Author: Bobby Finger on Jezebel, shared by Tom Ley to Deadspin

Prosecutors Seek To Uphold Aaron Hernandez’s Murder Conviction

Prosecutors in Massachusetts argued Monday against the dismissal of former NFL-player Aaron Hernandez’s 2015 murder conviction saying it would reward his “conscious, deliberate and voluntary” act of committing suicide. If the murder conviction is vacated, Hernandez’s estate — which is currently reported to be worth nothing — could likely get millions, USA Today Sports said. Hernandez, 27, was serving life imprisonment without parole for the 2013 murder of semi-professional football player Odin Lloyd.

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Former Browns TE Gary Barnidge visiting Bills

When the Browns drafted tight end David Njoku in the first round in the draft, it signaled the end for incumbent starter Gary Barnidge in Cleveland. Given Barnidge is just one year removed of his Pro Bowl season and only 31 years old, it makes sense he won’t be a free agent for long. One team is already hosting Barnidge on a visit. The Buffalo Bills are hosting the veteran tight end. Buffalo still needs a backup tight end. Currently the Bills have Charles Clay and Nick O’Leary as the tight ends on the roster. It was sad to see Barnidge go, because he was a fan favorite in Cleveland. But after drafting David Njoku, and still having Seth DeValve, Randall Telfer and J.P. Holtz on the roster there

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Here are Jamaal Charles' 1-year contract details with Broncos

The Broncos have landed the NFL’s all-time leader in yards per carry for a bargain price tag. Jamaal Charles, who averaged 5.5 yards per during his nine years with the Chiefs, signed a one-year contract with Denver that has a base salary of $900,000, according to KUSA-TV’s Mike Klis. That’s not a penny more than the veteran minimum for a player entering his tenth season. “It’s not about money,” Charles said during a conference call after the team announced his signing. If he shows up to the team’s offseason program (he plans to) and dresses for every game, Charles could earn considerably more. Charles’ contract includes a $100,000 workout bonus, according to Klis, which would bring his salary

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NFL reporter Ed Werder says ESPN asked him to cover the NFL draft after being laid off

The veteran NFL reporter Ed Werder was among the many layoffs at ESPN last week that caught the sports-media world by surprise. While Werder said his layoff was effective immediately, he told the Dallas Cowboys-centric podcast “The Doomsday Podcast” that ESPN asked him to cover the NFL draft after informing him he was being laid off. “And the next thing they told me to do as a former employee of ESPN was stay and cover the Saints’ draft, which seemed like an odd way to begin your unemployment.

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Bills owner Terry Pegula not explaining why he fired Doug Whaley

The Bills fired General Manager Doug Whaley today. Bills owner Terry Pegula doesn’t want to explain why. “We have certain aspects we need to get a little better in,” Pegula said, in about as generic a comment as an owner could make about the decision to fire a G.M. Via ESPN, when Pegula was asked what those “certain aspects” are, he declined to answer. “I need to keep that private,” he said. “I don’t want to discuss that publicly.” It’s been clear since shortly after new head coach Sean McDermott was hired in January that McDermott was making more decisions and Whaley was seeing his authority diminished. Pegula said in January that he thought it was insulting that people were describing the Bills

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Brady posts Instagram commemorating late-round pick

Tests showed no trace of synthetic marijuana or “K2” or any illegal drugs in Aaron Hernandez’s system at the time of his death, WCVB-TV in Boston reported.  Hernandez, the former Patriots tight end who was serving a life sentence for murder, hanged himself in his jail cell and was found dead April 19 at a Massachusetts prison. He had been acquitted on a double-murder in Boston days earlier. Newsweek had reported that an autopsy showed K2, a form of synthetic marijuana, in Hernandez’s system. Sources told the WCVB that Hernandez used his own blood to draw a pyramid image, similar to the “all-seeing eye of God” that’s on the back of US currency, on the walls of his cell.  Hernandez also wrote the

