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New England quarterback Tom Brady on Saturday put to rest any talk of a rift between himself and Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. During the 23-3 win over the Bills last Sunday in Buffalo, McDaniels and Brady exchanged words and the New England quarterback stormed off the field animated while continuing to bark at McDaniels.
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"I want to apologize to Josh for last week in Buffalo," Brady told reporters Saturday. "I know the coaches work really hard. They're responsible for putting us in a great position to succeed. So I just want to get that off my chest."
Brady was 21-of-30 passing for 258 yards en route to his 27th career victory over the Bills as the Patriots won for the eighth straight time.
--Several members of the Pittsburgh Steelers, including wide receiver Antonio Brown, will honor injured teammate Ryan Shazier on Sunday.
Brown posted a short video on Snapchat Friday of the customized cleats he intends to wear during warmups prior to Sunday night's game against the Baltimore Ravens.
One yellow cleat features Shazier's face, while the other has a picture of a lion, which Shazier has used on social media on numerous occasions. Both cleats have Shazier's name and number (50) on them, along with the hashtag "#SHALIEVE."
Shazier underwent spinal stabilization surgery Wednesday after sustaining a severe injury against the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday night. The 25-year-old spent Monday and Tuesday night at the University of Cincinnati medical center before being transferred to Pittsburgh on Wednesday.
--Geno Smith Jr., father of New York Giants quarterback Geno Smith, said he received a death threat last week before his son started in place of a benched Eli Manning.
Smith Jr. told NJ Advance Media that he received the call a little more than an hour after it was announced that his son would replace Manning for last Sunday's game against the Oakland Raiders.
"I was just at work," Smith Jr. told NJ.com on Friday. "I answered, and he was like, 'Geno?' So I just listened, and he was like, 'Is this Geno?' I was like, 'Yeah.' He was like, 'Your son better not start or we're going to kill you.' I kind of just laughed and then he hung up."
The 43-year-old Smith Jr. told NJ Advance Media that he was sitting in his car monitoring workers removing debris as part of FEMA's disaster relief efforts in Miami and Broward County when he received the threatening call from a man he said sounded in his late 20s. He said the phone number had a Missouri area code.
--The Cincinnati Bengals placed cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones on injured reserve, the team announced.
The 34-year-old Jones injured his groin while making a diving interception of Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger in Monday night's 23-20 loss. He was ruled out of the game in the first quarter and did not practice this week.
Jones finished his 11th NFL season and eighth for the Bengals with 23 tackles, one interception and four passes defensed in nine games, all starts. He also was one of the team's kick and punt returners.
--Dallas Cowboys linebacker Justin Durant, defensive lineman David Irving and cornerback Orlando Scandrick were downgraded from questionable to out for Sunday's game against the New York Giants.
Durant will be missing his second straight game because of a concussion.
Irving has seen limited time this year, but when he has played, he has been a destructive force. He missed the first four games after being suspended for violating the NFL's ban on performance-enhancing drugs, but has compiled 22 tackles and seven sacks (second on the team).
Scandrick was injured in the same game. He suffered two small fractures in his back and missed practice all week. Rookie Jourdan Lewis is scheduled to replace Scandrick in the starting lineup.
