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Walker found unconscious, hospitalized after apparent robbery
Raiders wide receiver Javon Walker is listed in fair condition at Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center in Las Vegas after what police are calling an attempted robbery early Monday morning.
Las Vegas police responded to the corner of Winnick Avenue and Koval Lane at 7:19 a.m. PT Monday and found an unconscious male who appeared to be the victim of a robbery, according to the official police report. The victim was transported to the hospital with "significant" injuries and later identified as Walker, according to the report.
A Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center spokesperson could not confirm what time Walker had been admitted.
A Raiders spokesperson said the team was "in the process of gathering information" and had no further comment.
Walker is entering his first season with the Raiders after signing a six-year, $55 million contract that includes $16 million in guaranteed money. The six-year veteran was release by the Broncos in March after two seasons in Denver. He was limited to eight games, with five starts, last season by a right knee injury and finished with 26 receptions for 287 yards.
Walker was a first-round draft pick by the Green Bay Packers in 2001 and had a breakout season in 2004 with 89 catches for 1,382 yards and 12 touchdowns. He tore a ligament in his right knee during the 2005 season and was limited to only one game.
He was traded to the Broncos in 2006 and bounced back with 69 catches for 1,084 yards and eight touchdowns.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
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Former first-round pick waived after second alcohol-related arrest
LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Chicago Bears running back Cedric Benson was released Monday following his second alcohol-related arrest in a month.
"Cedric displayed a pattern of behavior we will not tolerate," General Manager Jerry Angelo said in a statement. "As I said this past weekend, you have to protect your job. Everyone in this organization is held accountable for their actions."
The troubled running back did not participate in organized team activities on Monday, and it was unclear whether he showed up at Halas Hall.
Benson's agent Eugene Parker and attorney Sam Bassett did not return messages seeking comment before the announcement that he'd been waived.
The Bears had already made it clear they were losing patience with Benson when they drafted Tulane's Matt Forte in the second round of April's 2008 NFL Draft. Three ineffective, injury-plagued seasons during which Benson at times annoyed teammates with blunt comments left management looking for another running back. And that was before the recent brushes with the law.
"When individual priorities overshadow team goals, we suffer the consequences as a team," Angelo said. "Those who fail to understand the importance of 'team' will not play for the Chicago Bears."
Benson's rocky relationship with the Bears took a turn for the worse when he was arrested on a drunken driving charge in Austin, Texas, early Saturday after failing a field sobriety test. The former first-round draft pick was released on bond.
Benson was also arrested May 5 and charged with boating while intoxicated and resisting arrest on a lake near Austin. Both cases are pending.
Bassett said Saturday that the former University of Texas star had a few drinks with dinner but didn't think he was intoxicated, although he acknowledged his client would "probably be in trouble with his team."
Benson was pulled over for running a red light and refused to take a breath test or provide blood samples Saturday, Austin police spokeswoman Veneza Aguinaga said.
Bassett said Benson thought the light was yellow when he went through around 2 a.m. but stopped immediately when police appeared, and he added that Benson told him he wasn't speeding or driving recklessly.
The last thing he needed was more trouble.
A few promising glimpses aside, Benson has not lived up to the hype that accompanied him to the NFL when the Bears took him with the fourth pick in 2005. He has 1,593 yards and 10 touchdowns while averaging 3.8 yards a carry for the Bears after running for more than 5,500 yards and 64 touchdowns at Texas.
Benson also has a June 30 court date for the May arrest while operating a 30-foot boat on Lake Travis -- an incident in which authorities used pepper spray to subdue him. No court date had been set for the latest incident as of Monday afternoon.
With Benson gone, Forte has a big opportunity.
"I'm not going to sit here and doubt myself or my talent," Forte said before Benson was released. "I believe that I can come in and play."
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press
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Strahan walks away from game after first Super Bowl title
Michael Strahan won't be defending his first Super Bowl title.
The seven-time Pro Bowl defensive end has decided to retire after a 15-year NFL career with the New York Giants that was capped by a Super Bowl title four months ago.
The 36-year-old Strahan, who was the NFL's active leader in sacks, informed the front office in the morning without telling his coaches and teammates.
I'm just finding out about it; let me get organized," coach Tom Coughlin said after a team workout.
Strahan and the Giants will have a press conference on Tuesday at 11:30 a.m. ET. It will be broadcast live on NFL Network and NFL.com.
Strahan is walking away from a $4 million salary for the final year of his contract. He has long said he wants a job in television.
Tony Agnone, Strahan's agent, said the Giants offered Strahan more money to play another season, but that was never the key issue. He noted that winning the championship might have been most important for Strahan.
"I really believe that was it," Agnone told The Associated Press. "He really felt he has a chance to repeat this year, so it was tough to walk away."
Giants co-owner John Mara was disappointed after Strahan telephoned him to say he was leaving football.
"I told him he's been a great Giant," Mara said. "He thanked me for everything the organization has done for him. I said, 'I think you've done more for us than we can ever do for you."'
Strahan had said in published reports over the last several weeks that he had made his decision on retirement, but wanted to take extra time before announcing it to make sure that it was the correct decision.
"I knew it was going to (eventually) happen," quarterback Eli Manning said. "He had a tremendous career. If that is the case, he picked a great season to go out on."
Fellow Pro Bowl defensive end Osi Umenyiora was told of the retirement as he walked to the locker room after practice.
"I talked to Mike last week and he told me he was still unsure," Umenyiora said. "He was really, really thinking about it, but I didn't think he was going to do it today."
Strahan was the Giants' leader in the locker room. He taught the young defensive ends how to play the position. He was also a gym rat, spending as much time working out as the youngest free agent trying to win a roster spot.
"It's a very, very sad day for me personally," Umenyiora said. "I loved him like a brother. You put in 15 strong years in the NFL, man that is something in this day and age is impossible to do."
Strahan walks away from the game with Hall of Fame credentials and a Super Bowl ring, leading the Giants to a 17-14 victory over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII in what turned out to be his final game.
Strahan and the Giants went through a similar process last offseason, albeit with a different outcome. Strahan mulled retirement and missed all of training camp before reporting to the Giants on Sept. 4 and playing in the season-opener five days later. Strahan was outstanding in his final season, starting 15 of 16 games and finishing with 57 total tackles and 9.0 sacks.
"I am very happy for him," said receiver Amani Toomer, who played 12 seasons with Strahan. "I think he is going to find a way on his feet. I just wish him the best."
A second-round pick in the 1993 NFL Draft out of Texas Southern University, Strahan is the Giants' career sacks leader with 141.5. Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor had the old mark of 132.5, although that total does not included 9.5 the linebacker had as a rookie in 1981, the year before sacks became an official statistic.
Strahan set the single-season mark of 22.5 sacks in 2001, getting the last one in the final game of the season when Brett Favre mysteriously fell late in the game, and No. 92 got credit for the sack. He became the second player in NFL history to lead the league in sacks on two occassions, also posting an NFL-best 18.5 in 2003.
Strahan played in 216 career regular-season games, a franchise record, making 205 starts.
Fourth-year pro Justin Tuck is the leading candidate to move into Strahan's starting spot. The Giants also signed veteran defensive end Renaldo Wynn last week.
"The guy has had a great career, 15 years, a first ballot Hall of Famer," Tuck said. "I'm not surprised, just how he did it. I thought he was more of a news conference guy, you know, the whole world watching."
Umenyiora felt Strahan was playing so well he would return this season.
"He retired at the top of his game," he said. "A lot of us don't get the chance to do that."
The Associated Press contributed to this report
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