Associated Press
The NFL roundup …
GREEN BAY, Wis. ó Relatives of Vince Lombardi are criticizing media reports suggesting that the family ignored the grave of the legendary Green Bay Packers coach and left its upkeep to a stranger.
The family wrote a letter to the Green Bay Press-Gazette that was published online. The letter took issue with a May 26 Press-Gazette column.
The column detailed the efforts of a man who tends the New Jersey burial plot out of admiration for Lombardi. Individuals quoted in the column say the grave was in disarray and wonder why the family was ignoring it.
The familyís letter says the local Knights of Columbus had been tending to the site since the mid-1970s. It says itís incorrect to say the gravesite was ever abandoned.
PLAXICO SPEAKS
NEW YORK ó Plaxico Burress wants another chance to play in the NFL.
The former New York Giants wide receiver told The Wall Street Journal in a story posted Friday that spending nearly two years in prison on a gun charge took ěan emotional toll.î
Burress was released Monday from Oneida Correctional Facility in New York.
In his first extensive interview, Burress told the newspaper ěthereís nothing pleasant about prison,î from the food to the meager weight room to the wasted time.
Burress said he wants a clean slate now and plans to ěget right back into itî with workouts beginning next week.
His agent, Drew Rosenhaus, has said he expects several NFL teams to have interest in Burress once the lockout ends and teams resume doing business with players.
49ER BRAINS
SAN FRANCISCO ó Two members of the San Francisco 49ersí famed ěMillion Dollar Backfieldî who died this year are having their brains examined by researchers studying head injuries in sports.
A spokeswoman at Boston Universityís school of medicine confirmed Thursday that the brains of Joe ěThe Jetî Perry and John Henry Johnson have been donated by their families to be examined. Researches at the university are studying head injuries, including the neurodegenerative disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE.
Perry died at age 84 in April. Henry died last week at 81. They were part of a backfield with running back Hugh McElhenny and quarterback Y.A. Tittle. The group remains the only backfield to have all four of its members enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
LA STADIUM
LOS ANGELES ó The head of the sports and entertainment firm that wants to build an NFL stadium in downtown Los Angeles has been in talks with officials from five pro football teams about the proposed venue, a company official said.
Anschutz Entertainment Group President and CEO Tim Leiweke has spoken with representatives from the Minnesota Vikings, San Diego Chargers, Oakland Raiders, St. Louis Rams and Jacksonville Jaguars, company spokesman Michael Roth told The Associated Press.
Leiweke said all those teams are “in the mix,” but conceded, “We’re not packing any (moving) vans right now,” according to the Orange County Register, which first reported on the talks.