ALL ACCESS: MENDENHALL CONSIDERED QUITTING

CHIEFS QB UPDATE
Kent Babb, of the Kansas City Star, reports Kansas City Chiefs head coach Herman Edwards said QB Brodie Croyle will enter training camp as the team's No. 1 quarterback.

UNDRAFTED FA MAKES NOISE
Bengals coach Marvin Lewis has gone out of his way to express satisfaction with the work of undrafted rookie James Johnson at running back, noting JJ as one of the team's best players at the recent minicamp sessions, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer.

JONATHAN STEWART UPDATE
Coach John Fox is anxious to have rookie running back Jonathan Stewart back at practice. Stewart isn't allowed around the facility until the University of Oregon finishes its final exams. Oregon is one of the few schools around the country that works on the quarter grading system. "He's a sharp guy and I like this demeanor and his football character," Fox said of the team's first-round draft pick. "I like what I saw from his college tape. He just has to get healthy." Fox said he expects Stewart will be ready to go in training camp. "He's out of his boot and he's one schedule. He's been doing rehab with our medical people and they are telling me he will be ready for July 25 (the start of training camp)."

MENDENHALL CONSIDERED QUIITING
Days before the start of the 2007 season, running back Rashard Mendenhall said he considered quitting the Illinois football team. "I sat down and I was like, 'If this is what football is, I don't know if I want to do that anymore,' " Mendenhall said. "I'm not soft at all. I'm not scared of adversity. I don't care if somebody's yelling at me. That's not what it was about at all. "To tell you the truth, as long as Ron Zook is there it will be hard for me to support the University of Illinois football team," Mendenhall said. "I want to be happy in my life. I know I can walk away from this. I know I can finish school, get a job."

WIDE OUT HEADED FOR SURGERY?
Chad Johnson participated with the first-string offense in 11-on-11 drills on Saturday. He caught a few short passes but generally didn't look great. "He worked hard; he was rusty," offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski explains to the team's official web site. "He's got that ankle issue at the end of the season. They were trying to get it taken care of, it hadn't been taken care of, he needed to get it taken care of. He's going against guys that have been out here 14, 16 practices. You're going to look that way when you have none. He worked hard." The Bengals want Johnson to undergo ankle surgery prior to training camp on July 27.

JOEY PORTER ADDS BULK
Barry Jackson, of the Miami Herald, reports Miami Dolphins LB Joey Porter has bulked up slightly to 260 pounds this offseason and he's "a little bit more explosive," according to head coach Tony Sparano. Sparano added, "Physically, I've seen him come an awful long way [this offseason]. He wasn't afraid to say, `Coach me and tell me how to get better.' I like where he is."

QUINCY CARTER SIGHTING
After nearly four years of personal disappointments and drug-related arrests, something positive has finally happened for Quincy Carter. He started, and completed, a game in the Arena Football League — his Kansas City Brigade losing 73-34.