Colts punter Hunter Smith apologized Wednesday for adding fuel to a growing trash-talking rivalry between Indianapolis and Jacksonville.

After Indy beat Jacksonville 21-14 on Sunday, Smith likened the Jaguars to a standup comic who uses vulgarity and lacks class.

Smith said what set him off were the personal fouls called against the Jaguars. It was the second straight games between the AFC South foes in which Jacksonville drew multiple penalties for personal fouls.

``As football players, I think it's our responsibility to be models of sportsmanship and on-field integrity to everyone, especially to kids,'' Smith said. ``I get frustrated when I don't see that. We have issues of that on the Colts and it's on every team. I apologize for saying that, it was an off-the-cuff statement.''

On Monday, Jags coach Jack Del Rio reportedly responded by criticizing the Colts for illegally vaulting on field goals and having defensive linemen club offensive linemen in the head.

Coach Tony Dungy said he was told earlier this season that the Colts strategy on field goals was legal, but was informed this week it was not.

Dungy also met with Smith and told reporters he was disappointed with Smith's comments.

``I encourage our players to speak and to say what's on their mind,'' Dungy said. ``But I don't like our guys to talk about other teams.''

It's not the first time a Colts' kicker has gotten in trouble with his mouth.

After Indy lost 41-0 to the New York Jets in the 2002 playoffs, Mike Vanderjagt criticized quarterback Peyton Manning and Dungy on a Canadian sports cable network.

Smith, apparently, hadn't forgotten that incident.

``First of all, I think Peyton's a great quarterback and Tony's a great coach,'' he said. ``But football is an emotional game. Basically, my whole beef is with unsportsmanlike conduct. I have the utmost respect for the Jacksonville Jaguars and Jack Del Rio.''Lions

The Lions cut wide receiver Corey Bradford and filled his spot on the roster with tackle Blaine Saipaia to help their banged-up offensive line.

Bradford was signed in March as a free agent to a $7.4 million, four-year contract, which included a $2 million signing bonus. The Lions thought he would be a solid veteran to complement their young receiving corps.

The nine-year veteran started in the season opener and had three catches for 36 yards, then did not make a catch as a reserve in the next two games.

Bradford, who previously played for Houston and Green Bay, has made 204 receptions for 3,218 yards and 25 touchdowns.

Saipaia played 17 games for the Rams the past two years, when Detroit offensive coordinator Mike Martz was their coach. He might play soon because offensive linemen Rex Tucker, Barry Stokes and Ross Verba have been slowed by injuries.Panthers

Linebacker Dan Morgan and tight end Mike Seidman won't play Sunday against New Orleans.

Morgan hasn't played since suffering at least the fifth concussion of his career in the season opener against Atlanta. Seidman hurt his knee in last Sunday's win over Tampa Bay.

Coach John Fox said there is no target date for Morgan's return.

``He seems to be doing fine,'' Fox said. ``He's working out. He's in meetings. He's doing everything that all the other guys are doing.''

The Panthers also are banged up on the offensive line. Center Justin Hartwig, who has missed the past two games with a groin injury, did not practice Wednesday and is questionable. Tackle Todd Fordham also missed practice and is questionable with a shoulder injury.

Safety Shaun Williams rode a stationary bike and did some agility drills. He missed the Tampa Bay game with a right foot injury and also is questionable for New Orleans.Vikings

Minnesota signed quarterback Drew Henson to the practice squad Wednesday, adding another arm while rookie Tarvaris Jackson recovers from injury.

Henson, a former Michigan starter who spent three seasons playing professional baseball, signed an eight-year deal with Dallas in 2003 that included $3.5 million guaranteed, but he never got his NFL career going.

He started only one game, in 2004 filling in for the injured Vinny Testaverde before Testaverde took over after halftime.

Guard C.J. Brooks was cut from the practice squad to make room for Henson, who was released by the Cowboys in late August.Jets

Wide receiver Laveranues Coles is questionable for the game against Indianapolis on Sunday with an unspecified calf injury. Coles was questionable and limited in 11-on-11 team drills last week with the same injury, but played against Buffalo and had a game-high 10 catches for 78 yards in the 28-20 win.

