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December 31 : The
2006
regular season of the
National Football League (NFL), the first season contested during the
commissionership of
Roger Goodell , the first featuring a
flexible scheduling system for games to be selected for play on
NBC Sunday Night Football , and the first featuring the
Run to the Playoffs , a series of
live game telecasts on
NFL Network , the league's
specialty
cable channel .
For the third time in his career,
Indianapolis Colts
quarterback
Peyton Manning leads the league in
passing touchdowns completed, having made 31 against just nine
interceptions , and finishes the year also as the
leader in
passer rating , having, in view of his having completed 362 of 557 passes attempted for 4397
yards , posted a mark of 101.0;
New Orleans Saints quarterback
Drew Brees , having completed 356 of his 554 passes attempted, totals 4418 passing yards to outpace Manning by 21 yards and
Saint Louis Rams quarterback
Marc Bulger by 103 to be the league's
leading passer .
San Diego Chargers
running back
LaDainian Tomlinson , having over the season displaced
Shaun Alexander —in
2005 with the
Seattle Seahawks a scorer of 28 touchdowns—atop the
enumeration of players by touchdowns scored in a single season ,
Priest Holmes —in
2003 with the
Kansas City Chiefs a scorer of 26
rushing touchdowns—atop the
enumeration of players by rushing touchdowns scored in a single season , and
Paul Hornung —in
1960 as a
placekicker and
halfback with the
Green Bay Packers a scorer of 176 points, comprising thirteen rushing and two
receiving touchdowns, fifteen
field goals , and forty-one
points after touchdown , across a twelve-game season—atop the
enumeration of NFL players by single-season points scored , ultimately finishes his season having scored 31 touchdowns–twenty-eight rushing and three receiving–and two
two-point conversions for 190 points to lead the NFL in each category and having rushed for 1815 yards on 348 carries to become the seventh different player to claim the
league rushing title since
2000 .
Houston Texans
wide receiver
Andre Johnson catches 103 passes to finish five clear of
Detroit Lions wide receiver
Mike Furrey , theretofore principally a
defensive back , and eight clear of Colts wide receiver
Marvin Harrison , betwixt
1999 and
2002 twice the league's leading pass catcher, to finish atop the NFL in total receptions, but tallies just 1147 yards and five touchdowns;
Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver
Chad Johnson accumulates 1369 yards on 87 receptions to finish three yards clear of Harrison, of whom
Detroit Lions wide receiver
Roy Williams and Colts wide receiver
Reggie Wayne finish 56 yards adrift, for the
league lead in the former statistic, whilst
Dallas Cowboys wide receiver
Terrell Owens records 13 touchdowns amongst his 85 receptions to lead the league, as in
2001 and 2002, in the latter category, having finished one touchdown clear of Harrison.
New England Patriots
cornerback
Asante Samuel and
Denver Broncos
cornerback
Champ Bailey finish the season having each totalled ten
interceptions , the former across but 15 games, to finish atop the league in interceptions made and Samuels
defenses 24 passes to finish two ahead of ahead of
Dallas Cowboys cornerback
Anthony Henry and
Baltimore Ravens cornerback
Chris McAlister and three ahead of Bailey for the league lead in the latter metric. Despite having been suspensed for four games for contravention of the NFL's
substance abuse policy upon his
testing positive for the
anabolic steroid
nandrolone ,
San Diego Chargers
outside linebacker
Shawne Merriman finishes the season having registered 17
quarterback sacks , one-and-one-half more than league
runner-up
Green Bay Packers
defensive end
Aaron Kampman and three more than
Buffalo Bills defensive end
Aaron Schobel , in 2005 the league's fifth-leading sacker, as
Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive end
Simeon Rice fails to finish amongst the league's top seven for the first time since the
2000 season .
Placekickers
Robbie Gould (
Chicago Bears ) and
Jeff Wilkins (
Saint Louis Rams ) finish the season having each successfully kicked 32
field goals , three more than
Jason Hanson (
Detroit Lions ) and
Joe Nedney (
San Francisco 49ers ), and Gould converts 47 points after touchdown to finish the season having scored 143 points, more than any player save Tomlinson, seven more than Chargers placekicker
Nate Kaeding and twelve more than Wilkins.
Denver Broncos placekicker
Paul Ernster posts a
kickoff
average of 67.9 yards to finish .5 yards clear of
Arizona Cardinals placekicker
Neil Rackers as the longest kickoff kicker, whilst
Dallas Cowboys
punter
Mat McBriar finishes atop the league in gross punting, having stricken 56 punts with an average of 48.2 yards and with 10
touchbacks .
Tennessee Titans cornerback
Pacman Jones averages 12.9 yards per
punt return and scores three punt return touchdowns to lead the league in either category, the latter jointly with
Chicago Bears cornerback
Devin Hester , whilst
New York Jets cornerback
Justin Miller aggregates 1304 yards on his 46
kick returns to record a league-leading 28.3-yard average; Miller scores two return touchdows to finish in equal first with Hester, who averages 26.4 yards per return, better than any player save Miller and
Jacksonville Jaguars running back
Maurice Jones-Drew .
Tomlinson earns the
Most Valuable Player Award , capturing 44 of 50 votes cast under the
single plurality system employed by the
Associated Press , to outpoint Brees (four votes) and Manning (two); he also claims the
Offensive Player of the Year Award , that with 38 votes, ahead of Brees (eight), Manning (three), and
Saint Louis Rams running back
Steven Jackson , who finishes the season having gained 1528 yards and 13 touchdowns over 346 rushes and 806 yards and three touchdowns over 90 receptions.
Miami Dolphins
defensive end
Jason Taylor , who across the season records 13.5 sacks and 60
tackles , makes two interceptions, forces ten
fumbles and recovers two, and defenses ten passes, wins
Defensive Player of the Award honors, garnering 22 of 50 ballots cast; Bailey, who supplements his ten interceptions with 73 tackles and 11 other passes defensed, finishes six votes adrift, ten votes ahead of Merriman, who over his twelve games records 62 tackles, intercepts one pass, and defenses eight.
