The holdout of the NFL’s overall number one draft pick is over. The Oakland Raiders and quarterback JaMarcus Russell have agreed on a 6-year $68 million dollar deal which will be signed on Tuesday.

There is $37.5 million guaranteed over four years.

No top overall pick has held out longer than Russell since Bo Jackson declined to sign with Tampa Bay all together in 1986.

Russell, 22, spent three seasons at LSU as the starter throwing for 6625 yards, 52 touchdowns and 21 interceptions. He is expected to be at Raiders practice on Wednesday.

 

First on this day all of our thoughts and prayers are with the survivors and the families who lost loved ones in the tragic, cowardly acts that occurred 6 years ago today.  The images of that day were horrific but it brought a nation together, it made us stronger and it focused our resolve.    

Also I send a special thanks to our troops here and overseas for protecting our freedoms and making our country a great place and to all the emergency workers everywhere who live with this on a daily basis.  You folks are the true American heroes.

Thank you.

I’ll never forget watching former Patriots lineman Joe Andruzzi talk about his two brothers who are FDNY firefighters and how they were in the building but they they were able to get out and were okay.  I’ll never forget watching him on the field with them the following weekend.  I’ll never forget Jack Buck before the Cardinals baseball game in St.Louis.   I’ll never forget the strike that President Bush threw on the mound at Yankee Stadium before the first game of the 2001 World Series.  I’ll never forget Robert Kraft on the podium of the Super Dome covered in red, white and blue confetti saying “Today we are all Patriots”.   I’ll never forget U2 at the Super Bowl half time show with their salute to all those who were lost.  I’ll never forget the men and women of the FDNY who I got to visit shortly after the attacks, some of the firehouses I visited  lost as many as 12 firefighters.  I’ll never forget the people I knew that lost their lives that day trying to save others but most of all I’ll never forget September 11, 2001.

I mentioned in the post game report on the Patriots win over the Jets that there was an illegal touching penalty on the Patriots and that Phil Simms of CBS and the referee Jeff Triplett failed to explain it.  According to Mike Reiss of the Boston Globe, the penalty was called because Willie Andrews at some point on his way downfield went out of bounds and then was the first player to touch the ball when he downed the ball around the 2 yard line. 

The new rule this year states that if the illegal touch occurs within the 5 yard line the ball is brought out to the 20.  In the past it was assessed as a five yard mark off. 

Head coach Bill Belichick’s Monday press conference. 

The grounds crew at Gillette is preparing to lay grass over the field turf for the Brazil-Mexico exhibition soccer match on Wednesday.  It is believed that the real grass will be pulled back up in time for Sunday night’s game with San Diego.  No word on whether Juan Valdez and his donkey were the one’s who trucked in the turf. 

The Patriots signed defensive back Gemera Williams to the practice squad.  Williams, who had been cut by the team on August 18th , showed some promise on kick returns returning two for 64 yards in the preseason game against Tampa Bay.  He was placed on the practice squad after TE Marcellus Rivers were released.  CB Tory James was also released to make roster space for DB Asante Samuel. 

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Please take a moment sometime during the day today to remember the victims and countless heroes of the fateful day known as 9-11-01.

Happy Birthday to all those born on this date. Let our celebration of life be a reminder to those that attempted to break us that we are still standing proudly and believe that America is the best place to live!!

Please don’t forget our troops who are overseas defending our great country and those who gave their lives.

I found this very moving video on YouTube aptly named “9-11 World Trade Center Memorial – Jeff Buckley/Hallelujah”

[flash http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tznSfXplNRU]

And even though my mom doesn’t celebrate her birthday anymore on this date, I am still going to wish her a Happy Birthday.

It was a cloudy night at the Fens for the Sox and their offense as they ran into Scott Kazmir. It was actually a pitcher’s duel between Kazmir and Curt Schilling, not something you actually hear when the Devil Rays are involved. Kazmir went 7 innings and struck out 10 batters as the D’Rays scraped together a run off Schilling for a 1-0 win. Kazmir struck out 10 batters and the Sox never got a runner past second base in the game.

The Sox managed two hits in the first three innings while Kazmir struck out four. Schilling was cruising along as well as he only allowed a single to Delmon Young and a walk to Greg Norton in that same time frame.

After both squads managed a hit in the 4th inning, the Devil Rays got to Schilling for the only run of the night in the 5th. Norton led off with a double and went to third base on a Dioner Navarro sacrifice bunt. Norton came around to score on a Josh Wilson sacrifice fly to Bobby Kielty in right. Akinori Iwamura followed that with a single and he went to third on a Carl Crawford single. Schilling escaped any further damage as he got Carlos Peña to strikeout for the second time on the gray evening.

Schilling’s hard luck night ended after he pitched a perfect 6th inning. For the night, Schilling went the 6 innings, allowing 5 hits, the one run, 1 walk and he struck out 5.

The Sox threatened in the 7th in Kazmir’s final inning of work. Kielty led off with a single and then Kazmir got Youk for his 9th strikeout of the evening. Jason Varitek worked a one out walk but Kazmir followed that up with a strikeout of Jacoby Ellsbury, Kazmir’s 10th of the night. Alex Cora ended the inning by grounding into a fielder’s choice.

Bryan Corey worked the 7th for the Sox, allowing just a hit. Javier Lopez struck out the first two batters in the 8th and then Mike Timlin came on and struck out B.J. Upton.

Dan Wheeler worked the 8th inning and Al Reyes threw a 1-2-3 9th inning ending the game with a strikeout of Varitek.

Shockingly enough, the Devil Rays got good pitching tonight. They came into the game having the hottest offense for the past three weeks but they ran into Schilling, who took another tough loss. The Sox give the ball to Tim Wakefield and hope that he can continue his dominance of the Devil Rays.

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