News & Info/Headlines

The Seattle Seahawks agreed to terms Tuesday with free agent receiver Darrell Jackson on a reported six-year, $25 million contract that includes an $8 million bonus.

The deal initially was reported by the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

According to ESPN insider John Clayton, Jackson will make $9 million this season and $13 million over the first three years of his contract.

Jackson has led the Seahawks in receiving in two of his four NFL seasons. Last season, he had 68 catches for a career-high 1,137 yards with nine touchdowns and he remains the most productive receiver from the 2000 NFL draft class.

A former third-round pick from Florida, Jackson became the premiere receiver in free agency after a paperwork snafu prevented Terrell Owens from hitting the market and Steve Smith re-signed with the Panthers.

"Darrell's ability to come off the ball, his first three steps, are getting to be as good as anybody in football," Seattle quarterback Trent Dilfer said during the 2003 season. "He runs his routes in a way that is very hard to decipher between out-cuts and in-breaking cuts and the vertical game."

The Seahawks would not necessarily disagree, but there was initially disagreement about Jackson's value. While his agent sought a deal worthy of a No. 1 receiver, the team categorized Jackson as a secondary target.

Either way, Jackson led the NFL in receptions of 40-plus yards a few years ago.

"Since I've got here, Darrell has been the guy in my mind that scares people the most with his ability to get off press, his ability to stretch zones and his ability to run after catches," Dilfer said.

But as Tacoma News Tribune beat man Mike Sando noted early Tuesday, some observers still question Jackson's hands. He had eight drops in a three-game stretch last season but rebounded nicely with 26 receptions for 423 yards and five TDs during a four-week span after that slump.

"It was a three-game hiccup," his agent, Brian Mooney said of the slump. ...

Other Fantasy-specific news and notes from around the league. ...

In San Diego. ... The Chargers have given wide receiver David Boston and his agent, Mitch Frankel, permission to talk to any and all teams about a trade.

According to Clayton, there are no specifications on the trade. Teams can talk to Frankel or the Chargers. Ultimately, the Chargers will accept the best trade offer available for Boston. By granting Boston permission to talk to teams, the Chargers are trying to eliminate any contractual concerns interested teams might have in making the deal.

Boston, 25, signed a seven-year, $47 million deal with the Chargers last year that cost them $5.1 million in 2003, but any team trading for Boston would probably want to re-work that deal. Boston caught 70 passes for 880 yards, but his personality and work style clashed with the team.

As San Diego Union-Tribune staff writer Jim Trotter put it: "It's no secret the Chargers were unhappy at times with Boston's behavior." A verbal altercation between Boston and strength and conditioning coach Dave Redding resulted in a one-game suspension for Boston.

The incident not only cost Boston a game check, it also provided the team grounds to recoup an additional $3 million because of an addendum in his contract.

But as Clayton pointed out, even though he's "a bit of a loner" and doesn't mingle too much with his teammates, Boston is a "rare talent." Clayton added: "He spends a lot of time in the weight room and is one of the most gifted receivers in football. His weight can fluctuate anywhere between 235 and 245 pounds, but he was able to run 40s in the 4.4 second or faster range."

According to Trotter, one team that's known to have interest in Boston is Miami, which this offseason hired Jerry Sullivan as receivers coach. Sullivan coached Boston for four seasons in Arizona, and the two maintained a positive relationship even after Boston fled the Cardinals a year ago.

One rumor had Miami surrendering a third-round draft choice for Boston, although that seems inadequate for a player who went to the Pro Bowl several years ago. But it could be that the Chargers view it as addition by subtraction.

If Boston is traded, a deal should be completed within the next week. Boston is due a $3 million option payment by March 15. ...

In Minnesota. ... According to Minneapolis Star Tribune staff writer Mark Craig, free-agent wide receiver Marcus Robinson was making arrangements to visit the Detroit Lions on Monday when the Vikings raised their previous offer to $9.4 million over four years with a $2 million signing bonus.

Robinson quickly pulled the plug on Detroit and signed the deal that team officials say gives them their best No. 2 receiver since Cris Carter left following the 2001 season.

"Marcus was at the top of our list of receivers in free agency, and the only one we targeted as someone we wanted," Vikings head coach Mike Tice said. "To get a guy who has played at such a high level in this league is exciting. We haven't had a player of this caliber on the other side of Randy [Moss] since Cris."

Robinson, 29, spent last season with the Baltimore Ravens, catching 31 passes for 451 yards and six touchdowns. He is a big receiver at 6-3 and 215 pounds, but he also is a former All-America sprinter at South Carolina. The Vikings were once victims of that speed when Robinson played for the Chicago Bears from 1997 to 2002.

"I still remember Marcus running down the left sideline to beat us one time at Soldier Field," Tice said. "Having him on the No. 1 offense in the NFL [in 2003] gives us an opportunity to really stretch the field and take pressure off of Randy."

Robinson has 26 touchdowns in 67 career NFL games, including 33 starts. In 1999, he caught 84 passes for 1,400 yards, a Bears record, and nine touchdowns. Injuries hurt his production in following years, although he came on at the end of last season. He had 22 catches for 375 yards and all of his TDs in the final five games.

