Chiefs acquire Surtain The Titans, to no one's surprise, matched the one-year offer sheet to LB Brad Kassell he signed with Detroit last week. As a restricted free agent, Kassell was tendered at the lowest level, but the Titans — with myriad needs — didn't want to add linebacker to their list of needs heading into the draft. Kassell was second on the team in tackles last year, filling in for starter Rocky Calmus much of the year, with 128. Though head coach Jeff Fisher proclaimed Kassell the starter at middle linebacker heading into the '05 season, there's expected to be competition between Kassell and Calmus for the spot.
Congress Tackles NFL Steroid Use The NFL is toughening its defense as it faces calls from Congress for stronger action against steroids. As NFL officials headed to Capitol Hill for a hearing Wednesday, the league strengthened its drug-testing program. The number of off-season tests that players can face is being tripled.
A House committee chair says the National Football League's steroid testing policy is "tough" -- but Tom Davis says "it's not perfect."
The House Government Reform Committee is following up on last month's hearing on steroids in baseball by grilling the NFL's chairman, players' association head and others.
Davis says the NFL has been much more cooperative than Major League Baseball in giving details about its testing program and announcing new steps to toughen it. He says legislation is in the works to create uniform policies for all sports.
NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue is set to tell the committee the league is increasing how many off-season drug tests players can face.
Unlike at the baseball hearing, no current players will testify. The committee will hear from former player Steve Courson, who says steroid abuse led to heart trouble.
Seahawks sign Dyson
The Seahawks were very busy two days before the draft, adding two more veteran free agents while also officially saying hello and goodbye, respectively, to LBs Jamie Sharper and Chad Brown. Seattle also signed WR Jerome Pathon, most recently with the Saints, to a three-year contract worth more than $3 million. The team followed that move by signing former Titans CB Andre Dyson to a five-year, $17.5 million contract that includes a $3 million signing bonus.
If that wasn’t enough, the team also officially got Sharper’s name on the dotted line (for the same amount and number of years as Dyson) — a move made easier by the anticipated release of Brown, who was unwilling to take a whopping pay cut. (The early word is Brown could end up in Green Bay with former Seattle top exec Ted Thompson.) Dyson, who had a career-high six interceptions for the Titans in 2004, will challenge newcomer Larry Herndon for the starting CB slot opposite Marcus Trufant.
Whether he starts or not, he’ll be on the field a lot, as the Hawks frequently play three corners in the pass-happy NFC West. Pathon, who averaged a career-best 17.1 yards on 34 catches last season for the Saints, is added to a crowded deck at wide receiver that also includes Darrell Jackson, Koren Robinson, Bobby Engram and newcomer Joe Jurevicius, among others. Also Thursday, CB Kris Richard signed the one-year, $565,000 offer he was tendered in February as a restricted free agent.
