Terrell Owens said he would be interested in joining the Patriots, who don’t appear to have interest. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Though it seems unlikely the New England Patriots would have any corresponding interest in him, embattled wide receiver Terrell Owens said it would be a “no-brainer” to potentially join forces with quarterback Tom Brady and head coach Bill Belichick.

“I think that’s a no-brainer,” Owens said in a recent interview with BlindsideFootball.com. “You look at what they’ve done over the years. Under the tutelage of Tom and Coach Belichick [sic], I think the sky would be the limit in terms of what I’d be able to do. Considering my body of work and my history of playing the game.”

Last month, Owens worked out with Brady in Los Angeles, and speculation popped up that the Patriots could turn to Owens to fill a void at the receiver position.

But the Patriots said back then that the team had no interest in Owens, and even Owens seemed to downplay the workout in the recent interview.

“We happened to be on the same field at the same time and it obviously created a big buzz with the two of us being on the field throwing the football around,” Owens told BlindsideFootball. “There was really nothing organized about it as far as me trying to get with the Patriots or him pursuing me or anything like that. It just happened to be us being out there on the same field at the same time.”

Owens hasn’t played in the NFL for two full seasons. His last NFL stint came before the 2012 season, when he was released by the Seattle Seahawks. But he has not appeared in an NFL game since 2010.

Owens recently made his debut as a semi-professional bowler.

Wide receiver Julian Edelman has agreed to re-sign with the New England Patriots, reports USA TODAY‘s Mike Garafolo on Twitter.

WR Julian Edelman will re-sign with the Patriots today. Visited the Giants but is going back to New England.

— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) April 10, 2013

Edelman will sign a one-year contract. Financial terms were not immediately known, but NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reported that the deal is “incentive-laden.”

New England’s wide receiver group will look different next season. The Patriots lost receiver Wes Welker, one of the league’s best in the slot, to the Broncos. The team also released receiver Brandon Lloyd.

But the Patriots signed Danny Amendola away from the Rams, with the hope that he can help replace some of Welker’s production. Former Bills receiver Donald Jones also agreed to a deal with New England.

Earlier Wednesday, the Patriots signed Steelers receiver Emmanuel Sanders to an offer sheet. It’s not clear yet whether Pittsburgh will match the offer and keep Sanders, but New England has been aggressive this offseason in bringing in weapons for Tom Brady.

Keeping Edelman will maintain some continuity among Brady’s targets. Edelman showed some promise last season, starting three games and catching 17 passes. He could grow into a bigger role this season.

Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski will reportedly need another surgery on his broken forearm. (Jim Rogash/Getty Images)

New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski will likely need to undergo a fourth surgery on his left forearm to remove a plate in the arm, ESPN.com’s Mike Reiss reported on Sunday. The Patriots said they wouldn’t comment on an earlier report from the Boston Herald that Gronkowski could need surgery, but Reiss reported that the surgery is “very likely” to happen.

Reiss reported that Gronkowski is battling an infection in an area where a second metal plate was installed to help heal his broken forearm. Doctors would remove the plate and install a new one, but they would need to make sure the infection is gone.

If Gronkowski does need another surgery, the estimated time of recovery would be 10 weeks. If Gronkowski’s infection holds up the surgery, it could affect Gronkowski’s readiness for the start of next season.

The 23-year-old Gronkowski missed five games near the end of last season after breaking his left forearm blocking during the final, meaningless extra point of a 59-24 Patriots win over the Indianapolis Colts. He re-injured the forearm during New England’s 41-28 AFC Divisional Playoff victory over the Houston Texas and missed the rest of the Patriots’ playoff run.

In 11 regular-season games last season, Gronkowski had 55 receptions for 790 yards and 11 touchdowns.

The Patriots have reportedly locked up tackle Sebastian Vollmer to protect Tom Brady. (Scott Heavey/Getty Images)

The New England Patriots and right tackle Sebastian Vollmer have agreed to a four-year contract that is expected to be formally announced on Monday, the Boston Herald’s Karen Guregian reported.

