Chargers suspend holdout Gates after tender contract not signed
Antonio Gates didn’t meet the San Diego Chargers’ ultimatum to sign a contract by Saturday afternoon, meaning the defending AFC West champions will be without their All-Pro tight end for at least the season opener against Dallas.
In an extreme move to break an impasse in negotiations, the Chargers ordered Gates to report to camp and sign a contract or face a three-game suspension. Gates’ agent and the Chargers continued to negotiate up to the 12:30 p.m. deadline, but again failed to agree on a multi-year deal. Gates has refused to sign the $380,000, one-year contract the team tendered him as an exclusive-rights free agent.
Once Gates does sign a contract, he will be put on the Roster Exempt List, automatically triggering the suspension, the team said in a statement. He will miss the team’s final two exhibition games, at Minnesota next Friday and San Francisco at home on Sept. 1, as well as the season opener against the Cowboys on Sept. 11 at Qualcomm Stadium. If he doesn’t sign by Thursday, he’ll also miss the Sept. 18 game at Denver.
Merriman debuts for Chargers
Shawne Merriman is ready to flip the switch.
Of course, to do that, Merriman is going to need to come up with his first sack when he makes his exhibition debut for the San Diego Chargers today against the St. Louis Rams.
The hard-hitting Merriman is nicknamed “Lights Out” because of the hits he puts on opposing players. He has a tattoo of a light switch on one forearm, and he celebrates big hits by pretending to flip it.
Merriman missed the Chargers’ exhibition opener, a 10-7 loss at Green Bay, because of hamstring and toe injuries.
Also making his debut will be the Rams’ top draft pick, offensive lineman Alex Barron, who practiced for the first time Monday after a two-week holdout.
Two Cowboys ailing
Dallas Cowboys nose tackle Jason Ferguson has reinjured his right ankle and will miss another preseason game.
Ferguson missed the opener with a sprain, but returned to practice this week and was expected to play Monday night in Seattle.
Ferguson will be among a group of injured players heading back to Dallas today, when training camp ends and the rest of the team flies to Seattle. The other notable player is offensive lineman Marco Rivera, although it’s no surprise since he didn’t practice all week because of a strained hamstring.
Titans’ Hopkins suspended
The NFL suspended Tennessee Titans left tackle Brad Hopkins for the season opener after he pleaded guilty to assaulting his wife.
Hopkins had expected the punishment from the league after he grabbed his wife’s neck because she wouldn’t stop talking on a cell phone in March.