Jaguars’ Injuries Mount

The nightmare on the offensive line continued for the Jacksonville Jaguars on Wednesday when their only healthy starting veteran, center John Wade, was diagnosed with a stress fracture in his right foot.

The injury will keep him out at least three weeks and is yet another piece of amazingly bad luck for the Jaguar line.

“I don’t think the term is ‘beat up,’ ” Coach Tom Coughlin said. “I think there are various injuries, all different kinds, in all different areas, some of which have been flukes. But there are people worse off than that, so we just keep going, and do the best we can with it.”

It’s hard to imagine who, exactly, is worse off than the Jaguars’ line.

When Jacksonville plays Carolina in its exhibition opener Friday, Wade will be replaced by Quentin Neujahr, a sixth-year veteran who was moved to a strictly backup role last season after a series of neck injuries.

Surrounding Neujahr will be:

* Right tackle Anthony Cesario, a second-year player who didn’t take a snap last season.

* Right guard David Kempfert, who has spent the last three seasons on and off a handful of NFL practice squads.

* Left guard Brad Meester, this year’s second-round draft pick.

* Left tackle Steve Ingram, a fifth-year veteran with experience in eight NFL games.

Needless to say, quarterback Mark Brunell will play sparingly, if at all. And he probably won’t throw much.

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Center Mark Gruttadauria, the Arizona Cardinals’ main off-season free-agent acquisition, underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee and will be sidelined at least four weeks.

Gruttadauria, who started last season for the Super Bowl champion St. Louis Rams, might not be ready for Arizona’s season opener at the New York Giants on Sept. 3.

Backup Mike Devlin of Iowa will move into the starting spot until Gruttadauria returns.

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The Green Bay Packers, wanting residents of their home county to vote for a tax increase aimed at funding renovations to its stadium, said 40,000 hard-to-get game tickets would be handed off exclusively to county residents.

The move will go over big with Packer fans, who fight tooth and nail for hard-to-get tickets that are held primarily by season-ticket holders.

Packer President Bob Harlan announced that 40,000 single-game tickets would only be sold to residents of Brown County, Wisconsin, who will vote Sept. 12 on whether to raise the county’s sales tax by 0.5% to pay off $160 million of bonds for the stadium project.

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Rookie safety Deon Grant of the Carolina Panthers will have to remain immobile for at least two months because of his broken hip.

The second-round draft choice, competing for the Panther starting free safety spot, was hurt last week during a practice against Detroit.

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Denver defensive tackle Trevor Pryce will report to training camp Friday after a two-week holdout.

Pryce, in the fourth year of a five-year $4.9 million contract, was seeking a new deal because he is the lowest-paid starter on Denver’s defensive line.

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San Diego quarterback Ryan Leaf practiced a day after missing Tuesday’s workout because of pain in his surgically repaired throwing shoulder. Leaf hopes to play in Saturday’s exhibition opener at San Francisco.

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All-Pro defensive end Robert Porcher agreed to a one-year tender offer of $4.253 million with Detroit, ending a holdout that lasted nearly six months. . . . Cornerback Todd Lyght agreed to accept the St. Louis Rams’ one-year tender offer as a transition player and reported to camp. Lyght, who held out in hopes of getting a long-term deal, will make $4.042 million. . . . Offensive lineman Will Shields, designated as Kansas City’s franchise player, accepted the Chiefs’ tender offer of a one-year, $4.1-million contract. Shields will earn the average salary of the NFL’s five highest-paid offensive lineman based on 1999 salaries. . . . Oakland Raider tight end Rickey Dudley will not play in the exhibition opener at St. Louis because he is recovering from back surgery, the team said.