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DENVER (CBS4) – Though new Colorado manager Walt Weiss used to play for the Rockies, he grew up in Suffern, N.Y. and also has lived in many other areas of the U.S. But when he retired from baseball, he needed a place to settle down with his family. “At that point in time I started to bounce around a little bit in my career. So when I came here to play, it seemed like a nice enough place,” Weiss said on Xfinity Monday Live! “I’d never been here before, but we settled in more because of the timing. But it didn’t take long to figure out this was the place.” Weiss made the huge jump from high school manager of his son Brody’s team at Regis Jesuit High School to the majors. CBS4′s Vic Lombardi asked Weiss how he’s going to make the transition. “Well, we’re going to find out. I don’t think there’s a blueprint for that one,” Weiss responded. “My year in high school as a head coach was a lot of fun. I didn’t take that high school job to prepare myself to manage in the big leagues. It just happened to work out that way. “To be honest with you, the principals are very similar. You’ve got to lead a group of men, albeit younger, in high school. You’ve got to create a team concept and go out and win games.” Weiss admitted, however, he will lean more on his experience playing in the majors. Weiss was still playing for the Rockies when future star Todd Helton came to the team. Lombardi wondered, how will he manage an old teammate? “He’ll be pretty easy. He’s on autopilot by now,” Weiss said. “This will be a special year for Todd … most likely his last year and we want it to be a good one.” With pitchers and catchers reporting in less than two weeks, Weiss has had to scramble a little to get prepared. He said he’s reached out for some advice from former managers. “I’ve leaned on a few guys who I’ve played for and I’ve had some conversations with Tony LaRussa. I learned a lot from Tony and I’ll probably be shooting him some texts in the middle of the night at certain times,” Weiss said. Weiss said he’s mainly just trying to get familiar with his club. “So when we get down to Scottsdale we hit the ground running.” The Rockies pitchers and catchers report to spring training on Feb. 10. – By Matthew J. Buettner, CBSDenver.com Watch more of the video with Walt Weiss in the  Xfinity Monday Live! section .

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First-Year Rockies Manager Walt Weiss Has Leaned On Tony LaRussa

ALLEN PARK, Mich. (AP) — The Detroit Lions have attempted to improve their front office by hiring senior personnel executive Brian Xanders.

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Lions hire Xanders as senior personnel executive (The Associated Press)

Cleveland Browns quarterback Colt McCoy played just 39 snaps in a relief role in three games during 2012, but his playing time and performance from his first two seasons in the NFL have increased his 2013 base salary from the league minimum to $2.325 million, according to the NFLPA’s base salary database. McCoy, a 2010 third-round pick out of Texas, started 21 games over his first two seasons in the NFL, completing 400 of 685 pass attempts for 4,309 yards with 20 touchdowns and 20 interceptions. McCoy’s base salary was escalated by $1.5 million when he played in 47.18 percent of the Browns’ offensive snaps as a rookie. McCoy added another $250,000 to his 2013 salary when he took 82.41 percent of the snaps and reached certain performance incentives in 2011. (An additional increase of $55,000 – which would raise McCoy’s salary to $2.38 million – is expected to take place as the playing-time/performance increases were applied to a league minimum $575,000 base salary that the 2011 collective bargaining agreement increased to $630,000 for players with three accrued seasons.) McCoy earned the league minimum $540,000 while completing nine of his 17 pass attempts for 79 yards and a touchdown in 2012. McCoy is expected to be a part of a competition, along with 2012 first-round pick Brandon Weeden, for the Browns’ starting job. John Abraham, Michael Turner earn seven-figure base salary increases Atlanta Falcons defensive end John Abraham will see his 2013 base salary increase by $1 million after reaching playing-time and performance incentives in 2012, the first season of a three-year contract that had a base value of $17.5 million, but could have increased to as much as $21 million. The 34-year-old Abraham missed out on the Pro Bowl but played in 71.62 percent of the Falcons’ defensive snaps and had a team-high 10 sacks in 2012, increasing his base salary from $3.25 million to $4.25 million for the 2013 season. Falcons running back Michael Turner was scheduled to earn $5.5 million in base salary in 2013, the final season of a six-year, $34.5 million contract he signed on March 3, 2008. Turner’s contract had a maximum value of $36 million, a figure Turner nearly reached as his performances will add $1.4 million to his 2013 salary, which is now at $6.9 million. With Turner turning 31 in February, his large salary and cap number ($8.9 million) could make him a prime candidate for release this offseason. Buffalo Bills running back C.J. Spiller triggered escalators in his rookie contract that will more than double his 2013 base salary. Originally scheduled to earn $1,300,834 in 2013, Spiller escalated his contract by $1.3225 million and will now earn $2,623,334 next season. Seattle Seahawks guard Paul McQuistan will also receive a $1 million raise for 2013. Originally scheduled to earn $2 million in 2013, the second season of a two-year, $4 million contract that was signed on March 19, 2012, McQuistan played in over 97 percent of the Seahawks’ offensive snaps last season, triggering a $1 million incentive in 2012 and increasing his base salary in 2013.

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Browns quarterback Colt McCoy added $1.75 million to his 2013 base salary (Shutdown Corner)

ESPN Insider Bill Polian separates the 2013 free-agent class into three tiers. Joe Flacco, Wes Welker and Steven Jackson are among the top free agents.

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2013 NFL free agency – Bill Polian ranks the top free agents by tier

COMMENTARY | Defensive-end-turned-linebacker and fan favorite Dwight Freeney may have played his final down in an Indianapolis Colts uniform, as he joins seven other starters who are free agents at season’s end. As difficult as it is to imagine Freeney anywhere but in Indianapolis, his departure may be the next step in the rebuilding process.

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Dwight Freeney’s Potential Departure from Indianapolis Colts May Not Be Such a Bad Thing (Yahoo! Contributor Network)