WASHINGTON (Reuters) - So what now?
The U.S. House of Representatives' rejection of a bill to raise taxes on just 0.18 percent of Americans - those making more than $1 million a year - has raised questions about the Republican-led chamber's ability to approve any plan to avert the looming "fiscal cliff."
Unless President Barack Obama and the U.S. Congress can forge a deal during the Christmas and New Year's holiday season, the largest economy in the world could be thrust back into a recession because of the steep tax increases and spending cuts that are due to begin in January.
The threat of across-the-board government spending cuts and tax increases - about $600 billion worth - was intended to shock the Democratic-led White House and Senate and the Republican-led House into moving past their many differences to approve a plan that would bring tax relief to most Americans and curb runaway federal spending.
For weeks, Obama and House Speaker John Boehner, the top Republican in Congress, have struggled to find a compromise.
But after a glimmer of hope that a deal was close early this week, Boehner - apparently under pressure from anti-tax House Republicans aligned with the conservative Tea Party movement - pressed the "pause" button on negotiations. He then tried to push a backup plan through the House late on Thursday, only to see his fellow Republicans kill it.
Where do Obama and Congress go from here? Here are some possible scenarios.
* Obama and Boehner go back into their secret negotiations.
Before Boehner started touting his failed "Plan B" to boost taxes on those who make more than $1 million, he and Obama were moving closer together on a plan to raise taxes on certain high-income Americans and cut spending. They could pick up where they left off and quickly cut a deal to bridge the gap.
But a compromise with possibly $1 trillion in new taxes and $1 trillion in new, long-term spending cuts could be a tough sell for both Republicans and Democrats in Congress.
Boehner would have to persuade enough Republicans on the idea of tax increases. Obama, meanwhile, would have to get Democrats in Congress to back cuts to some social safety net programs such as Social Security pensions and Medicare and Medicaid health insurance for the elderly and poor. House Republicans appear to be the tougher sell.
* A huge drop in the stock market sends a loud message to Washington politicians to stop arguing and cut a quick but meaningful deal.
That is what happened in late September 2008, after Congress rejected a massive financial bailout package despite warnings by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and then-Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson of an economic collapse if the bill failed.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged more than 700 points and Congress quickly reversed course, approving the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program just days later.
The "fiscal cliff" may not be as dramatic a situation, but the tax increases and cuts in federal spending could deal a stiff blow to the economy.
* No deal happens in the dwindling days of 2012 and the U.S. government jumps off the fiscal cliff - at least temporarily.
On January 1, income taxes would go up on just about everyone. During the first week of January, Congress could scramble and get a quick deal on taxes and the $109 billion in automatic spending cuts that most lawmakers want to avoid.
Why could they reach a deal in January if they fail in December?
The reason would be that once taxes go up, it would be easier to allow a few of those increases to remain in place - mostly on the wealthy - and repeal those that would hit middle- and lower-income taxpayers.
Such a scenario would mean that no member of Congress technically would have to vote for a tax increase on anyone - taxes would have risen automatically - and the only votes would be to decrease tax rates for most Americans back to their 2012 levels.
* No deal occurs for another six weeks or so.
If Congress does not raise the nation's debt limit, by mid-February the Treasury Department likely would exhaust its ability to borrow. That would put the nation at risk of defaulting on its debt.
Republicans have withheld their approval of the debt-limit increase as leverage to try to get the kind of "fiscal cliff" solution they want: Fewer increases in spending and taxes, and more cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.
This is the strategy they employed in mid-2011 during the last fight over the debt limit, which is about $16.4 trillion.
Republicans wrung spending cuts out of Democrats in return for new borrowing authority, but paid a political price. Global financial markets were rocked by the long uncertainty brought on by the standoff in Congress, one ratings agency downgraded U.S. credit standing and Republicans saw their public approval ratings sink.
* Boehner decides on a gutsy move: Call a House vote on a bill that would raise tax rates for families with net annual incomes above $250,000, exactly what Obama has sought.
The plan could pass the House with strong Democratic support and some Republican votes. As soon as it passed, the House likely would leave town for the rest of the year without addressing other Obama priorities such as increasing the government's debt limit.
* A partial deal is struck at any point.
Congress could pass a plan that would put off most of the income tax increases that are due in January, or extend some other expiring tax breaks - namely one to prevent middle-class taxpayers from being subject to higher tax rates aimed at the wealthy under the alternative minimum tax.
* Stock markets do not tank and Washington politicians conclude that the "fiscal cliff" is not such a bad thing.
Read More..
Wall Street Week Ahead: A lump of coal for "Fiscal Cliff-mas"
Labels: BusinessNEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street traders are going to have to pack their tablets and work computers in their holiday luggage after all.
A traditionally quiet week could become hellish for traders as politicians in Washington are likely to fall short of an agreement to deal with $600 billion in tax hikes and spending cuts due to kick in early next year. Many economists forecast that this "fiscal cliff" will push the economy into recession.
Thursday's debacle in the U.S. House of Representatives, where Speaker John Boehner failed to secure passage of his own bill that was meant to pressure President Obama and Senate Democrats, only added to worry that the protracted budget talks will stretch into 2013.
Still, the market remains resilient. Friday's decline on Wall Street, triggered by Boehner's fiasco, was not enough to prevent the S&P 500 from posting its best week in four.
