PRO FOOTBALL DAILY REPORT : AFC : Jaguars Cut Givins, James Williams

Ernest Givins signed with Jacksonville intent on reviving his career and garnering votes for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Instead, he didn’t even make it through a season with the expansion team.

Givins, the leading receiver in Houston Oiler history, was released by the Jaguars, the team he signed with as a free agent on June 2. Also cut was linebacker James Williams.

Givins, who was in his 10th season, fell out of favor with Jaguar Coach Tom Coughlin early in the season after saying it was “like a slap in the face” when he was forced to share playing time with several other receivers.

The team was off Tuesday and Givins could not immediately be reached for comment at his Jacksonville home, but he seemed to indicate last week he knew his days with the Jaguars were numbered.

“I’m just going to go out and play as much as I possibly can,” he said before a 31-23 loss to Denver last Sunday in which he caught only one pass for 18 yards. “I know I can still play the game, but I don’t make that call. That’s in the eyes of the beholder.”

Williams, 27, was taken by the Jaguars in the expansion draft. He spent the last five seasons with the New Orleans Saints and played in 12 of the Jaguars’ 13 games this season, ranking fourth on the team with 79 tackles.

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With two defensive ends hobbling on sprained ankles, the San Diego Chargers brought back Burt Grossman, a former first-round draft choice who hasn’t played all season.

General Manager Bobby Beathard said Grossman, 28, appears to be in good shape. He was the final player released by the San Francisco 49ers during the exhibition season.

Beathard said that Grossman, San Diego’s first-round draft pick in 1989, spoke with someone in the Chargers’ organization about a month ago and said he misses football and wanted to come back.

Left defensive end Chris Mims, who replaced the injured Grossman during the 1993 season, and backup Ray Lee Johnson both sprained ankles in Sunday’s 31-13 victory over the Cleveland Browns. Both are questionable for Saturday’s home game against the Arizona Cardinals.

To make room for Grossman the Chargers released defensive tackle Sebastian Barrie, who was forced into duty at end on Sunday.