Two players among four missing at sea
nfl
The Coast Guard searched off Florida's Gulf Coast yesterday for a fishing boat carrying NFL players Corey Smith and Marquis Cooper and two other men missing more than a day in choppy seas. Smith, a defensive end for the Detroit Lions, and Cooper, an Oakland Raiders linebacker, were on a 21-foot vessel that left Clearwater Pass for a fishing trip Saturday morning and did not return as expected, the Coast Guard said. Crews used a helicopter and an 87-foot ship to search a 750-square-mile area west of Clearwater Pass, but poor weather made the search difficult. Officials did not receive a distress signal from the missing craft. Cooper, 26, owns the boat, and he and Smith, 29, have been on fishing trips before, said Ron Del Duca, Smith's agent. The pair had been teammates on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2004. Two others were aboard: Will Bleakley and Nick Schuyler, both former University of South Florida players. Coast Guard Capt. Timothy M. Close said the weather early Saturday had been fair but worsened toward the evening as a front still battering the area moved in.
Giants: : The team signed defensive tackle Rocky Bernard, a former Seahawk, and defensive end Chris Canty, a former Cowboy. Bernard signed what is believed to be a four-year, $16 million deal late Saturday, hours after the Giants signed former Falcons linebacker Michael Boley. Canty received a six-year, $42 million deal, the Associated Press reported.
Et cetera: : The Seahawks and defensive tackle Colin Cole, a former Packer, agreed to a five-year, $21.4 million contract. ... The Jets and fullback Tony Richardson agreed on a one-year deal. ... Former Lions quarterback Dan Orlovsky signed with the Texans to back up Matt Schaub.
Caps booed at home, fall, 6-2, to Panthers
nhl
Stephen Weiss, Bryan McCabe and Jay Bouwmeester scored power-play goals in the first period for the visiting Florida Panthers, who held Alex Ovechkin without a point until the final minute in a 6-2 victory over the Southeast Division-leading Washington Capitals. McCabe finished with three assists, and Weiss had two. The Panthers scored four times in the opening period. The Capitals - coming off a rousing overtime road win Saturday over the Eastern Conference-leading Boston Bruins - heard boos in their own building and pulled starting goalie Jose Theodore. Florida turned things around one day after a 7-2 loss to the host New Jersey Devils. "I can't sugarcoat it," Washington coach Bruce Boudreau said. "We weren't very good." Ovechkin scored his NHL-high 46th goal with less than 30 seconds left.
