NFL notebook: Baltimore planning Ravens parade
BY Associated Press
Tuesday, February 05, 2013
2/05/13 at 3:29 AM
Baltimore was in parade-planning mode Monday, a day after the Ravens' Super Bowl victory, and some fans citywide were still wearing purple to celebrate.
Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake says the city's parade for the team will begin at City Hall on Tuesday morning and end with a free celebration at M&T Bank Stadium.
Parade details were still being finalized Monday afternoon, but organizers expected it to begin with a short ceremony at City Hall complete with purple and white confetti. Team members were then expected to be carried through the streets in more than 30 vehicles.
49ers begin planning for next season: Offensive linemen Alex Boone and Mike Iupati stood in one corner of a near-empty San Francisco locker room and pondered just how close they had come to winning the Super Bowl.
It quickly began to sink in, beneath the Superdome on Sunday night as the Baltimore Ravens celebrated, that their season had ended short of the goal.
One year, they almost reached the NFL's championship game. The next, they nearly won it.
"It just hurts, it hurts now," Iupati said. "There are no words to express how we feel right now. We've got to put it in the past now and we can't ever forget this moment. We've just got to go out there and next year is another year, and compete."
The 49ers head into the offseason following a 34-31 Super Bowl loss knowing they were right there against the Ravens, and now move forward with the hope of keeping much of the team together and building to get back - and this time win it all.
Record $98.9M in Nevada on Super Bowl: Sports fans bet a record $98.9 million at Nevada casinos on the Super Bowl.
The Gaming Control Board says unaudited tallies show 183 sports books made $7.2 million on the action. The San Francisco 49ers started out as a 5-point favorite.
Casinos say they lost big on proposition bets, including a long-shot on whether there would be a safety.
Uncertainty over home dome remains for Rams: An attorney for the agency that runs the home of the St. Louis Rams says it is unlikely it will implement the team's plan to upgrade the Edward Jones Dome.
Already, there is speculation about a new stadium.
Arbitrators ruled last week in favor of the team's plan for upgrading the dome to "top-tier" status as required by the lease agreement with the dome owner, the St. Louis Convention and Visitors Commission. The CVC had proposed $124 million in renovations. The Rams didn't put a price tag on their plan but CVC and city officials believe it would cost $700 million to $800 million.
The CVC has 30 days from the date of the ruling on Friday to decide if it will try to implement the Rams' plan, though attorney Greg Smith said Monday that step was "unlikely."
Unless the CVC implements the plan approved by arbitrators, the Rams' lease of the dome becomes year-to-year starting in March 2015. That creates the possibility the Rams could leave St. Louis.
Lions release receiver Young: The Detroit Lions have released wide receiver Titus Young.
Young was banished from the team in November for what Jim Schwarz called unacceptable behavior and was later put on injured reserve.
