Associated Press
The NFL notebook …
CHARLOTTE ó Carolina Panthers owner Jerry Richardson, the first former NFL player since George Halas to become a team owner, is in need of a heart transplant and has been placed on a donor waiting list.
The 72-year-old Richardson has been hospitalized since last week after complaining he didn’t feel well. After a battery of tests, doctors determined he needed a transplant, a team spokesman said Wednesday.
WHAT’S IN A NICKNAME?
NASHVILLE, Tenn. ó What’s in a nickname? Plenty, at least to Tennessee running back LenDale White, and he wants it known that he and Titans rookie Chris Johnson are the true Smash and Dash of the NFL.
Carolina running backs DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart? Well, they can get a different nickname.
“You don’t make that up halfway through the season,” White said Wednesday. “Why … wait till Week 15 to bring it out? That is fraud. That is very phony. That is not the truth.”
White and Johnson introduced themselves as Smash and Dash on Oct. 19 after each ran for career-highs as the Titans rolled up 332 yards rushing in a win at Kansas City. The nickname surfaced nationally for Williams and Stewart after they ran for more than 100 yards and two touchdowns apiece Monday night against Tampa Bay.
BRIDGES PRACTICING
CHARLOTTE ó The Carolina Panthers reserve offensive lineman Jeremy Bridges practiced with the team Wednesday, three days after he was arrested for the second time in 16 months on assault charges.
Bridges was deactivated for Monday’s win over Tampa Bay, but coach John Fox indicated the team will let the legal process run its course before deciding whether to take disciplinary action.”We’ll keep you posted, but last time I looked you’re innocent until proven guilty,” Fox said.