Texas NFL Capsules: Winning streak gone, Cowboys trying to move on

IRVING — When the Dallas offense disappeared in Green Bay, so did a four-game winning streak.

Now the Cowboys have to get another run going without two starters.

At least they won't have to wait long. Thanksgiving looms next week, which means the annual three-games-in-12-days stretch comes at a good time for an offense that wants to eliminate the stench of three bad quarters in Sunday's 17-7 loss to the Packers.

The Cowboys had 131 yards with about 10 minutes left in the game and barely avoided their first shutout in six years.

"Let's start a new streak. That's what it's about," linebacker Bradie James said Monday. "I wish you could win every game in the league, and you don't ever want to lose. But you just learn from it, you get grounded and you start back working again."

James and the defense will have to do that without safety Ken Hamlin, who sustained a high ankle sprain against the Packers and will miss 3-4 weeks.

The offense will be missing starting tackle Marc Colombo even longer. His streak of consecutive starts will end at 57 after he broke his left leg and sustained ligament damage in his ankle against Green Bay. Colombo had surgery Monday, but coach Wade Phillips didn't rule out his return this season.

"We won't be the only team that's going through this," James said. "When your No. 1 guys are down, you've got to have the backups come in and play like they're No. 1s and not miss a beat."

The Dallas offense missed a season worth of beats against Green Bay. The Cowboys, third in the NFL in offense going in, went nearly two quarters without a first down.

Receiver Roy Williams fumbled at the end of a 42-yard gain late in the second quarter when the game was scoreless. In the third, he was open for a first down but let Tony Romo's pass go through his hands and hit him in the face mask.

The mistakes overshadowed his first 100-yard receiving game in Dallas and a 9-yard touchdown catch that averted the shutout with 38 seconds left.

Romo's fumble on a sack early in the fourth quarter gave the Packers an easy touchdown and a 17-0 lead, and his interception at the Green Bay goal line later in the quarter ended any realistic chance for a comeback.

Miles Austin, who set a franchise record with 250 yards in the game that started the four-game winning streak, couldn't handle a high throw that might have gone for a touchdown on the first Dallas drive.

"You can fight hard and play hard, but you've got to execute," Phillips said. "We went all the way down the field late in the game, but we needed to do that early in the game."

The defense stopped Green Bay early in the game, but the Packers took control with a 15-play, 80-yard drive that included conversions on third-and-11 and third-and-13. The Cowboys entered the game with one of the best third-down defenses in the league.

"When you don't get off the field on third down, you just stay on the field forever," James said. "I felt like I played two games yesterday because we couldn't get off the field on third down. I'm sure that will be a point of emphasis this week."

The Cowboys play Washington on Sunday after the Redskins bounced back with their biggest win of the season against Denver. The following Thursday, Oakland will be the second of consecutive opponents at Cowboys Stadium, where Dallas has won three straight.

"I felt like we were building something on the road, too, until we played yesterday," James said. "One week you can be the hero, the next the goat. You've just got to be consistent, and that's what this league is about. Take this bump for what it is, learn from everything that you can and just be ready to play next week."

Cowboys S Hamlin out 3-4 weeks, T Columbo longer

IRVING — The Dallas Cowboys will be without safety Ken Hamlin at least three weeks and offensive tackle Marc Columbo longer than that.

Hamlin sprained an ankle and Columbo broke his left leg and sustained ankle ligament damage in Sunday’s 17-7 loss to the Green Bay Packers.

Cowboys coach Wade Phillips said Hamlin’s high ankle sprain will sideline him 3-4 weeks. Phillips wouldn’t rule out a late-season return by Columbo, who had surgery Monday.

Cornerback Mike Jenkins severely bruised an arm muscle against the Packers but is expected to play Sunday against the Washington Redskins.

Casey to return against Titans

HOUSTON — Joel Dreessen and rookie Anthony Hill filled in at tight end last week in Houston's first game since a season-ending knee injury to star Owen Daniels.

When the Texans return from their bye with a game against Tennessee next Monday night, they hope to have versatile rookie James Casey back to contribute at the position after arthroscopic knee surgery.