Chicago Bears
middle linebacker
Brian Urlacher , who finishes the season having made 141 tackles and having intercepted three and defensed six other passes, earns four votes in his attempted defense of the
2005 award, whilst
Baltimore Ravens
inside linebacker
Ray Lewis —the
2000 and
2003 winner—and
defensive lineman
Trevor Pryce earn each one vote.
Vince Young , by the Tennessee Titans the
third overall selection in the
2006 NFL draft , becomes just the third quarterback to win the
Offensive Rookie of the Year Award , earning, in view of his completing 184 of 357 passes attempted for 2199 yards and 12 touchdowns, gaining 552 yards and seven touchdowns on 83 carries, and helping his side to a six-game
winning streak through the season's penultimate week, 23 votes to outpace by 12 Jones-Drew and Saints wide receiver
Marques Colston , whilst
Houston Texans middle linebacker
DeMeco Ryans , a
second-round draft choice , who completes the season having made 156 tackles—including 123 solo, more than any other player—having posted 3.5 quarterback sacks, having defensed eight passes, having forced one fumble, and having made one interception, wins the
Defensive Rookie of the Year Award , garnering 36 votes to finish well clear of
University of Alabama
Crimson Tide teammate Chicago Bears defensive end
Mark Anderson (five votes) and
Green Bay Packers outside linebacker
A.J. Hawk (four). Saints
head coach
Sean Payton , having in his first year helped the Saints, winners of just three games in 2005, to a 10-6 record and the
National Football Conference (NFC)
South division
titlist , is selected on 44 ballots to be chosen
Coach of the Year ; Jets head coach
Eric Mangini , as Payton in his
first season , finishes second with three votes.
Having notched 492 points over the season, the Chargers, by virtue of the side's winning 14 games the
champion of the
American Football Conference (AFC)
West division and the top-
seeded team in the
league playoffs , finish as the
league's highest-scoring team , whilst the Ravens, winners of thirteen games—
second-best in the NFL—and, as
champion of the AFC
North division possessors, as the Chargers, of a
first-round
bye , concede only 201 points and 4225 yards to rank as the
league's best-performing
defense . The Saints, which team finish the regular season as the
NFC's second-seeded side , behind running backs
Deuce McAllister and
Reggie Bush and wide receivers Colston and
Devery Henderson , who each record at least 565 yards, gain more total yards–6264–than any other team and accumulate 205 passing yards more than Colts to lead the league in the latter category; the
Atlanta Falcons , having finished last in the league in passing yards, on the strength of running back
Warrick Dunn and quarterback
Michael Vick , who total 2179 yards over 409 rushes, lead the league in rushing. The Colts and
New England Patriots win respectively the
AFC South and
East divisions for the fourth consecutive season, winning 12 games each to earn the third and fourth AFC playoff berths, and the Jets—winners in 2005 of only four games but in
2006 of ten—and Chiefs—winners, as the Broncos, of nine games, one more than
Super Bowl XL victor the
Pittsburgh Steelers , but possessors of a superior West division record—claim
wild card playoff positions. In the NFC, the Bears, having won thirteen games, capture the NFC
North division and finish as the conference's first seed, and the Seahawks, the
defending
conference champion , lead the NFC
West division for the third straight season; the
East division , the
Philadelphia Eagles , Cowboys, and
New York Giants of which win respectively ten, nine, and eight games, places three teams, seeded respectively third, fifth, and sixth, in the playoffs for
first time since
1992 .
December 17 :
Green Bay Packers
quarterback
Brett Favre completes, in the second
quarter of a game betwixt his side and the
Detroit Lions contested at
Lambeau Field in
Green Bay, Wisconsin , a 21-
yard
pass , the 4,968th of his
National Football League career, to
wide receiver
Carlyle Holiday to displace
Dan Marino –across sixteen
seasons principally a
starting quarterback with the
Miami Dolphins –atop the
ranking of quarterbacks by career completions tallied.
December 17 : At
Qualcomm Stadium in
San Diego ,
California ,
San Diego Chargers
running back
LaDainian Tomlinson , having one week thither displaced running back
Shaun Alexander —in
2005 with the
Seattle Seahawks a scorer, as the
league's offensive player of the year and
most valuable player , of twenty-eight
touchdowns —from the first position on the
enumeration of players by touchdowns scored in a single season ,
rushes for two touchdowns, the twenty-seventh and twenty-eighth such scores of his season, in his team's
home defeat of the
Kansas City Chiefs to supplant running back
Priest Holmes —with the Chiefs in
2003 a scorer of twenty-seven rushing touchdows—atop the
enumeration of players by rushing touchdowns scored in a single season ; in tallying his first touchdown, Tomlinson increases to 180 his total of
points scored across the instant season to surmount
Paul Hornung —in
1960 whilst a
halfback and
placekicker with the
Green Bay Packers a scorer of 176 points, comprising thirteen rushing touchdowns, two
receiving touchdowns, fifteen
field goals , and forty-one
points after touchdown , across a twelve-game
regular season —to advance to clear first on the
enumeration of NFL players by single-season points scored .
December 16 :
Atlanta Falcons
placekicker
Morten Andersen , having ostensibly retired from
professional play in
2004 but having returned to the
National Football League (NFL) prior to the third week of its
2006 season after having served as a
television
analyst for
NFL Europe games, successfully converts a
point after touchdown
try in the second
quarter of a game between his team and the
Dallas Cowboys played at the
Georgia Dome in
Atlanta in the
eponymous state to raise to 2,435 his career NFL points tally; he ascends to the top of the
list of players by career points scored , surpassing
Gary Anderson , as Andersen a member of the league's
1980s and
1990s All-Decade Teams , with whom Andersen continues to share first place on the
list of players by career
field goals made.
December 15 : The
single-elimination tournaments contested to decide the
2006 champions of the
Football Championship Subdivision (formerly
Division I-AA ),
Division II , and
Division III of the
National Collegiate Athletic Association and of the
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics conclude.
Having entered the
Football Championship Subdivision tournament
seeded first, the
defending champion
Appalachian State University Mountaineers outscore the
Coastal Carolina University Canticleers and the
1984
champion
Montana State University Bobcats , 83-45, across the championship's first two rounds to reach a
home
semifinal in which they overcome fourth-seeded four-time national champion
Youngstown State University Penguins to earn, having conceded just one game over the
regular season and
playoffs , a berth in the title game, in which, at
Finley Stadium in
Chattanooga ,
Tennessee , the side, behind
running back Kevin Richardson , who
rushes for 179
yards and four
touchdowns , and
placekicker Julian Rauch , who
converts four
extra points , defeat the
University of Massachusetts Amherst Minutemen , 28-17, to become just the fourth team to earn
consecutive national championships . The Minutemen, seeded third, having in the first and second
rounds respectively dispatched the
Lafayette College Leopards and
University of New Hampshire
Wildcats and having advanced to the title game upon their defeating, 19-17, the second-seeded
University of Montana-Missoula
Grizzlies , twice a national champion and thrice a
runner-up , at
Washington-Grizzly Stadium , are led in defeat by running back Steve Baylark , who with his 24 carries and three
receptionss achieves 157 yards, and
wide receiver Brad Listorti , amongst whose five receptions is a 17-yard touchdown.
Three-time
Division II national champion the
Grand Valley State University
Lakers , having earned a
quarterfinal win over the
University of North Dakota
Fighting Sioux —in
2001 by three points the champion over the Lakers—and having dispatched
2000 champion the
Delta State University Statesmen , a quarterfinal victor over Southeast regional top-
seed and theretofore
undefeated
North Carolina Central University Eagles , 49-30, to reach, as the top seed in the Northwest region and with a 14-0 record, the national championship game alongside, as in the
2005 final , captured by Grand Valley State, 21-17, the
Northwest Missouri State University Bearcats , quarterfinal winners over the theretofore undefeated
Chadron State College Eagles —as champion of the
Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference the Southwest region's second seed and a 43-17 second
round victor over
Lone Star Conference champion the
West Texas A&M University Buffaloes —in a game in which the team permit
Harlon Hill Trophy -winning
running back
Danny Woodhead just sixteen
rushing
yards , and semifinal winners over the
Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania Huskies ; on the strength of a fourth-
quarter four-yard
touchdown run by
quarterback
Cullen Finnerty , who ultimately accumulates 115 rushing yards on 23 carries and 225
passing yards on 33 attempts, the Lakers, at
Braly Municipal Stadium in
Florence ,
Alabama , outpoint the Bearcats, 17-14, to claim the side's fourth national title since
2002 and to make Finnerty, after Jeff Bentrim (Fighting Sioux) and Cody Gross (
University of North Alabama Lions ), just the third Division II quarterback to earn three championships. The Bearcats are led in defeat by
running back Xavier Omon , amongst whose 26 rushes is a seven-yard touchdown that advantages his side by four, and
wide receiver Kendall Wright , who makes eight
receptions for 85 yards and completes a 26-yard touchdown pass to Raphael Robinson .
For the tenth time since the
1993
season , the
Mount Union College Purple Raiders ,
eight times a national champion, reach the
Division III tournament final , this upon the team's having won games across the
first and second rounds by a combined tally of 84-3 before having in a
quarterfinal , as in
2005 , overcome the
Capital University Crusaders ,
ranked fifth in the country and a loser over twelve games of but one, that in
Ohio Athletic Conference play to the Purple Raiders, the former 17-14, and having thereafter outpointed the
Saint John Fisher College Cardinals , 26-14, in which the side are joined by the similarly
undefeated
University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Warhawks , behind the Purple Raiders the 2005 national
runner-up , who reach the
Stagg Bowl with a 17-14 quarterfinal victory over the
Saint John's University Johnnies —in
2003 the
national titlists over Mount Union—and a 44-7 semifinal victory over the
Wesley College Wolverines —which team enter the semifinal having not lost a game across the regular season; behind
quarterback Greg Micheli , who in view of his completing 18 of 22
forward passes attempted for 202
yards and three
touchdowns —two to
wide receiver Pierre Garcon —his
rushing nine times for 42 yards and one touchdown, and his serving as his side's
punter , is named game
most outstanding player , Mount Union outscore Whitewater over the game's
final half , 21-3, to claim the national championship, 35-16, at
Salem Football Stadium in
Salem ,
Virginia . Whitewater, in the squad's final game under retiring
head coach Bob Berezowitz , are led in defeat by
placekicker Jeff Schebler , who converts each of his three
field goal tries and one
extra point and posts a
kickoff average of 52.8 yards, and
running back Jeff Beaver , who gains 94 yards on 23 carries.
The
University of Saint Francis Cougars , having lost the
2004 and
2005
NAIA national championship finals to
four-time national titlist the
Carroll College Fighting Saints , enter the 2006 tournament
undefeated and
seeded first and dispatch the eighth-seeded
Bethel College Wildcats in a
quarterfinal tie to advance to the
semifinal level, in which the side defeat, 49-20, the
Saint Xavier University Cougars —one round thither victors over
defending champion Carroll, betwixt
2002 and 2005 the loser of just four of fifty-seven games played—to achieve a third consecutive finals appearance but fall in the national title game once more, this 23-19 to the finally undefeated
University of Sioux Falls Cougars —victor in
1996 of the
NAIA Division II championship and NAIA
runner-up to the
Georgetown College Tigers in
2001 —which team, seeded second, displace thirteen-seed the
Morningside College Mustangs , a
first-round winner in
double overtime over third-seed
Saint Ambrose University Fighting Bees , and complete a seven-point semifinal victory over the
Missouri Valley College Vikings to reach the title tie. Sioux Falls are paced in the championship final by
quarterback Chad Cavender , who completes 15 of 21
passes attempted for 155
yards and one
touchdown to earn game
offensive
most valuable player honors, and
kick returner Trey Erickson , who records an 89-yard touchdown to draw his Cougars even with Saint Francis, 13-13, in the
first quarter , whilst Saint Francis are led by
running backs Daniel Carter and Doug Wasylk , who combine to tally 160 yards over twenty rushes and six
receptions , and
defensive end Tim Farrell , who earns game
defensive most valuable player honors in view of his making three
tackles , one
quarterback sack , and one
interception and returning the latter 46 yards.
