December 5, 2008
NFL Notes
Dick Nolan, former player, coach, dies at 75
Dick Nolan, the former coach of the San Francisco 49ers and the father of current coach Mike Nolan, died yesterday, the 49ers said. He was 75.
Dick Nolan, a former NFL defensive back who also coached the New Orleans Saints, had been in declining health with Alzheimer's disease and prostate cancer for several years.
Dick Nolan played nine NFL seasons before becoming a coach, assisting Hall of Famer Tom Landry in Dallas and going 71-85-3 in nearly 11 seasons with San Francisco and New Orleans. He led the perennially downtrodden 49ers to 56 wins, three division titles and two conference championship games in eight years with the club. Before his professional career, he played for the University of Maryland.
Dick and Mike Nolan were the fifth father and son to become NFL head coaches.
• Titans // The NFL Players Association is appealing commissioner Roger Goodell's decision not to reduce the season-long suspension of cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones. The union wants a hearing as soon as possible.
• Vikings // Running back Adrian Peterson sprained his right knee and has magnetic resonance imaging scheduled for today. With Minnesota trailing 27-0, he made an 11-yard catch and was hit by Packers cornerback Al Harris and went tumbling. Peterson writhed in pain on the field afterward, and players immediately called over trainers. "I didn't know what to expect," Peterson said. "I was just in pain for a minute there and it slowly went away."
• Packers // Brett Favre joined Dan Marino as the only quarterbacks to throw for 60,000 yards in a career during the second quarter of Green Bay's win over the Vikings. Favre found running back Vernand Morency for a short pass to the right side for 3 yards for exactly 60,000. Favre came in trailing Marino's all-time mark of 61,361 by 1,456 yards, which he should reach this season.
• Jaguars // Running back Fred Taylor became the 21st player in NFL history to rush for more than 10,000 yards in his career after a 15-yard first-quarter run put him at 10,002.
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