Buffalo prepares to release Bledsoe, turn to Losman at QB
Drew Bledsoe will be released by the Buffalo Bills, a move that upset the 33-year-old quarterback who started every game for the team the past three seasons.
The Bills will waive the 12-year veteran Tuesday, the first day NFL teams are allowed to officially release players, coach Mike Mularkey said on Wednesday. J.P. Losman, a first-round draft choice last April, will be next year’s starter.
“We had a good year last year. It was not a super year,” Mularkey said.
Bledsoe, a former Washington State University standout, called the decision “a sad day for me.”
“I came to Buffalo with the intention of being a part of building an organization, winning a world championship in Buffalo,” he said during a conference call. “Didn’t get it accomplished. Now, I won’t have a chance to.”
New ‘fact sheet’ issued on Fowler
A public relations firm representing prospective Minnesota Vikings owner Reggie Fowler issued a revised “fact sheet” on Fowler after questions were raised about the accuracy of an official biography.
Fowler’s original bio claimed he played in the NFL and CFL and in the Little League World Series as an 11-year-old, and implied that he earned a business administration and finance degree from the University of Wyoming.
The Star Tribune reported the claims were incorrect or overstated. Fowler, a former University of Wyoming linebacker, never made it out of an NFL training camp and doesn’t appear in player databases for either league.
Little League officials said they had no record of Fowler on any roster of teams that played in the Series, and University of Wyoming records show Fowler’s degree actually is in social work, the Star Tribune reported.
Mitchell to retire a Redskin
In 14 NFL seasons, Brian Mitchell specialized in returns. So it was fitting that he returned to Washington to retire as a Redskin, five years after a bitter exit.
The NFL’s leading career return man signed a one-day contract with Washington, enabling him to retire in the city where he achieved most of his success.
“I had animosity, but I always knew this is what I would do,” Mitchell said.
Around the league
St. Louis Rams coach Mike Martz said that next season Marshall Faulk, the NFL MVP in 2000, will be a change-of-pace running back behind Steven Jackson. … The Chicago Bears hired Don Johnson, former UCLA assistant coach, as their defensive line coach. … The Dallas Cowboys hired Anthony Lynn as their running backs coach. Lynn spent the past two seasons in the same role for the Jacksonville Jaguars. … Bill Sheridan, an assistant coach at Michigan for the past three seasons, was hired by the New York Giants as their linebackers coach. … New England Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi was admitted to Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston after complaining of headaches. “He is in good condition and will be held for further evaluations,” the team said.