The daughter of a former Chicago Bears player from the 1950s is accused of illegally collecting money from an NFL pension plan years after her father’s death.
Constance Helwig-Langlois was charged with fraud Wednesday in Detroit. She’s the daughter of John Helwig, who played defense for the Bears from 1953-56.
Federal prosecutors say the NFL retirement plan kept sending checks to John Helwig’s Detroit-area address after his 1994 death.
Court documents allege that Helwig’s wife, Ruth, twice told officials that her husband still was alive. Ruth Helwig died in 2007.
The government says their daughter kept the scheme going until 2011, and that the erroneous payments added up to more than $200,000 over 17 years.
No one answered at a phone number listed for the daughter on Wednesday.
IT’S JUST NOT HOME
Center Eric Wood considers the Buffalo Bills’ annual games in Toronto to be “a joke,” saying the team gives away its home-field edge by playing under a dome and in front of ambivalent crowds.
Wood first expressed his frustrations during his weekly show on Buffalo’s WGRF-Radio on Monday, a day after a 50-17 loss to Seattle in Toronto. He stuck by his criticism Wednesday, saying he won’t retract what he said.
Wood added he understands how playing games in Canada’s financial capital and largest city benefits a small-market team such as the Bills. He enjoys traveling to Toronto and taking advantage of what the city has to offer culturally.
What’s not enjoyable, Wood says, is playing there.
Buffalo is 1-4 in regular-season games in Toronto since the series began in 2008.
FAIRLEY OUT FOR SEASON
The Detroit Lions put defensive tackle Nick Fairley on injured reserve with a shoulder injury.
The 2011 first-round pick started seven of 13 games and had 51/2 sacks and 35 tackles after a lackluster rookie season. Earlier this year, he pleaded guilty to DUI and reckless driving and was given a suspended sentence of six months in jail term, a year of probation and a $600 fine. He hopes a pretrial diversion program will allow those charges to be dismissed.
Detroit signed Ogemdi Nwagbuo, who has 35 games of NFL experience with Carolina and San Diego, to fill the spot.
EXTRA POINTS
LeSean McCoy will start at running back for the Eagles against Washington in his first game back after missing four because of a concussion. Michael Vick will be the No. 3 quarterback behind starter Nick Foles and Trent Edwards because of his extended layoff. Vick missed five games with a concussion. … Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III was fined $10,000 by the NFL for wearing Adidas at his postgame news conference Sunday. Griffin has a sponsorship deal with Adidas, but the league has a deal with Nike. … Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder confirmed that he married ESPN reporter Samantha Steele at a courthouse in Wisconsin on Monday. … The Jets put rookie wide receiver Stephen Hill (knee injury) on injured reserve, ending his season. … Dolphins backup running back Daniel Thomas went on injured reserve because of a knee injury. … The Super Bowl will be streamed online for the second straight year. The simulcast of the CBS coverage will be available on NFL.com and CBSSports.com.
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