Rams, out with the old and in with the new

ST. LOUIS (AP)—The St. Louis Rams released wide receiver Torry Holt on Friday, parting ways with one of the last remaining holdovers from their “Greatest Show on Turf” glory days.
The move came three days after the Rams released offensive tackle Orlando Pace, another mainstay from the era when the Rams won their only Super Bowl and lost another on the game’s final play. Both Holt and Pace are seven-time Pro Bowl selections.
Holt is 32 and Pace is 33 and combined the moves created $14 million in salary cap space. Holt was due a $1.25 million roster bonus on Tuesday.

Owens takes Hardy's mojo

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- For Bills fans filling out their programs: Yes, folks, T.O. will be No. 81.

The Buffalo Bills said Thursday that newly signed receiver Terrell Owens will be getting his familiar number, and that second-year receiver James Hardy will be switching to No. 84.
Hardy, the team's second-round draft pick out of Indiana last year, wore No. 81 during his rookie season.
It's unclear whether Hardy will be compensated by Owens to switch numbers. In the past, veteran players joining new teams have been known to pay for or provide compensation for the right to switch numbers.
Owens has worn No. 81 throughout his NFL career, but wore No. 80 in college at Tennessee-Chattanooga.

Roy Williams a number 1 receiving threat over T.O.?

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, speaking for the first time since the release of wide receiver Terrell Owens, said the controversial player was not cut loose because of chemistry issues in the lockerroom.
The Dallas Morning News reported Jones released Owens because the team wanted Roy Williams to become the No. 1 receiving threat and the development of Miles Austin as a potential No. 2 wideout.
"I had to look at Roy Williams and the future that we have with Roy," Jones said on The Fan (105.3 FM) on Tuesday afternoon. "I'm excited about Roy, so I'd rather have him than the [three] picks we gave up for him in this draft."
Jones also said it gives quarterback Tony Romo a chance to spread the ball around to tight ends Jason Witten and Martellus Bennett and running backs Marion Barber and Felix Jones.
Source: Dallas Morning News

San Diego is Charged, to keep L.T.

SAN DIEGO (AP)—The LaDainian Tomlinson saga ended happily for both sides.
After two months of uncertainty about his future, L.T. remains the face of the San Diego Chargers. The star running back agreed to a renegotiated deal that gives the team salary cap relief, the Chargers confirmed Tuesday night.
Financial terms weren’t immediately available for the three-year contract for Tomlinson, the 2006 NFL MVP.
“I love San Diego and being a part of this team with my teammates,” Tomlinson said in a statement released by the team. “My No. 1 priority was to stay here in San Diego. I truly believe this is the place that gives me the best chance to be successful and win a championship. I want to finish the job we started when I got here eight years ago. My heart has always been in San Diego. I couldn’t imagine putting on another uniform.”
A news conference was scheduled for Wednesday morning.

Pro Bowl goes back to Paradise

HONOLULU (AP)—The Pro Bowl is returning to Hawaii.
The Hawaii Tourism Authority board voted 9-1 on Friday to accept the NFL’s offer to return to the islands.
The board rejected two previous proposals, but under mounting pressure reconsidered its latest refusal to pay the NFL $4 million a year to host the all-star game at Aloha Stadium in 2011 and 2012.
“We are pleased to continue our partnership with the state of Hawaii, which has embraced the Pro Bowl for 30 years,” Frank Supovitz, the NFL’s senior vice president of events, said in a statement.
The 2010 Pro Bowl will be played in Miami a week before the Super Bowl after a 30-year run in Hawaii in which every game was a sellout.
Supovitz said placing the Pro Bowl in the islands on a rotational basis will maintains its ties to Hawaii while making it more accessible to fans on the mainland.

T.O.'s no longer a STAR in Dallas

So Terrell Owens finally is gone. Rip up that Dallas Cowboys star from midfield – the personal stage he couldn’t resist. Roll it into a steel barrel and seal it with concrete. Then bury it beneath the Texas Stadium parking lot, and for the sake of the next naïve NFL franchise, pray that Owens’ fading career is laid to rest with it.
This can’t happen again. Not after three franchises, three quarterbacks and untold exclusive interviews, all in which Owens sermonizes about how we must understand that he’s merely misunderstood. Even Cowboys owner Jerry Jones can see it now – the reality that in the end, T.O. is nothing more than the NFL’s decaying nuclear reactor: a seduction of heat and energy and power … until it inevitably leaves a bitter nuclear winter in its wake.
Make no mistake, this is what happened Wednesday. Cowboys owner Jerry Jones finally realized the needle on the Geiger counter had gone too far into the red, and he dispatched Owens in the first move of a cleanup that could take several seasons. Finally, the owner who fiercely values his own opinion opened his mind and let the outside world change it. Maybe it was the coaching staff or the players or the nagging sliver of doubt in his brain. Whatever it took, Wednesday was Jones finally admitting that he was wrong.
Now it’s up to the rest of the NFL to sit up and take notice. Because some Super Bowl-contending team undoubtedly will wonder what Owens will look like in its scheme. Scores of fans will daydream for a moment, wondering what T.O. would look like next to Randy Moss, or catching passes from Eli Manning, or matching his charisma with Ray Lewis. But what everyone should be seeing at this moment is the most radioactive player in the NFL – a natural disaster just waiting to corrupt the course of another franchise.

