AFC

Dave Szott and Chester McGlockton, Kansas City’s best offensive lineman and highest-paid defender, could sit out more than half the season as bad luck keeps hammering the Kansas City Chiefs.

Szott, an all-pro left guard, said Tuesday that doctors fear he may have a torn tendon in his left arm from Sunday’s victory over the Oakland Raiders.

McGlockton, a four-time Pro Bowl performer with Oakland who signed a five-year, $30-million contract with the Chiefs, underwent back surgery over the weekend. Coach Marty Schottenheimer, in his first public speculation on the matter, said Tuesday he hopes the 330-pound defensive tackle can return to practice around Nov. 1.

Quarterback Elvis Grbac is expected to miss 2-3 weeks because of a shoulder injury. Defensive end John Browning probably will be sidelined a second consecutive game Sunday, and starting wide receivers Andre Rison and Derrick Alexander are still slowed.

Rich Gannon will replace Grbac.

Veteran backup Pellom McDaniels has replaced McGlockton and rookie tackle Victor Riley, a first-round draft pick out of Auburn, will replace Szott at left guard.

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In an odd twist one game into the season, Frank Novak resigned as special teams coach of the San Diego Chargers rather than work side-by-side with consultant Wayne Sevier.

So the Chargers gave Novak’s job to Sevier, who coached special teams in the NFL for 20 years and is with San Diego for the third time.

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Unlucky offensive lineman Scott Brumfield became a free agent after agreeing to an injury settlement offered by the Cincinnati Bengals.

Brumfield, 28, played last year after overcoming a serious neck injury, but he partially tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee on the first day of training camp in July.

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Jacksonville Jaguar defensive end Jeff Lageman will undergo surgery to repair a torn right biceps muscle and could miss the rest of the season, the team said.

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Veteran Erik Norgard apparently needs reconstructive shoulder surgery and may be lost for the season, Tennessee Oiler Coach Jeff Fisher said.

Norgard, the Oilers’ backup center who started Sunday’s game at Cincinnati because of an injury to starter Mark Stepnoski, sprained his shoulder in the second quarter. He had arthroscopic surgery Tuesday.

Stepnoski is expected to miss at least one more game after having arthroscopic surgery on his right knee Monday.

Rookie Kevin Long is likely to start at center this week.

NFC / Saints’ Johnson Signs $22-Million Deal

A week after ending a holdout in return for a $3-million tender offer, defensive end Joe Johnson signed a five-year, $22-million contract with the New Orleans Saints.

The contract includes incentives that could boost the value as high as $26 million, and could allow Johnson to void the fifth year, said Saint salary-cap consultant Terry O’Neil.

Johnson, 25, had a career-high 8 1/2 sacks last season. He can earn a $1-million bonus any season in which he gets nine sacks. He also can void the fifth year if he has a combined 42 sacks, fumbles caused, fumbles recovered and touchdowns.

In other moves, Saint President Bill Kuharich said the team is trying to sign veteran quarterback Billy Joe Tolliver as a replacement for Billy Joe Hobert, lost for the season because of a ruptured right Achilles’ tendon in Sunday’s victory over St. Louis. Second-year backup quarterback Danny Wuerffel will start against the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.

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The Washington Redskins might give themselves an insurance policy at quarterback by signing Pat Barnes to their five-member practice squad.

Trent Green was named the starting quarterback for Monday night’s home opener against the San Francisco 49ers. But demoted starter Gus Frerotte (sprained and bruised left shoulder) and veteran Jeff Hostetler (knee) are nursing injuries.

Barnes, a fourth-round pick from California in 1997, was cut by the Chiefs this summer.