In a different arena, Cleeland did his best
As a tight end, Cameron Cleeland is best known for what once was done to him and for what he hasn't been able to do. He sustained damage to one of his eyes during an infamous training camp hazing incident his rookie season with New Orleans and has had difficulty avoiding injury since. In six seasons with the Saints, Patriots (2002), and Rams (last year), he has played in every game only twice because of an assortment of injuries, among them three to his Achilles' tendons. Not since he caught 54 passes in 1998 after arriving as a second-round pick out of the University of Washington has Cleeland been on the field long enough to meet the expectations. But when Judgment Day arrives, Cleeland will be able to say that, for one moment at least, he did what he should have done.
Around 8:45 p.m. last Sunday, Timothy Roth's car struck a tree near the intersection of Little Mountain and Amick roads, southeast of Mount Vernon, Wash., which is about 70 miles north of Seattle. Roth's 1994 Ford Taurus became engulfed in flames. He had to be airlifted to Seattle's Harborview Medical Center, where he died at around 3 a.m. the next day from burns, according to the Washington State Patrol. Roth was 22.
When Cleeland came upon the accident scene, he didn't drive by or place an emergency call from his mobile phone, as perhaps many would have. Cleeland, who is from nearby Sedro Woolley, pulled over and did unto another what he would have done unto him. Rather than wait for the Big Lake Fire Department, Cleeland attempted to fight the blaze with an extinguisher, state troopers said, and while trying to remove the car's air bag from Roth's face, he suffered another injury -- severe burns to the hands with which he makes his living.
Fortunately, Cleeland is still alive, and apparently in the days since his rescue attempt has been thinking more about Roth and his family than about himself. Rams spokesman Artis Twyman said he spoke last week with Cleeland, who is unsigned, and the tight end requested that the Rams not put out a news release and decline interviews on his behalf.
"Cam was really shaken up about it when I talked to him," Twyman said. "I tried to talk to him but I could tell he didn't want to talk about it too much or go in depth, out of respect for the family.
"He said it's something you really don't want to experience in life. It must have been really bad; I could hear him getting choked up."
A memorial service for Roth was held yesterday in Langley, Wash.
As for Cleeland, he may have been a Patriot for only a season, but he will be a hero for the rest of his life.
Not so fast
It appears Rich Gannon is staying put (for now) in Oakland after coach Norv Turner announced last week that newly-signed Kerry Collins would start out as Gannon's backup. There was speculation that the Raiders would jettison the former MVP and his $7 million salary once they signed Collins, who at 31 is seven years Gannon's junior. Now, if Gannon were to lose his job but agree to restructure his contract, Oakland may be able to keep both. Raiders fans might agree that this potential quarterback controversy beats watching Marques Tuiasosopo, Rick Mirer, Rob Johnson, and Tee Martin quarterback their team . . . The Raiders signed Bobby Hamilton cheaply, as in a year at the minimum ($660,000). Guess sometimes it's just time to move on . . . Another former MVP quarterback, Kurt Warner, is expected to be gone from St. Louis and to the Giants by Wednesday or soon thereafter. Other notable post-June 1 cuts could include Broncos defensive tackle Daryl Gardener, Steelers linebacker Jason Gildon, Titans running back Eddie George, Jets quarterback Vinny Testaverde, and Redskins linebacker Jeremiah Trotter. Gildon, 31, has missed only two games in his 10-year career and none in the past seven seasons, and while he's lost a step (his sack total has dropped from 12 to nine to six the past three years) and can't cover, he could interest a 3-4 team (Patriots?) as a rare effective pass rusher from the left side. And if Bill Belichick wants to bring in a veteran quarterback to compete with Rohan Davey for the No. 2 job, Testaverde would be a logical signing. He'll be 41 this season, but Belichick and offensive coordinator Charlie Weis know him well from their days with the Browns and Jets. Davey, who has guided NFL Europe's Berlin Thunder to a berth in next month's World Bowl, was benched in favor of David Rivers before halftime of the Thunder's win over the Scottish Claymores yesterday, by the way . . . The scouts are scouted, too, and the Eagles obviously had their eye on Sean Gustus. Gustus joined the Patriots in May 2002 as a personnel assistant in the scouting department after graduating from Richmond University and barely two years later is Philadelphia's Northeast regional college scout. He was hired May 4 as part of a post-draft department shakeup in which the Eagles fired three scouts and their college scouting director. The Patriots "didn't have to grant permission to interview Sean, and we're grateful for that," said Tom Heckert, Eagles vice president of player personnel. "Sean knows that area, played in that area, and he was involved in scouting it for New England. We look at him as a young up-and-comer." Gustus, 25, follows Jason Licht, who last May left his position as Scott Pioli's assistant to become the Eagles' assistant director of player personnel and join Heckert, his former boss in Miami. Gustus was a high school teammate of Eagles running back Brian Westbrook and a quarterback at Richmond who ran the Patriots' scout team offense to help the defense prepare for mobile quarterbacks such as Daunte Culpepper, Donovan McNabb, and Kordell Stewart.