"The markets have been sort of taking this in stride," said Sandy Lincoln, chief market strategist at BMO Asset Management U.S. in Chicago, which has about $38 billion in assets under management.
"The markets still basically believe that something will be done," he said.
If something happens next week, it will come in a short time frame. Markets will be open for a half-day on Christmas Eve, when Congress will not be in session, and will close on Tuesday for Christmas. Wall Street will resume regular stock trading on Wednesday, but volume is expected to be light throughout the rest of the week with scores of market participants away on a holiday break.
For the week, the three major U.S. stock indexes posted gains, with the Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> up 0.4 percent, the S&P 500 <.spx> up 1.2 percent and the Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> up 1.7 percent.
Stocks also have booked solid gains for the year so far, with just five trading sessions left in 2012: The Dow has advanced 8 percent, while the S&P 500 has climbed 13.7 percent and the Nasdaq has jumped 16 percent.
IT COULD GET A LITTLE CRAZY
Equity volumes are expected to fall sharply next week. Last year, daily volume on each of the last five trading days dropped on average by about 49 percent, compared with the rest of 2011 - to just over 4 billion shares a day exchanging hands on the New York Stock Exchange, the Nasdaq and NYSE MKT in the final five sessions of the year from a 2011 daily average of 7.9 billion.
If the trend repeats, low volumes could generate a spike in volatility as traders keep track of any advance in the cliff talks in Washington.
"I'm guessing it's going to be a low volume week. There's not a whole lot other than the fiscal cliff that is going to continue to take the headlines," said Joe Bell, senior equity analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research, in Cincinnati.
"A lot of people already have a foot out the door, and with the possibility of some market-moving news, you get the possibility of increased volatility."
Economic data would have to be way off the mark to move markets next week. But if the recent trend of better-than-expected economic data holds, stocks will have strong fundamental support that could prevent selling from getting overextended even as the fiscal cliff negotiations grind along.
Small and mid-cap stocks have outperformed their larger peers in the last couple of months, indicating a shift in investor sentiment toward the U.S. economy. The S&P MidCap 400 Index <.mid> overcame a technical level by confirming its close above 1,000 for a second week.
"We view the outperformance of the mid-caps and the break of that level as a strong sign for the overall market," Schaeffer's Bell said.
"Whenever you have flight to risk, it shows investors are beginning to have more of a risk appetite."
Evidence of that shift could be a spike in shares in the defense sector, expected to take a hit as defense spending is a key component of the budget talks.
The PHLX defense sector index <.dfx> hit a historic high on Thursday, and far outperformed the market on Friday with a dip of just 0.26 percent, while the three major U.S. stock indexes finished the day down about 1 percent.
Following a half-day on Wall Street on Monday ahead of the Christmas holiday, Wednesday will bring the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index. It is expected to show a ninth-straight month of gains.
U.S. jobless claims on Thursday are seen roughly in line with the previous week's level, with the forecast at 360,000 new filings for unemployment insurance, compared with the previous week's 361,000.
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U.S. judge approves settlement in BP class action suit
Labels: Business(Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Friday gave final approval to BP Plc's settlement with individuals and businesses who lost money and property in the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
The order only addressed the settlement of economic and property damage claims, not a separate medical benefits settlement for cleanup workers and others who say the spill made them sick.
BP has estimated that it will pay $7.8 billion to settle more than 100,000 claims in the class action litigation.
U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier initially approved the deal in May, but held a "fairness hearing" in November to weigh objections from about 13,000 claimants challenging the settlement to resolve some of BP's liability for the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history.
London-based BP's Macondo well spewed 4.9 million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico over a period of 87 days. The torrent fouled shorelines from Texas to Alabama and eclipsed the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska in severity.
Lawyers for some affected parties had objected to the deal, reached in March between BP and lawyers representing plaintiffs ranging from restaurateurs, hoteliers, and oyster men who lost money from the spill. They argued that some claimants would be underpaid or unfairly excluded.
But in a 125-page order approving the settlement, Barbier called the deal "fair, reasonable and adequate," citing the low number of class members who objected or opted out.
BP welcomed the approval order in a statement, adding that the settlement resolves the majority of economic and property damage claims stemming from the accident.
"Today's decision by the Court is another important step forward for BP in meeting its commitment to economic and environmental restoration efforts in the Gulf and in eliminating legal risk facing the company," BP said.
Separate from the class action claims, BP has been locked in a year-long legal battle with the U.S. government and Gulf Coast states to settle billions of dollars in civil and criminal liability from the explosion.
In a settlement with the U.S. government announced last month, BP agreed to pay $4.5 billion in penalties and plead guilty to felony misconduct. The government also indicted the two highest-ranking BP supervisors aboard the Deepwater Horizon rig during the disaster, charging them with 23 criminal counts including manslaughter.
The class action case is In Re: Oil Spill by the Oil Rig "Deepwater Horizon" in the Gulf of Mexico on April 20, 2010, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, No. 10-2179.
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Canadian Football Hall of Famer Eagle Keys dies at 89; won three Grey Cups
Labels: SportsVANCOUVER - Canadian Football Hall of Fame inductee Eagle Keys has died at the age of 89.
