Iron Man Favre almost flunked out by physical
Redskins superfan ‘Chief Zee’ dies
WASHINGTON, July 20, (RTRS): Brett Favre, who will be inducted as a first ballot Hall of Famer at the Canton, Ohio shrine next month, set scores of NFL records during his 20-year career at quarterback, including a seemingly unbreakable Iron Man mark.
Yet the man who ended up playing 297 straight games (321 including playoffs) was nearly shut down by a failed physical exam before his career took off.
“I hurt my hip in the East-West Shrine (college All-Star) game and was diagnosed with avascular necrosis of the hip, sort of like what Bo Jackson had, when blood supply is cut off to a joint,” Favre told a conference call on Tuesday.
Favre said the diagnosis turned many teams away ahead of the 1991 NFL Draft, where the University of Southern Mississippi quarterback fell to the second round, taken by the Atlanta Falcons with the 33rd overall pick.
“Atlanta actually went and did MRIs, X-Rays,” said Favre, who barely played his rookie season, throwing four passes without a completion, including two interceptions.
Green Bay’s first-year general manager Ron Wolf, who had admired Favre’s talent the year before when he was on the New York Jets staff, dealt a 1992 first-round pick to Atlanta to obtain the fearless, strongarmed Favre.
“The debt of gratitude (I have) is forever payable. I’ve told Ron that over and over again. I had a conversation with him last night. We’re both always so thankful for each other.”
Favre’s jersey preceded him to Canton by 17 years, as the one he wore for his record-breaking 117th consecutive start at quarterback was put into a Hall of Fame exhibition in 1999.
Favre went on to play 16 seasons with the Packers. He played in two Super Bowls, winning one, and became the first player to win three NFL MVP awards in a row during his Green Bay tenure.
“In his (Wolf’s) case by sticking his neck out there. Boy, what a gamble, and I’m forever thankful for that.
“And I know he has said over and over to me how thankful he is that it worked out, obviously.”
Iron Man Favre, who still holds a slew of NFL records including most passes and completions, started his first game in Sept 1992 and every game after that into January 2008.
Wolf was inducted into the Hall of Fame last year.
The Washington Redskins’ superfan who attended games for decades in full Native American dress has died. Zema Williams was better known as Chief Zee.
The team announced Williams’ death on Twitter on Tuesday, calling him one of the team’s greatest fans of all time.
An article on the Redskins website says Williams died Monday. No cause was given. The Washington Post reports he was 75.
Embattled quarterback Johnny Manziel remains without a team as NFL training camps get set to open but he insists that he will return to pro football.
Manziel expressed to his fans and social-media followers that he will “be back.” He was let go by the Cleveland Browns after two distraction-marred seasons and told his Instagram followers that his career isn’t over.
Oakland Raiders cornerback David Amerson signed a four-year contract extension, the team announced.
Amerson was a standout last season in his first season with the franchise by setting a franchise-record with 26 passes defensed. He also recorded career bests for interceptions (four) and tackles (62).
Amerson spent his first two seasons with the Washington Redskins and was waived shortly before the start of the 2015 season. Oakland was awarded Amerson through a waiver claim.
Buffalo Bills wide receiver Sammy Watkins recently resumed running as he recovers from April surgery to repair a broken bone in his left foot, but is uncertain when he will be able to return to football activities.
Watkins, 23, posted a video of himself on Instagram earlier this month running with the words “back on top soon.”
He reeled in 60 receptions to go along with career highs in both yards (1,047) and touchdowns (nine) last season. Watkins remained in Buffalo this offseason to work with the team’s training staff as he rehabbed from the surgery.
Cornerback Mike Jenkins signed with the Arizona Cardinals, who released cornerback Carrington Byndom. Financial terms were not disclosed for the eight-year veteran who spent the past two seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Jenkins, 31, entered the NFL as a first-round pick by Dallas in 2008 and spent his first five seasons with the Cowboys before playing one season for Oakland in 2013. He has started 68 of 101 career regular-season games, with 267 tackles and 10 picks. Half of those came in 2009, when he was selected to the Pro Bowl.
When the Dallas Cowboys drafted Notre Dame linebacker Jaylon Smith, they knew there’d be a good chance he would not play this season after injuring his knee.
Smith suffered a devastating knee injury during his final college game at Notre Dame. Smith tore his ACL and LCL during the Jan 1 Fiesta Bowl against Ohio State. The injuries created nerve damage in his knee and ankle. Prior to the injury, Smith was viewed as a top-10 pick.
Even though Smith is likely to miss this season, owner and general manager Jerry Jones has said the Cowboys would not place him on injured reserve in hopes he could return by the end of the year.
The Atlanta Falcons reached an injury settlement with center James Stone, who started 10 of the 19 games he appeared in since being signed as an undrafted rookie out of Tennessee following the 2014 NFL Draft.
Stone suffered a season-ending knee injury last December and was placed on injured reserve.