Indianapolis Gets Good News, Bad News At Lb

The injury-plagued career of Indianapolis Colts linebacker Trev Alberts sustained another setback Thursday, the same day rookie linebacker Bert Berry made his debut on the practice field.

The Colts said that Alberts, the No. 5 overall pick in the 1994 draft, aggravated a previous surgical repair of the right shoulder he dislocated at Nebraska.

“Alberts has been evaluated by Dr. Gary Misamore of Indianapolis and will undergo a right-shoulder reconstruction July 21,” the team said in a statement.

It was uncertain how long Alberts would be out, but the team said it expected him to return.

Albert has had a series of injuries since winning the Dick Butkus award as the nation’s best linebacker in 1994.

His statistics for three seasons are seven starts, 29 games played and 20 missed with only 103 tackles. He’s had a dislocated right elbow, a concussion, a partially dislocated left shoulder and a hamstring injury since signing a six-year, $8.15 million contract in 1994.

His future has been uncertain for months as he and the Colts discussed retirement but failed to reach agreement over the team’s bid to recoup a portion of the $3.275 million signing bonus.

The unavailability of Alberts and the team’s release of veteran linebacker Jeff Herrod means Berry, the team’s third-round draft pick from Notre Dame, will get more playing time. Berry practiced for the first time Thursday after agreeing to a contract Wednesday.

“I made a couple of mistakes out there, that’s to be expected,” Berry said. “I was a little rusty, but we’ll learn from the film in the next few days.”

Eaton re-ups with Patriots

The New England Patriots re-signed defensive tackle Chad Eaton and fullback Rupert Green.

Eaton, 25, signed with New England in 1996 and was placed on their practice squad. The 6-foot-5, 292-pound Eaton was activated on Nov. 28 and played in the team’s final seven games, including three playoff games.

Eaton, who played for Washington State University, finished with four tackles in four regular season games, including a sack. He added three tackles in the playoffs.

Turk chooses Redskins

The Washington Redskins signed unrestricted free-agent Dan Turk to fill the long snapper void created when Trevor Matich retired.

Turk, 35, handled the Oakland Raiders long-snapping duties and also played on the offensive line. He was the Raiders’ special teams captain for the past four years.

Turk, who has been active for every game over the last eight seasons, is Washington’s sixth offseason free agent acquisition. The team’s also signed quarterback Jeff Hostetler, wide receiver Alvin Harper, defensive end Chris Mims, cornerback Cris Dishman and safety Jesse Campbell.

Bears sign Jeffires

The Chicago Bears signed wide receiver Haywood Jeffires to a one-year contract, a month after the 10-year National Football League veteran was waived by the New Orleans Saints.

Jeffires, 32, appeared in nine games with New Orleans last season, catching 20 passes for 215 yards and three touchdowns before suffering a season-ending knee injury in November.

Redskins’ Allen arrested

Washington Redskins running back Terry Allen was driving drunk at 133 mph Saturday, Monroe, Ga., police allege, then crashed his Ferrari into a tree while trying to elude authorities.

Allen, who wasn’t injured, was charged with drunken driving and five other offenses.

Minnesota Vikings running backs coach Carl Hargrave was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving after a two-car traffic accident on July 3 in the Minneapolis suburb of Eden Prairie, prosecutors said.