Giants tight end Jeremy Shockey got into a fight with two Jets players on the second play of a joint practice between the teams Saturday in Albany, N.Y., that also featured an argument between Giants coach Tom Coughlin and Jets defensive coordinator Donnie Henderson.
On the second play of a 9-on-7 drill pitting the Giants offense against the Jets defense, Shockey got in a tussle with defensive backs Erik Coleman and Oliver Celestin, and soon all three players were throwing wild punches.
Coleman and Celestin pulled the Giants tight end to the ground and Jets linebacker Jonathan Vilma jumped on top, touching off a melee involving numerous players from both teams. Order was restored after a few minutes.
"I was blocking somebody and I got shoved in the back, and the next thing I know, everybody's fighting," Shockey said. "There's no bad blood. That's how football is. You might as well do it now, when you don't get fined and Paul Tagliabue can't take any money out of your pocket. Do it now, get it over with. I'm sure it happens at every other camp."
Later in the morning practice session, Coughlin got into an argument with Henderson after several plays in which the Jets appeared to go beyond the prescribed rules of the practice, which allow defensive players to bump or slow down ball carriers as they go by, without tackling them.
Jets safety Kerry Rhodes hit Giants wideout Willie Ponder on a route over the middle, forcing Ponder to leave the practice early with bruised ribs.
Brandon Jacobs, the Giants rookie 6-foot-4, 265-pound running back, retaliated by bowling over 6-2, 212-pound Jets cornerback Pete Hunter after catching a short pass.
And finally, Giants wide receiver Amani Toomer was knocked down by Jets linebacker Eric Barton after a short pass reception. Toomer struck Barton in the helmet, and the two players had to be separated.
"This is practice," said Toomer, who is in his 10th NFL season. "We don't want anyone to get hurt."
TEXANS: Domanick Davis received a new five-year contract and a big raise as a reward for two straight 1,000-yard rushing seasons.
Davis, a fourth-round draft pick in 2003, has 2,200 yards rushing and 21 touchdowns in two seasons. He was in the last year of a three-year contract that paid him $360,000 annually.
While financial terms of the new contract were not released, general manager Charlie Casserly said Davis was getting a substantial raise.
Davis, 5-foot-9 and 221 pounds, rushed for 1,031 yards and eight touchdowns as a rookie and came back with 1,188 yards rushing and 13 TDs last season.
STEELERS: Duce Staley's sore right knee is becoming a concern.
Staley, who missed most of the second half of last season with a sore right hamstring, has sat out all but one full day of training camp contact work because of an aching knee.
After insisting for several days that the injury wasn't a worry, coach Bill Cowher said Staley will undergo an MRI exam Sunday to make sure there's nothing wrong.
"We'll kind of go from there, see where he's at," Cowher said. "He still doesn't feel real comfortable."
RAVENS: Top draft pick Mark Clayton signed a five-year, $8.2 million contract, ending a five-day holdout.
The wide receiver from Oklahoma was the 22nd overall pick. He will practice with the team for the first time Monday.
COWBOYS: Rookie defensive end Marcus Spears rode a stationary bike and could be out about a month after someone rolled on his leg during a drill Friday.
Spears has a sprained knee, a high ankle sprain and a pulled groin. He was considered a strong candidate to start.
BRONCOS: Broncos quarterback Jake Plummer and defensive lineman Mario Fatafehi each hurt a knee, though Plummer's injury was not deemed serious and he returned later.
"It's nothing major and with a couple of day's rest it should be OK," Plummer said.
Coach Mike Shanahan said Fatafehi likely hurt ligaments in his left knee; the early prognosis was that he would miss one to three weeks.
CB Champ Bailey was out of drills for a third day with a sore left hamstring.
RAMS: St. Louis signed defensive tackle John Parella and offensive tackle Matt Willig to one-year contracts.
Parella, a 12-year veteran, was with the Raiders the last four seasons after eight years with the Chargers and his rookie year with the Bills. He has played in 172 games with 111 starts and has 26 career sacks.
Willig, entering his 14th season, was with the Panthers the last two years and is entering his second stint with the Rams after playing with them in their 1999 Super Bowl championship year.