"Marcus is ecstatic about the opportunity to play with Randy Moss and Daunte Culpepper," said Ken Sarnoff, Robinson's agent. "He is impressed immensely by that offense."

Craig added that Robinson is expected to replace D'Wayne Bates as the No. 2 receiver. Bates is still on the roster but could be released because the Vikings are high on Nate Burleson and Kelly Campbell.

"We probably have one of the most competitive wide receiver corps in the league right now," Tice said. "That's a pretty dang good group."

Tice said that Robinson was at the top of the team's list of available wide receivers, excluding Terrell Owens. ...

And speaking of Owens. ... A day after saying he could envision himself in a Ravens uniform, the temperamental wideout reversed his ground in a statement yesterday.

In a statement Monday, Owens made it clear he does not plan to suit up for the Ravens.

"So that there is no misunderstanding, regardless of what happens with the grievance, under the present circumstances I do not see myself playing for the Ravens," Owens said. "I can assure everyone that I will continue to keep fighting for my right to play for the team of my choice even after the grievance.

"At the end of this process, I simply want to be able to exercise my right to play for a team of my choosing under a deal that is fair to me and my family."

Owens, who was traded Thursday from the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for a second-round draft pick, wants to become an unrestricted free agent so he can play for the Philadelphia Eagles.

The NFL Players Association has officially decided to file a special-master case to try to nullify the trade, a spokesman for the players' union said yesterday.

According to Baltimore Sun staffer Jamison Hensley, the case, which will be settled in a trial-like proceeding, likely will occur next week at the earliest. The union has little chance of undoing the trade because it will concede that Owens' agent made a mistake by failing to file the paperwork in time to make him an unrestricted free agent, according to several league sources.

"This is a matter between the league and union right now," team spokesman Chad Steele said. "We can't do anything until we hear back from the ruling. ..."

Also in Baltimore. ... Kicker Matt Stover has agreed to a new five-year contract with Baltimore, keeping the last original Raven with the team.

Stover, 36, is the only player left who came with the team from Cleveland before the 1996 season. He ranks 17th in NFL history with 1,364 points and is fourth in career field percentage (82.3 percent).

Stover has played in 207 games over 14 seasons. Last year he ranked third in the NFL with 134 points, going 33-for-38 on field goal tries and making all 35 of his conversion attempts.

Stover became the 15th player in NFL history with 300 field goals when he hit a 39-yarder against Denver last October. He kicked two game-winners last season, delivering overtime victories against Seattle and Pittsburgh. ...

In Dallas. ... Leigh Steinberg, who represents Cowboys receiver Joey Galloway, said last Friday he had all but given up hope of coming to terms with the Buccaneers in an effort to consummate the receiver-for-receiver trade for Keyshawn Johnson.

While the agent wasn't backing off that statement Monday, he told Fort Worth Star-Telegram staff writer Clarence E. Hill Jr. that talks are still ongoing with the Buccaneers.

Steinberg said the Buccaneers have not come up on their one-year, $1 million offer, but said general manager Bruce Allen is trying to get them to accept the deal as is.

From the beginning, the trade was contingent on both players coming to terms on deals with the respective teams. The Cowboys and Johnson agreed on a four-year, $20 million deal last Wednesday.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones remains adamant that Galloway must be part of the trade to get it done, saying the Cowboys have not talked to the Buccaneers about substituting draft picks for Galloway.

But as Hill pointed out, the Cowboys are also armed with the knowledge that they could eventually get Johnson for free as a free agent. Tampa Bay is expected to cut him before April 1 to avoid paying a $1 million roster bonus. ...

In Tennessee. ... Still without a deal with the Titans, quarterback Billy Volek visited Green Bay on Monday. According those who follow the Packers closely, team officials tried to sell Volek on the prospect of being the successor to a Hall of Fame quarterback.

Volek's agent was also in the process of setting up a visit with the Broncos in the coming days. The Bills have also entered the picture and would like for Volek to visit as well.

Meanwhile, the Titans and Volek continue to discuss a long-term deal, and while no progress was made over the weekend and according to Nashville Tennessean beat man Jim Wyatt, the two sides aren't too far apart in contract negotiations. The two sides have swapped several proposals since Volek became an unrestricted free agent last week, and the Titans would like to re-sign him.

Volek, who visited Atlanta last week, is considered one of the top free agent quarterbacks on the market. The list got thinner over the weekend when former Buccaneer Shaun King agreed to terms with the Cardinals.

Volek, signed by the Titans an as undrafted free agent in 2000, served as Steve McNair's backup last season.

He'd like to compete for a starting job this fall, and other teams remain interested aside from the Packers, Broncos, Bills and Falcons, who already have starting quarterbacks in place for 2004.

In fact, the Packers reportedly went out of their way to make sure Volek understands they fully intend for Brett Favre to be their starting quarterback this year, next year and the year after that.

"I'm hoping he'll play another four or five years," offensive coordinator Tom Rossley said of Favre.