Titans receiver O.J. Murdock dies, suicide suspected

Hours after sending a gracious yet puzzling middle-of-the-night text message to a former college coach, Tennessee Titans receiver O.J. Murdock died in an apparent suicide, Tampa, Fla., police said.

Police spokeswoman Andrea Davis said officers found Murdock about 8:30 a.m. Monday inside his car with what appeared to be self-inflicted gunshot wounds. The car was parked in front of Middleton High School, where Murdock made a name for himself as a dynamic receiver and state champion sprinter in track and field.

Al McCray, assistant head coach/receivers at Fort Hays State, said that when he woke up at his Kansas home Monday he found a message on his cellphone from the player, thanking him for everything he had done for Murdock and his family. The athlete concluded the text with an apology that baffled McCray, who said he had known the 25-year-old since Murdock was in middle school.

Murdock, who signed with the Titans as an undrafted free agent in 2011 and spent all of last season on injured reserve, was taken to Tampa General Hospital, where he died.

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Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson returned to the team’s training camp residence hall after an allergic reaction at lunch sent him to a hospital.

Coach Leslie Frazier said after Monday’s practice that Peterson ate some seafood that caused his face to swell and shortness of breath. An ambulance was called, and Peterson was diagnosed at the hospital as having an allergic reaction. He returned to the Minnesota State University campus soon after.

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Projected starting cornerback Terrell Thomas reinjured his surgically repaired right knee and his status for the New York Giants’ season is uncertain.

Thomas was sent to the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York after reporting that he had swelling in his right knee. An MRI exam and an examination by Russell Warren, the team orthopedic surgeon, showed that the five-year veteran suffered another injury to the knee involving the anterior cruciate ligament.

He tore his ACL for the second time in an exhibition last season and missed the Giants’ Super Bowl season. He slipped in practice Sunday covering receiver Domenik Hixon and that seems to be when he reinjured the knee.

ETC.

Penn State safety transfers

Backup Penn State safety Tim Buckley has become the first player to transfer from Penn State after NCAA sanctions.

North Carolina State released a statement Monday announcing Buckley, a North Carolina native, would join the Wolfpack for the team’s first practice Tuesday.

The former walk-on redshirted last season at Penn State, so he’ll have four years of eligibility left.

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A person familiar with the situation said the Chicago Bulls and point guard Nate Robinson have agreed to a contract.

The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the deal had not been announced Monday.