Time for some links, with something on rehab from Urban. Along with the Davonte Neal kerfuffle from yesterday morning.
Word From the Birds Blog - The timeline of rehab
This time of year, strolling through the locker room means mostly a snapshot of guys rehabbing from injury, and — as I had a chance to talk last week to nose tackle Dan Williams about his broken arm — I thought about what that means today compared to when I first started covering the team more than a decade ago. Obviously, a broken arm will heal long before training camp, and it shouldn’t impact Williams in 2012. Same with the arthoscopic knee work done on running back Beanie Wells, who was downstairs today.
Mailbag: Backlash against QB desperation - NFC West Blog - ESPN
Hashem from Palestine thinks the Arizona Cardinals should cut ties with Kevin Kolb and go all in for Peyton Manning. He thinks Skelton would benefit from working under Manning, and he thinks the Cardinals are built to win now.
azcentral.com blogs - Kent Somers - A Scouting Combine full of stories
Indianapolis again will be the epicenter of NFL news this week as the annual scouting combine begins. The city is just recovering from hosting its first Super Bowl, but I'm guessing the hangover was minimal because folks there know how to handle their big events. I'll be there from Wednesday through Sunday. I'm especially looking forward to this combine because there are more local stories than usual.
Leading Questions: NFC West - NFC West Blog - ESPN
ARIZONA CARDINALS: Why so much hedging over the quarterbacks?
Arizona Sports News:
Phoenix Coyotes battle back from 3-goal deficit for victory over Los Angeles Kings
At this point of the season, getting points is all that matters. Once in a while, and maybe Tuesday night was one of those times, it's how a team grabs a point or two that can serve as a catapult. The Coyotes rallied from a three-goal deficit, tied the score late in the third period and won 5-4 in a shootout against the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday night at Jobing.com Arena. Mikkel Boedker's shootout goal was the game-winner after Ray Whitney and the Kings' Dustin Brown also scored. Radim Vrbata sent the game into overtime with his second goal of the game, and 30th of the season, on a power-play with 2:27 left in regulation. Goaltender Mike Smith extended his win streak to eight games. The Coyotes have 69 points, tied with San Jose for first place in the Pacific Division. The Sharks, however, have two games in hand.
Omar Bolden heads to NFL Combine with plenty to prove
Ten months have passed since Omar Bolden tore the ACL in his left knee. As a result, the former Arizona State cornerback didn't play a single series last season. Bolden knows how it works: Out of sight, out of mind. It's something he'll keep in mind this week at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. "At times, I've been elite," Bolden said. "I feel like sometimes people have forgotten that. I'm just going there to remind everybody that I'm still that guy." Six former ASU players will participate. Besides Bolden, linebacker Vontaze Burfict, center Garth Gerhart, defensive end Jamaar Jarrett, quarterback Brock Osweiler and receiver Gerell Robinson will work to impress NFL scouts and executives. Of them all, Bolden probably has the most to prove.
Davonte' Neal to play college football at Notre Dame
Davonte' Neal finally showed up to his old Ahwatukee elementary school on Tuesday, without the students, without the orchestrated, splashy news event, and gave a college football commitment that was both exhilarating and frustrating for everybody waiting since Feb. 1: It's Notre Dame. The 5-foot-10, 175-pound Scottsdale Chaparral senior receiver/cornerback said he would come back this week to Kyrene de la Esperanza Elementary School, where he attended the fifth-grade, to apologize to the 600 children who had gathered in the morning at the school cafeteria for a scheduled announce-and-sign, webcast event that had been two weeks in the making.
azcentral.com blogs - Scott Bordow - Neals should be ashamed of themselves
I don't know for sure why Scottsdale Chaparral's Davonte Neal and his father, Luke, failed to show up at an Ahwatukee elementary school Tuesday morning to announce where Neal would play college ball. Nor do I care. The Neals set up the elaborate one-man show, presumably to "give back to the community." Then they stiff the kids, the principal, the teachers, etc? What a completely selfish act.
NFL News:
Brady Quinn questions Tebow’s humility | ProFootballTalk
We posted an item earlier today regarding some of the major takeaways from Mike Silver’s new "oral history" of Tim Tebow. There’s plenty of other good stuff that I initially missed. Broncos (for now) quarterback Brady Quinn has a couple zingers.
Brady Quinn "disappointed" with "completely inaccurate portrayal" | ProFootballTalk
There were a lot of interesting quotes in Mike Silver’s hilariously titled Year of Magical Stinking article about Tim Tebow in the latest GQ. Brady Quinn’s comments about Tebow’s humility have attracted the most attention.
Silver says Quinn’s comments were taped | ProFootballTalk
Mike Silver of Yahoo! Sports has a knack for getting people to say interesting things on the record. As a result, Mike Silver often is accused of misquoting people when the interesting things they say get other people talking. As a result, Silver makes sure that people actually said the things he says they said.
Steelers Free Agency: Some Concern Over Losing Mike Wallace - SBNation.com
The Pittsburgh Steelers have a number of free agents heading into the 2012 NFL offseason but none are more important than wide receiver Mike Wallace. With just three years of service in the league, Wallace is a restricted free agent, which means the Steelers have some control of his rights.
Broncos Free Agency: Two New QBs Coming To Compete With Tim Tebow - SBNation.com
Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow had the Broncos on a winning streak and a run that propelled them into the playoffs. Tebow even threw the game-winning touchdown pass in overtime to beat the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round of the playoffs. The Broncos were unceremoniously bounced from the playoffs in the next game however, as Tebow struggled to complete nine passes in the entire game. That game, coupled with a few other poor outings, led many to wonder if Tebow could be the long term answer, but the Broncos front office has insisted he'll be the starting quarterback at the start of training camp.
Report: Dolphins won’t offer a new deal to Chad Henne | ProFootballTalk
Another year, another second-round pick devoted by the post-Marino Dolphins on a quarterback gone.
Quarterback guru Tom Martinez dies at 66 | ProFootballTalk
Tom Martinez, a long-time quarterback coach best known for serving as Tom Brady’s personal mentor, has died of a heart attack suffered during a dialysis session, according to WVCB in Boston. Martinez was 66.
Aikman thinks football could lose its spot at No. 1 sport | ProFootballTalk
Former Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman has a trio of Super Bowl rings, a bust in the Hall of Fame, and a spot next to Joe Buck every Sunday during football season. Well, two out of three ain’t bad. But Aikman thinks that the popularity of the sport that made him rich and famous could be on the verge of a decline.