Jason Babin won’t be running with the bulls

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Eagles defensive end Jason Babin allegedly had plans to run with the bulls in Spain this summer, a decision that put him under fire amongst teammates and NFL observers. Eagles management also couldn’t have been too pleased, had Babin followed through. They’re planning to pay him about $6 million this season.

Babin told the Wilmington News Journal that it was never a serious consideration, though, and he won’t be running with the bulls.

“I’m not sure what you guys are talking about,” said Babin, playing dumb. “I’m a little confused. I’m not a big basketball fan but growing up I was a Bulls fan. I’m confused. I have a lot of bulls on my farm in Texas.”

Babin said he doesn’t “even have a passport” that would allow him to get to Spain in the first place.

So that ends that.

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WR Sammy Watkins was a hit on the second day of Bills camp.

Dolphins DE Cameron Wake checks out Wembley Stadium in London.

Injury issues to watch with the Patriots.

What will Jets DE Sheldon Richardson do in his second NFL season?

The Ravens have selected a new anthem singer for home games.

Said Bengals offensive coordinator Hue Jackson, “I know this. You can’t be complacent. There has to be a fire in you. Hopefully with our players it’s the right kind of fire, not one you have to put out. The past is the past. It’s about a different future. Not for myself but for this offensive football team.”

The Browns will need big things from TE Jordan Cameron this season.

Steelers WR Lance Moore is getting used to all the hills in Pittsburgh.

It’s not surprising that the Texans were 2-14 last year after watching them cut ties with a second 2013 third-round pick.

Colts LB Daniel Adongo’s unusual journey to the NFL is about to turn into a second season.

One last look at the Jaguars offseason before training camp begins.

What should we expect from the Titans defensive line this season.

S Eric Hagg has decided to retire from the Broncos.

TE Travis Kelce is eager to start contributing to the Chiefs offense.

Jim Plunkett and Marcus Allen have different opinions on where the Raiders should play.

Chargers president Dean Spanos is excited to start the season on Monday Night Football.

Has building a strong offensive line hurt the Cowboys?

Not every son-in-law gets to hear things as nice from their wife’s father as what former Giants G Chris Snee heard on Monday.

Looking for progress from the Eagles defense.

The Redskins added TE Mike Caussin to their roster.

S Chris Conte is confident he still has a future on the Bears defense.

The Lions unveiled the patch they’ll wear to honor the late William Clay Ford.

Keeping QB Aaron Rodgers upright makes everything else go for the Packers offense.

Offensive coordinator Norv Turner shares some thoughts about how the Vikings will move the ball this season.

Julio Jones’s return from injury is one thing to watch at wide receiver with the Falcons.

Panthers S Roman Harper bought a new pad in New Orleans.

Saints DT John Jenkins is starting camp on the PUP list.

Five Buccaneers position battles to keep an eye on this summer.

Optimism and questions at linebacker accompany the Cardinals to training camp.

The Rams rookies kicked off their training camp on Monday.

Finding a stand-in for LB NaVorro Bowman will be a key part of 49ers camp.

Two Seahawks fans want to erect a statue of the final play of last season’s NFC Championship Game.

AP

The Cowboys had the option of running in the oppressive heat of Texas, or waiting until they hit the milder temps of California for training camp.

Most of them chose Texas.

According to David Moore of the Dallas Morning News, around 75 players performed their conditioning tests Monday at Valley Ranch, rather than waiting until they reported to Oxnard later this week.

The test — a series of 20 sprints with prescribed times by position group — were overseen by team captains, who relayed results to coaches. Linebacker Justin Durant tweeted out word that “everybody passed,” which is a good sign.

Of course, the high participation in a more demanding climate might also be read as a positive, for a team that has cruised to an 8-8 record each of the last three seasons.

AP

Rex Ryan’s confidence is apparently contagious.

Wide receiver David Nelson has caught it, saying that for the first time he’s convinced the Jets will make the playoffs.

