Falcons acquire CB Samuel from Eagles
Falcons acquire CB Samuel from Eagles
ATLANTA — Asante Samuel was willing to restructure his contract to play for the Atlanta Falcons.
“I wanted to be a Falcon, so we made it work,” Samuel said.
The Falcons gave up only a seventh-round draft pick Wednesday when they acquired the four-time Pro Bowl cornerback from the Philadelphia Eagles.
The Falcons announced the trade after Samuel agreed to restructure his contract to a three-year, $18.5 million deal. His contract with Philadelphia called for him to earn $9.9 million in 2012 and $11.4 million in 2013.
The Falcons were 10-6 last season and 13-3 in 2010 but lost their first playoff game each season.
Lions’ Johnson voted to grace Madden cover
NEW YORK — Detroit Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson has been selected to appear on the cover of Madden NFL ’13, the popular video game, in a vote by fans.
Johnson beat out Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton, the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, by garnering 52 percent of the more than 651,000 votes cast in the competition between the two playmakers. ESPN revealed the results live on its “SportsNation” show Wednesday.
Former Cleveland Browns running back Peyton Hillis, now with the Kansas City Chiefs, was on last year’s game cover.
Johnson, who says he’s “shocked” to win the vote, had 96 catches for 1,681 yards and 16 touchdowns last season. He signed an eight-year deal with the Lions worth up to $132 million last month.
Ex-Bengals player convicted of sex charges
CINCINNATI — Former Bengals linebacker Nate Webster was convicted Wednesday of sex-related charges involving the teenage daughter of a former assistant coach for the Cincinnati team.
A jury in Cincinnati found Webster, 34, guilty of four counts of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor. Jurors found him not guilty of three other charges: gross sexual imposition, sexual battery and a fifth count of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor. The jury deliberated for about six hours before reaching the verdict.
Prosecutors say Webster had sexual contact with the girl in 2009 when she was 15 and threatened to harm her if she told anyone. Webster admits having sex with the girl the next year, when she was 16, the legal age of consent in Ohio, but denies that the xsexual relations began earlier than that.
Webster was taken into custody after the verdict.
Vikes players hit Capitol as stadium votes near
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Their goal finally in sight, the Minnesota Vikings summoned star power Wednesday to put extra pressure on state lawmakers nearing decisive votes on public financing for a new pro football stadium.
Running back Adrian Peterson, linebacker Chad Greenway and center John Sullivan lent aid to a franchise lobbying team of nine, which is counting heads for an expected House vote as soon as Thursday and guiding the bid for a nearly $1 billion stadium through its final Senate committees.
In a barely 30-minute visit, the players chatted with legislators and posed for pictures with Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton.
“It’s a team effort. We’re just showing our support,” Peterson said. “Legislators, those guys are really pushing to pass this bill. They have tough decisions to make and discussions to have. We’re just here to let these guys know that we support them.”
Meanwhile, the stadium bill continued to move closer to expected House and Senate floor votes. It survived the Senate’s Finance Committee on a vote of 9-5.
Packers release Collins amid health concern
MILWAUKEE — The Green Bay Packers released Nick Collins on Wednesday, citing concerns about the veteran safety’s ability to safely continue his career after a significant neck injury.
Collins hurt his neck while trying to make a tackle in the Packers’ Sept. 18 victory at Carolina, an injury that ended his season and required surgery. Agent Alan Herman said Collins has not decided whether he will attempt to play for another team.
Packers general manager Ted Thompson said the team wasn’t comfortable putting Collins back on the field.
By wire sources