NFL notebook: Cowboys, Prescott making progress on deal

The contract could be worth close to $30 million a year, or more, according to
the newspaper.

Team owner Jerry Jones told Cowboys Hall of Famer Michael Irvin on "The Rich
Eisen Show" on Monday that he was confident the deal with Prescott, entering
his fourth NFL season, would get done.

"We are sold on Dak," Jones said. "We do want to have him for the long term."

--Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul sustained a fractured
neck in a single-car crash last week and could require surgery, multiple media
outlets reported.

The 30-year-old will visit neck specialists for opinions, and ESPN reported he
likely will need an operation. NFL Network reported Pierre-Paul could indeed
be headed for surgery -- which would carry a recovery time of five to six
months -- but added there is hope the injury could heal on its own before Week
1.

The Buccaneers issued a statement that did not acknowledge the specific injury
but confirmed the evaluation process is ongoing.

--Le'Veon Bell remains absent from voluntary team sessions with the New York
Jets two months after signing a contract with $27 million guaranteed.

Bell preferred his Miami-area digs for offseason training as a member of the
Pittsburgh Steelers, including his full year spent in relative exile as a
holdout.

"When it's time to play football..." Bell wrote on Instagram. "I got to stick
to the formula that I know works for me to be the best player I can be...I'll
take the heat right now, everybody will forget about that once January comes
around."

--Veteran cornerback Richard Sherman said he won't have any trouble with new
San Francisco 49ers teammate Nick Bosa as long as the rookie shows up to play.

Bosa admitted pre-draft that he had scrubbed his Twitter account clean of
anything that could be considered political. The former Ohio State defensive
end had tweeted his support for President Donald Trump, and also criticized
former 49ers quarterback-turned-social activist Colin Kaepernick.

"It's not like something where guys are like, 'Hey man, what about what you
said?' No. No. If he can play, he can play. If he can't play, he won't be
here," Sherman told the Sacramento Bee.

--An infamous sideline interview during the 2003 football season is what gave
legendary quarterback Joe Namath the motivation he needed to stop drinking, he
writes in a new autobiography.

In the book, "All the Way: My Life in Four Quarters," Namath described the
aftermath of the awkward interview with ESPN's Suzy Kolber, in which he told
her he wanted to kiss her.

"I saw it as a blessing in disguise," said Namath, 75, who has acknowledged he
was drunk during the interview. "I had embarrassed my friends and family and
could not escape that feeling. I haven't had a drink since. ... I'd probably
be dead by now if I hadn't stopped drinking."

--Longtime Tampa Bay cornerback Ronde Barber will become the 13th member of
the Buccaneers' Ring of Honor in September.

The ceremony will take place at halftime of the Buccaneers' Sept. 22 game
against the New York Giants, a game Barber will be working as a member of the
FOX broadcast team.

--The Oakland Raiders and free agent guard Richie Incognito have "strong
mutual interest" but are waiting on potential NFL discipline for Incognito's
arrest last summer, ESPN reported.

Incognito was arrested in August during an incident at an Arizona funeral home
following his father's death. He pleaded guilty last month to disorderly
conduct and was sentenced to 11 months of probation and a 90-day suspended
jail sentence. The 35-year-old last played for Buffalo in 2017.

--The New England Patriots will sign free agent offensive tackle Jared
Veldheer to a one-year deal worth up to $6.5 million later this week, multiple
media outlets reported.

According to SiriusXM NFL, the minimum value will be $3.5 million, with up to
$3 million in additional escalators.

--Kelly Stafford, the wife of Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford,
credited her surgeon for saving her hearing as he operated last month to
remove a brain tumor.

On Instagram, she thanked Dr. Gregory Thompson of the University of Michigan
for his patience and persistence during the 12-hour surgery, which she said
was complicated by a rare artery.

--The NFL will open a training academy in London this fall for teenagers who
want to tackle the sport.

Starting in September, the NFL Academy will offer student-athletes ages 16 to
18 "the opportunity to combine education with the life skills and intensive
training in the sport under full-time professional coaches."

--Field Level Media