"There's no doubt in my mind that I'll play," Casey said Monday after returning to practice exactly two weeks since surgery on his right knee. "It's going to take something very severe to keep me from playing."

While most of the Texans spent their bye week traveling and relaxing, Casey was at Reliant Stadium rehabilitating his injured knee. The fifth-round pick spent 3-4 hours a day in the training room, doing everything he could to get his knee back into playing shape.

Casey has appeared in all but one game this season and has become a key special teams player for the Texans. He injured his knee Oct. 4 against the Raiders, but played the next four games before opting for surgery to repair cartilage damage.

He's looking forward to getting back on the field healthier and without the large brace he's worn since the Oakland game.

"My knee was hurting to start with and then to have that big brace, my mobility was really cut down," he said. "I'm really excited about getting that big brace off and being able to move around like I know I can."

Dreessen will likely start against the Titans, but the Texans plan to get Casey more involved in the offense with Daniels out. Daniels was a major part of Houston's offense before the injury and led all tight ends with 519 yards receiving. He remains the team's second-leading receiver and his five touchdown receptions lead the Texans despite being out since Houston's win over Buffalo two games ago.

"(Casey) can do some things for us offensively," coach Gary Kubiak said. "He'll become a big part of what we're doing here over the course of the next seven weeks."

Casey hopes to join with Dreessen and Hill to fill in for Daniels.

"You can't really replace Owen, but as a tight ends group hopefully we can work together to try to help replace what he was doing out there," he said.

Andre Johnson first noticed Casey when he was at Rice, where he had 1,914 yards receiving and 392 yards rushing in two seasons. That came after a three-year minor league baseball career.

"I always thought he was a very talented guy," Johnson said. "I think he has great hands. It's great that he's feeling better now and I'm pretty sure if he's out on the field Monday night with us, he will help us out a whole lot."

Casey honed his receiving skills in college but has been working on blocking since joining the Texans.

"I just want to be an all-around good tight end and whenever they give me chances just try to show them what I can do, show the Texans and everyone else that I can contribute and hopefully be a good NFL player," he said.

Also on Monday, receiver and returner Jacoby Jones missed practice because of a calf injury. It was unclear which leg was injured. Kubiak said it was a bit sore after Houston's game against Indianapolis and he was having it checked after returning from the break with swelling.

-- Kristie Rieken

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Goodell fines Titans owner $250,000 for gesture

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The NFL has fined Titans owner Bud Adams $250,000 for making an obscene gesture at Buffalo fans while celebrating Tennessee's victory over the Bills.

Commissioner Roger Goodell notified Adams of the fine Monday, and league spokesman Greg Aiello said it is for conduct detrimental to the NFL. Adams was seen making the gesture while in his luxury suite and again on the field after Sunday's 41-17 victory.

The 86-year-old Adams issued an apology a couple of hours later, saying he got caught up in the excitement of the moment.

Goodell was at the game, after having breakfast with Adams. The league said that Goodell left Adams' suite at the end of the third quarter and spent the fourth quarter sitting with fans in the end zone before leaving the stadium.

The Titans declined to comment after the fine was issued. But Adams said in his earlier statement that he expected league discipline for his actions and would accept any punishment.

"I do realize that those types of things shouldn't happen," Adams said in that statement. "I need to specifically apologize to the Bills, their fans, our fans and the NFL. I obviously have a great deal of respect for Ralph Wilson and the history we have shared."

The NFL fined former 49ers owner Eddie DeBartolo $1 million after he pleaded guilty to a felony and suspended him for the 1999 season.

Since then, the biggest fine handed down by the NFL to an individual was $500,000 to New England coach Bill Belichick for the Spygate scandal. The league also fined the New York Jets and former coach Eric Mangini $125,000 in September for violating its rules on injury reporting with Brett Favre last season.

Adams and Wilson were original owners in the American Football League, and Sunday's matchup was a legacy game with both teams wearing throwback uniforms. Wilson was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame this year, and the two franchises have been involved in some emotional playoff games.

The Bills staged the greatest comeback in NFL history on Jan. 3, 1993, against what was then the Houston Oilers in a 41-38 overtime victory, while the Titans pulled off the Music City Miracle in 2000, a game-winning kickoff return for a touchdown with 3 seconds remaining.

