Sports News

Getty Images

Tom Brady is retired. Unless he is.

The best way to describe his status could be to say that he has retired from the Buccaneers and that the door is open for play again. Brady, who said “never say never” about the prospect of returning just six days after announcing his resignation, continues to add to the mystery of his football future.

Through Rick Stroud from Tampa Bay Times, Brady appeared with Fred Couples on SiriusXM radio. The couple asked a simple question: “Maybe you can tell us where you’re going?”

Brady gave a not-so-simple answer.

“I want to have a clear vision for the future”Brady said. “I think there are a lot of great things for me and a lot of great opportunities that I know I said right after the football season that I look forward to spending more time with my family. And I’ve been doing it for the last five weeks. And I know there will be many more than that.

“You know, I like to be busy, that’s for sure. I played a little golf and will actually see my parents tonight, which will be a real highlight for me on their field. I will sleep in the same bed I slept in when I was a child. . . . So we look forward to that, we look forward to a little golf over the next few days and a little more family time, and then we’ll figure out where to go from there. ”

Earlier this week, we announced that the dolphins were planning to flee to Brady. For several weeks I believed that he would eventually join the 49ers.

Two years ago, San Francisco was his first choice. 49ers foolishly said no thanks. This time, they would certainly welcome the chance to bring Brady home to play for his favorite team of boys.

What else does he have to prove? He has not won a Super Bowl with his 49ers. That would be a great reason to keep playing.

And a great reason to say goodbye to the Buccaneers. Which some (including me) think is the point of his retirement.

INDIANAPOLIS – Malik Willis of Liberty believes he should be the first quarterback offboard in the NFL draft next month. But, he admitted, it was not up to him.

“I don’t make those decisions,” he told the NFL Combine on Wednesday morning.

And then, after a blow, Willis added dryly, “I hate this for me.”

The 22-year-old Willis could become the next NFL quarterback franchise in just a month. That doesn’t bother him.

“(Teams) will always let you know how big your position is,” he said. “I mean, you’re the face of the franchise, literally. You are the face of the city. So you have to understand everything that comes with it and make sure you do all the right things and make sure you do your job. “

In his 15-minute media interview, Willis radiated confidence through his calm demeanor and dry sense of humor.

Asked who he studied and modeled his game on, Willis quoted Michael Vic, Russell Wilson, Tom Brady and Drew Bryce – but he admitted that he had not watched much of the sport in which he excels now.

“Until high school, I didn’t even watch football that way. Said Willis. “I used to think it was boring.”

So when did you stop thinking it was boring?

“When I started to improve,” he said.

Although he is expected to be one of the first quarterbacks selected for his mobility and arm strength, Willis is still under scrutiny for his inaccuracy. He scored 61.1 percent completion in 2021. But Willis isn’t worried about criticism, some of it similar to the blows against Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen during his draft.

“Someone will always think (you’re) garbage,” Willis said. “That’s how the game goes. That’s it. I’ll just keep going. I’m not playing for their approval.

“The only one I have to prove and respect is God. I play for an audience and I don’t really care what he or she says.”

However, Willis added that he was working to improve his accuracy before the April draft, working on his legs and aligning his lower body with his throwing motion.

“There are some shortcomings in my game, maybe some inaccuracies,” he said. “It’s just from working with my feet. It’s not just from inaccuracy. They can just say I can’t throw anything.”

Willis threw 2,857 yards with 27 touchdowns and 12 interceptions and rushed for 878 yards and 13 quick touchdowns in his second season with Liberty after a transfer from Auburn. And he admitted that he believes his hopes in the NFL are over after he left the Tigers. Instead, it thrived on the Hugh Freeze attack, throwing in 2,250 yards, 20 touchdowns and 6 interceptions and 944 rushing yards and 14 quick touchdowns in 2020.

“I thought I was done,” he said. “I thought I wanted to go have fun and play my last two or three years, but now I’m here, so I’m happy.” Willis doesn’t take part in 40 yards or more, going through other tests and training at Combine but will go through throwing drills, he said on Wednesday.

