Four Vikings charged

Quarterback Daunte Culpepper and three Minnesota Vikings teammates were charged yesterday with indecent, lewd, and disorderly conduct for participating in a bawdy boat party that drew national attention.

Culpepper, offensive lineman Bryant McKinnie, cornerback Fred Smoot, and running back Moe Williams each were charged with three misdemeanors for their behavior aboard a boat on Lake Minnetonka, according to court papers.

If convicted, each player faces up to 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine for each count.

''The night of the incident, there was no shortage of inappropriate behavior on both boats," Hennepin County Sheriff Pat McGowan said.

Prosecutor Steve Tallen charged the players based on an investigation by McGowan's office, which reviewed allegations of lewd and drunken behavior aboard two craft chartered for the Oct. 6 outing.

Crew members complained that some people took off their clothes and engaged in public sex acts during the cruise, according to Stephen Doyle, an attorney representing the boats' owners.

Smoot declined comment yesterday. Culpepper and Williams, who are on injured reserve, are away from the team and undergoing rehabilitation. McKinnie wasn't seen in the locker room.

Vikings owner Zygi Wilf was unavailable for comment. Kevin Warren, an attorney for the team, said the allegations were ''very disturbing" and said Wilf wouldn't allow playoff considerations to affect suspensions if he thought they were called for.

A Jan. 5 court date was set.

Russell killed in car crash

Darrell Russell, a former standout defensive lineman with the Oakland Raiders whose promising career was derailed by drugs, was killed in a high-speed car crash early yesterday.

Russell, 29, was a passenger in a car driven by former Southern Cal teammate Mike Bastianelli that went out of control about 6 a.m. and hit a curb, tree, newsstand, fire hydrant, light pole, another tree, and an unoccupied transit bus, Lt. Paul Vernon of the Los Angeles Police Department said.

Both Russell and Bastianelli, 29, were unconscious when firefighters arrived. Russell died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Bastianelli died at UCLA Medical Center.

The 6-foot-5-inch, 325-pound Russell, the No. 2 overall pick by Oakland in 1997, had a promising start in the NFL before substance abuse problems ruined his career. He had 28 1/2 sacks in five seasons with the Raiders, making the Pro Bowl in 1998 and 1999.

Defense for McNabb

The chief executive officer of the NAACP criticized the president of its Philadelphia branch for comments he made about Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb. Bruce Gordon, who heads the Baltimore-based NAACP, issued a statement calling McNabb ''a great quarterback, an excellent role model, and a class act," and said he intended to apologize for denigrating remarks made by Philadelphia chapter president J. Whyatt Mondesire. ''The NAACP has many civil rights issues that require our attention," Gordon said. ''Criticizing Donovan McNabb is not one of them." Mondesire, who also publishes the Philadelphia Sunday Sun, criticized the quarterback in a Dec. 4 newspaper column. He wrote that McNabb running the ball less frequently, ''by claiming that 'everybody expects black quarterbacks to scramble' not only amounts to a breach of faith but also belittles the real struggles of black athletes who've had to overcome real racial stereotypcasting in addition to downright segregation." Mondesire said yesterday he was not speaking in his capacity as a branch leader . . . Linebacker Andra Davis signed a five-year contract extension as the rebuilding Cleveland Browns locked up their leading tackler and a team leader for the future. Financial terms were not immediately known. Davis, who has a team-high 169 tackles through 13 games, signed a one-year maximum contract tender before this season, which pulled him off the market as a restricted free agent. Without a new deal, however, the 26-year-old would have become an unrestricted free agent in the offseason . . . Atlanta quarterback Michael Vick took all the snaps with the first-team offense and was taken off the Falcons' injury report for Sunday night's game in Chicago. Vick suffered bruised ribs in Monday night's win over New Orleans.