Irsay: Colts will pick a quarterback
INDIANAPOLIS, Jan. 20 (UPI) -- Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay said the team's first pick in the April draft will be a quarterback, regardless of Peyton Manning's status.
Irsay said Thursday the Colts are looking at Stanford's Andrew Luck or Baylor's Robert Griffin III, The Indianapolis Star reported Friday.
"With Griffin and Luck and the way it's shaping up at the top of the draft -- could very likely go one and two like with Peyton and Ryan Leaf," Irsay said. "It's most likely one of those quarterbacks that you really feel is the best player in the draft, and where we're at moving forward you can't pass that up. I don't think anyone would expect that."
Manning, the longtime Colts star and four-time MVP in the NFL, and Leaf were the first two picks of the 1998 draft. Leaf went to the San Diego Chargers.
Manning missed the entire 2011 season because of neck surgery he underwent Sept. 8 and is rehabilitating.
New tumors found in Gary Carter's brain
DURHAM, N.C., Jan. 20 (UPI) -- The daughter of baseball Hall of Famer Gary Carter said doctors in North Carolina have found new tumors in his brain.
Carter's daughter, Kimmy Bloemers, said the 57-year-old former player, who played 19 major league seasons with the Montreal Expos, New York Mets, San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers, underwent an MRI test after a fall during a doctor's visit last week and the Duke University Medical Center doctors in North Carolina informed the family of the new tumors Thursday, CNN reported Friday.
Carter was diagnosed with inoperable brain tumors in May and began radiation treatments.
"There are now several new spots/tumors on my dad's brain. I write these words with tears because I am so sad for my dad," Bloemers wrote in an online posting.
Carter made a public appearance Sunday at a dinner prior to his annual charity golf tournament in West Palm Beach, Fla.
"I'm not feeling all that good," he said during his remarks. "And I just pray that God will continue to help me because I want to continue to help in any capacity that I can."
Steelers' offensive coordinator retires
PITTSBURGH, Jan. 20 (UPI) -- Bruce Arians, who has been the offensive coordinator for the Pittsburgh Steelers the past five seasons, has retired, the NFL team said Friday.
Arians, 59, had been with the Steelers since 2004, serving as wide receivers coach before becoming offensive coordinator in 2007.
This past season Pittsburgh's offense was 12th in the NFL in yards per game and tied for 21st in points.
"I appreciate his efforts over the past five years as the team's offensive coordinator and for helping lead our offense to new heights during his time with the Steelers," Coach Mike Tomlin said in a statement released by the team. "I am grateful to Bruce for contributing to our success and wish him nothing but the best in his retirement."
Arians began his coaching career in 1975 as a graduate assistant at Virginia Tech, where he had played quarterback. He was the head coach at Temple from 1983-88, going 21-45.
He joined the NFL coaching ranks in 1989 with Kansas City and was on staffs at Indianapolis and Cleveland before moving to Pittsburgh.
Dykstra sentencing delayed
LOS ANGELES, Jan. 20 (UPI) -- A California judge delayed sentencing for ex-baseball star Lenny Dykstra on grand theft auto charges because he's "progressing well" in a drug/alcohol program.
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Cynthia Ulfig delayed sentencing for Dykstra, 48, until March 7 to allow him to finish the program, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday.
"He is enrolled in a drug and alcohol program and progressing well," the judge said.
Dykstra was convicted of the grand theft auto charges after he and two others tried to lease high-end cars from multiple dealerships by providing phony information and claiming credit through a fake business, authorities said.
Dykstra was arrested April 14. Authorities said they found cocaine, Ecstasy and somatropin, a synthetic human growth hormone, in his home.