Titans coach Jeff Fisher said he knew that Adams had been excited for this game because of the 50th anniversary of the AFL and because Wilson was coming in for it.

"They're close. There's been some tremendous matchups over the years between the two clubs. The playoff loss there, the Music City Miracle here ... There's a great deal of history here. I know this was a game he'd been looking forward to," Fisher said.

This isn't the first time Goodell has punished someone with the Titans. He handed down a five-game suspension to defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth in October 2006 for swiping his foot across the head of Dallas center Andre Gurode.

Players have been fined for the NFL for making this same gesture that Adams made. San Francisco kicker Joe Nedney was fined $7,500 in October 2007, and Michael Vick was fined $10,000 and donated $10,000 to charity in 2006 while playing in Atlanta.

"The league holds us as players to a higher standard, so to have an owner flip the bird not once but twice the league has to hold him to the same standard if not more," Bills safety George Wilson said Monday before news of the fine. "He's at the top of the hierarchy. If you don't hold him accountable, then you're questioning the integrity of the system."

Buffalo defensive tackle Marcus Stroud saw footage of Adams on TV but didn't care.

"He owns that team and Mr. Wilson owns our team. That's about the gist of it, as far as it goes with me. It's not like he can come down and strap up and put on any pads or anything like that. It doesn't bother me. If that's what he wants to do, go for it," Stroud said.

-- Teresa M. Walker

Titans want to be in playoff talk 1 way or another

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Listen to the Tennessee Titans talk, and it's clear their swagger is back. So what if they're 3-6?

Redskins vet Carter, young Orakpo bring down QBs

ASHBURN, Va. — One is a 30-year-old veteran who keeps his battered body limber with mixed martial arts, treadmill work and Filipino fighting sticks. The other is a rookie who basically shows up and does his thing.

Together, Andre Carter and Brian Orakpo have the Washington Redskins near the top of the sack charts. They’ve combined for 15 in nine games, including three in the win on Sunday that snapped a four-game losing streak.

"Last year I felt we had some QBs feel very comfortable in the pocket," coach Jim Zorn said Monday. "And this year we are making quarterbacks uncomfortable in the pocket."

Among the scattered bright spots in a 3-6 season has been the resurrection of a long-dormant pass rush. The Redskins already have 24 sacks, matching their total from all of last season. They haven’t finished in the top 15 in sacks since 2004, but right now they are tied for seventh — and the pass defense is allowing a league-low 163 yards per game.

"You can see when a team has extended time what a team can do," Zorn said. "The pressure we’re getting, creating just the sense for the quarterback, ‘I’ve got to get rid of the ball sooner.’ We’ve created some inaccurate throws."

"We’ve seen this with ourselves," added Zorn, a passing reference to the 31 times his own quarterbacks have been taken down, "so we kind of know what it does."

Orakpo, the No. 13 overall draft pick from Texas, has thrived as a combo linebacker-defensive end. He has seven sacks, breaking the franchise rookie record with seven games to spare.

Carter has eight, closing in on double-digits for the third time in his career. He had only four last season, when he was fighting off double teams at every turn. Now, new addition Albert Haynesworth and a healthier Cornelius Griffin have offensive linemen otherwise occupied.

"From analyzing film from last year, I realized it was two-on-one matchups," Carter said. "Usually I’d go against a tackle, and that guard would sit there and wait. Or I’d have a running back chip me. As a pass rusher, it’s like a little flattery, ‘Well, they’ve got two on me, I’ve just got to find a way to get there."’

Carter also overhauled his offseason regimen, doing more speed work, running up inclines and practicing his martial arts, something that has been a part of his life since childhood. He’s not fighting guys in cages, but he’s doing kicks, blocks, jumps and working with weapons, including the fighting sticks, all in the cause of keeping his eye-hand coordination and flexibility up to par.

"I feel the explosive movements has really paid off," he said.

Orakpo joked about a friendly rivalry with Carter for the sacks lead — "He’s stealing my sacks" — and also poked some good fun at his elder’s extensive offseason work.

