National Football League roundup

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[April 20, 2017]  April 19 (The Sports Xchange) - Former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez died after hanging himself in his prison cell Wednesday morning.

Prison officials confirmed Hernandez's death in a statement.

Hernandez was serving a life sentence for the murder of Odin Lloyd, a sentence delivered in April 2015.

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President Donald Trump welcomed members of the New England Patriots to the White House, noting that it was a distinct honor to celebrate the team's Super Bowl victory "with a very good friend."

Trump, who is on favorable terms with coach Bill Belichick and team owner Robert Kraft, was unable to see another one of his friends. Quarterback Tom Brady did not attend the ceremony, releasing a statement citing "recent developments" and "personal family matters" for the reason for his absence.

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Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler, who signed his restricted free agent tender on Tuesday to remain with the team, appears to be in play again for the New Orleans Saints.

Butler could not be traded until he signed the $3.91 million tender for the 2017 season. He visited with only one team, the Saints, during free agency.

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Phil Simms was added to CBS' "NFL Today" roster, two weeks removed from being replaced by Tony Romo on the network's top broadcast team.

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Simms joins James Brown, Bill Cowher, Bart Scott and Boomer Esiason on the "NFL Today" set. He replaces Tony Gonzalez, who announced his departure last month.

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The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will be featured on HBO's "Hard Knocks" training camp documentary series for the 2017 season, the team officially announced.

The Bucs, who finished 9-7 in coach Dirk Koetter's first season in 2016, will appear on the series for the first time.

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The Detroit Lions will hold joint practices with the Indianapolis Colts leading up to the preseason opener for both teams at Lucas Oil Stadium.

The teams will spend two days practicing against each other on Aug 10-11 at the Colts' Indianapolis headquarters. The Lions and Colts kick off the preseason on Sunday, Aug. 13 at Lucas Oil Stadium.

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