The Chicago Bears are finally retiring Mike Ditka’s number during halftime during the Monday Night Football game December 9 against the Dallas Cowboys.

Mike Ditka has a storied career with the Bears as a player and a coach. He is the only player and coach for the same team to win a Superbowl as both.

You can read the full story here.

Washington Redskin’s Garcon to Miss OTAs

The Washington Redskin’s Pierre Garcon missed having foot surgery last season but ended up having surgery for a torn labrum. He will miss the entire offseason program but is expected to be back for training camp.

You can read more here.

Rams QB Bradford to Raise Money for OKC Tornado Victims

St. Louis Rams QB and Oklahoma City native Sam Bradford announce he will help raise money for tornado victims through #STL4OKC. Bradford made a visit to Moore, OK shortly after this disaster struck and shared his thoughts on the devastation with “NFL Total Access”:

“Just watching it happen live and knowing what it was doing and the devastation it was causing and to actually see the aftermath pictures and just the complete destruction of Moore. It was just really hard to see something like that when it hits so close to home.”

A site was set up at Busch Stadium Thursday night to collect donations from fans who attended the soccer match. Bradford will help deliver anything collected to Oklahoma on Saturday.

You can read more here.

Brian Urlacher announced his retirement from the NFL on Wednesday after 13 seasons with the Chicago Bears.

“After spending a lot of time this spring thinking about my NFL future, I have made a decision to retire,” Urlacher tweeted. “Although I could continue playing, I’m not sure I would bring a level of performance or passion that’s up to my standards. When considering this, along with the fact that I could retire after a 13-year career wearing only one jersey for such a storied franchise, my decision became pretty clear. I want to thank all of the people in my life that have helped me along the way. I will miss my teammates, my coaches and the great Bears fans. I’m proud to say that I gave all of you everything I had every time I took the field. I will miss this great game, but I leave it with no regrets.”

Urlacher ends his NFL career with 939 tackles, 41.5 sacks and 22 interceptions.

For more on the Urlacher’s retirement, check out Windy City Sweetness.

Crabtree out

The 49ers suffered a blow during offseason workouts after WR Michael Crabtree suffered a torn Achilles during drills on Tuesday. On Wednesday, Crabtree underwent successful surgery.

Head coach Jim Harbaugh believes Crabtree will return sometime during the season.

“It’s a setback, but Michael’s young,” the 49ers coach said. “He’s strong and everything will be a positive approach to healing. We’ll anticipate great things.”

Have a good Thursday everyone!

Andrew Luck vs. Colin Kaepernick: who would win in a fight?

Okay, that’s not actually what this article is about. Instead, it asks which QB is superior, especially looking down the road. But be honest, now you want to know who would win in a fight.

No money, mo’ problems seems to be ESPN’s theme this week. According to reports, ESPN is laying off as many as 400 employees to increase profit margins. Luckily, some of our favorite ESPN writers have already demonstrated that they possess certain “skills” outside of “writing about sports.” This includes Rick Reilly’s poetry (now graded by a seventh grade teacher!) and Darren Rovell’s tweets (and even better, all the replies Rovell’s tweets get – which now have their own Twitter account!).

Speaking of money, the NFL granted a $200 million loan for construction of the new Atlanta Falcons stadium yesterday. This NFL.com post says “The Falcons received the money Tuesday at the NFL Spring Meeting” and now I’m just picturing Tony Gonzalez carrying around briefcases full of dollar bills.

While at their annual Spring Meeting, the NFL also awarded upcoming Super Bowls to San Francisco (2016) and Houston (2017).

Additionally, the NFL discussed more “humane” ways to handle player cuts, which I, as an emotional consumer of Hard Knocks, completely agree with!

And finally, in random news: Tony Romo had a cyst and Microsoft is bringing it’s technology to the sideline…and beyond!

Happy Wednesday! As a special bonus, enjoy this post about the 20 Types of Depressing Sports Fans.