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Need to Know: Gruden talks Redskins draft strategy, Ryan Anderson, QB's

Since we don’t know how the careers of the players picked by the Redskins yesterday will turn out we must dig in a little more to come up with a grade for the draft headed up by Bruce Allen. For the record, the trade (picks 201 and 220 from Washington to Minnesota in exchange for picks 199 and 230) was just about a wash on the Jimmy Johnson trade chart, with the Redskins giving up a statistically insignificant one point of value. Whether center Chase Roullier, the player they traded up to draft, makes the team and has an impact or not is not going to make or break the draft but it should be noted that they gave up something of value to get him so it was a player they wanted to make sure they got as his name was still on the board. The deals that got them up to 10 picks had already been made by Scot McCloughan on draft day last year as he added picks in the fourth, fifth, and sixth rounds with various trades.

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49ers thought Bears were taking Solomon Thomas No. 2, would have taken Reuben Foster No. 3

The Chicago Bears shocked a lot of people by moving up to No. 2 to draft North Carolina quarterback Mitchell Trubisky. The MMQB’s Peter King was embedded in the San Francisco 49ers’ draft room, and that turned out well when the 49ers had an eventful first round. When the 49ers traded the second overall pick to the Bears, they figured it was for Stanford defensive lineman Solomon Thomas.

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‘Are you serious?’ See UNC star make Dallas Cowboys owner crack up

Over three days, some 200 young men got the call of a lifetime from an NFL owner or head coach in the 2017 draft. Thanks to a buddy with a cellphone, the world got a glimpse of one such moment from this weekend. This video of North Carolina return specialist and wide receiver Ryan Switzer reacting to the call from the Dallas Cowboys was posted on Twitter on Sunday. But wait, there’s more. The Cowboys apparently took this video and mixed it with some footage of their own. In the Cowboys version, you get to hear both sides of the conversation. Click on the link in the Tweet below to watch it on the Cowboys site. The Cowboys took Switzer in the fourth round Saturday, the 133rd pick overall. Switzer

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Patriots acquire TE James O’Shaughnessy for peanuts on Day 3 of 2017 NFL draft

The Patriots dropped 33 spots in the draft order to pick up tight end James O’Shaughnessy from the Chiefs. Minutes before the third day of the 2017 NFL draft was set to begin, the New England Patriots traded with the Kansas City Chiefs and acquired tight end James O’Shaughnessy for a grand total of 33 spots in the draft order. The Patriots sent the No. 183 pick — the second-to-last pick in the fifth round — to the Chiefs for O’Shaughnessy and the No. 216 pick — the third-to-last selection in the sixth round.

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49ers trade up, pick RB Joe Williams in fourth round of 2017 NFL Draft

JOE WILLIAMS Position: Running back College: Utah Height: 5-11 Weight: 210 Selection: Fourth round, No. 121 overall SANTA CLARA – The 49ers traded up in the fourth round to select Utah running back Joe Williams. The 49ers traded up to No. 121 overall in general manager John Lynch’s sixth trade of the draft. Just minutes earlier, the 49ers acquired Kapri Bibbs in a trade with the Denver Broncos. The 49ers traded up in the fourth round with Indianapolis to select Williams. The 49ers dealt No. 143 in the fourth round and No. 161 of the fifth round to the Colts to complete the trade. Williams, who ran a 4.41 in the 40-yard dash, rushed for 1,407 yards and 10 touchdowns on 210 rushing attempts in

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Reuben Foster hung up on the Saints when the 49ers picked him

New 49ers linebacker Reuben Foster was so close to becoming new Saints linebacker Reuben Foster that he was on the phone with Saints officials making plans to go to New Orleans when he got the call informing him he was heading to San Francisco. “I clicked over for the San Francisco 49ers and I think I said, ‘Hello?’ while the New Orleans Saints were still on the line. But I wanted to be a 49er so bad,” Foster said today. Foster said that while the Seahawks were on the clock with the 31st pick, the Saints informed him that they were taking him 32nd. When 49ers General Manager John Lynch called, Foster initially thought Lynch was calling to tell him that the 49ers would take him in the second round,

