time to learn the offence, build chem

REGINA -- The Saskatchewan Roughriders have agreed to a one-year contract extension with president and CEO Jim Hopson. Hopson joined the Roughriders as their first CEO in 2005. He will remain with the CFL club into 2015. "This started about a year ago between the board and Jim," said Roger Brandvold, the Riders chairman of the board. "We spent a fair bit of time talking about the future of Saskatchewan Roughriders and where we need to be. "When I reflect on some of the successes Jim has had, it certainly enabled us to move forward in what we plan to do. Hes assembled a tremendous group of individuals . . . but hes allowed them to grow and hes allowed them to play a critical role in the future of the Saskatchewan Roughriders and where we are today. On top of all that, hes played a tremendous role in who we are and how we continue to grow this organization." During Hopsons tenure, the Riders have advanced to the Grey Cup four times, winning in 07 and last year. The franchise has also recorded record profits under Hopson. Hopsons extension is the latest this off-season for the defending Grey Cup champions, who signed head coach Corey Chamblin, GM Brendan Taman and quarterback Darian Durant to new deals before coming to terms with their top executive. A former Regina Rams junior player, Hopson was an offensive lineman with the Riders from 1973 to 76. He retired after Saskatchewans heart-breaking 23-20 Grey Cup loss to Ottawa -- the Rough Riders won on Tony Gabriels 24-yard TD grab with 20 seconds remaining -- for a full-time career in education. Hopson graduated from the University of Regina with a degree in education and earned a masters degree from the University of Oregon. Brandvold said the CFL club will search for Hopsons successor ahead of the completion of the Riders new stadium, which is slated to open in 2017. Brandvold said it was Hopsons decision that the franchise have a new top executive in place once the facility is completed. "The transition to the new stadium is going to be a significant one and one that has to be well managed and one that has to be very much committed to by the CEO," Brandvold said. "And while Jim has played a very critical role in getting us to where we are today in this new stadium, its one that he felt maybe wouldnt fit into his schedule. "I respect Jims decision." Mike Mitchell Jersey . -- Olympic medallist Jennifer Abel of Laval, Que. Franco Harris Jersey . The No. 5 Aztecs held Burton, the Mountain Wests leading scorer, to 11 points, 10 below his average, in beating the Wolf Pack 73-58 on Saturday night. http://www.shoptheofficialsteelers.us/steelers-stephon-tuitt-super-bowl-jersey-authentic/ . The injury will keep the Finnish forward out of the Olympics. The 29-year-old has 20 goals and 41 points in 56 games this season, his first with Tampa Bay. Joe Gilliam Jersey . Mohamed Diame put West Ham ahead in the 47th minute before goals by substitutes Carlton Cole and Joe Cole condemned Fulham to a fifth straight defeat, keeping the visitors in the bottom three. Darrius Heyward-Bey Jersey . The two-time former Formula One champion downplayed his third-place finish three weeks ago in China and said progress is going slow for Ferrari as it tries to make up ground on Mercedes. ALAMEDA, Calif. -- Carson Palmer went to bed a retired football player resigned to the fact that the Cincinnati Bengals would never grant his wish to be traded. He woke up to a text message early Tuesday morning telling him to fly to Oakland to complete a trade with the Raiders, who are counting on Palmer to replace the injured Jason Campbell and lead the team back to the playoffs for the first time since 2002. "Its been a whirlwind," Palmer said. "I understand whats expected of me. I know what playing quarterback is about, and its about winning. I want to come in a contribute and do whatever I can to help this team." The Raiders are hoping he can do a lot, having traded a 2012 first-round pick and a conditional second-rounder in 2013 that can become another first if Oakland makes it to the AFC title game in either of the next two years. Coach Hue Jackson believes Palmer is the ideal fit, having recruited and coached him at Southern California and been an assistant in Cincinnati with Palmer. Jackson said Palmer has the strong arm and athleticism that late Raiders owner Al Davis always wanted in a quarterback. "This guy can play and he knows how to play the game and he knows how to elevate the players around him," Jackson said. "Theres no question you go on offence as good as your quarterback is. I think hes one of the best and thats why hes on this football