Willis was mocked by the Pittsburgh Steelers, a team he met in Indianapolis, number 20 as the overall pick in Mel Cyprus’ junior modeling draft. Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert declined to speak specifically about Willis on Tuesday, citing a long tradition of not discussing individual perspectives.

In some meetings with teams, Willis said he spent time drawing plays for both the team interviewing him and Liberty’s concepts. Something that might make me nervous was natural for Willis.

“I feel very good in the explanation (the plays) and I feel really good in my understanding of the game,” he said. “… When you’re prepared, it’s not really stressful. It’s not a situation where you feel stressed. I just feel like I’m doing what I had to do.”

Editor’s Note: This story contains details that may be troubling to some readers.

Former UFC heavyweight champion Kane Velazquez was formally charged Wednesday with attempted premeditated murder and numerous counts of assault with a gun in connection with Monday night’s shooting in San Jose, California, according to the Santa Clara District Attorney’s Office.

Velázquez, 39, is accused of assaulting Harry Eugene Goularte, who is accused of allegedly harassing one of Velázquez’s young relatives. Velázquez faces 10 charges, which could carry more than 20 years in prison if convicted, according to a court document.

According to the district attorney’s office, Velázquez followed Goularte’s truck in his own vehicle during an 11-mile high-speed chase through San Jose, crashed into the truck and then fired several shots at a truck carrying a .40-caliber pistol. Gularte and two older relatives. Gularte’s 63-year-old stepfather, Paul Bender, was hit once in the arm and torso, but is expected to survive, court documents say.

“The sad tragedy is that Mr Velázquez chose to take the law into his own hands, endangering the public and everyone in the truck,” said Jeff Rosen, Santa Clara County Attorney. “This act of violence also causes more pain and suffering to his family.

Velázquez was later found and arrested during a traffic stop, according to court documents. He is accused of attempted murder; shooting at a busy motor vehicle or aircraft; three charges of assault with a firearm, three charges of assault with a deadly weapon; deliberate firing of a firearm from a vehicle; and carrying a loaded firearm with intent to commit a serious crime.

Velázquez’s scheduled indictment lasted until Monday morning, when there will also be a bail hearing. He was detained without bail in the main northern prison in Santa Clara County.

According to court documents, Goularte, who was not injured in the accident, is accused of lewd or lustful treatment of a child under 14 years of age.

Gularte was released on February 25 without bail against DA orders, according to a statement from the DA office. He was ordered to remain under house arrest, to stand 100 yards from each child under the age of 14 and to wear an electronic surveillance bracelet, which he allegedly was about to receive when Velazquez persecuted him.

The 10-year-old told a Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office official on February 24 that Gularte took him to the day center bathroom and touched his genitals, according to a court document obtained from ESPN. The child said that Gularte had told him not to tell anyone what had happened and that it had happened “100 times”. In the court document, the child said that he witnessed other children also entering the bathroom with Gularte.

Gulart denied any wrongdoing, saying he once helped a child with his pants when he saw the child was not wearing them properly. Gularte lives in the same building as the kindergarten, which is owned by his mother, according to the court document. Gularte’s mother told police she did not believe the accusations against her son.

Velazquez is a former two-time UFC heavyweight champion and is considered one of the best heavyweight fighters of all time. He retired from MMA in 2019 and had a brief stint at WWE before being released at the start of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020. Velazquez is a trainer at his long gym at the American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose.

Mesher had 10 productive seasons in the NBA before embarking on a long second career as a high school English teacher. A published poet, he is the only former NBA All Star to be inducted into the Nevada Writers’ Hall of Fame.

And yet, despite all their diverse accomplishments, Atles and Mesheri realize that their legacy is tied, to some extent, to that night in Hershey, where Chamberlain shot 36 of 63 from the field, made 28 of 32 free throws, and then caught going back. in New York – he lived in Harlem at the time – with several players from the wretched Knicks.

