Wide receiver Mike Wallace has arrived.
The Pittsburgh Steelers holdout came to camp Tuesday. He rejoined his teammates and signed his $2.7 million restricted free agent tender for the 2012 season. He had skipped training camp and offseason workouts.
Wallace has game-breaking speed, and caught 72 passes for 1,193 yards last season, and eight touchdowns. While the 72 receptions were a career high, the 16.6 yards per catch were the lowest of his three NFL seasons.
Wallace would still like to sign a long-term deal before Week 1, but the Steelers won’t discuss it after that point until the end of the season. On the field, he needs to get in synch with new offensive coordinator Todd Haley.
—Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said Tuesday that the team didn’t come up with “Dez Bryant rules,” and doesn’t know who did.
Multiple news outlets have reported that Bryant had been assigned a strict set of rules and guidelines for off-field conduct by the Cowboys in the wake of his most recent bout with trouble away from the field. They include a midnight curfew, 24-hour-a-day bodyguard protection, and not being allowed to consume alcohol and go to strip clubs.
“I’m not so sure where the media has come up with detail of this nature,” Jones told a Dallas radio station on Tuesday, according to Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “Fundamentally, Dez does, and I’m convinced, want to do many things that give him the opportunity to get on track the way he needs to, both on and off the field.”
Special rules for any player could violate the collective bargaining agreement, according to Profootballtalk.com.
—The Redskins signed kicker Billy Cundiff less than 24 hours after he was released by the Ravens.
Washington had released Neil Rackers on Monday, the NFL deadline to reduce rosters to 75 players, and named Graham Gano its placekicker.
Cundiff lost a battle with undrafted rookie Justin Tucker with the Ravens. He’ll be remembered by Ravens fans for his 32-yard game-tying field goal attempt in the final seconds of the AFC Championship game at New England in January 2012.
—Wide receiver Roscoe Parrish agreed to a one-year deal with the Oakland Raiders, one day after being released by the San Diego Chargers.
The team announced the signing Tuesday.
Parrish spent seven seasons with the Bills, but ended the last two with injuries, including a season-ending ankle injury against the Raiders last season. With the Bills, he had 134 receptions for 1,502 yards and seven touchdowns.
—The Steelers don’t believe rookie first-round pick David DeCastro’s right knee injury was as severe as initially feared.
DeCastro is scheduled for surgery Wednesday to repair a torn medial collateral ligament. Coach Mike Tomlin said he and the Steelers are not discussing detailed plans for DeCastro’s roster spot until the surgery is complete.
All signs point to the Steelers saving a roster spot for DeCastro and not placing him on season-ending injured reserve.
—Cincinnati Bengals center Kyle Cook could miss the season with a serious foot injury, another preseason blow to the offensive line.
Cook was injured in Thursday night’s game against Green Bay, and tests revealed significant damage. Wearing a protective boot on his right foot, Cook told reporters that he could miss a few weeks or the entire season.
Left guard Travelle Wharton is already down for the season with a knee injury.
—Former Pro Bowl running back Brian Westbrook will walk away from football as a member of the Philadelphia Eagles, the team announced.
Westbrook, the franchise leader with 9,875 total yards from scrimmage, will officially announce his retirement on Wednesday. He spent eight seasons in Philadelphia, the last one in 2009.
—Washington Redskins tight end Chris Cooley was released Tuesday.
The franchise’s all-time leader in receptions by a tight end was let go so that he might find a better chance to start with another team, head coach Mike Shanahan said.
Cooley announced his own release, telling reporters: “It’s been awesome. I’ve been very fortunate to play for a franchise that has embraced me and for a fan base that has embraced me the way that they have. This organization has changed my life in every way for the better, and I appreciate it. I’ve loved every minute of playing. It’s been a good ride.”
—The Atlanta Falcons announced Tuesday that they’ve signed quarterback Luke McCown and released quarterback Chris Redman.
McCown was a 2004 fourth-round draft pick of the Cleveland Browns. He has played in 20 games, including nine starts, in his career, and completed 184 of 316 pass attempts for 2,035 yards with nine touchdowns, and 14 interceptions.
He spent the previous three years with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
—The Seattle Seahawks may not have been able to find a roster spot for Terrell Owens, but head coach Pete Carroll said he’s open to bringing the receiver back should a need arise.
Carroll told NFL.com that the decision to release Owens had nothing to do with reports that Owens had been a locker room distraction.
“Anybody that thinks he had an attitude around here or something like that got in the way is wrong,” Carroll told the web site. “They don’t know what they’re talking about. This guy was great. He did everything we wanted him to do. He practiced hard, he studied hard, he asked questions, he worked hard in the games. He did everything. He was terrific.”
—Former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Sam Hurd has been jailed for allegedly failing drug tests and seeking to set up a drug deal while out on bond for charges of trying to start a marijuana and cocaine distribution network.
Hurd was arrested last December and immediately cut by the Chicago Bears.
—The Pittsburgh Steelers activated standout linebacker James Harrison from the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list on Tuesday.
The activation of Harrison was not a major surprise, because leaving him on the PUP would have forced Harrison to miss the first six weeks of the season.
He had arthroscopic knee surgery on Aug. 15, and the team is hoping he can play in the Sept. 9 regular-season opener, although it remains unclear whether he’ll play in that game against Denver.