National Football League roundup

Send a link to a friend  Share

[April 27, 2017]  April 26 (The Sports Xchange) - Marshawn Lynch is coming out of retirement after the Seattle Seahawks traded the running back to his hometown Oakland Raiders on Wednesday.

Lynch and the Raiders agreed to a two-year contract and he was at Oakland's training facility to take a physical.

The trade became official Wednesday afternoon when the Raiders announced they will receive Lynch and a sixth-round draft choice in 2018 in exchange for Oakland's fifth-round selection in the 2018 NFL Draft.

After weeks of negotiations, Oakland agreed to pay Lynch a $3 million base salary, with a chance to make $2 million more if he gains 1,000 yards, according to NFL Network. The maximum value of the contract is $8.5 million.

Lynch took to Twitter on Wednesday morning to confirm his return to the NFL.

Lynch arrived in Oakland after returning from a trip to Haiti, where he and former Seahawks teammates Cliff Avril and Michael Bennett have been touring to help build schools and houses, according to NFL Network.

- -

Cleveland Browns Pro Bowl left tackle Joe Thomas says he is experiencing memory loss and that "most of the damage has probably been done already" after 10 seasons in the NFL.

In an interview on "In Depth with Graham Bensinger" that was released, the 32-year-old Thomas said he did not know for sure whether playing in the NFL has caused the problem.

"I definitely expect memory loss," Thomas said. "I'm already seeing memory loss and maybe that's just because of my old age or maybe it's football, it's hard to tell.

"I mean, there's no double blind studies when it comes to people's life. It's just a part, I think, of sometimes getting older. And it's hard to tell it's because of football or because you're 32 and you're not 21 anymore and you have a lot of stuff going in your life."

Thomas, who is entering his 11th season with the Browns, has not missed a game -- starting all 160 in his NFL career.

- -
 

[to top of second column]

Rape accusations levied by a 23-year-old Ohio woman are "completely false," Ohio State cornerback Gareon Conley said.

Conley, ranked No. 22 overall and second among cornerback prospects by NFLDraftScout.com in the 2017 draft, has not been charged or arrested by police but investigators Wednesday said they were in the process of arranging an interview in conjunction with the assault claim.

"I pride myself on doing things the right way," Conley said in a statement to ESPN. "The things being said about me and what happened that night are not true and don't fit my character at all. I realize that I put myself in the situation and I could have used better judgment. However, I have worked tirelessly to put myself in position to have the honor of being and NFL draft pick and these untrue allegations are putting a huge cloud over my name and the NFL draft."

Conley decided not to attend the event in person Thursday in Philadelphia when the story broke in Ohio just two days before the first round begins.

- -

The Minnesota Vikings are not expected to pick up quarterback Teddy Bridgewater's fifth-year option for the 2018 season.

Minnesota has until the May 2 deadline to decide on the option of Bridgewater's rookie contract

The Vikings could still re-sign Bridgewater but they do not appear willing to guarantee his 2018 salary for at least $11 million for injury, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported

Bridgewater, who dislocated his left knee and tore the ACL during a late August practice, is rehabbing and trying to make it back from the catastrophic injury.

- -

The Arizona Cardinals picked up linebacker Deone Bucannon's fifth-year option for the 2018 season, according to multiple reports. (Editing by Andrew Both)

[© 2017 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2017 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Back to top