Emily Ritter is a contributing writer to Aerys Offsides. Her 7th grade poetry was excellent. Follow her on Twitter @ebritter2.

The league proposed several changes at the meetings conducted on Monday, including the possibility of shifting the official start date for the league year and moving back the dates of the draft and the NFL combine to May. These proposed changes, if implemented, would be effective in 2014, with May 15-17 as the date currently being  set aside for the 2014 draft.

The NFLPA has reportedly signed off on the proposed changes by moving the start of free agency to the first week of March.

The league stressed that these changes are not final.

The league also continued to discuss the future of the Pro Bowl, per Pro Football Talk. Talks about the discontinuation of the Pro Bowl continue, though sources agree it is unlikely. As Mike Florio points out (a point disguised by a bunch of incoherent babbling), as long as the Pro Bowl continues to produce ratings and in turn, make money for advertisers, it’s sticking around. However, it’s a very real possibility changes to the way the game is played will be made.

Gronk underwent a fourth surgery on his forearm on Monday.

More news from Boston, this time on the status of Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski, who successfully underwent a fourth surgery on his left forearm on Monday.

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, doctors put in new plates that had been keeping the tight end’s broken bone in place. Doctors also believe that Gronkowski’s previous injection is now gone, though they will still need to wait until all the test results are cleared to officially confirm.

The estimated recovery time for Gronk is 10 weeks. It will be up to the coaching staff to determine whether or not he begins the season on the PUP list.

Also of note on Gronk’s health is some info from The Boston Herald: “On the horizon is back surgery, and that will be tackled next. As we learned Friday, a back problem has crept into the picture. According to a source, the surgery avenue will be explored in a month’s time as doctors will decide if a piece of disc needs to be removed.”

Expected recovery time for the back surgery is four months.

Other News:

• The San Diego Chargers are reportedly keeping high-profile draft pick Manti Te’o away from the media. According to NFL.com, the Chargers announced on Monday that Te’o will be unavailable to the media until the team beings minicamp on June 11th, calling the move an “organization decision.” Though the media is less than pleased with the Chargers’ decision, the move does seem to be in the best interest of both the team and the player.
• The New York Jets have not determined a course of action for running back Mike Goodson, who was arrested last Friday on drugs and weapons chargers, but according to Jets owner Woody Johnson, the team is “at a point of investigating the facts.” Johnson also willingly provided some humerous headlines for the tabloids today, telling the media the team is trying to be thorough and conduct themselves appropriately. “We’re trying to win games and do the right thing,” Johnson said. “Truth, justice and the American way. We live by it, we really do.” UPDATE: Goodson’s pre-indictment conference is set for June 12 in Morris County Superior Court, according to the court.
• What would a Tuesday edition of the blitz be without an obligatory Tim Tebow mention? Well, here it is: Tim Tebow, Reggie Bush, Vernon Gholston, and Ryan Leaf – among others – were named to NFL.com’s list of the most over-hyped NFL draft picks of all time.
• RG3 tweeted out a photo for Redskins fans on Sunday, thanking them for the excess of wedding gifts he and his soon-to-be-wife received from their Bed, Bath & Beyond registry. “Thank you to the Fans who are helping buy ALL the items from our wedding registry at Bed Bath & Beyond …,” tweeted Griffin.

Kristine Reese is the NFL editor and lead Jets writer for Aerys Sports. You can follow her on Twitter @KristineReese.

Here we go!

Jay Cutler Dance Party, Y’all!

I know that like me, you may have found yourself wondering what exactly a dance party with Jay Cutler would be like.

Wonder no more, friends!

According to NBCChicago:

Jay Cutler and Kristin Cavallari are hosting an 80s dance party at Joe’s on Weed, 940 W. Weed St., in Chicago. The event is organized through the Jay Cutler Foundation and proceeds will benefit diabetes sufferers. The fundraiser, scheduled from 7-11 p.m. on July 18, will feature a special musical performance from 80s star Billy Ocean as well as an 80s tribute band The Breakfast Club.