Keys played centre and linebacker for five years with the Montreal Alouettes (1949-51) and with the Edmonton Eskimos (1952-54), being named to three CFL all-star teams.
He became a coach after retiring as a player, starting as an assistant in Edmonton in 1955. He became the Eskimos' head coach in 1959, a job he held until 1963.
Keys also was the head coach of the Saskatchewan Roughriders (1965-70) and B.C. Lions (1971-75).
Keys played for two Grey Cup-winning teams and won one with the Roughriders in 1966.
He was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame as a builder in 1990.
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Keys played centre and linebacker for five years with the Montreal Alouettes (1949-51) and with the Edmonton Eskimos (1952-54), being named to three CFL all-star teams.
He became a coach after retiring as a player, starting as an assistant in Edmonton in 1955. He became the Eskimos' head coach in 1959, a job he held until 1963.
Keys also was the head coach of the Saskatchewan Roughriders (1965-70) and B.C. Lions (1971-75).
Keys played for two Grey Cup-winning teams and won one with the Roughriders in 1966.
He was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame as a builder in 1990.
Vikings still wowed by Peterson's rapid recovery
Labels: SportsEDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. (AP) — Most days, Adrian Peterson went through rehab drills looking as if he were never injured.
No one could've foreseen the rapid recovery Peterson has made since that bionic left knee of his was severely damaged near the end of a lost 2011 season for Minnesota. No one could have predicted these weekly gallops down the field and through the NFL record book.
With two games to go, Peterson needs 294 yards to break Eric Dickerson's all-time single-season rushing record. He is 188 yards from becoming the seventh player in league history to reach 2,000 yards in one year.
___
Dec. 24, 2011:
The Vikings were playing at Washington the day before Christmas, a meaningless matchup between teams well out of postseason contention. The end of a routine 3-yard run early in the third quarter by Peterson, the throwback thoroughbred the Vikings have hitched their franchise to in a league now dominated by the forward pass, ended with excruciating pain.
Redskins safety DeJon Gomes dived at his lower left leg to take him down, tearing Peterson's anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments in the process. Peterson, lying face down on the grass, knew immediately "something bad" had happened. By the time head athletic trainer Eric Sugarman and team physician Dr. Joel Boyd raced over from the sideline, Peterson was screaming, "Why me? Why me?"
Sugarman and Boyd performed the Lachman test, where the leg is pushed and wiggled to gauge the stability of the ACL.
"It was just gone," Sugarman said. "So now your worst nightmare is confirmed."
By the time the game was over, Peterson's attitude had already turned. His knee in a brace, sitting in the training room, he asked Sugarman, "Hey, what do we do next? Where do we start? How do we get better?"
"His grieving was very short-lived," Sugarman said.
The rehabilitation of one of the best running backs in NFL history began.
___
The winter:
The first three months of the reconstructive knee surgery recovery are always the hardest, and even for Peterson this was no different. The mornings were dark and cold. Most of his teammates were gone. There were occasional text messages Sugarman had to send to encourage Peterson not to let up. The swelling had to subside first, before he could start the process of restoring his range of motion. The pain from both the incision and the bone that had to be broken to allow the ligament to be replaced was intense. But as soon as Dr. James Andrews performed the procedure in Birmingham, Ala., on Dec. 30, Peterson was ready.
"I had in my mind from the moment I got out of surgery that I was going to be back, that I was going to be good and healthy," Peterson said.
In three weeks, he was walking. After six weeks, he began to jog in the pool. At eight weeks, he was sprinting, with the jets turned on for resistance. Then, 10 weeks after the operation, he ran on hard ground for the first time. Peterson and Sugarman were the only people on the indoor field at Winter Park that day.
"The first time I have a guy run after an ACL, they look like they have marbles in their shoe," Sugarman said. "He probably had done it on his own without telling me before that, I would guess. But the guy took off and ran across the field like, 'Whoa! He looks totally normal.' This isn't supposed to happen. So that was awesome."
___
The spring and summer:
On the first day of the team's conditioning program in late April, the players lined up for sprints. Peterson was working with Sugarman on the side when he saw what was going on. Granted permission to participate, Peterson jumped in line with the rest of the runners. His exhausted teammates wore expressions of disbelief.
"He finished in first four different times," head coach Leslie Frazier said.
Peterson also spent time at his offseason home in Houston, where he worked with physical therapist Russ Paine at the Memorial Herrmann Sports Medicine Institute. Paine picked up where Sugarman and his staff left off.
When Peterson showed up for his sessions at the clinic, the other athletes rehabbing there stared in amazement as he sprinted at the top speed levels of the treadmill. When he lined himself up at the leg press machine, he asked that the prescribed weight be doubled.
"I really wasn't playing around. I was on a mission," he said.
After 14 weeks, the drills advanced. Sugarman rolled a soccer ball as Peterson shuffled from side to side in a sand pit, trying to catch it like a goalie and throw it back in the same motion. He ran tight circles around hula hoops on the turf. He sprinted forward as Sugarman held him back with a bungee cord. Sometimes, for fun, they chased each other around the training room on stools with wheels so Peterson could strengthen his hamstring muscles. Or they'd stand on small red discs and toss a ball back and forth.
"He was terrible at it. He just hates to lose at anything," Sugarman said. "So it's great when I can beat him at something."