“For the first time in my career, I can say it with conviction and say it with belief: this is a playoff team,” Nelson said, via Seth Walder of the New York Daily News.

“Going 8-8 with the team that we had last year, the youth that we had, the inexperience. The way we finished the season last year showed us that we had potential. The teams that we beat showed us we were capable.”

Asked if that meant they were a Super Bowl team (pushy New York media), Nelson replied: “That’s the beautiful thing about the playoffs: Anything can happen. So I’ll answer that again in [November]  when we hopefully clinch a playoff spot.”

Of course, that’s all easier to say than do. The Jets haven’t made the playoffs since 2010.

Then again, they’re the Jets, so the saying is part of the charm, even if it takes them a few years to actually believe the words flying out of their mouths.

AP

The arguments advanced by the Aaron Hernandez legal team now include an attempt to keep secret the in-court discussion of their arguments.

According to the Associated Press, Hernandez’s lawyers filed paperwork on Monday asking the Bristol Superior Court to rule that private conversations between Hernandez and the lawyers not be included in the online broadcast of hearings.  The lawyers contend that the images violate the rules established for the electronic recording of courtroom proceedings.

“[P]rompt action” is requested.  Which makes sense, given that Hernandez will be back in court on Tuesday for a status hearing in the Odin Lloyd murder case.  Hernandez’s lawyers recently asked that the trial in the case be delayed from early October to early January.

AP

Bills defensive tackle Marcell Dareus was absent from training camp on Monday while he appeared in an Alabama courtroom, where he told a judge he will agree to substance abuse treatment.

Dareus was arrested and charged with possession of a controlled substance in Alabama on May 5, and his lawyer told the Associated Press on Monday that Dareus agreeing to enter the NFL’s substance-abuse program may allow him to have those felony drug charges dismissed.

The drug possession charge was not Dareus’s only legal problem this offseason: He also was charged with reckless endangerment after an incident in which he crashed his car into a tree following an alleged drag race with teammate Jerry Hughes. Dareus has a September 9 court date in that case.

On the field, Dareus is missing practice until he can pass the team’s conditioning test, which he failed on his first attempt on Saturday.

Dareus could be facing league discipline, either under the substance-abuse policy for the drug possession arrest or the personal-conduct policy for the reckless endangerment arrest, but there has been no word from the league office about any fine or suspension.

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When the rookie wage scale grossly restricted the money earned by players taken at the top of the 2011 draft, a theory emerged that once players became eligible for new contracts after their third NFL seasons, plenty of the men who became quality players would hold out until receiving the money they didn’t get upon entering the league in order to prevent busts from being unduly overpaid.

So far, that theory has busted.  No members of the 2011 draft class are poised to hold out, even though none of the first-round picks has received a second contract.

Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman, a fifth-round pick that year, has gotten a massive payday.  But he’s the rare exception.  First-rounders like Cam Newton, A.J. Green, Patrick Peterson, Julio Jones, Tyron Smith, and J.J. Watt (pictured) are waiting — and they’re waiting very patiently.

In fact, only one 2011 draft pick has taken a stand this offseason.  Chiefs linebacker Justin Houston boycotted the offseason program and a mandatory minicamp.  He’s still expected to report this week for Chiefs’ training camp, especially since he is only a season away from free agency, unlike the first-rounders whose hands are tied by the fifth-year option.

The situation will further bolster the idea that the NFL won big in the last CBA, even though the truth remains that the NFLPA got the best deal it could given a rank-and-file that didn’t want to miss a paycheck.  As a result, the paychecks will continue to smaller for for all rookies drafted from 2011 through the end of the decade, whether superstar or half-a-star.

AP

The Browns might not have wide receiver Josh Gordon for part or all of the 2014 season, but that doesn’t mean the club will be severing his employment.

