-scoring victory of the Sean Payton era, which began in 2006, but the Saints will take it, especially after their defense limited Favre to 171 yards passing and one touchdown.
"I know people are going to say it wasn't the fireworks they expected it to be," Favre said.
Although his offense was far less potent than usual, Payton said he "was proud of the way we came through and made enough plays to start the season 1-0."
Unlike the NFC championship game, the Vikings didn't lose a fumble and turned the ball over only once on Jonathan Vilma's interception of Favre, who made an ill-advised throw as Roman Harper hit him on a safety blitz.
Also unlike their previous meeting, the Saints had most of the statistical advantages, outgaining Minnesota 308 yards to 253 and controlling the ball for 33:43, compared to 26:17 for Minnesota.
"We knew we would have to play better in a lot of areas than we did last year (against the Vikings) and I felt like we did," Brees said. "We just showed that we can win in a lot of different ways."
New Orleans might have won the game more easily if not for two missed field goals by Garrett Hartley, who kicked the dramatic winning field goal last year.
Still, New Orleans was able to kneel on the ball to run out most of the last two minutes after Pierre Thomas capped a 71-yard, one-touchdown performance with 10-yard, first-down run right after the 2-minute warning.
Vikings running back Adrian Peterson, who rushed for 122 yards and three TDs in the last meeting, rushed for 87 yards on 19 carries against New Orleans' stingy defense.
"We did a very good job of holding against the run and still taking some of the downfield throws away," Payton said.
Although the game was competitive, it hardly lived up to its hype.
Favre's comeback from ankle surgery, marking the start of his 20th season, was largely unspectacular. Despite being sacked only once and hit not nearly as often, or as hard, as in the NFC title game, he looked out of synch or inaccurate at times. The fact that Minnesota was without star receiver Sidney Rice may have had something to do with that.
"There's three of four throws that I just missed," Favre said. "I have no excuse. I just missed."
Favre's best sequence came on Minnesota's only touchdown drive late in the first half, when he found Vinsanthe Shiancoe on precision down-the-middle completions of 33 and 20 yards, the second for the Vikings' only TD.
That gave Minnesota a 9-7 halftime lead, which the Saints erased on their first drive of the second half.
"We were right where we wanted to be at halftime, then it was three-and-out, three-and-out," Vikings coach Brad Childress said. "There were not a lot of throws to be made downfield. They were going to hold us down and make us bleed slowly."
The Saints' triumph ended a long day of festivities which for some might have been more exciting than the game itself.
Tailgaters were setting up around the Superdome at dawn, and one pregame cookout even doubled as a wedding. Some government offices, business and schools shut down.
NFL-sponsored pregame festivities included a concert in the French Quarter featuring Dave Matthews and Taylor Swift, along with a Mardi Gras-style parade, for which police estimated the crowd at about 200,000.
Shortly before kickoff, singer and New Orleans native Harry Connick Jr. entered the Superdome on a parade float with a giant replica of the silver Vince Lombardi Trophy. Also on the float was Saints owner Tom Benson, holding the real trophy.
As Connick finished the first verse of, "When the Saints Go Marching In," a black championship banner was unfurled from the roof of the dome and Saints players streamed out of the tunnel to sustained and boisterous applause.
Shortly before kickoff, Brees stood on the 30-yard line, holding a fist up high before pumping his arm down in an orchestrated move to send the sellout crowd of 70,051 into a chants of: "Who dat say dey gonna' beat dem Saints!"
Soon after, the Saints received the opening kickoff and scored on only five plays, with Brees hitting three of his first four passes for 69 yards, including a 29-yard scoring strike to Devery Henderson on a rollout.
Minnesota made it 7-3 on Ryan Longwell's 41-yard field goal in the second quarter and the Vikings defense stifled Brees and the Saints in the second quarter, allowing only 7 yards. New Orleans' only scoring threat in the quarter came after Vilma's interception at the Vikings 34, but Hartley missed a 46-yard field goal.
The Saints quickly regained their stride on their first drive of the second half, going 74 yards in 11 plays, capped by Thomas' 1-yard TD plunge up the middle. That turned out that was all the scoring the Saints needed.
NOTES: The defending Super Bowl champion has played host to the last seven Thursday night openers and won them all. ... The previous lowest-scoring Saints victory under Payton was his debut as a head coach in the 2006 regular season, a 19-14 win at Cleveland. ... Brees, who completed 75 percent of his passes without an interception, had a quarterback rating of 101.3, the 30th time in 64 regular season games with the Saints that is rating was above 100. ... Favre was 15 of 27 (56 percent) with one interception for a passer rating of 71.7. ... Favre needs two more TDs passing to become the first NFL quarterback with 500. ... Shianco finished with four catches for 76 yards, all in the first half. ... Thomas rushed for all but 1 of his yards in the second half.
Favre was pleased to come home for his comeback
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Perhaps it would have been too cruel if the last pass Brett Favre threw in his spectacular career was an ill-advised and arguably game-losing interception in the Minnesota Vikings' NFC title match with the New Orleans Saints last January.
Never mind that it occurred in the Louisiana Superdome — where he won his only Super Bowl with Green Bay back in 1997, a stadium less than an hour's drive from his hometown of Kiln, Miss., and against the team he rooted for growing up.
For the most part, Favre had been fantastic at 40, and that was no way to go out. Sure enough, he was back in the Louisiana Superdome for the NFL's opener on Thursday night. There would be one more season — his 20th — and more memories of an exceptional NFL career.