December 10 : At
Qualcomm Stadium in
San Diego ,
California ,
San Diego Chargers
running back
LaDainian Tomlinson
rushes for three
touchdowns in a game betwixt his team and the
Denver Broncos to tally the twenty-seventh, twenty-eighth, and twenty-ninth touchdowns of his
2006 season of the
National Football League ; Tomlinson, with twenty-six rushing and three
receiving touchdowns, displaces, having played but thirteen of sixteen
regular season games,
Seattle Seahawks running back
Shaun Alexander —in
2005 a scorer of twenty-eight touchdowns and the
league's offensive player of the year and
most valuable player —atop the
enumeration of players by single-season touchdowns scored , on which list
Kansas City Chiefs running back
Priest Holmes , with 27 touchdowns across the
2003 season the record-holder between 2003 and 2005;
Saint Louis Rams running back
Marshall Faulk , with 26 touchdowns across the
2000 season the record-holder between 2000 and 2003; and
Dallas Cowboys running back
Emmitt Smith , with 25 touchdowns across the
1995 season the record-holder between 1995 and 2000, fall respectively to third, fourth, and fifth.
December 10 : The
2006
National Collegiate Athletic Association
Division I-Bowl Subdivision (formerly
Division I-A )
regular season concludes; the composition of the
bowl games to be played subsequent thereto is determined and the
awards for play therein are presented.
The
Ohio State University Buckeyes , having begun the season
ranked first in the
Associated Press ,
Harris Interactive , and
USA Today Coaches Polls and having not fallen from first across the
eight iterations of the
Bowl Championship Series (BCS) rankings, complete the season as
champion of the
Big Ten Conference and with a 12-0 record to reach the
BCS National Championship Game —the first stand-alone
BCS championship , to be contested at
University of Phoenix Stadium in
Glendale ,
Arizona —alongside the
University of Florida Gators , by virtue of a
title game victory over the
University of Arkansas Razorbacks champion of the
Southeastern Conference , which side reach the national championship game ahead of the
University of Michigan Wolverines , who, having lost only to the Buckeyes, are narrowly passed the Gators in the final BCS poll. Michigan are selected to play
Pacific Ten Conference champion
University of Southern California Trojans in the
Rose Bowl , after which is to be contested the
Fiesta Bowl , this betwixt the
University of Oklahoma Sooners —victors over the
University of Nebraska Cornhuskers of the
Big 12 Conference
championship game —and the
Boise State University Broncos —
champion of the
Western Athletic Conference , and, by virtue of the team's eighth overall BCS ranking, an automatic BCS selection and, after the
2004
University of Utah Utes , just the second side representing a team from an
athletic conference not amongst
those in the BCS to be selected to participate in a BCS bowl. The
Orange Bowl is announced as also matching two conference champions—the
Wake Forest University Demon Deacons ,
champion over the
Georgia Institute of Technology Yellow Jackets of the
Atlantic Coast Conference , and the
University of Louisville Cardinals —
champion of the
Big East Conference —whilst two
at-large teams—the
Louisiana State University Tigers , the fourth-ranked side in the final BCS poll and the loser of but two games, one each to Florida and the
Auburn University Tigers , ranked ninth in the ultimate BCS poll; and the
University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish , a regular season loser to Michigan and to Southern California and finally the eleventh-ranked side—are selected to contest the
Sugar Bowl . In total, sixty-four squads earn selection to the
thirty-two bowl games to be held; amongst the thirty-two are four debutant games: the BCS National Championship Game, the
PapaJohns.com Bowl , the
New Mexico Bowl , and the
International Bowl —to be contested at the
Rogers Centre in
Toronto ,
Ontario ,
Canada , and thus to be the first bowl game held outside the
United States since the
1937 edition of the
Havana ,
Cuba -situated
Bacardi Bowl .
The
Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , presented to the most outstanding
collegiate football player , devolves on
Ohio State University Buckeyes
quarterback
Troy Smith —one week thither the winner of the
Walter Camp and
Davey O'Brien Awards and of selection as a
consensus All-American and the
seventh-ever Ohio State winner—who outpoints, in the
Borda count
voting system employed for the award, by outpointing by 1662
Doak Walker Award -winning
University of Arkansas Razorbacks
running back
Darren McFadden and by 1758
University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback
Brady Quinn , who garners the
Johnny Unitas Golden Arm and
Maxwell Awards . Amongst the
twenty-six individual awards conferred are two for best
defensive player —the
Bronko Nagurski Trophy and
Chuck Bednarik Award , which are captured respectively by Ohio State
linebacker
James Laurinaitis and
Pennsylvania State University Nittany Lions linebacker
Paul Posluszny —and two for best
head coach , the younger of which—
The Home Depot Coach of the Year Award —is claimed by
Rutgers University Scarlet Knights coach
Greg Schiano .
