Page 12 - Florida Sentinel 9-5-17

Sports
Arian Foster, Brother Hold Supply Drive To Aid Hurricane Relief
Green Bay QB Aaron Rodgers
Says Colin Kaepernick
Should Be Playing
After former Texans run- ning back Arian Foster and his brother Abdul Fos- ter got through Hurricane Harvey in good shape, they decided to do something to help those who weren't so fortunate.
On Thursday, the pair opened up Abdul's gym for an all-day supply drive to collect food, clothing, toi- letries and other items to distribute to those affected by the hurricane and the widespread flooding it caused in Houston and
Facebook’s First Docu-series Features The Ball Family
Here's a first look at Ball in the Family an upcoming do- cuseries on NBA player Lonzo Ball, his father Lavar Ball and the rest of their bas- ketball family. It premiered Thursday on Facebook.
According to its descrip- tion, "Ball in the Family” is a docuseries debuting on Watch, Facebook’s new plat- form for episodic shows, Aug. 31. The series challenges per- ceptions, pulls at heart- strings, reveals the secrets of the Big Baller Brand (BBB) franchise, and gives fans a unique look at a family that is already a hot topic of conver- sation.
“We wanted to give our fans an unfiltered look into our lives and show them a side of us that isn’t typically seen,” said LaVar Ball. “We have a big community of fans on Facebook, so we’re excited our series is going to be on Watch. And who better to help us tell our story than Bunim/Murray Productions.”
throughout southeast Texas. "We were kind of locked in our house for like three days, just sitting around kind of being helpless and feeling helpless," said Arian, who sustained flooding to the
home he was renting.
"We thought once it dries
up we need to do something to show our support to the community and use what lit- tle platform we have to help others that want to give but don't know where to give and try to help organize the re- building in the city."
Colin Kaepernick’s
prolonged unemployment has caught the attention of arguably the NFL’s best quarterback.
“I think he should be on a roster right now,” Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers told ESPN the maga- zine in an article posted Wednesday. “I think because of his protests, he’s not.” Kaepernick has been blackballed since opting out of his contract with the San Francisco 49ers in March.
The controversy from the NFL hierarchy’s (team own- ers and administration) per- spective is, Kaepernick’s refusal to stand for the na- tional anthem to protest racial injustice and police brutality, brought the prob- lem to a national stage on their dime.
His activist spirit sparked national debate and inspired other athletes to follow suit ― a trend that has continued into the NFL’s preseason fol- lowing the violent clashes in- volving white supremacists in Charlottesville.
Two of the NFL’s leading OBs Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers and team-less Colin Kaepernick.
have a pretty good season for a bad team, but NFL Com- missioner Roger Goodell has insisted Kaepernick isn’t being blackballed for for his demonstrations. He said all 32 teams have made a “football decision” to not sign him. Jesse Jackson, former NFL coach Tony Dungy and others would disagree ― as would the two- time NFL MVP-winning QB. Rodgers told ESPN it would be “ignorant” to believe that his former QB rival’s contro- versial stance hasn’t con- tributed to his unemployment.
Still the Texans' career rush- ing leader, Arian Foster turned his attention to collecting dona- tions to aid victims of Hurricane Harvey on Thursday.
Kyrie Irving Says Goodbye To Cleveland in Heartfelt Instagram Post
Kaepernick managed to
NFLPA Thinks Strong Case
Kyrie Irving went to three NBA finals in his time with the Cavaliers and won one along the way, so it was natural he wanted to thank Cleveland for the six years he was with the organization.
In a heartfelt Instagram post he published Thursday, Irving lauded how great the city and people have been to him.
"My love extends way be- yond the court I have for Cleveland and it will always be a place thats special be- cause of the great people and experiences," he wrote. "The ups and downs, we stand and fight no matter what the cir- cumstances are, and that's
KYRIE IRVING
what being in Cleveland em- bodies, it is all Love and a whole lotta pride."
He also posted a video within the post in which he thanked Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert, as well as his teammates.
Can Be Made To Challenge Ezekiel Elliott's Suspension
According to a source fa- miliar with this week's appeal hearing of Dallas Cowboys star running back Ezekiel Elliott's suspension, Kia Wright Roberts, the NFL's Director of Investigations, testified Tuesday that she was the only NFL employee who interviewed the running back's accuser, Tiffany Thompson, during the in- vestigation and that she would not have recom- mended discipline for Elliott based on what she found.
Roberts further testified, according to the hearing tran- scripts, that she was not in- cluded in the part of the process where the committee that investigated the Elliott matter recommended disci- pline to commissioner Roger Goodell.
As a result, the NFLPA be- lieves it has a strong case for challenging Elliott's suspen- sion based on what it per- ceives as serious flaws in the NFL's investigative process,
DeAndre Hopkins Gets Record $49M Guaranteed In New Deal
EZEKIEL ELLIOTT
the source said.
On Wednesday at the hear-
ing, appeals officer Harold Henderson heard testi- mony from Lisa Friel the former New York City prose- cutor who now investigates domestic violence cases for the NFL. Friel's testimony corroborated that of Roberts, and the part of that testimony with which the NFLPA took issue was that commissioner Roger Good- ell imposed the six-game suspension without Roberts' input with regard to appropriate discipline.
The Houston Texans signed star wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins to a five-year, $81 million contract extension with $49 million guaranteed.
Hopkins' $49 million guaranteed is the largest for any wide receiver in the NFL.
Hopkins had a breakout season in 2015, with 111 catches for 1,521 yards and 11 touchdowns. Last year, Hop- kins' production dipped -- he finished the year with 78 catches for 954 yards and four touchdowns -- with quarter- back Brock Osweiler throw- ing him the ball.
"My teammates, those guys count on me to come out here and make this team better," Hopkins said earlier this month. "Guys like Lamar Miller, like J. J. Watt that want to win a championship. And I know, for them to be
DEANDRE HOPKINS
able to do that, I have to be able to come out here and help those guys do it. So you know, the other 52 players on the team, they depend on me. That's why I'm here."
Hopkins has a hand injury and has not practiced since the Texans' first preseason game on Aug. 9. He is ex- pected to be ready for Hous- ton's season opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
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