"I do feel as confident as I did this time last year, maybe even a little more confident," Favre said. "I didn't know what to expect last year."
Tracy Porter's interception at the end of regulation in the NFC championship, which saved the Saints' Super Bowl run, overshadowed a magnificent performance by the Vikings quarterback. Favre took a beating but kept slinging scintillating completions in a 310-yard night that made him the all-time leader in playoff yards passing, ahead of Joe Montana.
"We hit him a lot last year. You should see the throws that he was making. It was amazing to watch, actually," Saints safety Roman Harper said. "It really blew me away how accurate he was amid all the pressure. He'd be off his back foot and zing it 20 to 25 yards on a rope. That's the part that's really amazing to watch because you just don't see a lot of quarterbacks that are able to do that."
When Favre hobbled off the field with a gimpy ankle on Jan. 24, 2010, not even he knew if he'd ever play again.
So began what seems to have become an annual ritual of waffling until halfway into the preseason, when Favre decided he would not retire for a third time and instead come back for at least one more season.
Recently, he said it would be his last — take that for what it's worth — and he seemed pleased that he would kick off his 20th season with a return trip to the Superdome. After all, that gave him the chance to join the long-suffering Saints fans he grew up with for the unfurling of the franchise's first championship banner.
"It was mixed emotions going there last year as I grew up a huge Saints fan," Favre said. "I was no different than all the other Saints fans throughout the years. You just lived to wait for another year and say 'We are going to get it next year.'
"It is close to home — and I don't know if that is good or bad considering all the ticket requests we are always getting," Favre said, before adding, "It is fun to go back there."
Favre will be 41 on Oct. 10, and although he had a career best passer-rating of 107.2 last season, there was no telling how affective he would be this year following surgery on this left ankle and an injection to, in his words, lubricate "where it's bone on bone."
"It remains to be seen if it will work," Favre said this week.
With Favre's return coming against the defending champs in the first game of the NFL season, there was a big-game build-up to the opening kickoff. NFL-sponsored pre-game festivities included a concert in the French Quarter featuring Dave Matthews and Taylor Swift, along with a Mardi Gras-style parade
Tailgaters were setting up around the Superdome, on the edge of downtown, at noon, and there did not appear to be a lot of work being done. Some government offices, business and schools shut down as if it were a state holiday.
The big difference, of course, is that both teams have another 15 games scheduled this season.
So for Favre and the Vikings, the biggest concern wouldn't be the final score of the first game on the schedule. It would be how Favre, who has still never missed a start in his career (285 straight in the regular season, 309 including playoffs) would feel in the days, weeks or months ahead.
"In all honesty, this game is totally different from (the NFC championship), for obvious reasons," Favre said. "Both teams will continue to play.
"Don't get me wrong. I want to win this game as much as I wanted to win last year's game, (but) it is a different mindset."
-- Brett Martel
League News
Questions and answers on NFL labor
NEW YORK (AP) — One year from now, NFL fans could be seeing a lockout instead of a sellout.
No pro football — don't scoff at the possibility. Both the owners, who opted out of the collective bargaining agreement in 2008, and the players are firmly entrenched for long, often fruitless negotiations. They haven't really gotten down to serious talks yet, and most everyone believes that won't occur until after the Super Bowl.
While the NFL season gets under way this weekend, here are key elements in a disturbing scenario that next year could lead to the first NFL labor stoppage since 1987 (remember replacement games?):
Q: Who are the key figures?
A: Although there are many lawyers and economic experts involved on both sides, the burden to reach a deal falls on NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith. Both are the leaders in such negotiations for the first time, after a history of accord between Paul Tagliabue and Gene Upshaw.
Q: What is the main issue?
A: Money, naturally, and how to divide it. The players currently get 59.6 percent of designated revenues, a number agreed to in the 2006 CBA. The owners have found that onerous, claiming they have huge debts for building new stadiums and starting up NFL Network and other ventures, making it impossible to be profitable.
The NFLPA says, basically, prove it by opening the books of all 32 teams. Goodell counters by saying the players already have total knowledge of NFL revenues and expenses, as called for in the agreement.
Q: What are the owners asking for?
A: If the NFL, buoyed by its massive TV contracts, generates nearly $8 billion in revenues annually, about $1 billion of that is taken off the top for operating expenses. Of the rest, the players would get their percentage, leaving the owners with 40 percent, which they argue is too little.
So the owners want another huge chunk (about $1.3 billion) to go into their coffers before the players get their cut.
The owners also are eager to add two regular-season games and drop two from preseason, thus forcing the networks to ante up more money. The higher revenues from the extra games would mean more overall money in the pot for the players, too.
Q: What are the players asking for?
A: They would settle for the status quo should no agreement be reached, something the owners are certain to balk at. The players are adamant they won't take any sort of pay cut.
Should the NFL extend the regular season by two games, the players want more money and bigger rosters. They already find it a struggle to stay healthy for 16 games and then, for the better teams, the playoffs.
Q: Does either side have a "war chest" in case of a lockout or strike?
A: Yes, they both do.
The league got an extension of its TV deals with Fox, CBS and DirecTV that pays it in 2011 even if no games are played. While the NFL eventually would have to make good on those payments by providing games to telecast in future years, they have a tremendous flow of cash during a time when there won't be money coming in from ticket sales and sponsors.
Smith has been warning players since he took office in early 2009 to put aside money in case of a stoppage. Most players have done exactly that, with portions of paychecks being saved by many.