The deal keeps intact the stellar offensive line that protected quarterback Tom Brady last season. Vollmer was part of an offensive line that was tasked with replacing three former starters — Matt Light, Brian Waters and Dan Koppen — in 2012.

The deal also means that the Patriots retained two of their top three free agents. They re-signed cornerback Aqib Talib last weekend, but they also failed to re-sign wide receiver Wes Welker, who jetted to the Denver Broncos.

The 28-year-old Vollmer has played his entire four-year career with the Patriots. He missed one game last year, but the free-agent market wasn’t buzzing for him because of a postseason knee scope and his history of back issues. He played only six games in 2011 because of injuries.

Ravens defensive end Terrell Suggs says every team in the league hates the Patriots. (Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

According to Baltimore Ravens defensive end Terrell Suggs, the hatred for their bitter rivals the New England Patriots extends beyond his locker room.

Suggs says the other teams in the league feel the same way he does. Suggs, who led his team to a Super Bowl title this season, says he doesn’t apologize for telling the Patriots to “have fun in the Pro Bowl.”

“The NFL is not very big,” Suggs said on WEEI, via ESPN.com. “You think we don’t talk to guys that have played for the New England Patriots, that have been on the New England Patriots that have been like, ‘Oh, it’s been like this. It ain’t just me. Why did Bart Scott say the same thing? You think it’s just us? You think it’s just got something to do with us? No. This is because we have inside information. We know.”

Suggs says the league took extra steps to protect Patriots quarterback Tom Brady after he suffered a season-ending knee injury in 2008.

“There was the whole invention of the Brady rule,” he said. “Years before, I hit Drew Brees and I accidentally tore his knee up. No rule was made. Of all the quarterbacks in the NFL who got their knees blown out when they got hit – Carson Palmer got his knee blown out — but then one guy got hit and changed the whole rule for the NFL?”

Patriot’s QB Tom Brady is owed $15 million each of the next two season. (Getty Images)

New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft took time out to discuss him team and especially quarterback Tom Brady’s status with the team.

Brady will be 36 when the next season begins and is owed $15 million each in 2013 and 2014, with a salary cap hit of $21,800,000 each year.

“I think he had a remarkable year this year and I think we look at each year as it happens,” Kraft said to Comcast SportsNet New England. “I’d love him to be here as long as he’s productive and feels he wants to play. That’s his choice but I would surely never like to see that happen. I think what he’s done for this franchise…But once again, everything is a dual decision. But I think, somehow I feel he’ll know when it’s not right for him and I believe he loves being a Patriot and we sure love having him be part of our organization.”

Brady threw for 4,827 yards with 34 touchdowns and eight interceptions last season.

Former Rams running back Marshall Faulk believes the Patriots cheated in the 2002 Super Bowl. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images Sport)

Former St. Louis Rams running back Marshall Faulk said he believes the Patriots cheated to win the 2002 Super Bowl, reports CSNNE.com’s Tom Curran.

Faulk told Curran he thinks the Patriots videotaped St. Louis’ walk-through before the game.

“Am I over the loss? Yeah, I’m over the loss,” Faulk said. “But I’ll never be over being cheated out of the Super Bowl. That’s a different story.”

Since the Spygate scandal in 2007, when the Patriots were caught videotaping the Jets’ signals during a game, theories that the Patriots illegally taped the Rams have floated. But there has never been any evidence.

The Rams, heavily favored in the game, fell 20-17 to New England on Adam Vinatieri’s game-winning kick. It was the first of three Super Bowl wins in four years for Tom Brady and the Patriots.

Faulk said his experience playing in the game is what has him convinced New England cheated.

“I understand Bill (Belichick) is a great coach,” Faulk told Curran. “But No. 13 (Kurt Warner) will tell you. Mike Martz will tell you. We had some plays in the red zone that we hadn’t ran. I think we got to fourth down — we ran three plays that we hadn’t ran, that Mike drew up for that game – Bill’s a helluva coach . . . we hadn’t ran them the whole year (and the Patriots were ready for them)…

“I know, in that game, in the red zone, the plays we ran, most of them we hadn’t ran most of those plays that year. And a couple of plays on third down that we walked through also . . .  Any time that I was offset, I was always stationary. And we had creating motioning in the backfield at the same depth on the other side of the field. And they created a check for it. It’s just little things like that. It’s either the best coaching in the world when you come up with situations that you had never seen before. Or you’d seen it and knew what to do.”

