The presenters for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2014 next month include children, a father, a media member and two former coaches.
The seven inductees during the weekend of Aug. 1-3 in Canton, Ohio, are former Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Derrick Brooks, former Oakland Raiders punter Ray Guy, former Atlanta Falcons and Philadelphia Eagles defensive lineman Claude Humphrey, former Seattle Seahawks offensive tackle Walter Jones, former Buffalo Bills wide receiver Andre Reed, former New York Giants defensive lineman Michael Strahan and former Arizona Cardinals and St. Louis Rams defensive back Aeneas Williams.
Brooks will be presented by son Decalon Brooks, Guy by former coach John Madden, Humphrey by daughter Cheyenne Humphrey-Robinson, Jones by son Walterius Jones, Reed by former coach Marv Levy, Strahan by media personality Jay Glazer and Williams by his father, Lawrence Williams.
—Andy Dalton has taken the brunt of the criticism for the Cincinnati Bengals’ disappointing postseason performances the past three years. But standout wide receiver A.J. Green has his quarterback’s back, saying Thursday that he’s also to blame.
“He’s not the only one on the team,” Green said. “We all take a hand in that. The defense didn’t play good (this year). I dropped a pass.”
Green, who entered the NFL with Dalton in 2011, thinks the Bengals will soon reach a contract agreement with the quarterback. Dalton is entering the final year of his rookie deal.
“I feel like they’re going to get something done before the season starts,” Green said.
—The San Francisco 49ers secured the services of offensive tackle Joe Staley through the 2019 season after signing him to a two-year contract extension Thursday.
No financial details were announced by the 49ers, but the 29-year-old Staley previously was signed through the 2017 season and scheduled to make $2.7 million in 2014.
The 49ers also announced that wide receiver Bruce Ellington, running back Marcus Lattimore, center Marcus Martin, fullback Trey Millard, cornerback Keith Reaser and guard Brandon Thomas were placed on the active/non-football injury list. Linebacker Aaron Lynch and defensive tackle Kaleb Ramsey were put on the active/physically unable to perform list.
—After NFL commissioner Roger Goodell cut the ribbon to open the San Francisco 49ers’ state-of-the-art Levi’s Stadium on Thursday, he suggested the possibility of the Oakland Raiders becoming a tenant.
The Raiders are faced with the dilemma of building or finding a stadium to replace antiquated O.co Coliseum. The team is in the final year of its lease there.
“They have to make that determination, whether they’re in a new stadium in Oakland or whether they feel that it’s best to join this stadium,” Goodell said, according to the Bay Area Sports Guy. “We’re working on that, and that’s one of the decisions they’ll have to make.”
O.Co Coliseum is the last remaining facility shared by a Major League Baseball team and an NFL franchise. Oakland’s City Council recently approved a 10-year lease with the A’s. But the Raiders have expresssed interest in the past of tearing down the stadium and building a new one.
—New York Giants running back David Wilson should be cleared at a July 21 exam of his surgically repaired neck.
Giants owner John Mara said Wilson should be “ready to go” for training camp. Mara made the comments Thursday at a YMCA charitable event. Wilson had a season-ending neck injury in Week 5 last year and underwent surgery this offseason but was not cleared for contact as he expected before minicamp.
—Rookie wide receivers Jeremy Johnson and Reese Wiggins were released Thursday by the New England Patriots.
The 22-year-old Johnson signed with the Patriots as a free agent from SMU on May 29. The 23-year-old Wiggins joined New England as a free agent from East Carolina on May 27.
—The Dallas Cowboys signed tight end Dallas Walker, an undrafted rookie out of Western Michigan in 2012 who spent time with the San Diego Chargers in 2013.
He will enter training camp battling for a roster spot fifth on the tight end depth chart behind Jason Witten, Gavin Escobar, James Hanna and Jordan Najvar. At 6-feet-6 and around 235 pounds, Walker has an opportunity to make a mark for himself as a blocking specialist.
—The Detroit Lions signed guard Garrett Reynolds on Thursday, agent Chad Speck said via Twitter.
Reynolds started 10 games for the Atlanta Falcons last year but struggled and was released in February with the team overhauling its line. The nephew of former San Francisco 49ers linebacker Jack “Hacksaw” Reynolds, Garrett Reynolds was a fifth-round pick by the Falcons in 2009.