NFL: Seau's No. 55 to be retired by Chargers
Junior Seau's No. 55 jersey will be retired by the Chargers during a halftime ceremony of their regular-season home opener against Tennessee on Sept. 16.
Seau was buried on Friday, and thousands of fans attended a memorial at Qualcomm Stadium later in the day. The future Hall of Fame linebacker who played parts of 20 NFL seasons committed suicide at his Oceanside, Calif. home on May 2.
He played for the Chargers from 1990-02 and made 12 consecutive Pro Bowl appearances for his team, and will join Lance Alworth (19) and Dan Fouts (14) as the only players in franchise history to have their numbers retired.
"Junior's accomplishments on the field speak for themselves," said Chargers president Dean Spanos. "His play on the field combined with his leadership and charisma became the face of this team for more than a decade. I can't think of anyone more deserving of this honor."
In 268 career games, including 200 as a starter, Seau had 1,524 tackles, 56.5 sacks and 18 interceptions.
The Sept. 16 ceremony will include the team wearing number "55" decals on their helmets during the game and the unveiling of a number 55 banner to be hung at Qualcomm Stadium.
--Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson is urging teammate LeSean McCoy to not hold out of training camp this summer.
McCoy, the team's starting running back, is entering the final year of his contract, much like Jackson last year when he held out following the lockout.
Jackson was heavily criticized for the approach he took and he does not want the same thing to happen to McCoy. Both players are represented by agent Drew Rosenhaus.
"I think it would be in his best interest to come" to offseason practices and camp, Jackson told the Philadelphia Inquirer on Friday. "Looking back now it really hurt me more than I thought it helped me. Hopefully he saw everything I went through, and hopefully Drew won't have him go through the same thing."
The holdout affected Jackson's play and focus last season, he acknowledged.
Jackson also announced that he is hosting a free health fair in Philadelphia on Saturday, which includes vision and dental screenings, mammograms and tests for different forms of cancer. The event is through Jackson's foundation, which honors his father William, who died of pancreatic cancer.