The NFL fined New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady $10,000 on Wednesday for unnecessary roughness for his aggressive slide towards Baltimore Ravens safety Ed Reed, reports NFL.com.

Brady was trying to run for a first down when he slid and made contact with Reed’s thigh in the second quarter of the Patriots’ 28-13 loss to the Ravens in the AFC Championship Game. Brady was not penalized on the play.

Reed said Brady later apologized via text message.

“You know, I understand Brady’s point,” Reed told WJF-FX, via NFL.com. “Him protecting himself. I know he’s a great player. I respect Brady and his game for all it stands for, and I know he’s not a dirty player. And emotions get going in the game.

“I told him — you know, we talked. We talked actually not too long ago, we talked on the phone. He actually reached out to me, texted me. I tried to text him back, but the message exploded after 12 seconds, so I had to call him … and he’s just apologized and what not. But I told him, ‘You know, it’s good, man.’”

GALLERY: TOM BRADY AND CONTROVERSY

Ravens safety Ed Reed said Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has apologized for sliding with his cleats up during the AFC Championship Game, via ESPNBoston.com.

Reed said during a WJZ radio interview that Brady texted him after the game before the two talked on the phone.

Reed’s teammate, Bernard Pollard, has been very vocal in claiming Brady’s dirty play was intentional and calling on the NFL to investigate the play. The NFL announced that it was reviewing the play Tuesday.

[GALLERY: TOM BRADY AND CONTROVERSY]

“We talked actually not too long ago, we talked on the phone. He actually reached out to me, texted me,” Reed said, via ESPNBoston.com. “I tried to text him back, but the message exploded after 12 seconds, so I had to call him … and he’s just apologized and what not. But I told him, ‘You know, it’s good, man.’”

Reed said that he doesn’t think Brady is a dirty player and credited the quarterback’s reaction to the fact that “emotions get going in the game.”

The kicking motion that Tom Brady made on what would be one of the final plays of the season for the New England Patriots is going to be reviewed by the NFL for possible disciplinary action, according to league spokesman Greg Aiello on Tuesday. The news was reported via Ed Werder on Twitter with additional information in another ESPN report.

[GALLERY: TOM BRADY AND CONTROVERSY]

The play in question came during the final minute of the first half. Brady was sliding to the ground during a run to avoid a hit from Baltimore’s defense and in a quick motion raised his leg into the air, making contact with Ravens safety Ed Reed, who subsequently walked away without injury. The Ravens ended up winning the AFC Championship game in rather convincing fashion, 28-13.

Ravens safety Bernard Pollard said Brady “knew what he was doing” and said he’s fine with whatever the NFL ultimately decides but alluded to the idea that the league should fine him if it wants to stay consistent with its principles.

NFL will review Tom Brady play for possible discipline for appearing as though he tried to defend himself by kicking at Ed Reed—
Ed Werder (@Edwerderespn) January 22, 2013

Patriots wide receiver Wes Welker will be a free-agent if the team doesn’t sign him.(Winslow Townson/Getty Images)

New England Patriots wide receiver Wes Welker’s future with the team is uncertain, but quarterback Tom Brady wants one of his favorite targets back with team to make another postseason run.

Welker will be a free-agent in the offseason unless the Patriots slap him with the franchise tag again or sign him to a long-term deal. Welker received the tag in 2012 and he received a $9.5 million salary. This season, he led the team with 118 catches and 1,354 yards. He also scored six touchdowns.

“I think those business parts of the game are … those usually take care of themselves,” Brady said to Boston radio station WEEI.  ”Certainly I’m not involved in any of those. Everybody knows how I feel about Wes, our whole team feels that way about Wes. He’s just one of the best players I’ve played with and played against. He’s just a phenomenal player, and he’s been the heart and soul of what our team is all about. He’s been so selfless, and the way that he carries himself and commits himself to help our team win, it’s second-to-none. But like I said, those aren’t my decisions.”

