Le’Veon Bell, teammates at odds over holdout
Le'Veon Bell and the Pittsburgh Steelers are at odds, battling and bickering over money. It's a football family fight.
The Browns won't play peacemakers.
"They can beat each other up for all we care," Cleveland coach Hue Jackson said Wednesday.
But Bell's absence from Sunday's season opener between the AFC North neighbors could have a major impact on Cleveland's chances of ending a 17-game losing streak — and perhaps infuse a little life into a dormant rivalry.
Bell still hasn't joined his teammates as the Pro Bowl running back continues his holdout for a new contract. The stare-down between the sides has reached a critical juncture — and either a breaking or turning point — as the Steelers are days away from opening a new season.
When the 26-year-old Bell didn't report to the team and sign his $14.5 million one-year contract tender earlier this week, several of the team's offensive linemen voiced their displeasure toward a player they normally do all they can to protect.
"Here's a guy who doesn't give a damn, so I guess we'll treat it as such," veteran guard Ramon Foster said. "I just hate it came to this."
Eagles hold off Falcons
Jay Ajayi scored on two runs and the Philadelphia defense made Matt Ryan look awful much of Thursday night as the Eagles opened the defense of their first NFL title since 1960 with a sloppy, penalty-filled 18-12 victory over Atlanta.
Ajayi scored on runs of 1 and 11 yards and the Eagles even came up with a version of the Philly Special. They needed a last stand by their defense, just as they got in last year's divisional playoff victory over the Falcons. In an eerily familiar scenario, Julio Jones couldn't come down with Ryan's high pass on the final play from the 5.
It was a game marred by penalties, dropped passes, missed assignments and weak quarterbacking — yes, the defenses played a role, but it still had the feel of a preseason contest.
Sherman predicts player lockout in future
A day after the San Francisco 49ers elected Richard Sherman as their player representative, the veteran cornerback believes a lockout is coming when the NFL collective bargaining agreement expires.
"It's going to happen, so it's not like guys are guessing," Sherman said before the 49ers' workout Thursday.
The current CBA between players and NFL owners doesn't expire until after the 2020 season, but there have been rumblings that players might dig in their heels in order to get certain economic changes, including more guaranteed money in contracts.