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NFL

Vince Young hires agent with eye on comeback

Former NFL quarterback Vince Young has hired agent Leigh Steinberg in an apparent attempt to reboot his football career.

Steinberg announced that he signed Young, 33, in a Twitter post on Wednesday, declaring Young has a “dream of playing more football.”

Young, the former star at Texas, has not played in an NFL regular-season game since 2011 and retired from football in 2014.

The Spring League, an independent four-team football league made up of free agents that debuts in April, has publicly expressed interest in adding Young, the former No. 3 overall pick who earned Rookie of the Year honors and made the Pro Bowl in 2006 and 2009 during his six years in the NFL.

Young last attempted a comeback in 2014, a brief offseason stint with the Cleveland Browns. He signed following a minicamp tryout but was cut days after the Browns drafted Johnny Manziel. Before that, Young was cut by the Green Bay Packers in the preseason in 2013.

Young works for the University of Texas as a development officer in its division of diversity and community engagement.

He returned to his alma mater, where he led the Longhorns to a national championship in 2005, following his retirement and took a position specifically created for him that pays $100,000 annually.

Young was sentenced to 18 months probation in January after pleading no contest to a DWI charge. He was fined $300 and ordered to complete 60 hours of community service to resolve his case after a January 2016 arrest in Austin.

NFL

Report: Life of Brady to be focus of book, movie

Tom Brady’s story will be coming to a bookstore and movie theater near you, Deadline reports.

Both the book and film will focus on the New England Patriots quarterback’s career and his run to a fifth Super Bowl victory and will also chronicle Deflategate and its aftermath, Deadline reports.

Tom Brady has had plenty to celebrate in his career, and his story will be the subject of both a book and a movie, Deadline reported Wednesday. EPA

The project will pair writers Paul Tamasy and Eric Johnson, who were nominated for an Oscar for “The Fighter,” author Casey Sherman and Boston journalist Dave Wedge, according to Deadline.

Sherman and Wedge were co-authors of “Boston Strong,” which was used as the basis for “Patriots Day,” for which Tamasy and Johnson were executive producers.

Deadline reports the writers have sources with the team who will provide insight as to what went on behind the scenes during Super Bowl LI, as the Patriots launched a furious comeback to post a 34-28 overtime win over the Atlanta Falcons.

Brady isn’t the only member of the Patriots whose story will be heading to the big screen. The Hollywood Reporter said cornerback Malcolm Butler’s story will be turned into a movie entitled “The Secondary,” which will chronicle his rise from working in a fast-food restaurant to having two Super Bowl rings.

NFL

Ex-Ole Miss QB Kelly disinvited to combine

Chad Kelly was not among 330 prospects invited to the NFL combine in a list released Wednesday, but the agents for the former Ole Miss Rebels quarterback said the NFL has not provided a reason for why Kelly’s invitation was rescinded and that Kelly might still travel to Indianapolis later this month.

“We have an official invite to come to the combine, we got a flight booked,” one of Kelly’s representatives, Vance McAllister, told “The Tim Graham Show” on 1270 The Fan in Buffalo on Wednesday. “He has a jersey number there waiting on him, and until we get a written disinvite or whatever you want to call it from the league, we’ll be in Indy. We’ll show up and they’ll have to tell Chad ‘no’ then because they’re obviously not wiling to put it in writing to tell Chad ‘no’ now.”

Kelly’s representatives, McAllister and Duray Oubre, said the NFL combine sent Kelly an invite Jan. 6 and arranged travel for him. The agents received a call from combine director Jeff Foster last Thursday informing Kelly that the NFL rescinded his invitation.

“The only response that we’ve been able to get in voicemails from [NFL vice president of football operations Troy Vincent] is that he will not discuss the details of it,” McAllister said.

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This is the second year the NFL will not permit players in which a background check has revealed “either a felony or misdemeanor conviction” for domestic violence, sexual assault or weapons charges, or if a player refuses a background check.

Kelly was charged with resisting arrest, menacing and several other counts following an altercation outside a Buffalo nightclub in Dec. 2014. He later agreed to 50 hours of community service as part of the noncriminal charges, which Kelly’s agents said is not equal to a criminal or misdemeanor conviction.

“It seems like this is one of those cases where the NFL and Troy Vincent have decided again to not gather all the facts and make a decision, shoot from the hip, and we cannot get a clarification as to why,” McAllister said. “Chad is being singled out and being made example of, for what? It definitely ain’t domestic abuse and it definitely ain’t violent crime.”

Kelly’s agents said his uncle, Hall of Fame and former Bills quarterback Jim Kelly, reached out Wednesday to the NFL to seek answers about his nephew’s status for the combine.

“We don’t know this for sure, but it could be marketing strategy,” Oubre said. “The NFL is a billion-dollar brand. We’ve become more concerned with making sure that we have the proper dressing in relation to producing a good [product] or advertising a good [product]. If they feel like a player like Chad Kelly will be there, and they don’t want certain things to be told or be heard or discussed because for whatever reason they feel like that doesn’t add to the brand of the NFL, then they could take preventative measure against him and discriminate against him.”

NFL

Blair Walsh will have to perform well to get paid by Seahawks
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  • Sheil KapadiaESPN Writer

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    • Covered the Philadelphia Eagles for Philadelphia Magazine and Philly.com from 2008 to 2015.
    • Covered the Baltimore Ravens and the NFL for BaltimoreSun.com from 2006 to 2008.

The Seattle Seahawks signed kicker Blair Walsh to a one-year deal last week, and the details of his contract make it clear that Walsh will have to perform well to earn his spot on the 53-man roster.

The deal can net Walsh up to $1.1 million, but it contains no guaranteed money. Walsh is set to receive $800,000 in base salary in 2017 and can earn an additional $300,000 in bonuses.

The first bonus is for $150,000 and kicks in if Walsh is on the 53-man roster for the first game of the season.

Additionally, Walsh can earn $9,375 for each game he is on the 53-man roster.

This is a low-risk deal for the Seahawks. Steven Hauschka is scheduled to be a free agent, and the Walsh signing suggests that Seattle is preparing for Hauschka to sign elsewhere. But it does not mean that the Seahawks are sold on Walsh being their kicker in 2017.

They will almost certainly bring in a rookie kicker to compete with him in the spring. And if a rookie performs well, he will be a less expensive option than Walsh.

The Seahawks don’t want to go into next season with a question mark at kicker, but Hauschka will likely want to be paid like a top-10 player at his position, and that could mean a salary of at least $3 million per year. They’ll save money and cap space by going with Walsh or a rookie instead.

Walsh made the Pro Bowl in 2012 but struggled when the Minnesota Vikings played outdoors. In the wild-card round of the 2015 playoffs, he missed a potential game-winning field goal from 27 yards out against the Seahawks and was never able to bounce back last season. The Vikings released Walsh after he struggled through nine games.

The Seahawks will see if Walsh can find his footing this spring and summer. If he does, Walsh will be well-positioned to earn his money in 2017.

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