News and notes from the owners meetings, side note about Jarrad Page

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Herm Edwards tried to distance himself from comments made in a news conference last week in Kansas City. He said he didn’t mean to imply that Tampa Bay and St. Louis broke NFL rules when they signed free agents Jeff Faine and Josh Brown.

But Edwards would not back off his assertion that teams contact free agents before the start of the signing period.

“I don’t know (specifically) about any teams,” Edwards said. “Don’t put that in my mouth. I never said that. I’m just talking about the league in general, every team, all 32 of them.

“Sometimes we all cross the line. I don’t think it’s done intentionally. It’s just the conversations you have. Say for instance you’re an agent and there’s a player you represent on our football team and you’re talking about that player and he’s under contract. All of a sudden the conversation keeps going and guess what? He’s got these (free agents) and then all of a sudden their names get thrown into the mix. That’s kind of what happens. I don’t think it’s done intentionally so much. It’s just that things happen.”

A hair-tucking idea

The Chiefs proposal to require that long hair be tucked under the player’s helmet appears destined to be resolved at a later meeting. The league will seek more input from players.

“That’s OK,” Edwards said. “As long as it gets discussed, that’s what we’re talking about, discussion. It probably will get tabled. That’s fine ... We always talk about protecting the shield and the image we want to have for the National Football League. That’s a part of it, too. There’s a certain way we feel the uniform should be portrayed and that’s why we brought it up.”

One player who would be affected is Pittsburgh safety Troy Polamalu, who was dragged down by his long hair after an interception in a 2006 game against the Chiefs.

Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin said he spoke with a concerned Polamalu about the proposal.

“I don’t know how effective that would be for him to put that much hair under a helmet,” Tomlin said. “That was about five years ago (when he did that). He probably hasn’t had a hair cut in five years.”

A new practice partner?

With the St. Louis Rams hoping to move their training camp to Wisconsin, the Chiefs could have a different practice partner this summer. Edwards said the Chiefs had talked with the Rams about arranging one or more joint practice sessions, as the Chiefs have done in recent years with the Minnesota Vikings.

The Rams might wind up holding camp outside of Wisconsin.

A richer Jarrad Page

Chiefs safety Jarrad Page, a seventh-round draft pick, was rewarded by the NFL for breaking into the starting lineup last season. Page was given an extra $286,135 in the NFL’s performance-based pay system.

The system was created as a supplemental form of player compensation based on a comparison of playing time to salary. Page made $360,000 last year in regular salary.
Only one other NFL player, Pittsburgh tackle Willie Colon, was awarded more than Page.

Defensive communication

The league approved a proposal allowing one defensive player on the field to have a communication device in his helmet, allowing him to hear the signals from the sideline. Quarterbacks have had a similar device since 1994.

Two defensive players can have the devices in their helmets, but if both are in the game at the same time, one must use a different helmet.


| Adam Teicher, [email protected]