Jay Cutler Lifestyle

The San Francisco 49ers announced that they'd agreed to a term sheet with the city of Santa Clara, Calif., for a $937 million, publicly owned stadium there. The agreement must be approved by the city council and Santa Clara voters. Under the deal, the city is responsible for $79 million of the cost. According to an announcement by the 49ers, another $35 million is to be raised by a fee charged to guests at hotels near the stadium, and the remainder of the cost is to be covered by the team, the NFL and stadium-authority revenue projects such as a naming rights deal. "After years of hard work, we're pleased to have reached an agreement with the city staff," team president Jed York said in a written statement released by the 49ers. "The stadium will make Santa Clara an even better place to live, work and play. Not only

There's still no word about whether quarterback Brett Favre will come out of retirement again and sign with the Minnesota Vikings. There have been indications that the Vikings were hoping for an answer from Favre soon, perhaps this week. There also have been recent reports that Favre might undergo surgery for the torn biceps tendon that plagued him last season, while he was with the New York Jets, and that he likely would sign with the Vikings if the procedure went well. As of early this afternoon, however, Favre's football future--or lack of it--remains unclear.

U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson denied a request by the NFL Players Association to put the suspensions of five players on hold during the appeal process, the Associated Press reported. The players are facing four-game suspensions for testing positive last year for a banned diuretic. The players involved are Minnesota Vikings defensive tackles Pat Williams and Kevin Williams and three current or former members of the New Orleans Saints, tailback Deuce McAllister and defensive ends Charles Grant and Will Smith. The suspensions are to be served next season unless they're overturned on appeal.

UPDATED (1:46 p.m.)... FOXBOROUGH, Mass.--He had moments when he didn't look quite like a three-time Super Bowl winner. He didn't always resemble the quarterback who, just two years ago, had a season that was probably as good as any NFL quarterback ever has had. Tom Brady bemoaned his own lack of passing accuracy and all-around playing sharpness. But on this cool, gray New England day in late May on a couple quiet practice fields outside Gillette Stadium, none of that really mattered. Brady was back throwing passes to standout wide receivers Randy Moss and Wes Welker, and moving around on the left knee that he injured in the opening game of last season. Brady's return to football was on full view. "I feel as good as I could possibly feel," Brady said.

League officials have been given no indication that any NFL players are connected to the case in which a Lakeland, Fla., couple was arrested Tuesday on steroid distribution charges, a league spokesman said today. Members of the league's security department will be in contact with law enforcement officials to determine if any further information uncovered by investigators links the NFL to the case, the spokesman said. The NFL regularly monitors such investigations and has taken disciplinary action in the past when a law enforcement investigation has determined that a player or coach purchased and used performance-enhancing drugs.

Free agent linebacker Paris Lenon has agreed to a contract with the New England Patriots, according to the Boston Globe. Lenon was the Detroit Lions' leading tackler last season. He played three seasons with the Lions after four seasons for the Green Bay Packers. In New England, he likely will back up starters Jerod Mayo and Tedy Bruschi at inside linebacker.

Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Anquan Boldin plans to Drew Rosenhaus as his agent, according to a report by ESPN. Boldin has been at odds with the Cardinals over his contract since before last season but hasn't gotten a new deal or been accommodated in his request to be traded. Rosenhaus seemed to confirm the report, while leaving open the possibility of a reconciliation, when he wrote on Twitter: "Regarding Anquan Boldin, let me say I have great respect for him. I'm hopeful that we can work things out and he will return to the Rosenhaus Sports family in the near future. We are proud to continue to represent his brother D.J. Boldin." Rosenhaus previously had predicted on Twitter that Boldin still would be traded. The agent announced on Twitter today that he'd signed New Orleans Saints tight end Jeremy Shockey to a new representation agreement and negotiated a two-year

UPDATED (2:15 p.m.)... Quarterback Tom Brady was on the field participating in the New England Patriots' offseason practice today in Foxborough, Mass., the Associated Press reported. It was Brady's first official on-field work since suffering a season-ending knee injury in the opening game of last season. The Patriots have organized team activities scheduled for four days this week. Brady underwent a series of surgeries to repair the original injury and treat a staph infection that developed afterward, but the Patriots have been confident enough about his recovery and expected return that they traded last season's replacement at quarterback, Matt Cassel, the Kansas City Chiefs earlier this offseason. The Patriots' practice today was closed to the public and media members. Thursday's practice is open to reporters and Brady is expected to speak to the media afterward.

The Cleveland Browns have signed cornerback Rod Hood, according to the league's website. Hood, released earlier in the offseason by the Arizona Cardinals, signed a one-year contract in Cleveland. He spent two seasons with the Cardinals after four seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles. Hood has 11 career interceptions, including five for the Cardinals in 2007. He started 30 of his 31 regular season games in two seasons in Arizona.

Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor has been involved in some significant sports rulings as a judge, issuing rulings that ended the baseball strike in 1995 and reaffirmed the NFL's policy that a player must be three years removed from high school to be eligible for the draft. The nearly eight-month baseball strike of 1994 and '95 was the longest and most costly work stoppage in professional sports history, producing the cancellation of the World Series in '94 and leading most of the franchise owners to open spring training in '95 with teams of replacement players on the field. Sotomayor in effect ended the strike with a ruling that restored the previous working conditions for the players. That led the players to end their strike, minus a new labor agreement that was not completed until later, after 232 days. In 2004, Sotomayor was part of a three-member panel of appeals