NFL ROUNDUP \News and notes

Lions: Detroit hasn’t had a winning season since 2000 and is eight years removed from its last playoff appearance. One of the men who signs the checks still believes the team can turn things around this fall. Vice chairman William Clay Ford Jr., son of owner William Clay Ford, said he thinks third-year coach Rod Marinelli finally has a collection of players who understand and believe in his system. “So far, one thing that’s very clear is this is very much the group Rod wants to go forward with. I think that says a lot,” Ford said after the team concluded a training camp practice. Detroit finished last season 7-9, its most wins since Matt Millen became president in 2001.

Saints: Defensive tackle DeMario Pressley was placed on injured reserve, forcing the fifth-round draft pick to miss his rookie season. Coach Sean Payton said Pressley, who practiced as recently as Saturday, was increasingly bothered by an old right foot fracture that had never healed properly. Pressley will have surgery to repair it, the coach said.

Titans: Vince Young looked up Sunday and found himself surrounded by Kyle Vanden Bosch, Albert Haynesworth and Jevon Kearse. Nowhere to run, no time to duck. Luckily, Young wore the red jersey, which means don’t touch the quarterback. It’s only the opening days of training camp, but the Titans see the chance to be even better on defense than a year ago, when they ranked fifth in the NFL in yards allowed and yards rushing allowed. Kearse, who is trying to revive his career in his 10th season, sees a group that could rival the defenses Tennessee had in 1999 and 2000 when the Titans went 26-6.

Dolphins: Coach Tony Sparano could only scratch his head. Offensive line coach Mike Maser put his hands on his knees, dropped his head and shook it in disgust. At the end of practice Sunday, only the defensive backs were smiling. Watching Miami’s offense tends to have that effect. The competition to become Miami’s starting quarterback has shown little progress at the beginning of training camp. Newcomers Josh McCown and Chad Henne haven’t excelled, John Beck had one of the worst practices in his professional career Sunday, and it appears the Dolphins are headed for another season with the quarterback situation murky. The Dolphins have turned to 12 different quarterbacks since Dan Marino retired in 2000 — including Beck, Trent Green and Cleo Lemon last season — and instability at the position is perhaps why they have missed the playoffs a franchise record six straight years. Sunday’s practice didn’t show any signs of improvement. Beck threw more interceptions (3) than touchdowns (0). Henne threw an interception and missed receivers, while McCown didn’t take first-team snaps as part of Miami’s rotating practice schedule. All the while Sparano hovered behind them, scrutinizing every move as he weighs his biggest decision as a first-year head coach.

Associated Press