Welker had eight catches for 117 yards in the team’s 28-13 AFC Championship loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday.

Baltimore Ravens safety Bernard Pollard had a few choice words for New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady after the Ravens beat the Pats 28-13 in the AFC Championship Game to advance to the Super Bowl.

Pollard is referring to Brady sliding feet first into the groin area of Ravens safety Ed Reed late in the second quarter after he avoided a rush and tried to pick up a first down. Brady’s right leg came up as Reed tried to jump over him.

“You’ve got to keep them legs down,” said Pollard, via Comcast Sports Network New England. “You’ve go to keep the legs down. We all know and understand what’s going on there. And as a quarterback, when you go to slide, we’re taught . . . we can’t do anything. When you come sliding, and your leg is up in the air trying to kick somebody, that’s bull crap.”

The league has not announced if there will be any punishment for Brady, who was not flagged on the play. Pollard, when playing for the Kansas City Chiefs in 2008, is the same player that put Brady out for the entire 2008 season when he hit Brady’s knee tearing his ACL and MCL.

Patriot’s QB Tom Brady leads a fast-paced offense that Jets linebacker Calvin Pace called “borderline illegal.”

Calvin Pace says the Pats’ fast paced offense has always been a challenge, and now stopping it is even tougher.

“It’s borderline illegal because sometimes the guys aren’t always set when they snap the ball,” Pace said Wednesday. “But it’s smart. Why not hurry a team up? I wish we would do it. For a defense, it just puts pressure on you.”

The Patriot’s no-huddle tactic kicks the offense tempo up a notch, leaving some teams scrambling. The Patriots have run 473 plays, 39 more than the next.

“It’s very difficult,” linebacker David Harris said. “You’ll see defenses not even lined up and they’re already running a play. They get a lot of extra yardage because of it. It causes guys to lose their mind. You can see it on film.”

Going into Sunday’s game against the Patriots, the Jets defense needs to communicate and move quickly to keep up.

At the Online News Association’s annual conference, in San Francisco, Twitter CEO Dick Costolo was asked whom he would most like to see opining in 140-character bursts using his company’s service. Costolo did not hesitate.

“The quarterback of the New England Patriots, Tom Brady,” he said, according to Matt Pepin of Boston.com.

Costolo then admitted that he, like Brady, is a University of Michigan alum, so perhaps his answer was colored by that association.

Brady — who already gets more publicity than he knows what to do with — does not have a Twitter account, but more than 30,000 people follow the parody feed @TomBradysEgo.

The Patriots’ Aaron Hernandez could be out up to six weeks with an ankle injury suffered Sunday. (Jim Rogash/Getty Images)

In what could be a big blow to the New England Patriots’ offense, tight end Aaron Hernandez could be out for up to six weeks with an ankle injury, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio reported Sunday night.

Hernandez hurt his ankle while blocking on a screen pass during the Patriots’ second offensive series of their 20-18 home loss to the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday. ESPN’s Mike Reiss and Field Yates reported that Hernandez left Gillette Stadium after the loss on crutches and wearing a walking boot.

There were fears that Hernandez might have broken his ankle, but multiple reports indicated that was not the case.

The Patriots’ offense struggled mightily on Sunday without Hernandez, who has a starring role in the Patriots’ two-tight end offensive system along with Rob Gronkowski. Hernandez is a hybrid tight end who plays multiple roles in the offense.

“When he went down it took away a lot of things they are able to do,” Cardinals safety James Sanders told ESPN. “It’s unfortunate for them, but it helped us out as a unit. I just pray that he’s healthy.”

Without Hernandez, the Patriots and quarterback Tom Brady suffered their first defeat in a home opener in 10 seasons.

Patriots owner Robert Kraft thinks Tom Brady is the best quarterback of all-time. (Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images)

New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft says that his quarterback Tom Brady is so special to him that he considers him to be a fifth son. He also had high praise for Brady when it comes to ranking the best quarterbacks of all-time.