Safety Kerry Rhodes, the AFC's defensive player of the week after having 10 tackles and two strip sacks against Buffalo, was also questionable with a thigh injury.

The Jets signed veteran fullback James Hodgins and linebackers Cody Spencer and Ryan Riddle. The team also waived linebacker/defensive end Trevor Johnson, linebacker Ryan Myers and offensive lineman Norm Katnik.

Hodgins, released on Sept. 2 after three seasons with the Cardinals, spent his first four NFL seasons with St. Louis. Primarily used as a blocking back and on special teams, Hodgins has just 31 yards rushing and a touchdown, and 35 catches for 169 yards and three scores.

Spencer, entering his third season, was a sixth-round pick by Oakland in 2004 out of North Texas and has played in 23 NFL games. He led Tennessee with 21 special-teams tackles last season.

Riddle, a sixth-round pick of Oakland last year, had seven tackles in 12 games with the Raiders, mostly on special teams.Patriots

Tom Brady is worried more about his play than his body language.

The quarterback has gotten off to a slow start as he adjusts to the loss of David Givens and Deion Branch, his two top receivers from last season. With his numbers down and his frustration level rising, Brady has found his on-field demeanor being scrutinized by media and fans.

In Sunday night's 17-7 loss to the Denver Broncos, Brady screamed at officials from the sideline, hung his head after three-and-outs and lay facedown on the field for several moments after his last-gasp, fourth-down throw fell incomplete.

``I guess that's something that's been brought up quite a bit,'' Brady said. ``I think I can be an emotional person, as you guys have always seen. It's just poor performance by our offense, and I feel like I'm the leader of that.

``Go watch the film,'' said Brady, who threw for 320 yards against the Broncos but attempted a career-high tying 55 passes. ``It was certainly not the receivers' performance as to why the passing game wasn't great this past weekend.''

The Patriots (2-1) are only 18th in scoring and have been serenaded with boos in both home games. They play at unbeaten Cincinnati on Sunday.Broncos

Denver's biggest concern heading into the bye week isn't the revamped offense, which is finally starting to click thanks to Javon Walker and Tatum Bell. Nor is it the dominant defense, which held opponents out of the end zone for 11 quarters, the longest streak to start a season in the NFL in 64 years.

It's the dismal special teams.

``Pretty average, pretty average,'' is how coach Mike Shanahan assessed it. ``It's an area that we need to improve on.''

Actually, Shanahan's being generous. The Broncos rank next to last with an average kickoff return of 20.5 yards, better than only San Diego. Darrent Williams ranks dead last in punt returns, averaging less than a yard on four returns. He was nearly stopped for a safety after fielding a punt near his end zone at New England.Giants

Starting linebacker Carlos Emmons will miss three weeks with a slightly torn muscle in his chest. The Giants have a bye this week so Emmons may only miss two games with the left-side tear. The 33-year-old missed three games last season with a tear on the right side of his pectoral muscle.

Rookie Gerris Wilkinson, the third-round draft pick, and veteran Brandon Short, inactive for the first three games, are in line to replace Emmons, who was hurt last Sunday at Seattle. Wilkinson replaced Emmons in the game and had five tackles.Titans

Six straight losses and a 9-26 record since his last playoff game prompted some fans to start a Web site calling for coach Jeff Fisher's firing.

The Web site is called www.firecoachfisher.com and sells T-shirts asking owner Bud Adams to get rid of the longest-tenured coach in team history.

Fisher said Wednesday that he thought it was funny.

``I was looking into that MySpace.com, and somebody did it for me. I think that was pretty cool,'' Fisher said.

Web sites calling for the coach's firing are a fact of life in college football. The Web site www.firecoachfisher.com features four T-shirts for sale with the message ``Hey Bud, Fire Coach Fisher.'' The site had 8,095 visits Wednesday afternoon, with 22 shirts sold, and the goal is to sell a shirt to every fan attending Sunday's game against the Dallas Cowboys (1-1).

The site points out that Fisher is winless since Dec. 11. The six-game skid is his longest since taking over as coach in November 1994.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.