"  COLUMBUS, Ind. (AP) Blair Kiel, the former Notre Dame quarterback and punter who played for Tampa Bay, Indianapolis and Green Bay in the NFL, died Sunday. He was 50. TRAGIC SPORTS DEATHS Remembering the many athletes sports lost way too soon. Bartholmew County Coroner Allen Smith said Kiel died at Columbus Regional Hospital. Smith said an autopsy has been performed and that he's waiting on toxicology results and tissue samples to determine the cause of death. After leading Columbus East High School to a state title as a senior in 1979, Kiel played for the Irish from 1980-83, completing 297 of 609 passes for 3,650 yards with 17 touchdowns and 32 interceptions. He set the record for the longest pass in Notre Dame history with a 96-yarder to Joe Howard against Georgia Tech in 1981. Kiel also averaged 40.67 yards on 260 punts, and had five rushing TDs for Notre Dame. Drafted by Tampa Bay in the 11th round in 1984, Kiel made three starts and appeared in 25 games in five seasons with the Buccaneers, Colts and Packers from 1984 to 1991. He completed 108 of 193 career passes for 1,296 yards and eight touchdowns and seven interceptions. Kiel also averaged 37.1 yards on 17 punts for the Colts. His nephew, Gunner Kiel, is a freshman quarterback at Notre Dame. Funeral arrangements are pending."

"  SAGINAW, Mich. (AP) Former Detroit Lions wide receiver Charles Rogers has been arraigned on five misdemeanors from two unrelated incidents. SAVE THE DATE NFL preseason is a chance to get a first look at your 2012 team. Top 10 games The 30-year-old Rogers appeared Thursday before Saginaw County District Judge A.T. Frank and pleaded not guilty to the charges. Frank released Rogers on a $7,500 personal recognizance bond. He's charged with making a malicious phone call and conspiring to commit that crime March 5 and March 6 in Saginaw County's Bridgeport Township. Rogers also is charged with marijuana possession, possessing an open container of alcohol in a motor vehicle and operating a motor vehicle on a suspended or revoked license Dec. 2 in Saginaw. Outside the courtroom, Rogers told The Saginaw News he had ''no comment'' on the charges. Rogers was the No. 2 overall pick in the 2003 NFL Draft."

"  FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) Former NFL star Warren Sapp owes more than $6.7 million tocreditors and back child support and alimony, according to aChapter 7 bankruptcy filing in South Florida.Sapp's $6.45 million in assets includes 240 pairs of Jordanathletic shoes worth almost $6,500, a $2,250 watch and a lion skinrug worth $1,200. He also reported losing his 2002 Super Bowl ringwith the Bucs and his 1991 national championship ring from theUniversity of Miami.The court documents were filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court inFort Lauderdale on March 30. TMZ.com first reported the filing. Aphone message and e-mail left Saturday with his attorney, ChadPugatch, were not immediately returned.Sapp's average monthly income is $115,881, according to thefilings, and includes $45,000 for a final contract payment withShowtime, $48,000 for an appearance with CCA Sports and $18,675 asan advance for a book deal. His contract with the NFL Network endsin August, the filings show, and it was unknown if the contractwill be renewed.Sapp, a former defensive tackle for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers andthe Oakland Raiders during his 13-year NFL career, was also once acontestant on ABC's ''Dancing with the Stars.''He was arrested in 2010 following an alleged domestic violenceincident at a Miami Beach hotel. He would have faced one count ofmisdemeanor domestic battery, but prosecutors declined to prosecutesaying in court documents that there were inconsistencies in thevictim's statements and evidence."

"  JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) Jacksonville Jaguars defensive tackle Terrance Knighton had eye surgery Sunday after an undisclosed incident. OUCH! Athletes have been hurt in plenty of odd ways over the years. Check out the weirdest sports injuries. According to Knighton's Twitter page, he was at Pure nightclub in Jacksonville, but team officials say they are ''gathering information about what happened and are not able to further comment at this time.'' The Jaguars say in a statement that ''our concern and our focus is on Terrance and his health and recovery.'' Knighton, a fourth-year player from Temple, has started 45 games in three seasons and has become a staple in the middle of Jacksonville's defense. He reported to training camp overweight and finished with 61 tackles last season. He is hoping for a big season in 2012 in hopes of landing a lucrative, long-term contract."

