Cris Carter

Cris Carter, former Ohio State wide receiver who was drafted by the Eagles last week, filed a suit yesterday asking more than $1 million against New York sports agents Norby Walters and Lloyd Bloom. In the suit, filed in U.S. District Court, Carter alleged Walters and Bloom induced him by fraud and unfair use of Carter's older brother, George, to enter into a representative agreement and to accept a loan while Carter was still eligible to play football for Ohio State. As a result, the suit states, Carter lost his eligibility to finish his career at Ohio State and "the certain prospect of being a high first-round National Football League draft pick in 1988.

Cris Carter hadn't even been fitted for his Eagles jersey three years ago when coach Buddy Ryan slapped on him the kind of label that either becomes a trademark or an albatross. Carter, Ryan proclaimed when he selected the wide receiver in the 1987 supplemental draft, was a "touchdown-maker. " The Eagles had just scored a total of six points in their final two exhibition games that year, so the pronouncement got a lot of folks' attention. So far, Ryan has been a prophet, as the Eagles' third-year receiver has made the most of his catching opportunities by averaging one TD for every 4.7 receptions during his pro career.

Minnesota Vikings receiver Cris Carter turned in his harshest rebuke yet of teammate Randy Moss. During a conference call in which he also said he's thought about playing for the Green Bay Packers, Carter criticized Moss for saying he played hard only when he felt like it. "For me, it's more personal. I ask myself the question, 'Is that what you taught him? Or did you teach him something else?' " Carter said, referring to Moss. "I take personal offense to it, because that's not the way you approach the game.

In a daring personnel move - one with large potential benefits and at least some potential risks - the Eagles chose former Ohio State wide receiver Cris Carter in the fourth round of yesterday's NFL supplemental draft. Carter - projected by some as a potential first-rounder in 1988 - was in the supplemental draft because he admitted taking $6,800 in cash and loans from agent Norby Walters while still an undergraduate. Because of those payments, Carter was stripped of his final season of NCAA eligibility.

Cris Carter lay on a mat in the Minnesota Vikings' exercise room, the serenity in his face seemingly in contrast to the awkward angles of his legs as a trainer worked them through a stretching routine. An occasional grunt escaped his lips, but the sound was not the type that comes from a bolt of pain. Instead, Carter sounded as though he expected the discomfort. Nevertheless, every noise Carter made drew the attention of players, reporters, and anybody else in the vicinity, because so much was riding on the condition of his right ankle.

Eagles wide receiver Cris Carter was excused from practice yesterday for "personal reasons," according to coach Buddy Ryan. Carter took time off to go Chicago and appear before a U.S. District court where he pleaded guilty to defrauding his university, Ohio State, by concealing $5,000 he had accepted from sports agents Norby Walters and Lloyd Bloom before the 1986 football season. He also pleaded guilty to obstructing justice when he concealed from federal officials the $5,000 he had accepted from another sports agent, David Lueddeke, in October 1986.

Cris Carter knows who is next on the Minnesota schedule. His old coach, Buddy Ryan, that's who. Carter was asked yesterday if playing against Ryan's Arizona Cardinals Sunday in Phoenix gave him added incentive. It was Buddy, after all, who waived Carter when they were together in Philadelphia in 1990. Ryan questioned Carter's toughness and his willingness to catch the ball across the middle. All Carter has done since then is score 26 touchdowns for Minnesota, including three in yesterday's 38-35 win over Miami.

While the Eagles never have added a player who ignited the kind of public firestorm Michael Vick's signing has, historically the team has taken personnel risks. The most infamous, of course, was Terrell Owens. T.O. hadn't committed any felonies when the Eagles acquired him in 2004, but he did carry more baggage than US Airways. Cris Carter, Irving Fryar, and Kevin Allen also caused second thoughts among management. Owens already had ignited plenty of controversies with his "look-at-me" stunts, including the occasion when he pulled a Sharpie out of his sock and autographed the football following a touchdown on national TV. Eventually, he griped and complained his way out of San Francisco, but only after suggesting in a Playboy interview that quarterback Jeff Garcia was gay. The Eagles initially shied away from acquiring the widemouthed wideout, but when a Niners deal with Baltimore fell through, their interest heightened.

This might not be Cris Carter's final NFL season after all. The Minnesota Vikings receiver said yesterday that a speech he gave in May in Middletown, Ohio, was misinterpreted and he denied announcing his retirement. "I'm not closing the door . . . I never closed the door," Carter, 35, said on ESPN Radio. "Coach [Dennis] Green and I have had extensive conversations on the matter, and right now, the way I feel and the way the team is put together, I feel very, very good about [possibly playing more than one more year]

After 15 years, 1,093 catches, 129 receiving touchdowns - but no Super Bowl rings - Minnesota Vikings receiver Cris Carter announced his retirement from football yesterday. He will join HBO's "Inside the NFL" show as a co-host. "It has been a tremendous ride, and that ride has come to a stop," Carter said in a conference call. "I wanted to play football, but I had to be in the right situation, and I did not want the opportunity with HBO to pass me by. " The announcement marks a sloppy end to Carter's decorated and sometimes tumultuous playing career.