Cromartie may say, "bye!" to the Chargers

In 2007, Antonio Cromartie unseated Drayton Florence as the starting right cornerback for the San Diego Chargers and finished the season with 10 interceptions. Now, it appears the Florence could replace Cromartie according to the San Diego Union Tribune.
The report, citing league sources, indicated the Chargers will put Cromartie on the trading block if they can sign Florence as a free agent. Florence is also being courted by the Buffalo Bills.
Cromartie's Pro Bowl campaign in 2007 convinced the Chargers to allow Florence to leave via free agency. He signed a six-year, $36 million contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars. But he was released last month and, according to the report, notified the Chargers through his agent he would like to return. The sides are talking now, and a deal could be in place this week.
Cromartie suffered a serious slide in production in 2008. He injured his hip in the season opener — which he later called a fracture — and had just two interceptions. If he is not traded, 2009 is considered a make-or-break year for him with the Chargers.

Holmes fined for celebration, but not flagged?

PITTSBURGH (AP)—Santonio Holmes’ last-minute touchdown catch won the Super Bowl for the Pittsburgh Steelers. It cost him 10 grand, too.
The NFL fined Holmes $10,000 for using the football as a prop during his post-catch celebration, which came well after the play ended. Holmes, impersonating NBA star LeBron James’ pregame ritual of tossing powder into the air, shook the football and tossed it after his 6-yard scoring catch with 35 seconds sealed Pittsburgh’s 27-23 victory.
The Steelers were not penalized for excessive celebration, apparently because the officials were getting ready for the point-after attempt and did not see Holmes’ display in the corner of the end zone.
Two weeks ago, NFL vice president of officiating Mike Pereira said the celebration should have drawn a 15-yard penalty on the following kickoff. Such penalties result in an automatic $10,000 fine.
However, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said before the Pro Bowl that the NFL competition committee may consider making such celebrations legal if they occur long after a play ends.
“As you know, part of this rule is to avoid having a reaction from opposing players and, from what I could see, only seeing it once, it didn’t seem like it was anywhere near that,” Goodell said.
Holmes auctioned off the gloves he wore during the catch for $70,200, but that money will be donated to charity.
The NFL Network first reported the Holmes fine.

Aloha 2009 Pro Bowl

Fitzgerald caught five passes for 81 yards and two touchdowns, 44-year-old John Carney kicked two fourth-quarter field goals, and the NFC rallied to a 30-21 victory over the AFC. The Arizona Cardinals' All-Pro receiver, coming off a record-breaking postseason and a spectacular Super Bowl in a loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, earned MVP honors.

"You don't really get to understand how good he is until you go out there and play against him," AFC and Tennessee Titans safety Chris Hope said. "He's so impressive. Most importantly, he's honed in for that ball. So when the ball's in the air, he's almost unstoppable."

Dwight Freeney had a hard time disrupting Drew Brees.

To give the Pro Bowl slightly more significance, the 2010 Pro Bowl will not be held in Hawaii, and will not be held after the Super Bowl.

Instead, next year's Pro Bowl will be in Miami, and the 2011 Pro Bowl will be in the new stadium at Dallas. In addition, the next two Pro Bowls will be held the week before the Super Bowl.The Pro Bowl was the only major all-star game to be held at the end of the season, not in the middle. To revive flagging interest in the game, the NFL will try to give fans at least one game to watch during the two-week wait for the Super Bowl.

Cowboys out of T.O.'s?

Going T.O.-less has become a topic of serious internal debate at Valley Ranch. And an awful lot of Cowboys front-office types have decided parting ways with him is not only a good idea, but also necessary to fixing what is obviously wrong with this team.
In fairness, none of them are named Owner Jones. Not yet at least.
But word is people very close to him, including a certain son, have been in his ear.
The question, as it always is with Jerry, remains: Will he listen?