"  Palm Beach, Fla. ARE YA READY? Get up to date on the latest NFL Draft info. Watch videos. Jim Harbaugh keeps it simple. The San Francisco 49ers head coach doesn’t talk much about his job. He drives a beater of a blue pickup truck. He dresses down, not up. And when it came to kicking the tires on a 35-year-old former All Pro and famously cranky wide receiver who was a year removed from the NFL, Harbaugh believed a hands-on approach was the best. Who better to test drive Randy Moss than Harbaugh, who put in 15 seasons as a quarterback in the NFL? And so the tryout began on March 12, on the practice field at the 49ers team facility in Santa Clara, CA. Harbaugh — in khakis and a black sweatshirt — and Moss playing a simple game of pitch-and-catch, with team owner Jed York, general manager Trent Baalke and others watching from the sidelines. Harbaugh admitted the audience made him a little nervous. The only thing missing were the bottle caps in the dirt to outline Moss’ routes. “I think we threw about 48 passes, and we were 47 of 48, I believe, in that workout,” Harbaugh recalled with a broad smile. Moss’ return to the NFL in 2012 after his self-imposed one-year hiatus, — coming off the heels of an inglorious 2010 season that saw him traded from New England to Minnesota, waived by the Vikings and finally relegated to decoy with Tennessee — was viewed skeptically by plenty across the NFL. He worked out on March 6 with the New Orleans Saints but there wasn’t a conga line of teams eager to sign Moss, a player whose effort has rarely matched his often astonishing ability. SAVE THE DATE NFL preseason is a chance to get a first look at your 2012 team. Top 10 games The 49ers? Well, they went about it differently. When Moss arrived at San Jose International Airport close to midnight on March 11, there was no limo to greet him. There was only Harbaugh at the wheel. “I was very appreciative of him doing that,” Moss said during a conference call. “I mean, the head coach picking a guy up — think about that.” Harbaugh admits he felt a kinship with Moss from the start. He knows the value of a second chance, having played for five teams in 15 NFL seasons, including four stops from 1997-’01. “Well, I had third chance, and a fourth chance, you know?” Harbaugh said of giving Moss a fair shake. “I just felt that this was a shot we wanted to take.” Ultimately, the whirlwind 24-hour tryout resulted in Moss signing a one-year deal with a base salary of $1.75 million. In the 49ers’ minds, there is no risk: Moss gets richer if he performs. Incentives could raise his total to $4 million and that is all up to the receiver. WHAT'S SHAKING? NFL Draft is here, and we have you covered. "Randy's got the license and we feel he's got the ability to be a contributor in the National Football League with the San Francisco 49ers," Harbaugh said during the NFL owners meetings in Palm Beach, Fla. "It's that simple. We'll watch it all play out. "The man has an opportunity to go compete, so I'm looking forward to watching it. I'd like to be a small part of it, selfishly. I'd like to see Randy put a stamp on his great NFL career, possibly a Hall of Fame career." On an afternoon of Harbaugh-to-Moss, a bond was forged. An uber-competitive former NFL starting quarterback got his juices going by throwing finely tuned passes to a skilled player who still has sub 4.5 speed in the 40, a 6-foot-4 receiver whose great eye and quiet hands helped him haul in some of the most breathtaking catches ever seen on a football field. So, how did that tryout go, coach? Whose fault was it on the miss? Harbaugh, always a pretty serious guy, stared into space and thought hard about what happened on that whiff. “It was too far, it was a slant route that I threw out too far,” he said. “Randy made me look good a couple of times. But it was an impressive workout by Mr. Moss. That was a lot of fun.” DRESSED UP Nike gets into the game as it launches a new line of NFL uniforms. When you can throw to receivers, Harbaugh was asked, can you evaluate them better because you know where you’re putting the ball and you’re making them go get it? “Yeah, for me it is. But I may be getting a little slower. In fact, I know I am. Weaker,” said Harbaugh, bursting into a rare laugh. “I threw a post to Randy, and I was feeling so good during the workout. It was going so well and I was like, ‘Damn, we’re clicking here!’ At that point we were like 44 for 45. And I’m going to throw a post.” They had momentum. Harbaugh, 48, had his legs under him and was feeling pretty sporty. His touch was spot-on. “I’m feeling good about myself, you know? And him. So I go back to throw a post and I took seven steps off a play-action fake. Because I was feeling good,” Harbaugh continued, getting more excited detailing every pass. “So I threw it, and Randy had to slow down on the post — not to the point where it was like a punt return he was catching. But he had to slow down enough to where he had to come to a stop to catch this post route.” A dud. Harbaugh underthrew Moss, who did the coach a solid by slowing up to snag the ball rather than let it hit the grass. “Randy was coming back and he kind of flips me the ball and asks, ‘Did you take five or seven (steps) on that?’’’ Harbaugh remembered. “I said, ‘I took seven — I should’ve taken five,’ FREE-AGENT CENTRAL Moves: March 13-18 | 19-25 Broncos' Dawkins ponders future Packers lure Saturday from Colts Patriots snap up WR Stallworth Peyton Manning to Broncos Flynn heads to Seahawks 49ers land Mario Manningham Bills land star DE Mario Williams “Very, very astute by him,” the coach concluded. Moss, who isn’t easily impressed, liked what he saw. “Yes, he can still bring it at his old age. I don't know, he's probably sitting there with an ice pack or something on his shoulder right now,” he said of Harbaugh. “But he can still wing it." Harbaugh admits he’s still stinging about his team’s 20-17 loss to the eventual Super Bowl champion New York Giants in the NFC Championship Game — the 49ers receivers had only one catch for three yards in that rain-soaked contest at Candlestick Park on Jan. 22. So it’s no surprise the 49ers fine-tuned their roster in free agency. Moss’ addition brings veteran experience to a group that now includes former Giants receiver Mario Manningham to complement Michael Crabtree. The 49ers also re-signed receiver and returner Ted Ginn Jr. Running back Brandon Jacobs followed Manningham and left the Giants to sign with the 49ers, giving Frank Gore some big-bodied help in the backfield. The 49ers also re-signed cornerback Carlos Rogers and safety Dashon Goldson to keep their fourth-ranked defense intact, with all 11 starters returning for 2012. And while other coaches across the NFL won’t give Moss a rousing endorsement — ex-Titans coach Jeff Fisher, now with St. Louis, has been forthright in saying the receiver didn’t always display the best practice habits while in Tennessee — Harbaugh is only looking forward in this new relationship. He chooses to see a player who put up more than 1,000 yards receiving in a season 10 times, second only to Jerry Rice, who did it 14 times in a Hall of Fame career. "We feel it's a good move for us, and we're excited to have Randy on our team," said Harbaugh, reverting back to his trademark cold sober scowl. "Our dealings with him, our research, we feel that the merits outweigh the risks. I'm looking forward to coaching him." "What's going to tell the whole story is from now, the offseason, through training camp, those day-to-day interactions, how he competes on the field. That's going to determine the reality. Get more NFL news from Scout.com or check out your favorite team. What your perception is right now, or what Bill Belichick's perception of him was, or a different coach is really irrelevant right now. The reality is, it's going to play out over the next six months and into the season." For Harbaugh, the possibilities played out quite nicely on that practice field in Santa Clara in March. The quarterback, and the coach, saw it for himself. He latched onto a great player looking for a job. “I'm not a free agent. I'm a guy straight off the couch, straight off the street," Moss said. "One thing I want the sports world to understand is the love and passion I have for football." Who’s to say Moss will still have that fire in November? For now, he is giving the 49ers just that. He’s all about potential, with little money down and easy weekly payments. We’ll see who gets the better deal.  "

