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The document, from its five-paragraph preamble all the way to the final "worker's compensation" listing in the index, covers 292 pages.

In the NFL collective bargaining agreement, essentially the treaty which brokered labor peace between the league and its players in 1993, there are 61 articles, appendices from "A" through "N" and 357 sections. There is an introduction, countless subsections, and tens of thousands of words. There are painstakingly minute details about the salary cap, precise guidelines on severance pay, ponderous sections on arbitration, collusion, injury grievance procedures, moving and travel expenses and fringe benefits.

What there isn't in the collective bargaining agreement, however, is any explicit language regarding the NFL's rules for draft eligibility.

And for the NFL, that could make it more difficult to defend those rules in court, should erstwhile Ohio State tailback Maurice Clarett file suit in an attempt to force his way into the league. Yeah, we know, we're sick of the daily Clarett stories as well. But get used to them, because there are more coming.

Make no mistake about it: While those who are advising Clarett keep talking about his possible transfer, most high-ranking league officials expect his next move to be made in a legal brief and not in NCAA waiver papers, releasing him from his Buckeyes scholarship.

The league's high-powered attorneys are already preparing for the potential assault on the NFL's ability to maintain the college playing fields as a quasi-minor league system. And commissioner Paul Tagliabue has reiterated the NFL will vigorously defend it rules that a player must be three years removed from high school graduation to petition for inclusion in the draft.

But you've got to wonder why the league and the NFL Players Association, which pored over every word and closely scrutinized every comma when negotiating the CBA, failed to include the draft guidelines in the document. Heck, even Harold Henderson, the NFL's vice president of labor relations, wonders why the language isn't in the CBA.

The answer seems to be more a case of oversight than a lack of foresight.

"I know that we agree on (the draft eligibility rules)," Henderson told ESPN.com before the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Philadelphia Eagles game on Monday night at sparkling new Lincoln Financial Field. "Why it didn't get into the CBA, well, I don't know. I certainly wish it was in there."

Henderson is one of the league's good guys and his candor, and patience in explaining elements to those of us who are not labor attorneys, is always appreciated. He allowed on Monday night that he was surprised no one had previously asked him, particularly in the wake of the Clarett situation, why the draft eligibility rules weren't in black and white. And he was legitimately perplexed that they are not an explicit part of the CBA, instead of just floating around nebulously, aching to be challenged by some kid who feels that he has nowhere else to turn to continue his football career.

	Side Lines
	On-Line So how about the matchup of Cleveland left defensive end Courtney Brown and Baltimore right offensive tackle Orlando "Zeus" Brown for one to watch on Sunday, huh? To the best knowledge of both players, they are not blood relatives, although both have served time playing for (who else?) the Browns. Orlando Brown returned last week to play 50 of 79 snaps in his comeback from a three-season hiatus, an absence precipitated by the eye injury that he incurred when referee Jeff Triplette inadvertently hit him in 1999 with a penalty flag that was weighted down with pellets. There are some cynics who would contend that Courtney Brown, the first overall prospect chosen in the 2000 draft, has been missing in action as well over the past three years. To suggest the former Penn State star has been a bust to this point in his career would be gross understatement. But the Cleveland coaches have moved Courtney Brown to the left side this season, where his skills defending the run are better served, and he actually posted a sack in last week's loss to the Indianapolis Colts. Ravens coach Brian Billick has mandated his team run the ball better this weekend than it did in the opening-game defeat at Pittsburgh, so that should mean plenty of Brown-on-Brown battles.
	The List The Cincinnati Bengals go on the road to face the Raiders this weekend and are 0-8 in Oakland. The Raiders have an 11.8-point average victory margin in those eight games, have scored 30 or more points six times and never been held under 27 points. Here's a litany of the Bengals' woes in Oakland:
	Year	Score
	1998	Raiders 27, Bengals 10
	1980	Raiders 28, Bengals 17
	1976	Raiders 35, Bengals 20
	1975	Raiders 31, Bengals 28
	1974	Raiders 30, Bengals 27
	1971	Raiders 31, Bengals 27
	1969	Raiders 37, Bengals 17
	1968	Raiders 31, Bengals 0
	Stat of the Week After the first weekend of play, Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Tommy Maddox is the league's top-ranked passer, with an efficiency rating of 134.3. As noted last week in many reports, Maddox is the league's lowest-paid quarterback, with 2003 compensation of just $725,000. So maybe it is time for a raise. The combined 2003 compensation of Kyle Boller (Baltimore), Kordell Stewart (Chicago), Jake Plummer (Denver), Peyton Manning (Indianapolis), Kelly Holcomb (Cleveland), Rodney Peete (Carolina), Brett Favre (Green Bay), Tom Brady (New England) and Donovan McNabb (Philadelphia) is $41.42 million. The average passer rating for those nine quarterbacks through one week of the regular season is just 40.3, less than one-third of Maddox' rating.
	Stat of the Weak In just his fifth season, San Francisco quarterback Jeff Garcia has a career passer rating of 89.8, fourth-best in NFL history. His ratio of 97 touchdown passes to just 44 interceptions is the best in league annals. But the gaudy numbers mean little when Garcia goes on the road to St. Louis, where he has struggled mightily at the Edward Jones (nee Trans World) Dome. In four games at St. Louis, he has completed only 58 of 109 passes for 685 yards, with three touchdown passes, seven interceptions and a passer efficiency rating of 54.9. Take away those four road games versus the Rams and Garcia's rating against everyone else in the league is 92.2.
	The Last Word Belichick New England coach Bill Belichick on any residual effects from the Patriots' 31-0 loss at Buffalo in the opener: "We had the autopsy. We're past it. How many times can you pump bullets into a dead body?"