“I think that Tommy, with all due respect, is better than Joe Montana,” Kraft said to NFL.com. “I know that’s a leap, but I really think he might already be the best of all time. I watch how involved he is, how driven he is. He’s like (Bill) Belichick, he’s into the details. And he’s got a skill that makes him so special, he can process all of it so quickly. … And then, he’s just got that quality. Certain people have that sincerity. He’s a very genuine guy. People can relate to him. People can trust him.”

Brady is 35 years old and has won three Super Bowls and two regular season MVP awards. According to Brady’s father, he believes the quarterback wants to play six to eight more years.

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady will sit out the team’s game tonight against the Philadelphia Eagles, the Boston Herald‘s Jeff Howe reports.

NFL Network’s Albert Breer reported on Twitter that linebacker Jerod Mayo, wide receivers Brandon Lloyd and Wes Welker, and tight ends Aaron Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski will also miss the Monday Night Football game.

Our desk at NFL Network reports that word from Foxboro is Brady, Mayo, Lloyd, Hernandez, Welker and Gronkowski won't play tonight.

—
Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) August 20, 2012

The Patriots are resting Brady and others because the team will have a busy week, Howe reports. The Patriots will have joint practices with the Buccaneers during the week and then play Tampa Bay in a preseason game Friday.

Wes Welker and the Patriots are far apart on a long-term contract extension. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

The New England Patriots and wide receiver Wes Welker are heading into their last week of long-term contract discussions for a while, and the big gap between the two sides suggests little possibility of a deal getting done.

The Boston Globe’s Greg Bedard reported Sunday that the Patriots and Welker are about $6 million in guaranteed money apart from one another, a big divide heading into the final week of negotiations. Welker and the Patriots can negotiate on a long-term contract until July 16 at 4 p.m. At that point, the two sides could no longer negotiate until the end of the season, and Welker would be forced to play the season under the $9.515 million franchise tag. Bedard breaks it down:

Basically, the Patriots want Welker to take a bit of a discount to stay with Tom Brady. Welker, meanwhile, wants a deal that guarantees him just below the $21 million he would get paid playing two years under the franchise tag.

You’re talking about a distance in the range of around $6 million in guaranteed money.

Welker, 31, produced arguably his best season last year with the Patriots. He caught an NFL-leading 122 passes for a career-high 1,569 yards and a career-high nine touchdowns.

Bedard points out that if the Patriots are committed to Walker for more than next season, they would be wise to sign him to a long-term deal rather than continue to lock him up via the franchise tag. If the Patriots signed him to an extension, they would save approximately 50 percent on his cap number and could use the savings for extensions on other players, including tight end Aaron Hernandez, offensive tackle Sebastian Vollmer or safety Patrick Chung.

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and wife Gisele Bündchen attend the Costume Institute Benefit at The Metropolitan Museum (Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images)

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and supermodel wife Gisele Bundchen are expecting their second child, according to NESN.com. Bundchen has been telling close friends and family that she is pregnant.

The couple has a 2-year-old son named Benjamin. Brady also has a four-year-old son, Jack, with actress Bridget Moynahan.  Brady threw 39 touchdowns for 5,235 yards last season, while completing 65 percent of his throws.

No word on the sex of the new baby or when the baby is due.

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has agreed to restructure his contract, according to Ian Rapaport of the Boston Herald.

Brady signed a four-year, $72 million contract extension in 2010; he was due a base salary of $5.7 million for this upcoming season. He reduced that figure to $950,000. His cap number for 2012 goes from $15.2 million to $8 million, while that figure for 2013 and 2014 rises to $21.8 million. All in all, the Patriots free up $7.2 million in space under the cap for this year.

The Patriots have already made a number of big-name free-agent signings: Donte Stallworth, Brandon Lloyd and Anthony Gonzalez to name a few. But this latest development allows for one more blue-chipper to fit under the Patriots’ cap for next season.

Brady turns 35 before next season; he’s won three Super Bowls to date. He appears to be making a push for one more.

The San Jose Mercury News reports that Tom Martinez, a longtime quarterbacks coach at the College of San Mateo in California who mentored Tom Brady, has died. It was his 66th birthday.