"  ORLANDO, Fla Former NFL star Warren Sapp has filed for bankruptcy in South Florida. Court filings show Sapp filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in Fort Lauderdale on March 30. The documents show he owes more than $6.7 million to creditors and back child support and alimony. Sapp's $6.45 million in assets includes over 200 pairs of Jordan sneakers. SAVE THE DATE NFL preseason is a chance to get a first look at your 2012 team. Top 10 games TMZ.com first reported the filing. Messages left with his attorney Saturday by The Associated Press were not immediately returned. He also reported losing his 2002 Super Bowl ring with the Bucs. Sapp believes he mislaid the prized Super Bowl ring while traveling a few years ago, but played down the loss. "That ring didn't make me a champion, my team and I did," he told TMZ, adding that he also had mislaid the 1991 National Championship ring he won while at the University of Miami, another career memento he apparently can live without. "Have you ever seen the 1999 Miami Hurricanes championship ring? It was 10 carats of cubic zirconia and yellow gold. It might be worth 300 bucks," Sapp said. Sapp was a former defensive tackle for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Oakland Raiders. He was arrested in 2010 following an alleged domestic violence incident at a Miami Beach hotel. He would have faced one count of misdemeanor domestic battery, but prosecutors declined to prosecute saying in court documents that there were inconsistencies in the victim's statements and evidence. Newscore contributed to this report"