Q: What about a potential rookie wage scale?
A: This is one subject on which agreement could come quickly. The owners want to drive down the signing bonuses and exorbitant contracts paid to high first-round draft picks, and they've been unable to do it on their own.
Veteran players who see the megabucks being paid to untested college kids prefer to see that money spread to them. It's not inconceivable that a significant portion of those dollars could wind up in their pockets under a new CBA.
While Smith has said he'd never accept a rookie wage scale, his constituency probably doesn't feel the same way.
Q: What about the retired players, especially those from before 1993 who have so few benefits and pension funds?
A: Goodell has promised those players will be taken care of once an agreement is reached. The NFLPA is skeptical, citing what it considers a poor record for the NFL in helping "its pioneers."
Not compensating those players, many of whom have major health issues resulting from their playing careers, would be a damaging move by the league and could raise the ire of the public.
Q: When might the fans look for a solution — or at least a strong attempt to reach one?
A: Certainly not before the current CBA runs out in March, and probably not until late spring or early summer 2011. Yes, that is cutting it close.
-- Barry Wilner
NFLPA head says he's hopeful of agreement
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The head of the NFL Players Association said the union would like to see a labor agreement with the league worked out quickly.
"I think the players would love to have a deal done by November," NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith said. "The game is what is most important to the players."
Smith spoke before Thursday night's NFL season opener between the Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints and the Minnesota Vikings.
Smith's comments seem optimistic, given that both sides have spoken about a potential lockout next season.
"We've mentioned a lockout only because that's what the league has been preparing for since 2007," Smith said. "Our job is to prepare our players for the worst even while we hope for the best."
Smith met with Saints players on Monday. He said the purpose was to fill them on where the negotiations stood.
Smith described his relationship with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, who was also in New Orleans, as excellent, saying both he and Goodell wanted the best for the players.
Smith dodged most questions, saying he wanted to concentrate on the game and the association's partnership with "School of the Legends," an online football training course.
"First and foremost today is about the kickoff of the season," Smith said.
-- Mary Foster
Jets sell out season opener vs. Ravens
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — The New York Jets avoided a television blackout by selling out their season opener against the Baltimore Ravens on Monday night.
Matt Higgins, the team's executive vice president of business operations, added Thursday night that the Jets are "essentially sold out" — including personal seat licenses — for the rest of their home games at the New Meadowlands Stadium.
"Let's put it this way: We can say with certainty that there will be no blackouts for the entire season," Higgins said. "So, we are sold out for the entire season."
The team has no non-premium seats available, although 1,500 club seats remain — but those do not factor into possible blackout situations. Higgins said some individual tickets, which the team made available online on Aug. 31, can still be bought as fans continue to upgrade from upper-bowl seats.
"Those seats go up on an individual basis, but they get snatched up really quick," Higgins said. "From our standpoint, we're essentially sold out for the entire season. We're sold out completely, with the caveat that some individual tickets still go up. They'll be gone, though."
After putting the roughly 16,000 upper-bowl tickets on Ticketmaster less than two weeks ago, the non-PSL seats for the first two home games sold out later that night. At that time, Higgins said 96 percent of the stadium's overall seats were sold.
"It's a fluid process," Higgins said. "But from our experience, once we sold out the non-premium PSL seats on a season-ticket basis, there really is such a small number of individual game tickets that there's no question that they'll sell out long before the games take place."
-- Dennis Waszak Jr.
Rams sell out opener against Cardinals
ST. LOUIS (AP) — The St. Louis Rams have sold out their season opener, ending a string of three consecutive home games that were blacked out.
The team said Thursday that limited tickets remained available for Sunday's game against the Arizona Cardinals.
Interest has returned since the Rams took quarterback Sam Bradford with the first pick of the draft. Bradford will start for the Rams, who were an NFL-worst 1-15 last year.
No local TV for Browns-Buccaneers opener
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — The Tampa Bay Buccaneers say their season opener Sunday against the Cleveland Browns will be blacked out locally.
It's the club's first regular-season blackout since 1997 — the year before the Bucs moved into Raymond James Stadium. Both home exhibition games were blacked out last month.
The team did not say how many tickets remained unsold at 1 p.m. Thursday, 72 hours before kickoff.
Tom Brady
Brady's day starts with crash, ends with contract
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — A loud crash. A crumpled front end. A brief stay in an ambulance. It was a very bad start to Tom Brady's day.
A new contract. The highest average salary in the NFL. A deal that ties him to the New England Patriots through 2014. It was a very good ending.
The shaggy-haired star quarterback was involved in a two-car crash near his home in Boston's Back Bay at about 6:30 a.m. Thursday and was unhurt. One of the NFL's marquee players stood beside the damaged black Audi he had been driving with a fire engine behind him.
Then his day began to improve.
Brady made it to Gillette Stadium for the walkthrough practice beginning about 10:45 a.m. and participated with his teammates, all in full uniform, in a practice beginning shortly after 1 p.m. Everything appeared normal as he stretched then lofted passes to both sides of the field.
And then he wrapped up some unfinished business.
Brady agreed to a four-year contract extension beginning in 2011, two people with knowledge of the contract said Thursday night. It has an average annual value of $18 million — and a total of $48.5 million guaranteed, one of those persons said. Both spoke on condition of anonymity because the paperwork had not yet been filed with the NFL.