"I do a normal routine as far as keeping my body in shape, and then once football’s over, I’m done with football," Orakpo said. "When I go home, I relax. I don’t need to do all that extra stuff. But ‘Dre has to because, you know, veterans they have to keep it up. They’re getting old."

Carter and Orakpo were the only players to stop by the media room on a rare "Victory Monday." Zorn gave the players the day off following the 27-17 win over Denver, the first feel-good win of the season and the largest margin of victory in Zorn’s 25 games as coach.

The Redskins were booed as much as cheered in their other two wins, narrow home victories over struggling St. Louis and Tampa Bay.

The late lead against the Broncos gave Carter and Orakpo a chance to do something they’ve hadn’t had a chance to do all season — rush the quarterback with abandon. It also helped that they were facing backup Chris Simms after Kyle Orton hurt his ankle while getting tackled by Orakpo late in the second quarter. Simms completed only 3 of 13 passes in the second half.

"When they change quarterbacks, as a defensive line, you kind of lick your chops a little bit and rub the hands," Carter said. "Someone went down and something happened, and now it’s our time to fluster him, and that’s what happened. He was flustered."

NOTES: CB Carlos Rogers was benched after allowing a long touchdown pass to Brandon Marshall on the Broncos’ first drive. Zorn compared Rogers to a struggling quarterback and said he could be back in the starting lineup against the Cowboys. "He’s not done and we’re not done," Zorn said. "As we work through this week, he may very well be the guy out there." ... The Redskins’ two penalties Sunday were a season low.

-- Joseph White

Redskins’ Portis still feeling concussion effects

ASHBURN, Va. — Clinton Portis is still experiencing "a little blurriness" from his concussion, making it uncertain whether the Washington Redskins running back will play next week against Dallas.

When Portis does come back, he’ll regain his starting job — even though the Redskins had their best rushing day of the season without him.

Coach Jim Zorn said Monday that Portis is improving but continues to feels the effects of a helmet-to-helmet hit against Atlanta on Nov. 8. Portis sat out Sunday’s 27-17 win over Denver, ending his streak of 40 consecutive starts.

"I think the headaches are now gone; I think the ringing’s gone," Zorn said. "But, as he would put it, there’s still a little blurriness. It’s when you move your head real quick. Something’s still there, and day-by-day I think he’s getting better and better."

Zorn said he’ll be cautious with Portis and will need to see a full practice from the two-time Pro Bowl running back before deciding to play him.

The Redskins ran for 174 yards Sunday, led by 114 from Ladell Betts. Portis, who has battled several leg injuries this year, is having one of the worst seasons of his career. He has only one 100-yard game (109 vs. Kansas City) and is averaging just 4.0 yards per carry.

Still, Zorn said Portis remains the No. 1 back.

"I don’t want a guy to have to lose his job because he got a concussion," Zorn said. "He’s our running back. Who knows what kind of game he might have had?"

In other injury news, defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth has a sprained left ankle and will be re-evaluated later in the week. Offensive linemen Mike Williams continues to recover from a sprained ankle, but Zorn said the starting offensive line will remain unchanged for the Dallas game even if Williams is healthy.

The Redskins also signed cornerback Doug Dutch to the practice squad.

-- Joseph White

Court won’t hear complaint about Redskins name

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court won’t hear an appeal from a group of Native Americans who think the name of the NFL’s Washington Redskins football team is offensive.

The high court on Monday turned away an appeal from Suzan Shown Harjo. That ends the latest round in the 17-year court battle between the Redskins and a group of American Indians who want them to change their name.

Harjo and her fellow plaintiffs have been working since 1992 to have the Redskins trademarks declared invalid. They initially won — the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office panel canceled the trademarks in 1999. But U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly overturned the ruling in 2003 in part because the suit was filed decades after the first Redskins trademark was issued in 1967.

The U.S. Court of Appeals then sent the case back to Kollar-Kotelly, noting that the youngest of the plaintiffs was only 1 year old in 1967 and therefore could not have taken legal action at the time.

But Kollar-Kotelly rejected that argument, saying the youngest plaintiff turned 18 in 1984 and therefore "waited almost eight years" after coming of age to join the lawsuit. The Court of Appeals upheld that decision in May, and the Supreme Court now has refused to review that decision.