As the musical selections may hint, the Jay and K-Cav are experienced in throwing 80s-themed parties.

Tickets for the 21+ event go on sale at 10 a.m. Tuesday and can purchased online.

Gronk could have more surgery

News seems to be getting worse for fans of New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski.

In addition to a fourth surgery on his forearm that he is slated to undergo today, Gronk may need back surgery.

According to ESPN:

Gronkowski recently underwent an MRI on his back to check on a disk issue from last season according to ESPN. The injury is not considered serious, a source said. If he needs back surgery, it would be performed during the time frame he would be sidelined after his forearm surgery, which he was to undergo Monday, according to a Boston Herald report.

Gronkowski will see noted spine specialist Robert Watkins in the near future following his surgery on his forearm. That surgery if all goes well will take about 10 weeks for Gronkowski to recover from.

“He is going to be fine long term,” a source close to Gronkowski said. “[He is] not worried about the short term, i.e., start of training camp.”

This disk injury is not related to the disk problem that required a procedure in 2009, the source said. It was not immediately clear what caused the current disk issue in his back or when it was discovered.

Gronkowski originally broke his arm Nov. 18 in a game against the Indianapolis Colts. He returned to action Dec. 30 in the regular-season finale but broke the forearm again in the AFC divisional round on Jan. 13 against the Houston Texans.

Gronk is in good spirits as  Saturday, he and about 30 current and former New England Patriots players, coaches and cheerleaders participated in a “Football for You” free youth clinic in Newtown, Conn.

Here’s to a speedy recovery for Gronk!

RG3 has some special fans!

Robert Griffin III is blessed to have some amazing fans. No seriously check out the boxes of gifts!

Fans helped out RG3 and his soon-to-be-bride Rebecca Liddicoat by finding the couple’s wedding registry on the Bed Bath & Beyond website.

Gifts that were purchased include:

a $439.99 Palm Harbor 2-Piece Outdoor Wicker Seating Set, the $399.99 KitchenAid® 5-Quart Tilt-Head Designer Series Stand Mixer with Glass Bowl (in lovely Candy Apple), the $299.99 11-Foot Outdoor Round Cantilever Latte Solar Umbrella with Steel Frame, the $249.99 Calphalon® Precision Series 16-Piece Cutlery Knife Block Set, and the $199.99 Shark® Rotator™ Professional Lift-Away.

Sweet, huh?

If you’re looking to get the cute couple something off the registry,  a $499.99 Calphalon Contemporary Non-Stick 12-Piece Cookware Set is still on the want list.

Homemade Tat No-No

Word of advice. Homemade tattoos should be avoided, especially if you have spelling issues. Just ask this Steelers fan:

Miranda Remaklus is lead writer Aerys Offsides. She thinks homemade tattoos might be the worst idea ever. You won’t be able to convince her otherwise. Follow her on Twitter, @missmiranda.

One of the big stories Saturday was the San Diego Chargers signing free agent Dwight Freeney. You can read more here.

Another big story that occurred late this week was the announcement of Rolando McClain’s retirement. Well Alabama Coach Nick Saban had a thing or two to say about McClain’s abrupt retirement. Saban has already been in the news once this week for being called some kind of mythical creature with horns and a pitchfork. Well, we here at Aerys have no opinion on whether or not Saban is…said creature. Therefore, feel free to continue to say Roll Tide 50 times and play with your Nick Saban commemorative action figure.

Former Kansas State quarterback Collin Klein remains optimistic he can be part of the NFL, according to the Denver Post. Klein went undrafted in the 2013 Draft.

The New York Daily News has the story on Cooper Taylor, rookie draft pick for the Giants. Taylor has Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, according to the Daily News.

The Washington Post released a survey Friday about NFL players and injuries.

We do have a couple of Aerys site updates. The Silver Lining has the latest news on the Raiders signings, which includes Josh Cribbs and Chris Kluwe. Dawg Treats has a story about the Browns signing quarterback Brian Hoyer.