Peterson started training camp in Mankato, Minn., on the physically unable to perform list. His protest unsuccessful, he realized the importance of taking the process slowly. Those precious last few degrees of flexion in the knee took several months to return. The cutting, stopping and restarting he has to do for his job required nothing less than the full explosive ability of the joint. The muscles around the knee that atrophied after the surgery needed to be recalibrated, with quadriceps, hamstrings and calves in the proper strength proportion to one another.
Peterson began to be integrated into practice, though, with fans and coaches holding their breaths,
"He just dominated the rehab. It was ridiculous," Sugarman said.
___
The opener:
Peterson was in the backfield on Sept. 9 as he planned all along, and he ran like he never left, carrying the ball 17 times for 84 yards and two touchdowns in an overtime victory over Jacksonville. He got the game ball afterward, which he gratefully passed on to Sugarman.
The ligament was as strong as ever, as good as new, but that didn't mean the Vikings weren't still nervous, wondering how Peterson would perform.
"I don't really worry anymore. But the first part of the season I was worried sick," Sugarman said.
___
The rest of the season:
Peterson felt right after the Sept. 23 win over San Francisco, when he woke up the morning after feeling the usual post-game soreness. He truly began to take off on Oct. 21, when he hit the 150-yard mark in beating Arizona. He's passed the 170-yard mark in four of the last six games, twice surpassing 200 yards.
"He was never going to let this injury be an excuse for him not to be at the level he was at, and I think all the people saying he couldn't do it gave him more drive," defensive end Jared Allen said. "That's the competitor in him, and that's why we love him here."
Peterson jumped in the cold tub to recover after Sunday's game at St. Louis. He's still been doing stretching and strengthening exercises on his left leg. Other than that, there's nary a sign of his injury left.
Sugarman has received all kinds of correspondence from coaches and competitors in all levels of athletics, wondering what their secret was. But Peterson hasn't really rewritten the ACL rehab manual. He's just added another remarkable chapter to his exceptional career.
"His ability to heal is probably different than mine or yours. His work ethic. His determination. His faith. He just has all these factors that, when put together, allowed him to accomplish what he has almost a year out from this terrible injury," Sugarman said.
"I don't think it's quite fair for everyone who tears their ACL moving forward to compare themselves to Adrian Peterson. They're setting themselves up for, in most cases, an unrealistic expectation."
Peterson, who is 27, has stated his desire to break Emmitt Smith's record for career rushing. He'd have to play a long time to do that. But after his performance this year, that mark is just as achievable for him as the rest.
"It just depends on how long God blesses me to play," he said. "I might go far and play 'til I'm 40. I don't know."
Read More..
No one could've foreseen the rapid recovery Peterson has made since that bionic left knee of his was severely damaged near the end of a lost 2011 season for Minnesota. No one could have predicted these weekly gallops down the field and through the NFL record book.
With two games to go, Peterson needs 294 yards to break Eric Dickerson's all-time single-season rushing record. He is 188 yards from becoming the seventh player in league history to reach 2,000 yards in one year.
___
Dec. 24, 2011:
The Vikings were playing at Washington the day before Christmas, a meaningless matchup between teams well out of postseason contention. The end of a routine 3-yard run early in the third quarter by Peterson, the throwback thoroughbred the Vikings have hitched their franchise to in a league now dominated by the forward pass, ended with excruciating pain.
Redskins safety DeJon Gomes dived at his lower left leg to take him down, tearing Peterson's anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments in the process. Peterson, lying face down on the grass, knew immediately "something bad" had happened. By the time head athletic trainer Eric Sugarman and team physician Dr. Joel Boyd raced over from the sideline, Peterson was screaming, "Why me? Why me?"
Sugarman and Boyd performed the Lachman test, where the leg is pushed and wiggled to gauge the stability of the ACL.
"It was just gone," Sugarman said. "So now your worst nightmare is confirmed."
By the time the game was over, Peterson's attitude had already turned. His knee in a brace, sitting in the training room, he asked Sugarman, "Hey, what do we do next? Where do we start? How do we get better?"
"His grieving was very short-lived," Sugarman said.
The rehabilitation of one of the best running backs in NFL history began.
___
The winter:
The first three months of the reconstructive knee surgery recovery are always the hardest, and even for Peterson this was no different. The mornings were dark and cold. Most of his teammates were gone. There were occasional text messages Sugarman had to send to encourage Peterson not to let up. The swelling had to subside first, before he could start the process of restoring his range of motion. The pain from both the incision and the bone that had to be broken to allow the ligament to be replaced was intense. But as soon as Dr. James Andrews performed the procedure in Birmingham, Ala., on Dec. 30, Peterson was ready.
"I had in my mind from the moment I got out of surgery that I was going to be back, that I was going to be good and healthy," Peterson said.
In three weeks, he was walking. After six weeks, he began to jog in the pool. At eight weeks, he was sprinting, with the jets turned on for resistance. Then, 10 weeks after the operation, he ran on hard ground for the first time. Peterson and Sugarman were the only people on the indoor field at Winter Park that day.
"The first time I have a guy run after an ACL, they look like they have marbles in their shoe," Sugarman said. "He probably had done it on his own without telling me before that, I would guess. But the guy took off and ran across the field like, 'Whoa! He looks totally normal.' This isn't supposed to happen. So that was awesome."