“He was trying to sleep in the back and he could hear them saying they would leave him by the highway,” Mesher said, laughing.

The game was inconspicuous in many ways. He was placed in the Hershey Sports Arena, an impersonal concrete shell where the Warriors played several games each season. For their match against the Knicks, the building was only half full. The wooden court was originally designed for roller skating. The match was not televised and only a few newspaper reporters made the two-hour trip from Philadelphia.

Even now, the radio broadcast is not available to the public without the prior approval of the league. (The Warriors gave Atles and Mesher a copy of the fourth quarter so they could listen.)

But the game produced unexpected magic and it continues to be mythologized – suitable for a figure like Chamberlain, who did little to dispel the stories, real or imagined, of his life. Even to teammates, Pomerantz writes, Chamberlain may seem detached and “out of their reach,” although Atles was closer to him than most.

“Just a great person once you get to know him,” Atles said.

For Mesher Chamberlain, it was more of an emerging presence, at least in the beginning. In 1957, as a San Francisco graduate, Mesher appeared on the NBC’s Steve Allen Show, along with the rest of all of America’s high schools and colleges. As they gathered on stage, Meshery glanced over his shoulder.

“And Wilt is right above me,” Mesher recalls.

Chamberlain, who dominated the Kansas College Defenders, eventually left school early to play for the Harlem Globetrotters, then joined the Warriors in 1959. Atlays, who thought he should work as a junior high school teacher in Newark , made the Warriors selected in the fifth round in 1960, creating a reputation as a security guard. (His nickname? The Destroyer.) A weak striker, Mesher joined the Warriors the following season.

Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said Wednesday that the team “has no intention” of replacing quarterback Russell Wilson this offseason.

But in his first comments to the media in general after the disappointing 7-10 season of the Seahawks, Carol stopped again to completely rule out the possibility.

“There’s talk for everyone at this time of year,” Carroll said when asked at the NFL Scout Factory for trade offers or inquiries about Wilson. “We are talking about everyone. And it’s common for us to talk to teams about all the players – especially the tent players – and that hasn’t changed. Every year we are here is the same. So it’s the same as it was.

“We don’t intend to do anything there, but the talks, [general manager John Schneider] you have to put them in place. He always had. But nothing concrete about that. “

Speaking to reporters off the podium, Carol said Schneider’s standard response to teams asking about Wilson was that the Seahawks were not buying their quarterbacks, according to The News Tribune.

During his 20-minute podium session, Carol said she was not surprised by all the speculation about Wilson’s future, “because last year was twice as much.”

Wilson publicly expressed disappointment with the organization last February, leading to weeks of tensions between the two countries and trade talks with the Chicago Bears.

“This is the world of quarterback right now,” Carol said Wednesday. “They are talking about all of them. You guys are trying to do your best to try to understand it. This is what you need to do. So there are a lot of people shooting, a lot of lines in the water right now, trying to guess and see what happens. “

After the season, Carol’s comments to FOX 13 in Seattle strongly hinted that the team would listen to commercial offers for Wilson.

Wilson, 33, had the worst season of his 10-year career in the NFL in 2021. He missed three games with an injured finger on his throwing arm and struggled with accuracy since returning from surgery. By the time he regained his usual form at the end of the season, the Seahawks were out of the playoffs.

Wilson, who has a trade-off clause, has repeatedly said he hopes to stay in Seattle. He has two years left and $ 51 million for the four-year extension of $ 140 million he signed in 2019.

Carol gave a controversial answer when asked about midfielder Bobby Wagner, who is another cornerstone of the franchise since he and Wilson were drafted together in 2012.

Wilson, an eight-time Pro Bowl pick, is scheduled to count $ 20.35 million in the last year of his three-year extension of $ 54 million.

“We expect to play with Bobby,” Carol said. “I love playing with Bobby. He was a great player, he had another great season. At this time of year, there are many boys who are in a position where we need to figure out where they all fit together. Bobby has been such a stable part of him and we wish we could play with him, so we will work for that. If we can do that, we will. “

Carol said the Seahawks also want to bring back the free security of Quandre Diggs, who is an unrestricted free agent. The Seahawks have the franchise label, but have only used it twice in 12 seasons under Carol and Schneider.

