Winslow injury reminds players to put safety first
Associated PressPublished May 13, 2005
FORT LAUDERDALE - Drew Brees was in the water with great white sharks off the South African coast a couple of years ago, and he dived near Australia's Great Barrier Reef this offseason.
Yet the fear of injury prevents San Diego's Pro Bowl quarterback from doing everything on his wish list, including downhill skiing and skydiving.
Brees, like most players who came to South Florida for the league's annual quarterback challenge, expressed concern for Browns tight end Kellen Winslow, who was seriously injured when he crashed his high-powered motorcycle this month.
Winslow might miss the 2005 season.
"You've got to live life, but then again you only have a small window to achieve something not everybody gets a chance to do by playing in the NFL," Brees said Thursday from the challenge, to be taped today and televised in the summer. "Just kind of weigh those options and see what you can get away with."
The standard NFL contract prohibits players from engaging in potentially dangerous activities, and Winslow could be required to pay back some of the $5.05-million in bonus money he received from the Browns if he cannot play this season because of his accident.
Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who was chided recently by coach Bill Cowher for riding a motorcycle without a helmet, said he and his agent reviewed everything forbidden by his contract as soon as he entered the league.
Roethlisberger said he doesn't consider himself to be a risk-taker.
"I don't do the crazy things that they say you can't do," he said. "I'm getting a chance to live my life and do the things I want to do. I know there'll be plenty of time for me to do crazy things like skydive and stuff like that when I get older."
Still, Rams receiver Torry Holt said he took Roethlisberger aside Wednesday and reiterated the need for caution when taking any undue risk.
AGENT SAYS T.O. UNSURE ABOUT CAMP: The agent for Terrell Owens broke his camp's silence on the issue of the Eagles receiver's contract. In an interview on ESPN's SportsCenter that lasted a little more than five minutes, Drew Rosenhaus said Owens still has not decided whether he will attend training camp, which is scheduled to begin Aug. 1 for the team's veterans.
"That's going to be something Terrell and I talk about," Rosenhaus said. "I try telling people who are up in arms ... that Terrell hasn't missed a game yet. It's only May. Everyone should just chill out. This is when you talk about contracts and things. We'll decide at the appropriate time, but everyone should just relax a little bit."
TURF UPGRADE: The Colts have chosen FieldTurf, the same synthetic surface used at Tropicana Field, to replace one of the NFL's worst playing fields at the RCA Dome. Earlier this week, the Rams announced a switch to FieldTurf at the Edward Jones Dome. FieldTurf will be the playing surface of 22 of the 32 NFL teams this season.
BEARS: Former Jets kicker Doug Brien signed a one-year contract and will try to beat out Paul Edinger for the job.
JAGUARS: Free-agent linebacker Nate Wayne agreed to a contract and is likely to sign Monday.
RAIDERS: Former Texans linebacker Jay Foreman signed a free-agent contract.