December 8 : The
Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , presented to the most outstanding
collegiate football player , devolves on
Ohio State University Buckeyes
quarterback
Troy Smith —one week thither the winner of the
Walter Camp and
Davey O'Brien Awards and of selection as a unanimous
consensus All-America and the
seventh-ever Ohio State winner—who outpoints, in the
Borda count
voting system employed for the award, by outpointing by 1662
Doak Walker Award -winning
University of Arkansas Razorbacks
running back
Darren McFadden and by 1758
University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback
Brady Quinn , who garners the
Johnny Unitas Golden Arm and
Maxwell Awards . Amongst the
twenty-six individual awards conferred are two for best
defensive player —the
Bronko Nagurski Trophy and
Chuck Bednarik Award , which are captured respectively by Ohio State
linebacker
James Laurinaitis and
Pennsylvania State University Nittany Lions linebacker
Paul Posluszny , in front of each of whom
Patrick Willis of the
University of Mississippi Rebels garners the
Dick Butkus Award as the nation's top linebacker—and four for best
head coach , of which two, the Walter Camp Coach of the Year and
The Home Depot Coach of the Year Awards , are claimed by
Greg Schiano of the
Rutgers University Scarlet Knights . Smith is equalled as a unanimous All-America by
West Virginia University Mountaineers running back
Steve Slaton ,
Clemson University Tigers
defensive tackle
Gaines Adams , and five players—
Georgia Institute of Technology Yellow Jackets
wide receiver
Calvin Johnson , who wins the
Fred Biletnikoff Award ;
University of Wisconsin Badgers
offensive tackle
Joe Thomas , who wins the
Outland Trophy ; Mountaineers
center
Dan Mozes , who wins the
Dave Rimington Trophy ;
University of Michigan Wolverines
defensive end
LaMarr Woodley , who wins the
Lombardi and
Ted Hendricks Awards and claims
Big Ten Conference Defensive Player of the Year honors ahead of Laurinaitis and Posluszny; and
Baylor University Bears
punter
Daniel Sepulveda , who, having captured the award in
2004 , becomes the first multiple winner of the
Ray Guy Award —who, as Smith, earn end-of-season awards.
November 19 : The
2006 season of the Canadian Football League, the 49th in
league history , concludes. The
British Columbia Lions —having finished the
regular season atop the
West division having won thirteen games and having conceded just five and having thereby earned a
bye into the
division finals —having one week thither claim the
Scotiabank West championship and concomitant
N. J. Taylor Trophy , 45-18, over the
Saskatchewan Roughriders —one week thither victors of a
division semifinal , in which the side trail 21-12 at
halftime , one week thither over the
Calgary Stampeders —behind
quarterback
Dave Dickenson –who completes three
touchdown
passes , including two to
wide receiver
Paris Jackson –and
running back
Joe Smith –who
rushes for 116
yards –garner the
franchise 's fifth-ever league championship, overcoming, at
Canad Inns Stadium in
Winnipeg ,
Manitoba ,
Canada , the
Montréal Alouettes , 25-14, to claim the
94th Grey Cup , led by Dickenson, who completes 18 of 29 passes attempted for 184 yards to earn
game most valuable player honors, and
placekicker
Paul McCallum , who is named
game most valuable Canadian in view of his converting six
field goals , including three in the first quarter, in the tie. The Alouettes, which reach the Cup having won the
East division by virtue of the team's having twice defeated the
Toronto Argonauts , which side, as the Alouettes, finish the regular season having won ten games and having lost eight, and thus having earned a bye into the East division finals and having thereafter defeated the Argonauts—one week thither the winner of a
semifinal match against the
Winnipeg Blue Bombers , which team are paced by running back
Charles Rogers , who rushes for 179 yards and two touchdowns across his thirty carries, and which team lead the game, 27-17, in the fourth quarter before quarterback
Michael Bishop tallies two touchdowns in the game's final eight minutes to complete a 31-27 Toronto victory—to earn the squad's fifth
James S. Dixon Trophy since
2000 are led in defeat by running back
Robert Edwards , who scores the team's sole touchdown, and
slotback
Ben Cahoon , who, having captured most valuable Canadian honors in
2003 at the
91st Grey Cup , records 11 receptions for 137 yards; the Alouettes
defence does post two
safety touches and
force one
fumble in the loss.
October 22 :
Indianapolis Colts
quarterback
Peyton Manning completes, in his team's
regular season game against the
Washington Redskins , four
touchdown
passes —two to
wide receiver
Marvin Harrison and one each to wide receiver
Reggie Wayne and
tight end
Dallas Clark —of which the last is the 256th of his
National Football League career; Manning, in his ninth
NFL season , earns sole tenth place on the
enumeration of NFL players by career passing touchdowns—he surpasses
Sonny Jurgensen (255) and
Dan Fouts (254).
October 22 : Having four weeks thither surpassed
Art Monk and three weeks thither surpassed
Andre Reed to claim clear fourth place on the enumeration of
National Football League players by
total career
receptions and having two weeks thither extended to 159 the number of
consecutive
regular season games—dating to the
1996 season , in which, having been
selected nineteenth overall by the Colts in the
league draft , he
started sixteen games—to begin his career in which he had at least one reception, which was better by one than that of Colts and
Saint Louis Rams
running back
Marshall Faulk and greater than that of any other player in
league history ,
Indianapolis Colts
wide receiver
Marvin Harrison , in the second
quarter of a game betwixt his team and the
Washington Redskins , catches, for nine
yards , a
pass from
quarterback
Peyton Manning to displace, with 12,786 career receiving yards,
Irving Fryar for eighth place on the enumeration of NFL players by
total career receiving yards .
