Here is a summary of the latest NFL news, as reported on ESPN.com:

Bucs Ink Winslow to Record Deal

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers extended the contract of recently acquired tight end Kellen Winslow, Jr., giving him the largest contract in NFL history for the position.

Winslow agreed to a six-year, $36.1 million deal which includes a guaranteed $20.1 million, and incentives could push the total value to $42.1 million.

The Bucs obtained Winslow in a trade with the Cleveland Browns last month, following a 2008 season in which he caught 43 passes for 428 yards and three touchdowns in 10 games. He has a totaled 219 catches for 2,459 yards and 11 touchdowns in 44 career games.

Winslow was the sixth overall pick in the 2004 draft. His career was jeopardized following severe knee damage suffered in a 2005 motorcycle accident, but he recovered and re-established himself as one of the league's premiere tight ends.

Raiders Sign Garcia

The Oakland Raiders signed quarterback Jeff Garcia to a one-year deal on Monday for the league minimum to serve as the back up to JaMarcus Russell.

The 39-year-old Garcia spent the past two seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, starting 24 games and leading them to a division title and a playoff berth in 2007. Though he’s coming off a 2008 season in which he threw for 2,712 yards, 12 touchdowns , six interceptions and a 90.2 passer rating, the  Bucs decided not to re-sign the four-time Pro Bowler.

Garcia is a Bay Area native who played for San Jose State and in the Canadian Football League before starting his NFL career with the San Francisco 49’ers. Although several teams were interested in Garcia as a backup, he chose Oakland to be close to home with a familiar coaching staff, including passing game coordinator Ted Tollner, a former 49ers assistant. 

Burress Wins, Johnson Loses Grievance

Arbitrator Stephen Burbank ruled today that the Giants must pay Plaxico Burress a $1 million bonus as well as an undisclosed sum for a 2008 roster bonus withheld because of last year's suspension.  He also ruled that the Kansas City Chiefs do not have to pay running back Larry Johnson’s bonus if he is released.

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello released a statement saying the league disagrees with the ruling, but has no plans to appeal. He says the ruling “continues an unfortunate trend of permitting players who are suspended due to serious misconduct to nonetheless retain large bonus payments from their NFL teams. To permit players in these circumstances to retain the entirety of their bonus, representing millions of dollars, is unfair to both the clubs and other players, especially under the current salary cap system." NFL Players Association general counsel Richard Berthelsen said Burbank's decision is in line with the agreement the union negotiated with the league in 2006, which states that money can only be withheld if a player withholds services.

Burbank's ruling has the potential to set a precedent and is expected to stir debate when the NFL and the union begin negotiations on a new CBA after league owners opted out of the current deal last year. The ruling is also expected to influence the handling of a $4.5 million roster bonus the Cleveland Browns owe receiver Donte Stallworth, due the day before he killed a pedestrian in Miami in a drunk driving incident last month which he is facing charges for. Stallworth remains on the roster, but it's not clear whether the team paid the bonus.

The Giants suspended Burress for four games last season after he accidentally shot himself in the leg at a nightclub, costing him over $1 million in salary. After the shooting, the Giants declined to pay a $1 million installment of a $4.25 million signing bonus which was part of a five-year, $35 million extension he signed in September. The team contended they had a clause in Burress' contract allowing them to recoup a part of the bonus in the event of incarceration or detainment by law-enforcement personnel or if he was suspended for conduct detrimental to the team. However, there is no specific language in the CBA for a team going after more than $250,000 in bonus money, which was a basis of the ruling in favor of Burress. "To think that a player could carry a loaded gun into a nightclub, shoot himself and miss the rest of the season but get to keep his entire signing bonus illustrates one of the serious flaws in the current system," said Giants president and CEO John Mara.

The ruling came amid a report out of South Florida alleging Burress used profane, combative, and threatening language towards a deputy during a traffic stop in March. Burress was ticketed for careless driving for allegedly speeding and cutting off drivers, according to a copy of the ticket.

As for Larry Johnson , Burbank ruled that bonus money already earned cannot be forfeited by a player, but decided that Johnson has not yet earned $3.75 million in salary and bonuses due over the next two years. If the Chiefs cut him, they do not have to pay his 2009 salary because he breached his contract after being suspended last season. Johnson was sentenced to two years probation last month after pleading guilty to two counts of disturbing the peace following separate confrontations involving women at nightclubs last year. Aside from the NFL suspension, the Chiefs deactivated the two-time Pro Bowler for three games. Despite a request to be dealt, Johnson attended the start of the team’s off-season conditioning program and is currently on the Chiefs' roster.

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