at different levels of football.The NFL held a “Universal Rules Alignment Meeting” at its headquarters in New York on Tuesday Vince Biegel Color Rush Jersey , with league football operations chief Troy Vincent and Atlanta Falcons CEO Rich McKay, the head of the league’s competition committee, leading the discussion. Some team executives, the NFL players union, the head of officiating and some officials from the NCAA took part in the effort.“It’s the idea that you try to have unified safety terminology for players so they understand what the foul is and what it isn’t and then teach it all the way down beginning at the little kids, getting to high school, getting to college and getting to pros,” McKay said.One focus was rules that deal with players’ safety, such as defenders leading with the helmet or targeting defenseless players.“Hopefully we’ll come together with language that’s simpler and easier for the players to understand,” McKay said. “I think the use of the helmet foul, to lower your head to initiate contact, I think that foul will have an impact on the way players play the game.”They also looked at rules differences with cut blocks and chop blocks and kickoffs between college and the pros.The discussions will continue early next year after the end of the college and NFL seasons.“I think everything can be navigated if people are willing to come and sit and talk and communicate,” Vincent said. “It’s not a one-size-fits-all. … We learn from you, there’s some things that you’re doing, there’s some things that we’re doing. It’s really collaboration. Can it work? Absolutely.”THE OPTICS DEBATEJimmy Johnson, a two-time Super Bowl winner as coach of the Dallas Cowboys, criticized Jason Garrett for turning up at Game 3 of the World Series last Friday with his 3-4 team going into its open weekend.Johnson, a Fox studio analyst, said before last Sunday’s games that it was a bad look for a team that had work to do, based on its record.Garrett, one of the backups to quarterback Troy Aikman for Johnson’s final season in 1993 when the Cowboys won their second straight title, passed on the chance to fire back at his old boss.“I have the utmost respect for coach Johnson,” Garrett said Thursday. “He’s been a friend and mentor to me, really through the years. That’s really all I want to say on that. I just hold him in the highest regard.”But Garrett did defend himself by pointing out that he encourages all his players to get away from the job for a few days.“If you’re a beach guy, go to the beach. If you’re a mountain guy, go to the mountains,” Garrett said. “Do whatever you want to do to get away from it, to get yourself refreshed, recharged and ready to go again.”Owner and general manager Jerry Jones said he didn’t have a problem with Garrett’s World Series excursion as it related to a team that expected to contend for the playoffs having a losing record, and a winless road mark (0-4).“I’m not associated with anybody that works any harder than Jason Garrett https://www.thepackersfanshop.com/Antonio-Morrison-Jersey ,” Jones said. “I know where Jason Garrett’s mind is and I know where his work ethic is.”PACKERS PARTY TIMEGive it up for left tackle David Bakhtiari, who had the best costume at the Green Bay Packers‘ Halloween party on Monday.Well, that’s at least according to quarterback Aaron Rodgers.Bakhtiari and his girlfriend went as the characters Vincent and Mia from the movie “Pulp Fiction.” Rodgers said the couple “basically danced as they danced in the movie to any song that was on. Hardcore rap at times. I gave Dave a lot of credit for that. It was phenomenal.”The party came a day after the Packers’ 29-27 loss to the Los Angeles Rams. Players were disappointed, but “nobody was hanging their head,” said Rodgers, pointing to the well-attended party as a sign of the health of the locker room.“But no, it’s a tight-knit group,” he said. “You’ve got to stick together through losses, through decisions that are made that are out of our control and keep moving forward with the same vision.”LEADING THE WAYPro Football Hall of Famers Will Shields and Aeneas Williams, three-time Pro Bowler Mark Brunell and three-time Super Bowl champion Willie McGinest will serve as the East-West Shrine Game legends captains.The four legends captains, who all played in the East-West Shrine Game, will serve as mentors for players throughout the week and be present on the sidelines during the game.The 94th annual East-West Shrine Game, which features some of college football’s best prospects, will kick off at 3 p.m. EST on Saturday, Jan. 19, from Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.GUARANTEE & GOLD MEDALSPro Football Hall of Famer Joe Namath and the U.S. Olympic Women’s Ice Hockey Team, which won gold at the Winter Games in South Korea last February, will be honored with the Sports Legend and Sportswomen of the Year Awards, presented by the March of Dimes Greater New York Market.They will receive the awards at a luncheon on Nov. 27 at the New York Hilton in Manhattan.MLB Commissioner Robert Manfred will also receive the Sports Leadership Award, and Stephen Espinoza, President of Sports and Event Programming for Showtime Networks, Inc., will get the Corporate Leadership Award.This marks the 35th year for the luncheon by March of Dimes, which honors achievements of men and women in the sports industry.RENEWED RIVALRYAtlanta’s Julio Jones faced Josh Norman plenty when Norman played at Carolina. The Falcons’ game Sunday at Washington will mark their first matchup with Norman playing for the Redskins.And, Jones doesn’t expect much trash talk from one of the league’s more loquacious defenders.“Josh really doesn’t talk much when we’re out there,” Jones said. “It’s just business. We’re used to going out there and working against each and just trying to play the game the right way.”Jones went so far as to call Norman a “great guy.”