NFL NOTEBOOK: Packers might postpone retiring Favre’s jersey

GREEN BAY, Wis. — With Brett Favre’s retirement up in the air, it goes without saying that the Green Bay Packers might have to put off retiring the three-time MVP’s jersey.

The Packers had scheduled a ceremony to retire Favre’s jersey in conjunction with the Sept. 8 season opener against Minnesota at Lambeau Field.

But with Favre now considering playing again in 2008 and locked in a standoff with Packers management about his future in football, Packers president and CEO Mark Murphy acknowledged Thursday that the ceremony might have to be postponed.

“We have not made a decision yet on whether to cancel it,” Murphy said, after the Packers’ annual shareholders meeting at Lambeau. “But we’re coming up to a point where we’re going to have to make a decision pretty quickly.”

But Murphy said any delay would only be temporary.

“We’re going to retire Brett’s number at some point,” Murphy said. “Regardless of whether it’s this year, it’ll be sometime in the future. We’ll wait and see, but I think it’s still enough up in the air that we want to wait and see how things play out.”

The Packers reached agreement on a contract extension for linebacker Brady Poppinga. Poppinga, who is expected to compete with free agent signee Brandon Chillar for the starting strong side linebacker spot during training camp, had one year left on his existing deal.

Notes

49ERS: San Francisco signed defensive lineman Kentwan Balmer, getting its first-round draft pick into training camp a few hours before the team’s first meeting. Balmer, a late-blooming star at North Carolina, was the 29th overall pick in April. He is the last of the 49ers’ six draft picks to sign, agreeing to a five-year contract and guaranteeing San Francisco will have no rookie holdouts for the fifth straight summer.

BEARS: Chicago first-round draft pick Chris Williams left practice because of lower back stiffness. Williams signed his five-year, $13 million contract just in time to participate in Wednesday’s first practice. Nine-year veteran John St. Clair is the Bears’ other left tackle, and he manned the spot for much of Thursday’s practice, with undrafted free agent Cody Balogh also seeing time.

BILLS: Buffalo second-round pick James Hardy became the third and most significant rookie to sign with the team, the day before training camp opens in suburban Rochester. Besides Hardy, a receiver who was selected 41st overall out of Indiana, the Bills also signed third-round pick, defensive end Chris Ellis, and sixth-round pick, running back Xavier Omon, both to four-year contracts. That leaves Buffalo first-round pick Leodis McKelvin, a cornerback, as the one unsigned player before the team’s first practice today.

BROWNS: Cleveland offensive lineman Ryan Tucker said playing in an exhibition game is a reachable goal after undergoing surgery to repair a broken hip. Tucker, a former tackle who started the final eight games last season at right guard, suffered a “freak” injury during non-contact drills in May. He still isn’t sure how he got hurt, and he spent a day walking around before he was diagnosed with a non-displaced hip fracture. While his teammates practice outdoors, the 33-year-old is inside working to get strength in his leg and backside.
CARDINALS: A major storm hit Arizona training camp one day before practice begins, when standout wide receiver Anquan Boldin lashed out at the Cardinals organization for failing to follow through on what he said was a promise for a new contract. He said he had told his agent Drew Rosenhaus to end negotiations and that he would not re-sign with the team.

“Right now I don’t want a deal,” he said Thursday after the players went through a running drill. “You may think I’m funny or saying that just to say it, but for me, I’m tired of it. I washed my hands of the whole situation.”
Boldin, a two-time Pro Bowl player and a team captain last season, said that he was promised a new contract before this season. He has three years left on the four-year, $22.75 million contract extension he signed after the 2005 season that keeps him under contract through 2010. He’s making an average of $4 million a year.
CHARGERS: San Diego first-round draft pick Antoine Cason agreed to a five-year contract worth slightly more than $12 million, assuring he will be in camp when the team holds its first full-squad practice. Cason was the team’s final draft pick to agree to terms. He missed three days of rookie camp while the two sides finalized a deal that includes a signing bonus of roughly $6 million. A defensive back, Cason will compete for the nickel back spot.
CHIEFS: Kansas City signed tackle Branden Albert, the second of the team’s two first-round draft picks. The team appears far from an agreement with its other first-round pick, defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey. The team headed to camp Thursday.
GIANTS: Super Bowl hero David Tyree was placed on the physically unable to perform list by the New York Giants because of lingering problems recovering from surgery on his right knee. Tyree, whose one-handed catch of a pass against his helmet led to the game-winning touchdown against the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl, is uncertain how long it will take to recover from his surgery in April.
LIONS: Detroit and cornerback Leigh Bodden have agreed on a $27 million, four-year contract extension. Bodden’s deal includes a $2 million signing bonus and a $8.6 million roster if he’s on the team next March. The contract extension was first reported by the NFL Network. Detroit acquired him and a third-round pick in February for defensive tackle Shaun Rogers.
REDSKINS: Washington rookie receiver Devin Thomas probably will miss the team’s first exhibition game after pulling his right hamstring in practice. Washington’s top pick in this year’s draft is expected to miss about two weeks of training camp. That timetable would keep Thomas out of the Aug. 3 Hall of Fame game against the Indianapolis Colts.

VIKINGS: Former Minnesota defensive lineman Darrion Scott on Thursday received a two-year stayed sentence for putting a plastic bag over his 2-year-old son’s head. Scott, who was also fined $200, pleaded guilty earlier this month to child endangerment and called his actions “stupid and reckless.” Scott said he put the plastic bag over his son’s head to show the boy there was nothing to fear. Scott, currently a free agent, was a third-round pick in the 2004 NFL draft and played in 48 games with the Vikings.