Head coach Mike Pettine told the Akron Beacon Journal the club doesn’t intend to release Gordon, who was arrested on a DWI charge in early July. The 23-year-old Pro Bowl wide receiver, under contract for two more seasons, was already facing a potential suspension under the NFL’s substance abuse policy.

“Josh is a Cleveland Brown. We want to do what’s best for him,” Pettine told the Beacon Journal‘s Nate Ulrich in a story published Monday. “We have a player that potentially needs help. Whether it’s him or whether it’s anybody else that wears the uniform, if we can help, we’ll help. We want to make our decisions always, what’s best for the player, and you try to marry it with what’s best for the team.

“So that’s why I don’t think that cutting him, while it may have worked for some other people, I don’t know if that’s necessarily the best option here. It might be the worst option for both — for us and for him. We’re going to wait and see what happens and then act accordingly.”

Pettine told the Beacon Journal the club expects some clarity on Gordon’s disciplinary status in the next two weeks. The wide receiver reportedly could be in line for a yearlong ban.

“I’ve heard everything, all the possibilities, so it’s just gotten to the point where it is what it is. We’ve planned for everything, and we’re ready to go,” the Browns’ head coach told the newspaper.

In the short term, the Browns would count on Andrew Hawkins, Miles Austin, Nate Burleson and Travis Benjamin, among others, to pick up the slack if Gordon were ruled out for an extended stretch.

In the longer term, though, an ideal Cleveland offense would have Gordon as the go-to target for a clear-cut starting quarterback. But those are just hopes for now.

AP

Johnny Manziel or Brian Hoyer?

According to coach Mike Pettine, we’ll have a winner of the Browns’ QB derby in about a month.

In a Q&A published Monday, Pettine told the Akron Beacon Journal the club will pick a starting quarterback by Cleveland’s August 23 preseason game vs. St. Louis.

“I don’t know if I’ll set a date and kind of paint ourselves into a date, but it will be sooner than the third preseason game,” Pettine told Nate Ulrich of the Beacon Journal.

Teams typically play their starters more in the third exhibition game than in any of the other preseason contests, so if the Browns stick to the plan, the No. 1 quarterback will get an extended stint with the first-team offense in an important dress rehearsal for Cleveland.

Hoyer, a sixth-year pro who attended high school in Cleveland, will try to hold off the rookie Manziel, a first-round pick and the 2012 Heisman Trophy winner.

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The Bengals’ list of players on the non-football injury list surprisingly included receiver Marvin Jones, with an ankle injury.

Per a league source, Jones is day-to-day due to a tweaking of the ankle that happened at the post-OTA passing camp arranged by quarterback Andy Dalton.  Jones had an issue with the ankle in 2013.

It’s a minor injury, and Jones currently is expected to practice this week.  Which is great news for the Bengals, especially in light of the significant potential that Jones flashed at times in 2013 as a complement to A.J. Green.

AP

Teams that play in the Hall of Fame game get to open camp a week or so earlier than most other teams.  Which gives the teams that play in the Hall of Fame game extra practice time.

Which, when coming before other teams have opened camp, makes those teams the center of media attention.  Which, when one of their hottest young players gets injured, sets Twitter ablaze.

On Monday, Bills rookie receiver Sammy Watkins, based on simultaneous tweets from roughly a dozen or more media accounts, caught a ball in traffic and emerged with an injury.  Some said he was dazed.  Others said he appeared to have a cut on his forehead or eye.

After practice, coach Doug Marrone told reporters that Watkins had been poked in the eye.  It’s one of the risks of football practice, especially when a guy is willing to go over the middle.

“He shows that,” Marrone said regarding Watkins’ fearlessness.  “He’s made a very good career for himself, in college, being able to go over the middle. That’s always a big test when you get to this level to make sure you can come over the middle.  He’s a fearless player and, again, at the same time you have to be smart when you do that.”

Luck is also a factor.  On Monday, Watkins and the Bills got lucky.

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It’s good to be the defending NFL champions.