In a broad sense, Henderson explained, the draft rules are implicitly covered. "Agreed to by reference" was the term Henderson employed. Translation: The CBA stipulates that, if the league and NFLPA executive director Gene Upshaw are in tacit agreement, that item is, rather flimsily it seems, essentially covered. And Upshaw, who did not return a request to be interviewed, has already said the NFLPA is in concert with the draft rules.

But being in agreement, and being delineated in the CBA, might be two different things in the eyes of a judge. Suffice it to say -- and many labor attorneys have, indeed, said it -- the league would be on much firmer ground were its rules committed to language in the collective bargaining agreement. Because they aren't, it could cost the league millions to defend rules much saner than all the eligibility guidelines that exist in other professional sports. And it could eventually, in theory, open up the league to any 18-year-old who feels he is ready to compete at the highest level of competition.

As Henderson pointed out, even if the draft rules were included in the CBA, it would not necessarily make for a legal slam-dunk for the league. "If putting it in (the CBA) made it an open-and-shut case, hey, we'd close the loophole right now," Henderson said. "We'd have taken care of it."

But companies and unions -- and the NFLPA is the exclusive bargaining agent for the league's rank and file -- have a right to collectively bargain hiring practices and guidelines for such. In most cases, for instance, you can't just stroll in off the street, grab a welder's torch and begin constructing an automobile frame. There is an apprenticeship to be served in most skilled crafts and the rules for those are collectively bargained. Those rules might not be ironclad, but they are made more difficult to challenge if committed to language.

The fact the NFL's draft eligibility rules aren't included in the CBA makes the task of league attorneys considerably more difficult in front of any judge. And the key oversight certainly means some crafty labor attorney is telling Clarett and his family that the NFL is vulnerable to a challenge.

