Hall of Fame quarterback Terry Bradshaw said Wednesday he wants to put a potential ownership group together that would attempt to buy the New Orleans Saints and keep them in Louisiana, where Bradshaw grew up. "I'm supporting the citizens of Louisiana who don't deserve to lose the Saints because of a hurricane," said Bradshaw, who starred for Louisiana Tech before winning four Super Bowls with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Bradshaw, now an NFL analyst for the Fox network, was in Shreveport for his induction into the city's Walk of Stars. He also viewed the installation of the first sign marking the new "Terry Bradshaw Passway" on Shreveport's inner highway loop. Bradshaw told The Times of Shreveport that he doesn't have the money to buy the team himself. He said he has sought out additional investors, but did not name them. He is not sure whether Saints owner Tom Benson is interested selling at this time, however. "I have pursued other avenues to find out if Mr. Benson would be interested in selling the Saints," Bradshaw said. "I had to make sure I lined up the money. You've got to find out what Mr. Benson wants first."

Duane Starks was placed on injured reserve Thursday with a bad shoulder, ending the season for the cornerback who replaced Ty Law in the New England secondary. The 31-year-old Starks, acquired by the Patriots in March from Arizona, played in seven games with disappointing results. Starks was benched for the second half of Monday's 40-21 loss to Indianapolis after he was beaten by the Colts' Reggie Wayne for a second-quarter touchdown. Law, a stalwart on New England's Super Bowl teams, was released last offseason. He signed with the New York Jets.

Still attempting to compensate for the season-ending knee injury to Deuce McAllister from a month ago, the Saints have added veteran free-agent tailback Anthony Thomas, a former league rookie of the year. Thomas was released by the Dallas Cowboys last week after the team opted to go with younger backs. Contract details were not yet available. A five-year veteran, Thomas will try to provide some power to the New Orleans ground game, which has been sporadic in McAllister's absence. Thomas joins fellow veterans Antowain Smith and Aaron Stecker on the New Orleans depth chart. "He's a good fit for what we do," coach Jim Haslett said. "We've been interested in him in the past, as a possible backup [to McAllister], and it just didn't work out. But when the Cowboys released him, we definitely knew he could help us."

Tom Benson was a no-show for New Orleans' game against Chicago on Sunday in Baton Rouge, staying true to his earlier promise never to return to the city where last week he swatted at a TV news camera and argued with a heckling fan. However, Benson's granddaughter, Rita Benson LeBlanc, did come to the game. LeBlanc, who has the title of owner/executive, is Benson's heir apparent. After the Saints' loss to Miami a week ago, Benson fired off an e-mail to NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue saying his trip to Baton Rouge was a "total disaster," adding that he and his family members could have been injured or killed and that he would no longer attend games in Baton Rouge either this season or if any Saints games are scheduled here in 2006. Saints spokesman Greg Bensel later said Benson wrote the e-mail out of frustration and still may attend one of the remaining games scheduled for Baton Rouge. Bensel did not immediately issue a statement on Benson's behalf during the Chicago game. Fans booed when a public address announcement mentioned Benson while soliciting donations to the Saints' Hurricane Katrina relief fund.

New Orleans Saints owner Tom Benson and Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco agreed on Friday to postpone until 2007 two deadlines for either side to void the NFL team's lease of the Louisiana Superdome. The first of those deadlines, which possibly would have allowed the team to void the lease because of damage caused to the dome by Hurricane Katrina, would have fallen at the end of this month. Benson proposed the postponements in a letter to Blanco, team spokesman Greg Bensel said. "This will allow the State of Louisiana to focus on more immediate and pressing issues in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita," Benson wrote. "It also will allow the Saints to avoid prematurely having to consider decisions that can better be made in the months ahead."