Packers solve punting needs with Aguiar

By Nolan Nawrocki, Associate editor

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Friday, August 9, 2002

• The Green Bay Packers have re-signed veteran P Louie Aguiar as a free agent. The 11-year veteran returns to Green Bay after a two-year absence. He served as the Packers' punter for 15 games in 1999 The 36-year-old did not play last season and last played for the Bears during the 2000 season when he averaged 38.8 yards on 52 punts, depositing eight kicks inside the opponents' 20-yard line. OT Kevin Jordan was waived (injured) to make roster room for Aguiar.

• The 49ers sought to improve depth on their offensive line by signing free-agent C Ben Lynch and waiving C Ben Fricke. Lynch was a top reserve for the 49ers a year ago who was not tendered an offer by the Niners this spring. The three-year veteran was contacted after starting C Jeremy Newberry and starting OG Ron Stone went down with injuries.

Thursday, Aug. 8, 2002

• With Saints head coach Jim Haslett agreeing to a five-year, $15 million deal Wednesday, Saints general manager Mickey Loomis can focus on signing QB Aaron Brooks to a contract extension. Brooks is entering the last year of a four-year deal that calls for him to be paid a base salary of $450,000. He is the third-highest paid quarterback on the Saints’ roster behind backups Jake Delhomme and Jeff Lewis.

• The Broncos have signed veteran C Mark Fischer, who played his first four NFL seasons with the Redskins. Fischer, 28, has played in 22 games and started 16 since being drafted by the Redskins in the fifth round of the 1998 NFL Draft. He spent most of the 2001 season on the injured reserve list after injuring his right knee in the preseason. The 6-3, 303-pound center started all 16 games for Washington in ’00 after taking over the position in training camp in place of the injured Cory Raymer.

• The Colts claimed rookie OT David Sherrod off waivers from Chicago and waived TE Browning Wynn.

• The Chiefs signed Arena Football League DE R-Kal Truluck to a two-year contract. The 6-4, 270-pounder spent the last two seasons with the Detroit Fury, leading the AFL in sacks this year with nine. He also played three seasons for Saskatchewan in the CFL.

Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2002

• The Bears signed six-year veteran Nate Jacquet to a one-year contract Tuesday believed to be worth the minimum of $525,000 for players with 4-6 years of experience. The Bears will be Jacquet's fifth NFL team after stints with the Colts, Dolphins, Chargers and Vikings. He has 10 career receptions for 165 yards, but his chief contribution has been as a returner, where he returned 46 kickoffs for 1,012 yards and 100 punts for 877 yards with the Vikings a year ago. The Bears are looking for help at wide receiver and kick returner because of injuries and inexperience. WR Ahmad Merritt broke two fingers last week and is expected to be out for 10 weeks, possibly for the season if he is placed on injured reserve.

• The Broncos signed C David Diaz-Infante to fill a hole at long snapper created Monday when TE-LS Desmond Clark broke his left arm in practice. Clark is expected to be out at least three weeks. The team waived G Michael Lies Tuesday to make room for the signing. Diaz-Infante was a backup on the Broncos’ offensive line from 1996-98 and was a member of both of the Broncos’ championship teams. He played every game last season, mostly as the long snapper on the punt team, but wasn’t re-signed in the offseason.

• The Redskins have agreed to terms with first-round draft pick Patrick Ramsey on a five-year, $5.7 million contract a day after nearly trading him to the Bears. The deal includes a $3.1 million signing bonus and could reach nearly $3 million per year based on playing time and performance. The Bears expressed a lot of interest in the former Tulane quarterback but were not willing to give up the first-round draft pick demanded by the ’Skins. A collective bargaining agreement ruling prohibits teams from trading unsigned draft choices within 30 days from the start of the regular season. Because the season starts on a Thursday this year, Sept. 5, the deal had to be completed before Wednesday.

• The Chiefs have denied being contacted by the Cowboys about a possible trade for TE Tony Gonzalez, the Chiefs’ franchise free agent who is in the midst of a prolonged contract negotiation. Team president/general manager Carl Peterson said the team is not looking to trade the tight end.

• The Browns, who have been short on fullbacks at training camp, signed free-agent FBs Chris Floyd and Kevin McLeod to one-year contracts. Floyd played in two games for the Browns on special teams in 2000. McLeod played with the Bucs in 1999, but has been out of football since being cut by the Falcons after training camp last year.

Tuesday, August 6, 2002

• The Ravens signed free-agent LB Bernardo Harris to a one-year, $750,000 contract Monday. Harris spent the last seven seasons with the Packers, where he was a salary-cap casualty in February after leading the team in tackles four of the last five seasons. He had worked out for the Vikings and had talks with the Seahawks before deciding to sign with the Ravens. Harris, 30, is excited about the opportunity to play in defensive coordinator Mike Nolan’s 3-4 scheme. He is expected to be in practice today and could unseat LB Edgerton Hartwell for a starting job.

• The Broncos waived WR Rob Moore, the 13-year NFL veteran who has missed the past two NFL seasons because of a torn left anterior cruciate ligament in 2000 and a torn right hamstring last year. Moore, 33, has started 150 of 153 games in his career since being drafted by the Jets in 1990. He played five seasons with the Jets before being traded to the Cardinals, where he spent the last seven years before joining the Broncos in the offseason. Injury problems have continued to slow Moore and are believed to be the reason for his release.

• With first-round draft pick Bryant McKinnie still unsigned, the Vikings sought some extra help on the offensive line by signing unrestricted free-agent OT Orlando Bobo. The Vikings are also thinking about moving Pro Bowl C Matt Birk to left tackle.

Monday, August 5, 2002

• Former Broncos FS Eric Brown, one of the best remaining players in the unrestricted free agent market, found a new home with the Texans. With the secondary being an area of concern for the team, Brown has a chance to earn a starting job, as he quickly did when he entered the league as a second-round draft pick of the Broncos in 1998. The 27-year-old has started 52 of 53 games in his four-year career. Brown, who turned down offers for the veteran’s minimum from the Cardinals and Ravens earlier in the offseason, is believed to have signed for more than the minimum.

• The Ravens signed free-agent OL Ethan Brooks to a one-year, $525,000 contract, which could end the team’s experiment of using OG Edwin Mulitalo at right tackle. Brooks has played on both sides of the ball since entering the NFL with the Falcons in 1996, but the Ravens plan to use him on offense. If Brooks, 30, can assume the starting RT role, Mulitalo would be able to return to his strongest position. Mulitalo moved to tackle to fill the void left by the departure of Leon Searcy and Kipp Vickers, both of whom were salary-cap casualties.

Got scoop?  Drop a line to associate editor Nolan Nawrocki at nnawrocki@primediasi.com.

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