___
The spring and summer:
On the first day of the team's conditioning program in late April, the players lined up for sprints. Peterson was working with Sugarman on the side when he saw what was going on. Granted permission to participate, Peterson jumped in line with the rest of the runners. His exhausted teammates wore expressions of disbelief.
"He finished in first four different times," head coach Leslie Frazier said.
Peterson also spent time at his offseason home in Houston, where he worked with physical therapist Russ Paine at the Memorial Herrmann Sports Medicine Institute. Paine picked up where Sugarman and his staff left off.
When Peterson showed up for his sessions at the clinic, the other athletes rehabbing there stared in amazement as he sprinted at the top speed levels of the treadmill. When he lined himself up at the leg press machine, he asked that the prescribed weight be doubled.
"I really wasn't playing around. I was on a mission," he said.
After 14 weeks, the drills advanced. Sugarman rolled a soccer ball as Peterson shuffled from side to side in a sand pit, trying to catch it like a goalie and throw it back in the same motion. He ran tight circles around hula hoops on the turf. He sprinted forward as Sugarman held him back with a bungee cord. Sometimes, for fun, they chased each other around the training room on stools with wheels so Peterson could strengthen his hamstring muscles. Or they'd stand on small red discs and toss a ball back and forth.
"He was terrible at it. He just hates to lose at anything," Sugarman said. "So it's great when I can beat him at something."
Peterson started training camp in Mankato, Minn., on the physically unable to perform list. His protest unsuccessful, he realized the importance of taking the process slowly. Those precious last few degrees of flexion in the knee took several months to return. The cutting, stopping and restarting he has to do for his job required nothing less than the full explosive ability of the joint. The muscles around the knee that atrophied after the surgery needed to be recalibrated, with quadriceps, hamstrings and calves in the proper strength proportion to one another.
Peterson began to be integrated into practice, though, with fans and coaches holding their breaths,
"He just dominated the rehab. It was ridiculous," Sugarman said.
___
The opener:
Peterson was in the backfield on Sept. 9 as he planned all along, and he ran like he never left, carrying the ball 17 times for 84 yards and two touchdowns in an overtime victory over Jacksonville. He got the game ball afterward, which he gratefully passed on to Sugarman.
The ligament was as strong as ever, as good as new, but that didn't mean the Vikings weren't still nervous, wondering how Peterson would perform.
"I don't really worry anymore. But the first part of the season I was worried sick," Sugarman said.
___
The rest of the season:
Peterson felt right after the Sept. 23 win over San Francisco, when he woke up the morning after feeling the usual post-game soreness. He truly began to take off on Oct. 21, when he hit the 150-yard mark in beating Arizona. He's passed the 170-yard mark in four of the last six games, twice surpassing 200 yards.
"He was never going to let this injury be an excuse for him not to be at the level he was at, and I think all the people saying he couldn't do it gave him more drive," defensive end Jared Allen said. "That's the competitor in him, and that's why we love him here."
Peterson jumped in the cold tub to recover after Sunday's game at St. Louis. He's still been doing stretching and strengthening exercises on his left leg. Other than that, there's nary a sign of his injury left.
Sugarman has received all kinds of correspondence from coaches and competitors in all levels of athletics, wondering what their secret was. But Peterson hasn't really rewritten the ACL rehab manual. He's just added another remarkable chapter to his exceptional career.
"His ability to heal is probably different than mine or yours. His work ethic. His determination. His faith. He just has all these factors that, when put together, allowed him to accomplish what he has almost a year out from this terrible injury," Sugarman said.
"I don't think it's quite fair for everyone who tears their ACL moving forward to compare themselves to Adrian Peterson. They're setting themselves up for, in most cases, an unrealistic expectation."
Peterson, who is 27, has stated his desire to break Emmitt Smith's record for career rushing. He'd have to play a long time to do that. But after his performance this year, that mark is just as achievable for him as the rest.
"It just depends on how long God blesses me to play," he said. "I might go far and play 'til I'm 40. I don't know."
YEARENDER-NFL-New generation of QBs emerge but league faces threats
Labels: SportsMIAMI, Dec 21 (Reuters) - A new generation of talented quarterbacks emerged in 2012 but a refereeing fiasco, worries over concussions and player behavior all left their mark on the National Football League (NFL).
The year was also a tantalizing tale of the Mannings with New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning winning his second Super Bowl title in four years with a win over New England in the same stadium where older brother Peyton played for Indianapolis.
After a year out with serious neck problems, Peyton Manning restarted his career with the Denver Broncos after 14 years with the Colts and quickly cast aside any doubts over his durability by leading his team to a playoff berth and division title.
Manning's revival came at the expense of Tim Tebow, the most talked about player in 2011, who has spent most of this year on the sidelines after being traded to the New York Jets.
'Tebow-mania' reached its peak in January when he led the Broncos to a playoff win over Pittsburgh but a crushing loss to the New England Patriots a week later was the last in a Denver uniform for the unorthodox quarterback.
Tebow's charisma, his noted religiosity and clean-cut good looks made him one of the most popular NFL players in years but that did not stop Jets head coach Rex Ryan leaving him as a bit-player and back-up to Mark Sanchez with most critics agreeing that Tebow's poor passing technique has hampered his career.
