PRO FOOTBALL / DAILY REPORT : AROUND THE NFL : Conway Among Injured Bears

Injuries came in bunches at the Chicago Bears’ training camp at Platteville, Wis., with reserve defensive lineman Tim Ryan and rookie free-agent tackle Tony Nichols suffering knee injuries within minutes of each other in a morning scrimmage. Both could be sidelined for weeks.

Ryan, Nichols and No. 1 running back Neal Anderson, who injured a hamstring earlier in the week, flew back to Chicago for tests and returned Friday night.

Ten minutes before Ryan’s injury, wide receiver Curtis Conway, the Bears’ No. 1 draft pick from USC, twisted his right ankle on a deep pass play when he got tangled with cornerback Richard Fain. Conway appeared at the afternoon practice but didn’t participate.

During the second practice, safety John Mangum pulled a hamstring and cornerback Donnell Woolford was dazed and cut his lip.

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Denver Bronco owner Pat Bowlen admitted the strained relationship between former coach Dan Reeves and quarterback John Elway was a factor in Reeves’ firing.

However, Elway did not lobby for Reeves’ dismissal, Bowlen said.

“There were a number of things that influenced my decision,” Bowlen said. “But quarterbacks, even though they are franchise players, do not pick head coaches. Owners pick head coaches.”

Thursday, the Reeves-Elway feud escalated when Elway was quoted in a Denver newspaper as saying life under Reeves was “hell,” and the coach saying that it “wasn’t heaven.”

Elway said he regretted what he said about Reeves, but that he stood by his comments.

“Every year I say something stupid,” Elway said. “This year I’ve gotten it out of the way early.”

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Cleveland Brown defensive lineman Michael Dean Perry returned to camp after a two-day walkout that followed an on-field exchange with Coach Bill Belichick. He was fined $4,000. Perry has one year remaining on his contract and has said he would like to leave the Browns.

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Harold Green, Cincinnati’s top running back, was a holdout on the first day veterans were due at Wilmington, Ohio. Green, 25, was eighth among NFL rushers last year with 1,170 yards. He also led the Bengals in pass receptions. Cincinnati is said to be offering about $1.2 million a season for a multiyear deal.

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Ken Willis, who was expected to challenge Matt Bahr for the kicker’s job on the New York Giants, will probably miss the season because of a severe stress fracture in his lower left leg, the New York Times reported.

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Kansas City cornerback Albert Lewis will miss at least six weeks after undergoing surgery to repair a broken left arm.

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Seattle’s Cortez Kennedy, the NFL defensive player of the year, was a no-show as the Seahawks opened full-squad training camp, apparently because he wants to renegotiate his contract. Kennedy is scheduled to make a base salary of $975,000 this season, the fourth year of his five-year, $6.75-million contract.