Wannstedt Admits Mistake, Cuts Huerta

Dave Wannstedt, coach of the Chicago Bears, admits it: He messed up by picking Carlos Huerta to be the team’s kicker.

“If you keep your mistake, then you’re making two mistakes. So eliminate it and move forward,” Wannstedt said Monday, when he cut Huerta in favor of former NFL scoring leader Jeff Jaeger.

Huerta missed three of seven field-goal attempts, one in each game. His botched 44-yard attempt against Minnesota on Sunday prevented the Bears from taking a 17-14 fourth-quarter lead.

That failure made it easy to cut Huerta--even though Wannstedt looked foolish for deciding at the end of training camp to keep Huerta over longtime Bear kicker Kevin Butler.

Jaeger, 31, agreed to terms on a one-year contract, which he planned to sign today after passing a physical exam.

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Nate Odomes, a two-time Pro Bowl cornerback, signed a one-year contract with the Atlanta Falcons.

To make room for Odomes, the Falcons waived eight-year veteran cornerback D.J. Johnson.

Odomes, a Pro Bowl pick for Buffalo in 1992 and 1993, sat out the past two seasons with the Seattle Seahawks because of knee injuries.

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Tom Lovat, offensive line coach for the Green Bay Packers, tore a knee ligament when he was hit by a San Diego Charger player on the sideline.

Lovat, 57, was talking to his linemen in front of the Packer bench in the second quarter of Green Bay’s 42-10 victory Sunday when an unidentified player hit him from behind.

Lovat is the second Packer coach to be injured during a game in the last nine months. Receivers coach Gil Haskell sustained a fractured skull and brain contusion when he was hit on the sideline during the NFC championship at Texas Stadium on Jan. 14.

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Carolina quarterback Kerry Collins resumed light jogging and threw a few passes, raising the Panthers’ hopes that he will be able to play Sunday against San Francisco.

Collins, who sprained his left knee late in the Panthers’ victory at New Orleans on Sept. 8, did not practice during Carolina’s week off.

If Collins can’t play, the starter will be Steve Beuerlein, who signed with Carolina in the off-season as an unrestricted free agent.

Wide receiver Raghib Ismail, who has been hampered by an ankle sprain since the Panthers acquired him in a trade with the Oakland Raiders late last month, was cleared to go full speed.