The deadline for applying the franchise label is March 8.

Diggs had five interceptions before suffering a fibula fracture and ankle sprain at the end of the regular season. His injuries prevented him from playing in the Pro Bowl after doing so for the second year in a row.

Carol said he had “no doubt” that Diggs would return to the training camp.

“That’s all he thinks about,” Carol said. “I think he’ll be back before that … We really want him back.”

Katie Meyer, the goalkeeper and captain of Stanford’s women’s soccer team, has died, the university said. Mayer was 22 years old.

Her death occurred at a campus residence, according to the university, but the cause of death was not specified.

Completing international relations and history, Mayer made two key saves in the penalty area to help Stanford won the national championship in 2019

“Her friends describe her as a team player bigger than life in all her pursuits, from choosing an academic discipline, which she said changed ‘my worldview and the very important challenges we need to work together to overcome. “She has brought passion to Cardinal’s women’s football program and to women’s sport in general,” Stanford said in a statement.

The university has resources for those affected by Mayer’s death and encourages people to check on the people around them.

“There are no words to express the deep sadness we feel for the death of Katie Meyer,” Stanford Athletic Director Bernard Muir said in a statement. “Katie was an outstanding student-athlete and a beloved, passionate leader here at Stanford. Our entire athletic community is heartbroken and Katie will be deeply missed.

Mayer attended high school in Newbury Park, California.

Former UFC heavyweight champion Kane Velázquez is due to stand trial on Wednesday afternoon on charges of attempted premeditated murder and other charges after allegedly shooting a man accused of harassing a close relative.

The Santa Clara County, California District Attorney’s Office announced the charges two days after Velazquez, 39, was arrested Monday and charged with attempted murder.

Prosecutors say the former UFC champion fired a .40 pistol “repeatedly” at a truck carrying 43-year-old Harry Goularte Jr., the man accused of harassing a close relative. Velázquez also hit the truck, a Chevy Silverado, with his Ford truck.

Gularte Jr. and another relative in the car were not injured in the alleged accident, but it is alleged that a 63-year-old relative of Gularte was wounded once by a gunshot wound. The relative is expected to survive after being taken to a local hospital.

“The sad tragedy is that Mr Velazquez chose to take the law into his own hands, endangering the public and everyone in the truck,” District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in a press release announcing the allegations. “This act of violence also causes more pain and suffering to his family.”

Santa Clara police say Gularte Jr. is linked to the owner of a childcare facility where police were called on Feb. 23 for alleged sexual abuse involving a child; Gularte Jr. is said to have lived in the facility but is not an employee. After interviewing the alleged victim, a four-year-old child, investigators determined that an attack had taken place and arrested Gularte Jr., according to a press release issued by the sheriff’s department. Police say Gularte Jr. “inappropriately” touched the alleged victim “repeatedly.”

The shooting is said to have taken place in Morgan Hill, California. According to prosecutors, Velázquez followed Goularte Jr.’s truck and took part in a high-speed chase through busy streets for 11 miles. The passenger in Gularte Jr.’s car called 911. Velazquez was stopped and arrested by Morgan Hill police in San Jose.

Goularte Jr. was charged with multiple counts of adultery with a minor, according to the sheriff’s office, and was sentenced to $ 50,000 bail in Santa Clara County Jail. He was indicted in the Santa Clara County Supreme Court on February 25, but was released on remand due to the district attorney’s objections, according to prosecutors.

Prosecutors say Gularte Jr. was on his way to pick up the monitor when Kane attacked. A report from TMZ on Wednesday said the fighter was furious that the alleged perpetrator had been released from custody.

Investigators are now seeking additional information from other minors who visited the facility, which was closed by the owner pending investigation, police said.

Several UFC fighters have expressed support for Velazquez after details of his case emerged after his arrest.