Bettis claims he faked injury to stay with Steelers
Jerome Bettis, the No. 5 rusher in NFL history, claims in a new book that he faked a knee injury during training camp in 2000 so the Pittsburgh Steelers wouldn't cut him and install Richard Huntley as the starter.
Bettis was worried offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride favored Huntley over him and the Steelers were ready to let Bettis go, partly so they wouldn't have to give him a new contract. Huntley had just signed a $4 million, three-year contract.
"Man, did I do a nice job of acting," Bettis wrote in the book, "The Bus: My Life in and Out of a Helmet." "The thing is, I wasn't faking that I had an injury. I was just faking that the injury happened on that short-yardage play. I had to fool the coaches and the team's medical department into thinking the injury had occurred on that play. Otherwise, the Steelers would have had their reason to cut me and my salary."
Teams cannot cut an injured player during camp unless they reach an injury settlement with him.
Manning wants to end feud: Eli Manning defended his decision to rip former New York Giants teammate Tiki Barber on Wednesday, saying there are times when you just have to react to criticism.
The quarterback also said there are also times to forgive and forget, and that he would like to put his disagreement with the halfback-turned-football-analyst behind them.
"I am fine talking to Tiki," Manning said between training camp practices at the University at Albany. "If I see him, I'll definitely talk to him. I will be friendly to him. I'm not trying to start something. It's just a deal that happened and hopefully when we see each other, and we will, and it won't be awkward. I don't want it to be."
Manning's peace offering came 24 hours after he criticized Barber for attacking his leadership on the halftime show of the Sunday Night Football game between the Giants and Baltimore Ravens.
Barber had said that Manning's attempt to lead an offensive meeting in the 12th week of the last season was "comical" at times.
After sarcastically noting that Barber was making a smooth transition from the playing field to television, the normally reserved Manning said he could have questioned Barber's leadership last season for calling out coach Tom Coughlin and then having articles about him retiring in the middle of the season. It turned out to be a major distraction for the Giants.
"I guess I have always been an even-keel guy, never really responded back, always tried to make things smooth and easy," Manning said. "That's probably the first time I fired back a bit. It was one of those things that I felt I needed to do."
Barber did not immediately return a telephone call left by The Associated Press seeking comment on Wednesday.
Manning said he has not talked to Barber since the blowup.
Brady becomes a father: It's a boy for Bridget Moynahan and New England Patriots' quarterback Tom Brady.
The actress gave birth to the baby in Los Angeles on Wednesday, Moynahan's publicist Christina Papadapoulos said in a statement.
"Both mother and baby are doing well," she said.
Other details were not immediately released.
Brady's whereabouts weren't known. He wasn't on the field or sidelines for the first 15 minutes of practice on Wednesday and Patriots spokesman Stacey James said he didn't know when Brady would rejoin the team.
Shooting victim going home: Tommy Urbanski, a former pro wrestler who was shot four times on Feb. 19 at a Las Vegas strip club during the NBA all-star weekend, is hoping to go home Saturday.
The pre-dawn triple shooting followed a scuffle involving Tennessee Titans cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones and a security guard inside the club.
Urbanski has been at Craig Hospital, a Denver facility that specializes in spinal cord and traumatic brain injuries, since March.
Vick's dogs face deadline: More than 50 pit bulls seized from Michael Vick's property face a deadline today to be claimed. If no one comes forward, they could be euthanized.