injuries abound this pre season

Injured Houston Texans receiver Harry Williams will have surgery Sunday to repair a neck vertebra he fractured during a preseason game Friday night.

The 26-year-old Williams was hurt early in the Texans' 23-22 loss to the Cowboys when he collided with teammate Nick Ferguson while covering a kick return.

Williams was taken off the field on a stretcher and an ambulance took him to Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas. Team doctor Walter Lowe said early Saturday morning that Williams had regained feeling in his extremities and most of his normal neurological function.

Later in the day, Houston coach Gary Kubiak said Williams' condition hadn't changed and that family members had joined the receiver in Dallas and that the Texans would update Williams' condition on Sunday.

"He's in good spirits," Kubiak said.


Palmer leaves game in first half with bloody nose, cut lip
Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer got roughed up again during a preseason game against the New Orleans Saints on Saturday night, leaving late in the first half with a bloody nose and a cut lip.

Palmer was sacked three times in the first half, the last on a safety blitz by Kevin Kaesviharn with 2 seconds left. He walked off the field with blood spilling down the front of his face, then headed to the locker room with a towel covering his head. He didn't return for the second half.

Palmer got knocked to the ground five times during a 27-10 loss to Detroit a week earlier.

He was 11-of-16 against the Saints for 105 yards, working with a receiving corps missing Pro Bowl receivers T.J. Houshmandzadeh and Chad Johnson due to injury. Two of their backups also were hurt in the week leading up to the game.

The Bengals crossed midfield just once -- and by only 1 yard -- on six possessions in the first half. They managed only four first downs and 94 total yards while falling behind 10-0.

Bucs linebacker carted off field after collision
Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Antoine Cash was carted off the field on a stabilizing board after his head collided with teammate Marcus Hamilton.

Cash was injured when he lunged and appeared to hit Hamilton in the upper leg or hip as the cornerback was making a tackle on Jaguars receiver Troy Williamson. Hamilton was also shaken up, but limped off the field with assistance from one of the Buccaneers.

The injury came with 8:24 remaining in Tampa Bay's preseason game with Jacksonville at Raymond James Stadium. Players from both teams gathered around Cash and prayed as he was being treated by medical personnel.

After the game, Bucs coach Jon Gruden said Cash had movement in his extremities, but he had injured his neck.

"We don't know the exact severity, but he is moving around," Bucs coach Jon Gruden said after the game, won by the Jaguars 23-17. "The signs are good, but it's a scary thing. We're praying for him obviously, but we do have good news from the standpoint that he is moving around."

Taylor to undergo MRI after spraining right knee vs. Panthers
Washington Redskins defensive end Jason Taylor left Saturday's 47-3 preseason loss to Carolina with a sprained right knee.
Coach Jim Zorn indicated an initial X-ray showed no serious damage, but said Taylor would undergo an MRI on Sunday.

The six-time Pro Bowl pick, acquired in a trade with Miami last month, was hurt when his leg bent awkwardly after he ended up in the middle of the pile following DeAngelo Williams' 5-yard run midway through the second quarter.

Taylor immediately screamed in pain and was attended to for several minutes on the field. He walked off the field on his own, but put little pressure on his right leg. He did not return and wasn't in the locker room after the game.

"I spoke to him. He's in good spirits," defensive end Andre Carter said. "We'll just have to see."

Taylor, who has started 130 consecutive regular-season games, spent the previous 11 seasons in Miami. But he angered the Dolphins for appearing on the television show "Dancing With the Stars" rather than working out with the team this offseason and was later dealt to the Redskins for two draft picks.

The Redskins gave up five touchdowns on five possessions after Taylor left.

"When he flipped over and they pulled down his sock, that's a very bad sign," Zorn said. "I don't know if it took some steam out of us, but it was a touchy situation."


Giants' Umenyiora injures knee, will have MRI on Today
Pro Bowl defensive end Osi Umenyiora injured his left knee in the second quarter of the New York Giants' preseason game against the New York Jets, but coach Tom Coughlin said that early indications are that he did not suffer ligament damage.

X-rays taken during the Jets' 10-7 win were negative. An MRI is planned on Sunday.
"I talked to him when he was in the locker room, in the training room," fellow defensive end Justin Tuck said of a halftime exchange. "Obviously, he was down. It's unfortunate when any injury occurs, but hopefully, it is nothing serious and he will not miss any time."

Umenyiora left the locker room before the game ended and was not available for comment.

Umenyiora told Tuck that "he was good," Tuck said.

The two-time Pro Bowler was hurt with 10:48 left in the half on a third-down incomplete pass by the Jets' Brett Favre.

Defensive tackle Barry Cofield did not get a chance to talk to Umenyiora but he recalled the play.

"It looked like he was turning the corner and just kind of took an awkward step," Cofield said. "The turf is hard and playing at that speed on that edge, you can tweak things."

The 26-year-old could not put any weight on his leg. He was helped off the field with his arms wrapped around the shoulders of two trainers.

Coughlin said Umenyiora was in pain.

"The doctors told me there was no ligament damage," Coughlin said when pressed.

Umenyiora started all 16 games last season and had 52 tackles and a team-high 13 sacks. He added seven tackles in the Giants' run to the Super Bowl.

The Giants are a bit thin at defensive end this season with the retirement of seven-time Pro Bowler Michael Strahan. Justin Tuck has replaced Strahan. New York also signed veteran Renaldo Wynn in the offseason.

If Umenyiora was sidelined for any considerable time, the Giants could move strongside linebacker Mathias Kiwanuka back to defensive end. He was switched to linebacker last year so the team could put its best 11 players on the field.

"You are always concerned any time a player like that goes down," Kiwanuka said. "That's not good. We know the type of player he is and if he can come back he will. But we have the personal to step up in his absence."

Kiwanuka sidestepped moving back to defensive end, saying that decision is up to the team.