AROUND THE NFL | News and notes

Packers: Green Bay signed defensive end, and former Browns player, Keith McKenzie to a one-year, $525,000 contract on Tuesday. McKenzie will fill a roster spot created earlier in the day by the release of defensive lineman Jared Tomich. The 6-foot-2 1/2, 275-pound McKenzie was waived by the Chicago Bears on Oct. 16. He started three of the first four games for the Bears. McKenzie, Green Bay's seventh-round pick in 1996, played for the Packers from 1996-99. He had one sack in 1996 and 1 1/2 in '97, but then became the Packers' designated pass rusher and had eight sacks in each of the next two seasons. But general manager Ron Wolf regarded McKenzie as too small to hold up as a starter. McKenzie left the Packers and signed a two-year, $4.225 million deal with Cleveland in February 2000. That season, McKenzie had a team-high eight sacks in 16 starts at right end. He had three sacks as the Browns' left end in the first seven games of last season, but suffered a season-ending ankle injury that required surgery. The Bears signed him in May for $2.85 million over two years, including a $100,000 signing bonus. He wasn't able to practice until early August.
Rams: Marc Bulger's finger injury takes care of the St. Louis Rams' quarterback controversy, at least for this week. Bulger, 5-0 as the starter to help revive the team while Kurt Warner was out, won't practice until at least Friday because of swelling in his sprained right index finger. It's conveniently timed for conspiracy theorists, considering Warner reclaims his starting job for Sunday's game at Washington as the Rams (5-5) begin a three-game road swing. Coach Mike Martz maintained all last week that no matter what Bulger did, he was just filling in. As for any naysayers, he would simply remind them that Warner has been the NFL's MVP two of the last three years, is the highest-rated passer in the history of the league and led the team to a pair of Super Bowls since his surprising ascendancy in 1999. Martz discounts Warner's mediocre numbers this year, considering the Rams' 0-4 start and a team collapse as they struggled to come to grips with their Super Bowl upset loss to the Patriots. He had a lone touchdown pass and eight interceptions during the winless start, but opposing defenses were among some of the league's best (Broncos, Bucs, Giants) and the offensive line was banged up.
Panthers: Carolina Panthers lineman Chris Terry became a fugitive Tuesday when he failed to make a court appearance. Judge Resa Harris ordered an arrest warrant for Terry 20 minutes after his trial on a domestic violence charge was to begin. Terry never arrived before court closed and his attorney, Chris Fialko, told Harris he couldn't locate him. Terry was charged in July with misdemeanor assault after allegedly pushing his wife into a wall. When Terry failed to appear Tuesday, Harris raised his bond from $2,500 to $15,000. Fialko still hadn't reached Terry as of late afternoon. Fialko said when he reaches him, he'd advise Terry to turn himself in to police. Late Tuesday evening, Terry was not in the Mecklenburg County jail. Fialko declined to say whether he had talked to his client or whether the player would turn himself in.
Jets: Chad Pennington has made the turnovers, inconsistency, broken plays and disorganization disappear from the Jets' offense. He's completing 75 percent of his passes as a starter and is the top-ranked passer in the AFC. Suddenly, the Jets' West Coast offense is a smooth operation, churning out yardage and first downs, finding the end zone and limiting turnovers and penalties. There were times not long ago when the Jets could barely get the right personnel on the field to match the play that was called. Pennington's real test hasn't begun yet. Starting this week, he will face Buffalo, Oakland, Denver, Chicago, New England and Green Bay, with no room for error. There's no doubting the toughness of the schedule, but only three of those teams -- New England (4th), Green Bay (9th) and Denver (14th) -- have pass defenses ranked in the top half of the NFL.
-- Wire reports