Illness hurt McNabb

Donovan McNabb was so ill in the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl that a Philadelphia Eagles teammate called one play in the huddle, center Hank Fraley told a TV station.

“He fought to the end. He gave it his all,” Fraley said on Comcast SportsNet in a show aired Monday night. “He could hardly call the plays – that’s how exhausted he was trying to give it his all. If you remember back when we played Jacksonville two years ago and he ended up puking, it was close to that scene. He exhausted everything he had.”

Eagles spokesman Derek Boyko said Tuesday that McNabb wasn’t injured during Philadelphia’s 24-21 loss to the New England Patriots. However, McNabb could have been feeling sick – he fought a cold earlier in the week.

McNabb was shaky at times in Sunday’s game. He passed for 357 yards and three touchdowns, but he also threw three interceptions.

The quarterback misfired on several early passes, held the ball too long at other times, and made several poor decisions. One of the best scramblers in the NFL, McNabb had zero yards rushing on just one carry and was sacked four times.

He struggled in particular in the fourth quarter, getting picked off twice and looking slow in getting the team moving late.

“He didn’t get a play call in one time,” Fraley said. “He mumbled and (receiver) Freddie Mitchell yelled out the play we were trying to bring in. He was puking at the same time, trying to hold it in.”

Seahawks sign Urban, Willis

The Seattle Seahawks signed reserve receivers Jerheme Urban and Jason Willis.

Urban, who joined the team as an undrafted free agent in 2003, joined the active roster Nov. 5 and started two days later at San Francisco. He played in seven games, catching six passes for 117 yards and one touchdown.

Willis also began as an undrafted free agent in 2003 but spent the whole season on injured reserve. He was promoted from the practice squad to the active roster Dec. 10, playing at receiver and on special teams in the regular-season finale.

Browns introduce Crennel

Romeo Crennel’s long wait is over. An assistant coach for 35 years, he’s finally in charge.

Fresh from winning a third Super Bowl title as New England’s defensive coordinator, Crennel was introduced as coach of the Cleveland Browns, a team with far more imperfections than the one he left.

“I’ve been somewhat successful as a position coach. Now being able to take the reins of a team and try to run a whole team, that’s special,” Crennel said at a news conference.

The 57-year-old Crennel is the 11th full-time coach in Browns history and the team’s first black coach.

Vinatieri skips parade

While the rest of the Patriots paraded through Boston, Adam Vinatieri was nearly half a world away – and still wearing his helmet.

New England’s standout kicker got a head start on his teammates at the Pro Bowl, soaking up the sun in Kapolei, Hawaii, on the first day of practice with the rest of the AFC squad.

But no, Vinatieri wasn’t avoiding the cold weather at the massive parade celebrating the Patriots’ third world championship in four seasons.

And no, he assured a small group of Pats fans after practice, this doesn’t mean he’s planning to leave New England as a free agent this summer.

He went directly from Jacksonville to Hawaii simply to minimize the travel time for his pregnant wife, Valerie, and their 19-month-old son, A.J.

“I’d love to be (at the parade), but I have a feeling they did just fine without me,” said Vinatieri, who will play in his second Pro Bowl.

Record day in Nevada

Nevada sports books are beginning to love when the Patriots play in the Super Bowl.

For the second year in a row, the popular Patriots took the title but didn’t cover the point spread, helping sports books around the state win a record $15.4 million, according to state figures.

The amount won was a 24 percent increase from the previous year.

The state also set a record in the amount wagered on the Super Bowl with $90.7 million, up from $81.2 million a year ago.

Edwards supports Carter

New York Jets coach Herman Edwards offered his support for troubled backup quarterback Quincy Carter, who is in rehab for an undisclosed medical problem.

A source within the league told the Associated Press on condition of anonymity that Carter is seeking assistance at a treatment center.

Though Edwards would not confirm that Carter is getting help, he said Carter was doing well.

“Quincy has done everything and more that was asked of him,” Edwards said in a statement.

Carter previously went into rehab in 2003 and 2004.

First-string QB Chad Pennington had surgery to repair a tear in his right rotator cuff, and his doctors are cautiously optimistic he will be ready for the start of training camp in July.

Also, the Jets hired Jeremy Bates as quarterbacks coach and promoted Pep Hamilton to receivers coach.

Robbins pleads innocent

Former Oakland Raiders center Barret Robbins had a written innocent plea entered for him on three counts of attempted felony murder, almost four weeks after he was shot in a furious struggle with three police officers investigating a burglary call.

The former Pro Bowl player was set for arraignment today. Miami-Dade jail spokeswoman Janelle Hall said that Robbins was still in the hospital jail ward but she was not authorized to give his condition.

Robbins, 31, was shot in the chest Jan. 15 after growling, snarling and laughing at three officers as he beat them up, police reported.

Listed by prosecutors at 6-foot-4 and 380 pounds, Robbins beat one officer to the floor, picked another one up and slammed him into a wall and rammed the third officer’s head into the wall, police said.

Robbins, who suffers from bipolar disorder and alcoholism, was arrested for hitting a security guard at a San Francisco nightclub on Christmas Eve.

The Raiders cut him last July after testing positive for steroids.