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Philadelphia Eagles bolster defense with LB Eric Wilson, re-sign RB Jordan Howard Wilson, 26, tied for the NFL lead among linebackers with three interceptions in 2020, and he also had three sacks and eight passes defended to go with 122 tackles in his breakout season. Howard, 26, rushed for 525 yards and six touchdowns in 10 games before being slowed by injury.
Cincinnati Bengals release RB Giovani Bernard after eight seasons
Bernard, 29, has played all of his eight NFL seasons with the franchise that drafted him in the second round in 2013. He has appeared in 115 games and rushed for 3,697 yards and 22 touchdowns. He also had 342 receptions for 2,867 yards and 11 touchdowns.
NFL owners approve 17-game season, starting in 2021 Players agreed to the additional game as part of their 2020 collective bargaining agreement, which gave the league an option to expand as soon as the 2021 season. The preseason will be reduced from four games to three to maintain compliance with the CBA, which limits the total number of preseason and regular-season games played to 20.
NFL expects full stadiums for 2021 season, commissioner Roger Goodell says
The league never established an attendance cap while playing during the heart of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Attendance dipped more than 90% compared to 2019 and a total of 1.2 million fans were included in attendance counts for the entire regular season and postseason. League revenues fell accordingly.
Washington Football Team signs hoops-to-TE hopeful Sammis Reyes
Sammis Reyes exited high school with dreams of playing in the NBA. Now he hopes to be the latest former Division I basketball player to make it as an NFL tight end with the Washington Football Team. He would also become the first Chilean-born player to make a 53-man roster. Washington signed Reyes, who had been training at IMG Academy in Florida as part of the International Pathway Program, on Tuesday. Participants in this program get assigned to a random division, and those teams could then pick one player from a pool of 11 athletes. At 6-foot-6 and 260 pounds, Reyes has the size necessary to play tight end. He ran a 4.65 in the 40-yard dash while bench-pressing 225 pounds 31 times at the pro day. But he has never played in a game, despite coaches telling him when he was younger that he should try the sport.
Arizona Cardinals sign ex-Pittsburgh Steelers running back James Conner
The Arizona Cardinals added much-needed depth in the backfield on Tuesday when they agreed to terms on a one-year contract with former Pittsburgh Steelers running back James Conner. Conner, 25, will be paired with Chase Edmonds to form the Cardinals' 2021 backfield. It's expected that they'll share reps and responsibilities in coach Kliff Kingsbury's offense that asks running backs to be both rushers and receivers. Conner will reunite with Cardinals running backs coach James Saxon, who was his position coach in Pittsburgh in 2017 and 2018. He received a one-year, $1.25 million contract, which is all fully guaranteed, including a $500,000 signing bonus, a source told ESPN's Adam Schefter. Connor went to the Pro Bowl in 2018 under Saxon's tutelage after rushing for 973 yards and 12 touchdowns, tied for the third most in the NFL that season, and while catching 55 passes for 497 yards and a touchdown in 13 games.
Sources: LB Vince Williams re-signing with Pittsburgh Steelers
A sixth-round draft pick by Pittsburgh in 2013, he has appeared in 121 games, with 69 starts, and has two interceptions (including a pick-six), 20.5 sacks and 333 solo tackles in eight seasons with the franchise.
Alex Smith, reigning NFL Comeback Player of the Year, announces retirement from football Smith was drafted No. 1 overall by the 49ers in 2005 and spent eight seasons in San Francisco before joining the Chiefs in 2013. The three-time Pro Bowler is 27th all-time in the NFL with 35,650 career passing yards. He appeared in 174 games total with San Francisco, Kansas City and Washington, throwing 199 touchdown passes.
New Orleans Pelicans coach Stan Van Gundy called Tuesday's guilty verdict in the trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin "an important day for our country" but said it was hard to find reasons to celebrate and recognized there is more work to do.Van Gundy spoke to reporters ahead of Tuesday night's 134-129 loss to the Brooklyn Nets, shortly after Chauvin was found guilty of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter by a jury for his role in the murder of George Floyd last May outside of a local convenience store. "We had somebody needlessly killed right in front of us," Van Gundy said. "Right in front of all of us because we can see it on video. And no verdict was going to change that. And while it's just, it's hard to celebrate. It's also hard to celebrate because we've had other incidents just like it since the time George Floyd got killed.
Dallas Cowboys LB Sean Lee retires after 11 seasons
After 11 seasons with the Dallas Cowboys, linebacker Sean Lee has decided to retire. A second-round pick in 2010 out of Penn State, Lee was a two-time Pro Bowl selection (2015, 2016) and the unquestioned leader of the defense for most of his career. Injuries marked Lee's time with the Cowboys, but when healthy he was one of the best linebackers in the NFL. The 34-year-old led the Cowboys in tackles in 2011 and 2015-17, and he owns five of the top seven tackle games in team history, including a record 22 vs. the Giants in 2016. He also had 14 career interceptions, returning two of them for touchdowns; 5 fumble recoveries; 2 forced fumbles; 59 tackles for loss; and 4 sacks. He was credited with 995 tackles for his career, good for eighth in team history. He averaged 8.4 tackles per game, the most among the top 10 tacklers in team history. Darren Woodson, who is the franchise leader with 1,350, averaged 7.6 tackles per game.