The extension was first reported by Peter King of Sports Illustrated during halftime of NBC's telecast of the Minnesota-New Orleans game.
This season Brady will make $6.5 million in the final year of a four-year extension that averaged $12 million.
The two-time Super Bowl MVP wanted to get his new deal done before the season opener Sunday at home against the Cincinnati Bengals, although he said he wouldn't let it distract him. Considering that he sustained a season-ending knee injury in the 2008 opener, having a deal in place before his first snap of the season provides security in case of another injury.
"I don't assume anything any more in life," Brady had said Wednesday when asked if he was excited about possibly being with the Patriots for a long time. "I don't think anything is guaranteed to us beyond what we have today and I really feel that way. That's the approach I've taken over the years, because you never really know when your last day will be."
Brady wants to play even beyond his new deal, which expires when he's 37. He's entering his 11th season and has said he'd like to play 10 more years.
"I think we're fortunate to get paid for something that we love," he said Wednesday. "There's no better job in the world that I'd rather have, to do what I'm doing. That's why I want to do it for a long time. Everything else in my life pales in comparison to how much I love this."
He kept doing it Thursday despite the car crash.
The 21-year-old driver of a red minivan involved in the crash, Ludgero Rodrigues, was cited Thursday for failing to stop at a red light, based on witnesses statements, police said. Two other people left the minivan and had no visible injuries, they said.
The police report didn't name Brady but said the driver of the Audi had no visible injuries and was evaluated by Emergency Medical Services. A 49-year-old passenger in the minivan was freed with the Jaws of Life and taken to a hospital.
Brady went to work.
From a sixth-round draft choice out of Michigan in 2000 to a three-time Super Bowl champion and 2007 NFL MVP, he has come from obscurity to reach the top of his sport. And now he's getting paid like it.
The average value of Brady's deal surpasses that of New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning, who agreed this year to a six-year, $97.5 million ($16.25 million average) extension starting next year. He's making $9.4 million this season.
Peyton Manning is in the final year of a seven-year, $98 million deal ($14 million average) and Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay said he intends to make his quarterback the NFL's highest paid player.
But for now, after a very eventful day, that distinction belongs to Brady.
-- Howard Ulman
Patriots QB Brady unhurt in wreck near Boston home
BOSTON (AP) — New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady was unhurt in a two-vehicle accident near his home Thursday morning before practicing as usual with his team ahead of the season opener and agreeing to a four-year contract extension that, according to two people familiar with it, would make him the NFL's highest-paid player.
The extension begins in 2011 at an average of $18 million per year with a total of $48.5 million guaranteed, one of those persons said. Both spoke on condition of anonymity because the paperwork had not yet been filed with the NFL.
The crash, at an intersection in Boston's Back Bay area, knocked over a light pole and sent a passenger in the minivan that collided with Brady's car to a hospital with injuries that were serious but not considered life-threatening, a police report said.
A witness told The Associated Press that the two-time Super Bowl MVP was approaching the intersection on a green light when his black Audi sedan collided with the minivan.
The 21-year-old driver of the Mercury Villager minivan, Ludgero Rodrigues, was cited Thursday for failing to stop at a red light, based on witnesses statements, police said. Two other people in the minivan were able to exit and had no visible injuries, they said.
The police report, which did not name Brady, said the driver of the Audi had no visible injuries and was evaluated by Emergency Medical Services. It said a 49-year-old passenger had to be freed with the Jaws of Life and was taken to a hospital.
Rodrigues' driver's license had been suspended at least five times in three years, Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles spokeswoman Ann Dufresne said. Last year, his license was suspended for 180 days after he was arrested for operating under the influence and refused to take a blood-alcohol test, Dufresne said.
RMV records also show that Rodrigues had been charged with a number of moving and traffic violations.
A telephone listing for Rodrigues could not immediately be found Thursday.
Brady's father had just arrived in Boston from the family's California home early Thursday and found out about the accident when he got off his flight.
"I understand he's fine, but I haven't talked to him," Tom Brady Sr. told the AP outside his son's home three blocks from the accident site.
Patriots coach Bill Belichick told the team about the accident before practice and said Brady might be a bit late, linebacker Tully Banta-Cain said.
"I was hoping, obviously, that he was OK, but I saw him walking in. He had a smile on his face, no abrasions, so I think he's fine," Banta-Cain said.
The Patriots open their season at home Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals. Brady is making $6.5 million this season in the final year of a six-year, $57.3 million contract.
The average value of the new deal surpasses that of New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning, who agreed this year to a six-year, $97.5 million ($16.25 million average) extension starting next year.
Brady's new contract was first reported by Peter King of Sports Illustrated during halftime of NBC's telecast of the Minnesota-New Orleans game.
During the 11-minute portion of New England's afternoon practice that reporters were allowed to watch Thursday, Brady, in full uniform with pads and helmet, stretched as usual with his teammates. Then, as he usually does, he threw soft passes of 20 to 30 yards to teammates.
"I want to thank the safety personnel for their service, and express our concern and support for the well-being of the occupants of the other vehicle," Brady's agent, Don Yee, said in a statement.
Police responded to Commonwealth Avenue and Gloucester Street around 6:30 a.m. after reports of an accident, police spokeswoman Elaine Driscoll said.
One of Brady's neighbors, a 74-year-old woman who asked that her name not be used for fear of being hounded by reporters, was walking her dogs when she saw the accident.
She said Brady was traveling south on Gloucester and approaching the intersection on a green light when his black Audi collided with a fast-moving red Ford Aerostar that was westbound on Commonwealth.
