Florida Sentinel Bulletin

When your new job is to talk to a living, one way to impress your new employers is to rip one of the biggest names in the industry you are paid to talk about.

On the day former 49ers’ legend Jerry Rice became an ESPN analyst, the Hall of Fame wide receiver called recently retired Randy Moss lazy. Now Rice knows a thing or two about catching balls for a living and he didn’t say Moss was not talented.

In fact, the former NBC Bay Area analyst told ESPN Radio that Moss had more talent than him, but he didn’t use it to his full potential.

LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles County prosecutors have dropped the case against seven gang members accused of kidnapping a music producer who claimed to have a sex tape of Shaquille O’Neal.

At the prosecution’s request, a judge Tuesday dismissed kidnapping, assault and robbery charges.

District attorney’s spokeswoman Jane Robinson says prosecutors believed Robert Ross was attacked, but his credibility as a witness was undermined by some of his own testimony and behavior outside court. No details were provided.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Chad Ochocinco has found a new NFL home. He’s still looking for a place to stay.

The veteran wide receiver Tuesday said he still has a lot of work to do, but is starting to feel comfortable with his new teammates in the New England Patriots’ offense.

He gave fellow receivers Wes Welker and Deion Branch and quarterback Tom Brady credit for his progress. “I’ve been able to assume a lot of information in a short period of time,” he said, while adding “there’s still a lot of work to do.”

His play during training camp has been inconsistent — a sensational catch followed by a drop – but he has had to get used to Brady and a new system without the benefit of offseason workouts.

Off the field, he still hasn’t found a home in the Foxborough area, but is toying with a novel way of getting to know the area.

“I’m going to do something different, I’m actually going to stay with a fan for the first two, three weeks of the season,” he said. “That should be fun, until I get myself acclimated and learn my way around.”

Sheryl Swoopes, a three-time WNBA MVP, who came out as a lesbian six years ago has announced that she will be marrying a man.

Swoopes was previously married to a man, her high school sweetheart, with whom she had a son with before coming out as a lesbian in 2005; announcing her relationship with Alisa Scott, a former WNBA assistant coach.

Six years after three-time WNBA MVP Sheryl Swoopes came out, announcing her relationship with then-girlfriend Alisa Scott, she has announced that she’s engaged … to a man.

FLAGSTAFF, AZ — Arizona Cardinals safety Hamza Abdullah and his brother, Husain, safety for the Minnesota Vikings, were invited to the White House for dinner with President Barack Obama.

The two attended the annual Iftar Dinner on Wednesday night celebrating the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

Arizona’s Abdullah says he was stunned and initially thought the invitation was a fake. He called it a “humbling experience’’ and looked forward to shaking the president’s hand. He called Pres.Obama “a stand-up guy’’ who is “for equality, regardless of ethnicity, religious background or class.’’

Abdullah was in Oakland in time for Arizona’s preseason opener Thursday night against the Raiders.

CANTON, OH — Prime Time has come to Canton — with an extra touch of gold. And a black do-rag.

Deion Sanders strutted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday night sporting a pair of gold shoes to go with the gold jacket emblematic of the special company he has become a part of. At the end of his riveting acceptance speech, he placed his ubiquitous do-rag on his hall bust.

Neon Deion indeed.

Sanders joined Marshall Faulk in entering the Hall in their first year of eligibilty.

This year’s Hall of Fame inductions seemed to be most about two things — the determination it takes to get to the top, and the family you need to help you get and stay there. In the case of tight end Shannon Sharpe, both factors played very well in his induction speech. Sharpe first talked about the odds he was up against.

“When I left my grandmother’s home in 1986, headed to Savannah State with two brown grocery bags filled with my belongings, nothing was going to keep me from realizing my dreams,” he said. “When people told me I wasn’t going to make it, I listened to the one person who told me I was: me. You may not know this, but I was never supposed to be a Hall of Fame tight end or any kind of tight end, or even a Hall of Fame player. I’m here today for a lot of reasons. Some have everything to do with me. Some have absolutely nothing to do with me and everything to do with the kindness and patience of all the people that guided me through my life.”

Then, a bit later in his speech, he turned his focus to his brother, Sterling. The elder Sharpe was a great receiver for the Green Bay Packers from 1988 through 1994 before injuries derailed his career.

Sterling’s little brother wasn’t going to forget.

“My big brother, Sterling … I’m the only player of 267 men that’s walked through this building to my left that can honestly say this: I’m the only pro football player that’s in the Hall of Fame, and the second best player in my own family. If fate had dealt you a different hand, there is no question in my mind we would have been the first brothers to be elected to the Hall of Fame.”

“Sterling, you are my hero, my father figure, my role model. You taught me everything I know about sports and a lot about life. I never once lived in your shadow. I embraced it.” Watching Sterling’s face while his brother paid tribute to him is what the Hall of Fame is all about.

Shaquille O’Neal’s legal troubles are continuing with a shocking new lawsuit.

In the filing the famed baller is accused of planting a tracking device on his wife’s car, using the services of police officers and state attorneys to help him threaten and plant false evidence on a business associate, and even trying to cover-up multiple affairs, including one with a Newsweek reporter.

Shawn Darling, who originally filed a lawsuit against O’Neal in 2010, has filed an amended complaint alleging that O’Neal inflicted “emotional distress and invasion of privacy” against him. Darling became friends with the basketball star in 2007 and claims the friendship continued until 2009.

ST. LOUIS — Former NBA player Darius Miles was arrested after guards found him trying to take a loaded gun through security at Lambert Airport in St. Louis, a jail official said Thursday. Miles, 29, was booked then released and no charges have been filed.

Transportation Security Administration spokesman Greg Soule would not confirm that Miles was arrested, but said TSA officials contacted police after a passenger was discovered with a gun during X-ray screening.

Miles grew up in East St. Louis, Ill., and now lives in Swansea, Ill., a St. Louis suburb. The 6-foot-9 forward was a highly regarded player out of East St. Louis High School. He was drafted straight out of high school No. 3 overall by the Los Angeles Clippers in 2000. He later played for Cleveland, Portland and Memphis, where he last played in 2009. He was invited to try out for the Charlotte Bobcats in 2010, but did not make the team.

In 446 career games, Miles averaged 10.1 points and 4.9 rebounds.