October 28 : The Lions, winner of thirteen games, three more than the Alouettes, Argonauts, and Stampeders, and six more than the
Edmonton Eskimos –which side, having claimed the
93rd Grey Cup in
2005 score only fourteen points in the
final regular season standings , fewer only than the
Hamilton Tiger-Cats , who finish with a 4-14 record, and fail to qualify for
playoff play for the first time
in thirty-five years –in the
eighteen-game regular season , having completed the season having scored 555 points and having permitted just 355, finish the season having scored more points than any other side and having permitted fewer than any side save the Argonauts (343), place two
offensive players–wide receiver and slotback
Geroy Simon and
offensive tackle Rob Murphy –and five
defensive players–
defensive end
Brent Johnson ,
defensive tackle
Tyrone Williams ,
linebacker
Barrin Simpson ,
defensive back
Korey Banks –by British Columbia the sixth overall selection in the
dispersal draft conducted upon the suspension from 2006 play of the
Ottawa Renegades
franchise upon the team's loss of pecuniary support–and
safety
Barron Miles —on the
league's all-star teams , on which the Blue Bombers (with wide receiver
Milt Stegall ; Roberts, the winner of the
Terry Evanshen Trophy winner; defensive tackle
Doug Brown ; linebacker
Barrin Simpson ; and
special teamer
Albert Johnson III ) and Stampeders (with running back
Joffrey Reynolds ,
offensive guard Jay McNeil , linebacker Brian Clark ,
cornerback Coby Rhinehart , and placekicker Sandro DeAngelis ) also place at least five players, and field eight of the nine players to win
Rogers CFL awards . Simon, a
2004 all-star , having won the
Jeff Nicklin Memorial Trophy , is selected, in view of his scoring 15 touchdowns and tallying 1856 receiving yards over 105 receptions, as the
league's most outstanding player and in
online balloting by
fans as the
Rogers Fans' Choice whilst Johnson, as in 2004 and
2005 , wins the
Dr. Beattie Martin Trophy and thereafter over
Lew Hayman Trophy winner Brown the
most outstanding Canadian award and also claims the
most outstanding defensive player award , having, across the season, accumulated 22
tackles , 16
quarterback sacks , two
interceptions , and three fumble recoveries. Murphy, the winner of the
DeMarco-Becket Memorial Trophy as the West division's best
offensive lineman , tops Flory, for the third time the
Leo Dandurand Trophy winner as the East division's best lineman, for the
most outstanding offensive lineman award , and teammate defensive tackle Aaron Hunt , having won the
Jackie Parker Trophy as the West division's best
rookie , overcomes Alouettes linebacker Étienne Boulay , the
Frank M. Gibson Trophy winner, to garner the
most outstanding rookie award . DeAngelis, having successfully stricken 56 field goals and 46
conversions to
score 214 points, more than any other single player, is placed first on 37 of 49 ballots cast in
Borda count
voting by the Football Writers of Canada to capture the
John Agro Special Teams Award .
October 10 : In the
third quarter of a game betwixt his team and fellow
Atlantic Ten Conference side
University of Richmond Spiders ,
University of New Hampshire
Wildcats
wide receiver David Bell catches, whilst situated in the
end zone , a one-
yard
pass from
quarterback Ricky Santos to record the fifty-first
receiving
touchdown of his
collegiate career ; he supplants
Jerry Rice of
Mississippi Valley State University
Delta Devils atop the list of
National Collegiate Athletic Association
Division I-AA players by career touchdown receptions and Rice and
Troy Edwards —with the
Louisiana Tech University Bulldogs the
1998
Fred Biletnikoff Award winner—atop that of all
Division I players.
October 8 : Having two weeks thither surpassed
Art Monk and one week thither surpassed
Andre Reed to claim clear fourth place on the enumeration of
National Football League players by
total career
receptions ,
Indianapolis Colts
wide receiver
Marvin Harrison , in his team's game against the
Tennessee Titans , catches a three-yard
pass from
quarterback
Peyton Manning to extend to 159 the number of
consecutive
regular season games, dating to the
1996 season , in which, having been
selected nineteenth overall by the Colts in the
league draft , he
started sixteen games, to begin his career in which he has at least one reception, which mark is better by one than that of Colts and
Saint Louis Rams
running back
Marshall Faulk and is greater than that of any other player in
league history .
September 19 :
Placekicker
Morten Andersen , having apparently retired subsequent to the league's
2004 season , returns to the
National Football League (NFL) prior to the third week of its
2006 season . Andersen, aged forty-six years and most recently employed as a
television
analyst for
NFL Europe games, agrees to a
contract with the
Atlanta Falcons , with whom he previously played betwixt the
1995 and
2000 seasons and for whom he will attempt all
extra points and those
field goals of fewer than fifty
yards ; Andersen replaces
Michael Koenen . He returns to the NFL having over his career tallied
more points (2,358) and converted
more field goals (520) than any player save
Gary Anderson , who, having, as Andersen, been a member of the league's
1980s and
1990s All-Decade Teams , leads the latter by 73 career points and 17 career field goals.
September 4 : At
Ivor Wynne Stadium in
Hamilton ,
Ontario ,
Canada ,
Toronto Argonauts
quarterback
Damon Allen , the reigning
Canadian Football League (CFL)
Most Outstanding Player Award winner, formerly of the
Edmonton Eskimos ,
Ottawa Rough Riders ,
Hamilton Tiger-Cats , and
British Columbia Lions , in his team's eleventh game of the
2006 season and in his twenty-second CFL season, having three weeks thither become the first player in league history to have totalled more than 70,000 career passing yards, completes a 29-
yard
shovel pass to
wide receiver
Arland Bruce III to surpass
Warren Moon for first place in the ranking of players by career CFL-
National Football League passing yards.
August 20 :
Toronto Argonauts
quarterback
Damon Allen , the reigning
Canadian Football League (CFL)
Most Outstanding Player Award winner, formerly of the
Edmonton Eskimos ,
Ottawa Rough Riders ,
Hamilton Tiger-Cats , and
British Columbia Lions , in his 22nd year, becomes pro-football's all time pass leader (70,596) in the Labour Day Classic game against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. This mark surpasses
Warren Moon (70,553) in passing yards.
August 18 :
Outside linebacker
Junior Seau , having played thirteen
seasons for the
San Diego Chargers and three for the
Miami Dolphins and having, over his career, been named to the
National Football League 's
1990s All-Decade Team and, on twelve occasions, to the
Pro Bowl , announces his
retirement ; four days thence, he elects to sign a
contract to play the
2006 season for the
New England Patriots . Seau's brief retirement follows by three weeks that of
offensive tackle
Willie Roaf , who joined Seau on the 1990s All-Decade Team and, in his thirteen seasons with the
New Orleans Saints , who selected Roaf from
Louisiana Tech University with the eighth overall pick in the
1993 NFL draft , and
Kansas City Chiefs , started 189
regular season games and earned Pro Bowl honors eleven times.
