CANTON, Ohio — Former Broncos running back Floyd Little and Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau are finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
The hall's seniors committee on Tuesday chose the 67-year-old Little, who gained more than 12,000 total yards in the NFL, and the 71-year-old LeBeau, a star defensive back before becoming a coach.
They will join 15 modern-era candidates on the complete list of finalists for the 2010 class, which will be voted on Feb. 6 at the Super Bowl in Miami.
Little was chosen for five Pro Bowls, rushing for 6,323 yards and 43 touchdowns, making 215 receptions for 2,418 yards and nine TDs. When he retired in 1975, Little ranked seventh in career rushing.
He also was one of the league's best kick returners, leading the AFL in punt returns as a rookie in 1967.
LeBeau played for 14 years for Detroit and has been a coach for 37. LeBeau intercepted 62 passes, which ranks seventh all-time.
As Pittsburgh's defensive coordinator, LeBeau has won two Super Bowls in the last four seasons.
"I can't imagine there has ever been a person who has been at that level as a player and as a coach," Lions coach Jim Schwartz said. "There have been great players who were OK coaches and vice versa, but this is someone who was a great player and then one of the most influential defensive coaches of all time."
Still, because the Hall of Fame requires a candidate to be retired five years before he can be voted in and LeBeau still is coaching, he is being considered as a player.
2 COWBOYS EMPLOYEES FILE LAWSUITS: Two Dallas Cowboys employees seriously injured in the collapse of the team's indoor practice facility filed lawsuits Tuesday against the company that designed the structure and others linked to its construction and repair.
Scouting assistant Rich Behm and special teams coach Joe DeCamillis filed lawsuits against Summit Structures LLC and others involved in building and repairing the steel and fabric facility. The 88,000-square-foot structure collapsed in a wind storm May 2 while a practice for recently drafted players was being conducted inside.
Behm, who was paralyzed from the waist down, and DeCamillis, who suffered a broken vertebrae, seek unspecified damages in the suits, which contain similar language but were filed in separate Dallas courts.
The tentlike facility did not meet applicable codes for wind loading resistance even after Summit, based in Allentown, Pa., and a Las Vegas engineering firm, JCI Holding LLC, represented to the Cowboys that design defects had been corrected, according to the suits.
The complaints contend that the actions of Summit; a related company, Cover-All Building Systems of Saskatoon, Canada; and JCI constitute gross negligence. The suits also claim the companies engaged in a civil conspiracy by agreeing to hide and conceal the facility's shortcomings
"I think this entire thing was so easily preventable had Summit and Cover-All and the engineers from Las Vegas set about to resolve the problem instead of minimizing their costs," said Frank Branson, the attorney representing Behm and DeCamillis.
Tom Fee, the attorney for Summit, said the company would not comment on the suits except to reiterate its belief that unusually high winds caused the collapse.
"Summit believes there will be credible evidence that there was a catastrophic weather event involved," he said.
Scott Jacobs, an engineer who leads JCI Holding and is one of the named defendants in the suits, did not respond to a phone message seeking comment.
The lawsuits state that Summit was notified in 2007 that the Cowboys' facility hadn't been properly designed and presented a safety hazard. Repair work described as a "temporary fix" was done in the summer of 2007, and permanent repairs were supposed to be made after the 2007 season, according to the suits.
The suits claim that Summit and JCI represented in 2008 that the permanent work had been done when that wasn't the case.
City of Irving building records show only that the Cowboys sought to have the roof fabric replaced in 2008. Nathan Stobbe, the president of Summit Structures, attributed the repair to "aesthetics" in a letter sent to the company's other customers after the collapse.
The failure of the Cowboys' facility was at least the fifth involving a Summit-designed building since 2002. The Cowboys selected Summit to build their practice facility in June 2003, just months after a warehouse built by Summit for the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority collapsed in a snowstorm.
Greg Iannarelli, the port's chief's counsel, has told The Associated Press he spoke to Cowboys official Bruce Mays when the team was considering hiring Summit and again when a Philadelphia judge issued an order stating the warehouse collapse was due to design flaws.
Branson said workman's compensation law prevents Behm and DeCamillis from suing the Cowboys. However, he said he believes the team was duped in its dealings with Summit and JCI.
