UFL's Omaha Nighthawks looking at ex-Rams draft pick Crouch

OMAHA, Neb. -- Eric Crouch is giving pro football another try.

The 2001 Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback from Nebraska is among 70 players participating in a minicamp this week for his hometown Omaha Nighthawks of the United Football League.

Crouch was a 2002 third-round NFL draft choice of the St. Louis Rams, who projected him as a receiver, and he walked out of training camp and announced his retirement after he wasn't given a chance at quarterback.

He hasn't played since 2006, when he was a quarterback for three games with the Canadian Football League's Toronto Argonauts. Since then, Crouch, 32, has run a playground equipment company and sold medical supplies in Omaha and done a little broadcasting.

"I don't think I'll ever get football 100 percent out of my system," Crouch said Wednesday. "I don't think that will ever happen. Maybe it will. I know I'm going to be a little bit rusty and I'll be a little bit behind. I feel I can go in and help the team win."

Crouch has been working out with former Nebraska players in Lincoln, Neb., in recent weeks, but he didn't decide until Tuesday to accept the Nighthawks' invitation.

"I think Eric recognizes he hasn't played in a while and he's rusty," coach Joe Moglia said. "He's done a great job of keeping in shape. He's not in game shape. But at the end of the day, there wouldn't be the remotest chance Eric would be doing this unless he was taking it seriously and wanting to truly give this his very, very best shot."

The UFL is entering its third year as a haven for players who were cut in NFL training camps and veterans who want to get back to the NFL.

The 2010 Nighthawks featured Pro Bowlers Jeff Garcia, Cato June and Ahman Green, plus former Ohio State star Maurice Clarett. Garcia and Green no longer are on the roster, and Moglia acknowledged that Crouch's addition would be good for public relations.

Crouch grew up and played high school football in Omaha before becoming Nebraska's third Heisman Trophy winner. After leaving St. Louis, Crouch tried out with the Green Bay Packers and Kansas City Chiefs and played a season in NFL Europe before landing in Canada.

"Since leaving Nebraska," he said, "it's been a less-than-stellar professional career, hopping from team to team, league to league, having injuries and uncertainty."

The other quarterbacks in the Nighthawks' minicamp are last year's backup, D.J. Shockley, who played collegiately at Georgia, and rookie Jeremiah Masoli, who played at Oregon and Mississippi.

Crouch said the seven practices over four days will tell him how much he still wants to play -- and whether the Nighthawks want to invite him to training camp next month.

Unlike other UFL players, Crouch isn't looking to play in the NFL. Married with two young children, Crouch said he wants to play the sport he loves in the city where he lives.

"I'm a very competitive person, and I've never yet won a championship -- little league, high school, college or professionally," he said. "There's something about being on a championship football team. That still drives me. Maybe it sounds quirky, but that's the competitive drive in me."

Crouch expects to be mocked for trying to revive his football career again.

"I'm really not concerned too much with how people will perceive my decision," he said. "Life is short, and you have to enjoy what you're doing, and I've always enjoyed football. I really truly feel I still have the skill set to play it."

Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press

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Del Rio still looking for right formula to rebuild Jags' defense

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jaguars' defensive collapse happened quickly and with little warning.

There might have been some signs, like New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady's near-perfect performance against the Jaguars in January 2008. But no one predicted that coach Jack Del Rio's defense would fall so far so fast.

The Jaguars had one of the NFL's most consistent defenses between 2004 and 2007, stuffing running backs, harassing quarterbacks and holding opponents to 17 points or less in 36 of 64 games.

It was what Del Rio believed in, what he wanted, even what he demanded.

It just didn't last. With the Jaguars (4-4) heading into a bye week off a lopsided victory at Dallas, Del Rio reflected on his once-stout defense -- the unit that currently ranks 30th in the NFL and the one he's trying so desperately to turn around this season. He took blame for overrating personnel and missing badly on free agents and draft picks, and he vowed to return the defense to where it was a few years ago.

"Defensively, when we got here in '03, a lot of work went into establishing a mentality and a mindset of how we're going to do things," Del Rio said. "And our guys embraced it. We played some really stout defense for a number of years."

Del Rio mixed oversized tackles Marcus Stroud and John Henderson, speedy linebacker Mike Peterson and hard-hitting safety Donovin Darius with second-year linebacker Daryl Smith and third-year cornerback Rashean Mathis. It was a recipe for success.

Jacksonville might not have been the 1985 Chicago Bears or the 2000 Baltimore Ravens, but it wasn't too far off. The Jaguars ranked in the top 10 in nearly every defensive category between 2004 and 2007, establishing the benchmark for Del Rio's tenure.

The defense carried the franchise to the playoffs in 2005 and 2007, but that last postseason run was where things started to turn.

Brady completed 26 of 28 passes for 262 yards and three touchdowns in an AFC divisional game, taking advantage of a mostly nonexistent pass rush and picking apart Jacksonville's secondary.

In the aftermath of the 31-20 loss, Del Rio and then-personnel chief James "Shack" Harris decided to trade Stroud for two draft picks. They took those picks, packaged them with some of their own and moved up in the first and second rounds to select Florida defensive end Derrick Harvey and Auburn defensive end Quentin Groves.