Around the league

Paul Tagliabue used one of his favorite forums, The Washington Post, to float his trial balloon about perhaps reducing the number of preseason games and lengthening the regular season. But even the commissioner acknowledged a "pretty large majority" of teams are in favor of maintaining the status quo and, if a straw poll of NFL owners is any kind of indication, the trial balloon might be nothing more than a lead balloon for now. In the past week, ESPN.com spoke with seven owners and only one seemed much interested in altering the current scheduling formula. And, really, think about what Tagliabue said in suggesting there could be a change. Basically, he said that he was "strongly considering" whether to broach the subject. Translation: He is considering whether to consider it. That is a far cry from appointing a committee, although that's always a league mechanism for kicking off anything, and actually initiating serious discussion about it. There is a league meeting next month in Chicago and the topic will be at least casually addressed. But the NFL is a long way from moving the subject to the front burner. Even NFLPA executive director Gene Upshaw, who favors shortening the preseason but will seek bigger salaries if the regular season is stretched out, was surprised Tagliabue brought the issue to light. "I was a little bit surprised that he mentioned it, only because we had said that we wanted to study it first, and keep it low-key. (We wanted) to make sure there's something there before we talk about it. Because the worst thing that can happen is to (go public) and then not do anything about it." Look for the issue to become really hot when the league nears the end of its current television contracts, which expire after the 2005 season. The NFL will need to dangle something out of the ordinary to keep rights fees on the rise. Beyond the possibility of a franchise in Los Angeles, and more prime time games, an expanded season is about the only other carrot Tagliabue has in his bag of tricks. But there are a lot of hoops that need to be jumped through before any of this is more than just posturing. Even in the few days since the Post story, some of the commissioner's minions have squeezed some of the air from the trial balloon by privately suggesting it is still in the very nebulous stages.

Buffalo Bills president/general manager Tom Donahoe is credited with rebuilding a roster than was definitely in decline when he arrived. But two things Donahoe doesn't get nearly enough credit for are his excellent handling of the salary cap and his relationship with Bills owner Ralph Wilson. The second of those items first: Donahoe has included the octogenarian owner in every big personnel move the team has made since he arrived. Now, to some people, that might not seem like much. Donahoe realized early on, though, that the team is operated on Wilson's money, and felt duly compelled to counsel with him on every big-ticket item. The first call Donahoe made last week, upon learning that New England had released safety Lawyer Milloy, was to Wilson. "I've got a blockbuster for you," Donahoe told Wilson, before suggesting the Bills pursue the four-time Pro Bowl defender. And the owner's response. "He said, 'Let's do it,' pretty much like he always does," Donahoe recalled. Having the trust of an owner, keeping him a part of the action, should not be overlooked at the NFL level. It's not surprising Donahoe, who possesses great respect for Wilson and played point man in attempting to get the Bills owner into the Hall of Fame last winter, is adept at a sometimes lost art. When Bill Polian was the general manager of the Bills, it got to the point where he viewed the team as his domain, and cut Wilson off from football matters. The stance eventually earned him a pink slip. The late John Butler viewed dealing with Wilson as a necessary evil. Donahoe sees it as part of his job description and, in doing so, it has hastened the Bills' rebuilding process. The success Donahoe has experienced in handling the cap is a bit more surprising, since it involves numbers, more than it does people. Donahoe was never involved in cap issues when he was the Pittsburgh Steelers director of football operations. But he is a quick study and, with the able assistance and numbers-crunching acumen of vice president Jim Overdorf, quickly whittled down the cap excesses of the past. That, in part, was why the Bills could afford a $7 million layout to Milloy just days before the season opener. The upshot: Known primarily as a savvy talent scout during his Pittsburgh tenure, Donahoe has expeditiously mastered the other facets of operating a franchise.

We're not going to join the debate over whether St. Louis coach Mike Martz or team physician Bernard Garfinkel should have known quarterback Kurt Warner had sustained a concussion last Sunday afternoon. Suffice it to say that someone should have noticed that the quarterback, who has grown shakier in the pocket each of the past three seasons, was not right. But both notable, and laudable, is that the NFL Players Association has received tapes from the game and has its medical advisors studying them. The union is justifiably upset that no one perceived Warner was having a major problem, was taking a beating, and could protect neither himself nor the football. Take this to the bank: We've not heard the last of the incident.