August 15 :
Outside linebacker
Junior Seau , having played thirteen
seasons for the
San Diego Chargers and three for the
Miami Dolphins after having been, from the
University of Southern California , where he was an
All-America , the fifth overall selection in the
1990 NFL draft , announces his
retirement . A twelve-time
Pro Bowl selection, Seau retires having
started 227
regular season games, over which he recorded 1566
tackles , 52
quarterback
sacks , and 15
pass
interceptions , and having been named as a member of the league's
1990s All-Decade Team . Seau's retirement follows by three weeks that of
offensive tackle
Willie Roaf , who joined Seau on the 1990s All-Decade Team and, in his thirteen seasons with the
New Orleans Saints , who selected Roaf from
Louisiana Tech University with the eighth overall pick in the
1993 NFL draft , and
Kansas City Chiefs , started 189 regular season games and earned Pro Bowl honors eleven times.
August 12 : Fifteen players and five
coaches are inducted into the
College Football
Hall of Fame as the
2006 enshrinement class in a ceremony in
South Bend ,
Indiana ,
United States . Amongst the twenty inductees are
Notre Dame University
quarterback
John Huarte , the
1964 winner of the
Heisman Memorial Trophy Award as the
most outstanding player in the
National Collegiate Athletic Association 's
Division I ;
University of Idaho quarterback
John Friesz , the
1989 winner of the
Walter Payton Award as the top
offensive player in
Division I-AA ;
Mississippi Valley State University quarterback
Willie Totten and
wide receiver
Jerry Rice , who helped the Delta Devils average 59 points per game during the
1984
season , for which each earned
All-America honors; and
Saint John's University
head coach
John Gagliardi , the winningest-ever coach in college football who, between
1952 and
2005 , led the Johnnies to 24
Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championships, two
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics titles and two
Division III national championships.
August 8 :
Chief operating officer
Roger Goodell is elected by the
owners of the
teams of the
National Football League to be that league's
commissioner ; Goddell, who helped to negotiate the league's
collective bargaining agreement and establish the league's
cable
specialty channel
NFL Network , will assume control on or about
September 7 , when the
2006 NFL season begins, replacing
Paul Tagliabue , who has led the league since
1989 .
August 5 : The
Pro Football Hall of Fame inducts its
2006 class, comprising five players—
quarterbacks
Troy Aikman and
Warren Moon ,
offensive tackle
Rayfield Wright ,
linebacker
Harry Carson , and
defensive end
Reggie White —and one
coach —
John Madden —in
Canton ,
Ohio ,
United States .
Warren Moon , who played seventeen
seasons in the
National Football League having first completed a six-year career in the
Canadian Football League , during time which he led the
Edmonton Eskimos to five consecutive
Grey Cup championships, garnering two
Grey Cup Most Valuable Player Awards , in view of which he was enshrined into the
Canadian Football Hall of Fame in
2001 , becomes the first
African American
quarterback to earn entry into the Hall; Moon retired from the NFL in
2000 , having, over his career, earned selection to the
Pro Bowl nine times, and
ranking amongst the top five quarterbacks in NFL history in total
passing
yards , total
touchdowns thrown, and total
passes completed .
Offensive tackle
Rayfield Wright , a seventh-round pick from
Fort Valley State University by the
Dallas Cowboys in the
1967 NFL draft , having, over his career of thirteen years, during seven of which he was team
co-captain , earned election to the
Pro Bowl six times, participated in five
Super Bowl and six
National Football Conference
Championship Games , and been selected to the
1970s All-Decade Team and the
Dallas Cowboys Ring of Honor , is enshrined, having retired subsequent to the
1979 season , as a
senior nominee .
Linebacker
Harry Carson is inducted two years after he disclaimed interest in being elected, having objected to the role of
print media in the
selection process , and is recognized for his having earned election to nine
Pro Bowls over his thirteen years with the
New York Giants , during ten of which he was
defensive
captain and over which he made eleven
interceptions and forced fourteen
fumbles .
Nearly two years after his death,
defensive end
Reggie White , who, over his career, recorded 198
quarterback sacks , more than
any other player save
Bruce Smith , earned election to 13
Pro Bowl games, won, with the
Philadelphia Eagles , the
1986
Pro Bowl MVP ,
1987
Defensive Player of the Year , and 1987 and
1991
United Press International
NFL Defensive Player of the Year Awards , and, with the
Green Bay Packers , the
1995 Defensive Player of the Year and
1998 UPI Defensive Player of the Year Awards, and was selected to the
1980s and
1990s All-Decade Teams and the
75th Anniversary All-Time Team , is enshrined; his wife Sara accepts on his behalf.
John Madden , like Wright a senior nominee , is inducted as a
coach , having, between
1969 and
1978 , led the
Oakland Raiders to the
Super Bowl XI championship and seven
American Football Conference
Championship Games (including the final
American Football League
title game , and having accumulated the best
regular season
winning percentage (75.0%, with 103 wins, 32 losses, and 7
ties ) of any
head coach in league history to have won at least 100 games.
Three-time
Super Bowl -winning
quarterback
Troy Aikman , the
Super Bowl XXVII
Most Valuable Player and also a six-time
Pro Bowl selection with the
Dallas Cowboys , for whom he played all twelve of his NFL seasons, having retired subsequent to the
2000 season and thus in his first year of eligibility for election, is, one year subsequent to his selection to the
Dallas Cowboys Ring of Honor and the attendant de facto
retirement of his jersey , inducted, having, after having entered the league as the
first overall selection in the
1989 NFL draft ,
passed for 141
regular season and 24
playoff
touchdowns .
July 27 :
National Football League
center
LeCharles Bentley , the
2002
Sports Illustrated
Offensive Rookie of the Year ,
traded from the
New Orleans Saints , for whom he was twice a
Pro Bowl player, including once as a
guard , to the
Cleveland Browns , with whom he agreed after the
2005 season to a
contract that would pay him more yearly than that of any center in league history,
tears his
patellar tendon during his team's
training camp ; Bentley is declared unable to play during the
2006 season .
