England

According to ESPN Boston's Field Yates, the Patriots have decided to restructure the contract of wide receiver Julian Edelman, who signed a one-year deal to return to New England back on April 11. The re-worked contract, according to Yates, has converted $40,000 of Edelman's $50,000 workout bonus to a roster bonus for making the 53-man roster for Week 1. Apparently, the value of Edelman's contract has not changed, and will still be worth a hair above $1 million. With news coming out that Edelman has re-injured his foot, it seems logical that the team would want to re-work the contract. Because Edelman is not guaranteed a dime from the Patriots, he also would be in favor of a contract restructure, because the team has the power to simply release him without owing him any money at all. Yates elaborated on this: Edelman's deal did not include any guaranteed money when he signed it, which was likely a reflection of the fact that he has had some struggles staying healthy during the first four years of his career and was coming off of foot surgery. If Edelman returns to health and makes the 53-man roster at the conclusion of training camp and remains on it for Week 1, he'll make back much of the money that was to be available through the workout program. He's long been one of the team's hardest workers, and this could be a situation where they don't want to penalize an injured player who is forced to miss the offseason program with the idea in mind that he was likely to be a full participant if healthy. Last season, Edelman turned in one of his best career seasons as a Patriot, catching 21 passes for 235 yards with a career high three touchdowns. It was evident at the beginning of the season that offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels wanted to get Edelman more involved in the offense, and even took playing time away from Wes Welker to do it. Even though Edelman was brought back for basically pocket change, that should not symbolize his importance to this team. Beyond his duties as a receiver, Edelman has served as the team's primary punt returner since he came into the league, and has established himself as one of the best in team history in that role. My hope is that Edelman does recover from his foot injury and is able to come into camp and "work for the money" and ultimately make the roster. Poll When the Broncos come to town on Nov. 24, will you boo or cheer for Wes Welker? Boo Cheer 8 votes | Results

A Pakistan passenger plane was intercepted by UK fighter jets following a bomb threat. Royal Air Force Typhoon jets escorted the Pakistan International Airlines plane to Stansted Airport this morning. The plane was originally heading to Manchester, England, from Lahore, Pakistan. Officials state that one of the passengers made a bomb threat. As reported by NBC News, officials believe “the threat was passed in anger.” The Boeing 777 passenger plane was intercepted by fighter jets without incident. The 308 passengers and crew members were unharmed. As reported by Channel 4 News, the plane was escorted to Stansted airport as it offers an isolation area. As part of the UK anti-terrorism effort, the isolation area allows for inspection of planes outside the range of passenger terminals. The plane was evacuated and is currently being inspected for any evidence of tampering or explosive materials. Authorities report that two male passengers have been arrested for “suspicion of endangerment of aircraft.” The same plane, flying the same route, was diverted to Stansted Airport on September 7, 2011 following a bomb threat. In an unrelated incident, a British Airways plane was forced to land at London’s Heathrow airport this morning. As reported by The Independent, the passenger plane was forced to make an emergency landing due to a fire. The passengers and crew were safely evacuated and no injuries were reported. Runways were closed for several hours while the fire was extinguished. Flights have now resumed, but authorities are reporting delays. Officials with British Airways do not suspect terrorism. They are in the process of investigating the cause, but suspect a “bird strike” led to a fire in the right engine. As reported by Bloomberg.com, Britain is currently under “high alert” following the death of a soldier in London. Lee Rigby of the 2nd Battalion of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers was stabbed by two men just outside of the army barracks. The two men were arrested and are awaiting trial. Thankfully, the passenger plane was intercepted by the fighter jets without incident, and nobody was harmed in the British Airways fire. The incidents were certainly disturbing and unusual for the passengers, crew, and those watching from the ground. [Image via Wikimedia] Passenger Plane Intercepted By Fighter Jets Following Bomb Threat is a post from: The Inquisitr

Cleveland Browns quarterback Brian Hoyer has returned to Cleveland after four years with the New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Arizona Cardinals.

Thanks, but... "@BBCSport: Here's #bbccricket's report on how 1st day of the England-NZ Test was lost to the weather

Andros Townsend pulls out of the England Under-21s European Championships squad following FA betting charges.

No play was possible on what should have been the opening day of the second Test between New Zealand and England at Headingley. Strong winds and frequent showers battered the ground for much of the day and play was called off shortly before 4pm local time.

It’s been a bad day for Tottenham Hotspur. FC Porto have announced that they’ve sold striker Joao Moutinho to Monaco for a transfer fee of £21 million. The White Hart Lane club were reportedly within minutes of signing Moutinho last summer, but failed to beat the deadline to bring the highly-sought after footballer to England. In the meantime, Tottenham are still reportedly pursuing the signings of strikers Leandro Damiao and Roberto Soldado. In other news today, Tottenham Hotspur winger Andros Townsend has been charged by The FA for alleged breach of betting regulations. According to a statement from The FA, “The FA has announced it has charged Andros Townsend in relation to alleged breaches of its rules governing misconduct and betting. The Tottenham Hotspur player has been charged with breaches of Rule E8 (b) in relation to a number of betting offences. The player has until 3 June to respond to the charges.” Townsend, who was on loan at Queens Park Rangers last season, has pulled out of the England u21 European Championship squad and will be replaced by Birmingham City’s Nathan Redmond. “Townsend will receive the full support of The FA and Tottenham Hotspur FC in seeking rehabilitation whilst responding to the allegations,” added The FA statement. It’s understood that the charge against Townsend has nothing to do with match fixing. Bad Day For Spurs: Joao Moutinho Joins Monaco, While Andros Townsend Charged With Betting is a post from EPL Talk - Independent voice of EPL soccer fans since 2005.

Persistent rain prevented any play on the first day of the second Test between England and New Zealand at Headingley

THIS POST CONTAINS NO SPOILERS.(That disclaimer is primarily for Nick's benefit.)One of the benefits to being really busy at work and barely posting on your blog and not keeping up with movie news and basically having your head in the sand in general is that you can roll up to your computer on a Thursday to scan the options for a matinee movie on a potential early-release Friday before Memorial Day weekend, and learn that all of the sudden, Before Midnight is in theaters.(Run-on sentence intentional, which Nick will also appreciate.)I mean, I knew that the third (and final?) movie in Richard Linklater's Before series was hitting theaters in the month of May, and I knew we had only one week remaining in the month of May. However, being really busy and barely posting and having your head in the sand means that you forget what you knew. Allowing nice little surprises like this one.Even better, it's playing at a perfect time (2:05) for my potential early release (1:30), while still giving me plenty of time to pick up my son at daycare (5:00).What I'm most curious about with regards to this third meeting of Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Celine (Julie Delpy) is the emotional impact it will have on me.I watched the brilliant Before Sunrise on March 25th, 2002, when I was about three weeks into a relationship with a woman who I thought would become my wife. Even at that point I saw everything lining up perfectly. We shared a geographical background (both from New England), we shared a mindset (less than I thought it turns out -- she's more conservative than she admits) and most importantly, we shared an attraction. It was one of those situations where you just know it. Of course, those feelings are not always correct, since we did not get married.However, in that dizzy spell of early-relationship romanticism, I encountered Before Sunrise at just the perfect time. What some people might interpret as a melancholy story was, for me, a warm embrace of the possibilities of life and love. I ate it up.It was a different story when I saw Before Sunset on July 23rd, 2004. The aforementioned girlfriend and I had been broken up for eight months, though it was only within the past couple months that I had started to think there was no possibility of us getting back together. It was one of those situations where I did the breaking up, then regretted it, and expended countless hours and numerous increasingly desperate ploys on trying to get us back together. By July 23rd, 2004, I was pretty sure it wouldn't happen. So as I walked into the theater to see Before Sunset, my heart was heavy. As I left what many people consider an equally brilliant film to its predecessor, if not better, I felt a bittersweetness that was more bitter than sweet.It'll be interesting to see how Before Midnight strikes me today.Today, I have been married for five years and been in a relationship with my wife for more than eight. In fact, I met her only about five months (almost exactly) after seeing Before Sunset. Our marriage is a happy one, though of course it has its share of the kind of difficulties that are part and parcel to the institution. We don't always agree and it's not always easy, but overall, it's an "easy" marriage by marriage standards. One I'm thankful for and lucky to have.So I don't expect to emerge from Before Midnight feeling especially melancholy, at least not for reasons external to the movie. Though I do wonder how this movie will, like its predecessors, speak to the place I currently find myself. I haven't learned a lot about the plot of Before Midnight, but I understand that perhaps Celine and Jesse have been together since Before Sunset, meaning that domesticity is the dominant mode of their relationship nowadays. Of course, that may be wrong, but if it's right, it could very well have a lot to say about how a person's core "relationship" is affected by marriage or a close facsimile thereof.Now, I just need to get that early release.

