• Two months after concurring with a congressman that the data was “infected” and declaring that a testing program would be abandoned, the N.F.L.’s committee on head injuries joined the league and its players union on Friday in publicly releasing the results of helmet testing that outside experts described as potentially compromising the safety of youth athletes. [New York Times on TBI]
• “When we go to venues, I like to stand out in the crowd,” he said. “She’ll be up there hooting and hollering, and I’ll say to someone, ‘What is it that draws you to my daughter? Be honest.’ Because it’s very hard for me to see what it is. She don’t sing. She don’t dance. I don’t want to say she don’t have talent …” He seemed to have his doubts. Then he shrugged. “Everyone basically says they can relate to her. I think Nicole’s just a likeable person.” [New York Times on Snooki]
• Recently, forensic scientists in California used a genetic analysis procedure called “familial searching” or “kinship searching” to help the police identify a suspect in the “Grim Sleeper” serial murder case — and they did so by using a DNA sample collected for another purpose from the suspect’s own son. [New York Times on genetic crime fighting]
• “The crux of the decision, and I think everybody [involved in the decision] would describe it the same way,” Banner said, “[was that] we have two quarterbacks who are very good, we think . . . capable of winning a Super Bowl – I understand that needs to be proven. Donovan didn’t do it. Kevin hasn’t even tried yet. But at that point, it really became [a question of] one of them has a chance to lead us for the next eight to 10 years . . . one, who knows? One year? Four years? But a considerably shorter time.” [Philadelphia Inquirer on the McNabb trade]
• Oh, the letter of indignation he sends to the Hall of Fame when its holy gates refuse to open for Floyd in 1980, the first year of eligibility for the man who retired as the NFL’s No. 7 alltime leading rusher. Then, all at once, it’s time for Tom to grow up and head off to college, and for the critical missing piece in his project to change from a running back retired from a flailing, faraway team to…. [Sports Illustrated on a Blue Hen helping a Bronco get into the Hall-of-Fame]
• My Deadspin get-to-know-Hickey live chat.
* = Since I’m Deadspinning on weekends now, Weekend Reading Roundup will be scaled back to whenever-I-get-to-them bulletpoints. But, I’ll still get to them.