NFL Wire Notes | "Pacman" Jones pays off gambling debt

LAS VEGAS — Suspended Dallas cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones paid $20,000 to a Las Vegas casino Friday to settle a criminal bad-check case.

"We filed a criminal complaint. Within 24 hours, Mr. Jones found a way to make restitution," said David Roger, Clark County district attorney. "Case closed."

Jones paid $20,000 to cover three casino markers he received Sept. 3 at Caesars Palace, said Bernie Zadrowski, chief of the district attorney's bad-check unit. Jones also paid $1,675 in fees and penalties.

In Nevada, unpaid casino markers, or loans to gamblers, are treated as bad checks and are turned over to the district attorney for prosecution.

Zadrowski said another $3,000 penalty cited in court documents filed Friday would have been added if a felony theft warrant had been issued. No such warrant was issued.

"It's unfortunate that a nonstory became public," Jones' lawyer, Manny Arora, said after the money was paid.

Arora accused Roger of filing the criminal complaint against Jones after a similar case involving retired NBA superstar Charles Barkley gained notoriety earlier in the week. Roger denied Arora's allegation.

"In Mr. Jones' case, we were working with him since February to obtain restitution," Roger said. "We determined he was not acting in good faith, and we filed a criminal complaint."

Roger threatened to file criminal charges against Barkley before he settled his debt by paying $400,000 to reimburse the Wynn Las Vegas resort for four casino markers he received in October, Zadrowski said. Barkley paid $40,000 in additional fees.

Notes

• The Minnesota Vikings cut ties with defensive end Erasmus James, a former first-round draft pick, essentially tying a bow on a monumentally disappointing 2005 draft. The Vikings waived James, 25, after he failed to pass a physical. Minnesota chose James out of Wisconsin with the 18th pick. After getting four sacks in 15 games during his rookie season, James had a series of serious knee injuries that derailed his time with the Vikings.

Earlier in the 2005 draft at No. 7, the Vikings took receiver Troy Williamson from South Carolina as the heir apparent to Randy Moss, who was traded to Oakland that season. Williamson struggled mightily with drops and was traded to Jacksonville earlier this offseason.

Third-round cornerback Dustin Fox, fourth-round running back Ciatrick Fason, sixth-round defensive lineman C.J. Mosley and seventh-round cornerback Adrian Ward are also no longer with the team, leaving second-round offensive lineman Marcus Johnson, a seldom-used backup, as the lone player remaining from the 2005 draft class.

• Cleveland signed veteran cornerback Terry Cousin, 33, to a two-year contract. He played in 16 games last season for Jacksonville, his sixth league team.