Now that Clinton Portis has switched agents, and retained Drew Rosenhaus, look for the Denver Broncos star tailback and his new representation to push hard for some sort of contract accommodation following this season. Rosenhaus huddled up this week with Denver general manager Ted Sundquist, laying the foundation for contract discussions down the road. Rosenhaus won't force the issue. He is a master of timing and knows he has little leverage on an original four-year deal that still has three years remaining. But if Portis duplicates his 2002 rookie performance -- and he got off to a nice start last Sunday by rushing for 120 yards and two touchdowns -- no one will be able to contend he didn't outplay a contract that included a $1.29 million signing bonus and four years of minimum base salaries. The Broncos won't rework the contract but will consider an extension, not unlike the tack adopted by Kansas City with Priest Holmes, although the numbers might not get quite as high. Portis is an emerging star and the only deficiency, one not of his own making, is that he doesn't get much national profile. But rushing for 1,508 yards last season was a beginning. The next step will be to post similar numbers this year and then, next spring, to belly up to the pay station.

Look for the Indianapolis Colts to soon accelerate contract negotiations with Peyton Manning, who is in the final season of his current deal. Despite the contention of Colts general manager Bill Polian, the $15 million-plus salary cap value Manning currently carries is simply unwieldy. Indianapolis sorely needs a long-term extension -- even if the signing bonus, predictably, is in the record-breaking $20 million-$25 million range -- to keep Manning around. And the clock is ticking. The more the calendar turns, the less likely Manning is to sign something. He could simply play out the current contract and force the Colts to designate him a "franchise" free agent next spring. From a financial standpoint, that wouldn't be all bad, either, for him.

The Green Bay coaches will monitor the snaps of wide receiver Antonio Freeman on Sunday but, from his first couple practices, the eight-year veteran is in surprisingly good shape. Packers coach Mike Sherman, the man who opted to release Freeman a year ago in a salary cap-related move, did quite a selling job on the wide receiver. Sherman visited with Freeman late into Wednesday night, convincing him to re-join the Packers, even as the Detroit Lions were floating full salary guarantees. Freeman's career average of a touchdown every 7.6 receptions still ranks among the NFL's best marks over the last two decades. Even in the past three seasons, when most observers felt Freeman was a player in decline, he averaged a touchdown every 8.4 catches. Still a pretty healthy mark. Had the Lions succeeded in landing Freeman, word is it would have been at the expense of another former Green Bay wideout, Bill Schroeder. The Lions might not have released Schroeder, but Freeman would have cut into his playing time.

It's not particularly fashionable to bash Philadelphia star Donovan McNabb, but some scouts around the league and even a few players continue to notice that the quarterback has not addressed the deficiencies that marked his first four seasons. McNabb, they point out, remains notably inaccurate. And he has yet to master the short game. Time and again in Monday night's loss to the Bucs, he threw the ball with poor timing, often forcing his receivers to reach or wait for it. Against a fast-closing defense like that of Tampa Bay, the poor timing allows no chance of turning upfield and adding yards after the catch. "You kept seeing (Eagles) receivers catch the ball, turn, and have someone right in their grill," said the pro personnel director of an NFC franchise. "We hear every year about how hard McNabb works in the offseason, and maybe that's the case. But he hasn't gotten better in the things he needed to get better with. He's the same player he was two years ago, and it wasn't supposed to be like that, was it?"

Already a trend that was hot-button just two weeks ago, the move toward keeping just two quarterbacks on the active roster, is being replaced it seems. The new movement: Using players at a number of positions during a game. Tampa Bay coach Jon Gruden got a lot of attention Monday night by utilizing defensive tackle Warren Sapp at tight end. Sapp even caught a 14-yard pass, which prompted Gruden to suggest we have not seen the last of Sapp as an offensive novelty, given the injuries the Bucs have incurred at the tight end spot. Sapp wasn't the only player, though, to line up at a second position. The Buffalo Bills very quietly used offensive tackle Mike Williams on defense for two goal-line snaps in their shutout victory over New England. And Bills guard Ruben Brown has also worked at defensive tackle in practices. "You try to prepare for everything," said Bills coach Gregg Williams. "For this game, we dressed only three (defensive) tackles, and, given an opportunity to get Mike Williams a 'live' snap on defense, as opposed to just doing it in practice, we figured, why not?" Most teams have roster quotas at every position. But don't be surprised, in coming years, to see teams that want to load up at a position, and carry extra bodies there, compensate by occasionally using linemen on both sides of the ball.

