Pryor set for debut with Redskins
PHILADELPHIA » Terrelle Pryor nearly joined the Philadelphia Eagles before signing with the Washington Redskins on the first day of free agency.
He can show them what they missed Sunday in the season opener.
“Something happened inhouse over there,” Pryor said about his agent’s conversations with the Eagles in March.
Philadelphia chose to sign Alshon Jeffery to a one-year deal worth $9.5 million. Pryor also got a one-year deal for $6 million from the Redskins.
Which team made the better move? One game won’t answer that question, but both players get to show their stuff at FedEx Field in Week 1.
“I really wanted to play with Kirk,” Pryor said about quarterback Kirk Cousins. “I thought he was a great quarterback. And that’s what I was looking for, to play with a good quarterback. All I needed was another year to get my feet on the ground and show I could dominate and be even better than last year.”
Jeffery is looking forward to going against cornerback Josh Norman, who likes to talk trash. He has 11 catches for 189 yards and a touchdown in two games against Norman.
“I don’t get into the talking game,” Jeffery said. “I just play football. I always feel that if someone is talking at me, they respect (my) game, so I just let my play do the talking.”
BENGALS SIGN LINEBACKER BURFICT TO 3-YEAR EXTENSION » The Bengals have signed linebacker Vontaze Burfict to a three-year contract extension that will keep him with the team through the 2020 season.
The move Thursday comes despite Burfict being suspended by the NFL for the first three games this season for his egregious hit on Kansas City Chiefs fullback Anthony Sherman in a preseason game.
Burfict has been a key playmaker on Marvin Lewis’ defense with 582 tackles, seven sacks, five interceptions, three forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries in his first five seasons. But he has also been one of the league’s most-frequently fined — eight times — players and been suspended twice for questionable hits during his career.
Lewis says in a statement that Burfict, signed in 2012 as a rookie free agent out of Arizona State, “is still one of the young, emerging talents within the league.”
BROWNS ROOKIE GARRETT OUT FOR WEEKS WITH ANKLE INJURY » Browns rookie defensive end Myles Garrett will be sidelined for weeks because of a sprained right ankle.
The top overall pick in this year’s draft was injured Wednesday during Cleveland’s first full practice leading to Sunday’s opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers. It’s not known how Garrett was hurt.
The team said Thursday he has a high ankle sprain and his status will be updated in a “couple” of weeks.
Garrett’s loss is another blow for the Browns, who went 1-15 last season.
Also Thursday, Cleveland released safety Calvin Pryor on Thursday shortly after he was involved in a fight with wide receiver Ricardo Louis.
Coach Hue Jackson did not provide any details of the skirmish, which took place before practice.
“I just made a decision which we thought was best for our football team and we moved on,” Jackson said. “That is it.”
Jackson didn’t think Louis would also be let go.