suspended, only the third time thats happened in major

DENVER - Former teammate Brian Dawkins called Champ Bailey a great conserver of energy, a rare superstar who was never in a rush to get anywhere unless it was on a football field.In that dawdling, you can count retirement.That finally came Tuesday, 60 days after Bailey was released by the New Orleans Saints when a nagging foot injury prevented him from displaying the speed and skills that led to his cornerback-record dozen Pro Bowl berths in Washington and Denver.He had workouts with the Lions and Ravens and interest from other teams but decided to pursue a new chapter, possibly in broadcasting.Every professional athlete knows and understands that at some point his career will end and it will be time to move on to another phase in life. For me, that time is now, Bailey said in a statement released by the Broncos, for whom he played from 2004-13.I have been truly blessed. I have been able to play this NFL game I love for 15 seasons and yet, it seems like only yesterday that my dreams came true when I received the call from Charley Casserly letting me know the Redskins had made me their first pick in the 1999 draft, Bailey said.The seventh overall pick that year, the University of Georgia star spent five seasons in Washington before the Broncos traded star running back Clinton Portis to the Redskins for the games premier shutdown cornerback.Bailey was the most decorated defender in franchise history with eight Pro Bowl berths while with the Broncos.When GM John Elway returned to his beloved franchise, his first order of business was signing Bailey to an extension.Champ was the pillar in this organization for a long, long time, Elway said. He brought great stability to the Broncos not only as a player but as a person through his ability and leadership. When I came here in 2011, he was the guy that we were going to build around and we were fortunate to have him for three more years to get this team back on track. He was a big part of that turnaround.Peyton Manning paid him the ultimate compliment, saying Bailey had unbelievable cover skills and unbelievable ball skills. He caught the ball like a wide receiver did. Going all the way back to my days playing against him in college, he was truly a great competitor with talent and work ethic. Thats what made Champ such an incredible player.Bailey took many a young cornerback under his wing, among them Chris Harris Jr, who tweeted, Blessed to be able to learn and play opposite Champ for 3 years, and added the hashtags HOF and TBE for the surefire Hall of Famer.Although quarterbacks usually avoided throwing in his direction, Bailey still found a way to get involved and make an impact. He had 52 interceptions, more than any active cornerback. He prided himself on his technique and tackling abilities. In 215 regular season games, Bailey had 983 tackles, three sacks, nine forced fumbles and five fumble recoveries.The thing about Champ was he had great ability as a shutdown corner while also not being afraid to stick his nose in there and be a part of the run game, Elway said. He was a complete corner with tremendous toughness and ability to cover.About the only thing that eluded Bailey in his stellar career was a Super Bowl ring.The closest he came was the Broncos trip to the Meadowlands in February when they were blown out by Seattle.With a $10 million salary looming for this season, the Broncos released him in March after Bailey decided he wanted to give a 16th season a try. He later signed with the Saints, but the left foot injury that sidelined him for 11 games last season continued to bother him during training camp and for the first time in his life he didnt make the cut.His last NFL season was a bittersweet one, missing 11 games with the foot injury before returning to action down the stretch and finally getting to play in a Super Bowl, which proved both the apex and nadir of his career.He had a significant part to do with them getting there based on his play in the AFC championship, where he gave up one pass for 4 yards on one foot, said his agent, Jack Reale. He has a tremendous amount to be proud of and really tried to get it done last year when lesser players wouldnt have even tried.Its a safe bet Bailey will end up talking football now that hes done playing it.Media makes a lot of sense for a guy like him, Reale said.___AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL___Follow AP Pro Football Writer Arnie Melendrez Stapleton on Twitter: http://twitter.com/arniestapleton Cheap Shoes Fake . -- Without Carey Price, the run for a first Stanley Cup in 21 years got steeper and longer for the Montreal Canadiens. Replica Shoes Online . Former San Francisco Giants slugger Barry Bonds made his longshot request of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. A three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit upheld Bonds conviction in September. http://www.fakeshoesonline.com/ . Long snapper Patrick Mannelly announced Friday that he is retiring after a 16-year-career with the Bears, a span in which he played in a team record 245 games and snapped the ball 2,282 times. Fake Shoes Free Shipping . Advancing to the Champions League quarterfinals should be a formality after Lionel Messi scored a penalty and Dani Alves added a late second to secure a commanding 2-0 advantage over City in the round of 16 on Tuesday. Fake Jordan Shoes . The young man, never lacking confidence, thought he could be really good. CINCINNATI, Ohio -- Mike Leake still thinks of himself as a hitter. Hes even holding a bat on one of his 2014 baseball cards. So far, hes playing like his picture. Leake doubled and hit a two-run homer Tuesday night, ending Gerrit Coles winning streak and leading the Cincinnati Reds to a 7-5 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates that completed two days full of homers and delays. First, the NL Central rivals completed a game that was suspended in the sixth inning because of rain the previous night. Andrew McCutchen doubled and came around on Russell Martins single in the seventh inning, giving the Pirates an 8-7 win. Leake (2-1) gave up three runs and five hits in 6 2-3 innings for a split. The right-hander has won his last four starts against the Pirates. Jonathan Broxton pitched out of a two-on threat in the ninth, converting his first save chance. Leake, who has the most hits by a major league pitcher since 2010, doubled and scored in the third. He hit his third career homer in the sixth off Cole (2-1), who had won his last six starts. His first homer since 2012 showed why the card company decided on a photo of him holding a bat. "And that comes after my worst year hitting," Leake said. "It was bad timing on their part." Reds manager Bryan Price is impressed by how Leake approaches batting practice. Hes not just another pitcher trying to get in a few swings. "He loves the challenge," Price said. "Even when you come out early, hes not just hitting. Hes running the bases and working on little things. "When we give him the green light early in the at-bat, he works on getting a good pitch to hit." Leake got a good one from Cole, who left it up and over the plate. It wasnt the first time that Cole had seen him latch onto a mistake. Cole went to UCLA and faced Leake when he played for Arizona State. "That guys a good hitter as a pitcher," Cole said. "I saw that at Arizona State. He wore us out at the plate. Thats not the first time hes done stuff like that." Todd Frazier hit his second homer in two games, Joey Votto had four hits and Devin Mesoraco had three hits, including a bases-loaded single.dddddddddddd Neil Walker hit three of Pittsburghs seven homers in the two games. The teams wore their customary uniforms for the completion of the suspended game, then switched to commemorative No. 42 Jackie Robinson jerseys for the later game, which started 5 minutes later than originally scheduled. Its been a wild series full of downpours, lead changes and home runs. The teams put on a record-setting show Monday night before the game was suspended after six innings tied 7-all. They combined for 10 homers in those six innings, the most for a game in Great American Ball Parks 12 seasons. When play resumed, McCutchen doubled off Sam LeCure (0-1) and came around on a wild pitch and Martins single up the middle, only the second run of the game that didnt come by way of a homer. Bryan Morris (2-0) gave up Mesoracos tying solo homer in the sixth inning Monday night, but was still the pitcher of record. Jason Grilli pitched the ninth for his fourth save in five chances. Pittsburgh had three sets of back-to-back homers before the game was suspended, only the third time thats happened in major league history, according to STATS. The other two times: Cincinnati against the Braves in 1956, and Boston against the Yankees in 1977. Walker and Gaby Sanchez went back-to-back twice, only the second time thats happened in Pirates history. Toby Atwell and Jerry Lynch also went back-to-back twice against the Reds on April 27, 1954, according to STATS. Pittsburgh hit six homers -- all solo shots -- and the Reds had four, all with two outs. NOTES: It was 66 degrees for the first pitch on Monday, 39 degrees when the game resumed. ... Leake has 59 career hits and 12 multihit games. ... Mesoraco is 11 for 22 with three homers and nine RBIs in six games since returning from the DL. ... Pittsburghs six homers in the suspended game were one shy of the club record. The six solo homers were one shy of the major league record. ... The Pirates have 15 homers in their last four games at Great American. They also hit six during an 8-3 win on Sept. 28 that clinched home-field advantage for the NL wild-card playoff, a 6-2 win over Cincinnati at PNC Park. ' ' '