Page 27 - Florida Sentinel 4-13-18

Sports
DeSean Jackson
Matthew Stafford, Wife Announce They Are Expecting Third Child
MATTHEW AND KELLY STAFFORD
Matthew Stafford and his wife Kelly have had their hands full for the past year or so raising twin girls, and things on the home front are about to get even busier for the Detroit Lions quarterback.
On Tuesday, Mrs. Stafford announced that she and Matthew are expecting their third child in about five months.
Before the Staffords wel- comed their twins, Chandler and Sawyer, Kelly was quite outspoken in criticizing NFL officials. Motherhood seems to have mellowed her out a bit.
Robert Kraft Visits Rapper Meek Mill In Prison
ROBERT KRAFT AND MEEK MILL
Rapper Meek Mill has friends in high places, and many are hoping some of those connections will pay off.
The rapper was visited in prison by New England Patri- ots owner Robert Kraft and entrepreneur Michael Rubin on Tuesday. Meek Mill, real name Robert Rihmeek Williams, is in prison for 2-4 years for a parole violation, and many think his current prison sentence is excessive.
Kraft called the situation “just sad” according to NBC Philadelphia.
Meek Mill has violated his probation by failing a drug test, traveling out of the region, and more over the past nine years. He is appealing his sentence to Pennsylvania’s supreme court.
Many athletes have joined the “Free Meek Mill” move- ment, including even one in the Olympics.
Le’Veon Bell, Steelers Not That Far Off In Contract Negotiations
Posts Pic Of Him
And Jameis Winston
While it may seem like the Pittsburgh Steelers and Le’Veon Bell have accepted that the star running back will be playing under the franchise tag once again in 2018, the pessimism sur- rounding the situation may not be totally warranted.
A source indicated that any chatter about Bell and the Steelers being nowhere close to a deal is off-base.
While they aren’t particu- larly close, they aren’t that far off, either. The Steelers have increased their offer from last year, which Bell said fell at an average of $13.3 million annually. But Bell asked for more before the March 6
Together At FSU Facility
Tampa Buccaneers vet- eran wide receive DeSean Jackson received a lot of backlash from the media for not spending extra time with quarterback Jameis Win- ston last offseason. Jackson — who always trains out in Los Angeles — was not able to get in sync with Winston through much of 2017.
The lack of chemistry was evident and many attributed that to the two not working out last offseason as fre- quently as many felt they should. Well, this offseason is different.
Jackson has shared the times this offseason where he and Winston have hooked up. He had originally revealed that the two have been work- ing out together since January and have also included wide
DESEAN JACKSON AND JAMEIS WINSTON
receiver Mike Evans in the mix. They’ve met up out in Los Angeles, on the campus of Texas A&M, and now he posts an Instagram picture of him- self next to Winston at Florida State’s practice facil- ity.
LE’VEON BELL
deadline, forcing the Steelers to reassess.
The Steelers have to de- cide if they want to enter that $15 million stratosphere. But it’s not like the sides are oper- ating with a $5 million gap. They are already fairly close to Bell’s sweet spot.
LSU CB Donte Jackson's Heading To Tampa To Visit Bucs
Bengals Owner Plans To Prohibit National Anthem Protests
Eric Reid (right) was reportedly asked by Bengals owner, Mike Brown (left) about his on-field protests.
The Tampa Bay Bucca- neers are bringing LSU cor- nerback Donte Jackson in for a pre-draft visit Wednes- day. The Bucs have already brought in a handful of cor- nerbacks the team has ex- pressed interest in and Jackson will be the latest draft prospect to make his way to One Buc Place for a visit.
The Bucs are in need of some additional depth at cor- nerback alongside Brent Grimes and Vernon Harg- reaves, III and Jackson
DONTE JACKSON
could provide a much- needed up- grade.
Jackson, a candidate to come off the board within the first two rounds of the
draft, is a speedy corner that could easily aid Grimes and Hargreaves by being a ball- hawking shut down corner thanks to how fast and aggres- sive he is.
Houston Texans owner Bob McNair has gotten most of the attention this off- season for his strong stance against national anthem protests, but at least one of his fellow owners apparently feels just as strongly about the issue.
Free agent safety Eric Reid visited with the Cincin- nati Bengals on Monday, and his participation in national anthem protests was report- edly a big topic of discussion. According to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, Bengals owner Mike Brown had a conversation with Reid that centered “almost exclusively” on anthem protests, and it sounds like he wanted assur- ances that Reid will not par- take in the demonstrations next season if the Bengals sign him.
Not only that, but Brown reportedly said he is planning to ban national anthem protests within his organiza-
tion.
Although Reid said previ-
ously he is not planning to kneel in 2018, he seemed un- willing to make any promises. Florio adds that he took a physical and met with some members of the coaching staff after talking with Brown, and Reid got the impression the team wanted to sign him. However, Marvin Lewis asked him at one point if he wants to clarify anything he told Brown during the dis- cussion about anthem protests, and Reid did not have anything to add.
Reid was previously part of the Players Coalition that was working with the NFL on issues of social injustice, but he left when he felt his goals were no longer aligned with the group’s. The Bengals did not make a formal offer to Reid, and it’s unclear if his stance on national anthem protests will impact their in- terest in him.
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