Exit poll
Don't expect Ty Law to leave the Patriots until 2005. People within the organization and around the league view the possibility of him being traded or released before this season as remote. It's unlikely the Patriots will cut Law after June 1 (thereby avoiding a $2.7 million cap acceleration) and get nothing but peace and $7.5 million in savings this year in return for one of the game's premier corners. It's also unlikely a team would trade a first- or second-round pick without meeting with Law and his agent and receiving assurances that a new deal can be reached, which isn't a given considering that Carl Poston represents three of the league's five "franchised" players. Said an AFC executive, "Ty Law is not tradeable right now." . . . Contacted last week, Richard Seymour's new agent, Eugene Parker, had no comment regarding negotiations with the Patriots on a new contract for his client, other than to say discussions had not gotten under way. Seymour has three years remaining on his rookie contract at relative bargain base salaries of $960,000, $1.12 million, and $1.22 million. The Patriots aren't obligated to give him the new deal he desires, and it will be interesting to see how this situation unfolds. Lawyer Milloy learned the hard way what happens when the team doesn't think the player is worth the money he's due contractually. But what happens when a player such as Seymour or Tom Brady has outperformed his contract? Are NFL economics a two-way street? . . . When he was Jacksonville's general manager, Michael Huyghue liked to get his rookies signed in June. That hasn't changed now that he's become an agent. Huyghue represents Patriots top pick Vince Wilfork, and while Huyghue and the Patriots have had only preliminary discussions, he expects talks to heat up as July approaches. "I believe we will [sign before camp]," Huyghue said. . . . The amount the Patriots have to spend on their draft picks and rookie free agents is $4,130,090. As of May 24, counting only the top 51 salaries, New England was about $1.3 million under the cap. The Patriots can get relief from Brady, as they did last year, by guaranteeing part of his $5.5 million base salary and prorating it as if it were a signing bonus. They can do the same with Willie McGinest's $1.845 million base and Rodney Harrison's $1.45 million. The way things stand, New England is going to have a tough enough time fitting its rookies under the cap, not to mention signing exclusive-rights free agents Tom Ashworth and David Givens. The bet here is Ashworth and Givens sign the minimum ($380,000) tender and become restricted free agents after next season. If given the lowest restricted tender, Givens would command a seventh-round pick as compensation and Ashworth none because he was undrafted . . . The camp competition for the fifth (and possibly sixth) receiver spot should be fierce. Givens, Deion Branch, Bethel Johnson, and Troy Brown are virtual locks, which leaves Chas Gessner, '01 playoff hero David Patten (who is working out at his home in South Carolina), fifth-round pick P.K. Sam, veteran J.J. Stokes, former Michigan star Marquise Walker, and free agents Michael Jennings and Ricky Bryant to vie for a place on the depth chart or the now eight-player practice squad. Brown was to count $5,146,434 against the cap this year. New England's improvement in any offensive category last season voided a $500,000 roster bonus, the team took $700,000 in incentives off its books by categorizing them "not likely to be earned," and, finally, the Patriots guaranteed $1.49 million of Brown's $2.25 million salary and added an option year for cap purposes. New England has to exercise its '05 option on Brown by the last day of the league year, but the odds of that happening are slim, as Brown carries a $5,751,160 cap number next season, when he'll be 34.
Feeling his pain
Corey Dillon had trouble getting out of bed during his first few days in the Patriots' offseason workout program. "I understand why this organization wins," Dillon said. "They work extremely hard. Hard. I mean hard. My first couple of days here, I was subject to call my agent and be like, `Man, what'd you get me into?' It's unbelievable. After that first day, I understood why they're Super Bowl champions. I understand. It's only going to make me better. I know one thing, I'm going to be stronger and faster this year. Guaranteed." Which guarantees even more punishment for anybody attempting to tackle the 6-foot-1-inch, 225 pound tank . . . Hannah & Friends, Weis's foundation for children and young adults with autism and global delays, held its first 
