NFL roundup: Reid expected to return for Eagles' preseason game Thursday

Eagles coach Andy Reid will return to the sideline Thursday for the preseason opener against the Steelers two days after the funeral for his eldest son, Garrett Reid.

Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie, commissioner Roger Goodell, Patriots coach Bill Belichick, Saints interim head coach Joe Vitt, Browns vice president Mike Holmgren, general manager Tom Heckert, head coach Pat Shurmur and offensive coordinator Brad Childress, former 49ers and Lions head coach Steve Mariucci, Ravens coach John Harbaugh and several former and current Eagles players attended the funeral along with approximately 900 others.

Lurie said Sunday that he wouldn't be surprised if Reid came back to the team's Bethlehem, Pa., training camp by the end of the week. But indications from Reid and Lurie Tuesday were that he'd be back coaching the team for the first game of the preseason Thursday in Philadelphia against the Steelers.

"We'll see," Lurie said. "But all indications are, he probably will be (coaching Thursday). I think what you'll see from Andy is that desire to be around another loving extended family."

Reid left the team Sunday morning when 29-year-old Garrett Reid was discovered in a dormitory room at the Eagles' Lehigh University training camp. He issued a statement Monday that his son had lost "the battle that has been ongoing for the last eight years."

--- Matt Flynn will start at quarterback for the Seahawks' preseason opener at home against Tennessee on Saturday, and likely play the entire first half.

Flynn, signed as a free agent from Green Bay over the offseason and believed to have the inside track to the starting job, is competing with incumbent Tarvaris Jackson and rookie Russell Wilson in training camp.

--Wide receiver Terrell Owens officially signed with the Seahawks on Tuesday, Carroll confirmed. It's a one-year, $1 million deal, according to ESPN.

Carroll tweeted Monday night: "@terrellowens welcome to the land of the #12thMan Terrell, see you in the morning... 8am meetings!!"

--Former vice president and senior director of NFL officiating Mike Pereira said he has no horse in the race these days, but insists fans, coaches and players will want only the best game officials on the field and not the 113 men and women he considers inadequately prepared to call regular-season games.

"I feel bad for the replacement people," Pereira told WSCR-AM in Chicago on Tuesday. "They're so overwhelmed."

Pereira pointed to a series of blown calls, or erroneously executed calls, in Sunday's preseason opener between the Saints and Cardinals. .

-- Broncos defensive end Elvis Dumervil will not face formal charges stemming from the aggravated assault arrest in Miami Beach, Fla. Dumervil was informed on Tuesday the charges wouldn't be filed.

Dumervil allegedly left his vehicle while sitting in congested traffic and revealed a gun to a driver that had cut between Dumervil and his friend in another car in the July 15 incident.

--The Bears signed defensive lineman Derek Walker to a one-year contract and waived offensive lineman Tyler Hendrickson.

Walker played for the Arena Football League's Chicago Rush last season. At 6-4, 270, he's capable of playing defensive end or defensive tackle in the Bears' system.

--Rookie running back Trent Richardson isn't expected to play Friday at Detroit in the Cleveland Browns' preseason opener because of soreness in his left knee.

"I am always a concerned about injuries," Browns coach Pat Shurmur said. "He has been practicing well. He is a little bit sore right now."

The Browns traded up in the draft to select Richardson with the third overall pick.

-- The Jets spent five minutes running sprints under vociferous orders from Rex Ryan after the third training camp scuffle in two days caused the coach to lose his cool.

Ryan said after practice he reminded his team "the enemy is not in green and white."

Ryan stopped practice Tuesday after the second altercation in a span of less than 20 minutes. He ordered the entire roster to run sprints and after about five minutes, pulled the team into a circle and gave a red-faced, profanity-laced tongue-lashing to his team.

One incident involved cornerback Antonio Cromartie throwing a punch at starting tight end Dustin Keller.

--Mike Martz will call games from the press box this season. More accurately, he'll work NFC telecasts as the color analyst teamed with Ron Pitts on FOX.

Martz has broadcasting experience, having worked for NFL Network in 2009.

The former Bears, 49ers and Lions offensive coordinator and Rams head coach is likely to be relegated to low-level games in 2012. He's listed as part of the network's No. 7 team.

--The NFL reinstated 33-year-old running back Travis Henry, who was officially on the reserve/suspended list serving a suspension as a repeat violator of the league's substance abuse policy.

A comeback is, at best, a longshot for Henry. He pleaded guilty in 2009 to drug trafficking and admitted involvement in a ring that dealt cocaine between Colorado and Montana.

Henry last played in the NFL with the Broncos in 2007 and has had other off-field problems.

--Giants wide receiver Hakeem Nicks took a step in his recovery from a broken right foot, running in a straight line and in circles without pain.

Nicks is on track to return around Aug. 20, when he'll be a full 12 weeks removed from the injury he suffered in minicamp. He had screws inserted into the bone in late May to advance the healing process and expects to be able to run routes on the sideline Tuesday.

---Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kevin Kolb, who had to leave Sunday's Hall of Fame preseason game because of a rib contuision, was back at practice on Tuesday, participating in throwing drills during his team's walk-through, the Arizona Republic reported.

Kolb remains No. 1 on the team's depth chart, but the Republic reported that John Skelton is likely to start Friday's preseason game against the Kansas City Chiefs. Kolb and Skelton have alternated first-team reps in practices, and Kolb is expected to play Friday.

---Wide receiver Justin Blackmon, the lone unsigned rookie draft choice in the 2012 draft, officially signed with the Jaguars on Tuesday.

The Jaguars traded up to acquire Blackmon with the fifth overall pick in the draft but lamented signing him to even the 2011 value of the contract for that draft-pick slot -- a four-year deal with a fifth-year option worth about $18.429 million over the first four years with a team option for a fifth year using the average value of the top 10 base salaries at the position.

Blackmon reportedly landed an $18.5 million deal million over four years, with a signing bonus around $7.11 million.