Tebow's fans understandably view 2012 as a year in which an exciting player's talent was wasted but in the big picture there has been no shortage of exciting new talent to enjoy in the NFL.
It was hard to imagine anyone exceeding the record-breaking impact made in 2011 by Carolina Panthers rookie quarterback Cam Newton but it did not take long for the top two picks in this year's NFL Draft, Indianapolis's Andrew Luck and Washington's Robert Griffin III respectively, to make an impact.
Luck ushered in the post-Manning era faster than anyone had imagined, with his outstanding passing and classy composure indicating he is a player who could enjoy similar dominance to his predecessor.
Griffin, or RG3 as he is widely known, is a different quarterback altogether - his speed and courage make him a genuine double-threat, able to rush but he is also, as critics of Tebow have noted, an accomplished pocket passer too.
Seattle's Russell Wilson and Miami's Ryan Tannehill have also made good impressions in their rookie years and with Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, Ben Roethlisberger and the Mannings still on top of their game, it has become an era of unprecedented passing yards for quarterbacks.
NASTY UNDERBELLY
Given the key role quarterbacks play, the abundance of talent at the position should mark a golden-era for America's most popular league but the game has a nasty underbelly which has been revealed on several occasions this year.
The NFL has long been plagued by off-field problems, most notably domestic violence, gun crime and drunk driving, and there have been tragic examples of all three this year.
Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher fatally shot his girlfriend at their home moments before killing himself in front of his coach and general manager at the team's training facility in December.
A week later, Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle Josh Brent was charged with intoxication manslaughter after the car he was driving flipped over and caught fire, killing team mate Jerry Brown, a passenger in the car.
In May, former San Diego Chargers linebacker Junior Seau, a 12-time Pro Bowl selection, was found dead at his home in May, with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest.
The manner of Seau's death and his families willingness to let his brain be examined for evidence of the impact of repeated injuries from his playing days, brought the issue of concussions back into focus.
Over 1,500 former football players have sued the NFL over head injuries and there have been accusations that the league concealed links between the game and brain injuries.
The NFL has disputed those allegations and points to its intensive education work on the issue and also the stricter new regulations covering treatment of players who are concussed.
BOUNTY PROGRAM
Concern over the potential impact of excessive violence on players was also behind NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell's strong sanctions against the New Orleans Saints, a story that hung over the league for much of the year.
The Saints were accused of running a bounty program from 2009-2011 that gave players cash rewards for knocking opponents out of games.
While Saints head coach Sean Payton was suspended for the entire season and other members of the coaching staff received shorter bans, much of the attention was on the sanctions given to four players, all of whom had their punishments overturned.
The decision by former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue, with little compelling reasoning behind it, was a strange end to an affair which did little good for the league's image.
That image also took a hit from the contract dispute with referees which led to an early season lockout and resulted in some farcical decisions By the replacement referees.
The dispute culminated in botched call in a nationally televised game that handed Seattle victory over Green Bay and caused so much outrage that a deal was swiftly reached for the regular refs to return in early in the season.
Read More..
The year was also a tantalizing tale of the Mannings with New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning winning his second Super Bowl title in four years with a win over New England in the same stadium where older brother Peyton played for Indianapolis.
After a year out with serious neck problems, Peyton Manning restarted his career with the Denver Broncos after 14 years with the Colts and quickly cast aside any doubts over his durability by leading his team to a playoff berth and division title.
Manning's revival came at the expense of Tim Tebow, the most talked about player in 2011, who has spent most of this year on the sidelines after being traded to the New York Jets.
'Tebow-mania' reached its peak in January when he led the Broncos to a playoff win over Pittsburgh but a crushing loss to the New England Patriots a week later was the last in a Denver uniform for the unorthodox quarterback.
Tebow's charisma, his noted religiosity and clean-cut good looks made him one of the most popular NFL players in years but that did not stop Jets head coach Rex Ryan leaving him as a bit-player and back-up to Mark Sanchez with most critics agreeing that Tebow's poor passing technique has hampered his career.
Tebow's fans understandably view 2012 as a year in which an exciting player's talent was wasted but in the big picture there has been no shortage of exciting new talent to enjoy in the NFL.
It was hard to imagine anyone exceeding the record-breaking impact made in 2011 by Carolina Panthers rookie quarterback Cam Newton but it did not take long for the top two picks in this year's NFL Draft, Indianapolis's Andrew Luck and Washington's Robert Griffin III respectively, to make an impact.
Luck ushered in the post-Manning era faster than anyone had imagined, with his outstanding passing and classy composure indicating he is a player who could enjoy similar dominance to his predecessor.
Griffin, or RG3 as he is widely known, is a different quarterback altogether - his speed and courage make him a genuine double-threat, able to rush but he is also, as critics of Tebow have noted, an accomplished pocket passer too.
Seattle's Russell Wilson and Miami's Ryan Tannehill have also made good impressions in their rookie years and with Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, Ben Roethlisberger and the Mannings still on top of their game, it has become an era of unprecedented passing yards for quarterbacks.
NASTY UNDERBELLY
Given the key role quarterbacks play, the abundance of talent at the position should mark a golden-era for America's most popular league but the game has a nasty underbelly which has been revealed on several occasions this year.