The NFL should expand its injury reports. It's time for the league to include media members in the updates. Most weeks, the studio hosts on ESPN, CBS, Fox, and the NFL Network would be listed as questionable (judgment) or doubtful (use of logic). With Michael Vick dominating the NFL and its story lines lately, all of them would have been upgraded to probable (hype and hyperbole). Vick's numbers weren't as cartoonish against the New York Giants on Sunday night as they were against the Washington Redskins on Monday night, partly because his receivers dropped at least two passes that should have been touchdowns.

While the Eagles never have added a player who ignited the kind of public firestorm Michael Vick's signing has, historically the team has taken personnel risks. The most infamous, of course, was Terrell Owens. T.O. hadn't committed any felonies when the Eagles acquired him in 2004, but he did carry more baggage than US Airways. Cris Carter, Irving Fryar, and Kevin Allen also caused second thoughts among management. Owens already had ignited plenty of controversies with his "look-at-me" stunts, including the occasion when he pulled a Sharpie out of his sock and autographed the football following a touchdown on national TV. Eventually, he griped and complained his way out of San Francisco, but only after suggesting in a Playboy interview that quarterback Jeff Garcia was gay. The Eagles initially shied away from acquiring the widemouthed wideout, but when a Niners deal with Baltimore fell through, their interest heightened.

Originally posted by Daily News columnist Rich Hofmann on his blog, The Idle Rich, at go.philly.com/theidle rich. THE NFL HAS PUBLISHED the preliminary order for the 2009 draft. The Eagles have two picks, their own (No. 22) and that of the Carolina Panthers (No. 28). What they had hoped might be a great bonanza when they made the deal with the Panthers has instead turned into a yawn - and it could get worse. The order can change based upon playoff performance. If the Eagles reach the Super Bowl, their pick would be either 31st or 32nd.

Marvin Harrison's mission statement has not changed: The next play matters more than the last one and the next cut he makes on the field carries more weight than some gaudy numbers. In Harrison's world, it's just business. "I don't think you need to raise a lot of chaos," the Colts' receiver said. "If you're doing your job on the 10th floor of a building downtown, you don't want to do that stuff, so why do it here?" Harrison's old-school approach, where personal accomplishments take a back seat to winning and professionalism, have helped him string together 11 remarkable NFL seasons with Indianapolis and put him on the brink of joining the NFL's exclusive 1,000-catch club.

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Cris Carter was hospitalized yesterday with what was initially diagnosed as a kidney abnormality, ESPN.com reported yesterday. Carter will not play in tonight's game against the New York Jets and is out indefinitely, the Web site said. Doctors won't know the cause of Carter's symptoms until tests are complete. Carter, who began his career with the Eagles, ended a brief retirement and joined the Dolphins in October, signing a one-year contract.

The Miami Dolphins lured Cris Carter out of the broadcast studio and out of retirement thanks to some arm-twisting by one of their biggest fans: Dan Marino. The former Dolphins quarterback persuaded HBO colleague Carter to put his TV career on hold and join the Dolphins to bolster their injury-plagued receiving corps. Carter, who ranks second to Jerry Rice in career receptions and touchdown catches, signed a 1-year contract yesterday that will pay him $550,000, with another $700,000 possible through incentives.

The Miami Dolphins have lured Cris Carter out of the broadcast studio to bolster their injury-plagued receiving corps. Carter, who ranks second to Jerry Rice in career receptions and touchdown catches, signed a one-year contract yesterday that will pay him $550,000, with another $700,000 possible through incentives. The former Minnesota Vikings star said he would still do some work for HBO. The Dolphins' 23-10 loss Sunday to Buffalo underscored the need to upgrade the passing game.

After 15 years, 1,093 catches, 129 receiving touchdowns - but no Super Bowl rings - Minnesota Vikings receiver Cris Carter announced his retirement from football yesterday. He will join HBO's "Inside the NFL" show as a co-host. "It has been a tremendous ride, and that ride has come to a stop," Carter said in a conference call. "I wanted to play football, but I had to be in the right situation, and I did not want the opportunity with HBO to pass me by. " The announcement marks a sloppy end to Carter's decorated and sometimes tumultuous playing career.

It's different this year for the Eagles. Not only are they going into their first off-season with Andy Reid in the dual role of head coach and top personnel man, they also are in an unfamiliar position. Instead of trying to rebuild the team that went 3-13 in 1998, Reid and his personnel staff will be fine-tuning a team that was five points away from the Super Bowl. It all begins today, when the NFL's free-agency period opens and the annual scouting combine in Indianapolis begins.

Minnesota Vikings receiver Cris Carter turned in his harshest rebuke yet of teammate Randy Moss. During a conference call in which he also said he's thought about playing for the Green Bay Packers, Carter criticized Moss for saying he played hard only when he felt like it. "For me, it's more personal. I ask myself the question, 'Is that what you taught him? Or did you teach him something else?' " Carter said, referring to Moss. "I take personal offense to it, because that's not the way you approach the game.