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NFL: Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame lineman Forrest Gregg suffers from ...

01.01.70

Green Bay Packers great Forrest Gregg, nicknamed "Iron Man" for playing in a then-record 188 consecutive NFL games during a Pro Football Hall of Fame career, told The Associated Press that he's been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.

Although the cause of the debilitating neurological disorder is unknown, Gregg and his neurologist say his disease may be related to numerous concussions he sustained during his playing career in the 1950s at SMU and from 1956-71 with the Packers and the Dallas Cowboys.

Gregg, 79, was a nine-time Pro Bowl offensive lineman. He won six NFL titles, including the first two Super Bowls with the Packers. He also coached at Cincinnati, Cleveland and Green Bay. He took the Bengals to the Super Bowl after the 1981 season, suffering a 26-21 loss to the 49ers in Pontiac, Mich.

Jets: New York will be without running back LaDainian Tomlinson on Thursday night against Denver because of a sprained knee.

Chiefs: Quarterback Matt Cassel had surgery on his throwing hand, but coach Todd Haley hopes Cassel will be back this season. Cassel hurt his right hand in Sunday's 17-10 loss to Denver. The team hasn't placed him on injured reserve. The Chiefs play Monday night at New England, giving backup Tyler Palko a little more time to prepare.

Source: San Jose Mercury News

NY Jets' Mark Sanchez has support of teammates and Gang Green coach Rex Ryan

01.01.70

Mark Sanchez isn’t quite ready to grade himself midway through an uneven season, but Rex Ryan reiterated his support for the Jets’ third-year quarterback in the run-up to Thursday night’s game against the Broncos. “Mark is an outstanding quarterback,” said Ryan, whose team hopes to bounce back after an emotional loss to the Patriots four days ago. “I like the guys that win. And I think Mark is a winner. We’ve won a lot of games. Have we won the big one yet? No. We haven’t won the big one yet. I think if we do, then maybe everybody will look at Mark in a different light.” Sanchez has flashed a little bit of good, bad and ugly through the first nine games.

He appeared to be back on track after a rough start before a disappointing two-interception performance against New England on Sunday night. Sanchez had thrown just two interceptions in the previous four games before his shaky night against Gang Green’s division rivals. His mental error on a botched timeout drew the ire of Ryan, who in the heat of the moment called it the “stupidest thing in football history.” “It’s easy to be the quarterback when you’re on a three-game win streak, but when you lose a tough divisional game, that’s a good test for a young quarterback (and) for a third-year head coach,” said Sanchez, who left no doubt that he has a great relationship with Ryan even after the harsh words. Despite Sanchez’s record-tying four road playoff wins, he clearly remains a work in progress. Sanchez and Ryan have repeatedly admitted that there needs to be more consistency from the position. Sanchez’s silver lining? The mistakes he made most recently against New England are “fixable.” “For the most part, my reads and checks were right on, so we just have to keep that rolling and live with the physical mistakes and rep them out at practice,” Sanchez said. “It’s just getting back to basic stuff, easy stuff, reminders. So, that’s good. Things are looking up.” He’s also received support from his teammates, who have helped to guide him through some of the bumps in the road this season.

Source: New York Daily News