The NFL has long been plagued by off-field problems, most notably domestic violence, gun crime and drunk driving, and there have been tragic examples of all three this year.
Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher fatally shot his girlfriend at their home moments before killing himself in front of his coach and general manager at the team's training facility in December.
A week later, Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle Josh Brent was charged with intoxication manslaughter after the car he was driving flipped over and caught fire, killing team mate Jerry Brown, a passenger in the car.
In May, former San Diego Chargers linebacker Junior Seau, a 12-time Pro Bowl selection, was found dead at his home in May, with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest.
The manner of Seau's death and his families willingness to let his brain be examined for evidence of the impact of repeated injuries from his playing days, brought the issue of concussions back into focus.
Over 1,500 former football players have sued the NFL over head injuries and there have been accusations that the league concealed links between the game and brain injuries.
The NFL has disputed those allegations and points to its intensive education work on the issue and also the stricter new regulations covering treatment of players who are concussed.
BOUNTY PROGRAM
Concern over the potential impact of excessive violence on players was also behind NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell's strong sanctions against the New Orleans Saints, a story that hung over the league for much of the year.
The Saints were accused of running a bounty program from 2009-2011 that gave players cash rewards for knocking opponents out of games.
While Saints head coach Sean Payton was suspended for the entire season and other members of the coaching staff received shorter bans, much of the attention was on the sanctions given to four players, all of whom had their punishments overturned.
The decision by former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue, with little compelling reasoning behind it, was a strange end to an affair which did little good for the league's image.
That image also took a hit from the contract dispute with referees which led to an early season lockout and resulted in some farcical decisions By the replacement referees.
The dispute culminated in botched call in a nationally televised game that handed Seattle victory over Green Bay and caused so much outrage that a deal was swiftly reached for the regular refs to return in early in the season.
New generation of QBs emerge but league faces threats
Labels: SportsMIAMI (Reuters) - A new generation of talented quarterbacks emerged in 2012 but a refereeing fiasco, worries over concussions and player behavior all left their mark on the National Football League (NFL).
The year was also a tantalizing tale of the Mannings with New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning winning his second Super Bowl title in four years with a win over New England in the same stadium where older brother Peyton played for Indianapolis.
After a year out with serious neck problems, Peyton Manning restarted his career with the Denver Broncos after 14 years with the Colts and quickly cast aside any doubts over his durability by leading his team to a playoff berth and division title.
Manning's revival came at the expense of Tim Tebow, the most talked about player in 2011, who has spent most of this year on the sidelines after being traded to the New York Jets.
'Tebow-mania' reached its peak in January when he led the Broncos to a playoff win over Pittsburgh but a crushing loss to the New England Patriots a week later was the last in a Denver uniform for the unorthodox quarterback.
Tebow's charisma, his noted religiosity and clean-cut good looks made him one of the most popular NFL players in years but that did not stop Jets head coach Rex Ryan leaving him as a bit-player and back-up to Mark Sanchez with most critics agreeing that Tebow's poor passing technique has hampered his career.
Tebow's fans understandably view 2012 as a year in which an exciting player's talent was wasted but in the big picture there has been no shortage of exciting new talent to enjoy in the NFL.
It was hard to imagine anyone exceeding the record-breaking impact made in 2011 by Carolina Panthers rookie quarterback Cam Newton but it did not take long for the top two picks in this year's NFL Draft, Indianapolis's Andrew Luck and Washington's Robert Griffin III respectively, to make an impact.
Luck ushered in the post-Manning era faster than anyone had imagined, with his outstanding passing and classy composure indicating he is a player who could enjoy similar dominance to his predecessor.
Griffin, or RG3 as he is widely known, is a different quarterback altogether - his speed and courage make him a genuine double-threat, able to rush but he is also, as critics of Tebow have noted, an accomplished pocket passer too.
Seattle's Russell Wilson and Miami's Ryan Tannehill have also made good impressions in their rookie years and with Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, Ben Roethlisberger and the Mannings still on top of their game, it has become an era of unprecedented passing yards for quarterbacks.
NASTY UNDERBELLY
Given the key role quarterbacks play, the abundance of talent at the position should mark a golden-era for America's most popular league but the game has a nasty underbelly which has been revealed on several occasions this year.
The NFL has long been plagued by off-field problems, most notably domestic violence, gun crime and drunk driving, and there have been tragic examples of all three this year.
Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher fatally shot his girlfriend at their home moments before killing himself in front of his coach and general manager at the team's training facility in December.
A week later, Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle Josh Brent was charged with intoxication manslaughter after the car he was driving flipped over and caught fire, killing team mate Jerry Brown, a passenger in the car.
In May, former San Diego Chargers linebacker Junior Seau, a 12-time Pro Bowl selection, was found dead at his home in May, with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest.
The manner of Seau's death and his families willingness to let his brain be examined for evidence of the impact of repeated injuries from his playing days, brought the issue of concussions back into focus.
Over 1,500 former football players have sued the NFL over head injuries and there have been accusations that the league concealed links between the game and brain injuries.
The NFL has disputed those allegations and points to its intensive education work on the issue and also the stricter new regulations covering treatment of players who are concussed.