Finally, for the Sunday shopping stuff. There are many high school graduations going on today all across America. Chances are, there will be graduation parties after the ceremony. Well don’t forget to bring a crock pot. Yes, you too can own a Dallas Cowboys crock pot. Bring a crock pot full of…well food to the parties. Or, you can always gift the crock pot to the kid moving on to college. Although I’m not really sure what use a crockpot will be in a dorm.

Enjoy the day though.

Gronk

Turns out that fourth surgery will more than likely be needed for Rob Gronkowski.

A doctor is slated to examine Gronkowski’s arm to see if an infection has persisted.

According to NFL.com:

Gronkowski had X-rays taken Wednesday as a precursor to surgery, and NFL.com’s Albert Breer reported that Dr. Jesse Jupiter, one of America’s top fracture surgeons, is set to perform the operation next week at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. Noted orthopedist Dr. James Andrews was consulted in the case.

The Patriots expect Gronkowski to be ready for training camp, but they won’t have a true idea on his timetable until the plate in his arm is replaced.

If the infection has cleared — Gronkowski has been on antibiotics — no more surgeries likely will be needed. If not, Rapoport reports there almost certainly will be a fifth surgery that would make it unlikely he’d be ready for training camp in July.

Good luck to Gronk. Let’s hope he will be ready for games this fall!

QB Battle Brewing in Philly?
With rookie Matt Barkley ready to compete for a chance to be the starting quarterback for the Philadelphia Eagles, Michael Vick is coming to camp turning some heads.

According to NFL.com, Vick seems to know what a great chance this is, too. Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer notes that Vick’s “motivation” this year can’t be overstated. “(Vick’s) noticeably bigger and enthused about the offense,” Berman writes.

Vick has spoken plenty that he ran less last season by design. Now, he’s in an offense that should play to his strengths (mobility) with a vastly improved, healthier offensive line.

An exciting, running game? The Eagles? Color me intrigued! For more on Vick and the Eagles, check out the story here.

Minicamp Breakdown

Check out this team by team breakdown from each minicamp and stories to watch this summer.

Picture from @RumfordJohnny

Melvin Ingram Tears ACL
San Diego Chargers Melvin Ingram has torn his ACL in his left knee. If he has a complete tear, he could be out for the whole 2013 season. This leaves the Chargers with very little options for the outside lineback position since Shaun Phillips and Antwan Barnes left the team as free agents.

You can read more here.

Best Bloopers of 2012

Check out this video of the best bloopers of the 2012 season.

Mark Sanchez Drama

Carolina Panthers Steve Smith has stirred up some drama by ripping the New York Jets’ Mark Sanchez.

Smith’s comments from WFNZ-AM, the Sporting News and ProFootballTalk.com:

“He sucks.”

“I wouldn’t let Mark Sanchez throw me a paper bag sandwich.”

The Jets and Panthers meet in December. I guess we’ll see how this drama plays out then.

• 

  Will Honey Badger become the best playermaker of the 2013 NFL Draft?

  Cardinals’ GM Steve Keim believes rookie Tyrann Mathieu “could be the best playmaker in the draft. He just has such an unique skill, with instincts and getting his hands on the ball. He’s so opportunistic on the field.”

• David Garrard will be leaving the Jets as he “calls it quits.” In a text to Adam Schein, Garrard said his “knee is not holding up. Continuing to swell after practices. Limiting what I can do.” With Garrard leaving the Jets, I believe their QB total is now lowered to 50 QBs?
• Josh Cribbs signs with the Oakland Raiders.
• The Minnesota Vikings’ coach Leslie Frazier confirms his team is not interest in Brain Urlacher. Related to this, Erin Henderson, who seems to be the MLB this season, is “pissed” about the lack of respect he is getting.
• The Patriots will cut DL Kyle Love, who was diagnosed with Type-2 diabetes recently.
• Richard Sherman will use one of the now infamous replacement refs (the one that called a touchdown on the final play of the Seahawks/Packers game) as a umpire in his charity softball game. I guess the Seawhawks do owe that ref a little something, anyway!
• As Geno Smith searches for the perfect agent, he posts a picture of him and Jay-Z. Could he land with Z’s Roc Nation agency?
• Former NFL defensive end turned Boxer Ray Edwards believe boxing is safer than football. “Football is the only sport that is 100 percent injury prone,” he said.
• Bernard Pollard will not be at the White House when the Ravens visit President Obama.

