ESPN: Chad hurt bad, Rudi being shopped

John Clayton is reporting that a source says Chad has a partially torn labrum in his left shoulder.

The source said that Johnson is expected to wear a harness but may be able to avoid surgery and play this season. The same source said that Browns tight end Kellen Winslow played last season with a similar injury.

Now, the part about Rudi ...

Sources with NFL teams said on Monday that the Bengals have called offering running back Rudi Johnson in a trade for a legitimate receiver.

A Bengals source told ESPN's Chris Mortensen, however, that head coach Marvin Lewis was "totally unaware" of any attempts to trade Rudi Johnson, but he didn't rule out that president and general manager Mike Brown directed the calls.

Interesting. Wouldn't surprise me at all if they dealt Rudi. They're very high on Chris Perry right now, making Rudi - who has lost a step - expendable. And they obviously need a "legitimate receiver" in the worst way. The question is whether they can acquire one in exchange for Rudi.

Report: Red Sox sign Ross

FoxSports.Com is reporting that the Red Sox signed David Ross to a minor-league deal.

From the report:

Ross, 31, drew interest from the Red Sox and Phillies after getting released by the Reds. He will report to Class AAA and eventually become the Sox's third catcher behind Jason Varitek and Kevin Cash.

The Sox would need to promote Ross by Aug. 31 to make him eligible for their post-season roster. Ross also could be added for the playoffs if Varitek or Cash were injured.

The Reds released Ross Wednesday, and he cleared waivers.

U.S. wins gold medal

Score and additional insight for those unable to watch the showdown for the gold in women's soccer.

• No score at the half. Brazil's been on the attack an awful lot in the first 45 minutes though.

• Heather Mitts and Marta went up for a header in the 63rd minute and Marta went down pretty hard. Looked like Mitts might get her second yellow but she fortunately didn't.

• Very tense at 71:40. Hope Solo made a beautiful save on a shot from point-blank range by Marta.

• A couple of great chances for Team USA. Amy Rodriguez almost snuck one in at 84:50. And one minute later, Hucles almost knocked one past the Brazilian goalkeeper. Great save. Another great chance for the U.S. at 89:40.

• 30 minutes of overtime.

• Carli Lloyd scores 5 minutes into overtime period! Beautiful shot out of reach of Brazilian goalkeeper. So they just have to hold off Brazil for 25 minutes for gold.

• Free kick by Marta at 23:30 of overtime was very close to sneaking in.

• Lloyd off the post late in the overtime period ... would have sealed it.

• Very scary corner, scary shot by Marta and scary header. Tense moments in the final minute. U.S. wins!

Bengals getting slammed

Not that I'm surprised, but it's fun to see how bad Mike Brown and Marvin Lewis are getting blasted for bringing Chris Henry back. Here's what I've read:

• CBS' Gregg Doyel: The Bengals are dumber than dirt

• CBS' Eric Kay: Henry gets five strikes, I get one?

• The Lot D's C. Trent: Oh, how things change (video of Marvin and Mike Brown on Henry at the luncheon)

• ESPN.com's James Walker plays devil's advocate: Henry and the Bengals could still work

Chad injury update

• Bengals.com says Chad Johnson told Jack Brennan he'll play in the season opener in Baltimore.

• ESPN says Johnson told them he'll play against New Orleans next week, even though the team told Bob Holtzman he won't play in that game.

• And FOXSports.com's Alex Marvez wrote an entire column about Chad getting hurt.

Yonder to add insult?

Just when you thought it couldn't get any worse for the Reds, a Miami Herald story says Yonder Alonso has signed up for fall classes at University of Miami and there's a 50-50 chance he'll go back to school. He may also be considering playing in the Independent League instead of signing with the Reds.

Not good. This happened to the Reds in 2001 when they drafted Jeremy Sowers (20th overall) out of high school and he went to Vanderbilt instead.

Only problem is the Reds used the 7th pick on Alonso! Does Alonso really think he'd move up into one of the top six spots after a great senior year? One of Alonso's advisors says the Reds and Alonso are way off on figures. Before you blame the Reds or call them cheap, rumor has it Alonso is asking for a $7 million bonus, which is absurd. Last year's seventh overall pick, Matt LaPorta (the key player the Tribe got in the Sabathia deal), got a signing bonus of about $2 million. The top pick in last year's draft, David Price, didn't even get the amount Alonso is reportedly requesting.

Don't know much about Alonso's agent, Greg Genske, other than his LS Legacy Sports Group used to be Jeff Moorad's agency and among Genske's many clients is Reds outfielder Adam Dunn.

The only silver lining if the Reds don't sign Alonso is (and it wasn't this way when Sowers stiffed them) now there's a rule in place where the Reds would get the No. 7 pick in the 2009 draft if Alonso doesn't sign with them. Whichever team is slated for the No. 7 pick would just move down one spot in that draft to make room for the Reds.

The deadline for major-league teams to sign draft picks is Aug. 15 (one week from today).

Olympians with local ties

Here's a list of the U.S. Olympians who are from the greater Cincinnati area, with links to the most recent articles we have about them:

David Payne - track & field - Wyoming, UC

• Injuries open door for Payne in hurdles
• Payne cruises to quarterfinal win
• Payne reaches 110 hurdles final
• Payne wins silver in 110 hurdles

Mary Wineberg - track & field - Walnut Hills, UC

• Wineberg advances to 400 semifinals
• Wineberg eliminated in 400
• Wineberg looks forward to 4x400 final
• Wineberg, 4x400 relay win gold

Rau'Shee Warren - boxing - Westwood

• Warren makes weight
• Warren's loss sends U.S. boxers reeling
• Boxing official defends judges after criticism
• Another bizarre episode haunts boxing coaching staff

Bryan Volpenhein - rowing - Kings High School

• Volpenhein wins bronze in men's eight rowing

Patrick Todd - rowing - St. Xavier High School

• Todd, U.S. lightweight four boat out of medal contention
• Denmark wins lightweight men's four rowing

Heather Mitts - soccer - St. Ursula Academy

• Norway downs U.S. 2-0
• U.S. reaches fourth consecutive Olympic women's soccer final
• Team USA wins women's soccer gold

Source: Bengals, Rivers not close

ESPN.com is reporting that the Bengals and first-round pick Keith Rivers are still far apart in contract negotiations.

Rivers and Derrick Harvey, the No. 8 pick, are the only unsigned first-rounders.

Over the weekend, league commissioner Roger Goodell said that "something is wrong" with the NFL's system for signing rookies.

Goodell visited the Bengals' training camp and had lunch with six players before heading north to Canton, Ohio, for the weekend's Pro Football Hall of Fame induction ceremonies.

"I think it is clear that we have an issue here and something is wrong with the system, flawed with the system, and we have to address it," Goodell said. "I think it's better for the players, I think it's better for the teams and, most important, I think it is (better) for the fans. I think it's a disservice when players aren't in camp and being paid properly."

Good point, but it's not going to get Rivers, who has missed six days of practice and scrimmaging, signed any quicker.