Martinez announced in June that he had just weeks to live due to complications from diabetes. Today he suffered a heart attack during kidney dialysis; he had been waiting for a transplant.

Martinez was one of the most successful athletic coaches in California community college history. He coached football, women’s basketball and softball at the College of San Mateo.

Boston Red Sox slugger Kevin Youkilis is now engaged to Julie Brady, Tom Brady’s sister, according to the Boston Herald.

The Herald reports the two have been dating for just over a year, and that the pair was on scene at the Super Bowl last weekend.

Youkalis, a three-time All-Star and a two-time World Champion has been a star in Boston since coming up as a rookie in 2004.  Brady has been a legend in the New England Area since leading the Patriots to three Super Bowl Championships and Five appearances in the past 10 years.

Gisele Bundchen, supermodel wife of New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, made headlines in the wake of the Pats’ Super Bowl XLVI loss on Sunday night, lashing out at her husband’s teammates for blowing a potential win over the New York Giants.

“My husband cannot [expletive] throw the ball and catch the ball at the same time,” she said. “I can’t believe they dropped the ball so many times.”

That was Sunday night. Now on Wednesday morning, we’ve got a response out of Giants camp. Here’s what Big Blue running back Brandon Jacobs has to say about the Brazilian beauty opening her mouth:

Brandon Jacobs to reporters on Tom Brady's wife, Gisele Bundchen: "She just needs to continue to stay cute and shut up."—
Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 08, 2012

Jacobs’ Giants beat Brady’s Patriots, 21-17, to win their second championship in four years. Jacobs had nine carries for 37 yards in the win.

Tom Brady’s supermodel wife, Giselle Bundchen, ripped the Patriots receivers for dropping too many passes, according to CBS Sports.

“You (have) to catch the ball when you’re supposed to catch the ball,” Bundchen reportedly snapped back at a Giants fan who criticized Brady after the game. “My husband cannot (bleeping) throw the ball and catch the ball at the same time. I can’t believe they dropped the ball so many times.”  The verbal exchange between the supermodel and the Giants fan was caught on video and obtained by TheInsider.com.

The key missed opportunities she was referring to were the critical dropped passes by Wes Welker and Aaron Hernandez in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s Super Bowl loss.  If the receivers had caught those balls, Brady and the Patriots could have been in a great position to possibly score and win the game.  Shortly after the game, Bundchen was captured by reporters and photographers comforting Brady.

The Giants beat out the Patriots in a thrilling 21-17 finish with Brady attempting to win the game throwing up a hailmary into endzone.  After Gronkowski failed to come up with the deflected ball, the Giants officially became Superbowl XLVI Champions.

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady took a bit of a cheap shot at the hotels in Buffalo, and it wasn’t recieved well, according to CNN.

“I don’t know if any of you guys have ever been to the hotels in Buffalo, but they’re not the nicest places in the world,” Brady said, praising his father for traveling to away games to see him play.

Brady apologized for the insult, but the damage had already been done, and hotel officials in the city had already lashed out at Brady.

“Tom Brady comes to Buffalo once a year, and to pass judgment like that I think is just irresponsible at best,” said Bryan Drew, general manager of Embassy Suites. “We’ve got some great hotels, especially here downtown.”

“Buffalo Niagara is filled with excellent hotel options to meet the needs of the most refined travelers,” said Ed Healy, vice president of marketing for the tourism organization Visit Buffalo Niagara. “P.S. – go Giants!”

Ben Roethlisberger is expected to play in the Pro Bowl this weekend, according to ProFootballTalk, despite an ankle injury that bothered him for the final weeks of the season.

A source told ProFootballTalk that Roethlisberger will, “definitely” make the trip to Hawaii, where the Pro Bowl is held.

Roethlisberger posted a 90.1 quarterback rating while throwing for 21 touchdowns and 14 interceptions in 15 games this season.  The 29-year-old was previously elected to the Pro Bowl in 2007 after he posted a 104.1 quarterback rating for the Steelers.

As a result of Roethlisberger’s attendance, Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow will not get the call to join the AFC squad after initially being selected as a second alternate. Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton was the first alternate at the position for the AFC, and it was announced earlier today that he will join the club in place of New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.

