Skins sign another name player.
ASHBURN, Va. -- The Washington Redskins agreed to contract terms with former Chicago Bears defensive end Phillip Daniels on Tuesday, the Associated Press has learned, giving the team three potential major player acquisitions even before the start of free agency.
Daniels was being flown to Washington in owner Dan Snyder's jet for a mid-afternoon arrival at Redskins Park and needed only to pass his physical before being signed, according to an NFL source who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Daniels is expected to join Jacksonville quarterback Mark Brunell and Denver running back Clinton Portis as new Redskins in an earlier-than-usual start to Snyder's offseason splash of signings.
A trade for Brunell has already been worked out, and the trade for Portis neared completion Tuesday, pending a contract agreement between the Broncos and Washington cornerback Champ Bailey. The Redskins tentatively plan to announce both trades after Brunell arrives on Wednesday, with Portis set to follow with his own news conference on Thursday.
Although free agency officially doesn't begin until Wednesday, the Redskins were able to sign Daniels because he was cut by the Bears on Monday. Chicago's move was long-expected, and the Bears had given the Redskins permission to negotiate with Daniels before his release.
Terms of Daniels' contract were not immediately available. The Redskins had no comment, and messages left for Daniels' agent were not immediately returned.
Daniels has played four seasons each with Seattle and Chicago, making 44½ sacks and 370 tackles over an eight-year career. He had 2½ sacks and 41 tackles and started all 16 games last season for the Bears, but his projected $3 million salary for 2004 made him an ideal salary-cap casualty as new coach Lovie Smith attempts to rebuild the team.
Brunell, Portis and Daniels are just the beginning for the Redskins. Washington acquired nine players in the first four days of free agency last season, and they just might find a way to top that this time around as they look to fill several holes from last year's 5-11 season.
Defensive linemen Jevon Kearse, Cornelius Griffin and Robaire Smith, cornerbacks Shawn Springs and Troy Vincent, tight end Walter Rasby and punter Chris Gardocki are among the players the Redskins are set to pursue when the market opens Wednesday morning.
Daniels is the first step in a needed overhaul of the defensive line. The defense ranked 24th against the run, and the top pass-rushing threat last season was 40-year-old Bruce Smith, who has since been released. Defensive end Renaldo Wynn could be the only starter who retains his job next season.
The Redskins plan to send four-time Pro Bowl cornerback Bailey and a second-round draft pick to the Broncos for Portis, who agreed to an eight-year, $50.5 million contract with Washington on Monday. The final step is for Denver to work out a contract with Bailey, and Bailey's agent said that deal could be "wrapped up quickly" after resolving a few details.
A third-round pick will be the price for Brunell, who agreed to a seven-year, $43 million contract with the Redskins two weeks ago. The flurry of activity, added to deals made in previous years, has left Washington with just two selections -- in the first and fifth rounds -- in this year's draft.
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