Associated Press
The NFL notebook …
INDIANAPOLIS ó The Indianapolis Colts are bringing one veteran quarterback out of retirement.
No, not Brett Favre.
The Colts agreed to terms Wednesday with Kerry Collins, making him the likely starter in case Peyton Manning hasnít completely recovered from offseason neck surgery when the season opens Sept. 11.
Collins said he has been given no indication that Manning wonít play at Houston.
ěHopefully, Peyton will be back, but if heís not maybe I can be one of the guys that can help this ball club,î Collins said in a conference call with reporters Wednesday night. ěThe biggest draw for me coming here was just being with a team that I have a lot of respect for and a lot of history with, and really to be with a great team and play with one of greatest quarterbacks of all time.î
Collins agreed to a one-year contract and acknowledged he could be talked into staying longer than 2011.
JOHNSON TALKS
NASHVILLE, Tenn. ó Tennessee general manager Mike Reinfeldt said Wednesdayís meeting with Chris Johnson was beneficial even though no deal was reached to end the running backís holdout.
The GM expects to talk with the running backís agent again in the ěnext day or so.î
Reinfeldt and Vin Marino, the Titansí vice president of football administration, met Wednesday morning with Johnson and his agent Joel Segal. Reinfeldt said in a statement he felt it was important to meet face to face.
MORRISON SIGNS
ORCHARD PARK ó With Reggie Torborís status uncertain, the Buffalo Bills have strengthened their inside linebacker position by agreeing to a one-year contract with six-year NFL veteran Kirk Morrison.
The deal was agreed to verbally on Wednesday, Morrisonís agent, Bruce Tollner, told The Associated Press.
Listed at 6-foot-2 and 240 pounds, Morrison is a six-year starter, who spent last year with the Jacksonville Jaguars, who elected not to re-sign him this offseason.
TOíS FUTURE
ATLANTA ó While Terrell Owens waits for an NFL team to contact him, the 15-year veteran wide receiver has focused his attention toward an acting career.
Owens, who tore his anterior cruciate ligament and had surgery in early April, filmed an episode of the USA sitcom ěNecessary Roughnessî on Wednesday at the Georgia Dome. He said his knee is a couple months away from being completely healed and though no team has contacted him, he still expects to play this season.
ěIím still not 100 percent to be able to go to a team and contribute,î Owens told The Associated Press. ěWhen I get to the point to where Iím comfortable and able to run around, Iíll feel like those calls should be coming.î
JONES PRIMED
HOUSTON ó Receiver Jacoby Jones has been a role player on offense and a key contributor to special teams since the Houston Texans drafted him in the third round out of tiny Lane College in 2007.
The Texans are expecting Jones to do even more. Houston signed the free agent to a three-year deal worth more than $10 million, hoping he can help boost an already explosive offense better known for Andre Johnson, Matt Schaub and Arian Foster.
Jones shakes his head thinking about how much heís matured in his years in Houston.
Early in his career, he had trouble with dropped passes on the field and wasnít allowed to make a trip to Jacksonville to play the Jaguars in 2009 after he was late to a team meeting a day before the game.
ěWhen I first got here, I was like a little kid running around all day,î he said.
ěIíve matured a lot. I had a lot of guys to look up to and learn from. Coach Kube (Gary Kubiak) took me under like one of his own and that was big.î