2012 REGULAR SEASON: 164-91*-1 (.643) PLAYOFFS: 7-3 (.700) SUPER BOWL: 1-0 (1.000) COLTS PREDICTIONS: 13-4 (.765) Life isn't easy for a Predictificationist - especially during this NFL offseason. After I correctly predicted the Baltimore Ravens as Super Bowl champions (not to mention predicting the Patriots and Falcons losses in the Conference Championships) before the season started last August my email, twitter and cell phone have been ringing off the hook! (yes, I'm aware that email and twitter don't 'ring') It's because of superior Predictification powers that I've been buried in questions all offseason: "Who are the Colts going to sign, Nick?" "Who are the Colts going to draft, Rags?" "Which team will win the Super Bowl this year, Predictificationist? "Hey, can you give me the winning PowerBall numbers?" I guess I should have seen it coming (I am a Predictificationist after all). To be honest, there is a part of me wanted to simply drop the mic and walk off stage. https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=zIdUlp3QAsk I mean could it get any better? I need to remind you (as I did last year), the power of these predictions often cause people to lash out. This isn't a bad thingt - heck, even encouraged. Do you know how many people mocked my Ravens pick last year? Look at the comments section for a good laugh (TY46, LuckSCI12, Bruce_Wayne, SpanishColtsFan, ColtsFan1345, profootballfanatic, ohsnap12, and James Busch... I've got a video for you!). Some people can't handle the power of Predictification. But, alas, I've decided to share my gift with you for another season. You're welcome. (SPOILER ALERT! The entire NFL season is revealed below!) AFC EAST New England Patriots 12-4 (y) Miami Dolphins 7-9 New York Jets 3-13 Buffalo Bills 2-14 AFC NORTH Baltimore Ravens 11-5 (x) Pittsburgh Steelers 11-5 (x) Cincinnati Bengals 9-7 Cleveland Browns 6-10 AFC SOUTH Houston Texans 11-5 (x) Indianapolis Colts 9-7 (x) Tennessee Titans 4-12 Jacksonville Jaguars 3-13 AFC WEST Denver Broncos 13-3 (z) Kansas City Chiefs 6-10 San Diego Chargers 6-10 Oakland Raiders 6-10 (z - home field, y - first round bye, x - wildcard round) Division winners: Broncos, Patriots, Texans, Ravens Wildcards: Steelers, Colts NFC EAST New York Giants 10-6 (x) Dallas Cowboys 9-7 Washington Redskins 8-8 Philadelphia Eagles 6-10 NFC NORTH Green Bay Packers 12-4 (x) Chicago Bears 10-6 Minnesota Vikings 7-9 Detroit Lions 6-10 NFC SOUTH Atlanta Falcons 13-3 (z) New Orleans Saints 11-5 (x) Carolina Panthers 6-10 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 5-11 NFC WEST San Francisco 49ers 12-4 (y) Seattle Seahawks 11-5 (x) St. Louis Rams 7-9 Arizona Cardinals 5-11 (z - home field, y - first round bye, x - wildcard round) Division winners: Falcons, 49ers, Packers, Giants Wildcards: Saints, Seahawks WILDCARD ROUND: Colts over the Texans Ravens over the Steelers Packers over the Saints Seahawks over the Giants DIVISIONAL ROUND Broncos over the Colts Patriots over the Ravens Seahawks over the Falcons 49ers over the Packers CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS Broncos over the Patriots 49ers over the Seahawks SUPER BOWL Broncos over the 49ers So, there you have it. Peyton Manning will win his second ring and beat Andrew Luck, Tom Brady and Jim Harbaugh in the process. Couldn't get much better than that, could it? (Well, for Peyton Manning at least) I'm sure that you are all much smarter (since you've been reading my articles) this year and won't say ANYTHING about my spotless predictions.... or will you? Be on the lookout for the article next week where I will go into detail on my predicted 9-7 season for the Colts, including projections for Andrew Luck for year two. It will be amazing (of course). Questions, comments, concerns? Leave me something below in the comments or shoot me an email to predictification@gmail.com. Want more of me in