team now. I didnt bring him here because he was just a guy sitting out there. I brought him here because I think he can help this team win a championship." The Bengals had been adamant about not trading Palmer, who wanted to be dealt from a team that has had only two winning records in the past 20 years. Owner Mike Brown repeatedly insisted he wouldnt consider Palmers request for a trade because he didnt want to reward him for holding out. He changed his mind after getting the big offer from the Raiders. Brown said the play of rookie quarterback Andy Dalton made it easier to trade Palmer. "We also find ourselves rather suddenly in position of being able to receive real value for Carson that can measurably improve our team, which is performing well and is showing real promise for this year and years to come," he said in a statement. "When this opportunity arose, we felt we could not let it pass and needed to take a step forward with the football team if we could." The Raiders (4-2) became desperate for a quarterback after Campbell broke his collarbone during a win over the Browns on Sunday. Campbell had surgery Monday and was expected to miss at least six weeks, leaving the Raiders with only Kyle Boller and Terrelle Pryor on the roster. Jacksons mantra all season has been "the time is now," and he backed that up by dealing for Palmer. The Raiders also renegotiated Palmers contract, giving him a US$2.5-million guaranteed deal for the rest of this season, $12.5 million with $5 million guaranteed in 2012, $13 million in 2013 and $15 million in 2014. Palmer had been working out in Southern California,, trying to stay in shape and throwing to former teammate T.ddddddddddddJ. Houshmandzadeh and high school players. He hoped the work would pay off with another chance in the NFL, but he did not know. "There was a number of times that there were teams approaching the Bengals and it didnt work out, so it was a very difficult time," Palmer said. "I didnt know what was going to happen. I didnt know what was around the next turn, the next week, the next month. So there was a lot of confusion and I really didnt know what was next." Palmer said it will take some time to learn the offence, build chemistry with his receivers and get back into football shape. Oakland hosts Kansas City on Sunday but Jackson would not say whether Palmer would start. While Palmer has not played or practised since last season, he has a history with Jackson, who was his offensive co-ordinator for two years at USC and the wide receivers coach for three seasons in Cincinnati. Jackson was with the Bengals when Palmer had his best season in 2005 when he threw for 3,836 yards with 32 touchdown passes and a 101.1 rating while leading the team to an AFC North title. Palmer tore up his left knee during a playoff loss to Pittsburgh that season. He came back and had two solid seasons before partially tearing a ligament and tendon in his passing elbow during the 2008 season. He has not been an elite quarterback since, despite getting back to the playoffs in 2009. Palmer said he is completely healthy now. Over the past two years, Palmer completed 61.2 per cent of his passes for 7,064 yards, 47 touchdowns, 33 interceptions and a passer rating of 82.9 while posting a 14-18 record. Those numbers are comparable to what Campbell has done since the start of the 2009 season. But the Raiders were not willing to trust their playoff chances with Boller, who had not started a game since 2009 and had lost his previous 10 starts since October 2007, or Pryor, a project who will need time before he can be an NFL quarterback. This is the second trade the Raiders have made since Davis death. They dealt last week for former No. 4 overall pick in 2009, linebacker Aaron Curry from Seattle. The trade leaves the Raiders with picks only in the fifth and sixth rounds in next years draft. They traded their second-rounder during Aprils draft to New England for the picks to draft offensive lineman Joe Barksdale and running back Taiwan Jones. They used their third-rounder to take Pryor in the supplemental draft in August. They traded their fourth-rounder in 2010 to get Campbell and the seventh-rounder for Curry. "I know a lot of people think weve mortgaged the future of the organization," Jackson said. "I dont see it that way. I mean, I dont think you ever mortgage the future of an organization when youre putting a real big-time franchise quarterback on your team." Oakland is expecting to get compensatory picks after losing Nnamdi Asomugha, Zach Miller, Robert Gallery, Thomas Howard and Bruce Gradkowski in free agency. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '