NBC said on the eve of Sunday's Super Bowl that it has sold the last two of the 69 advertising spots for the game, pushing total ad revenue for the event to a record $206 million. The network said its total of $261 million in ad revenue for all of Super Bowl day also is a record, calling it an especially impressive feat in the middle of the economy's steep downturn. Comments Off
The Arizona Cardinals went through a relaxed walk-through in front of about 300 family members and friends Saturday in the team's final on-field preparation for Sunday's Super Bowl. "I think we had a good week of work," coach Ken Whisenhunt said. The onlookers mingled with players on the field after the practice at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' facility, some posing for pictures with Whisenhunt and... Comments Off
The Pittsburgh Steelers finished their Super Bowl preparations on Saturday with something that's usually missing from game-week practices: a crowd. With an estimated 250 friends and family members watching, plus the Rev. Jesse Jackson, the Steelers held a 38-minute walk-through at the University of South Florida. Comments Off
The undisputed star of Texas Stadium has left the field. Crews on Friday rolled up the star section of blue artificial turf, about 30 feet by 30 feet, as part of plans to remove and sell items from the former home of the Dallas Cowboys. John Linville of Hellas Construction says the company laid the latest artificial field in 2002, including the more than 1-ton section of the star.
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The first time Jimmy Raye was on the San Francisco 49ers' coaching staff, he didn't even really have a job title. He's coming back 32 years later to take on a title that nobody has kept very long in recent years. Raye agreed to terms with the 49ers on Friday to become the club's seventh offensive coordinator in seven seasons. Comments Off
Pittsburgh's Mike Tomlin plans to "wing" his final team speech before the Super Bowl. Arizona's Ken Whisenhunt will know exactly what he wants to say. The coaches are completely aligned on this, though: The buzzword leading up to Sunday's matchup is "normalcy." Tomlin and Whisenhunt held their last media sessions Friday before the big game. Comments Off
The flurry of changes for the St. Louis Rams continues with the hiring of Kevin Demoff as executive vice president of football operations and chief operating officer. Demoff worked as a senior assistant to the general manager at Tampa Bay the past three seasons. In St. Louis, he'll be responsible for all player contract negotiations and will serve as a liaison to ownership on football and business... Comments Off
Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin says quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is fine for the Super Bowl. Roethlisberger was drilled in the back during the AFC championship game. He spent a lot of time stretching his torso during a practice this week. Tomlin met with the media Friday and said the quarterback was set to play Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals. Comments Off
Three weeks after being dismissed by Boston College for pursuing an NFL head coaching job, Jeff Jagodzinski was hired Thursday by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to be their offensive coordinator. Jagodzinski, who led Boston College to the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game in each of his two seasons, was fired Jan.
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The NFL players' union plans to pick a successor for the late Gene Upshaw early this year, and sees no reason to expect a lockout in two years. Owners are opting out of the current labor deal after the 2010 season, however, the union said it didn't anticipate trouble. "This is a good thing we have going on between the players and owners," president Kevin Mawae said Thursday in the NFL Players... Comments Off
