Barber decision firm
New York Giants all-time leading rusher Tiki Barber said Thursday that he is firm in his decision to retire after the season.
“I’ve been talking about retirement for years now, and it has nothing to do with being physical or money or Hall of Fame,” Barber said. “It’s all about my desires, and for me to change them would compromise my integrity and would compromise who I am as a person and what I’ve always stood for.”
Asked whether there was added pressure to win this year because of his plans, Barber said: “The pressure’s always there. It’s no different just because you guys know that I’m going to retire this year.”
Still, Barber wouldn’t commit to saying his retirement was 100 percent certain:
“It’s week six of the NFL season, so I won’t say that.”
He also said there was “nothing” that would change his mind.
Now in his 10th season, the 31-year-old Barber said that he has been banged up more this season than in any previous one, and that his passion for the game has waned.
Barber, who has spoken about retiring a couple of times in the past year, has myriad interests off the field. He has worked in television and he has discussed possible jobs in finance and philanthropy.
The Giants (3-2) will play the Cowboys (3-2) on Monday night in Dallas.
Martin wants to play again
Curtis Martin appears as healthy as he’s been and the competitive fire in him still burns. The fourth-leading rusher in NFL history just isn’t sure if he’ll ever get back on the field.
Speaking publicly for the first time in more than a month, the New York Jets running back expressed his desire to resume his playing career and put his knee injury behind him.
“I feel as though I’ve gotten better,” said the 33-year-old Martin, looking fit and in his usual game shape. “I feel as though I’m running a little better. The one thing I was concerned about was making the cuts. Once you get out there, instincts take over. I haven’t been put in that situation. I don’t know how that’ll turn out.”
Martin, sidelined with a right knee injury since the end of last season, was eligible to come off the physically-unable-to-perform list Monday, but the team announced he’d remain on it until at least after New York’s game at Cleveland on Oct. 29.
According to NFL rules, a player on the PUP list can’t be cleared to practice until after Week 6. The Jets have three weeks to decide whether to allow Martin to start practicing. Once he’s cleared to practice, the team would have three weeks from that date to either place him on the active roster or put him on injured reserve and end his season.
Martin was noncommittal about being able to start practicing after the game at Cleveland.
Bears lose Brown for season
Chicago Bears safety Mike Brown was placed on injured reserve and will miss the remainder of the season after undergoing surgery a day earlier to repair ligament damage in his right foot.
Perry rejoins Bengals
In their last two games, the Cincinnati Bengals have converted third downs about as often as Chad Johnson finds himself speechless.
Yes, it’s that bad, and Chris Perry thinks he can help.
The running back who excels on passing downs rejoined the team in practice this week, having recovered from the knee and ankle operations that wiped out his preseason and sidelined him for the first five games.
He’s a suitable complement to Rudi Johnson, who is more of a tackle-to-tackle runner.
Perry’s speed allows him to get around the ends, and his ability to catch the ball comes in handy when defenses try to stop Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh from getting open down the field.