	Porter

The loss of wide receiver Jerry Porter, who underwent abdominal surgery on Friday and figures to be sidelined anywhere from three weeks (very optimistic) to two months (very possible), is one the Oakland Raiders likely will struggle to overcome. Porter is the home run hitter in the Oakland lineup and it is his big-play potential which promoted coach Bill Callahan to evolve more into a three-wideout offense early in the 2002 season. Because of Porter, the Raiders opened 13 games last season in a three-wide receiver set. And the former second-round draft choice certainly opened up opposition secondaries to all the slants and precise timing routes in which Jerry Rice and Tim Brown specialize. It's hard to quantify exactly what Porter meant to the Raiders' pair of future Hall of Fame receivers but here's one number that jumps out: When Porter was on the field, Rice and Brown collectively averaged 1.5 yards more per reception than when Oakland was in a two-wide receiver formation. Rice's average of 13.2 yards per catch was his second-best over the last seven seasons and it would naïve to suggest Porter didn't play some role in that. The truth of the matter is, while secondaries still respect Brown and Rice, they don't respect their deep speed. The vertical dimension was one that Porter provided to an offense that throws the ball sideways an awful lot and there might not be another player on the roster capable of truly stretching the opposition defense north and south. Ronald Curry only recently switched to wide receiver, is a work in progress, and is nursing a knee injury. The veteran Alvis Whitted in a perennial tease, a guy with incredible speed, but shaky hands. There is a reason, folks, the guy has 17 catches in five league seasons. Rookie Doug Gabriel, a fifth-round draft pick, is untested.

New England nose tackle Ted Washington missed virtually this entire week of practice to attend the funeral of his grandmother and to grieve her loss. That likely means his play time could be reduced in Sunday's key matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles and, if that is the case, it wouldn't be such a bad thing from a football standpoint. When the Patriots acquired Washington from the Chicago Bears in the final week of the preseason, the party line was that the 13th-year veteran would play maybe 15-18 snaps per game. But here's a hidden stat: Washington, 35, was on the field for 29 of the first 40 snaps in the Patriots' loss at New England last weekend. And the more he played, the less effective he became. Losing his grandmother is, indeed, a tragedy. Losing some practice time, and possibly some playing time, would not be a bad thing.

The Patriots auditioned a few free agent safeties this week, Nick Sorensen (recently released by St. Louis) and David Gibson (cut by Indianapolis), but did so only to gauge them as special teams players or spare parts. It wouldn't be surprising, though, if the Pats get serious, and soon, about adding a veteran safety who could play from scrimmage. The four-year veteran who replaced Lawyer Milloy in the starting lineup, Antwan Harris, is known to his teammates as "Pudding," and the appellation is not meant to be flattering. Some veterans feel Harris is too soft to play on a regular basis. And if last Sunday was any indication, he doesn't know much about the defense, since he had to be pointed to the right spot about a half-dozen times in the first half. There isn't much left at any position in the free agent market, but the Patriots might actually be better served with somebody like Blaine Bishop or Devin Bush in the lineup.

There have been some suggestions that Milloy would still be with the Patriots had the Falcons not hired his agent, Ray Anderson, as a vice president. The inference is that Anderson usually found a middle ground in contract negotiations. It has further been suggested that, once Anderson moved to the management side of the league, Milloy had to find new representation. On the first issue: When he was an agent, Anderson could play hard-ball with the best of them. There are no assurances he could have worked out an amicable restructuring of Milloy's deal. On the second element: No one forced Milloy go find a new agent. When Anderson moved on to the Falcons, partner Ken Landphere assumed his clientele. And Anderson had sold his firm to Octogon, which employs many competent agents. Uh-uh. It was Milloy's choice to partner up with Carl Poston. We're guessing the switch to Poston was at the urging of Patriots cornerback Ty Law, who is also represented by him.

Dallas owner Jerry Jones was tardy arriving at the Cowboys' locker room following an opening loss to Atlanta and, by the time he arrived, the door was locked. After banging for several minutes, and getting no response, Jones had a security guard unlock the door. By the time he got inside, coach Bill Parcells had already completed post-game remarks to the team. Jones was less than happy about the incident.

