Antonio Gates, who set an NFL record for touchdown catches by a tight end last season, was given an ultimatum by the San Diego Chargers on Thursday:
Get to camp by Saturday afternoon or face a three-game suspension.
Gates, whose holdout has been totally obscured by the long-running dispute between Terrell Owens and the Philadelphia Eagles, has been seeking a long-term contract to replace the $380,000 he is due to make this year. He was signed as an undrafted free agent in 2003.
The ultimatum came in the form of a letter sent to Gates's agent, Andre Colona. It said that if Gates wasn't at camp by 12:30 p.m. Saturday, he would be suspended for the Chargers' final two exhibition games and the Sept. 11 home game against Dallas.
In order to avoid a suspension, the All-Pro tight end was told by the Chargers that he would need to either sign a new multiyear deal or the one-year contract for $380,000.
"We just can't agree on money and years," general manager A.J. Smith said Thursday. "We want to know where we're going."
Smith said the team still was open to negotiate, but it also needed to know if Gates was going to be part of the team.
In just his second season, Gates had 13 touchdown catches to set the NFL single-season record for tight ends. He led the team with 81 catches for 964 yards.
Bears
General manager Jerry Angelo says the team has made its final offer to running back Cedric Benson, the only first-round pick left unsigned.
"After missing all of training camp, we want to make it abundantly clear that the Chicago Bears have made their best and final offer to Cedric Benson," Bears general manager Jerry Angelo said in a statement.
"No dollars are left on the bargaining table, and at this point the only contract discussions that will be entertained will be reflective of the considerable loss of value to the club created by the players' extended absence," the statement said.
Benson's holdout reached its 26th day Thursday, and the former Texas star, the fourth overall choice in the draft, already has missed two preseason games.
"There is nothing new," agent Eugene Parker said Thursday evening, adding that he did not have a reaction to the Bears' statement.
Rams
DeJuan Groce, who filled in for an injured Travis Fisher last season, will replace Jerametrius Butler as a starting cornerback.
Butler torn a right knee ligament on the first day of training camp and is out for the season.
Last year, cornerback Travis Fisher broke an arm in the preseason, prompting Groce to start the season opener against the Arizona Cardinals.
"He's having the best camp of all the corners, by far," coach Mike Martz said of Groce. "He just has been a standout all through camp. We look at him as a starter when we talk about personnel."
Groce played in the preseason opener against Chicago. He had one tackle and recovered a fumble.
Ravens
Baltimore linebacker Peter Boulware passed his physical and is set to rejoin the Ravens.
Hours after the four-time Pro Bowl linebacker's return was delayed as doctors scrutinized the results of his physical, Boulware was at the team hotel reviewing the details of his contract with general manager Ozzie Newsome.
The 30-year-old Boulware is expected to sign a one-year, $1 million contract with an additional $1 million in incentives. The team said Boulware wouldn't comment until after practice today.
Boulware, a $6 million salary-cap casualty this spring, impressed team officials in a workout Wednesday. He's the Ravens' career leader with 671â2 sacks, but hasn't played since December 2003 and missed all of last season because of knee and toe injuries.
Broncos
After missing nearly two weeks because of a groin injury, Maurice Clarett returned to practice Thursday, the last day of training camp for the Denver Broncos.
Now, the question is whether his return has come too late to make the team.
Denver's third-round draft choice hadn't practiced since Aug. 8 due to a strained right groin, an injury that, as recently as Wednesday, didn't appear to be getting better.
Coach Mike Shanahan, however, has been blunt in his assessment of Clarett all week, not shirking from how hard it would be for a rookie, or any player, to make the roster if he's not practicing.
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