Have a good Thursday everyone!

In case you’re blind, that’s 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick. Now might be a good time to join Instagram or start saving money for ESPN’s Body Issue.

I’m definitely ready for football season now. So is the NFL, apparently, as they released the preseason schedule yesterday.

ESPN is also ready for football season (and not just because it can show more shirtless players). Yesterday, they announced a new show to start in August called “NFL Insiders” which focuses on NFL news stories and information. So basically what I do here, but with less shirtless men? The catch is that former players and coaches aren’t allowed in the treehouse on the show. NFL32 has been cut to make room for this insider take on the league. (How many times am I allowed to mention shirtless players before my non-existent football guru status is revoked?)

What are NFL players allowed to do since they can’t be on ESPN’s new show? They can become boxers! At least that’s what former Minnesota Vikings/Atlanta Falcons defensive tackle Ray Edwards did. In this interesting interview, he asserts that boxing is actually safer than football. His ideas sure do pack a punch.

That’s right, some of us don’t discriminate in our usage of former NFL players. Bonus points go to anyone who can read what that belt says (it’s not “6 pack” because I already tried that).

Because it’s Wednesday and you need something to get you over the hump, I’ll leave you with two links. One is for shirtless football players on Tumblr, as this Blitz has taken a drastic turn in that direction. And the second is for the Tumblr “Sports Balls Replaced with Cats” which is exactly what it sounds like:

Happy Wednesday everyone!

Emily Ritter is a contributing writer for Aerys Offsides. She never tweets about shirtless athletes (yeah right!) at @ebritter2.

RIck Reilly: Look for him at future poetry open mic nights. (Via Wikipedia)

I need to fill my 800 words
I cry at the Macbook
This column must be done
Or else I’ll never be able to enjoy my weekend

What can I write about?
Maybe Tiger?
Who am I kidding, he won’t win the Players
Kobe and the Lakers?
No, too irrelevant
I could write an inspirational piece
But it’s too late to do any research
Maybe I could write about the Yankees or Red Sox
They have a game this week, don’t they?

I need inspiration
I look to you, picture of Jim Murray
You’re nestled on my wall
Glasses and all
What do I do, Jim?
What can I write about?
I beg of you

Help me
Give me a grain
Your words have teeth
And have provided me wisdom
That was my dental joke

I look at the giant tee
The one Ben Crenshaw gave me after the Masters in 93
It lies next to my autographed Joe Montana Vortex football
Tee and football?
What about the model airplane on my desk
Why the Jets, of course

It has to be a Jets and Tebow column
What a great way to solve my 800 word dilemma
But people are tired?
What take can I possibly provide?

How about none
What!?
Yeah…Why do you need to provide something new?
I can write a Greek tragedy
No, Shakespeare didn’t work so well the last time I used it

How about a poem?
Yes…a poem
I took a poetry class once in high school
My degree from Boulder would make it cool

I could be Frost
It’s a cinch
You just rhyme every few versus
But I better be sure not to put in any curses

Who are the Jets quarterbacks besides Tebow?
Oh yeah, Sanchez
They also have a guy named Geno
I could do a lot with that man
You know what I mean-o

But what about the others
That kid from Alabama
Perhaps a Roll Tide is in order
Nah, too cliche
This poem doesn’t need cliches

But wait, we also have Garrard
Maybe I can make a reference to the Fugitive
But probably not

Matt Simms
How is he related to Phil
I better make a Sims video game reference
Less I seem not hip to today’s culture

It might not be 800 words
But who is really counting
Certainly not I
Now what rhymes with Tebow