There were 29 rookie starters leaguewide in the first weekend of regular-season play and, not surprisingly, nearly half were first-round picks. Fourteen first-round selections made it into the starting lineups. There were seven second-round picks, four third-round choices, one fourth-rounder, two fifth-rounders and only one undrafted free agent. The free agent was Detroit Lions tight end Casey Fitzsimmons of tiny Carroll College.

Much was made of Washington Redskins owner Dan Snyder's role in the releases of quarterback Danny Wuerffel and tailback Kenny Watson in the final mandatory roster cutdown. It became a hot-button item in Washington, with the inference that Snyder and personnel man Vinny Cerrato overruled coach Steve Spurrier, who is rumored to have wanted to keep both players. But there have been 200-plus workouts by players who were released in the final cutdown. And neither Wuerffel not Watson has had a single audition yet. Watson is tentatively scheduled, ESPN.com has confirmed, to work out for the Green Bay Packers early next week. But his phone hasn't exactly been ringing off the hook. We admit, that's a bit surprising to us, since we felt that Watson would actually be claimed off waivers by some tailback-needy franchise. The bottom line is, though, that Snyder made the right call on two guys who have generated precious little interest even out on the open market.

Punts: For a third straight season, the Arizona Cardinals are the youngest team in the league. The club's opening day roster averaged 25.6 years of age. The average was 25.2 years in both 2002 and 2001. … The two-yard touchdown run by Marc Edwards last Sunday was the first running score by a Jacksonville fullback since Daimon Shelton in 1998. In fact, it was just the third rushing touchdown by a fullback in franchise history. Former coach Tom Coughlin simply didn't use his fullbacks to carry the ball.… Word is that Tampa Bay reached an injury settlement with tight end Rickey Dudley two weeks ago so that the Bucs could bring him back late in the season, when he is recovered from a high ankle sprain. Minus the settlement, Dudley would have been ineligible to join the Bucs again this year. He is a Jon Gruden favorite and the Bucs coach likes to add veteran players for the stretch. … Although the fiberglass cast has been removed from his foot, Michael Vick is still getting around on crutches, and the timetable for his return has not been accelerated. He still doesn't figure to play until Week 6 at the earliest, and possibly closer to mid-season. … With a victory over Washington this weekend, Dan Reeves will become the sixth coach in league history to notch 200 wins. … Most of the moves Cincinnati coach Marvin Lewis has made so far have been positive. But dressing the Bengals in all-black uniforms for last week's opener, on a very hot day, was an ill-advised call. … Miami's two newest defensive veterans, strong safety Sammy Knight and weakside linebacker Junior Seau, looked better on paper than on the field last weekend. The pair combined for 15 tackles, but had little impact on the Dolphins defense and seemed a step slow to the ball. … The Packers expect tight end Wesley Walls, still a terrific "red zone" receiver, to take up some of the slack created by injuries to their wide receiver corps. … Were he noted a "vested" veteran, and already guaranteed a full year's salary because he was on the opening day roster, Washington safety David Terrell would have been released by now. Terrell was the starter in all 16 games over each of the last two seasons. He went to training camp this summer as the starter, too, then lost his job to Ifeanyi Ohalete, a much bigger hitter. The Redskins coaches contend Terrell has done nothing but mope ever since, and they don't even feel compelled to use him on special teams, the area where he actually earned his first roster spot four years ago. Terrell wasn't active for the season opener, won't be on Sunday, and there are no plans to dress him anytime soon. … The Arizona Cardinals have distributed only about 23,000 tickets for Sunday's home opener against Seattle. … Rather quietly, the Houston Texans have promoted second-year veteran wide receiver Jabbar Gaffney ahead of Corey Bradford in the starting lineup. … Poor-taste T-shirt of the week in Pittsburgh last Sunday afternoon: "Where was Ray Lewis when Joey Porter was shot?" … A few Denver veterans are beginning to wonder if wide receiver Ashley Lelie, the club's first-round pick a year ago, will succeed at the NFL level. Lelie certainly has the physical skills to play in the league, but injuries held him back early, and he had no impact on last week's game.

Len Pasquarelli is a senior NFL writer for ESPN.com.