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John Fox reportedly learned about the Bears' plan to trade up for Mitchell Trubisky 'a couple hours before', and the entire ordeal looks increasingly messy

The Chicago Bears’ decision to trade up to No. 2 in the NFL Draft on Thursday and take UNC quarterback Mitchell Trubisky was one of the biggest surprises of the first round. The Bears, slated to draft third overall, traded their No. 3 pick, 2017 third- and fourth-round picks, and a 2018 third-round pick to the San Francisco 49ers to nab Trubisky second overall. In the meantime, the Bears’ plans for this offseason are looking increasingly half-baked.

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NFL draft: Detroit Lions trade down with Patriots in Round 3

Bob Quinn made his first draft-day trade as Detroit Lions general manager, and it just so happened to be with his old team, the New England Patriots. The Lions traded down from the No. 85 pick in the third round, exchanging third-round picks with the Patriots (No. 96 overall) and adding Pick No. 124 in the fourth round. Quinn did not make any draft-day trades in his first year as Lions GM last year. He did, however, consummate two other trades with the Patriots organization he spent 16 seasons with. The Lions acquired linebacker Jon Bostic from the Patriots last spring in a deal that did not end up costing them any compensation because Bostic spent the season on injured reserve, and he traded

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Instant analysis of Raiders selecting DT Eddie Vanderdoes in third round

In what is amounting to be one of the soundest series of decision-making Oakland Raiders fans have seen in many years from their front office, Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie has continued to fortify his defense by selecting former UCLA defensive tackle Eric Vanderdoes with the No. 88 pick overall Friday. Vanderdoes is a true five technique defensive tackle, something Oakland desperately needs after losing both Dan Williams and Stacy McGee along the interior of their defensive line. The former Bruin has great size at just over 6-foot-3 and 305 pounds with almost 11-inch hands while running a sub-five second 40-yard dash (4.99 seconds). For his size Vanderdoes is agile and plays with a

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The Baltimore Ravens select OLB Tim Williams with the 78th overall pick

Another Bama backer will join the Ravens: Tim Williams. Tim Williams was mocked around the middle of the second round, but Ozzie scores him with the second Ravens selection of the third round. Williams is another pass rush specialist, built on attacking the quarterback rather than run-stopping.

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Zay Jones gets drafted by Bills while wearing shirt that puts a spin on O.J. Simpson's Bronco chase

Of all the shirts East Carolina receiver Zay Jones could have picked out for Day Two of the NFL draft, he picked one with a picture of the infamous O.J. Simpson car chase of 1994 but with a twist: a bunch of white Ford Broncos chasing a single cop car. The same Bills franchise in which Simpson spent his most successful NFL seasons. The Bills chose Jones, who was remarkably productive in college, with the fifth pick of the second round, 37th overall.

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Twitter response to Pittsburgh Steelers selecting T.J. Watt in Round 1

The Pittsburgh Steelers 2017 NFL Draft Day 1 has concluded with the team selecting Wisconsin LB T.J. Watt with the No. 30 overall pick in the selection process. The selection didn’t take long to sink into the heart of Steelers Nation, and that includes the players Watt will now call teammates. Check out what current, and former, players had to say about the selection, as well as welcoming him into the fold as the newest member of the black and gold! (Editor’s Note: This story will be updated as more players take to social media.)

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NFL draft pick has a priceless story about finding out he got drafted by the 49ers while speaking to another team

New San Francisco 49ers linebacker Reuben Foster had an interesting beginning to his NFL career, as he explained during his introductory press conference on Friday. According to Foster, by the time the 31st pick rolled around, the New Orleans Saints had called him, essentially welcoming him to the team because they were going to take him with the 32nd overall pick, the last of the first round. Foster explained that while the Saints were talking to his girlfriend on the phone, he got another call.

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