Edelman suffers knee injury as Patriots tip Lions
Julian Edelman limped off the field with an injured right knee, putting a damper on strong performance from Tom Brady and the New England Patriots.
Edelman was hurt on the opening possession that ended with Brady throwing his first of two touchdown passes to Chris Hogan in a 30-28 victory over the host Detroit Lions on Friday night.
Edelman had three receptions for 52 yards in a four-play stretch and was injured on the last one as he was tackled by safety Tavon Wilson, a former teammate. He was evaluated on the sideline briefly before being taken to the locker room on a cart and being ruled out for the game.
Brady was 12 of 15 for 174 yards with two TDs and an interception. He helped the defending Super Bowl champions take a 24-0 lead late in the first quarter. Detroit mercifully didn’t have to face him after halftime.
Kansas City’s Ware injured: Kansas City running back Spencer Ware injured his right knee and was carted off the field in the first quarter of the Chiefs’ exhibition game in Seattle.
Ware was injured about halfway through the first quarter. He remained on the turf after making a 6-yard reception on a pass from Alex Smith.
Ware appeared to take an awkward step with his right leg during the play and team trainers were looking at his knee while he was down on the field.
Players from both teams took a knee while Ware was examined and the team announced he would not return.
Ware rushed for 921 yards and had another 447 yards receiving last season for the Chiefs. He started his career with the Seahawks.
Beathard is a Fame finalist: Longtime general manager and personnel administrator Bobby Beathard is a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in the contributors category.
Beathard helped build strong teams in football stops in Kansas City (1966-’67), Miami (1972-’77), Washington (1978-1988) and San Diego (1990-’99). He also worked for the Atlanta Falcons (1968-1971).
His teams won 10 division titles, seven league or conference championships and four Super Bowls (two with the Dolphins, two with the Redskins).
To be elected next February, Beathard must receive the same 80% voting support he got from the contributors committee when the entire 48-member selection committee votes in Minneapolis.
49ers cut Brooks: The San Francisco 49ers released outside linebacker Ahmad Brooks after eight seasons with the team.
The Niners cut Brooks because they determined he would not make the roster and wanted to give him a head start on finding a new team.
The 33-year-old Brooks signed with San Francisco in 2008 and was the longest-tenured defensive player on the roster. He had 511⁄ sacks in 131 career games with the Niners and helped the team make three straight trips to the NFC title game from 2011-’13.