July 24 :
Offensive tackle
Willie Roaf , who played 13
seasons in the
National Football League for the
New Orleans Saints and the
Kansas City Chiefs , announces his
retirement . An eleven-time
Pro Bowl selection, Roaf retires having
started 189
regular season since being selected by the Saints from
Louisiana Tech University with the eighth overall pick in the
1993 NFL draft and having been named as a member of the league's
1990s All-Decade Team .
July 14 : The
2006
National Football League
Supplemental Draft , for which players who elected not to declare themselves eligible for the
2006 draft but thereafter renounced
collegiate eligibility or resolved other concerns, is conducted;
Cincinnati Bengals
linebacker Ahmad Brooks , named by
The Sporting News as a first-team
All-America in
2004 , when he was a
sophomore playing for the
University of Virginia
Cavaliers , and a 2004
Dick Butkus Award finalist who was dismissed from the Cavaliers team prior to the
2005 season, is the only player selected.
June 16 : The
2006
Canadian Football League
regular season begins, with the
Ottawa Renegades ', in view of financial difficulties, having suspended operations prior to the season, after which a
dispersal draft , directing the allocation of Renegades players, was held, and with coaches' being permitted, for the first time, to challenge the calls of
officials , in a
fashion not unlike that employed by the
National Football League . Former
Miami Dolphins
running back
Ricky Williams , having been suspended for the
2006 NFL season for violating the
League's
substance abuse policy for a fourth time, agrees to a contract with the
Toronto Argonauts , although he announces that he plans to return to the Dolphins in
2007 .
June 14 :
Offensive tackle
Brad Hopkins , who played all of his 13 seasons with the
Tennessee Titans , announces his retirement. A
Pro Bowl selection after the
2000 and
2003
National Football League seasons, Hopkins retires having started 188
regular season games, the third-most by any player in franchise history, and 10
playoff games, during which time he blocked for 14
quarterbacks and 19
running backs .
June 12 :
Quarterback
Ben Roethlisberger , who led the
Pittsburgh Steelers to a victory in
Super Bowl XL , becoming, aged just 23
years and 11
months , the youngest quarterback ever to win the
National Football League 's championship game, is injured in a
motorcycle
accident , sustained while he was not wearing a
helmet . Roethlisberger suffers
fractures to his
mandible ,
maxilla , and nose and various
lacerations and
bruises . Doctors aver that Roethlisberger will be physically able to play when the Steelers begin the
2006 season at
Heinz Field against the
Miami Dolphins .
June 11 : In
Las Vegas ,
Nevada , at the
Thomas & Mack Center , the
Chicago Rush of the
Arena Football League , who finished the
regular season with a losing record and earned only a
wild card birth into the
playoffs , defeat the
Orlando Predators , 69-61, to win
ArenaBowl XX . Rush
quarterback Matt D'Orazio passes for six
touchdowns , including three to
offensive specialist Bobby Sippio , to claim
offensive player of the game honors;
defensive back Dennison Robinson returns an
interception 44
yards for a touchdown to win the
defensive award.
June 11 :
Khari Jones , a
Canadian Football League
quarterback who was named the league's
outstanding player after the
2001 season , announces that he is likely to retire after being released by the
Edmonton Eskimos . Jones, who continues to hold several career and single-
season passing records with the
Winnipeg Blue Bombers , led the Winnipeg team that reached the
89th Grey Cup in 2001.
June 7 :
Steve McNair , a
2003 co-
National Football League
most valuable player and three-time
Pro Bowler , is traded by the
Tennessee Titans to the
Baltimore Ravens for a fourth-round pick in the
2006
NFL draft . McNair is expected to supplant
Kyle Boller as Ravens
starting
quarterback .
May 28 :
Miami Dolphins
running back
Ricky Williams , having been suspended for the
2006 NFL season for violating the
League's
substance abuse policy for a fourth time, agrees to a contract with the
Toronto Argonauts of the
Canadian Football League ; he announces that he plans to return to the Dolphins in
2007 .
May 27 : At the
LTU Arena in
Düsseldorf ,
Germany , the
Frankfurt Galaxy , behind the rushing of game
most valuable player
running back Butchie Wallace , defeat the
Amsterdam Admirals , 22-7, to win
World Bowl XIV .
May 26 : The remaining two
Minnesota Vikings players to have been charged criminally after the October 2005
boat cruise scandal ,
cornerback
Fred Smoot and
offensive tackle
Bryant McKinnie plead guilty to two
misdemeanors , though under the terms of a
plea agreement each will have his record expunged should he pay a fine and perform
community service .
April 29 :
Mario Williams , a
defensive end from
North Carolina State University , is
drafted first overall in the
2006 National Football League draft by the
Houston Texans .
2005
Heisman Trophy winner running back
Reggie Bush is drafted second overall by the
New Orleans Saints , while his teammate at the
University of Southern California ,
2004 Heisman winner
quarterback
Matt Leinart , unexpectedly falls to tenth before his drafted by the
Arizona Cardinals .
April 4 : The
Buffalo Bills trade
Eric Moulds to the
Houston Texans . Moulds agrees to a four-year contract.
April 4 :
Daunte Culpepper is cleared of misdemeanor charges stemming from a party boat scandal.
March 31 : The
Cincinnati Bengals sign
Sam Adams to a three-year contract.
National Football League
commissioner
Paul Tagliabue announces that he will retire from his position sometime in August
2006 , having spent nearly 17 years as the league's
chief executive . Among those rumored to be candidates to replace Tagliabue is
Florida
governor
Jeb Bush , but Bush disclaims any interest in the post.
March 4 : the
Chicago Bears sign guard
Terrence Metcalf for six years.
March 3 : the
Pittsburgh Steelers release former starting quarterback
Tommy Maddox and cornerback
Willie Williams for salary cap reasons.
March 3 : the
Cleveland Browns resign running back
Reuben Droughns for three years and
$ 1.5 million.
February 26 :
New York Giants safety
Brent Alexander retires.
February 24 : The
Chicago Bears signed lineman
John St. Clair for three years.
February 24 : The
Indianapolis Colts signed defensive lineman
Raheem Brock for five years.