It turned out to be Del Rio's worst move since putting a sharp ax and a tree stump in the middle of the locker room.

Harvey has six sacks in 40 career games and was finally benched last week. Groves was even less productive and was traded to Oakland in April.

Del Rio justified trading so many picks for two rookies by saying few draft choices would have made the roster.

"We probably underrated the number of players we had that were getting up in their years, that weren't going to continue playing for a long time," Del Rio said Wednesday. "I would say that's absolutely something we have to admit looking back, that to package that many picks and try and move, thinking you're that close, that's really not the sound way to do things.

"I think we gave into some of those thoughts, some of those feelings. To acknowledge that is just being honest."

Making matters worse, the Jaguars gave cornerback Drayton Florence about $12 million guaranteed in free agency -- to be a backup -- and whiffed on safety Reggie Nelson (first round, 2007) and linebacker Clint Ingram (third round, 2006).

Throw in fourth-rounder Brian Smith (2007) and fifth-rounders Chris Thompson (2004), Brent Hawkins (2006), Josh Gattis (2007), Derek Landri (2007), Thomas Williams (2008) and Trae Williams (2008), and the Jaguars had more late-round defensive flops than finds.

"You never know how it's going to turn out," Mathis said. "You can go get a young guy in the draft or bring a guy here in free agency. We missed on both, in free agency and the draft. When you do that, it's going to take you a while to come back around."

The Jaguars overhauled their defense in 2009, then tweaked it again this offseason after finishing with a franchise-low 14 sacks.

With newcomers at nearly every position, the Jaguars have given up at least 26 points in eight games and are on pace to set franchise records in touchdowns, points and yards allowed. Nonetheless, Del Rio believes the defense is on the verge of playing better, just not quite ready to be like it was before.

"We have a good group of guys," he said. "We have an energetic group of coaches that are teachers, we have a group of guys that are willing to learn and they're unselfish. I like the way that were working at it, and I do feel that we will play much improved defense down the stretch here."

Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press

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Goodell says NFL looking at 'workplace conduct' in Favre probe

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell told fans in an NFL.com chat that "workplace conduct" is the main focus of the league's investigation into allegations of improper behavior by Minnesota Vikings quarterback Brett Favre.

Goodell said Thursday that the Favre situation is being treated seriously while facts in the case are being gathered. The commissioner's response came after one participant in the session argued that players haven't been given "fair warning in the area of workplace conduct with women around."

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"Each of these cases are looked at individually, and we have to be thorough and fair," Goodell said. "We also are working hard on the development of our workplace conduct training program for all teams. We are working with experts in the field and expect to roll it out to our teams by the end of the season.

Brett Favre declined Wednesday to discuss allegations that he sent suggestive messages and lewd photos to a female New York Jets employee in 2008, when the quarterback played for the team.

"That's a league issue that I just have to leave at that," said Favre, who met with NFL vice president for security Milt Ahlerich on Tuesday in Minnesota.

Goodell also addressed numerous questions Thursday about player safety, a hot topic after the league's recent crackdown on players who make dangerous hits on opponents.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Commissioner Goodell 'just looking for facts' in Favre case

CHICAGO -- NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said Tuesday there isn't a timetable for wrapping up an investigation of an Internet report that Minnesota Vikings quarterback Brett Favre sent racy text messages and lewd photos to a former New York Jets game hostess two years ago.

"We're just looking for facts now," Goodell said at the NFL Fall League Meeting. "I am going to deal with it as we get the facts."

Goodell said he didn't have plans to meet with Favre, "but if it is something that would help us get to a conclusion and it is warranted, I will do so."

The investigation, announced last week, centers on a report by the sports website Deadspin that Favre, then with the Jets, sent the photos and messages to Jenn Sterger in 2008.

Sterger's manager, Phil Reese, declined to say if his client has talked with the NFL.

"This is something that allegedly happened two years ago," Reese said in an e-mail to The Associated Press. "We don't want a quick resolution, but the proper resolution."

Favre could be fined or suspended under the NFL's personal-conduct policy.

"One of the reasons we instituted the personal-conduct policy ... to make everyone understand their responsibilities," Goodell said. "We're not going down a line of speculation and hypothetical situations."

Favre hasn't responded to questions about the Deadspin report.

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Deadspin also reported that Favre pursued two female massage therapists who worked part-time for the Jets. The website didn't identify the women, but the Jets have said they gave contact information about them to the league.

Two high-profile quarterbacks recently were penalized for violating the NFL's personal-conduct policy.

Former Atlanta Falcons star Michael Vick returned to the league in 2009 with the Philadelphia Eagles after missing two seasons for his role in a dogfighting ring. He served an 18-month sentence in prison.

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was suspended for six games in April after he was accused of, but not charged with, sexually assaulting a 20-year-old woman at a bar in a Georgia college town. Goodell shortened that ban to four games just before the season, and Roethlisberger will return to the field for Sunday's game against the Cleveland Browns.

Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press

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