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National Football League roundup

[January 27, 2017] Jan 26 (The Sports Xchange) - Houston Texans defensive end Jadeveon Clowney had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee.

Clowney is expected to be fine, but the surgery is notable since the top overall pick of the 2014 draft had microfracture on his right knee during his rookie season.

Clowney stepped up in the absence of injured J.J. Watt and recorded 52 tackles and a career-high six sacks in 14 games en route to being named to the Pro Bowl this season.

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Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy told reporters that associate head coach/offense Tom Clements will not return to the team next season.

Clements has 20 years of NFL experience under his belt, with the last 11 being spent with the Packers. The 63-year-old started as the quarterbacks coach in 2006, was elevated to offensive coordinator in 2012.

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Seattle Seahawks assistant coach Rocky Seto is leaving the team to enter the ministry.

Seto, 42, has been the Seahawks' assistant head coach for defense the past two seasons.

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Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan will take a detour from Atlanta before the team hits Houston for Super Bowl LI.

The Pro Football Writers Association assistant coach of the year, Shanahan is interviewing for a second time Saturday with the San Francisco 49ers. Shanahan is expected to be named head coach of the 49ers after the Feb. 5 Super Bowl.

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Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce apologized during a television interview for the harshness of critical comments he made about referee Carl Cheffers after the AFC divisional round loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

"Carl, I apologize for saying it in that manner," Kelce said.

Kelce was fined $12,500 for his pointed remarks about Cheffers after the loss to Pittsburgh. Kelce was incensed that Cheffers called holding on offensive tackle Eric Fisher to nullify a two-point conversion that would have tied the score. The Chiefs lost 18-16.

"Ref No. 51 shouldn't even be able to wear a zebra jersey ever again," Kelce said afterward in reference to Cheffers' uniform number. "He shouldn't even be able to work at (expletive) Foot Locker."

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Buffalo Bills backup offensive tackle Cyrus Kouandjio is recovering from hip surgery after he was injured in a fall at home.

According to the Bills, Kouandjio underwent surgery on Wednesday. The team did not reveal the severity of the injury or when the fall occurred.

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New England Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski missed practice due to illness on Thursday.

The Patriots are not traveling to Houston for Super Bowl LI until Monday, giving Gostkowski time to recover. New England practiced on its outdoor fields Thursday for the first time since the AFC title game.

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The NFL released data that detailed fewer concussions were sustained in 2016 than in the previous year.

Data compiled by QuintilesIMS Injury Surveillance and Analytics showed the total number of concussions reported in all practices, preseason and regular-season games in 2016 was 244, an 11.3 percent dip from the 275 reported in 2015.

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New York Jets defensive backs coach Dennard Wilson has no issue with potentially moving veteran cornerback Darrelle Revis to safety next season.

Wilson, who was hired one week ago, also believes that Revis wouldn't have an issue with the transition as well.

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The Cincinnati Bengals re-signed kicker Randy Bullock, who played for three teams in 2016.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed by the team for Bullock, who signed as a replacement for the struggling Mike Nugent for the final three weeks of the season.

Bullock made all six of his extra-point attempts and 5 of 6 field-goal tries, however his 43-yard miss as time expired against the Houston Texans in Week 16 would have won the game. (Editing by Frank Pingue)

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