| Ditka calls controversial Payton book 'gutless' and NFL issues reminder that D can't mimic cadence |
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Former Chicago Bears coach Mike Ditka dismissed the author of a controversial new book on Walter Payton as "totally gutless."Jeff Pearlman's book, which includes allegations of Payton, who died in 1999, being suicidal, abusing pain medication and being unfaithful to his wife, is titled "Sweetness: The Enigmatic Life of Walter Payton" and will be released Oct. 4. An excerpt of the book will appear in the Oct. 3 issue of Sports Illustrated."I think it's ridiculous to me," Ditka said Thursday on "Carmen, Jurko & Harry" on ESPN 1000. "What's the point? What's the point? The point is one thing only -- to sell books. That's all it's about. It's a bunch of crap, first of all. [Read the full article] The Detroit Tigers have put all five starters on the roster for their playoff series against the New York Yankees.The Tigers released the roster hours before Friday night's Game 1 of the American League Division Series in New York.Manager Jim Leyland has already said Justin Verlander, Doug Fister and Max Scherzer are his first three starters against the Yankees.The Tigers also have catcher Omir Santos on the roster to back up Alex Avila and Victor Martinez.To experience everything that ESPN.com has to offer, we recommend that you upgrade to a newer version of your web browser. Click the upgrade button to the right or learn more.NEW YORK -- The Detroit Tigers have put all five starters on the roster for their playoff series against the New York Yankees. [Read the full article] Detroit Red Wings defenseman Brendan Smith has been suspended for the remainder of the preseason plus five regular-season games for his hit to the head of Chicago's Ben Smith earlier this week.Brendan Smith's suspension, without pay, covers a total of eight games. He loses $23,648.65 in salary.Under new NHL senior vice president Brendan Shanahan -- a former Red Wings star -- eight players have been suspended since the preseason began, for a total of 26 preseason games, 29 regular-season games and $666,186.89 in forfeited salary."Obviously Shanny is taking this real serious," Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said. "There's going to be an evolution, too. I think they're trying to do what they think is ight. We didn't offer an opinion, we didn't phone them and lobby" for a lesser suspension for Smith. [Read the full article] 
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