Cincinnati Bengals tight end Jermaine Gresham, defensive tackle Geno Atkins, and quarterback Andy Dalton have been added to the AFC Pro Bowl Roster according to the team’s official Twitter account.

NFL announces #Bengals TE Jermaine Gresham , DT @GenoSacks and QB Andy Dalton have been added to the AFC Pro Bowl roster.

—
Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) January 23, 2012

The three young Bengals were added to the roster thanks to the  New England Patriots’ victory over the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship yesterday.  Dalton (first alternate), Atkins (first alternate), and Gresham (third alternate) will replace Tom Brady,  Vince Wilfork, and Rob Gronkowski, respectively.   The three added Bengals will join teammate and first-team selection wide receiver A.J. Green.

The upstart Bengals finished the season with a solid 9-7 record, losing to the Houston Texans, 31-10, in the AFC Wildcard game.   

In a development that should surprise absolutely no one, it appears that Tom Brady will play Sunday in the New England Patriots’ AFC title game showdown with the Baltimore Ravens.

Brady missed a practice earlier this week with a minor injury to his non-throwing shoulder, but he was back in action today and no longer listed on the team’s injury report, according to the Associated Press. Pats coach Bill Belichick listed 17 players on the most recent report, but Brady wasn’t one of them.

Brady sprained his left shoulder in a win over the Dolphins on Dec. 24. He’s played through the injury, but he took a day off Wednesday to rest the shoulder. He returned Thursday and downplayed the absence in comments to the media.

For the Ravens, safety Ed Reed remains the only injury concern — he has an ankle injury and is probable to play Sunday against New England.

Ravens Quarterback Joe Flacco responded to Ed Reed’s comments to SiriusXM NFL Radio on Flacco’s “rattled” play in the win against the Houston Texans last Sunday, according to USA Today.

“I said, ‘Yo, bro, what are you doing to me? I mean I already take enough, and now you gotta come out and say this.’ You never know what context it was said in — you know, live — and you never know what he was really thinking in his mind about what he meant by it.” Flacco told NFL Network’s NFL Total Access on Wednesday .

“ [Reed] kinda laughed about it and wanted to give me a hug and all that,” Flacco said, asserting that there was no rift in the locker room. “Like I said, you never know what he was actually thinking and stuff like that when he answered the question. It didn’t sound good, it’s not a big deal.”

In the Ravens’ opening playoff game last weekend, Flacco completed 14 of 27 passes for 176 yards and was sacked five times in a 20-13 win over the Texans.

This Sunday, the Ravens will travel to Foxboro to face Tom Brady and the No. 1 seeded New England Patriots in the AFC Championship game.  Brady is 4-1 against Baltimore; however, his 71.4 quarterback rating in those contests is his lowest against any team.

Three weeks ago, after the New England Patriots toppled the Denver Broncos in Week 15 with an emphatic second-half comeback, Tom Brady met Tim Tebow at the 50-yard line, exchanged pleasantries with the opposing quarterback and told him, “We’ll see you again.”

Reminded of these words tonight by the Boston Herald’s Ian Rapoport, Tebow had an interesting little quip regarding New England’s reigning MVP.

“He might’ve said something like that,” Tebow said. “So I guess he’s a prophet, I don’t know.”

Tebow and Brady will indeed see each other again, squaring off at 8 p.m. Saturday at Gillette Stadium. After the Broncos’ 29-23 overtime win over the Steelers today, Tebow’s crew is set for a divisional-round meeting with the top-seeded Patriots.

Brady convincingly outplayed Tebow in the quarterbacks’ first meeting, finishing 23-of-34 for 320 yards and three touchdowns, two passing and one rushing. Tebow was 11-for-22 for 194 yards and had two rushing TDs. The Patriots stormed back from a 16-7 deficit to win 41-23.

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady will miss practice for a second consecutive day due to a left shoulder injury, according to a tweet from ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

Pats QB Tom Brady will not practice today due to his left shoulder injury. Patriots still believe Brady will play Sunday vs. Buffalo.