The Seattle Seahawks have announced that all tickets for the 2014 regular season have been sold, thanks in large part to a franchise-record 99-percent renewal rate on season tickets.

The team capped season tickets at 63,000.  Another 12,000 members of the 12th man have joined the Blue Pride season-ticket waiting list.

It’s hardly a surprise, given the passion of the fan base, the performance of the team in 2013, and the potential for the Seahawks to become the first team in a decade to win back-to-back Super Bowl crowns.

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With stalwart guard Chris Snee electing to retire, the Giants added to their numbers at the position on Monday, signing John Sullen, a first-year pro from Auburn. The signing of Sullen was disclosed in the NFL’s daily personnel notice.

Sullen (6-6, 340) signed with the Bengals after the 2013 NFL Draft. He appeared in three preseason games with Cincinnati before being waived on August 31.

Sullen will take the roster spot of the 32-year-old Snee, who officially was released with a failed physical designation. The 11th-year guard has hip and elbow injuries.

In another roster move Monday, the Giants waived wide receiver Kris Adams from the reserve/physically unable to perform list after he failed a physical. Adams suffered a broken leg last year.

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Packers President and CEO Mark Murphy said recently that Brett Favre has not committed to a jersey retirement ceremony at Lambeau Field in part because “He wouldn’t want to come back to be booed.” But Favre says that’s not the case.

“I’ve heard that was a concern of mine, and I’m here to tell you I’m not,” Favre said on ESPN 1000. “I’m not worried about that. I’m well aware that you can’t please everyone. Not everyone’s going to like you regardless, and you know what, so be it. But I think the 16 years that I had in Green Bay speaks for itself.”

Favre was booed off the field the last time he played at Lambeau with the Vikings, but he thinks he’d be cheered if he returned to have his green and gold No. 4 jersey retired.

“I have played with other teams, but I will be remembered as a Packer,” Favre said. “I feel that. I think the true Packer backers, which there are tons out there, feel the same way. I’m not the first player to play for other teams or rivals. . . . As time goes by, that’s how I will be remembered, as a Packer, and that’s how I want to be remembered.”

Favre believes that most Packers fans remember him fondly, even if they didn’t much like the way he left.

Eagles safety Keelan Johnson has been arrested after an altercation with police at a bar in Tempe, Arizona.

Johnson was charged with assaulting a police officer, passively resisting arrest and disorderly conduct, according to Arizona news station KTAR.

Police say Johnson was standing in front of a bar at 2 a.m. after an acquaintance was involved in a fight. As police detained Johnson’s acquaintance, Johnson shouted at officers. He was told to step back and then, according to police, when an officer tried to move him back, Johnson shoved the officer and a scuffle ensued. The report said Johnson appeared to be intoxicated.

The 24-year-old Johnson signed with the Dolphins as an undrafted free agent out of Arizona State last year, then signed with the Eagles when the Dolphins cut him at the end of the preseason. Johnson played in two games for the Eagles last season.

AP

The Patriots lost defensive tackle Tommy Kelly to a torn ACL early last season and it looks like they’ll wait a little bit longer before letting him cut loose in a full training camp practice.

Field Yates of ESPNBoston.com reports that Kelly is one of five players who will start training camp on the Physically Unable to Perform list. Wide receiver Aaron Dobson, whose return from foot surgery was generating optimism he’d be ready on day one, is also headed to the list along with cornerback Alfonzo Dennard, special teams ace Matt Slater and rookie wide receiver Jeremy Gallon.

You’ll likely notice that neither tight end Rob Gronkowski nor defensive tackle Vince Wilfork are on that list, although they could still be given the designation at any point before taking part in a practice.

Yates also reports that first-round pick Dominique Easley will start his first camp on the Non-Football Injury list after tearing his ACL at Florida last season. Running back Roy Finch, linebacker Deontae Skinner and tackle Chris Martin are also headed to the NFL list. Those players and the ones on the PUP list can be activated at any point in camp.