"The red car went up in the air, sideways. ... The tire was half off," the woman said.
Afterward, she said Brady immediately got out of his car.
The woman had been walking toward the intersection when she saw the cars on their collision course. She took a step backward, tripped on the curb and hit her head, she said.
She sat next to Brady in an ambulance, but neither was taken to a hospital. She said she did not realize he was the star quarterback until later.
Bill Barron said he was in his apartment overlooking the intersection when he heard a collision that sounded like "a bolt of lightning."
When he looked out the window, he saw the driver of the car picking glass off his clothes and wiping himself off with a towel. He didn't realize until later that it was Brady.
"I thought it was some college kid who had crashed up his father's really nice car," Barron said.
Brady then retrieved some items from his car, made a series of phone calls and was picked up by another vehicle, Barron said.
-- Glen Johnson
Brady OKs contract to become NFL's top paid player
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — A day that started badly for Tom Brady turned out to be a pretty good one after all.
After a morning crash left Brady's car damaged but the New England Patriots quarterback unhurt, he came to terms on a contract that will make him the highest paid player in the NFL.
Two people with knowledge of the contract said Thursday night that Brady has agreed to a four-year extension beginning in 2011.
It has a value of $18 million per year with a total of $48.5 million guaranteed, one of those persons said. Both persons spoke on condition of anonymity because the paperwork had not yet been filed with the NFL.
Brady is making $6.5 million this season in the final year of a six-year deal.
The extension was first reported by Peter King of Sports Illustrated during halftime of NBC's telecast of the Minnesota-New Orleans game.
The average value of Brady's deal surpasses that of New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning, who agreed this year to a six-year, $97.5 million ($16.25 million average) extension starting next year. He's making $9.4 million this season.
Peyton Manning is in the final year of a seven-year, $98 million deal ($14 million average) and Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay said he intends to make his quarterback the NFL's highest paid player.
Brady's contract differs from those two deals in that it pays him a higher average salary over a shorter period of time. He has said he would like to play 10 more seasons. He is currently playing under a four-year extension with an average value of $12 million that he signed with two years left on his previous deal.
Brady's new agreement, which expires when he will be 37, came on a day in which the black Audi being driven by the two-time Super Bowl MVP was involved in a two-car crash near his home in Boston's Back Bay. Police responded to the scene at about 6:30 a.m. after reports of an accident, police spokeswoman Elaine Driscoll said.
The 21-year-old driver of a red minivan involved in the crash, Ludgero Rodrigues, was cited Thursday for failing to stop at a red light, based on witnesses statements, police said. Two other people were able to exit the minivan and had no visible injuries, they said.
The police report, which did not name Brady, said the driver of the Audi had no visible injuries and was evaluated by Emergency Medical Services. It said a 49-year-old passenger had to be freed with the Jaws of Life and was taken to a hospital.
Brady wasn't hospitalized and went to Gillette Stadium where he took part in a walkthrough practice at about 10:45 a.m. At the full practice starting shortly after 1 p.m., he stretched with his teammates, threw passes and participated in the entire session in full uniform.
The Patriots begin their season Sunday at home against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Brady has had a strong exhibition season after throwing for 4,398 yards, second-most in his career, in 2009. His 28 touchdown passes tied for second in his career. That followed a 2008 season in which he suffered a season-ending injury to his left knee in the opener. He played late last season with finger and rib injuries but appeared healthy since the team began training camp in late July.
The Patriots drafted Brady in the sixth round out of Michigan in 2000 and he has been the starter since the third game in 2001 after Drew Bledsoe was injured. Brady was named MVP of the Super Bowl that season and in the 2003 season. He also was part of the team that won the championship after the 2004 season.
In 2007, he was named MVP of the NFL when the Patriots were 18-0 before losing the Super Bowl 17-14 to the New York Giants on a last-minute touchdown.
-- Howard Ulman
Player News
Packers sign Woodson to contract extension
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — The Green Bay Packers signed cornerback Charles Woodson to a contract extension through the 2014 season on Thursday, a deal that will likely allow the 2009 AP Defensive Player of the Year to retire as a Packer.
The 33-year-old Woodson signed a five-year contract that is worth as much as $55 million, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press.
The person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because financial details of the contract were not released, said Woodson can make $20 million in advances and bonuses and about $33.5 million in the first three years of the new deal.
"The mission at this point is to retire here," Woodson said. "It's a big deal."
And Woodson wants to bring a championship to Green Bay before it's all over.
"I mean, we've got it here," Woodson said. "We've got the players to get it done. We've got the coaching staff to get it done. It's all going to rest on our shoulders, on the players to go out there and get it done. Our mission as a team is to get there and I think we can do it."
Woodson had three seasons left on his existing deal. But his standout play, combined with a recent new deal for New York Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis, likely compelled the Packers to act.
Packers coach Mike McCarthy doesn't see Woodson slowing down any time soon.
"He is in great shape," McCarthy said. "He really came into training camp in great shape. He looks like he did the last three years. Stay healthy, God willing, and he is instinctive and tough as they come, so I don;t see any drop-off at all."
He had a career-high nine interceptions last season and was the cornerstone of a much-improved defense under coordinator Dom Capers.
"I love the defense," Woodson said. "I can't say enough about playing in the 3-4 and playing for Dom Capers. All of those things combined brings us to this point. I'm very happy about this moment."