—
Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 29, 2011

It was reported earlier today that Brady received a precautionary X-Ray on his non-throwing shoulder shortly after the Patriots come from behind victory over the Miami Dolphins this weekend. It is believed that the X-Ray came back negative. Brady appeared to injure the shoulder after an awkward fall on a quarterback sneak.

The Patriots, 12-3, will play the Buffalo Bills this weekend in an attempt to lock up the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC. New England has won their last seven games in a row.

Brady has thrown for 4897 yards and 36 touchdowns this season. He currently has a quarterback rating of 105.1.

New England Patriots star quarterback Tom Brady had a precautionary X-Ray on his shoulder following the team’s comeback victory against the Miami Dolphins last week, according to ESPN.

The X-ray, which was reportedly performed to evaluate his non-throwing shoulder after an awkward fall on a quarterback sneak, came back negative. Brady, however, missed practice Wednesday for what was listed as “non-injury related reasons.”

The Patriots, 12-3, will play the Buffalo Bills this weekend in an attempt to lock up the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC. New England has won their last seven games in a row.

Brady has thrown for 4897 yards and 36 touchdowns this season. He currently has a quarterback rating of 105.1.

There’s been speculation all year long that Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers could meet up in a head-to-head showdown at the end of this season. Now, it’s been confirmed.

No, not that one.

Brady and Rodgers were named on Tuesday night as starting quarterbacks for the annual Pro Bowl, slated to be held on Jan. 29 in Honolulu. This marks the seventh selection for Brady and the second for Rodgers. The two superstars will headline their respective conferences in the 66th annual all-star exhibition.

This marks the third consecutive season, however, that the Pro Bowl has been held the week before the Super Bowl and not the week after. This means both conference champion quarterbacks will be held out of the game, so if either Brady’s New England Patriots or Rodgers’ Green Bay Packers should qualify for the big game in Indianapolis, the QBs’ backups will start instead. Ben Roethlisberger and Philip Rivers were named backup quarterbacks for the AFC, while Drew Brees and Eli Manning got the nods for the NFC squad.

The Patriots led the AFC with eight selections for the Pro Bowl; the 49ers will send eight of their own for the NFC, most notably running back Frank Gore.

You can view the complete rosters for each conference at NFL.com.

The Denver Broncos and New England Patriots game Sunday earned the best rating of the season and CBS’ best NFL regular season overnight in four years, CNBC’s Darren Rovell tweeted.

The matchup of the star quarterbacks earned a  19.5 overnight rating for CBS, Rovell reports. The game pitted proven NFL veteran, three-time NFL Super Bowl Champion and two-time MVP Tom Brady against the highly polarizing, unconventional and thrilling fourth quarter performer Tim Tebow against each other.

The Broncos led 16-7 early after a strong first quarter but were undone by a trio of second-quarter turnovers. Brady eventually prevailed, silencing the Tebow faithful with a 41-23 Patriots win.

In the process, the Patriots won their sixth consecutive game and clinched a playoff berth in the AFC East. Tebow’s thrilling six-game winning streak was snapped in the loss. The Broncos now sit at 8-6.

Tom Brady praised fellow quarterback Tim Tebow for his overtime performance this past Sunday, ESPN Boston reports. Brady’s New England Patriots will face the Denver Broncos next weekend.

“They play for 60 minutes. They’ve obviously closed a lot of games and finished very well. We have a huge test. We’ll all be excited, and hopefully have a good week of preparation and be ready to go,” Brady told the Boston area radio station.

Brady also offered his opinion on Tebow’s often questioned throwing abilities:

“Everyone says he struggles throwing the ball. What I saw last night, he had no problems throwing the ball,” Brady said on WEEI. “He threw the ball extremely well when I was watching.” The Patriots tuned their in-flight TVs to the Broncos-Bears matchup after defeating the Redskins 34-27.

On Tebow being most talked about quarterback in the Broncos-Patriots matchup, Brady said, “That’s OK. Believe me, there is great reason. They’re winning a ton of games and he’s playing very well.”

As a result of Tebow’s late game heroics, the Broncos have gone 7-1, since the second year quarterback has taken over.