The Green Bay Packers have re-signed cornerback Erwin Swiney and defensive end John Gilmore to the practice squad, GM/Head Coach Mike Sherman announced Monday.
They replace defensive back Todd Franz, who has been terminated, and offensive tackle Darnell Alford, who has been signed to the New York Jets' active roster.
Swiney, who earlier had been waived in the final, mandated roster reduction to the regular season limit of 53 players, was signed to the practice squad September 2, then waived September 4.
A rookie from the University of Nebraska, the 6-foot, 192-pound Swiney closed out the preseason as the Packers' second-leading tackler with 19 stops, 18 of them solo. He also posted one quarterback sack.
Athletically, Gilmore comes from a predominantly basketball background. A Houston, Texas, native, he played college basketball at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 1996, at Tyler, Texas, Junior College (1997-98), and Oklahoma State (1998-1999) before moving on to Tennessee State (2000-2001), where he averaged 10.0 points and 6.0 rebounds per game as a senior.
Earlier this year, the 6-4, 283-pound Texan returned to football for the first time since high school, signing on with the Packers as a free agent February 8, 2002, prior to being allocated to the Amsterdam Admirals of the NFL Europe League for their '02 season. He recorded 5 tackles in seven games with the Admirals, making three starts.
He subsequently joined the Packers for the preseason, posting 2 tackles, forcing one fumble and being credited with one pass defensed.
As a prep, Gilmore had played linebacker, tight end and defensive end in 1994 at Episcopal High School in Bellaire, Texas. He also earned all-state honors in track, running the 100- and 200-meter dashes.
Swiney and Gilmore have been re-assigned jersey numbers 26 and 61, respectively.