Branson said his inquiry has found that the Cowboys learned of deficiencies in their building after hiring Charles Timbie, a building-collapse expert who worked with the Philadelphia port authority when it sued Summit. Branson said it was Timbie's work that led the team to require Summit and JCI to make repairs.
"I think evidence will show that (the companies) represented to the Cowboys and to Timbie that they had made those permanent fixes, and (the repairs) weren't adequate," Branson said.
Cowboys spokesman Rich Dalrymple declined to comment on the lawsuits.
The suits also detail alleged flaws in the building's foundation and names as defendants three companies that were involved in its construction. The foundation issues — related primarily to the steel rods used to secure the building's steel trusses — were discovered through evidence obtained after the collapse, Branson said.
WILLIAMS SISTERS BUY STAKE IN DOLPHINS:Serena and Venus Williams enjoyed a firsthand look at their favorite NFL team Tuesday.
The tennis-playing sisters paid a visit to the Miami Dolphins' complex as the latest celebrities to own a small stake in the franchise. Their deal, first reported last week, was confirmed at a news conference overlooking the practice field.
The Williams sisters watched practice and met quarterback Chad Pennington, and linebackers Jason Taylor and Joey Porter. The sisters live in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., about an hour's drive from the Dolphins' stadium.
"To have this opportunity is really where our heart is," Venus said. "We're South Florida girls. When we get off the road, this is where we come home to. When we come home to Dolphins games, it's going to be exciting."
The sisters are the first female African-Americans to hold an ownership stake in an NFL franchise, the Dolphins said. The NFL has no African-American majority team owner.
Musicians Gloria and Emilio Estefan and Marc Anthony recently bought small shares of the team. The Estefans are the first Cuban Americans to hold an ownership stake in an NFL team, and Anthony is a New York native of Puerto Rican descent.
Dolphins owner Stephen Ross has also forged a partnership with singer Jimmy Buffett. The Dolphins say the involvement of the celebrities reflects the diversity of South Florida and shows that the franchise is connected with the community.
"We are thrilled to have Venus and Serena join the Dolphins as limited partners," Ross said. "They are among the most admired athletes in the world and have become global ambassadors for the game of tennis. Their addition to our ownership group further reflects our commitment to connect with aggressively and embrace the great diversity that makes South Florida a multicultural gem."
Serena has won 11 major titles and Venus seven. They staged their latest sibling showdown last month at Wimbledon, where Serena beat Venus in the final, and will play in the U.S. Open beginning next week.
Ross, a New York real estate billionaire, completed his purchase of the Dolphins from Wayne Huizenga in January and began a partnership in May with Buffett. The agreement with the Estefans was announced in June, followed by the deal with Anthony last month.
Buffett and the Estefans are longtime Dolphins fans. The Williams sisters said they root for the Dolphins, and Serena dated former NFL players LaVar Arrington and Keyshawn Johnson.
"We're just really excited to be a part of such a wonderful franchise," Serena said. "We obviously love the Dolphins. For us it was an honor to have an opportunity to be co-owners. We thought, 'Wow, this is a great opportunity for us.'"
FORMER DOLPHINS LINEMAN DEAD: Former Miami Dolphins defensive lineman T.J. Turner has died of complications from a stroke. He was 46.
Turner's death was confirmed by Tims Funeral Home in Lufkin, Texas. The Lufkin Daily News said he died Monday at a Bryan, Texas, hospital after a stroke last week. Turner played seven seasons for the Dolphins from 1986-92, compiling 16 sacks in 101 career games. He played defensive end and nose tackle.
He was an All-Southwest Conference player at Houston before the Dolphins drafted him in the third round in 1986.
BURRESS PLANS RETURN TO NFL:Plaxico Burress says he plans to return to the NFL after serving a two-year prison sentence on a weapons charge.
In an ESPN interview broadcast Tuesday night, the former Giants receiver says he isn't sure about what to expect in prison and is anxious about being separated from his family, revealing his wife is expecting a baby girl on Thanksgiving.
The 32-year-old Burress pleaded guilty last week to attempted criminal possession of a weapon stemming from an accidental shooting last November and accepted a two-year prison term. He is to be sentenced Sept. 22.
He says he didn't know whether he would live or die in the moments after accidentally shooting himself at a Manhattan nightclub.
"I almost killed my own self," Burress said. "And I got to go to prison for almost killing my own self."