BOUNTY PROGRAM
Concern over the potential impact of excessive violence on players was also behind NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell's strong sanctions against the New Orleans Saints, a story that hung over the league for much of the year.
The Saints were accused of running a bounty program from 2009-2011 that gave players cash rewards for knocking opponents out of games.
While Saints head coach Sean Payton was suspended for the entire season and other members of the coaching staff received shorter bans, much of the attention was on the sanctions given to four players, all of whom had their punishments overturned.
The decision by former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue, with little compelling reasoning behind it, was a strange end to an affair which did little good for the league's image.
That image also took a hit from the contract dispute with referees which led to an early season lockout and resulted in some farcical decisions By the replacement referees.
The dispute culminated in botched call in a nationally televised game that handed Seattle victory over Green Bay and caused so much outrage that a deal was swiftly reached for the regular refs to return in early in the season.
But while referee dispute, off-field troubles, bounty schemes and concussion fears generated plenty of negative attention for the league they did nothing to weaken the NFL's position as the dominant sport in North America and the top draw on U.S. television.
Read More..
The year was also a tantalizing tale of the Mannings with New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning winning his second Super Bowl title in four years with a win over New England in the same stadium where older brother Peyton played for Indianapolis.
After a year out with serious neck problems, Peyton Manning restarted his career with the Denver Broncos after 14 years with the Colts and quickly cast aside any doubts over his durability by leading his team to a playoff berth and division title.
Manning's revival came at the expense of Tim Tebow, the most talked about player in 2011, who has spent most of this year on the sidelines after being traded to the New York Jets.
'Tebow-mania' reached its peak in January when he led the Broncos to a playoff win over Pittsburgh but a crushing loss to the New England Patriots a week later was the last in a Denver uniform for the unorthodox quarterback.
Tebow's charisma, his noted religiosity and clean-cut good looks made him one of the most popular NFL players in years but that did not stop Jets head coach Rex Ryan leaving him as a bit-player and back-up to Mark Sanchez with most critics agreeing that Tebow's poor passing technique has hampered his career.
Tebow's fans understandably view 2012 as a year in which an exciting player's talent was wasted but in the big picture there has been no shortage of exciting new talent to enjoy in the NFL.
It was hard to imagine anyone exceeding the record-breaking impact made in 2011 by Carolina Panthers rookie quarterback Cam Newton but it did not take long for the top two picks in this year's NFL Draft, Indianapolis's Andrew Luck and Washington's Robert Griffin III respectively, to make an impact.
Luck ushered in the post-Manning era faster than anyone had imagined, with his outstanding passing and classy composure indicating he is a player who could enjoy similar dominance to his predecessor.
Griffin, or RG3 as he is widely known, is a different quarterback altogether - his speed and courage make him a genuine double-threat, able to rush but he is also, as critics of Tebow have noted, an accomplished pocket passer too.
Seattle's Russell Wilson and Miami's Ryan Tannehill have also made good impressions in their rookie years and with Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, Ben Roethlisberger and the Mannings still on top of their game, it has become an era of unprecedented passing yards for quarterbacks.
NASTY UNDERBELLY
Given the key role quarterbacks play, the abundance of talent at the position should mark a golden-era for America's most popular league but the game has a nasty underbelly which has been revealed on several occasions this year.
The NFL has long been plagued by off-field problems, most notably domestic violence, gun crime and drunk driving, and there have been tragic examples of all three this year.
Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher fatally shot his girlfriend at their home moments before killing himself in front of his coach and general manager at the team's training facility in December.
A week later, Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle Josh Brent was charged with intoxication manslaughter after the car he was driving flipped over and caught fire, killing team mate Jerry Brown, a passenger in the car.
In May, former San Diego Chargers linebacker Junior Seau, a 12-time Pro Bowl selection, was found dead at his home in May, with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest.
The manner of Seau's death and his families willingness to let his brain be examined for evidence of the impact of repeated injuries from his playing days, brought the issue of concussions back into focus.
Over 1,500 former football players have sued the NFL over head injuries and there have been accusations that the league concealed links between the game and brain injuries.
The NFL has disputed those allegations and points to its intensive education work on the issue and also the stricter new regulations covering treatment of players who are concussed.
BOUNTY PROGRAM
Concern over the potential impact of excessive violence on players was also behind NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell's strong sanctions against the New Orleans Saints, a story that hung over the league for much of the year.
The Saints were accused of running a bounty program from 2009-2011 that gave players cash rewards for knocking opponents out of games.
While Saints head coach Sean Payton was suspended for the entire season and other members of the coaching staff received shorter bans, much of the attention was on the sanctions given to four players, all of whom had their punishments overturned.
The decision by former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue, with little compelling reasoning behind it, was a strange end to an affair which did little good for the league's image.
That image also took a hit from the contract dispute with referees which led to an early season lockout and resulted in some farcical decisions By the replacement referees.
The dispute culminated in botched call in a nationally televised game that handed Seattle victory over Green Bay and caused so much outrage that a deal was swiftly reached for the regular refs to return in early in the season.
But while referee dispute, off-field troubles, bounty schemes and concussion fears generated plenty of negative attention for the league they did nothing to weaken the NFL's position as the dominant sport in North America and the top draw on U.S. television.
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