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GRID IRON…the Indianapolis Star reports Colts safety Melvin Bullitt is in top form, ready to take over from Bob Sanders “when he inevitably gets hurt”…

…Jake Delhomme garnered a wild 110.5 quarterback rating while playing for Cleveland in the preseason. Delhomme had been let go by Carolina after dismal play and appeared to be washed-up. Mike Holmgren, attempting to fashion a proper NFL team in Cleveland, snapped him up, a move that had many shaking their heads. How is this going to turn out? The Browns have the best left tackle in football in Joe Thomas and he may be giving the cagey old codger a renewed sense of safety and confidence. With Browns home and home sets with the vicious defences of Baltimore, Pittsburgh and Cincinnati, we’ll find out sooner rather than later if Delhomme is for real…

…have to love Donovan McNab publicly stating Washington needs Albert Haynesworth to win. The quarterback played against the Skins nose tackle twice last year and is uniquely situated to discuss his merits. Coach Mike Shanahan has surely proven his point with his rough handling of the lineman, but the time is here to bury hatchets and prepare for the season opener. Haynesworth can be one of the top defensive players in the league, collapsing lines and demanding double coverage on a regular basis. His departure is the real reason the Tennessee Titans had such a dismal start to their 2009 season. Without Albert the Titans had to go back to blitzing in order to get pressure on opposing quarterbacks…

…think New Orleans coach Sean Payton will have something special for hobbled Brett Favre in the season opener tomorrow night? Run, Brett, run…give the points and enjoy the Drew Brees show…

ICE…Kyle Wellwood has been granted a tryout with the Phoenix Coyotes. It will be interesting to see if the recent troubles latching on with an NHL squad motivate the creative yet perennially lazy centre…

…Minnesota forward Pierre-Marc Bouchard sat out the past season but is still experiencing concussion symptoms as he prepares for 2010-11…

PUG LIFE…it is very significant that Emanuel Steward is predicting a fourth or fifth round knockout Saturday when Vladimir Klitschko faces off against Samuel Peters. Steward has long bemoaned the timidity and caution of his Ukrainian charge and now, with Vladimir (and brother Vitali) having effectively killed any American interest in heavyweight boxing, it appears the Kronk master is demanding more aggression and commitment. Vladimir, to be blunt, needs to get all George Foreman on the Nigerian wastrel. The fight should be readily available Saturday afternoon on Justin TV and it will be interesting if the defending champ can summon the blazing early knockout that might impress North Americans…Vladimir’s path should be relatively simple. Punch out the fat poser Saturday then set up a lucrative showdown with popular David Hayes in the New Year. But when does boxing ever do the simple or logical thing?…

…massive negative reaction is pummelling Floyd Mayweather after an ignorant racist and homophobic tirade against Manny Pacquiao was released on You Tube. It’ll likely blow over but it has been surprising how many hard core boxing adherents are suggesting Mayweather went too far and deserves some kind of sanction…

…I can say it till I’m blue in the face; there are absolutely fantastic fighters engaging in fantastic fights, here, right now, but the mainstream media only covers boxing featuring Mayweather or Pacquiao. That pair has brought the sport to its knees and I was eminently correct months back when I advocated the pair’s retirement…Pacquiao’s match with Margarito is as sordid and cynical as anything fight fans have ever endured. Why didn’t Pacquiao just say no?…

…Toronto Maple Leaf rookie Nazim Kadri (Nathan Cadbury?) has spoken of how proud he is that he was able to put on 15 pounds of muscle during the past year.  Bizarre, isn’t it, how a fully mature man, Manny Pacquiao, was able to put on seventeen pounds of muscle in a year and a half span, and emerge faster and more energetic than ever. Could Kadri be visiting the wrong trainers? Maybe a stint at the Wild Card gym with Freddie Roach could work, uh, miracles?…

…promoter Bob Arum’s son John was killed in a mountain climbing accident last week. Pacquiao is dedicating his fight with Antonio Margarito to the recently deceased…

…Thomas Hauser has penned a gorgeous piece on Rocky Marciano, Part 1 available on the Seconds Out site. The article outlines Marciano’s connections with the mob and hints he may have had help while he climbed the heavyweight ranks…

…Roy Jones Jr has admitted he received no money for his April fight with Bernard Hopkins. The fight didn’t generate enough to pay Hopkins his guaranteed 3.5 million, leaving nothing left for Jones…