While there is no fire to go with the smoke fogging the question, and the topic continues to draw attention. Saturday at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, Pettine got his say in the situation.

In a word: Whatever.

Pettine called the rumor "noise," preferring to focus on a job that was his, not one for which he was possibly a second choice … or worse.

Harbaugh remains coach of the 49ers. His teams appeared in the past three NFC title games, winning once. That victory produced a Super Bowl loss.

It's a solid resume, one that raised questions about why the Niners would want to dispose of Harbaugh.

According to a report this week on ProFootballTalk.com, the Browns had a deal in place to acquire Harbaugh. It died when Harbaugh said no. That's when the Browns hired Pettine.

While the Harbaugh question would answer the matter of what took the Browns so long to hire Pettine, 49ers CEO Jed York denied the coach swap notion. Harbaugh also dissed the report.

Pettine said Saturday the issue "has no bearing" on his job. The Browns didn't deny their attempt to acquire Harbaugh, but Pettine said that didn't bother him, either. He said he thought that shows the organization's commitment to turning around the struggling franchise.

Pettine is the seventh head coach of the Browns since 1999.

Harbaugh dismissed the report Saturday in text messages to media members, according to the San Jose Mercury News.

"I echo Jed York's comment — isn't true," Harbaugh wrote. "I know nothing about a trade with the Cleveland Browns and us, involving me."

Here's additional food for thought from Mercury News columnist Tim Kawakami, showing that there might be at least smoke to the Harbaugh trade conjecture.

Harbaugh, Kawakami writes, "is a great coach who has never been known as a soothing, pleasant personality, and he has never claimed to be." He adds:

"He wins, and he also wears on people. Three years of winning with the 49ers, three years of wearing people down. Just ask the people at Stanford how they felt about him after four years there."


DIGESTING RICE


Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome expressed concern after watching an online video that shows running back Ray Rice dragging a woman out of a casino elevator last weekend.

However, Newsome is withholding judgment as the team collects information about the incident.

Newsome acknowledged he watched the TMZ video online and that it "doesn't look good."

But Newsome said he has not yet spoken with Rice, who was charged with simple assault after allegedly knocking out his fiancee during an argument last weekend in Atlantic City, N.J.

Rice's finacee, Janay Palmer, also was charged with simple assault. Both await a court date.

Ravens coach John Harbaugh sees no immediate reason to believe he won't have Rice in the lineup next season. However, the possibility of NFL discipline, especially a suspension, could alter that perception.

NFL officials have grounds to question Rice under the league's personal conduct policy. Rice doesn't have a history of problems off the field and has been a spokesman against bullying.

"The facts will determine the consequences," Harbaugh told The Baltimore Sun. "That's always the case, right? It's a process. We have to see how it goes."


WATCH YOUR MOUTH


The weekend brought news of Rice's domestic incident, the latest such episode in pro sports. It saw Michael Sam speak at the NFL Combine, pushing the fact he is a football player, not a gay football player. And talk continues around the league about the nasty Dolphins bullying incident involving Richie Incognito and other players..

It should come as no surprise, then, that the NFL intends to clean up its act. It could include a crackdown on racist and gender-related slurs spewed during games.

Members of the NFL competition committee are talking about creating a 15-yard penalty for filthy language.

Such incidents aren't limited to heated words between races or name-calling among players. Redskins tackle Trent Williams last season was snared for using the n-word when complaining about a game official's call. Both Williams and his target, umpire Roy Ellison, are black.

Any rules change would require approval of two-third of the NFL's 32 owners. The earliest action would come is at league meetings in late March.

The language rule is pushed by the Fritz Pollard Alliance, which promotes diversity in the NFL.

Contributors: Ray Slover, The Associated Press