“I don’t have anything bad to say about him,” Jones said. “He plays the game like it’s supposed to be played. He’s trying to create turnovers for his team. He puts himself in different situations. He throws his body around and has no regard for his body just to get the ball out.”KICKING TO THE HALLAdam Vinatieri has kicked his way all the way to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Well, at least part of him, for now.The Indianapolis Colts kicker’s jersey and cleats — worn last Sunday when he set the NFL’s career scoring record — along with the football he booted for the mark will be displayed at the hall’s museum in Canton Quinten Rollins Jersey , Ohio.Vinatieri finished the day with 2,550 career points, surpassing the previous record of 2,544 held by Hall of Famer Morten Andersen. GREEN BAY, Wis. — From 2010 through 2016, former Packers general manager Ted Thompson signed two unrestricted free agents.Packers CoveragePhotos of the Week: 7/21/19 – 7/27/19Packers rookie Gary’s biggest critic is himselfTop Tweets: Former Badger TJ Watt has impressive four-year transformationPHOTOS: 2019 Green Bay Packers training campPackers’ Rodgers, LaFleur ironing out offense, building chemistryPlayers to watch at Green Bay Packers 2019 training campLaFleur: Offense still a work in progress as Packers open campPackers release defensive tackle Mike DanielsGreen Bay Packers 2019 training camp primerPackers’ Rodgers not ranked as a top-5 quarterback in Madden 20On Thursday, the Packers announced the signing of four such players.Second-year GM Brian Gutekunst wasn’t shopping from the bargain bin, either, in trying to improve a team coming off its first back-to-back losing seasons in a quarter-century. Rather, Gutekunst dived headfirst into the initial wave of free agency by signing outside linebackers Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith, safety Adrian Amos, and offensive lineman Billy Turner. They each signed four-year contracts worth a combined $182 million, $57 million of which is guaranteed.Gutekunst, however, disagreed with the notion his aggressive foray into free agency was aimed at putting the Packers back among the NFL’s elite teams while quarterback Aaron Rodgers remains in his prime.“I don’t think so,” Gutekunst said. “I think, obviously, this is Green Bay, Wisconsin. We’re in a win-now mode all the time. I thought we needed to add to our defense significantly and I think these guys will. So, I don’t think it’s any different than it ever has been.”Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith replace the longtime starting tandem of Clay Matthews and Nick Perry, who are free agents. Matthews had 3 1-2 sacks last season while Perry had 1 1-2 sacks and was released earlier this week before being paid a $4.8 million roster bonus.Za’Darius Smith had a career-high 8 1-2 sacks last season for the Baltimore Ravens while Preston Smith had four sacks last season for the Washington Redskins. The new teammates met when Za’Darius Smith, a junior college player at the time, was on a recruiting trip to Mississippi State, where Preston Smith was an established star.“We really got cool when we actually went to the combine,” said Za’Darius Smith, who wound up playing at Kentucky. “He’s a Smith and I’m a Smith, so we were right behind each other (during drills). Got a chance to communicate, but one thing he did tell me Brett Hundley Color Rush Jersey , he was like, ‘Z, we’re going to do great things in this league.’ I kid you not. Now, we’re playing together.”Za’Darius Smith, who tied for 10th in the league with 25 quarterback hits, frequently moved from the edge to the inside on passing downs for the Ravens. He figures to be used in the same way by Packers defensive coordinator Mike Pettine.“We are both versatile players,” said Preston Smith, who has 24 1-2 sacks in four seasons. “I see him play and he can rush inside and outside. I can do the same if needed. We both play fast and physical and violently. And I like his play style and I feel we will complement each other, and we’re going to do some great things here in Green Bay.”Amos comes from the archrival Chicago Bears. Last season, he had career highs of two interceptions, nine passes defensed, three forced fumbles and 73 tackles. He’s gone from not being in the starting lineup to open the 2017 season to one of the NFL’s highest-paid safeties.“In NFL terms, that’s how you show who wants you,” Amos said. “People can say they want you and people can say they have enough or don’t have enough, but that’s the way they show you they want you, by getting you.”Turner started 11 games last season at Denver due to injuries. The Packers have a void at right guard, but neither Gutekunst nor Turner would say that will be his position. Gutekunst hopes Turner’s athleticism will be a good fit for new coach Matt LaFleur’s outside-zone running game.“I’m an offensive lineman, but I don’t think that I move like an offensive lineman,” Turner said. “I use my athleticism to my advantage, and it works well for me. Being able to move in space well and to run off the football and move guys around in the run game, I think, was part of the reason why Green Bay liked me, and it was part of the reason that I picked here.”None of the free-agent signings has earned postseason accolades. Gutekunst believes the arrow is pointing up. Turner is 27, the Smiths are 26 and Amos is 25. All four were drafted in 2015.“I do think that’s an important point, that we did want guys that we thought that their best football was ahead of them,” Gutekunst said. “I think all four of these guys probably had their best seasons last year and they were trending in the right direction.”