The Patriots continued to supplement a secondary that lost cornerbacks Asante Samuel and Randall Gay to free agency, announcing the signings of cornerback Lewis Sanders and safety Tank Williams yesterday.
Sanders, who played for the Atlanta Falcons last season, is an eight-year NFL veteran. He projects to compete with Jason Webster, who was signed Tuesday, at nickel corner.
The 29-year-old Sanders played 14 games, starting the first six, for Atlanta, which released him Feb. 15. He finished with 32 tackles and two passes defended. The 6-foot-1-inch, 210-pounder has played in 87 career games with 25 starts, also suiting up for the Cleveland Browns (2000-04) and the Houston Texans (2005-06). He has five career interceptions.
Sanders, who was in for a visit yesterday, has a connection to the Patriots' coaching staff. He played one season for special assistant/secondary coach Dom Capers, who was the coach of the Texans from 2001-05.
"I think Lewis will probably be able to come in and help them at the nickel and, if needed, get a few starts," said Kevin Pompey, Sanders's agent. "I don't know if they see him as a No. 2 corner. They definitely see him as a quality guy to play nickel and dime [coverage] and because of his size, maybe also play some safety. They see him as a guy to add depth and play special teams as well."
One potential issue with Sanders is durability. He has ended the last two seasons on injured reserve. The Falcons placed Sanders, who also sat out the 2001 season with a leg injury, on IR with a torn right pectoral muscle Dec. 17, and in 2006 he played nine games before a hand injury ended his season.
However, Pompey said Sanders is fully healthy.
"He's fine. If he was playing on a team headed to the playoffs last season, he could have finished the season."
The signing of Williams, who played in 13 games with the Minnesota Vikings last season, making two starts and recording 18 tackles, was made official yesterday. When healthy, Williams, a six-year veteran, has been a productive player. He sat out the 2006 season after fracturing his left knee cap during training camp with the Vikings. He tore his anterior cruciate ligament in the same knee in 2004, but he bounced back to record a career-high 83 tackles for the Tennessee Titans in 2005.
The 6-2, 223-pound safety started all 57 games he played for Tennessee, which selected him in the second round of the 2002 draft out of Stanford.
The 27-year-old Williams has played in 70 career games, starting 59, and has recorded 303 career tackles, 4.5 sacks, 5 interceptions, 27 passes defensed, 4 forced fumbles, and 3 fumble recoveries. He also has blocked two field goals.
Seward visits
The Patriots hosted Carolina Panthers restricted free agent linebacker Adam Seward yesterday.Seward, who played middle linebacker and outside linebacker in Carolina's 4-3 defense, but played middle in the 3-4 in college, would bolster New England's depth at inside linebacker, which already got a boost from Tedy Bruschi's decision to return for a 13th season.
A three-year veteran, the 6-2, 248-pound Seward has been a special teams player and backup linebacker for Carolina. He played in 11 games last season and had 11 tackles. He missed five games with a calf injury. In his career, he has played in 31 games with two starts and has been credited with 41 tackles.
Seward, 25, was selected by the Panthers in the fifth round of the 2005 draft. He played in four games as a rookie before he was forced to go on injured reserve with a stress fracture in his right foot, an injury suffered at the University of Nevada Las Vegas.
If the Patriots extended an offer to Seward, the Panthers, who gave Seward the low restricted free agent tender of $927,000, would have the right to match. If they declined, the Patriots will have to surrender a fifth-round pick.
Raise and shine
Five Patriots earned a pay raise for the 2008 season based on escalators in their contracts, according to NFL Players Association figures. Cornerback Ellis Hobbs, tight end Benjamin Watson, safety James Sanders, right tackle Nick Kaczur, and nose tackle Vince Wilfork all boosted their base pay.Hobbs, who was slated to make $520,000, but will have a base salary of $1.46 million in 2008, earned the largest increase, $940,000. Kaczur, who will make $1.26 million, earned a $740,000 bump. Wilfork, who made his first Pro Bowl, doubled his 2008 salary from $700,000 to $1.4 million. Sanders went from $520,000 to $927,000, and Watson, who will carry a base salary of $785,000, garnered an additional $125,000.
Mike Reiss of the Globe Staff contributed to this report.
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