"  From the fans’ perspective, there is nothing less sexy than to take a guard or center in the draft. Yet when you get value at that position, you can anchor your offense in a way that is seldom recognized. ARE YA READY? Get up to date on the latest NFL Draft info. Watch videos. A good interior line can cover average tackles on the edge and provide diversity and power to your offense. Teams typically carry only three interior linemen on game day, so versatility is key. Four of the top six prospects in this year’s NFL Draft come from Wisconsin or Georgia, schools that traditionally produce excellent linemen. Stanford’s David DeCastro, 6-foot-5 and 315 pounds, may be the most complete player at his position in the draft. Over the past three years, at least one interior lineman has been selected in the top 21 picks (Alex Mack, Mike Iupati, the Pouncey twins, Maurkice and Mike), and DeCastro is likely to be better than all of them. Drawing comparisons to former Pro Bowler Alan Faneca, he has the size and all the tools indicative of a dominating presence in the inside. At 6-5 and 315, Wisconsin’s Peter Konz is the top center prospect, but he has the size and versatility to kick over to the guard position as well. That alone increases his value. Konz has great field awareness and shows balanced feet to find his target and hook on. He is an excellent combination blocker who works well with teammates to either overtake a block or slip off and attack the second level. Konz is comparable to Buffalo's Eric Wood, the 28th selection in the 2009 draft. Although he isn’t a household name, Wood has started 33 games in just three seasons with the Bills. WHAT'S SHAKING? NFL Draft is here, and we have you covered. Cordy Glenn from Georgia is likely next on the interior linemen list. Then again, a solid Senior Bowl followed by an excellent combine has many believing that he can be a solid offensive tackle in the NFL. I see him as a first-year starter on the right side, and because of that, I’m evaluating him against the other tackles in the draft. But he certainly could be selected by a team looking to add to its interior. Kevin Zeitler from Wisconsin is another interior lineman worth keeping an eye on. Anchored by Joe Thomas and 2011 draft picks Gabe Carimi and John Moffitt, the Badgers have a strong recent history of producing very capable NFL linemen, and Zeitler will be no different. Like all his Wisconsin alumni, Zeitler has tremendous size but can sink his hips and plays with good flexibility. Zeitler reminds me of Marshal Yanda, who we took in Baltimore in 2007 from another Big Ten staple, Iowa. Yanda wasn’t taken until the third round, and that is where Zeitler’s value is greatest. Baylor’s Philip Blake, Miami's Brandon Washington and Georgia’s Ben Jones also are names to become familiar with, but the fastest risers may be small-school prospects, Amini Silatolu from Midwestern State and Kelechi Osemele from Iowa State. Both are creating positive buzz leading up to the draft, and when you watch them on tape, they both show the bulldozing power that will be beneficial to a traditional rushing attack. If either Silatolu or Osemele is available in the late second round, teams will be itching to write their names on the draft card.  "

"  OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) The Oakland Raiders have signed defensive end Dave Tollefson,the latest New York Giants free agent to land in the Bay Area thisoffseason.The Raiders announced Tollefson's signing Saturday. The29-year-old had a career-high five sacks last season while playingin a reserve role for the Super Bowl champion Giants.Tollefson was drafted by new Raiders general manager ReggieMcKenzie in 2006, when McKenzie oversaw scouting for the Green BayPackers. He also was on Oakland's practice squad in 2007.Tollefson is the third notable Giants player to move to the BayArea recently. Running back Brandon Jacobs and wide receiver MarioManningham signed with the San Francisco 49ers previously."

"  PHILADELPHIA (AP) ARE YA READY? Get up to date on the latest NFL Draft info. Watch videos. Defensive tackle Derek Landri and the Philadelphia Eagles have agreed to a one-year contract. Landri had 43 tackles and two sacks in 12 games in his first season in Philadelphia last year. The deal was announced Monday. Landri also blocked a field goal and led the Eagles with eight tackles for a loss. Landri started 16 games for Carolina in 2010 and set career highs with 63 tackles and three sacks. In six seasons, Landri has 158 tackles and eight sacks."

"  ASHBURN, Va. (AP) The Washington Redskins have signed free agent offensive linemanJames Lee.Lee has played three NFL seasons, all with Tampa Bay. He startednine games at right tackle in 2010 but played in only three gameslast year, in part because of a knee injury.Lee was undrafted out of South Carolina State. He is expected toprovide depth behind starting right tackle Jammal Brown, who hasbeen hampered by injuries in recent years."