Willkommen » son would have two primary responsibilities. One is regulation

TEMPE, Ariz. -- Tyrann Mathieu returned to practice for the Arizona Cardinals on Wednesday and said he was optimistic that he would be able to play when the team faces the Vikings in Minnesota.Coach Bruce Arians also confirmed after practice that wide receiver Jaron Brown has signed an extension that puts him under contract through next season.Brown is out for the season with a knee injury.We love him as a football player, Arians said. It looks like hell be fine health-wise, gives him another year. Hes earned it. Really happy for him and its good for us because hes a quality special teams player and a real quality receiver.The signing gives the team some protection should the Cardinals lose wide receiver Michael Floyd, who becomes a free agent at the end of this season.Jarons a guy you dont want to lose, quarterback Carson Palmer said. What he brings to the team, because he can play special teams, he plays every spot at receiver. Hes got speed, hes physical, he catches the ball. He catches 50-50 balls very well. Just a very, very well-rounded receiver.Browns signing was first reported by azcentralsports.Mathieu was limited in practice but said afterward that his shoulder felt fine. He was still wearing a brace on the knee that was surgically repaired late last season but was meeting with the doctor to discuss taking it off, which would greatly aid the mobility that is so crucial to the way he plays the game.Of courses Id rather play without it, he said, but I dont want to do anything that puts me in harms way, so Ill talk to him. Im sure well negotiate something.The defensive back was sidelined with a shoulder subluxation in Arizonas loss at Carolina on Oct. 30 and missed Sundays 23-20 win over San Francisco.He said removing the brace would clear another hurdle as he tries to get back to his aggressive Honey Badger performances of the past.The shoulder injury, he said, was just another challenge.Life frustrates sometimes, Mathieu said. Youve just got to deal with it. Cant get too high or too low. Its just another challenge for me. I embrace all those challenges.The way Mathieu talked, his participation in Sundays game was no sure thing.Ill see how I feel at the end of the week and if Im at 100 percent, or very close to it, Ill play Sunday, he said. If not, Ill hold back. ... Im optimistic I will play. I try to look on the bright side of everything.Mathieu was asked about the perception that hes handling this shoulder setback better than he did such problems earlier in his career.I dont know, he said. From the outside looking in maybe, but its frustrating on the inside, obviously. A lot of noise. You try to tune that out. Just another challenge for me. I embrace it.The Cardinals defense ranks second in the NFL, allowing 295.2 yards per game, but Mathieu said the team doesnt have the swagger it exhibited in last years 13-3 season.At times weve had swagger. We have had confidence, he said. Were just playing inconsistent right now. Weve just got to get that consistency back. Once we get that back, Im sure well be rolling.Theyd better get rolling soon. At 4-4-1, the Cardinals cant afford many more stumbles if they want to challenge for a playoff berth.After Sundays game against a Minnesota team hungry for a win after four straight losses, the Cardinals go to Atlanta to face the NFC South-leading Falcons.Game notesLarry Fitzgerald didnt practice due to knee and ankle injuries but Arians said he remains confident his star wide receiver will play Sunday. ... Palmer had another veterans day off. ... Outside linebacker Chandler Jones missed practice because of a family issue.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFLChris Bassitt Jersey . In Europe, top teams seem to be largely happy with their squads after spending nearly $1 billion in the off-season. And although English league clubs are unlikely to splash cash in January, Arsenal and Chelsea could be tempted to strengthen their squads with new strikers. Chris Bassitt Athletics Jersey .B. - Sebastien Auger made 44 saves as the Saint John Sea Dogs edged the visiting Acadie-Bathurst Titan 2-1 on Saturday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. https://www.cheapathleticsonline.com/ . -- Yogi Ferrell orchestrates pretty much everything in Indianas offence. Cheap Athletics Jerseys . Vokoun departed practice on Saturday morning after discovering swelling in his thigh. He was taken to a local hospital where the clot was revealed. The club announced the surgery following a 5-3 exhibition loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. Oakland Athletics Pro Shop . -- Stanfords Kevin Danser knelt on one knee and hardly moved on the sideline as Michigan State celebrated its Rose Bowl victory and his Cardinal teammates made their way to the locker room.In the early 2000s, the rules of the fantasy league between Green Bay Packers?front-office executives and scouts were straightforward: No money was involved. Coaches were not allowed to play, and you could not draft any Packers.Still, despite the seemingly harmless nature of the league, a team executive was a little bit concerned and thought he should call the NFL office. I knew [the NFL] had this mantra of gambling affects the integrity of the game, recalled Andrew Brandt, then a vice president for the Packers. Back then, I didnt know if fantasy was gambling. I didnt know how they would view it.The response I got was either We didnt have this conversation or Just do it and dont tell anyone that youre