In a somewhat surprising move, the Pittsburgh Steelers on Friday reached a contract agreement with unrestricted free agent linebacker James Farrior, an acquisition that ends the term of standout six-year veteran Earl Holmes with the team.

Holmes did not take long to find a new home. Holmes reached agreement with the Browns later in the day.

The accord with Farrior came only one day after Holmes traveled to Pittsburgh to have Steelers orthopedic specialists check out his knees, claimed he passed the examination, and suggested that head coach Bill Cowher told him he would be re-signed.

Certainly there was some disagreement among Steelers officials over retaining Holmes, who averaged over 100 tackles since becoming a starter in 1997. He suffered two knee injuries in 2001, including a strained posterior cruciate ligament that sidelined him for the AFC title game, but neither was considered serious and he was given a clean bill by noted orthopedist James Andrews of Birmingham, Ala., this spring.

Farrior, who had played all five previous seasons with the New York Jets, will sign a three-year contract. Financial details of the contract were not immediately available. Farrior had visited with Pittsburgh officials last month, one of several candidates the team brought to Pittsburgh, sensing that it might not be able to keep Holmes aboard.

But as the sluggish market dropped on Holmes in recent weeks, it appeared he would re-up with the Steelers, and he phoned Cowher two weeks ago to initiate discussions aimed at returning to the team. Those talks led to negotiations but, for whatever reason, not to a deal.

Holmes, 28, had played in 81 games for the Steelers and started 79 of them. His exit means the Steelers will have one alteration to the league's 2001 top-rated defense.

The first-round pick of the Jets in the 1997 draft, Farrior has always been an outside linebacker, used primarily on the weak side. The Steelers are confident, however, he will make a seamless transition to the inside spot once owned by Holmes in the team's trademark 3-4 scheme.

Farrior, 27, is coming off his finest season. Playing in the new scheme introduced by coordinator Ted Cottrell and head coach Herm Edwards, he posted 143 tackles as he started every game for the first time in his career. He also added one sack, two interceptions and nine passes defensed.

The former University of Virginia star started 15 games as a rookie but then just 11 contests combined over the subsequent three years. He has appeared in 76 games and started 42 of them, and has 479 tackles, 5½ sacks, three interceptions and 18 passes defensed.

Len Pasquarelli is a senior writer for ESPN.com.