This doesn’t end the legal battle, however. The plaintiffs have a backup plan: A group of six American Indians ranging in age from 18 to 24 filed essentially the same claim two years ago, but the new case has been on hold until this one was resolved.

None of the judges has commented on whether the Redskins name is offensive or racist, instead holding in favor of the football team on legal technicalities.

The case is Harjo v. Pro-Football, Inc., 09-326.

-- Jesse L. Holland

Packers save season with Cowboys win

GREEN BAY, Wis. — In a miserable tailspin one week, solid playoff contenders the next.

That’s life in the NFL for the Green Bay Packers, who might have saved their season with Sunday’s 17-7 victory over the Dallas Cowboys.

After snapping a two-game losing streak, the Packers (5-4) were feeling better about themselves Monday. But they know one big win won’t mean much if they take a step backward in either of the two winnable games they’ll play in an upcoming five-day stretch, home against San Francisco on Sunday and at Detroit on Thanksgiving.

"We had a very positive experience yesterday as a team," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said. "It’s well-documented what’s gone on the last two weeks. We were able to learn from that, carry it forward to our game yesterday, and we need to take that forward to San Francisco."

And they have reinforcements on the way: McCarthy said outside linebacker Aaron Kampman, tight end Jermichael Finley and inside linebacker Brandon Chillar are expected to return from injuries this week.

Kampman is recovering from a concussion and sat out Sunday’s game. Finley, a key cog in the Packers’ passing game, has missed three games with a knee sprain. And Chillar, who missed last week’s loss at Tampa Bay because of a broken hand, didn’t play against the Cowboys, either.

While most of the injury news is good, the Packers do have some nagging issues.

Defensive lineman Cullen Jenkins has ankle swelling, wide receiver Greg Jennings has a knee bruise and linebacker Desmond Bishop has an ankle sprain. Fullback John Kuhn broke his hand Sunday and his availability is unclear.

Meanwhile, the status of veteran right tackle Mark Tauscher’s knee remains unclear, though McCarthy said rookie T.J. Lang played well in his place Sunday.

In all, things were looking up at Lambeau Field for the first time in weeks after losses to Minnesota and Tampa Bay.

Thanks in large part to Sunday’s aggressive, complete effort by a defense that had wilted at critical times earlier this season, the Packers now are in the thick of the NFC wild card race.

They’re 5-4, tied with the teams that appear to be shaping up as their primary rivals for the wild card: Philadelphia, New York and Atlanta.

"This won’t mean anything if we don’t win next week," said cornerback Charles Woodson, who played one of the best games of his Packers career with two forced fumbles and an interception. "This game was fun. It was FUN. And it could be fun the rest of the season. But it could also be tough if we don’t do what we need to do."

And while it might seemed like an overstatement to say the season was on the line Sunday — it’s still November, after all — players acknowledged that a loss would have been huge.

"The resolve of the team, I think, was tested," quarterback Aaron Rodgers said. "And I think we proved some stuff not only to our fans, but to ourselves and to the rest of the league."

To be sure, the Packers have plenty of work to do to make it to the playoffs. After San Francisco and Detroit, their schedule really turns rough.

First comes a Monday night home game against Baltimore. The final four games have three on the road, including visits to Pittsburgh and Arizona.

And while the defense and special teams looked much better Sunday — with the exception of Jeremy Kapinos, whom McCarthy said "needs to punt better" — the Packers still experienced familiar problems on offense Sunday.

Rodgers remains under siege, taking another four sacks to run the Packers’ league-worst total to 41.

Rodgers still holds on to the ball too long in certain situations, although he did a better throwing the ball away. The Packers also used more short passes and screens to fend off pressure, with mixed results.

And penalties remain a major problem; the Packers had 12 on Sunday.

"It was a struggle," offensive coordinator Joe Philbin said. "We had a bunch of penalties called on us, which is not good; had a couple negative runs; had some sacks, per usual. It was a battle.

"Time will tell. We have to see. We need to prove that we can do that on the field on a Sunday. Not have a meeting about it, talk about it, pontificate about it. We’ve got to see if we can do it. I don’t know."

-- Chris Jenkins