NFL ROUNDUP News and notes
Bears: Kyle Orton will start opening day at quarterback — beating Rex Grossman in a competition that lasted through training camp and two preseason games. Orton started 15 games in 2005 and three last season. He’s thrown for more than 2,300 yards and 12 touchdowns in his career. Grossman led the Bears to the Super Bowl after the 2006 season, but has been often criticized for committing turnovers. He has 30 career starts, with 31 TD passes and 33 interceptions.
Vikings: Coach Brad Childress said quarterback Tarvaris Jackson is preparing to play Saturday against Pittsburgh despite a sprained right knee. Jackson was injured in the first quarter against Baltimore last Saturday night. He came out to practice Monday with a brace on the knee. Childress said Jackson participated in individual drills and did some throwing, but did not do any team work. If Jackson cannot play, Gus Frerotte will step in as the starter. Frerotte went 4-for-9 for 32 yards and a touchdown against the Ravens. Also, the Vikings placed defensive tackle Kenderick Allen on injured reserve. Allen injured his right wrist in the preseason opener against Seattle and will miss the season. He was signed in the offseason as a free agent from Green Bay to provide depth behind starting tackles Kevin Williams and Pat Williams. The defensive line also lost end Jayme Mitchell (knee) for the season in the Seahawks game and has been without Kenechi Udeze while he undergoes treatment for leukemia.
Saints: Jeremy Shockey ran some plays with the first team offense in practice Monday and appears on track to make his first appearance in a Saints uniform when New Orleans plays Saturday night in Cincinnati. “Today was certainly more [action] than he’s gotten and the plan is to get him in Saturday,” Coach Sean Payton said. “He’s getting a lot better. He’s in shape. So I’m hopeful we go this week, each day, without any setbacks.” Shockey, a four-time Pro Bowl tight end, whose outspokenness sometimes upset his coaches as much as his big-play ability delighted them, broke his left leg in December and missed the rest of the New York Giants’ Super Bowl run. During the offseason, he asked to be traded and was sent to New Orleans just days before training camp began. Shockey has practiced only sparingly since joining the Saints. “I’ve been in this league for seven years and you know how to take care of your body,” Shockey said. “You see guys coming in and out of this league and the guys who take care of their bodies the best are the guys that stay in the league. I’m doing everything I can on my part. ... I’m excited about the opportunity and I don’t want to do something stupid and hurt something else by pushing too hard. We’ve got a couple of good weeks ahead of us to be ready for the real games.”
Dolphins: Offensive lineman Steve McKinney was released Monday, three months after he signed as a free agent. McKinney had been competing for playing time at guard and as a backup to center Samson Satele. The 6-foot-4, 302-pound McKinney was a starter in each of his first eight NFL seasons, but after he struggled in 2005 he became a part-time center for Houston. Last season, he started the Texans’ first three games before tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee and missed the rest of the season.
Texans: Guard Fred Weary was placed on injured reserve because of lingering problems with his right leg, which he broke last season. The 6-foot-4, 307-pound Weary fractured his tibia and fibula in Houston’s 28-20 loss to Tennessee on Dec. 2. He underwent offseason surgery and had additional procedures performed on the leg during training camp, but never recovered completely. “It’s tough,” Houston coach Gary Kubiak said. “He’s well thought of around here. He’s been a warrior for this organization. We were all hoping that by this time, he would be in a position to compete, and he hasn’t been able to. Very difficult injury.”
Associated Press