doing it.A decade later, Brandt, now a columnist for TheMMQB.com on Sports Illustrated, has a better understanding of the NFLs stance on fantasy sports and gambling. But, as discussions heat up about expanding legal sports betting in the U.S., he believes the league needs to be more proactive on the issue. Brandt, ESPN NFL Business Analyst, visited with Chalk about the leagues stance on sports betting as part of our series on the future of sports betting in the U.S.Q: How well do you think the NFLs gambling policy was understood back then, and how well is it understood now?A: People understand the general concept that gambling flies in the face of integrity in [the] sense that it has associations with fixing games. It has associations with casinos. It has an association with a negative element that goes against this mantra of competitive balance and integrity. But drilling down, I think its not that deep of [an] understanding, because there are some contradictions, and there are some questions as to how things apply.Q: How would you characterize the divide among NFL owners when it comes to the leagues opposition to expanding legal sports betting?A: I think the stance generally is more evolved. I say that because we havent had owners standing up on the table beating the drum against the possible relocation (of the Oakland Raiders) to Las Vegas. But even before we get to Vegas, I think theres a more evolved view. I cant name names, because I dont know which is which, but I do think there is an old guard that continues to hold up their hands in a stop sign to anything associated with gambling. But theres a newer version of ownership thats much more flexible when it comes to that.Q: What is the biggest concern from those who oppose sports betting?A: I think theres always the concern of competitive balance. It drives everything the league does. In my expertise, it drives the reason for restrictions on free agency. It drives the reason for a salary cap. It drives the reason for a draft in inverse order. And you can apply it to gambling. There is a concern that, if we allow [gambling] in, players, coaches, referees, executives will be subject to potential influence that could influence the outcome of these games. Every time Roger Goodell speaks about fantasy, the clear distinction is outcome of games versus outcomes of player performance. Thats the fear: that [gambling] could affect the competitive balance of the league. It could affect outcomes of games.Q: Why doess the NFL believe the current environment, where the majority of bets are placed in an illegal, unregulated market, better protects the integrity of the game than a legal market overseen by licensed officials?A: Its a fair question.dddddddddddd I think its the fear of the unknown. Its stepping into new territory, and again, I think the NFL isnt the most progressive sports league and not the one that you would see jumping into previously taboo areas. You have (NBA commissioner) Adam Silver writing an op-ed in the New York Times about exactly what you said in terms of bringing gambling out in the light. You have the NHL all-in, moving a team to Las Vegas. So before the NFL dips [its] toes in the water, I think they want to see it happen in other leagues. They dont move as nimbly as others.Q: Youve written about the need for the league to be proactive on sports gambling and possibly hiring a new executive position, a gambling czar. What would that positions responsibilities be, in your opinion?A: I do think that its a position that makes sense. It sort of follows the path of concussions and brain health. Because whats happened over the years is a positive trajectory toward concussions, a better understanding, better science, better rules, better governance and the hiring of a chief medical officer. I think that is a good path for the gambling issue. As they understand fantasy, as they understand the issues with Las Vegas, as they look into consequences for gambling, why not have the same strategy in hiring a chief gambling officer, what Ive called a gambling czar? So in this area that is incredibly changing and moving quickly, lot of legislation, lot of issues, lot of litigation and a potentially lucrative revenue source, which will get their attention as much as anything, why not hire this person?This person would have two primary responsibilities. One is regulation and enforcement, which is upholding the integrity of the game. First of all youd create the rules that prohibit players, coaches, referees, team personnel from placing bets in any way on any aspect of the game. The czar would be the clearinghouse that Ive talked about in terms of Can we do this? Why cant we do this? What are the limitations to play fantasy football? What are our limitations on aligning with a casino, whether sponsorship, advertising or marketing, etc.?Then I think there would also be the investigatory process that we hear so much about, with Roger Goodell and player conduct. There would be the same kind of policy, discipline, procedure and regulations in this area. Now, would Goodell want overarching authority? Thats another issue. But this czar would be the one deciding, notifying, investigating all these issues within this area.Q: The czar would have been the person you would have called regarding the Packers fantasy league? A: Absolutely. It would have been this person, and the answer would have been clear, concise. A general lawyer, who was the person that I called, is working on 50 different things, and gambling was probably not even on his radar. ' ' '