Chicago Sun-Times: Goldberg to consider deal with WWE

For the last few weeks, Jim Ross has made it a point to mention Bill Goldberg in his weekly Ross Report," stating that the WWE would be happy to meet with the former WCW champion at any time to discuss a contract.

Clearly, the arrival of Goldberg would be a huge shot in the arm for the WWE and would make a big impact on television ratings. But Goldberg and his people never had responded publicly to the WWE offer until last week.

During an interview, Goldberg said he was doing some matches in Japan, and when the time was right, he would contact the WWE and talk terms. One would have to assume money would not be an object in the talks between the two sides. Considering the current status of Steve Austin, and The Rock off to film a movie two-thirds of the year, the company could use a legitimate superstar like Goldberg. I would not be surprised to see this drag on for a few months, but a Goldberg main event at Wrestlemania is certainly not out of the question.

HEARD AROUND THE RING: Citing weak television ratings, the WWE reported a 79 percent drop in quarterly profits. This was a difficult quarter as we experienced softness particularly in our television ratings and pay-per-view buys," CEO Linda McMahon said. As we blend our talent into increasingly more compelling story lines, we expect to see a positive impact on our attendance, ratings and pay-per-view buys." Profits were $2.5 million, or 4 cents a share, compared with earnings of $12 million, or 16 cents a share, last year. ... Despite settling its lawsuit with the WWE, the Parents Television Council ranked WWE SmackDown the fifth-worst show on television. According to the PTC, Buffy the Vampire Slayer is the worst show on TV. ... According to the New York Post, Tiger Ali Singh is suing the WWE for $7 million. Singh claims his turban, which is sacred in the Sikh religion, was stolen from his locker and desecrated by WWE workers. ... Val Venis was injured while working out and should be back in 3- 4 weeks.

HOTLINE: I am at the Nassau Coliseum for SummerSlam and will have all the latest locker-room news on the hotline. Call (900) 990-SLAM. The cost is $2 per minute.