Young Resisting Retirement

Steve Young, still bothered by the side-effects from his latest concussion, is resisting pleas from relatives and friends to retire but would walk away from football if advised to do so by his doctors.

That day of reckoning could come this week.

The San Francisco 49er quarterback is expected to meet with his neurologist, Dr. Gary Steinberg, and the team physician James Klint, today or Thursday.

Young’s agent, Leigh Steinberg, who is not related to the neurologist, said Tuesday the medical meeting may result in Young being given clearance to resume playing or it could signal the end of his career.

Young still has every intention of rejoining the 49ers and hopes to gain medical clearance to play again.

“I don’t know what the doctor is going to say and I don’t think this is an exact science, which is why I think you should retire if you take a couple of hits like that to the head,” Leigh Steinberg said.

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Not even a frightening neck injury can dim Michael Irvin’s high-voltage personality.

After a night in a Philadelphia hospital, Irvin visited the Dallas Cowboys’ locker room and was as jolly as possible--considering he was wearing a neck brace and had a swollen spinal cord and herniated disk, suffered in Sunday’s 13-10 loss to the Eagles.

“We had a great visit,” Cowboy Coach Chan Gailey said. “He was in really good spirits. It really made me feel better.”

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Minnesota Viking General Manager Tim Connolly says he would be the first in line to watch wide receiver Randy Moss try his hand at the NBA.

“I’ve heard he’s a better basketball player than a football player,” Connolly said.

The Vikings don’t have a position on Moss’ NBA aspirations, “but he’s a tremendous athlete and we’d all be curious and interested to see him play pro basketball,” Connolly said in his first comments on the matter.

Last weekend, Minnesota Timberwolves Coach Flip Saunders said one of Moss’ representatives had contacted him to float the idea of Moss playing alongside fellow superstar Kevin Garnett.

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Badly needing a kicker, the Chicago Bears came to terms with former Dallas Cowboy Chris Boniol and said they planned to sign him today. Jeff Jaeger, the Bears’ career leader in field goal percentage (.759), will be put on injured reserve or accept an injury settlement, the team said.