Woodson came to Green Bay as an unrestricted free agent before the 2006 season, but he wasn't enthusiastic about the move at the time. After publicly feuding with coach Bill Callahan, then missing most of the 2005 season after breaking his leg, Woodson didn't have many other offers on the table. So he went to the Packers.
He acknowledges that he didn't have a positive perception of the town or the team coming in, but he came around eventually.
"It was a gradual thing," Woodson said. "I think probably the more people that I met around here in the community and just throughout Wisconsin and just playing here with the guys that we have and the organization and the way they are with their players and the way they take care of their players, it was a gradual process. Once I realized what I had here in Green Bay, then it was a done deal from there."
Today, he is known as a philanthropist — he donated $2 million to the University of Michigan Mott Children's Hospital and Women's Hospital last year — and is seen as a leader in the defense and mentor to young players.
"He's like a big brother to all of us," safety Nick Collins said. "If he's getting a new contract, congrats, it's well-deserved."
-- Chris Jenkins
Quarterback Alex Smith now a 49ers captain
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — It's not as if Alex Smith needed the captain tag in front of his name. As quarterback, he's long been considered the leader of San Francisco's offense anyway.
He spent the offseason showing everybody why. Smith altered his own schedule to take time to throw to different receivers who needed work. He committed countless hours to studying at team headquarters and picking the brains of offensive coordinator Jimmy Raye and quarterbacks coach Mike Johnson.
"He's the quarterback. He's the captain of the whole team," receiver Michael Crabtree said Thursday. "He runs the ship. He is a captain."
Now, Smith actually has the title. Coach Mike Singletary made the call this week heading into the 49ers' season opener Sunday at Seattle. It's the first time in Smith's six NFL seasons that he's been a regular captain — and he joins Pro Bowl tight end Vernon Davis and star linebacker Patrick Willis among others. Early in his career, Smith was a captain on occasion but the duties shifted game to game.
"I voted," Singletary said of his decision, which he announced to Smith on Wednesday.
Smith is in a new yet old position, beginning this season as the starter for the first time since a Monday Night opener in 2007. But he got hurt in Game 4 that year and missed nearly a month, then made only three more starts the rest of the way before sitting out injured for all 2008.
The No. 1 draft pick out of Utah in 2005, Smith reinjured his surgically repaired throwing shoulder a few days before the '08 season opener. He was set to be the backup to J.T. O'Sullivan.
Smith began last year as the No. 2 quarterback behind Shaun Hill only to take the job at halftime of the Niners' seventh game at Houston on Oct. 25 — given a big chance to resurrect his career.
Considering all the ups and downs he's faced in a relatively short NFL tenure so far, Smith doesn't take anything for granted. Like his starting spot. Or captain privileges.
"I guess you get the title of it, I guess everybody feels in some way they have different leadership skills and how they do things," he said. "Obviously, getting acknowledged for it is nice. I guess either way, it felt like I had a leadership role on this team, especially on offense. ... You still have to go out there and play."
This has to be considered a make-or-break year for Smith. He's in the final season of the two-year deal he restructured in March 2009 that sharply reduced his base salary. Money has never been his primary motivator. Winning has.
Smith threw for 2,350 yards and 18 touchdowns last season but also had 12 interceptions and was sacked 22 times for 134 lost yards.
He's as prepared and comfortable in the huddle as ever heading into this season, one in which this franchise is greatly depending on him to end a seven-year playoff drought. Anything less than a postseason berth will be a huge disappointment around here.
"We know that our side of the ball, in the locker room, that he's a big part of this team," running back Frank Gore said. "We know in the huddle we've got to listen to him. ... He talks a lot and tells us what to do. Even when we don't do something right, he comes to us and says we should have done this or done that."
Said receiver Josh Morgan: "He's ready to go, man, it's the season opener. He doesn't really need the title. He's got it, so the sky's the limit."
Singletary certainly hopes so. He's been saying since last season ended — with a disappointing 8-8 record and no trip to the postseason despite a strong start — that Smith is the 49ers' guy, the incumbent No. 1. Even after another former No. 1 pick was signed in backup David Carr.
Smith's dedication to getting better, and making those around him better in the process, during the offseason did so much for everybody's confidence that he can handle the pressure of being the regular starter again. And that means playing behind an offensive line featuring a pair of rookie first-round picks in Anthony Davis and Mike Iupati.
"I didn't name him a captain because he's a quarterback," Singletary said. "I named him a captain because he exemplified this offseason the things that I wanted our captains to do. I think when you talk about the identity of the 49ers, Alex really put in the time. You know he was out here when no one was out here. He was the guy that got the receivers together and threw to them, and changed his schedule around to meet with some other receivers. So, he was not just doing it once a day, he was doing it twice a day, as well as in the classroom. He was wearing Jimmy Raye and Mike Johnson out all offseason. Those are the things that we need."
Smith insists he hasn't strayed far from the approach he's always taken as a quarterback. He just committed himself to doing even more at this stage of his career, no longer having to focus so much of his energy on getting healthy or competing every snap of every practice to earn a job.
"You try to push yourself and constantly improve and that's on and off the field as a quarterback," he said. "But really, I kind of just continued to do what I've always done, work hard and be the guy I am. I'm not trying to be anyone I'm not. I think it naturally happens just from the stability that's been here this last year."
-- Janie McCauley
Jets' Ryan selects Slauson over Ducasse at LG
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — Matt Slauson told his parents to stay home in Nebraska throughout the preseason, uncertain how much playing time he'd get for the New York Jets.
The Slausons can now book their trip to the Big Apple.
Coach Rex Ryan announced Thursday that Slauson won the starting job at left guard against the Baltimore Ravens on Monday night after beating out second-round draft pick Vladimir Ducasse.
"It's a dream come true, being able to play on the best offensive line in the NFL," Slauson said. "I couldn't be more pleased right now."
Slauson won the competition against Ducasse, who was learning a new position after playing mostly offensive tackle at the University of Massachusetts.
Meanwhile, Slauson is in his second season after being a sixth-round pick last year, so he has familiarity with the system and was coached by Jets offensive line coach Bill Callahan at Nebraska.
"Any time you change positions and you're stepping up and it's a brand-new system, Vlad couldn't make that kind of ground up," Ryan said. "Matt had been around here all last year. ... He earned the job."
The left guard spot was vacated in April when the Jets released incumbent Alan Faneca, a nine-time Pro Bowl selection who later signed with Arizona. Slauson knows Faneca's name will be brought up anytime a defender gets by him.
"It's my job to not miss a block, so hopefully we won't be hearing a lot about him," Slauson said.
Still, the Jets' offensive line was considered one of the team's strengths with Faneca, center Nick Mangold, tackles D'Brickashaw Ferguson and Damien Woody, and right guard Brandon Moore. The Ravens will likely try to target him Monday night, and Slauson knows it.
"They consider me the weak point now on the line," Slauson said. "It's my job to not just win the starting job, it's to play at the same level as Nick and D'Brickashaw and Brandon and Woody and all those guys. I've just got to study, prepare and get it done."
Meanwhile, Ducasse will watch from the sideline after many believed he would be the hands-down winner when he was drafted.
"I don't have any reaction to it," Ducasse said. "Obviously, he knows the offense a lot better. He's more comfortable than I am with everything."
Ducasse learned how to play football in high school after moving to Connecticut from Haiti when he was 14. He was a quick study, started for three years at left tackle for UMass and will be patient about getting his shot in the NFL.
"All I've got to do is keep working hard," Ducasse said. "That's all I can say right now. It's never over. It's a long season. I've just got to keep working hard, you never know."
-- Dennis Waszak Jr.
Injuries
Raiders hold Bush out of practice
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Despite missing most of the preseason with a hamstring injury, Oakland running back Darren McFadden is likely to get the majority of work this week when the Raiders play at Tennessee.
Some might say it's long overdue.
With Michael Bush questionable due to a broken left thumb that required surgery, McFadden is expected to take the majority of reps in Oakland's backfield for the season opener in Nashville.
"It's something I've been looking forward to and I think I'm ready for it," McFadden said Thursday. "I didn't get much preseason play but I don't think that's going to bother me much."
McFadden hurt himself early in training camp and had only seven carries in the preseason, all of them against San Francisco on Aug. 28. He did not play in the preseason finale when Oakland rested most of its projected starters.
The injury and down time are nothing new to McFadden. Since entering the league as the fourth-overall pick in 2008, he has been beset by a variety of lingering injuries that have shelved him for long stretches. McFadden averaged 108.5 carries in his first two NFL seasons and has just one 100-yard game on his resume.
The plan entering 2010 was to have McFadden and Bush split the duties in Oakland's backfield. That changed slightly when Bush's left thumb got smashed between two helmets in the game against San Francisco.
Bush underwent surgery and had two screws inserted in his thumb, but coach Tom Cable remained optimistic the former fourth-round pick wouldn't be out long. Bush joined his teammates in practice Wednesday and Cable said he was "shocked" at a report saying Bush would not play against the Titans.
The outlook was a bit more pessimistic Thursday.
Bush, who wasn't available during media access, did not practice and strolled out to the field well after the rest of the players, wearing sweats and a white Raiders cap. He briefly served as an opposing player during an offensive line drill — standing still and doing nothing more — before watching the rest of practice.
"That will be a game-time decision," Cable said of Bush. "Everything looks like he'll (practice) tomorrow."
In the meantime, McFadden is prepping to be the Raiders' workhorse until Bush returns. Oakland will also lean more on backups Michael Bennett and Rock Cartwright.
"That's one of the things the coaches talk about, that there's not a big drop-off from the first guy to the last guy," McFadden said. "We're looking to go out and prove we are a contender, we're not just a pushover."
That includes McFadden himself. Quarterback JaMarcus Russell, the first-overall pick in 2007, was given his walking papers after three disappointing seasons. Now the critics are already lining up to take their shots at McFadden.
"I know what I'm capable of doing so I just want to go out there and put it out there on the field," he said. "For me you try not to think about it, you just do it."
Yet there are those who wonder if he can. Cable, in his second full season as the Raiders coach, is among those with questions about the third-year running back.
"I think everybody is waiting to see Darren stay healthy," Cable said. "If you look at his production it's been pretty good when he has played. That's what we want to see, just that consistent ability for him to go out there and stay on the field. When he does that, then all those questions or issues or whatever they are will be handled by him."
Notes: WR Chaz Schilens (knee), DE Desmond Bryant (elbow), CB Walter McFadden (hamstring) and LB Travis Goethel (back) were also held out of practice. ... Cable acknowledged the Raiders brought in free agent DE Bobby McCray for a workout on Wednesday. McCray was cut by the New Orleans Saints on Sept. 3.
Setback for Panthers' Otah following knee surgery
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Carolina Panthers starting right tackle Jeff Otah acknowledged Thursday he's had continued problems in his recovery from two surgeries on his left knee and is still "two or three weeks" from being able to play.
It leaves the Panthers without a key cog on their offensive line starting with Sunday's season opener at the New York Giants, with Geoff Schwartz expected to start in Otah's place.
"I had a mini-setback," Otah said. "Things didn't go as planned."
The 6-foot-6, 335-pound Otah first had surgery in December to repair torn cartilage that knocked him out of the final three games. Otah had continued pain when players reported to training camp and was placed on the physically unable to perform list.
Otah had another arthroscopic procedure on the same knee on Aug. 4. He was recovering from that when the pain returned recently while he was running.
"I might have pushed myself a little too hard coming back. Then I had a setback," said Otah, who hasn't practiced since training camp began. "Little upset with that, but I've got to move on and try to get back out there."
Schwartz proved to be a capable backup as a rookie last year starting in Otah's place in the final three games, including in Carolina's 41-9 win over the Giants when Jonathan Stewart rushed for 206 yards.
But behind the starting line is uncertainty. The only other linemen on the roster are Garry Williams, who played in seven games mostly on special teams as an undrafted rookie last year, and Tim Duckworth, a journeyman who signed with Carolina on Aug. 30.
"Either way, most people are only going to be able to suit up seven or eight of them," coach John Fox said of the offensive line. "I feel comfortable with that."
Otah, who became an immediate starter after being a first-round pick in 2008, said he hasn't had swelling in the knee, just nagging pain.
"I didn't expect it to take this long. It's frustrating," Otah said. "All I can do is try to rehab as hard as I can and get back out there."
-- Mike Cranston
Bills LB Mitchell misses practice with foot injury
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Buffalo Bills middle linebacker Kawika Mitchell missed practice Thursday because of a foot injury and it's doubtful he'll play in the season opener against Miami on Sunday.
Coach Chan Gailey declined to say which foot Mitchell injured, or to release details except to say he was hurt in practice a day earlier and is "doubtful" to play. Mitchell was having tests to determine what Gailey called a "short-term and long-term" prognosis, an indication the injury could be severe.
Mitchell, a seven-year NFL veteran, is a backup to Andra Davis, who's taken over the defensive play-calling duties this season.
Mitchell is coming back after he missed the final 11 games last season with a right knee injury.
The Bills are already expected to be without outside linebacker Reggie Torbor, who's recovering from a chest injury. Converted defensive end Chris Ellis is expected to start in place of Torbor.
Gailey was optimistic starting safety Jairus Byrd will play after missing nearly a month after having groin surgery. "He was out there and moved around really well today at practice. It's an improvement over yesterday," Gailey said.
Byrd earned a Pro Bowl selection as a rookie last year after finishing tied for the NFL lead with nine interceptions.
-- John Wawrow
Browns rookie guard injured
BEREA, Ohio (AP) — Browns rookie right guard Shaun Lauvao has an injured ankle, and his status for Cleveland's season opener is uncertain.
Coach Eric Mangini says Lauvao "twisted" his ankle Wednesday. Mangini declined to provide specifics on the injury or how Lauvao got hurt. Lauvao, a third-round pick in April's draft, was listed as the No. 2 right guard on the Browns' depth chart behind Floyd Womack.
But Womack recently returned from knee surgery and it's not known if he'll play in Sunday's game at Tampa Bay.
As protection, the Browns signed lineman Billy Yates, who was waived earlier this week. The club also waived linebacker Titus Brown.
Elsewhere
Mother of Titans LB dies unexpectedly
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee coach Jeff Fisher said Will Witherspoon's mother died unexpectedly and that the Titans' starting linebacker has been excused from practice this week.
"He's going through a really tough time," Fisher said Thursday. "He lost his mom Tuesday, and ... it was sudden. It was unexpected so we got him to the airport Tuesday afternoon and communicated with him last night.
"As you can understand, it's very, very difficult."
Nora Lee Cooper Witherspoon was 56. The Titans said Wednesday that Witherspoon had been excused from practice for personal reasons.
Fisher said the Titans are leaving it up to Witherspoon when to return to the team, though the veteran told the coach he plans to be back for Sunday's opener against Oakland. Coaches are getting information to the veteran going into his ninth NFL season.
"He'll be back for the game. At that point, we'll evaluate it," Fisher said. "He expressed 100 percent interest and confidence in his ability to play in this game. Fortunately for Will, he's a very experienced player."
The Titans signed Witherspoon in March to a three-year, $11 million contract, making him their first signing of free agency. He has been working with middle linebacker Stephen Tulloch to anchor a unit that has veteran David Thornton on the reserve/physically-unable-to-perform list healing up his hip and Gerald McRath suspended for the first four games.
If Witherspoon isn't able to play, that would stress an already thin unit. Colin Allred worked with the first-team unit through the preseason but has been limited this week by an ankle.
"If this unfortunate tragic circumstance had happened to a younger player, there'd really be no way for the player to come back and play missing the time," Fisher said. "In Will's case, I have confidence we're communicating with him over the next couple days ... When he can come back, we'll get him back."
Tulloch said he spoke with Witherspoon by telephone before his teammate caught his flight at the airport.
"For her to be fairly young with no health problems, it is shocking to him. ... Your heart goes out to him," Tulloch said. "Football comes secondary to your family.
"When he comes back, we'll be here for him."
-- Teresa M. Walker
